Riku slotted the sukiru chippu (skill chip) into his system, but something felt off right away. This wasn't his kokyū-hō (breathing technique)!
Pira had made it sound like this "Breathing Technique Skill Chip" was just a watered-down copy of his Mizu no Kokyū (Water Breathing), maybe 70% as effective. But as soon as he activated it, Riku realized it was a whole different beast. The breathing pattern in the chip took a different rūto (route) in some places, not matching his own at all.
It was like someone had taken Mizu no Kokyū, simplified it into a new kokyū-hō, and made it weaker but easier to pick up—like a beginner-friendly move from a shōnen anime, stripped of its full ki (energy).
"Can you tweak it some more?" Riku asked, suppressing the backlash from switching breathing styles. He yanked out the chip, sounding like a picky kōhai (client) making endless demands.
"If you want it to be exactly the same, no can do. My gear's got limits. Honestly, what I pulled off is already pushing it," Pira said, spreading his hands. Even a tensai (genius) tech expert couldn't turn a pile of janku (scrap) into a perfect high-end rig.
Truth be told, getting this level of result was beyond Pira's expectations. Riku had gotten lucky. Tech expert gear was always a gamble—sometimes you got a mirakuru (miracle), sometimes a disaster.
Riku's kokyū was a total mystery to Pira. The fact that the equipment managed to record it this well? Pure un (luck).
"…" Riku touched the saiyoke kitsune-men (disaster-warding fox mask) hanging at his waist. Could this be the work of its rumored 0.01 luck boost?
"Alright, make me another copy," Riku said, accepting the situation. No choice—he didn't have the skills to tweak the sukiru chippu himself.
Pira's tech was solid; the problem was his janky equipment. Maybe Judy could help refine it—she'd definitely have access to some kōkyū (high-end) gear.
"15,000 eddies. I'll copy it and throw in the equipment. Guaranteed no backups, and you can check the storage chips yourself. Since Sasha's vouching for you, no need for any… post-deal cleanup," Pira said, holding up a long index finger, his face deadly serious. That's what you call puro (professional) standards.
"...Deal," Riku said with a chuckle, shaking his head. He nodded to Sasha, the one person both of them trusted, to handle the inspection.
"Leave it to me," Sasha said with a playful wink. As a pro hakkā (hacker), no data could slip past her eagle eyes.
Riku gave her a thumbs-up. Honestly, he didn't care if this kokyū-hō sukiru chippu got out there. If he had the means, he'd start a kaisha (company) and sell it himself.
He wasn't one of those "weapons are evil" types. Sure, if some akui (malicious) jerk learned his kokyū-hō, they might use it for bad stuff. But a seigi (justice)-driven hero could use it to take down villains. It's not like kokyū-hō was some evil jutsu that warped your personality—good or evil came down to the person.
"If you wanna sell this for profit, just pay me a kenri-ryō (royalty fee)," Riku teased with a grin. He didn't have time to make and sell chips himself, but hiring someone to do it? Not a bad idea.
"Nah, I'm good. I don't wanna get on the radar of some kaisha inu (corporate dogs). If this thing blows up, no one's getting away clean. I'd rather stay a free janku-ya (scrap guy)," Pira said, rolling his eyes. Thinking you could just start a company with a unique tech? That's a one-way ticket to getting chewed up by the big corpos.
"Fair enough," Riku said, switching gears. "Hey, Pira, got any sukiru chippu that can turn someone into a tech expert?"
Why rely on others when you could jiriki (do it yourself)? If he could get tech expert skills, he could tweak the chip on his own.
"You think anyone's dumb enough to turn their shokunin waza (craftsmanship) into a sukiru chippu and hand it out?" Pira said, his face comically exaggerated, like a side character in a gag anime. No one's gonna teach their trade secrets and lose their edge.
"Yeah, makes sense," Riku admitted, nodding. If he were in Pira's shoes, he wouldn't do it either.
"Maybe check with the big kaisha. They might have something," Pira tossed out casually. Corpos were all about mass production and efficiency—they wouldn't pass up using sukiru chippu. Sure, their mass-produced tech experts couldn't handle kōseido (high-precision) work, but they'd still outshine regular screw-turning grunts.
"Could I learn from you? Paid lessons, of course," Riku said, pivoting. If he couldn't speed-run it with a chip, he'd grind it out the old-fashioned way.
"Ha? You serious?" Pira lit a cigarette, his expression skeptical. He tossed Riku a chip. "Master what's on this first, then we'll talk about lessons."
Pira rocked back and forth in his chair, clearly doubting Riku could handle it.
Riku slotted the chip and started reading. It was a ton of study material—engineering, mechanics, biology, medicine, electronics, software, you name it. Tech experts were like rebellious mekanikku (mechanics) and iryo-sha (medics) rolled into one, dabbling in everything: weapon mods, gita (cybernetic) repairs, parameter tuning, hardware-software synergy. A top-tier tech expert was basically a zen'nō (all-rounder) badass.
"Thanks," Riku said, genuinely grateful. This chip was a goldmine. Studying? No problem. As a kan-maki (grind king), he wasn't afraid of hard work—just afraid of having nothing to learn.
"All clear. No issues," Sasha said, finishing her inspection. Pira's puro rep held up—reputation matters in any trade.
"Take your stuff," Pira said, handing over the equipment. Riku transferred the eddies without hesitation. The money he'd saved for a new katana ended up here instead.
"Thanks. Catch ya later," Riku said, grabbing the gear. His goal was met, so no reason to stick around.
"Wait up, Devil. I'm coming with," Sasha called, waving goodbye to Rebecca and Pira before catching up.
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"Mind if I hitch a ride?" Sasha asked with a bright smile, her mood clearly high. She'd come by NCART subway.
"No problem at all," Riku said, popping the trunk of his Seresu and tossing in the janky gear. He opened the car door for Sasha with a gentlemanly flourish.
"Please, Sasha-san."
"Thank you, Devil-san," Sasha replied, playfully curtsying as if wearing a seifuku (school uniform). They locked eyes and burst out laughing.
But before Riku could say anything else, Sasha's expression shifted, like she'd just gotten urgent mesa (message).
"Sorry, Devil, I've gotta run. Emergency," she said, clearly having received some pressing news.
"Get in. I'll drive you," Riku said, narrowing his eyes. She'd just helped him out—he wasn't about to ditch her.
"…" Sasha bit her lip but hopped in. No time to hesitate with something this urgent.
"I sent you the address," she said. Riku glanced at it—a apāto (apartment) building in Little Chinatown.
"It's a journalist I was in contact with. She's been attacked—probably kaisha inu," Sasha explained as the car sped off.
Sounded serious. Riku pushed the Seresu faster. Good thing it wasn't too far. But deep down, he knew if the journalist wasn't sharp, they'd probably just find a body by the time they arrived.
Soon, the Seresu pulled up to the target apāto. The outside looked calm—no kōtai (corporate) goons surrounding it in layers like some shōnen villain ambush.
"It's been a while since her last message. Hope she's okay," Sasha said, jumping out and sprinting toward the building. Her eyes glowed as she started hacking into the apāto's security cameras.
Riku stayed close, a bad feeling creeping up. This screamed wana (trap).
Sasha was cautious, though. Her first move was to breach the cameras, which should spot any trouble.
"…" Sure enough, as soon as they entered the building, Sasha froze, her face grim.
"The room's cameras have been tampered with," she said, confirming Riku's gut. No need to collect a body—the kaisha inu were in the journalist's room, waiting like ninja setting a trap.
"Pull back?" Riku suggested. The smart move was to avoid walking into a tiger's den when you knew it was a trap.
(End of Chapter)