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Everyday Life C – Shylock's Rhapsody

At first, the rumours had all been true.

                                        “Hey, have you heard?..”

        “That guy, Shizuo Heiwajima...”                “Shizuo, he...”                        “That guy...”

                “He was walking around with some little girl...”        “Shizuo Heiwajima is...”

                                                “She was only about 9 years old...”

“I heard he got into trouble with the Yakuza...”         “He climbed a building with his bare hands!...”

                “He sent a car rolling with just a kick...”                “He got stabbed by some lady...”

                        “But the knife wouldn't go in, it just fell straight to the ground!”

“... saw him jump out of a moving truck, carrying a girl...” “He threw a motorbike with one arm!”

                                        “That guy's superhuman.”

These rumours were spreading through the net, and through word of mouth.

Amongst all of the things that happened over the holidays, a certain trend appeared.

The topic of a single man had started to stand out amongst the rest, as if he had been raging about every part of Ikebukuro for the entire holiday.

He was an existence which, from the start, stood out in that city as 'The man wearing a bartender's uniform', whether one liked him or not.

If it was just his uniform, one might simply think he was a customer puller, and all would be well. But his blonde hair and sunglasses, along with the way he would always be walking around with a man with dreadlocks, created and image that said 'It would be better to stay away from him'.

However, the more a person got to know him, the more they would start to reassess their attitude towards him.

From 'Better to stay away from him', people would change to various opinions, like 'Never EVER go near him', 'He's a nicer guy than I thought', 'If you see him, run', 'Pray to your gods', 'Give up', but these evaluations were always extreme.

With a certain vigour, as if they were explaining some kind of monster they had never seen before, their extreme opinions would invite further extreme rumours, which would then twist the truth into some even more extreme.

                                        “Hey, have you heard?..”

        “That guy, Shizuo Heiwajima...”                        “That monster...”

                        “I heard he died...”

        “He got hit by a car, and was sent flying...”                “He was trying to protect that girl...”

        “He ended up in some dump somewhere...”         “Shizuo, he...”         “That guy...”

“I heard he got hit by a motorbike...” “He got into trouble with the Yakuza, and fell off a building...”

        “No, he got stabbed by some lady, and died...”        “Seriously?..”         “The kid was there...”

                                        “So he was human, then?”

Utter nonsense.

I their own way, they were extreme rumours... But the particular phrase 'Shizuo is dead' became a great shock to certain people, and the rumours spread like wildfire.

Amidst all this, one of the rumours had received an amendment.

Would getting hit by a car truly kill Shizuo Heiwajima?

The answer is 'no'.

Those who knew Shizuo, and those who were more interested in the rumours about him, could say this with some conviction.

“Shizuo Heiwajima would not bite the dust quite so easily.”

That absolute belief brought about a change in this rumour.

As it was moulded by peoples reason, prejudices, and desires, the rumour became more and more focused, till it came to a united 'form'.

A rumour which has spread too far, can sometimes become an urban legend.

When an urban legend is given a clear 'form', it spreads even further, and deeper.

For example, amongst these young delinquents, who had gathered inside a club.

“Oi, have you heard?”

“Heard what?”

“About Shizuo Heiwajima.”

“...... What's that monster done now?”

“That guy...... I heard he got hit by a truck, and was injured pretty bad.”

“...... Serious?”

“Yeah. He was being chased by Yakuza, and jumped off a building and it just went...... 'bang', straight into him.”

“Meaning...... He'd be pretty beat up right now?”

For example, amongst the drug dealers who had wanted to crush Shizuo themselves, to make their name known.

“But, knowing that guy, wouldn't he just stand up and walk away like nothin' happened?”

“No matter how hurt he is, I wouldn't pick a fight with that guy as long as he can stand.”

“I ain't scared, it's just... I'd wanna make sure he was really dead, you know?”

“In that case, I have heard one other thing...”

“What?”

“Apparently he got himself a woman.”

“Seriously!?”

“Yeah, sounds like he's been walking around town with some lady all the time recently.”

For example, amongst the remnants of a team who had been destroyed by Shizuo once before.

“...... Shizuo being weakened, surely this is a once in a lifetime chance......”

“Well, that woman coulda just been showing him around or something...”

“No, listen to this! That lady, apparently there was a kid following her around too!”

“Huh?”

“You should take a seat for this. It sounds like that Shizuo has a kid! And she's already around primary school age!”

“You're joking!”

“I mean, that guy too young isn't he?”

“I heard that it's just some girl he used to go out with in high school, who came up to him one day and said 'this girl is your daughter'.”

It was all just utter nonsense, but in the end, they all completely believed it.

The reason they did, was because these rumours managed to stir up some sort of 'desires' from deep within their hearts.

Rather than actual belief, it was more like they were clinging to some sort of hope. As if they were thinking 'I really hope this is true', the whole time.

And the result of the desires of these people who believed in rumours...

“...... Right now, even we could......”

“Even we could take out Shizuo Heiwajima, couldn't we?.....”

These rumours flowed through the city in just one day.

And they stirred part of the community into action.

Action, which anybody who knew the full truth would know, would only lead them to their destruction.

♂♀

May 5th, noon, somewhere in Ikebukuro, an old-looking apartment.

The apartment building appeared to have been built around thirty years ago.

Outside of one particular apartment, the sound of a door being knocked could be heard.

“Mr. Sugawa. I know you're in there, Mr. Sandayuu Sugawa!”

In rhythm with the 'knock knock' sound he was making, a young man called out.

After some time, the door clicked open, and a seedy face peered out from within.

“Hey, hi there. I'm sure you already understand why we're here today.”

The man with dreadlocks spoke with a stern face and a strict voice.

Behind him stood a man wearing a bartender's uniform, yawning loudly.

The man had blonde hair, wore sunglasses, and had quite a 'bodyguard' aura about him.

As the young man became frightened upon seeing these two, the man with dreadlocks indifferently began to speak his business.

“So, why don't you just hand over the cash, huh.”

Tom Tanaka was a debt collector.

However, he was not involved in any sort of shady, illegal loans.

He belonged to a company which managed a wide range of normal things, like brothels, telephone dating services, dating websites, and 'video' rentals.

His job was to collect the late-fees which had to be paid by people who had delayed their normal payments... In the end, his work was all within the law.

But then, there are certain cases of debt repayment which technically should be left to actual lawyers, and in the case of 'video' rentals and the like, it wasn't always confirmed whether they were an officially certified business or not.

Consequently, his line of work was in a 'grey-zone' slightly closer to black than, say, the money conversion system used by pachinko parlours. But today, Tom continued this work without a care.

If their job was to collect debts from lonely old pensioners, then Tom, and the man behind him wearing a bartender's uniform... Shizuo Heiwajima, would have quit a long time ago.

But, no matter how one looked at it, people who had failed to pay money for erotic videos, or phone-sex lines didn't really deserve their sympathy.

Of course, if they were told 'I was using that phone service to try and search for my long-lost little sister!', then they would at least take the time to confirm or deny it, but the person in front of Tom right now was not one of these cases.

So, he didn't try to fool himself into thinking this was a particularly honest job, but he also didn't think it was that much worse than any other line of work.

Furthermore, amongst those who had delayed their payments, there were many who had had no intention of paying in the first place, and there were even some amongst them who were engaged in illegal activities, so their job constantly placed them in some amount of danger.

It was for this reason that he was always accompanied by his helper, the bodyguard standing behind him, Shizuo Heiwajima, but...

“As I said, we can straighten this out in court if you really want to do that. But wouldn't that be wasting everybody's time? We ain't ripping you off or anything, and we ain't asking for more than we told you from the start. Actually, first you need to return that damn video you borrowed from our place! Seriously, how do you even rack up a debt of 150,000 yen, when the late fee is only 200 yen a day!?”

“Hey, wait a sec! I ain't said anythin' about not payin'! I just put the dub I made up on a net auction! I pay the damn fees as soon as it sells!”

“Dub......! Oi, you, are you kidding me right now? That's directly interfering with our business there... Well, whatever, I'll put that aside for today, but you gotta choose now. The video, or the money?”

It seemed he had confirmed that the man he was talking to was an even more despicable human than he had first thought, and decided that talk was going to be useless. In order to finish his business as quickly as possible, Tom began trying to walk into the house.

Looking as if he was about to cry, the man pushed Tom back, and raised his voice.

“W-w-wait, I said! I get it! I'll pay! I'll pay, all right?”

“I'm glad you understand. Whatever you don't have on you, you can just borrow from some loan shark, ok?”

He folded nice and easily.

Tom began to think this, but...

With a vulgar expression rising to his face, the man looked over Tom's shoulder, and spoke towards the man standing on the walkway which lead to the apartment.

“Well, what I mean is... You'll pay it all for me, won't you? Shizuo Heiwajima?”

“Wai- what are y-......”

“...... Haa?”

At the sudden mention of Shizuo's name, Tom's body froze, and the man himself turned his head towards them with a scowl on his face.

This is bad.

I have a bad feeling about this.

Tom could see Shizuo snapping any second now, and took a step away from the door.

Then, as he backed away, he calmly asked Shizuo a question.

“Just so I know, is this guy a friend of yours?”

“...... Nope...... I've never met him before.”

As Shizuo tilted his head, with a cross look on his face, the man inside the apartment grinned, and started to talk.

“Ahh, it's just, you're a pretty famous guy, you know. I knew who it was as soon as I saw that bartender's uniform.”

“Aah?......”

Shizuo was clearly becoming more and more agitated, and Tom was distancing himself from the two of them at the same rate.

Without noticing any of this, the indebted man continued to step towards all the pains of Hell.

“So, I heard you're the big brother of that Yuuhei Hanejima, huh?”

“......!”

ffFFF.....!

Hearing the man's words, Tom almost screamed out loud.

Hey, I heard nothing about this!

“Ohh...... And, if I really was that guy's big brother, what's it to you?.....”

“Your little brother is super-rich, right? Surely he's sharing a bit of that cash with you, so you should have money lying around, right?”

If I knew this guy wanted to die so badly, I would have made Shizuo wait somewhere further away!

After Tom had walked down the stairs of the building, and found shelter on the floor below...

The man spoke his finishing blow.

“So, if you don't want the whole world knowing that a hooligan like you is his big brother, you'll get your money, and......”

Of course, he would be the one being 'finished'.

-crack- The sound of a part of something being pulled out of place.

At the same time, the man's words suddenly stopped.

This was of little wonder, as Shizuo had just grabbed the man's face with his right hand, at the same time completely dislocating his jaw.

“...... And? You were saying something about money?”

http://postimg.org/image/xrhpk3kzl/

Shizuo brought his hand away, and the lower jaw of the man hung there loosely.

It was opened so wide that a fist could easily fit. The lower half of his wide-opened mouth was swaying slowly, side to side, like a Cat's Cradle. He timidly felt his face with both hands, but it seemed as if the man still hadn't realised what had been done to him.

“A-, a-ga-ga-ga? A-ga?”

“Ah, it probably doesn't matter. Shut that vulgar mouth.”

“A-, a-gaa, a-ga-ga-ga-ga!”

Shizuo took one step towards the man who was in no state to close his mouth, even if he wanted to...

“...... Didn't I tell you...... To shut your god-damned mouth already!?”

Tom could hear his angry voice from outside of the building.

And just a moment after, he heard some sort of violent noise...

Tom looked up, and at almost the same time, a window on the second floors was smashed.

The reason the window had broken needn't be asked, as the answer was already reflected in Tom's eyes.

The body of the indebted man had broken through the window, and fell straight down... Colliding with several branches of a tree planted in a garden outside the building, he fell straight to Tom's side.

However, on his way down, one of the branches caught on his clothes, and the man ended up swinging on the tree right in front of Tom.

“Hey, you have pretty good luck.”

“N-, n-noo...... The p-police...... I'll t-tell th-the, t-th......”

Perhaps Shizuo had relocated his lower jaw for him, as the man's mouth seemed to be working again, miraculously.

As he looked up at the man who had complained about Shizuo in a quivering voice, Tom calmly asked a question.

“And you're going to tell them what, exactly?”

“...... E-, eh?”

“...... You gonna say, 'I borrowed a naughty video, then tried to sell copies of it illegally, so they got angry at me. Then when I tried to blackmail one of the debt collectors, he beat me up'? That should be an interesting court case. Your mummy and daddy might even come to watch, huh.”

“......!”

“Well, if you make the wise decision that you don't wanna become so famous over this, then I'm sure we can at least pay for the broken window.”

As he brushed away one of his locks which had been brushing against his ear, Tom shrugged and murmured to himself.

“Though, I guess we'll just be taking it off your late fees, anyway.”

♂♀

Ten minutes later, somewhere in Ikebukuro.

“Good grief, they can say things like that, because you never actually kill them.”*

“...... I'm sorry, Tom-san.”

They were on their way from the last collection site, to the Ikebukuro Station.

It seemed that Tom was lecturing Shizuo about what he had done.

“Couldn't you maybe just, I dunno, do something a bit more safe? Like crush a 500 yen coin in front of their face, to scare them or something? You could do something like that with just one finger, surely.”

“Yeah...... But, I don't think you're allowed to just mess around with coins like that, it's against the law.”

“What?...... Well then, you probably shouldn't. Let's think of something else.”

With their strange conversation somehow meshing together, the two of them continued walking through the crowds, while thinking.

“Really, that guy from before was the real idiot. Picking a fight with you, when he obviously knew who you were...... Rather, it actually seemed like all he knew about you was that you're Kasuka's big brother, huh.”

“...... Seemed like it.”

“If it were those punks over there, just seeing you would have enough of an effect...... But lately there have been a lot more people who don't know, like that idiot just now.”

“...... I'm sorry.”

Tom turned back with a confused look on his face, to see Shizuo looking back at him meekly.

“Huh? Why are you apologising?”

“Eh...... Well, I mean... If only I was better at my job...”

“That is completely unrelated when it comes to fools like him. Honestly, I was scolding you before, but really you're doing a great job. I've always felt really bad for dragging you around to dangerous jobs like this, from the start.”

Tom spoke indifferently, while turning away from Shizuo.

Shizuo, looking at the back of his employee...

“...... Thank you very much.”

… murmured his gratitude, but somehow he himself didn't really seem satisfied.

Noticing Shizuo's discontent, Tom sighed, looked at his wristwatch, and spoke.

“It's a little early, but let's go for lunch.”

“I guess we can treat ourselves once in a while, so let's go to Russian Sushi.”

♂♀

At Russian Sushi.

This woman was truly displeased.

As a result of her forcing all of her feelings – despair, anger, frustration – deep down inside herself... Her face was now sullen, almost to the point of being expressionless.

But, with her naturally well-sculpted looks, her expression almost felt lazy.

Whether or not he knew her true feelings, the Caucasian shop owner behind the counter spoke, while looking at her scowling face.

“Oi, Varona. We serve actual customers here, so quit your frowning.”

“...... Negative. My face has formed no such melancholic expression. It is as normal.”

The woman he had called Varona answered with slightly strange speech patterns.

Hearing their exchange, the dark man who had been cleaning tables spoke up with a refreshing smile on his face.

“Ohh, no good Varona. That face is no good. The customer is god, yes? The gods surely have big hearts, yes? If we visit the Buddha three times, we must pray to the gods one hundred, yes. Pray to Ebisu one hundred times, great for business! This is why you should make an Ebisu-face, yes?”

“Incomprehensible. Your Japanese goes beyond bizarre, Samya.”

Behind the counter, the chef murmured '…... Coming from you?', but Varona only ignored him, and turned her eyes away, keeping the sour look on her face.

“Besides...... I just stood by as my partner was killed. Reaching that state of mind at this point in time, is impossible.”

Varona was a freelance Jill-of-all-trades.

After coming to Japan, she had been hired by many people, and had stained her hands with various crimes.

Everything from assassination, to smuggling weapons, and eventually even kidnapping... Enough that if she were caught by the police, she would likely be living the rest of her life in jail, or be extradited back to Russia.

Along with her partner, Slon, they had performed many jobs like this in Ikebukuro, but...

They had set their eyes on a Yakuza gang, called the Awakusu Group, and as a result, Slon had been shot in both legs, and carried off somewhere. It was best if she didn't continue to hope for his survival. At least, that was what she had decided.

On the other hand, she was...

…...

At this point, she realised something.

She realised that the reason she was feeling so displeased right now, was not because she was mourning Slon.

The owner behind the counter asked Varona a question, as he sharpened a large knife.

“From the start, you must have been prepared for it to end up like this, no?...... Didn't you already lose three other comrades on your way to Japan? I can't really believe that a person who still came here after all of that, without taking revenge, would now start raging about as some sort of revenge for her partner.”

“...... When it came to death, I was to be first. I had firmly believed this...... In the motherland, as I was a woman, my more foolish enemies would let their guards down. As a result, Slon and I were able to survive.”

Varona spoke softly, as I talking to herself, and cast her eye's downward.

“This time was more humiliating. At the moment when we were both supposed to die, my life was permitted to continue, only because of the influence of my father...... Disgraceful.”

In reality, her heart was being attacked by an overwhelming sense of stress.

Not in relation to the loss of her comrade.

If she were the type to value another person's life so highly, she would have avoided this sort of incident in the first place.

She simply could not forgive herself.

I want to destroy, anything and everything.

Including myself.

Only a few hours ago... Right after she had woken up, her heart had been taken over by this impulse.

As this impulse took control, and caused her to begin acting violently, she was immediately subdued by the two workers of Russian Sushi, and it quickly disappeared.

“Calm down. It's your choice if you want to start some sort of revenge against the Awakusu Group, but don't start messing up my shop.”

Denis reprimanded her as she was being held down easily by Samya.

However, her impulse ended up being held down along with her.

“Am I...... Weak?”

As she asked the two of them this, with Denis replying 'Weaker than Master Drakon, at least', and Samya saying 'That isn't something for us to decide, is it?', she thought upon the meaning of their answers, and her usual calm composure began to return to her.

Knowing herself that it was impossible, she asked anyway, ''Will we be able to save Slon?'... Of course, the answer she received was not a favourable one. And with this, she understood something.

“It's because you're not doing anything that you think such stupid thoughts.”

Telling her this, Denis began trying to get her to help with the shop.

Varona didn't think of their attitude as being particularly cold-hearted.

Back when she was under the command of Lingerin, even on official duties, the death of her comrades was almost an everyday occurrence, and even if they did have time to mourn their fallen, it was always done while they continued forward.

Feeling that letting her actions be taken over by her rage would bring her no benefit, she decided to listen to the words of the two men before her for now, but...

I really don't look good as a waitress.

Wearing a women's uniform, Varona patrolled the store.

This place did strongly remind her of home, but the fact that the main interior design was that of a sushi shop, gave her a strange, out of place feeling that she just couldn't shake.

It gave a slightly mistaken impression of Russia, as if it were a scene from a movie made in some country far away from Russia itself.

Lingerin would probably enjoy it, but father would find it shameful.

As she breathed a sigh inside that peculiar scene, she turned her eyes towards the two Russian men, continuing their work.

…... Why are these two even doing this? Denis and Samya... Setting up a shop in a place like this, I can't help but think there's something wrong with them.

She had heard that before they started working with Lingerin, the two of them had not worked together, but a few years ago, they both suddenly moved to Japan.

I'm sure Denis would have been making a killing working under Lingerin, but......

Starting up a shop her, in such an expensive are, must have already depleted most of those savings.

…...

No, I won't pry into it.

This morning, after subduing and calming her down, the two of them had not tried to ask for any details about her actions. If they were not going to pry into her affairs, then she thought she should do the same.

However, upon turning her feelings away from that trifle matter, she couldn't help but recall her memories of the last few days.

…... What...... am I doing.

She had only wanted to test the limits of humans.

It was a question which she was never able to answer by reading books since her younger days.

This question she held, before she knew it, had become her reason for living.

But there was one thing that she had been taught over these last few days.

Within herself... She may not have the power needed to find the truth to this question.

I am weak.

She had been shown this.

The Black Rider was a true monster, so that was fine.

She had thought that, for her, the bartender uniform wearing man, would be the opponent most worth testing.

But that night, she had been unable to even lay a hand on those top-dogs of the Awakusu Group.

Which means, everything I've done up till now, has been......

It felt as if her pleasures, her past, and her hopes for the future had all been denied, and the weakness of mind she showed by thinking this, and the physical weakness of not being able to rescue Slon, brought to her a deep anger.

Burdened by these thoughts, she continued to stand around the shop.

Denis had said to her, 'For now, you can just watch us work, then go ahead and plagiarise', but how, and what exactly he wanted her to 'plagiarise', was not said. For starters, she had absolutely no shred of experience in customer service. She had learned many tricks of the trade, simply from reading books, but she had never learned anything about a shop that combined Russia and sushi, in books or real life.

In any case...

Since the shop had opened to customers for the day, she had been standing in the same spot, watching the other two work, but...

She realised that the glances of the customers who had walked in had started to gather on her.

?

Are they just surprised to see a foreigner?

But they don't seem too bothered by Denis and Simon.

She didn't take into consideration the fact that she was a woman, and her physical appearance, at all.

In the eyes of regular customer, an unknown female employee had suddenly appeared. And in the eyes of a new customer, they couldn't help but take notice of the glamorous female standing intimidatingly in the corner, with a sullen look on her face.

Suddenly Simon said something strange to a pair of customers, who still looked to be children.

“Ohh, Seiji my young man, are you interested in that girl? That one is called Varona, yes? Taking her home with you, is OK. Young boy, you could have your girlfriend, and a lover. A flower in each hand! Rice gets more delicious when you eat with people you love! 10 people have taken her home with their sushi before, yes?”

…...

I never heard anything about this.

I see, so this shop has that kind of service?

…...I don't mind them paying for my skills, getting me to do a job like normal, but......

I'll humbly decline any offers to buy my body itself.

Without realising that Simon had simply been making a joke, Varona frowned even more than usual as she spoke.

“...... Negative. I have no obligation to save your business by selling my body. I will boycott this operation. However, if you're telling me to do this at the request of a client, I shall accede.”

“Ohh, is this one of the Japanese sexual harassment trials? Sexual harassment is bad, yes? People who do that must remove their stomachs! Take out your stomach, and you can not eat sushi any more, you will send me bankrupt!”

Simon laughed as he said this, but Varona didn't quite understand what he was talking about.

They both had their own special, strange ways of speaking Japanese, and the customers who overheard their exchange smiled wryly, simply looked confused, or had various similar half-hearted reactions before returning to their meals.

Observing these reactions, Varona didn't quite understand them, but began to think that she probably wasn't suited to customer service. Then...

“Oi, Varona. If some bill collectors come to our back door, hand that white envelope on the desk over to them, okay?”

“......”

“Even if you can't serve customers, you should be able to at least hand over some money.”

“...... Affirmative.”

Without being able to say anything more in return, Varona began to walk through the shop's kitchen, in the direction of the back door.

She had picked up the thick envelope, which was on a desk in the office located next to the back exit, and opened the back door, but...

“Oh?”

There, stood a man, one who she could remember.

“......!”

Varona immediately raised her guard, and moved to kick the man where it would hurt him most.

“Upsy-daisy.”

The man stopped the kick which was aiming for him, with one hand, and then forcefully pushed it back away from him.

At the same time, he had swept her remaining leg out from under her, and before she realised it, Varona had landed on her rear.

The reason she felt no pain, was likely because the man had regulated his force such that she wouldn't.

“......Tch.”

If only I had a weapon.

While despising herself for being unable to think of any plans that didn't rely on her equipment... Varona glared at the man standing before her, in his garish suit.

“So scary. I only came to get the crab-money we were owed, and thought I could check up on the sleeping beauty at the same time, but I didn't think you'd come out to greet me yourself. I thought you'd still be fast asleep... Well, I guess this means I'll have to leave my caviar sushi for another time.”

“Akabayashi!......”

“Oh? You remembered my name? That makes me happy. Having my name remembered by such a beauty like you.”

The lightly smiling man... Akabayashi, with completely unguarded movements, took the envelope straight from Varona's hands, then turned away from her.

“You must pardon me. I'd love to stay and play with you for a little while longer, but I have to go and escort a different little princess now. Maybe next time, ok?”

“I request that you maintain your position! You must tell me, has the execution of Slon already been performed!?”

“Oi, oi, gimme a break. What would happen if somebody heard you saying stuff like 'execution'?”

Turning to face her in a rush, Akabayashi responded, while shrugging his shoulders.

“Well, in the end it's all up to him, whether we bury him, or spare him.”

“.....?”

“The fact is, your debt to us has gotta be paid somehow. But Mikiya-san and Aozaki, they're both pretty practical guys, you see. They're probably thinking seriously about whether it would be better to finish him off, or to make him do some work for us.”

Tapping the cane in his hand rhythmically on his shoulder, Akabayashi again turned his back to Varona, still sitting on the ground, and began to walk away.

“Though, I think the one to pass down judgement in the end, will be the boss. Well, if he spills the beans about your employer...... that old guy, Yodogiri, then I'm sure the scales will tip in his favour, at least a little.”

“......”

Should she simply be happy that Slon could still survive, or should she take up arms and bring the fight to the Awakusu immediately, in order to rescue Slon.

Varona continued to sit there, aimlessly, without even knowing how to react to what Akabayashi had told her.

Just how long had it been...

From behind Varona, who had been glaring in the direction Akabayashi had left, she heard a cheerful voice.

“Ohh, so here you were! What's the matter, you have stomach ache?”

“...... Negative. Your concern is unnecessary.”

As Varona started to stand up as if nothing had happened, Simon shrugged his shoulders and asked her a question.

“You get into a fight with Akabayashi? Fighting is bad, it just makes you hungry, yes? And that Akabayashi brings us lots of cheap crab. You kill Akabayashi, and crab gets expensive, then we and our customers just get more and more hungry, yes?”

“Those crabs would be smuggled goods, would they not?”

“As we say, our crab is grown nationally, yes? But we never say which nation, no.”

“......”

Although his words did not relieve her doubts, they did serve to bring her mind back to the present, and she decided to return to the shop.

So...... I guess this is the end.

On the short walk back, dark thoughts rose into her mind.

Even though I stood by as countless comrades were struck down, just to get here......

To end up being rescued by my father, and Lingerin, who I severed any connection with, and betrayed......

I wonder how they would look upon me now. With contempt maybe? Or perhaps pity.

There may not even be any reason for me to continue living now......

After her recent successive defeats, what Akabayashi had just said to her, had taken away her motivation of 'avenging Slon's death'.

No, that's just an excuse.

From the start, I was more disappointed with my own weakness, than I was that Slon had been killed.

What should I even do from now on......

While thinking this, she passed through the kitchen, back into the store, and when she got there...

She saw two men sitting in the seats which had previously been occupied by the young couple.

She knew the face of one of those men.

More than just the face, she remembered him easily by his outfit.

'His' characteristic, was one which was overly obvious to even Varona, who couldn't easily tell the difference between the faces of Japanese people.

After all, on top of his blonde hair and sunglasses, the man was wearing a bartender's uniform.

“Well, you and Kasuka are both overly famous in your own ways, so it's no surprise that guys like that will pop up every now and then. Rather, you should be prepared for that from the start.

“...... Yeah.”

“Of course, I realise you haven't become so famous because you wanted to. I'll make sure to prepare for this sort of thing next time, but it won't be easy.”

“That's true......”

Arriving at Russian Sushi, Tom and Shizuo had ordered a serving of sashimi, and while waiting, they had restarted their conversation from before, but...

“Oh, by the way, have you said your thanks yet to that underground doctor for what he did yesterday?”

“...... Ah, no, not yet.”

“That's no good. He did a lot for you, it doesn't matter if you're childhood friends or whatever, you really should thank him for it.”

“You're right. We've been busy, so I just didn't think.”

Upon saying this, Shizuo brought out his phone, and began calling his acquaintance, the underground doctor.

“...... Ah, Shinra? Yeah, about yesterday... I thought I should thank you again for that...... Huh? Ahh...... I see, ok then, I'll call you again sometime.”

As he was about to leave his seat to take his call outside the shop, Shizuo suddenly sat back down, and cut the call.

“What happened?”

“Ah, he seemed busy, told me to call again tomorrow...... Well, he did almost sound like he was about to cry, though.”

“Oh? Well, guess there's no need to rush then, just call ag-......-ain?”

Seeing a woman who had appeared from the depths of the shop, Tom's words stopped partway out of his mouth.

“Hey, isn't that woman over there staring at us right now?”

“...... Yeah, true. Wait, they never had a worker like that here before, did they?”

Seeing the Caucasian woman staring at them with her mouth wide open, Tom asked the owner behind the counter a question.

“Hey, chief, exactly when did you start employing such a pretty young lady? She's Russian, right?”

“Yeah. She's still just observing though. She's too useless to even carry plates at the moment, so please just think of her as some Russian ornament.”

Tom laughed at the owner's blunt response, and asked another question.

“Chief, how do I say something like, 'you're beautiful', in Russian?”

“...... 'Vi ocharovatelny'.”

“Err... Bee, acherabatennen.”

However, hearing this, the Caucasian woman looked confused at Tom, and spoke to the owner behind the counter.

“...... What is this man saying? It is unintelligible. I question its relation to the Japanese language.”

With a bitter smile, the owner turned his head towards the woman, and spoke to her.

“'Vi ocharovatelny'.”

“...... Why do you suddenly speak these social compliments? Please concisely explain your reasoning.”

“That's what that young man over there just tried to say to you.”

“In which language, exactly?”

Listening to their conversation, Tom tilted his head, and started speaking to Shizuo, beside him.

“Was my pronunciation just now really that bad?”

“Well, I don't really know if it was all that bad, but to a native speaker it might have seemed like it, I guess.”

“I've gone and embarrassed myself now.”

As Tom blushed, and sipped his tea, a combination plate of sashimi was brought to them from behind the counter.

While stretching his chopsticks towards the sashimi, Tom flashed a glance towards the young lady, but...

“Hey, isn't that woman actually glaring at us this time?”

He hesitated for a moment before asking, but decided even Shizuo wasn't enough of an idiot to get angry at the woman and shout 'What the hell are you looking at?', so he just spoke in a low voice.

“Is that so? Oh, this stuff is spicy!”

Eating a Teardrop Roll loaded with plenty of wasabi, Shizuo was being brought to tears himself.

Perhaps he couldn't make out his surroundings through the tears, as he wasn't really looking in the direction of the woman.

“Probably because you were making weird moves on her before, Tom-san.”

“I wonder...... You're probably right.”

As Tom breathed a sigh, and went back to his lunch, the owner raised his voice to him from behind the counter.

“...... By the way, you guys said before that you were short on workers, didn't you?”

“Eh? Ahh, yeah, well it's true that it's getting a bit harder with just Shizuo and I, a lot more people seem to be shirking their bills lately.”

As Tom laughed while answering, the owner said 'I see', then...

He glanced over in the direction of the woman, and said something unbelievable.

“So, any chance you'd want to try using our little ornament over there?”

♂♀

Somewhere in Ikebukuro, in front of a dojo.

It was an area near Zoushigaya Cemetery, lined with various different apartment buildings, family homes, and factories.

In front of a building on one stretch of this road, a mismatched pair were speaking to each other.

“Ok, so, I just brought you to have a look today. If you don't really like it, just say so, ok?”

“Ye-yep.”

Beside the man, Akabayashi, stood a hesitant, nervous looking young girl, Akane Awakusu, wearing casual clothes.

Akane wanted to become strong.

Over the last few days, Akane had been wrapped up in incidents that no normal primary school student... No, that not even a normal adult would ever experience.

Furthermore, rather than just being wrapped up in it, it could be said that she was one of the forces that started that whirlpool of incidents.

Immediately after returning home, after being gone for a few days, she was embraced by her tearful mother, and then lectured quickly after.

But during this lecture, her mother cried out the words 'I'm so glad you're ok!', so many times that Akane didn't really feel her anger, and only felt extremely sorry for what she had done to her mother.

On the other hand, Akane was holding some complex feelings deep within her.

Shizuo Heiwajima.

He was the adult that she had been trying to kill, yet also the man that had saved her.

Akane herself could no longer understand how she felt towards that man.

It was true that she had been saved thanks to Shizuo, but... as to whether or not she should still be trying to kill him, Akane had not found the answer yet.

Right now, Akane could not find any answer, no matter how strange the question itself may seem.

The world she had believed in, was all a lie, made by the people who feared the name of the organisation which supported her, 'Awakusu'. After learning this truth, her entire world had been ground into dust.

And with what happened after this, it seemed as if she would not be allowed to begin reconstructing that world.

The girl who had been falling apart at the seams received a finishing blow, when she had been kidnapped.

On top of this, she had met with things that should not have existed in this world, like a headless rider, and her headless horse.

For the world of the girl which had already been breaking apart, this was enough to melt it into mud.

As a result, this girl was, even to this day, broken somewhere inside.

This was what she had said to Akabayashi, when he had been called to their house earlier that morning by her father.

“How can I become better at killing people?”

Hearing this, the man who was her father's subordinate seemed shocked, but he soon hid this from his face with a wry smile, and asked her a question.

“What's wrong, is there somebody you don't like?”

“No, that's not it, but...... But there's somebody who I have to kill.”

“That doesn't sound too good. Who exactly are we talking about here?”

“...... I can't say.”

As Akane shook her head, Akabayashi showed no anger, or even a troubled look. He simply smiled and continued questioning her.

“Why is that?”

“If I said, you and the other men would go and kill that person, wouldn't you?”

“If we did, would that be bad?”

To this, the most obvious of questions, Akane nodded.

“They're a nice person. But still, I have to kill them.”

It wasn't a very informative answer, but Akabayashi patiently continued his questions.

“So little princess, do you want this person to die?”

“That's not it. I don't want to kill them.”

“...... Ok, so why are you still trying to?”

“Because if I don't, someone very important to me might be killed by them......”

“And who told you that this might happen?”

“...... I'm sorry.”

She looked downwards, with sadness in her eyes.

From this, he concluded that she was saying 'I can't tell', and decided to try asking a different question.

“Is it possible that the one who told you might have been lying?”

“...... I don't know.”

“Before, you said something, like the person you must kill, is a nice person...... Are you certain about that?”

“...... I don't know.”

Akane shook her head again.

But she wasn't just trying to dodge his questions.

“Right now, I don't know. Everybody, everybody, even my friends...... even my friends' mothers...... my teachers...... my dad...... everybody has been lying to me, so...... I don't even know if I can trust you any more Akabayashi-san......”

“......”

“So, even if I think that they are a nice person, I... I can't even trust myself about that...... Um, I... Umm......”

She couldn't even sort out her own thoughts. Akane was looking down, seemingly on the verge of tears, but she continued to choke out her words.

“But, it's no good. I need to be stronger.”

“Why is that?”

“Because, if that person really is a bad person...... If I'm weak, I'll just end up being killed. I can't even think of what I should do if they are really a bad person...... But I can't ask dad and the others for help. Because, they're Yakuza, right? So they would probably just end up killing the person before even trying to find out if they're nice or bad......”

“...... Well this is a shock. Do all primary school girls nowadays, think about this adult stuff like you do?”

Speaking as if in deep admiration, Akabayashi thought for a moment, the spoke with his light smile.

“Well, I guess I'll know some day. First thing's first, in the case that they really are a bad person, if you don't get stronger than they are, it's not even worth talking about. Besides, princess, at your age...... Well, I like to think that even little old me and my buddies bother to find out whether who we're killing is a bad person or not, before we do it......”

Shrugging in self-derision, Akabayashi made on proposal to Akane.

“Well, you know. Just because your opponent is a killer, that doesn't really mean that you yourself have to become better at 'killing'.”

“Eh?”

“It's called 'the art of self-defence'. Rather than learning how to kill bad people, you can become stronger in a way that lets you protect yourself, and the people important to you.”

Then, a few hours later.

Brought along by Akabayashi, Akane now stood before this building.

From the building, hung a sign saying 'Traugott Geissendorfer Affiliation - Rakuei Gym', and on the wall next to the entrance, a poster depicting a brawny looking foreigner was stuck.

“'Affiliation', huh? This old Traugott guy has his hand in the bare-handed combat scene of so many places. This is one of those places, but of course, they're only affiliated with him by name. Not that they seem to mind, I suppose.”*

“...Hmm?”

From Akane's answer, it seemed as if her mind was somewhere else at the time.

She couldn't understand what Akabayashi was talking about, but even before that, her heart had been caught by a strong anxiety.

This was a new place, and she was likely to meet new people.

Of course, she was anxious about the new environment, but... Before that, the thing she most worried about, was that even in this new environment, all she would ever see would be the same fake smiles that she had seen her whole life. That they would all be just as scared of the shadow called the 'Awakusu Group'. Or they could even hate her for it.

Akane's young heart was trying to accept this anxiety, which rose up from her mature thoughts.

Her body was shaking, and just as she started to wonder if she should say that she wanted to leave...

From behind them, they heard the voice of an innocent sounding young girl.

“Ahh! I just spotted an Awakusu scoundrel kidnapping a little girl!”

“!?”

Akane's body began to shake against her will, upon hearing mention of the Awakusu Group.

But at the same time, she realised something was strange.

Even though that young girl had used the word 'Awakusu' out loud, she spoke it with the same overly cheerful voice.

As Akane timidly turned around, Akabayashi spoke with a strained smile.

“Ah, you got me. Little miss Mairu. Are you trying to say I look that evil?”

“But Akabayashi, I can't help it, you just look soo suspicious!”

“Well I guess I give up then.”

As Akabayashi smiled, the young girl cackled laughter.

She looked to be around five or six years older than Akane, and while she had clean twin-plaits in her hair, and was wearing glasses, her energetic personality seemed completely opposite to her looks.

From the uniform she was carrying around, it seemed that she must be a regular at this gym.

“The truth is, this little one is called Akane-chan, and she's the granddaughter of my boss.”

“Eh! So, wait, someday this little girl will turn into a big female boss!?”

“......! ......!”

The matters about her family which she had assumed they were going to keep a secret, were spilling out of Akabayashi's mouth right before her.

With her mouth opening and closing in confusion, and not knowing exactly what she should do, Akane started tapping on Akabayashi's back.

Seeing Akane like this, the girl who had been called Mairu took a step towards her...

“A-hah-hah, it's times like these, when you gotta aim right for the jewels!”

Saying this, she suddenly tried to kick Akabayashi sharply in his crotch.

“Danger!”

Akabayashi dodged the kick, then retreated a step, while smiling.

“Damn, this is the first time I've ever had two different girls aiming a kick at my crotch, in one day.”

“Ahh, if that makes this the second time, then that means you made some girl cry this morning, right? That means you really are a scoundrel!”

After a carefree smile rose to her face, Mairu turned back to Akane and spoke brazenly.

“Well, whatever. Anyway, you're a new junior, huh? If you make sure to do everything I tell you, then I'll make you my special sidekick! I might even teach you my super secret move, the Thumb-Tack Special!”

“Simple name, simple learning requirements.”

“Akabayashi-san, you shut up!”

Akane could say nothing to Mairu, as she continued her one-sided conversation. To Akane, seeing someone like this, who would say these kinds of things even while knowing she was 'the granddaughter of the Awakusu boss', was refreshing.

“Well, in any case, you're my darling little disciple now, so if you get into any trouble, just come tell your big sis, ok? Ok, I'm gonna introduce you to our master now, come along!”

“Ahh, ok then, I've talked to the director here, so I guess I'll leave the rest up to you. Ahh, my recommendation would be pole techniques of course, but you should start with the basics first. When you're done, just call up Akane-chan's dad, and he said he'll send over someone to pick you up, so don't worry.”

“Ah, umm, huh?”

Being unable to catch up with this overly sudden development, Akane couldn't even say her thanks to Akabayashi, who was waving goodbye to her, and she was dragged into the building by the young girl named Mairu.

With everything unfolding completely differently from her expectations, she started to feel something burning deep within her heart.

♂♀

Ikebukuro, an unknown apartment.

“...... even the director just straight out okayed it, what on earth are they thinking?”

While grumbling, Tom walked up the stairs of an old apartment building.

As always, he was on his way to retrieve unpaid money from a man living on the fourth floor, but this time, behind Shizuo was one more backup helper.

“I raise one problem. I have not yet been informed of the details of our group's mission.”

The one speaking in slightly strange Japanese, was a Caucasian woman, named Varona.

This situation had come about, after they had been told by the owner of Russian Sushi, 'She's so unsociable it's bad for business. You guys take her, and use her for your jobs. I'll call up the director and tell him'.

I thought he might have meant she could do clerical work in the office or something, but......

She's coming with us!?

When Tom thought of a woman doing bill collection, the image it brought up was of and apartment building's landlady, or the owner of a bar, at most. He certainly hadn't imagined a woman as a colleague in his shylock business.

She had changed into her own clothing before leaving, but he couldn't tell if she was aware that her change of outfit had accentuated her body-line in such a captivating way.

Ahhh, working together with such a sexy lady certainly sounds nice, but......

With her stone cold face, the lady in question did not seem the type to open up her heart to men, in the slightest.

Thinking things like this, Tom answered Varona's previous question.

“Umm. Well, we go around collecting money from bad people, who aren't paying bills that they really should pay. Ok?”

Because of her dubious use of Japanese, Tom tried his best to use simple language.

As if she had understood the explanation, Varona nodded her head, then reaffirmed her knowledge.

“Collection of protection money. Understood.”

“Well, it's not really protection money, but...... Ah, whatever.”

Seriously, will this be ok?

They could end up being underestimated, bringing a woman along with them.

Tom himself meant absolutely no disrespect to women, but he definitely couldn't say the same for the kind of people that they were about to be collecting bills from.

No, it didn't matter if he was underestimated, but if they did the same to Shizuo as well, that would likely result in a very angry Shizuo killing the other party, which was a result that he must try to avoid.

Aside from that, this girl... it looks like she's been glaring at Shizuo for a while now. Is it just my imagination?

The man in question, Shizuo, had looked like something was troubling him since some time ago, and had folded his arms in thought. It may have been that he was trying to think if there was any reason for him to be glared at like that.

While Tom was thinking these things, they had arrived at their objective location.

Trying out the doorbell, they soon heard the sound of the door being unlocked from inside.

Then, from the opening door, a man with a tight 'punch perm' hairstyle appeared.

“...... Who the hell are you guys?”

“Hey, hi there, if we said we're from the dating site, 'Alcheni', would you understand why we're here?”

Hearing Tom's words spoken so indifferently, the permed man's face froze suddenly.

“...... A-! Nope, no idea.”

“Ok, that's fine, even if you don't know, your phone number shows us that you've already racked up 170,000 yen. There was a formal contract, so really we should be leaving this to a lawyer, but I think we know that would be a bother to both parties, right?”

“Shut yer trap! Keep talkin' crap like that and I'll beat the life outta ya'.”

“Well, if you really can't understand what I'm talking about, I guess I'll need to call in a translator, huh.”

As Tom said this in exasperation, the permed man's face formed a disgusting smile.

“Fine...... I'll call out some 'translators' for ya.”

“Huh?”

“Oi! You guys!”

As the man yelled back into his apartment, several men started appearing in the entranceway of the room.

With their clearly delinquent appearances, the men looked completely opposite from Tom and his colleagues, as they stood in the corridor to block their exit.

From their atmosphere, they didn't seem to be professionals. Tom's years of experience told him that much.

With a triumphant look on his face, the permed man looked at Tom and the others, and spoke.

“So, what didya wanna tell me now? Was it that ya wanted me and my friends to do that pretty lady over there some service?”

Oh man...

Tom breathed a sigh, and thought.

Usually I'd just let Shizuo beat the hell out of them and it would end there, but we've got our newbie, little miss Varona along with us today, so I guess we should retreat...

Thinking this, Tom started to turn towards Varona, but...

And if they aren't gonna let us leave so easily, we have to at least let her....... run......?

What?

It looked to him as if Varona, who had been behind Shizuo up until then, had disappeared.

“Hah? What, where's the gir-...... guah!?”

Tom had heard the permed man cry out from behind him.

Huh?

Just as he was turning around in the direction of the voice, Tom saw a look of surprise rise on Shizuo's face.

The same look which rose to Tom's face once he had turned around.

“Wha-” “Wait a-...... You bast-...... Ah!?” “Geh!?” “Uahh!?”

What they saw, was Varona moving about amongst the men, and those men falling over with a groan, one by one.

It was almost like a scene from some action video game.

Together with Varona's physical appearance, it formed a truly vivid spectacle.

She was striking the men with her elbows and the tip of her foot, in their chin and throat areas, and was taking away their consciousness, one after the other.

After this, she took several wallets out of the front pockets of the men she had knocked out, and handed them over to Tom, then she spoke in her usual, far from perfect Japanese.

“Please inform me of the correct amount of money we must collect. In the case that this is insufficient, shall I conduct a search of the premises?”

♂♀

Even as Tom and Shizuo looked towards each other in shock...

Throughout the city, rumours continued to spread.

                                                “Oi, did you see?”

“Shizuo, he...”                “Shizuo Heiwajima was...”                “He had some woman following him...”

                “So his injury was all a lie?...”                “I dunno...”

        “But, there really was a woman...”                “She wasn't just with that guy with dreads?”

        “Nah, they've been seen all around town...”         “She's a pretty fine looking woman too...”

“And the whole time they walked together...... She was staring at Shizuo.”

♂♀

Several hours later, Ikebukuro, in front of the Kishibojin Temple.

“Damn, I guess I should have known this would happen, seeing as she's an acquaintance of Simon and the chief of the sushi shop.”

After that, they had gone to a few more collection sites, but each and every one of them would either show their lechery and try to put their hands on Varona, or else try to threaten her... But even before Shizuo could get angry, Varona continued to K.O. every single one of them.

“This is only making the clean-up harder on me, too......”*

“'Clean-up'? In other words, you mean turning them into corpses, and disposing of them? I have heard that the Japanese standard is to sink them into Tokyo Bay.”

“We don't have a standard like that. Shizuo, can't you say something?”

“...... No, it's not really my place to say anything.”

While they had this exchange, they had arrived at a certain shrine at the Kishibojin Temple.

They were on their way to the main Ikebukuro station, after getting off a different local train.

Their next 'workplace' was quite near here, but they had decided to take a quick break before going there, and so had come here, to Kishibojin.

It was a quiet plot of land, right in the middle of a residential area. In the open grounds, many trees were growing, and the light of the sun, which had just begun to turn red, was spilling through the leaves. This place was like the city's oasis, and offered healing upon its people.

They had decided to rest their body's here for the time being, but there was a strangely unexplainable mood surrounding the three of them.

Not really knowing what to talk about, Tom continued to think to himself, however... Surprising Tom, Shizuo was the first to speak, as he asked Varona a question.

“You seem pretty strong, huh. Do you do some kind of martial arts?”

“......”

Varona looked at Shizuo with a complicated expression. Tom, who didn't know Varona's personal circumstance, could not understand exactly what sort of emotions lay behind that strange expression.

She stayed silent for a time, but after taking one deep breath, Varona responded.

“I was taught the very basics of various things before coming here. In my childhood, it was from books. From puberty, through actual combat. I learned the fundamentals of self-defence from Denis and Samya...... The man that you call Simon.”

“From those two, huh...... You say from your childhood, does that mean your father and such also know some martial arts?”

“...... My father is an expert at a type of martial art called 'Systema', however, this was the only art I did not learn...... The reason was basically as defiance towards my father. I would prefer if you did not press that matter further.”

“I see. Ok then, I won't ask. Either way, I think you're pretty amazing.”

“...... Hearing that from you, I can only see it as being a joke.”

Tom reacted to Varona's words, even before Shizuo himself.

“Hm?...... Wait, little lady, you know about Shizuo?”

“...... If you're in Ikebukuro, you hear the rumours whether you like it or not.”

This was a lie from her.

The reason she knew of Shizuo's strength, was because she had seen it with her own eyes, the previous day.

It seemed that Shizuo had not realised this, as she had been wearing a full helmet at the time, and hadn't talked much.

Of course, she had heard rumours about 'the bartender uniform wearing man' in the past. But for things like 'he can throw a vending machine with one hand', she had most likely just passed them off as a joke.

However, the day before, she had fully, personally experienced that strength. She had been made to experience it.

If it was this man...

Varona remembered that moment.

The spectacle which had overturned her common knowledge, of that man kicking a car over.

I had thought, that this man would be able to prove it to me.

I had thought that he would be able to answer, once and for all, if humans were truly a fragile existence.

However, the excitement she had felt at that time, had been turned into deep depression, in only one night.

To think that I didn't even have the capabilities.

I...... am weak.

To figure out if metal is truly strong, or brittle... You don't stirke it with a clay hammer.

The people who I have broken up until this point...... All just happened to be even weaker than clay.

As she thought these quite irrational things, Varona started to glare towards Shizuo again.

She did not hate him. The feelings behind her expression, were all aimed towards herself, not him.

On the other hand, Shizuo, without realising he was being glared at again, spoke as he looked towards the part of the sky he could see through the trees.

“I dunno what kinda rumours you've heard about me, but I really do think you're more amazing.”

“...... I fail to understand what you are saying.”

“Really, I just happened to be strong. My power has nothing to do with whether humans are weak or strong. Rather, people like you, who become strong by training, and training, in my eyes, people like you are much stronger humans. It's worthy of my respect.”

“......”

I'm more amazing?

What is he talking about?

No, I must have heard something wrong.

In place of the suddenly silent Varona, Tom spoke up.

“Oh right, wasn't there some martial artist guy you really like? Hmm, what was his name......”

“Traugott Geissendorfer. He's awe-inspiring, that guy.”

“You really are a strange guy. In our eyes, you're so much more crazy. If you really wanted to, you could go and easily win gold in weight-lifting. If you got a whole heap of gold medals, you could...... Wait, are gold medals actually made of gold?

“...... The medallions used in the Olympics are not entirely made of gold. We must think about what would occur if a country with an unstable economic situation were to host. They use a medallion made of at least 0.925 grade Sterling silver, coated with at least 6 grams of pure gold. Up until 1980, the Nobel Prize was a 100% pure gold medal. These days, even the Nobel Prize uses a medallion of 0.75 grade silver, coated in pure gold.”

The one who had answered Tom's question, was Varona.

She had been trying to change the subject with her answer, but hearing her smooth reply, Tom raised his voice in surprise.

“...... I feel like I just saw the amazing side of this little lady.”

“Why did the Nobel Prize stop using gold? They run out of money?”

Varona was reminded slightly of Slon by Shizuo's questions, and her heart wavered... But still, as if it were habit, she answered the question given to her.

“The price is not the problem. It was changed because a gold medallion was too flexible. Just biting it with ones teeth will leave marks. Just a small accident can transform the medal greatly. An alloy is used to protect it against this.”

“Ohh, so that's why......”

“Strong, smart, and a beauty. You got all bases covered, huh.”

Tom was smiling half in disbelief, but Varona's heart clouded with his words.

“...... Negative. I am not beautiful, or smart, and I am certainly not stro-......”

Her words were mostly aimed at herself, but they were suddenly drowned out.

By the loud, overly innocent voice of a girl, from the entrance to the grounds.

“Ah! Shiizuuoo-saan! How's it goin'?”

The three of them turned around, and saw a young girl with braided hair, wearing glasses, and carrying a martial arts uniform on her back. Behind her, stood a girl who looked just like her, but gloomier, and another girl who looked to be around five or six years younger than the two.

Seeing this group, Shizuo seemed slightly surprised, as he spoke.

“If it isn't Mairu and Kukuri...... Wait, and Akane!?”

The young girl who looked like she was still in primary school, was standing behind the twins as if trying to hide in their shadow, but... As soon as she confirmed Shizuo's prescence, she came pattering over to them, and dove straight into his arms.

“Mister Shizuo!”

http://postimg.org/image/7x7wubkzl/

♂♀

                                        “Oi, it's me. Listen to this...”

“That rumour was true!...”                                “I was just watching Shizuo from far away!”

        “Some little primary school kid just ran over to Shizuo, and then hugged him or something!”

“Seriously?”                                “Shizuo's kid?”

                        “So it wasn't just the woman, even the kid was real!”

These rumours spread, like wildfire, through a certain portion of the population.

The rumours took form in real time, through media like cell phones, and the net... And the men who saw these rumours became abnormally excited.

“How many people can you get here, right now?......”

The rumours which had been mixed with a hint of desire, had come true.

In reality, they had not exactly come true, but these men believed it to be so.

They needed it to be true, so they didn't take any other possibilites into account.

That excitement would eventually push them to display greater energy than they would ever normally be able to.

No matter what kind of objective it was that they were seeking.

“I dunno how this'll end up, but ten should do. Gather ten people, and get over here.”

“As soon as those women are separated from Shizuo, let's get in there and grab 'em.”

♂♀

Why is Akane Awakusu here?

Varona was deeply confused as she surveyed her surroundings.

She did this because she suspected that there may be people from the Awakusu around.

It's no use.

It was certainly possible that they were being watched, but if so, the watchers wouldn't easily show themselves.

As she didn't have any equipment on her right now, if anybody on the same level as Akabayashi showed up, she would have no chance anyway.

…...No.

We've already talked about this.

As long as I don't lay a hand on Akane from now, the Awakusu won't make any moves either...... But then, I don't know whether the Awakusu will keep their end of that deal, so I have to keep my guard up.

Either way...... I don't intend to become relaxed in the temporary peace my father gave me.

As Varona thought this, the three girls in front of her were talking in loud, boisterous voices.

“Hey, hey! Who's that pretty lady!? Can I give her a hug!?”

“Stop it.”

The girl with the braids was picked up at her collar by Shizuo, and was now dangling in the air.

On the other hand, the gloomy twin was bowing her thanks to Tom.

“...... (Before) About last time...... (Scarves) for that money purse...... (Apology) Thank you very much......”*

“Ahh, it's fine, it's fine.”

“This morning we got about 300,000 yen, so we put it in that bag and took it home, right Kuru-nee!”

“Three hundre-......d!?”

Surprised by what they had said, Tom placed his hands on the girls' shoulders, and spoke to them with a serious expression.

“Well...... I'm in no real position to tell you this, but...... You really shouldn't do things that would make your parents sad, ok? You girls are very cute. You're worth a lot more than that. Well, no, I guess 300,000 yen is a lot, but really you can't put a price on such things......”

“?” “?”

As Tom had the wrong idea, and was lecturing them, the twin girls looked towards each other in confusion.

Akane had completely forgotten about those two, and was clinging tightly to Shizuo's trousers, looking up at him with a smile.

“Thank you very much for everything yesterday, Mister Shizuo!......”

“Hm? Ahh, don't worry about it. It's a lot cuter when kids just forget about their debts to people.”

With a wry smile, Shizuo pet Akane's head roughly.

Seeing the little girl laughing as she tried to stop Shizuo's hand, Varona thought to herself.

She's so carefree. Even though we kidnapped her just yesterday.

…... No, it just means that she has enough strength to overcome something like that.

In the end...... I'm the weak one again......

Shizuo, not noticing the depressed Varona, spoke to the twin girls.

“By the way, why were you guys hanging out with Akane?”

“Ehh, we're more surprised that you know Akane-chan, Shizuo-san! Today, this little one became our junior at the dojo we go to! I already finished up my training for today, so when Kuru-nee came to meet me, we decided to take her on a tour of the surroundings!”

“Ohh? They teach self-defence at your dojo, don't they Mairu? I see, I guess there's no harm in you learning some of that.”

“Y-you think so? Ok then, I'll try my best.”

Akane smiled at Shizuo's words.

Shizuo however, seemed to remember something, and his smile faded slightly as he asked the twins something else.

“By the way...... Where's that flea of a brother of yours gone to?”

“...... (Shock) Eh?......”

“Huh, Shizuo-san, didn't you watch the news or anything?”

“Hm?...... No, we had to start work pretty early this morning. Why, was there something interesting I missed? Like that guy finally getting arrested.”

“It's a secret. Check out a newspaper or the net or something when you get home, I'm sure you'll be surprised!”

“...... (Bro) Izaya-niisan...... (Stomach) Narrowly escapes death......”

“?”

Shizuo was about to ask what she was talking about, but...

“Ah, Shizuo, we better get going to the next place pretty soon.”

“Yep.”

Hearing Tom's voice, Shizuo changed to work mode.

“The next place has a wife and kids, so it's kinda sensitive. You might have to hang back for a while, little miss Varona.”

“...... Await further orders?”

“Yeah, it's just, it might be bad if you put on a big show like last time, so just stay here and have a tea party with the girls for now. Though we don't have any tea.”

If there was something good to say about the man Tom Tanaka, it was that he was able to quickly adapt to dealing with any new people. Where any normal person would try their best to keep away, after seeing these 'special cases'... For example, Shizuo and Varona... Tom was the type of person who could quickly think up countermeasures to their personalities, and learn to get along with them.

As one of his ways of dealing with her, Tom had decided that it would be best to leave Varona behind in some certain cases. The way that he had Shizuo following him around so closely as insurance of his own safety, could be seen as another of his more cunning plays.

Well...

“Well, anyway, I'm glad we ran into you girls. Shizuo and I should be finished up in about ten minutes. And, while it wouldn't matter too much if she waited by herself, I'd rather not give her any sad memories of her first day at work. So can leave it to the three of you?”

“No probs.”

“...... (Delighted) It's our pleasure......”

“I'll be waiting for you to come back, Mister Shizuo!”

With three out of three in agreement, it was decided that the four ladies would stay behind in the temple grounds.

Of course, they had no idea that they were being observed the whole time.

♂♀

“Oi, it looks like Shizuo's leaving the women behind! Where are you!?”

“We'll be there in under a minute. Don't worry.”

“By the way, it probably doesn't matter, but...... There are two high school girls here too, look like they're friends.”

“We can just grab them as well.”

“Are you sure that's a good idea?”

“Yeah, look, I heard a rumour......”

“... Apparently yesterday, the girlfriend's or something of five different gang leader's were kidnapped, by Dollars.”

♂♀

Several minutes later.

“Ehh, so if you're a friend of Simon and Denis, does that mean you know Igor as well!?”

“...... Surprising. That you would be cognizant of Igor goes beyond my expectations.”

“...... (Shock) Amazing...... (Strange) coincidence, huh......”

Since Tom and Shizuo had disappeared, the girls had managed a healthy conversation.

As Varona had not said anything, she had thought that they would also remain silent, but the girl wearing glasses and braided hair, and even her gloomy twin sister, both spoke without a hint of hesitation.

As they had found this strange connection, Varona had decided to go along with the advice of her current 'employer', and remain here on standby for now.

But...... What should I do next time......

I'm glad I got on good terms with the bartender so easily. I learned his name too. But, what should I do.

Should I attack him from behind when I get the chance?

…...

For what purpose?

By now, Varona had lost sight of even her own desires.

Akane suddenly started to pull on the sleeve of her outfit.

“...... Miss, are you one of Mister Shizuo's friends?”

“Eh.”

The girl that they had kidnapped the day before.

It seemed that she somehow had not realised who Varona was.

Varona herself only saw the girl as a single element of one of her past jobs, and felt nothing in particular towards her.

“...... Friend?...... Negative. Shizuo and I. We are nothing more than simple colleagues.”

“Is that so...”

For some reason, Akane looked slightly relieved to hear this, and Varona tilted her head in confusion.

The next moment, she sensed a strange presence somewhere in their surroundings.

Several vehicles stopped just outside the grounds, and at almost the same time, their doors all began to open.

Wh-!

An alarm started to sound inside Varona.

She immediately brought up her guard, and watched the surroundings of the temple grounds.

As she did, from the many vans, appeared men, wearing balaclavas and looking like bank robbers.

They weren't carrying any weapons, but they did have some straw rope, and large bags.

“Huh!? What? What? Is something bad happening?

“...... (Evil) Kidnappers?......”

Confirming what Kururi had said, the men began running straight towards them.

Like a sprinter, they ran at their top speed. The bags they held were waving about in the air, and would make anybody who saw them become anxious.

Of course... That would be if they were normal people.

Like this, the men surrounded the girls, and tried to cover their head in the bags.

By taking their vision, they would cause the girls to panic, then take them down, carry them to the vans, and escape.

It would be an easy job.

But there was little margin for error.

Right now, nobody was around, but they could never know when somebody might pass by the surroundings.

While doing their best to reduce any risks, the men were attempting to roughly capture the girls.

They did it because, as long as they could complete this one job, they would be able to control the 'lethal weapon' known as Shizuo Heiwajima, whether it be to destroy him, or use him.

But they could never have imagined...

The girls who had been with Shizuo, though they may not be on the level of Shizuo himself...

They were also humans who could be called 'weapons'.

The woman in the group of girls who seemed to be the most strong.

The one man who tried to cover her in a large bag.

He became the first sacrifice to taste the sharpness of that particular 'weapon'.

“...... Am I your target?”

Letting out a small breath, Varona pushed off the ground... and with movement reminiscent or a Chameleon's tongue, her right leg shot out towards the man's chin.

Slipping through his arms, which had been holding up his bag, her safety boots, with an iron plate inserted into them, pushed straight towards him.

With flowing movements, she drew out a perfect high-kick.

With that one blow, as if he was being stabbed by her toes, the man's eyes rolled back, and he fainted without even knowing what had been done to him.

“......Huh?”

Seeing this spectacle before them, a large empty space formed in their hearts.

It wasn't because they had learned of Varona's strength, and were scared by it.

It was because they simply could not understand what had happened.

So, while their hearts did stop, they couldn't stop their actions.

The men who had waited for an opening, then rushed towards the seemingly defenceless women, had been met with a severe counter-attack.

Not just from Varona, but from every girl there.

“Damn you, just sit still, an-......d!?”

The man who had been trying to hold down Mairu, had been poked in the eyes by her.

They had not been crushed, but he still started to bend backwards from the force.

With the same fingers she had used to poke him, Mairu grabbed the man's balaclava, and used her opponent's momentum to tear the fabric off of him. Then, aiming for his now bare ears... Mairu used both hands to slap him.

The kind of slap which was aimed to tear his eardrums apart.

Hearing the screams of his companions rolling around on the ground, another man looked towards them reflexively. At that moment, Kururi took a small can out of her pocket, and began spraying.

It was a spray-can about the size of a deodorant spray, and fit perfectly into her palm.

Inside the can... Was an original creation of hers, a self-defence spray, based off one which was sold commercially.

However, her version was made to be much more powerful than the one she had based it off.

“Wh-...... Wha-......!?”

After seeing his companions falling one after the other, the man among them with the largest build began to realise that something wasn't quite right.

“Dammit, they're taking us lightly!......”

The man thought it would be best to grab one of the girls at random, and use her as a hostage against the others.

As he decided that the girl with the self-defence spray looked the most docile out of the lot, due to the man's tall figure, he didn't notice something...

The fact that at his feet, the smallest of the girls was walking up to him.

“...... Ah?”

Hearing a buzzing sound from below him, the man looked down, and saw...

“T-take this!”

http://postimg.org/image/rpeo7clxd/    http://postimg.org/image/invjfzym9/ 

At the exact same time, Akane Awakusu had pushed the stun-gun she held, straight towards him.

The stun-gun which Akane had received from 'Nakura' the day before, in order to kill Shizuo.

Luckily for both Akane and the man she was aiming for, while Akane was sleeping, Shinra had lowered the voltage on her stun-gun to the point where it wouldn't kill a normal person.

Of course, 'wouldn't kill', didn't change the fact that it was at an overly powerful voltage.

The large man didn't even have time to scream, as he foamed at the mouth and collapsed.

Varona thought, as she watched Akane quickly turn the stun-gun off, then hide in Mairu's shadow.

Why does she have that?

…... After yesterday. She must have been given it for self-defence.

Although, she does seem to know how to use it already......

Even while she thought these things, Varona continued knocking out men one after the other.

At first, she had thought they must have been sent by somebody who held a grudge against her, or perhaps a group who had been hired to kidnap Akane Awakusu in her stead, but...

“D-dammit! What the hell are these guys!?”

“Who was it!? Who was the idiot that said we could use them against Shizuo!?”

!

When she heard the irritated shouts of the men, Varona understood.

So that's what it was.

They want to use us, as hostages against Shizuo......

Meaning, these guys wanted to take Shizuo Heiwajima out, huh.

Without realising it... Varona had begun to smile.

Don't make me laugh.

As a man started to approach her, Varona stepped, hard, on his foot.

Before the now doubled-over man could cry out, her elbow flew towards the bridge of his nose, tracing out a graceful arc before it struck him.

People of your level...... taking him out?

Remember.

Remember.

The people she had 'broken' up till now.

The people before her now... Didn't even come close to those she remembered. They were as soft as clay.

But as she continued to knock these men out bare-handed, something else gradually rose to her mind.

That which she had begun to forget, after her recent defeats. Her true duty.

The abnormal impulse that even she herself had no hope of stopping.

They are lacking.

These people, are lacking.

That's right, humans...... are not so fragile.

Shizuo Heiwajima...... is not so fragile!

Whether or not humans were truly weak beings.

She found pleasure in her 'destructive impulse', which had begun under the pretence of confirming this.

However, this pleasure which she had once been able to obtain simply by breaking normal humans... had undergone a subtle transformation.

Stronger......

I want to become stronger.

Stronger even than that man, harder than a diamond, and more grand than the tundra!

If only I could destroy Shizuo Heiwajima......

*Surely...... Wouldn't I be able to obtain unwavering perfection?

While she thought this, Varona kicked, and punched, and knocked out, and simply overwhelmed the men.

With an uncontrollable smile stuck to her face, she overwhelmed them.

Her truly happy smile, she had decided to keep for the time that she managed to defeat Shizuo.

“C-crap! We gotta retreat for now, oi!”

With the situation becoming beyond what they had expected, the men rushed to escape from the temple grounds.

They had planned to escape with the vehicles, but those vans had already begun to leave.

“H-hey! W-wait, why......”

As they panicked and tried to run after the vehicles... They realised just why they had departed without them.

They saw, from the other side of the road, the man with his characteristic bartender's uniform, and the man with dreadlocks, returning.

“Sh-S...... It's Shizuo!”

“Get your ass in here!”

As if they had seen a carnivorous dinosaur, the men began to panic, and the van ended up departing with several of them still forcing themselves through the doors.

Seeing the screaming men leave in their vehicles, Tom tilted his head, and spoke.

“What the hell? Did they have a fight or something?”

At Tom's words, Shizuo looked towards the temple grounds... And after confirming Akane and the others sitting around like normal, looked towards the men with a disgusted expression.

“Really, getting into a fight in front of Kishibojin, they're going to hell.”

In reality, they had been trying to kidnap children in front of Kishibojin, a deed much more likely to put them in hell, but... Luckily for them, perhaps, their plan had ended in failure.

Now, they would not have to be found by Shizuo. The men however, didn't really have time to celebrate this lucky result, as they finally escaped the field of vision of Shizuo and Tom.

♂♀

“...... I committed a small error in my response to your previous question.”

Varona was speaking quietly while looking the man wearing a bartender's uniform, who was walking towards them.

Her face had returned to its usual sour look, and the only one who heard her quiet whisper, was Akane, who was standing next to her.

“Eh......”

As Akane seemed confused, Varona spoke her true thoughts, hiding nothing.

“Shizuo Heiwajima. He is my prey. One day, he will break, by my hand. This is the truth.”

“......! N-no! You can't!”

When she heard this, Akane raised her voice in panic, and started pulling on the leg on Varona's outfit.

“I..... I'm gonna be the one to kill Mister Shizuo!”

What exactly the feelings rising in Akane's heart were... being a child, even Akane herself didn't quite understand them.

But, the moment she heard Varona say she would 'break' Shizuo... the complicated feelings towards Shizuo which that girl held, all mixed together... and she had arrived at one answer.

I have to kill Mister Shizuo. But, I don't want to kill him......

Umm... Umm......

However, she was unable to convert that answer into words, and all that she could come out with, was this vague response.

“...... I have to be the one to do something about Mister Shizuo!”

“...... Illogical. Please explain to me why you believe you have sole ownership rights to my prey.”

“I-I don't know!”

As Akane and Varona had suddenly started their argument, Mairu and Kururi had silently watched them with shocked expressions... but then Tom arrived.

“Huh, where's Shizuo-san?”

In response to Mairu's question, Tom gestured behind him with his chin, and answered.

“Ohh, he said he was getting a can of coffee from the vending machine over...... there......”

Tom had noticed the dispute between Akane and Varona, and started listening curiously.

“Shizuo is mine.”

“Is not! You're not allowed to touch Mister Shizuo, ok!”

“...... …... …... …... …...? …...!?”

Huh!?

At this all too sudden development, behind his glasses, Tom's eyes went as round as golf-balls.

Wh- wait a-...... Eh!?

What's going on!? When the hell did this happen!?

As Tom stood there, dumbstruck, Shizuo entered the temple grounds, after having finished his coffee.

“Mister Shizuo!”

“Yo, did you play nice?”

After she ran up to him, Shizuo roughed up Akane's hair.

Akane then looked behind her, and started glaring at Varona, who glared right back, but...

In the end, Shizuo never even noticed the sparks flying between the two of them.

♂♀

“Damn! I didn't hear about this! Those women were damn monsters!”

After the hoodlums had returned to their hangout, one of them spoke in an irritated voice as he threw off his balaclava.

*It seemed the kidnappers were part of the remnants of a team Shizuo had once destroyed, and several of their companions who had stayed behind in their hideout had gathered to find out what happened to them.

“What the hell, you guys failed!?”

“Damn, we should have known Shizuo's woman would be like that...... What the hell was up with them!”

“Well, it's no problem. It'll be fine if we just take that girl with the stun-gun, once she's alone, right?”

“Yeah, we did send some lookouts back to the area. If they keep watch on the girls, we can just kidnap them one by one next time.”

As the men started to show foolish smiles, it seemed they had not learned from their experience.

They had been beaten by Shizuo once already, but were turning him against them again. It seemed that the men gathered her were all fundamentally obstinate.

However...... This time, they wouldn't be receiving another second chance.

“By 'lookouts', you mean these guys?”

In the entrance to that hideout, two bodies were thrown to the ground, with a 'thump'.

They were unconscious, and their faces were bloody and swollen. It looked like they had been beaten up substantially.

Then... the men who had brought those two to the hideout, continued on inside.

“What! You bast-......ar-....... Eh?”

From the entranceway, appeared... more than ten fierce looking men.

They wore various outfits, like black suits, jerseys, and work clothing, but... At first sight, one could tell from their ominous, intimidating air, that they were men who worked in 'that kind of occupation'.

“You said something about kidnapping?”

“Ah, eh?......”

“Trying to lay you hands on our princess Akane...... You really wanna be an iron-man so badly? Ah? Because if you do, we got a blast furnace ready and waiting, want us to help you out? Hey.”

“Eh?...... Ehh!?......”

They were all members of the Awakusu Group.

Some of them had been looking out for Akane from the shadows, but after seeing her come into contact with Varona, they had decided to call for backup, just in case, but... After the men had attacked, their companions had then returned to the scene, right when their backup had arrived.

They had captured the lookouts without letting Akane notice, and then had the hoodlums guide them to this hideout, but...

Of course, these punks had no idea about Akane's true identity, so they couldn't understand what was going on.

“Wai-...... Just a s-...... What the hell...... We, we just wanted, Shizuo...... um?”

“Yeah, yeah. We'll listen to your story back at our office. Take your time thinking up your excuses.”

“W-wait......”

“And if your excuses aren't good enough, you might end up thinking of last words, instead. Well, even if it comes to that, it's not like we're gonna relay them to anyone, anyway.”

Without really caring about the details behind these young men, the members of the Awakusu Group each began their work.

Dragging these young men, who had only just been overwhelmed by the female group, back to their office, turned out to be no trouble for them. They simply, relentlessly, took them out, one by one.

And so... A simple rumour, had driven this one team to their certain destruction..

♂♀

Somewhere in Ikebukuro.

After parting with Akane and the twins, the group of three shylocks moved onto their next workplace.

Occasionally, Tom would look towards Shizuo, and say strange things to himself.

“...... Well, I guess his little brother does have a pretty popular face......”

“Hm? What's up, Tom-san? You've been acting strangely.”

“No...... It's nothing. Don't worry about it.”

“?”

After tilting his head in confusion, Shizuo then asked Varona a question.

“By the way, Varona...”

“What is it?”

“Have we met before, by any chance?”

“...... -!?”

Has he...... realised?

Varona's body became stiff with caution.

He hadn't seen her face, and all she had said to him was 'That bike, it's mine'.

Though he had proceeded to throw said bike, and she had shot at him, the entire time, she had been wearing a riding suit, and a full-faced helmet, so she hadn't shown him her face at all.

But even then, a perceptive person may have noticed.

Continuing her caution, she carefully answered him.

“...... Confidential. I'd like to refuse to respond, if it doesn't concern you.”

“......”

Not saying anything, Shizuo walked over to a nearby vending machine, and purchase a can of coffee.

She thought he was about to drink another after only just finishing one earlier, but...

Shizuo gave this can of coffee to Varona.

“?”

“Here, my treat.”

“......”

“It's just...... I've been working in a lot of places up till now, you know...... But this is the first time I've ever had a junior to look after.”

Saying this, Shizuo looked somehow happy.

“Well, I guess I can just ignore the details. You seemed to get along pretty well with Akane, and from Simon and Denis' introduction, they seem to think you're an ok person.”

“......”

He's like a completely different person from the time when he was kicking that car around.

Whether or not he's figured out who I really am...... I really can't tell.

“So, I hope we can keep working well together.”

Shizuo lightly pushed the can of coffee onto Varona's cheek.

While her cheek squashed inwards slightly, Varona remained expressionless as she responded.

“...... Thanks.”

Shizuo Heiwajima.

…... What a strange guy.

All she had known, was that he was an extremely 'strong' man.

But really, she still didn't know anything about him.

I should take my time to learn as much about him as I can.

Then, once I know everything, I should destroy him.

That is my reason for living.

Varona decided this, then drained the can of coffee.

The coffee was made to be quite bitter, with a strong scent.

Feeling something quite sweet, Varona spoke to Shizuo expressionlessly.

“Thank you very much...... Senpai.”*

♂♀

                                        “O-oi, have you heard!?”

        “I heard the guys who tried to go after Shizuo got taken by the Awakusu Group.”

“Seriously?                 “Why!?”         “Sounds like Shizuo's woman is related to the Awakusu.”

        “What the hell?”                “Meaning, Shizuo is the successor of the Awakusu now?......”

These absurd, unfounded rumours flew around the city of Ikebukuro.

                                        “Have you heard!? Have you heard, dammit!?”

“Shizuo is the illegitimate son of the head of the Awakusu!?”                “Gehh! Seriously!?”

“He has a kid with some Russian lady!”                        “So that's why he has that blonde hair!?”

“Eh, wait, that wasn't just dyed?”         “Isn't this bad!?”         “Ok, I give up on Shizuo already.”

“I'm not scared or anything.”         “Just, you know... the Awakusu as my enemy sounds troublesome.”

As these rumours became more and more unreasonable...

The half-baked punks believed them without a second thought.

They couldn't help but believe them.

Most of them, wished from the depths of their heart.

If I can help it, I don't ever want to get involved with a monster like Shizuo.

This feeling was much stronger than their hope of 'winning against Shizuo'... and could be said to be more like an instinct.

That was why these men jumped on board such rumours.

Because if these rumours were true, it gave them a good reason for their fear of Shizuo.

The one thing that they couldn't give up on if they wanted to keep face, that they 'wouldn't get involved in their private matters', had become this reason once the Awakusu had gotten involved.*

So today, along with their personal desires, they continued to create these rumours.

Several months later, a third rate magazine which had believed these rumours, published an article with the headline 'Yuuhei Hanejima's Grandfather is a Yakuza Boss!?'. The publishing house which then sued their main office, and even turned their eyes towards the Awakusu Group were then driven to near-bankruptcy. But that is a different story.

And so, in order to bridge the gap between the everyday and the stranger days, between the city and its people...

Today, new rumours continue to circulate around the city of Ikebukuro.

                                                                “Hey, have you heard?”