A short while later, at the Nishiyama-gumi office.
"Are you all idiots?!" roared Nishiyama Heita, grabbing a paperweight from his desk and hurling it at Bandō's face. "Why the hell would you kidnap someone who has nothing to do with this?!"
Bandō forced himself to stay composed. "She's Kiryu Kazuma's girlfriend. I figured grabbing her would have the same effect..."
At that moment, Mikako had already regained consciousness. She was gutsy, too. Even with a cloth stuffed in her mouth, she was still making muffled noises: "I'm not!"
The thug standing guard next to her snapped with a sharp tskk of his tongue—a classic yakuza habit. "Kisama! Shut up!"
Nishiyama Heita slammed his hand on the table, glaring furiously at the thug.
Bandō quickly barked, "The boss is speaking—don't interrupt!"
"But... she was interrupting first," the thug said, looking pitiful as he pointed at Mikako.
"Enough!" Nishiyama bellowed. "Not only did you kidnap the wrong person, but you botched the job completely! One of ours got caught, and you even left behind the radio! Do you think military surplus radios are that easy to come by?!"
Ōta shrank into a corner, not daring to make a sound. He was the one who'd thrown the radio at Mikako, and in the chaos when the police arrived, he hadn't recovered it.
Nishiyama let out a deep sigh, then glanced at Mikako. "What was she trying to say? Take the cloth out. Let's hear her."
The thug hesitated. "What if she screams?"
"You can't slap her?" Bandō snapped.
"Oh!" The thug immediately slapped Mikako across the face.
Bandō's eyes bulged. "Who told you to hit her now?!" He stormed over and slapped the thug twice across the face, leaving his mouth bloodied. Then Bandō himself pulled the cloth from Mikako's mouth.
As soon as it was out, Mikako declared, "I'm not Kiryu Kazuma's girlfriend! You really grabbed the wrong person!"
Bandō shouted back, "Lies! If you're not his girlfriend, what were you doing at his house?"
"The teacher asked me to check on him—he skipped school today," Mikako replied firmly. Though her eyes were still blindfolded and her cheek was swollen from the earlier slap, her voice didn't waver. Maybe it was because she couldn't see the room full of fierce-looking yakuza—or maybe she was just that brave.
"You say you're not his girlfriend, yet our guys have seen you leave school with him several times, even going on dates at the dagashi shop."
"It's normal for friends to go grab a snack together! Why do all of you assume that means we're a couple?!" Mikako shot back defiantly.
Even Nishiyama Heita was momentarily at a loss—She's got a point. Going to a dagashi shop together isn't exactly conclusive.
He clicked his tongue. "Fine. Then you'd better pray that he cares enough about 'just a friend' to sell that dojo."
"You—!"
"Stuff her mouth and take her to the 'safehouse,'" Nishiyama ordered coldly.
The so-called "safehouse" was a location they'd prepped specifically for this kidnapping. If Kazuma didn't cooperate, they weren't actually planning to harm Mikako—killing a hostage would escalate things into a major criminal case, drawing full-scale police attention that could wipe out the entire Nishiyama-gumi.
But just because they wouldn't kill her didn't mean they couldn't threaten Kazuma.
Their plan was to frame the incident as: "A few delinquent youths grabbed a pretty girl off the street for some fun. Later, guilt-ridden, they turned themselves in."
Cases with voluntary confessions like that were usually processed quickly by Japanese police, who'd be happy to close them.
The "delinquents" they'd use were all young. Even with charges like assault, they'd only serve time in juvenile detention and be out in a few years.
Plus, these youths often fantasized about joining the yakuza afterward and wouldn't spill the truth. They kept their mouths shut so tightly that even police wouldn't bother interrogating them too hard.
For the Nishiyama-gumi, the risk was minimal. But for Fujii Mikako, her life could be ruined.
In a proper operation, they'd also take Polaroid photos for blackmail. But the Nishiyama-gumi was strapped for cash and hadn't budgeted for a Polaroid yet.
Of course, Kiryu Kazuma wouldn't know that.
Following Nishiyama's orders, Bandō shoved the cloth back into Mikako's mouth, then signaled to Ōta. Ōta took Mikako away.
Nishiyama fixed Bandō with a sharp look. "The one we lost... he won't rat us out, will he?"
"Of course not. He knows loose talkers don't last long," Bandō replied confidently.
Nishiyama nodded. "Good. Once Kiryu Kazuma returns, we'll pay him a little visit. If he doesn't care about this young lady's virtue... someone's losing a pinky tonight."
Just then, a thug burst into the office. "Kiryu Kazuma and Kiryu Chiyoko just returned to the dojo!"
Hearing that, Nishiyama grabbed his teacup, drained it in one gulp, and slammed it back onto the table. "Let's go."
**
As Kazuma walked home, he noticed pairs of uniformed officers questioning people on the street.
Chiyoko spotted them too and asked, "Why are there police here? Could it be because we were stopped by those detectives earlier?"
"No idea," Kazuma replied, tugging his sister, who looked eager to investigate. "Come on, let's go home."
"But maybe we could tell the police we're being threatened?"
"Didn't we already tell them at the station earlier today?" Kazuma countered.
Chiyoko fell silent.
Unless this turned into something serious, like a murder, the police probably wouldn't intervene.
And the yakuza definitely had ways of dealing with the cops. Counting on public authorities to resolve this wasn't likely to work.
Kazuma brooded over how to sell the dojo at the original price as he led Chiyoko home.
As soon as they stepped inside, Chiyoko kicked off her shoes and carried the groceries she'd bought straight to the kitchen.
Kazuma followed, grabbing the water kettle and taking a long gulp straight from the spout.
He'd always drunk like this—a habit he'd inherited from his real father.
Chiyoko frowned. "Onii-chan! How am I supposed to drink now?"
"You can drink from the spout too," Kazuma said, giving her a puzzled look. "Or pour it into a cup."
"That would be an indirect kiss!" Chiyoko exclaimed, snatching the kettle and wiping the spout thoroughly with tissues.
"You still care about stuff like that? You used to take baths with me not that long ago," Kazuma teased.
"That was years ago!" Chiyoko huffed, rolling her eyes. She poured herself a glass of water and downed it.
Setting the cup down, she suddenly said, "I'm sorry, Onii-chan... because of me, the dojo won't sell for a good price anymore."
"What are you talking about?" Kazuma frowned. "This is all those shady businessmen's fault. Don't worry about it. I'll figure out how to handle the yakuza and that Itō Yūsaku. You just keep supporting the family like you always do."
He reached out and gently patted her head.
Chiyoko nodded. "Okay. I'll get started on dinner."
"You do that."
Kazuma nodded too and leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching her bustle around.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
"Maybe it's the police from earlier," Kazuma said. "I'll go answer it."
He turned, walked down the long hallway, and called out, "Who is it?"
As he opened the door, his expression darkened. He immediately tried to shut it.
But a shiny, garishly colored shoe wedged into the doorway, stopping him.
Kazuma lifted his foot, ready to stomp on it, when a voice spoke up.
"Young master Kiryu, do you know a girl named Fujii Mikako? Look—this is her student ID."
A student ID was tossed through the gap. Kazuma caught it. One glance confirmed it was indeed Mikako's.
"You bastards..." Kazuma growled. "What have you done to Mikako?"
A voice outside sneered. "Young master Kiryu, speaking to guests through a closed door isn't exactly proper Japanese hospitality, is it?"
Kazuma grit his teeth and let go of the door handle.
Immediately, the door was pushed open by a bald-headed yakuza using his foot.
Standing outside was a man in a flashy floral suit and red shirt—clearly the boss of the group.
"Young master Kiryu," the man said with a smile. "Won't you invite us in for a cup of tea?"
(End of Chapter)