"There's something I forgot to tell you!"
"It's about Mino Hisashi."
Kojou Yuna's emotions were clearly agitated when she mentioned his name, and the hand holding the water glass trembled slightly.
When Kojou Yuna proactively brought up his name, a bold hypothesis appeared in Fujiwara Shunsui's mind, but there were many things he couldn't confirm yet!
However, he had indeed overlooked information about Mino Hisashi. Could it be the two brothers, the fat one and the thin one?
Or had the power behind Mino Hisashi already sensed something, which led to these two "incidents"?
This made Fujiwara Shunsui even more curious about who the culprit was.
Could it be that there were families and Syndicates in the entire Shinjuku Ward that he didn't know about?
Fujiwara Shunsui looked at Kojou Yuna, who was still in a weakened state, and comforted her, "You are still very weak now. You can speak slowly, don't get too agitated!"
Kojou Yuna leaned back on the hospital bed, calmed her emotions slightly, and said, "Didn't you ask me to investigate Mino Hisashi before? I looked into it carefully!"
"This person is very strange. His core subordinates are just the two brothers, the fat one and the thin one, who usually do odd jobs."
"But he always manages to settle his cases, which clearly isn't something he could do on his own."
"The most interesting thing is, I've done research on all the underworld forces and established families in Shinjuku Ward!"
"They all seem to have dealt with this Mino Hisashi, but no one is willing to admit that Mino Hisashi is their person."
Fujiwara Shunsui's Intelligence level was no longer what it used to be; his ability to extract information was still very strong.
After hearing Kojou Yuna's report, he pondered for a moment and said, "You mean, behind Mino Hisashi, there's an organization similar to the Sankou-gumi?"
If that were true, then it would be interesting.
Because Fujiwara Shunsui couldn't think of any other force in Tokyo that had the same influence as the Sankou-gumi, or could even make all the major forces in Shinjuku Ward keep silent.
Kojou Yuna continued, "Through the Sankou-gumi's secret contacts within various forces, most of the businesses they sought from Mino Hisashi were illicit, and Mino Hisashi always completed them exceptionally well!"
"So they never inquired about Mino Hisashi's background; it was simply a transactional relationship."
"Some of them speculated that Mino Hisashi might just be a spokesperson, because based on Mino Hisashi's own abilities and performance, it's highly unlikely he could have accomplished so many things."
It must be said, Kojou Yuna was indeed the woman who controlled the Sankou-gumi's economic power in Shinjuku; in terms of gathering information, her capabilities were arguably unmatched.
Fujiwara Shunsui was already sitting by the bed with Nissho Taro.
Nissho Taro, on the other hand, had an incredulous expression on his face. For Taro, he couldn't have imagined that such a force existed in Shinjuku, one that could rival the Sankou-gumi.
Fujiwara Shunsui took the cup from Kojou Yuna after she finished drinking and placed it aside.
He said, "If that's the case, everything makes sense."
"The fact that we dealt with Mino Hisashi could easily be found out by anyone in Shinjuku who wanted to investigate. It's only natural for the other party to retaliate."
"The most crucial thing is that Mino Hisashi was their chosen spokesperson. Now that Mino Hisashi has disappeared, or even died, the other party will most likely pin this debt on me, or even on the Sankou-gumi."
"Therefore, it's somewhat reasonable that you, I, and even Taro are encountering these things."
"A force that can challenge the Sankou-gumi, doing these things should be a warning, right...?"
At this point, everyone fell silent.
Including Fujiwara Shunsui, because he really couldn't understand.
Even if the other party wanted to warn them, Mino Hisashi had already disappeared, and the other party didn't even have direct evidence to prove that they were the ones who made Mino Hisashi disappear.
What was the point of going to such great lengths, risking exposure, and offending the Sankou-gumi?
This was what puzzled Fujiwara Shunsui.
Even Kojou Yuna hadn't expected Fujiwara Shunsui's current ability to synthesize problems to be so strong.
She even looked at this muscular idiot with a hint of disbelief: "Is this brain really his?"
Fujiwara Shunsui's gaze met Kojou Yuna's questioning eyes.
To avoid awkwardness, Kojou Yuna continued to ask, "So what should we do now?"
Fujiwara Shunsui also had a headache about this problem.
They were in the open, and their opponent was in the dark.
They didn't even understand the opponent's objective yet, which put them at a disadvantage.
In the past, Fujiwara Shunsui would have been unable to contain his frustration and started cursing.
But times had changed.
Fujiwara Shunsui sighed.
"Alas~"
"There's no other way, we can only wait! Either wait for the other party to reveal their hand, or wait for Taro's bounty order."
"An organization that knows how to use the internet to hide itself and can mobilize so many resources in reality is not something we can find in a day or two."
"In summary, eat and drink as usual, and don't take things too much to heart!"
By the end of his words, Fujiwara Shunsui himself felt a bit helpless, and a jingle from his previous life also slipped out.
Kojou Yuna rolled her eyes at Fujiwara Shunsui in annoyance: "Where do you get all these strange words? They feel weird!"
"Oh, you wouldn't understand!"
Harumizu was too lazy to explain these minor details; after all, it wasn't the first time Kojou Yuna found him strange.
The most important thing right now was to figure out who the enemy was.
Even if he had to wait passively, he would still take the initiative!
Otherwise, it wouldn't be the style of Shinjuku's overlord.
"Taro, you watch over Kojou Yuna tonight. I have something to go out for!"
"Where are you going?"
After hearing Fujiwara Shunsui say that, Nissho Taro hadn't replied yet, but Kojou Yuna grabbed Fujiwara Shunsui's right hand and asked, seemingly a little worried about him.
"Don't worry, Yuna-chan, I'm no longer the reckless me from Chuo Ward! One day, I will take you and Taro back to headquarters!"
[system prompt]
[side quest: Kojou Yuna's Secret]
[The Host's promise once again touched Kojou Yuna's deepest secret. She seemed to see the Host's transformation, and her Favorability Rating towards the Host increased by +5 (this Favorability Rating increase is not counted towards quest rewards)]
[Kojou Yuna Favorability Rating: 76/100]
Looking at Kojou Yuna's complex gaze, Fujiwara Shunsui really didn't understand what secret the Sankou-gumi headquarters held.
Why did Yuna's heart always waver whenever he mentioned taking Nissho Taro and Kojou Yuna back to headquarters?
Moreover, as long as he promised Yuna to return to headquarters, her Favorability Rating towards him would increase.
Although the relevant memories hadn't been "unlocked" yet, Harumizu believed that things would work out eventually.
Memories of the headquarters were always vague; even the last time people from headquarters came, he only recalled some relevant memories when he saw an old friend.
So, Harumizu was very experienced in this area and wasn't worried at all!
Kojou Yuna still didn't speak, just looked at Fujiwara Shunsui as usual.
At this moment, she didn't know whether Harumizu's promise was true or false, because the person who suffered the biggest blow in that incident was Fujiwara Shunsui.
Now he could say it so easily, so Kojou Yuna didn't know what to say for a moment!
Nissho Taro, on the other hand, was as excited as ever: "Are we really going to fight our way back to headquarters, Department Head?"
"I've disliked that kid Tano Ryuhei for a long time. If we can go back to headquarters this time, I'll be the first to beat him up!"
"Look at how he acted when he came to inspect last time. If you hadn't stopped me, I would have already made a move!"
Fujiwara Shunsui patted Nissho Taro's shoulder, signaling him not to get so agitated, then said, "That kid Tano Ryuhei won't be jumping around for much longer, you can rest assured about that!"
"When he came to Shinjuku for inspection last time, he was sarcastic and implied that he looked down on me, Fujiwara Shunsui."
"I'll settle that score with him slowly later."
"Right now, your mission is to protect Kojou Yuna. Just communicate in time if anything happens!"
Naturally, Fujiwara Shunsui didn't need Nissho Taro to emphasize this.
Although he didn't know if he used to hold grudges, after experiencing too many workplace betrayals, Harumizu had secretly vowed in his heart that he would make those who had betrayed and slandered him at the company pay the price one day.
Although those people might not live to see that day, he would not let go of these Japanese people in Tokyo... In the outskirts of Shinjuku, at the entrance of Higashikawa Club.
Fujiwara Shunsui: ["Nagasawa Kawa, I'm already at the club entrance."]
Nagasawa Kawa: ["I'll tell Higashisho Ji to go down right away."]
Inside the third-floor office, Nagasawa Kawa said to Higashisho Ji, who was beside him, "Higashisho Ji, Mr. Fujiwara is here at the club. You're more familiar with him, go down and greet him!"
Higashisho Ji didn't know the content of their text messages, but hearing Nagasawa Kawa instinctively call him "Mr. Harumizu," he still felt a slight resistance inside.
He looked at his bandaged pinky finger, grunted in response to Nagasawa Kawa, and then went downstairs.
Fujiwara Shunsui downstairs was quite eye-catching.
Even a woman who was also walking in from outside boldly touched Fujiwara Shunsui's full chest muscles and said to Harumizu with seductive eyes, "Handsome, do you have plans tonight?"
Harumizu jokingly replied, "Sister, I only sell my art, not myself~"
"Boring~"
The woman tossed out that remark and walked inside, no longer bothering to talk to him.
Harumizu's gaze followed the woman. A long, wine-red velvet dress outlined a fluid silhouette, with a waistline cinched like an hourglass, smooth and flat with not an ounce of excess flesh.
Her high heels tapped on the marble floor of the Higashikawa Club, making a 'da-da-da' sound, as if each step was perfectly in time with a musical beat, confident and composed, with a full aura.
She was completely different from the woman who had just been "flirting" with Fujiwara Shunsui at the entrance!
"This woman did it on purpose, didn't she?"
This was Fujiwara Shunsui's thought.
His gaze retracted.
Fujiwara Shunsui saw Higashisho Ji walking towards him in small steps.
"Higashikawa Club welcomes you, Mr. Fujiwara."
Higashisho Ji nodded to Fujiwara Shunsui. He knew that Fujiwara Shunsui's visit at this time was clearly not to embarrass the Nagasawa Family.
Higashisho Ji even guessed that the other party might have reached some agreement with Nagasawa Kawa, but he just didn't know the content of the agreement yet.
However, Nagasawa Kawa's behavior made him wonder if there were some things between the two of them that he didn't know.
"Mr. Higashisho Ji, I didn't expect us to meet again. I'm truly sorry about what happened last time, and I hope you're no longer angry with me."
Fujiwara Shunsui naturally saw Higashisho Ji's pinky finger, which was still covered with a finger cot.
To be honest, even today, he hadn't expected Higashisho Ji to be so decisive back then, which completely exceeded his understanding.
So, he still admired this man from the bottom of his heart.
"Not at all, Mr. Fujiwara. Making mistakes and being punished is something even children understand!"
"What's more, Mr. Harumizu, we are very grateful that you spoke fairly for the Nagasawa Family this time."
The two walked towards the third-floor office, chatting as they went.
On the way, the two were laughing and talking, like old friends who hadn't seen each other in years.
One acted as if he hadn't been in a car accident, and the other acted as if he hadn't been forced to cut off his own finger by the other.
At the office door, Higashisho Ji politely knocked.
Nagasawa Kawa's voice came from inside, "Please come in!"
The two walked into the office one after another.
Nagasawa Kawa's face visibly broke into a smile.
"Welcome, Mr. Harumizu, please sit down, please sit down."
Nagasawa Kawa's almost fawning tone once again made Higashisho Ji frown.
All of this was naturally captured by the keen Fujiwara Shunsui, and he smiled slightly inwardly.
"Mr. Nagasawa, thank you very much for helping me find that dump truck. I wonder if there's any direction for the subsequent investigation?"
"You can ask Higashisho Ji about these matters; he's very good at investigating these things!"
Nagasawa Kawa cast his gaze towards Higashisho Ji. He could always trust Higashisho Ji.
"Mr. Fujiwara, we have already secured the driver. If you wish to hear his personal account, we can bring him up."
Fujiwara Shunsui waved his hand after hearing Higashisho Ji's words and said to Higashisho Ji, "I trust the capabilities of the Nagasawa Family and Mr. Higashisho Ji! This matter has already been made very clear over the phone, there's absolutely no need!"
At this moment, Higashisho Ji, with his back to Nagasawa Kawa, did not see a hint of joy flash across Nagasawa Kawa's face.
He continued, "The other party's methods are very clean, not like a novice."
"From the choice of vehicle, the location for framing, and even the source of the tranquilizer, nothing could be traced. This method is like..."
At this point, Higashisho Ji clearly paused.
Fujiwara Shunsui naturally understood his unspoken meaning and immediately picked up the conversation: "This method is like the Sankou-gumi's assassination style, isn't it?"
Higashisho Ji hadn't expected Fujiwara Shunsui to say that so frankly.
They had naturally investigated Fujiwara Shunsui's background. The reason he was demoted by the Sankou-gumi headquarters to Shinjuku was because he had offended some people at headquarters and had done some things!
Including the Nagasawa Family daring to provoke Fujiwara Shunsui before, it was entirely for this reason.
After all, if the headquarters didn't back Fujiwara Shunsui, or even secretly supported them, then it would be very easy to deal with a brainless brute.
This matter aligned with the long-term interests of "everyone."
But clearly, they failed!
Looking at Higashisho Ji's hesitant expression, Fujiwara Shunsui continued, "It's alright, Mr. Higashisho Ji, please continue. I think your analysis is very reasonable!"
Actually, we also noticed something else, and that is that these methods might also come from one person!
"Who?"
"Mino Hisashi."