While Dou Tang and the others were eating—
On the streets of Ikebukuro, Iwaya Mei made a phone call to Lu Zizhen. The moment Kume Chinatsu left, she too stepped out of the restaurant.
"Hello?" came Lu Zizhen's voice—groggy and lazy, like she'd just woken up. "It's me. Iwaya."
Her tone was cold, as if speaking to an enemy rather than a friend.
"Oh, Mei-chan~ isn't that a bit too icy?" "It's nauseating," Mei replied flatly. "Alright, alright. What's up, Iwaya?" "Do you know anyone named Kiryu?"
Zizhen immediately perked up.
"Wait—you ran into him? Kiryu Dou Tang?" Mei didn't answer directly.
"I was filming a show with Kume Chinatsu today." Zizhen snapped her fingers, amused.
"No kidding! So—what did you think of him?"
"…A cold, forceful man. Honestly? Terrifying. Do you remember when we first met—right after I quit the bōsōzoku?"
"Of course. You were wandering the streets in that white Captain's coat, completely lost. You walked straight into me coming out of a convenience store."
Zizhen chuckled softly.
"You looked like a stray puppy the world had thrown away—left on the roadside to fend for itself. Hmph… that look in your eyes back then gave me chills."
"And what's that got to do with him?" Zizhen asked.
Mei fell silent for a moment.
"Do you want to know how I left the gang?" "If you're willing to tell me, I'm listening."
Standing outside another convenience store now, Mei watched the flow of people passing by.
"A year and a half ago, when I was still Captain, I lost a racing duel. According to our rules, I had to hand over the title to the one who beat me."
Zizhen drew in a sharp breath.
"But you never handed over your Captain's jacket."
"Right." Mei sighed. Thinking back on that wild, stupid chapter of her life made her cringe a little.
"Because the one who defeated me never claimed the title. He just rode off into the night and vanished. No matter how hard I searched, I couldn't find him."
Zizhen laughed incredulously.
"Hold on—you're not saying you fell for the guy who beat you, are you? And that guy's Kiryu Dou Tang? C'mon, that'd be too funny. I've never heard of him being in a gang!"
"No… it's not that. I don't have feelings for him. But he's being targeted—by
Onigashima." Zizhen's tone sharpened.
"Onigashima… the bōsōzoku that got driven out to Saitama after you left, right? I remember they just picked a new leader."
"Yeah. They've been inviting me to their gatherings lately, but I've turned them all down… And tonight, they're planning a ride through Ikebukuro. They're coming back from Saitama."
Zizhen was silent for a long moment. When she spoke again, her voice was cool and serious. "What are you saying?"
"The man who beat me that night—it was him. Even though he looks different now, and he wasn't wearing a helmet, I'm sure of it."
Zizhen narrowed her eyes, phone wedged between shoulder and ear as she typed rapidly on her computer.
A news page flashed across the screen, headline bold and loud:
[Ikebukuro's Largest Bōsōzoku "Onigashima" Driven Out of Tokyo!]
[Gang Clash Leads to 25 Arrests — Leader Missing?]
[Who Rules Ikebukuro's Nights Now That Onigashima Has Fallen?]
In Japan, yakuza syndicates were technically legal—polished, business-like, operating behind a facade of civility.
The bōsōzoku, though, were different.
Their gatherings were pure—raw adolescent rage, rebellion masquerading as bushidō. They were predators among delinquents, bound by warped loyalty and a craving for chaos. They lived for the roar of engines and the thrill of escape.
Even the yakuza preferred not to provoke them.
Zizhen's eyes widened with excitement.
"You still there, Zizhen?" Mei asked, puzzled. Static filled the pause—then the faint sound of uneven breathing.
She wouldn't be… doing that while on the phone, would she?
"I'm here," Zizhen said, voice trembling with amusement. "Heh… I met him about half a year ago, but he's never mentioned any of this. I only know his parents were killed in a home invasion about a year ago. Maybe that's when he changed."
Mei accepted the theory with a small nod.
"That might be it. Anyway—Onigashima's ride tonight won't be small. After lying low so long, they'll want to make a statement. Kiryu Dou Tang could be in danger."
In danger?
No, no—he wasn't the one in danger.
Huaiyin still had those candy beans to protect him. The ones that wouldn't break even if she smashed them with a hammer.
No—they were the ones in danger.
Zizhen smiled, a dangerous glint in her eyes.
"He's out shopping with Kume Chinatsu today, right? How did you run into him?"
"He walked into my shoot—wearing clothes I designed—and pretended not to know me." Mei's voice held a faint edge. "Midway through filming, Kume Chinatsu stopped the shoot because of him. The three of them left together."
"Wow… what a coincidence." A sly smile curved Zizhen's lips. "I'll make sure to warn him—but tell me, why didn't you say it yourself?"
"If he's pretending not to know me, why should I speak to him?"
"Yet you still came to me," Zizhen teased. "You're such a cold-faced softie, Mei." The line went dead.
Zizhen chuckled quietly to herself.
"Kume Chinatsu… I remember her. Sweet, kind, optimistic… That won't do at all."
She scrolled through her endless contact list, a faint smile curving her lips. None of her acquaintances knew where her real income came from.
To some, she was a web admin; to others, a photographer, maybe a model.
But her true business—the one that required two server racks to maintain—was information. "I can't let him glimpse even a sliver of light… In a brutal game like this, how could
he possibly win unless he loses his humanity first?" She found the number she wanted.
[Onigashima — Kanekawa Ryūnosuke]
"Heh. Kume Chinatsu… sorry, but you'll have to become his nourishment." Her thumb hovered over the call button—then paused.
A flicker of doubt crossed her face.
A year and a half ago… could Kiryu Dou Tang really have been that different? And why act like he didn't know Iwaya Mei at all?
What reason could he possibly have to pretend?
He never struck her as the kind of man who faked anything.
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