"You were so dark, Itsuho-chan" Dazai leaned in more as Kunikida dragged him back by the collar.
"Anyway, we are not philanthropists, brat. We already left behind too much of the schedule, and there's no time to waste"
Kunikida let out a sigh of relief as his stress was somewhat pent up after choking the brown-haired man for a while.
Soon Dazai looked up and gasped. Kunikida looked at him with a bit of concern.
"What?"
"That intel is right... one person's efforts aren't enough for this kind of work" That offhand remark earned another annoyed look from Kunikida.
"It is not like our line of work is peaceful enough!" That statement raised Itsuho's eyebrow as she turned her head to them thoughtfully.
'Why? Did you get an epiphany or something? Dazai," she lazily asked, thinking he was talking about the orphanage situation, earning a lazy smirk from him.
"Nope, I wasn't mean, work, Itsuho-chan. I mean, when it comes to hanging yourself by the neck. For that one person's efforts isn't enough"
"Huh? Isn't that basically suicide?" Itsuho was taken aback as Kunikida deadpanned.
"Well, since there are two people there who are almost considered murder cases"
"What are you talking about, Itsuho-chan, Kunikida-kun?" Dazai shook his head with a mock disappointment.
"I was talking about the hanging health method"
"Hanging health method?!" Kunikida narrowed his eyes, thinking he was spouting nonsense.
"Yep, hanging health method. That's really good for shoulder cramps" Dazai raised a finger as he said something important.
"Is that really true?!" Kunikida's eyes widened as he opened his notebook to take notes, while Itsuho watched with amusement.
"Fimly....ties...neck...tie", Kunikida started to write seriously as Itsuho chuckled.
"There is no such thing; he is messing with you" Hearing that, Kunikida's imaginary pen broke as he pounced on Dazai and started to choke him, as Dazai blissfully took it upon himself.
"S....so then..." Atsushi looked at the three of them. Then Kunikida snapped as the boy flinched.
"What is it?" After strangling Dazai to his heart's content, Kunikida took a breath as he looked down calmly.
Dazai finally sat down properly while Itsuho 'looked' at him, the faint smile giving him no idea what she was thinking, no matter how hard he tried to read while Kunikida also turned to Atsushi, making him nervous about what to say.
"What is your work today, detectives?"
"We are looking for a tiger", Kunikida sighed as he pushed his glasses up.
Following that, Itsuho raised an eyebrow as she felt a very intense emotional reaction from Atsushi, but she stayed the way she was.
As Dazai noticed Atsushi's pupils constrict, a glint appeared in his eyes as he started to describe their job.
"It appeared in a nearby town. Apparently, it's a 'man-eating tiger' It was first seen in a field in Suuko eating corpses."
Hearing that, Atsushi's face filled with fear as he fell from the stool.
"Please excuse me!"
Then he started to crawl like he didn't have any strength left in his legs to stand up.
"Wait!" Kunikida instantly stood up from the seat and grabbed Atsushi by the collar. Itsuho turned her head to them as she sensed the commotion that drew the people around her.
Itsuho's index finger that tapped on the table paused as she felt a sharp gaze on her, and she knew it was Dazai.
"Bustard, do you know the 'man-eating tiger'?"
Atsushi's face contorted with fear as his whole body trembled. "It's impossible! There is no way a person could rival him! And it is after me and...and I'll be killed!"
Hearing that, Kunikida released him from the air as his body moved sideways and his hand moved to catch the boy's wrist. But before he moved, his wrist was firmly held by a strong grip.
"You!" Kunikida's and Dazai's pupils dilated at the unexpected situation that had just happened as Kunikida tried to free his wrist, as Itsuho gave the crowd who were looking at them a polite yet meaningful smile that was enough to make them mind their own business.
"My, my, how rude, Kunikida." Itsuho looked at him like a mother gently reprimanding a child. "That's not how you question someone for information"
Then she let him go and helped the boy to stand. "So, Atsushi-kun, it seems you are in quite a cat crisis. So why not tell these two gentlemen about it more? Maybe they might be able to help."
She patted the white hair of the boy, giving him a slight encouragement.
"True", Kunikida begrudgingly admitted. "Didn't I tell you that when it comes to fighting, Armed Detectives are experts"
"Well, I have to admit that Itsuho-chan is quite right here", Dazai also stood up and walked to the boy. "Doesn't the president always tell you off for your method of gathering information and questioning?"
Itsuho turned to the boy with an encouraging smile, putting him at ease as he started to speak.
"My orphanage was..... destroyed by that tiger." He took a deep breath to suppress whatever thought he felt under Itsuho's hand.
"The field was devastated, the warehouse was blown away, and there were many who died. But the poor orphanage couldn't maintain itself."
A bitter smile appeared on his lips. "To reduce the number of mouths to feed, I drowned out" Atsushi's mood fell as he relived in his memories, as her hand that was patting his hand paused for a second but kept patting to console him.
"Only you Atsushi-kun?"
The boy nodded as he was about to cry. "How interesting", Itsuho muttered under her breath. "So it is chasing you here from your orphanage, Atsushi-kun?"