Chapter 150
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The first day of the national competition for gun marksmanship was full of surprises for all the fans and enthusiasts. Though it was not a competition that was very common because of the country's laws, the fact that the world stage has a competition on it, allowed the competition to be held once every two years. Very strict requirements must be met by the contestants and they are watched over by professionals.
Kurogane Tenma was a known name amongst all those who were well informed of this competition because many records were set by this person when he participated. Though some of them have already been broken, his stellar performance in the past had served to be a common basis for today's competitors.
Many held Tenma and his accomplishments in high regards especially in this competition. He was once part of the committee that oversaw the whole competition until he retired to focus more on the Kurogane conglomerate and his family matters. It was mostly his influence and guarantee that allowed his grandson, a middle school student, to be allowed to participate in the competition.
Many were skeptical about Kazuya when Tenma had announced his grandson's participation in the event. No one had ever heard of 'Kurogane Kazuya' before. Many of the other participants had a certain amount of reputation in the field so they were clueless as to why someone as unknown as Kazuya had been allowed to participate.
While it was true that the committee had given a lot of leeway towards Tenma because of the influence he still holds in their organization, they too were very reluctant to accept Kazuya's participation just because Tenma said so. It was only when they were shown a video of Kazuya's regular practice inside Tenma's shooting range were they able to accept the boy's qualifications.
None of the other competitors nor their coaches believed that this 'Kurogane Kazuya' had real qualifications. Many of them conducted their own investigations. It wasn't really difficult for some of the people to find out Kazuya's background because some of the participants were commonly part of some military background.
They indeed found out about this 'Kurogane Kazuya' and understood that Tenma's desire to change the boy's name to his own family's. Once they found out who Kurogane Kazuya really was, the competitors and their coaches wanted to shame the proud old man and his supposedly 'undefeatable' grandson.
The desire to beat someone who had been reputed to conquer every competition he participated in fueled the competitive nature of the participants who knew. They even went as far as to inform the other people who had wondered about who Kazuya was when he made an appearance. This led to an unofficial united front against the youngest ever competitor to enter the stage.
Kazuya had no idea about this and nonchalantly entered a room with the contestants. The tense atmosphere was strangely nostalgic and relaxing for him. It reminded him of how the mood was before the competitions at the academy where he was taught on how to be a hero.
"(So earth can give of this feeling as well…)" Kazuya smiled and took a good look at those who were eyeing him. There weren't many situations where he could get this feeling, so he looked forward into seeing these people in action.
"Huh?" there were various competitors that were hailed as champions once before so the images that were put up were of the people who had attained great achievements in the past. Kazuya was able to find a picture of someone he knew with the title 'Triple Champion'.
[Triple Champion: Sanada Yuriko]
"(Did my presence change this person's fate too as well?)" Kazuya crossed his arms and thought. The idol who had nothing to do with him had her fate changed and so he was unsure who else might have had their fate change from having good fortune to bad.
It may have been a natural thing in the eyes of others, but to Kazuya, it weighed heavily on his mind. What he wanted to do was merely change his life's tragedy and save those that he cared for. He did not want for any other people aside from those who did him wrong to suffer in the changes he caused.
"(Am I still soft?)" he sighed and gave a bitter smile. He somehow couldn't let this go because even though Hamasaki Hikaru had not done it especially for him, her songs helped him a lot in his previous life.
"Why the long face? Is my picture being here that unbelievable?" Kazuya turned to find Yuriko looking at him questioningly. The last time they saw each other was when the Kuroganes tried to target Kyouko so he tried not to think about that night.
Yuriko on the other hand was different. She thought of various ways to get another chance to encounter Kazuya. Her recent efforts have proved to be fruitless because of how tight the Kurogane clan's security was and the boy's extended stay with them.
This was why Yuriko immediately jumped at the opportunity when she was asked to become one of the judges for this competition. She felt that no one would be suspicious of her since people chosen to oversee the competition were people who performed greatly in the competition or those who are currently active in the military. These individuals would often talk to the competitors with the intention of recruiting them into joining the organizations they belong to in the future.
"I was just perplexed about whether I liked this younger version of you or the current you." Kazuya smiled at her. "I couldn't make a decision since both versions of you have their own unique charms." He knew that there was something that she wanted from him, so he tried to stay away from the topic as much as possible.
Like Kazuya predicted, Yuriko's mind immediately got sidetracked. She wanted to get more information out of this boy to confirm her suspicions, but nothing seemed to go well whenever she would have this intention. She initially thought that Kazuya was fooling around but Kazuya bluntly told her that he was just thinking about her younger self while not being aware that she was around. She began to think that this boy truly had a crush on her.
"Oh? Unique charms you say?" while still not completely believing him, being a woman, how could she not like compliments? While being unaware that her initial purpose for approaching Kazuya was put to the back of her mind, Yuriko sought to see what he thought of her.
"The current you is very charming, beautiful and mature. I'm sure you have no shortage of admirers wherever you go." Yuriko immediately used one hand to grab the other. She couldn't believe Kazuya could say such embarrassing words straight to her face. "This younger version of yourself on the other hand is still beautiful but lacks a certain grace that the current you has. The one thing that this younger version of you may have that is to my advantage is that she is closer to my age and would probably consider my admiration for her unlike the current one that sees me as nothing but just a kid."
"Wha…" Yuriko had nothing to say after she heard his words. Kazuya gave her a gentle smile but she couldn't help but feel a hint of bitterness underneath it.
"I'll excuse myself and get my mind ready for the competition. I wouldn't dare lie to a detective, so I'll use my actions to prove it to you Sanada-san." Kazuya politely bowed and left for the competitor's waiting area. Since this woman was usually overbearing and treated him like a gopher in his previous life, interacting with her like this gave Kazuya some satisfaction.
"What a strange kid…" Yuriko mumbled as she watched Kazuya's back until he disappeared. She expected him to turn back at least once but he did not do so. Her impression of him improved as he looked like quite a determined person who only saw the competition in his eyes.
People who hold the title triple champions or double champions usually gained this title by placing first on various categories in the competition. Though Yuriko and Tenma were hailed as triple champions themselves, their participation when they received their titles were not limited to just three events.
"Let's see what you will show me." Yuriko grinned as she saw this as a challenge. Various people have tried to impress her before but all of them did not meet her expectations. Though she looked forward to what Kazuya was going to do, she didn't really have much expectations for it since she had only improved herself after she moved on from this competition and was confident that she could beat her previous records.
It didn't take a long time until Yuriko and every single person who wanted to unite against Kazuya was left speechless. A record was broken every time he took the stage. This included beating the previous record he set on the same event.
"M-monster…" those who looked down on Kazuya for being admitted to the competition because of his connections or identity felt as if both sides of their cheeks were smacked. Most of them rushed to check the other events they registered for to see if Kazuya had signed up for them as well.
There were but three events that had strange occurrences. No one knew the reason why but 'Kurogane Kazuya' would start fast but would suddenly stop at certain intervals to look at the timer. Many people thought that he would have been able to beat the records if he didn't mind the time so much. There was only one person who thought very differently and kept her thoughts to herself.
"(Seriously…)" she watched Kazuya with seriousness ever since he flawlessly broke his first record. She was disappointed after seeing him start glancing at the timer. It was only after he did the same thing at another category that was very familiar to her did she understand that he was doing it on purpose.
The difference at the start was only a few milliseconds but Kazuya was slowly getting the hang of it. People stopped thinking whether he would be eliminated or not and just wondered if he would be able to break the record whenever he stepped on stage. The little game between these two gave a lot of tension towards the people who wanted to see records broken.
It wasn't only until the end of the first day of the competition that Kazuya was able to successfully match the three records that Yuriko held down to the last millisecond.
To everyone who witnessed this feat, even if the record was broken in the future, the competitor called 'Kurogane Kazuya' had just showed that not only can he beat records by a large margin, he also showed how much control he had by deliberately matching records.
One of the judges, Sanada Yuriko however, was trying to control her heartbeat. Though she didn't expect anything much from Kazuya, she silently wished for him not to succeed in this crazy endeavor. The boy's intentions was perfectly clear to her. As long as her record wasn't broken, their names would always be beside each other in the records. He had chosen to stand beside her rather than walk ahead of her.
With his actions, Kazuya was assured that the overbearing side of Yuriko would have a hard time showing itself. No matter what she wanted with him, Kazuya didn't want to get involved with someone like her who wouldn't hesitate to take him down if she found out any evidence of his not so legal deeds.
*Bzzz Bzzz*
After the participants were given back their personal items, Kazuya immediately received a call after his phone finished booting up. This was the personal phone he kept inside his storage ring so he exchanged the two by storing the other one as he pretended to rummage through his stuff
"What is it Ika?"
"Boss! You were right with your suspicions against Hamasaki Hikaru! That girl had her identity changed by the Kuroganes!" he didn't mince with words and informed Kazuya of his discovery.
A frown quickly appeared on his face. He had been reflecting over this woman before he met up with Yuriko and was thinking of ways on how to get her back to her career in Kazuya's previous life. This piece of news was something that he would have ever expected. Did the singer whose songs helped him in the past really work for the family that caused the tragedies he went through?
"You didn't call me without finding out her real identity, didn't you?" Kazuya's tone changed. How he would proceed to treat this person depended on what her intentions were.
"Well…" Ika felt a bit embarrassed. He was excited over this new discovery that he rushed to let his boss know right away. "I wanted to let you know as soon as I found out. I thought that it might have been vital for you to know since I don't know if you're in contact with this person or not." He explained.
"I appreciate the thought. I want to find out what her real identity is and if the person whose name she uses really exists." Kazuya replied and thought if the Hamasaki Hikaru who appeared in front of him was the real one or not. Though it was highly unlikely that it was disguise magic, surgery to make one look like another person was a method that existed in this world.
"I'll get right to it!" Ika was relieved that his excused passed and immediately ended the call.
"(Was she sent to watch over me?)" Kazuya wondered. He felt like he missed a big piece to complete the puzzle. Why had it been Hamasaki Hikaru of all people? Did the Kuroganes assume that he would like the way that woman looked? Hamasaki Hikaru was indeed beautiful but as far as he was concerned, he hadn't shown any interest in women.
Kazuya's mind was occupied as he changed back to his regular clothes. He was completely unaware of the stares of both admiration and envy from his fellow contestants whose opinions of him changed after his unbelievable performance.
"Kazuya" a familiar voice reached his ears as he finished up buttoning his shirt. "You did very well today." Tenma gave him a warm and rare smile which surprised contestants that still remained. 'This terrifying old man actually just smiled like a real grandparent should!' they thought.
"Thank you grandfather." Kazuya bowed politely. He couldn't bring himself to smile back to this old man. At least, not with his current mood.
"You've broken this old man's records but kept getting distracted by looking at the time for some others. You could have easily broken them if it you weren't paying much attention to it." Tenma immediately brought up what he had observed.
''…" A hesitant Yuriko heard Tenma speaking as she was just about to enter the room. Kurogane Tenma was a person who she was warned to avoid so she didn't know what do to at the moment.
"Is there a reason as to why you deliberately didn't break these records?" how could Tenma not notice what Kazuya was doing? He was expecting this grandson of his to shock everyone and set records that couldn't be broken by a single person since he was carrying the Kurogane name right now.
Though it sounded like Tenma had been direct, he had already seen his grandson talking to Sanada Yuriko. He was slightly concerned that Kazuya was like his father too much. Kazuya's actions indicated that he was rather fond of this woman so Tenma was afraid that the past would repeat itself in which Kazuya would make the same mistake that Shishio did with Kyouko.
"As expected of grandfather. I knew I couldn't let it past you." Kazuya grinned. "As you are already aware, many people use grandfather as a model in which they would slowly adjust to their own preference. This is because of grandfather's achievements in the past and the rare recordings of your performance."
"What about it?" Tenma was slightly confused about the sudden compliments. The boy never sucked up to him so he felt that Kazuya was boldly misleading him.
"Though I doubt that many would use my example in the same way, it cannot be avoided that the recordings of myself would be used as review materials as well. This is what's most important. I may not have broken three records, but I matched three of them successfully." Kazuya's grin grew wider as Tenma seemed to have started to realize what he was trying to say.
"Experts like grandfather can already tell that I could have broken these records. So why didn't I? Why match the current record when I can break it?" Kazuya stopped his explanation. The participants who were curious at the bold and shocking claim turned towards Tenma and waited for an answer.
"Control." Tenma nodded as he looked convinced. "Breaking a record is one thing, but who can confidently say that they can match a record down to a millisecond?"
"That is correct. People can claim it as a fluke but doing it in three different categories will let the results speak for themselves." Kazuya confidently smiled. "Is my explanation satisfactory grandfather?"
"Yes." Seeing the shocked reactions from the other participants who were eavesdropping, Tenma gave a satisfied nod. "You should have told me of this plan of yours." Though Tenma had accepted it, it didn't mean that he dropped his earlier suspicions. The fact still remained that the records that remained unbroken were of the person who his grandson was flirting with earlier.
Tenma felt that he needed to nip the bud before it grew. This was especially a dangerous time since the boy was reaching the age where he would be growing interests as well as fooling around with the opposite sex. Even his most impressive son had succumbed to his urges which led to Kazuya being born.
"I wasn't sure I could really do it so I felt that I shouldn't let grandfather expect something that I wasn't a hundred percent sure of achieving." Kazuya replied as if it was a matter of fact.
"Very well. I retract my former complaint. You did very well today. The competition had just begun so i want you to maintain your focus for the rest of the competition." Tenma held out his hand as if it was asking for something.
"?" Kazuya tilted his head.
"Hand me your cell phone. I will keep it for the remainder of the competition." He didn't miss the frown that quickly reverted to a neutral expression from his grandson. "This is to make sure that you will not have any distractions and keep your current state of mind."
"I apologize but I'm going to have to decline." It was already too late to hide the fact that he had been displeased by Tenma's demand. "I've promised mother that I would call her daily so I'm afraid that is not an option."
Everyone present, including Tenma's personal guards looked at Kazuya in surprise. There were very few people who could reject this old man but he did so without hesitation. They admired him for his courage but were worried about how Tenma would react.
"A promise you say? Is that more important than this competition?" Tenma was a little annoyed. This boy truly didn't show any regard for this face.
"Grandfather should be aware of how important certain 'promises' are. This is not something that I can consider no matter who is in front of me. I will however, give grandfather one as well…" Kazuya glanced around in the room before turning back towards Tenma. "I promise in my name, I shall win this competition." Kazuya politely bowed before excusing himself without looking back at the frozen crowd.
What Kazuya hadn't noticed was that as soon as he left, a wide grin appeared on Kurogane Tenma's face. This terrified even the guards who protected their master.
"(I've found another way! The answer lay right in front of me the whole time!)" he turned towards the door where Kazuya had left and ordered some of his guards to keep an eye on Kazuya who he saw leaving with the woman he had suspected was a target of his grandson's affection. He needed to think about this new revelation of his so he decided to leave.
The events that happened inside the room soon spread amongst the contestants and the coaches who weren't present to witness it. 'Kurogane Kazuya' had given his grandfather a promise to win the competition with confidence. After today's result, many of the contestants hoped that Kazuya joining the competition would keep on with his usual habit of changing the competition he attended every year. He made most of the elites lose all hope in just the first day so rather than fighting against Kazuya for first place, many of them were sensible enough to settle for second.
"Looks like you're brave enough to tell me how you feel but you cower in the presence of your grandfather." Yuriko broke the ice and teased as they went up the stairs of the nearby park.
Daylight was coming to an end. The two of them stopped under a big tree while facing the city view. Kazuya put down the bag he was carrying and leaned on the iron bars before turning towards the detective.
"It's not that I am afraid of him, rather I am afraid of what he might try to do to you if he found out." He replied and gave a bitter smile.
As much as Kazuya didn't want to spend much of his time with this woman, he was being monitored like he expected. While being unaware of Tenma's growing concerns over his interest towards Yuriko, he had already decided to let her act as a smoke screen. She was already a detective at such a young age so the Kuroganes would have to think twice before making a move against her.
"To me? Hmph! I'd like to see them make a move against an officer of the law!" she clenched her fist and punched the air in front of her.
"Then does that mean…?" Kazuya didn't finish his statement on purpose and looked at Yuriko directly in the eye. He already knew that she only reacted to the threat and forgot about how she hadn't said anything about his so-called 'affections' for her.
"W-w-wait! That's not what I mean! I just reacted immediately to the threat!" she tried to cover for her carelessness and explain. "Though I don't really know how to react, you were true to your words and proved… what you said earlier."
Kazuya felt a little guilty about making use of this former acquaintance of his so he already formulated a plan that would help both of them. He wanted to avoid this girl's suspicions so the only way to lessen her guard against him was to gain her trust.
"I see… Well, I'm happy as long as I know that I didn't get an instant rejection because of my age." He gave a sigh of relief and was secretly thankful for the training Kanade had given him. This overly suspicious detective didn't seem to be suspicious of his act.
"Hey! Did you think I was narrow-minded?" Yuriko looked at him with an annoyed expression.
"Not at all. I wouldn't have considered being frank with you if I did. A lot of people seem to have the impression that people in my situation are really envious." He sighed. "What people fail to see is how much pressure and effort is involved."
"What do you mean?" Though the impression she had about Kazuya had already changed, seeing the boy who dominated the first day of the competition in such a vulnerable state, made Yuriko more curious about him.
In Yuriko's eyes, Kazuya looked like someone who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders. She couldn't believe her eyes because this boy had not even entered the real world yet. What worries could this kid possibly have that can make her have this feeling just by looking at him.
"Tell me Yuriko-san, from your perspective, does my life seem like a life of luxury to you? We did meet at a charity event that was for the rich and famous after all." he answered her question with one of his own.
"No person doesn't have proble… wait, what did you just call me!?" she reacted quicker this time as Kazuya used her first name. "Don't think that just because I didn't reject you means that we're close!" she snapped at him.
"I'm about to tell you secrets about me that many people don't know about. Doesn't that give me something?" he looked at her feeling disappointed. "Though you are correct when you say that no person has no worries, I wonder if those people have to put up with the arrogant family that once ignored me and my mother. Do they also have to put up an act so they can be used by the family who only recognized his existence after they found out that he can be used by them?" Kazuya tried to distract her once more so that she would get used him calling her by name.
"You…" though it had been vaguely put, Yuriko understood what he was trying to say.
"I am nothing but a prisoner that they want to use for themselves. This is the only thing I can do until I find a better way to keep my family safe. I do not want my family to have the same fate as the Muimina family who disappeared without a trace after the plot against them." Kazuya looked at the horizon and gaze a pained expression. He had already cast a small barrier to keep people from eavesdropping, so he began laying out the bait.
"(Muimina family's disappearance!? It was a plot by the Kuroganes?!)" Yuriko couldn't help but be shocked. Wasn't this the reason she tried to approach Kazuya?
Yuriko didn't know if she should be happy about getting some of her suspicions answered. Though she indeed approached Kazuya with the intention of knowing more about these incidents, she never would have expected that she would be able to get it by using his affections towards her. She couldn't help but feel a little guilty as she understood what kind of predicament, he was currently in.
Kazuya proceeded to tell her about how he had lost his memories and had to deal with everyone wanting the old him to come back more than accepting the current him. She had a rough understanding of the kid's history since this was not a heavily guarded secret after everyone heard the personal message at the end of the video that was almost like a farewell.
Though Kazuya indeed has appeared to be just a middle school student, after hearing most of what people didn't know about him, Yuriko couldn't help but see him as someone who had already thought like an adult. There was a little pity towards him because as she looked back to her own history, she would have still been enjoying her youth when she was his age.
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"Yuriko-san?" Kazuya called out to her as she had been silent the whole time he was talking. He knew that something that she wanted should be somewhere along the lines of what he already said but he didn't know exactly what it was.
Though Kazuya didn't actually know much about Yuriko even in his previous life, her personality was very similar to a person that was very close him. She was true to her principles and dedicated to her duty. It might have been fate or not, but for some reason, Kazuya ended up telling her about his experiences in this life as well. Though he left out the parts he shouldn't tell anyone, it was still very personal.
"Will you get angry at me if I said that I came to you for a purpose?" Yuriko made up her mind and looked at Kazuya seriously. She couldn't stand using his emotions for her personal gain even though it was not her intention.
"I won't. Rather, I am grateful that you would need something from me. I wouldn't have been able to spend time with you like this if it weren't for that." He quickly replied. "Feel free to ask me anything. It would be my pleasure to be of any help." he smiled.
"Idiot…" this wasn't what she expected at all. Though she might have had some awareness of her looks, she wasn't confident enough to consider herself a beauty. She didn't know why Kazuya had been treating her so kindly despite his current situation.
"You don't have to feel guilty about it, Yuriko-san. You introduced yourself as a detective when we first met remember?" he encouraged her to ask. This way, he could find out what she wanted from him while he had a good impression on her.
"I am working on a case that involves a series of murders that have been happening recently…" Yuriko finally gave in as Kazuya himself already offered his help. She started telling him the case that she was working on whilst trying to keep the details to a minimum.
-
Kurogane Tenma sat near the window of his hotel suite while having a glass of wine. He was talking to the guards that he sent to look after his grandson.
"They are still together?" Tenma frowned after hearing the report. Kazuya and Yuriko have walked around after the competition. He didn't think that the two would have much to talk about because of the difference in their ages but it looked like that detective might have had a hidden agenda towards his grandson after all.
"(Are they suspicious of us? No… that can't be. I haven't heard of anyone looking into us after they took Shishio's statement.)" Tenma ended the call after he heard that the guards couldn't hear anything from their conversation and dialed Shishio's phone number.
"Yes father?" Shishio answered after a few rings. He was still in the hospital where many doctors were left baffled at his injury.
"How is your recovery going?"
"It… is going fine." Shishio hesitated a bit and decided not to say much. If Tenma had discovered that there might have been a possibility for his arm to never recover it's full functions, he would definitely be at a disadvantage.
"Why did you hesitate? Is there something you're not telling me?" Tenma immediately got suspicious. After what he had experienced with Kazuya today, he paired these troublesome father and son together and wanted to vent some of his frustrations towards Shishio.
"Everything is going fine father. I only hesitated because the doctors informed me that it might take longer for my recovery. The wound is healing at a slow pace and it's delaying the therapy at the moment." Shishio quickly explained. Both Tenma and him were informed that it had been a clean hit like they talked about when they hired the sniper so Shishio was quite upset when he heard about the problems he was experiencing.
"It may be related to stress so you should focus on recovery. I figured out another way we could deal with our goal after the recent failure. You should not dwell on the previous failure and move on to the next plan." Tenma tried to encourage him.
"Next plan? You thought of another way father? Wouldn't the Kouzukis be suspicious of us if we make another move this quickly?" Shishio couldn't help but be concerned. He wasn't capable of doing anything in his current situation.
"It was actually pretty simple. It's like this…" Tenma proceeded to tell Shishio about his revelation today.
"That…" Shishio was surprised. The answer was indeed simple but it was more effective and safer than what they planned. The only risk he could think of was if Kazuya discovered that they were involved.
"Those stubborn Kouzuki fools! It would be easy to take the boy away once that rotten old pledge of theirs is broken by him!" Tenma laughed. He truly felt like he had been overthinking to have overlooked something so simple. "Their tradition will cause the most talented person to ever emerge from that accursed family to belong to us!"
"But father… are you going to give up on Kazuya winning the competition?" Shishio couldn't help but ask.
"Don't be ridiculous. The boy would hold resentment towards us if he suddenly ended up losing due to my interference. This must be planned carefully. Not only will he need to have resentment towards that tradition which will not give him an exception, his mother and that old geezer Kou will have to choose between the boy or their corporation's unbroken reputation of being trustworthy." The two men agreed that they would have to figure out something that wouldn't let Kazuya be too suspicious of them.
"I will quickly come up with a plan." Shishio immediately took it upon himself to come up with a plan. Though he wasn't at fault for the plan that failed, he needed to make up for the failure since there would be no one else that Tenma could put the blame on.
"Good. It won't be long until the banquet so it would be better for you to complete your task because you only have until then to complete your task." Tenma reminded.
"Speaking of tasks, I had just received word that Shiroyuki Tomoyo had a knife stabbed to her chest today." Shishio reported.
"Yes, I was just informed that as well. It looks like our investment was not a waste after all." Tenma's mood lightened up. "Despite the current setbacks, things are slowly falling into place. As long as we succeed, not only will we be able to end the feud with the Kouzuki clan victoriously, our clan would have been guaranteed to prosper for the next two generations."
"I know what is at stake father. I will definitely accomplish this task." Though accomplishing his task meant sealing his position as the next head, Shishio was aware that Kazuya's officially joining their family was something that will benefit him and the clan in the long run.
Though their plan would mean that they were dropping the benefits that Kazuya would gain from controlling the Kouzuki corporation in the future, it couldn't be compared to what they would gain once they had successfully arranged a marriage between Kazuya and Kurumi. Now that Shiroyuki Tomoyo was out of the picture, they were one step closer to their goal.
-
The sun had already set when Kazuya and Yuriko's conversation had come to a standstill. Both of them hadn't noticed how time quickly passed by as they were both engrossed in their conversation.
Yuriko was glad that she had been honest with Kazuya from the start. She knew he had been a smart kid, but she never realized that his intelligence and sharp wit was so shocking. Her trip was truly not a waste as a lot of questions that were left unanswered were given some light as well as new revelations that she would have never uncovered if this boy had not trusted her.
"Looks like time passed by more than we thought." Kazuya glanced at the time and realized that they had been talking for a while. "Why don't we continue our conversation over a meal?" he offered.
"Don't you need to go to your grandfather? Won't he be suspicious?" Yuriko felt her hunger as soon as food was mentioned. "I know a place nearby that's quiet and has delicious local cuisine if you're interested in me treating you as thanks." Being the elder, she obviously offered to pay.
"You don't have to worry about Kurogane Tenma. He already sent some of his guards to watch over me as soon as I left the room." Kazuya secretly pointed towards some people who tried to act natural. One of them was obviously unaware that a person trying to read a newspaper in the night-time was definitely suspicious.
"You would make a great detective Kazuya." Throughout their conversation, she hadn't realized it but she had already referred to him by his first name. "Why don't you consider joining the force in the future? I can give you a recommendation!"
She was very impressed with Kazuya. His sense of awareness was above hers and his attention to detail was the real deal. She hadn't noticed the people tailing them but once they were pointed out, she was able to recognize the guards that were usually around Kurogane Tenma.
"I put it under consideration." though Kazuya wasn't the least bit interested, he didn't give an outright rejection. "There is still a long way before I have to decide."
"I hope you will give it some serious consideration. It would be a perfect fit for your talents." Yuriko smiled. If such a capable individual would join the force in the future, there would be no telling how much people he could help.
"I will definitely think about it. I think it would be quite fun to see you everyday." Kazuya joked.
"You—" before she could scold him, Yuriko's phone started ringing. Everyone knew that she shouldn't be contacted because of her absence so calling her meant that there should have been a major development.
"Please take it." Kazuya didn't mind and continued to walk beside her. The expression she showed when she looked at the caller's identity.
"Sanada speaking, is something the matter?" Yuriko didn't mind answering the call-in front of him because he was already aware of the case she had been working on.
Kazuya focused his senses and tried to eavesdrop on the call. It sounded like Yuriko's superior. The call was about someone who had been attacked in broad daylight by the suspect they were trying to find.
"!!" Kazuya immediately halted his steps as soon as he heard the name that was mentioned and immediately thought that he had misheard it. He clutched his chest as it felt as if it was tightening and tried to catch his breath.
"WHAT!? That can't be! Are you sure that they still weren't in shock when they identified the suspect!?" Yuriko was so surprised about what she heard that she failed to notice Kazuya's reaction to the update she just received.
"(This feeling…)" Kazuya was very familiar with this feeling. This feeling was something that he hadn't experienced just once, but several times in his past life. He didn't think that he would feel like this again because he had dedicated himself into preventing events like this from happening again.
"(So that's it…)" Kazuya looked at the night sky and sighed. Though he had not been aware of it, he had already considered Tomoyo as a companion that would be comparable to the ones he was once close to in Edea. He didn't think that there would be people like that aside from his family that he would care for but before he knew it, the robot girl that followed him around was already accepted as someone that he cared for.
"K-kazuya!" Yuriko's sudden voice immediately called him back from his thoughts.
"I apologize. The conversation looked quite serious so I wanted to give you some privacy." He quickly made an excuse while suppressing the heavy feeling on his chest.
"I want you to listen to me calmly. Your friend, Shiroyuki Tomoyo, Akabane Nanami and their teacher was attacked by the suspect we've been trying to identify. They were able to fend off the murderer but Shiroyuki Tomoyo is currently in critical condition at the hospital."
"I see…" Kazuya sighed in relief. He immediately had a reaction as soon as he heard that the robot girl had been stabbed in the chest. It was a relief to find out that she had come out alive.
"Why do you look like you're relieved!" Yuriko glared at him. She would have misjudged him if he truly was relieved after hearing that his friend was in critical condition.
"You misunderstand. I was relieved to find out that she survived. As long as she still draws breath, there would be hope for her to get better." Kazuya explained as he took out his cell phone and immediately dialed a number.
"Hello? Tsuna-san? We have a situation…"
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The first day of the national competition for gun marksmanship was full of surprises for all the fans and enthusiasts. Though it was not a competition that was very common because of the country's laws, the fact that the world stage has a competition on it, allowed the competition to be held once every two years. Very strict requirements must be met by the contestants and they are watched over by professionals.
Kurogane Tenma was a known name amongst all those who were well informed of this competition because many records were set by this person when he participated. Though some of them have already been broken, his stellar performance in the past had served to be a common basis for today's competitors.
Many held Tenma and his accomplishments in high regards especially in this competition. He was once part of the committee that oversaw the whole competition until he retired to focus more on the Kurogane conglomerate and his family matters. It was mostly his influence and guarantee that allowed his grandson, a middle school student, to be allowed to participate in the competition.
Many were skeptical about Kazuya when Tenma had announced his grandson's participation in the event. No one had ever heard of 'Kurogane Kazuya' before. Many of the other participants had a certain amount of reputation in the field so they were clueless as to why someone as unknown as Kazuya had been allowed to participate.
While it was true that the committee had given a lot of leeway towards Tenma because of the influence he still holds in their organization, they too were very reluctant to accept Kazuya's participation just because Tenma said so. It was only when they were shown a video of Kazuya's regular practice inside Tenma's shooting range were they able to accept the boy's qualifications.
None of the other competitors nor their coaches believed that this 'Kurogane Kazuya' had real qualifications. Many of them conducted their own investigations. It wasn't really difficult for some of the people to find out Kazuya's background because some of the participants were commonly part of some military background.
They indeed found out about this 'Kurogane Kazuya' and understood that Tenma's desire to change the boy's name to his own family's. Once they found out who Kurogane Kazuya really was, the competitors and their coaches wanted to shame the proud old man and his supposedly 'undefeatable' grandson.
The desire to beat someone who had been reputed to conquer every competition he participated in fueled the competitive nature of the participants who knew. They even went as far as to inform the other people who had wondered about who Kazuya was when he made an appearance. This led to an unofficial united front against the youngest ever competitor to enter the stage.
Kazuya had no idea about this and nonchalantly entered a room with the contestants. The tense atmosphere was strangely nostalgic and relaxing for him. It reminded him of how the mood was before the competitions at the academy where he was taught on how to be a hero.
"(So earth can give of this feeling as well…)" Kazuya smiled and took a good look at those who were eyeing him. There weren't many situations where he could get this feeling, so he looked forward into seeing these people in action.
"Huh?" there were various competitors that were hailed as champions once before so the images that were put up were of the people who had attained great achievements in the past. Kazuya was able to find a picture of someone he knew with the title 'Triple Champion'.
[Triple Champion: Sanada Yuriko]
"(Did my presence change this person's fate too as well?)" Kazuya crossed his arms and thought. The idol who had nothing to do with him had her fate changed and so he was unsure who else might have had their fate change from having good fortune to bad.
It may have been a natural thing in the eyes of others, but to Kazuya, it weighed heavily on his mind. What he wanted to do was merely change his life's tragedy and save those that he cared for. He did not want for any other people aside from those who did him wrong to suffer in the changes he caused.
"(Am I still soft?)" he sighed and gave a bitter smile. He somehow couldn't let this go because even though Hamasaki Hikaru had not done it especially for him, her songs helped him a lot in his previous life.
"Why the long face? Is my picture being here that unbelievable?" Kazuya turned to find Yuriko looking at him questioningly. The last time they saw each other was when the Kuroganes tried to target Kyouko so he tried not to think about that night.
Yuriko on the other hand was different. She thought of various ways to get another chance to encounter Kazuya. Her recent efforts have proved to be fruitless because of how tight the Kurogane clan's security was and the boy's extended stay with them.
This was why Yuriko immediately jumped at the opportunity when she was asked to become one of the judges for this competition. She felt that no one would be suspicious of her since people chosen to oversee the competition were people who performed greatly in the competition or those who are currently active in the military. These individuals would often talk to the competitors with the intention of recruiting them into joining the organizations they belong to in the future.
"I was just perplexed about whether I liked this younger version of you or the current you." Kazuya smiled at her. "I couldn't make a decision since both versions of you have their own unique charms." He knew that there was something that she wanted from him, so he tried to stay away from the topic as much as possible.
Like Kazuya predicted, Yuriko's mind immediately got sidetracked. She wanted to get more information out of this boy to confirm her suspicions, but nothing seemed to go well whenever she would have this intention. She initially thought that Kazuya was fooling around but Kazuya bluntly told her that he was just thinking about her younger self while not being aware that she was around. She began to think that this boy truly had a crush on her.
"Oh? Unique charms you say?" while still not completely believing him, being a woman, how could she not like compliments? While being unaware that her initial purpose for approaching Kazuya was put to the back of her mind, Yuriko sought to see what he thought of her.
"The current you is very charming, beautiful and mature. I'm sure you have no shortage of admirers wherever you go." Yuriko immediately used one hand to grab the other. She couldn't believe Kazuya could say such embarrassing words straight to her face. "This younger version of yourself on the other hand is still beautiful but lacks a certain grace that the current you has. The one thing that this younger version of you may have that is to my advantage is that she is closer to my age and would probably consider my admiration for her unlike the current one that sees me as nothing but just a kid."
"Wha…" Yuriko had nothing to say after she heard his words. Kazuya gave her a gentle smile but she couldn't help but feel a hint of bitterness underneath it.
"I'll excuse myself and get my mind ready for the competition. I wouldn't dare lie to a detective, so I'll use my actions to prove it to you Sanada-san." Kazuya politely bowed and left for the competitor's waiting area. Since this woman was usually overbearing and treated him like a gopher in his previous life, interacting with her like this gave Kazuya some satisfaction.
"What a strange kid…" Yuriko mumbled as she watched Kazuya's back until he disappeared. She expected him to turn back at least once but he did not do so. Her impression of him improved as he looked like quite a determined person who only saw the competition in his eyes.
People who hold the title triple champions or double champions usually gained this title by placing first on various categories in the competition. Though Yuriko and Tenma were hailed as triple champions themselves, their participation when they received their titles were not limited to just three events.
"Let's see what you will show me." Yuriko grinned as she saw this as a challenge. Various people have tried to impress her before but all of them did not meet her expectations. Though she looked forward to what Kazuya was going to do, she didn't really have much expectations for it since she had only improved herself after she moved on from this competition and was confident that she could beat her previous records.
It didn't take a long time until Yuriko and every single person who wanted to unite against Kazuya was left speechless. A record was broken every time he took the stage. This included beating the previous record he set on the same event.
"M-monster…" those who looked down on Kazuya for being admitted to the competition because of his connections or identity felt as if both sides of their cheeks were smacked. Most of them rushed to check the other events they registered for to see if Kazuya had signed up for them as well.
There were but three events that had strange occurrences. No one knew the reason why but 'Kurogane Kazuya' would start fast but would suddenly stop at certain intervals to look at the timer. Many people thought that he would have been able to beat the records if he didn't mind the time so much. There was only one person who thought very differently and kept her thoughts to herself.
"(Seriously…)" she watched Kazuya with seriousness ever since he flawlessly broke his first record. She was disappointed after seeing him start glancing at the timer. It was only after he did the same thing at another category that was very familiar to her did she understand that he was doing it on purpose.
The difference at the start was only a few milliseconds but Kazuya was slowly getting the hang of it. People stopped thinking whether he would be eliminated or not and just wondered if he would be able to break the record whenever he stepped on stage. The little game between these two gave a lot of tension towards the people who wanted to see records broken.
It wasn't only until the end of the first day of the competition that Kazuya was able to successfully match the three records that Yuriko held down to the last millisecond.
To everyone who witnessed this feat, even if the record was broken in the future, the competitor called 'Kurogane Kazuya' had just showed that not only can he beat records by a large margin, he also showed how much control he had by deliberately matching records.
One of the judges, Sanada Yuriko however, was trying to control her heartbeat. Though she didn't expect anything much from Kazuya, she silently wished for him not to succeed in this crazy endeavor. The boy's intentions was perfectly clear to her. As long as her record wasn't broken, their names would always be beside each other in the records. He had chosen to stand beside her rather than walk ahead of her.
With his actions, Kazuya was assured that the overbearing side of Yuriko would have a hard time showing itself. No matter what she wanted with him, Kazuya didn't want to get involved with someone like her who wouldn't hesitate to take him down if she found out any evidence of his not so legal deeds.
*Bzzz Bzzz*
After the participants were given back their personal items, Kazuya immediately received a call after his phone finished booting up. This was the personal phone he kept inside his storage ring so he exchanged the two by storing the other one as he pretended to rummage through his stuff
"What is it Ika?"
"Boss! You were right with your suspicions against Hamasaki Hikaru! That girl had her identity changed by the Kuroganes!" he didn't mince with words and informed Kazuya of his discovery.
A frown quickly appeared on his face. He had been reflecting over this woman before he met up with Yuriko and was thinking of ways on how to get her back to her career in Kazuya's previous life. This piece of news was something that he would have ever expected. Did the singer whose songs helped him in the past really work for the family that caused the tragedies he went through?
"You didn't call me without finding out her real identity, didn't you?" Kazuya's tone changed. How he would proceed to treat this person depended on what her intentions were.
"Well…" Ika felt a bit embarrassed. He was excited over this new discovery that he rushed to let his boss know right away. "I wanted to let you know as soon as I found out. I thought that it might have been vital for you to know since I don't know if you're in contact with this person or not." He explained.
"I appreciate the thought. I want to find out what her real identity is and if the person whose name she uses really exists." Kazuya replied and thought if the Hamasaki Hikaru who appeared in front of him was the real one or not. Though it was highly unlikely that it was disguise magic, surgery to make one look like another person was a method that existed in this world.
"I'll get right to it!" Ika was relieved that his excused passed and immediately ended the call.
"(Was she sent to watch over me?)" Kazuya wondered. He felt like he missed a big piece to complete the puzzle. Why had it been Hamasaki Hikaru of all people? Did the Kuroganes assume that he would like the way that woman looked? Hamasaki Hikaru was indeed beautiful but as far as he was concerned, he hadn't shown any interest in women.
Kazuya's mind was occupied as he changed back to his regular clothes. He was completely unaware of the stares of both admiration and envy from his fellow contestants whose opinions of him changed after his unbelievable performance.
"Kazuya" a familiar voice reached his ears as he finished up buttoning his shirt. "You did very well today." Tenma gave him a warm and rare smile which surprised contestants that still remained. 'This terrifying old man actually just smiled like a real grandparent should!' they thought.
"Thank you grandfather." Kazuya bowed politely. He couldn't bring himself to smile back to this old man. At least, not with his current mood.
"You've broken this old man's records but kept getting distracted by looking at the time for some others. You could have easily broken them if it you weren't paying much attention to it." Tenma immediately brought up what he had observed.
''…" A hesitant Yuriko heard Tenma speaking as she was just about to enter the room. Kurogane Tenma was a person who she was warned to avoid so she didn't know what do to at the moment.
"Is there a reason as to why you deliberately didn't break these records?" how could Tenma not notice what Kazuya was doing? He was expecting this grandson of his to shock everyone and set records that couldn't be broken by a single person since he was carrying the Kurogane name right now.
Though it sounded like Tenma had been direct, he had already seen his grandson talking to Sanada Yuriko. He was slightly concerned that Kazuya was like his father too much. Kazuya's actions indicated that he was rather fond of this woman so Tenma was afraid that the past would repeat itself in which Kazuya would make the same mistake that Shishio did with Kyouko.
"As expected of grandfather. I knew I couldn't let it past you." Kazuya grinned. "As you are already aware, many people use grandfather as a model in which they would slowly adjust to their own preference. This is because of grandfather's achievements in the past and the rare recordings of your performance."
"What about it?" Tenma was slightly confused about the sudden compliments. The boy never sucked up to him so he felt that Kazuya was boldly misleading him.
"Though I doubt that many would use my example in the same way, it cannot be avoided that the recordings of myself would be used as review materials as well. This is what's most important. I may not have broken three records, but I matched three of them successfully." Kazuya's grin grew wider as Tenma seemed to have started to realize what he was trying to say.
"Experts like grandfather can already tell that I could have broken these records. So why didn't I? Why match the current record when I can break it?" Kazuya stopped his explanation. The participants who were curious at the bold and shocking claim turned towards Tenma and waited for an answer.
"Control." Tenma nodded as he looked convinced. "Breaking a record is one thing, but who can confidently say that they can match a record down to a millisecond?"
"That is correct. People can claim it as a fluke but doing it in three different categories will let the results speak for themselves." Kazuya confidently smiled. "Is my explanation satisfactory grandfather?"
"Yes." Seeing the shocked reactions from the other participants who were eavesdropping, Tenma gave a satisfied nod. "You should have told me of this plan of yours." Though Tenma had accepted it, it didn't mean that he dropped his earlier suspicions. The fact still remained that the records that remained unbroken were of the person who his grandson was flirting with earlier.
Tenma felt that he needed to nip the bud before it grew. This was especially a dangerous time since the boy was reaching the age where he would be growing interests as well as fooling around with the opposite sex. Even his most impressive son had succumbed to his urges which led to Kazuya being born.
"I wasn't sure I could really do it so I felt that I shouldn't let grandfather expect something that I wasn't a hundred percent sure of achieving." Kazuya replied as if it was a matter of fact.
"Very well. I retract my former complaint. You did very well today. The competition had just begun so i want you to maintain your focus for the rest of the competition." Tenma held out his hand as if it was asking for something.
"?" Kazuya tilted his head.
"Hand me your cell phone. I will keep it for the remainder of the competition." He didn't miss the frown that quickly reverted to a neutral expression from his grandson. "This is to make sure that you will not have any distractions and keep your current state of mind."
"I apologize but I'm going to have to decline." It was already too late to hide the fact that he had been displeased by Tenma's demand. "I've promised mother that I would call her daily so I'm afraid that is not an option."
Everyone present, including Tenma's personal guards looked at Kazuya in surprise. There were very few people who could reject this old man but he did so without hesitation. They admired him for his courage but were worried about how Tenma would react.
"A promise you say? Is that more important than this competition?" Tenma was a little annoyed. This boy truly didn't show any regard for this face.
"Grandfather should be aware of how important certain 'promises' are. This is not something that I can consider no matter who is in front of me. I will however, give grandfather one as well…" Kazuya glanced around in the room before turning back towards Tenma. "I promise in my name, I shall win this competition." Kazuya politely bowed before excusing himself without looking back at the frozen crowd.
What Kazuya hadn't noticed was that as soon as he left, a wide grin appeared on Kurogane Tenma's face. This terrified even the guards who protected their master.
"(I've found another way! The answer lay right in front of me the whole time!)" he turned towards the door where Kazuya had left and ordered some of his guards to keep an eye on Kazuya who he saw leaving with the woman he had suspected was a target of his grandson's affection. He needed to think about this new revelation of his so he decided to leave.
The events that happened inside the room soon spread amongst the contestants and the coaches who weren't present to witness it. 'Kurogane Kazuya' had given his grandfather a promise to win the competition with confidence. After today's result, many of the contestants hoped that Kazuya joining the competition would keep on with his usual habit of changing the competition he attended every year. He made most of the elites lose all hope in just the first day so rather than fighting against Kazuya for first place, many of them were sensible enough to settle for second.
"Looks like you're brave enough to tell me how you feel but you cower in the presence of your grandfather." Yuriko broke the ice and teased as they went up the stairs of the nearby park.
Daylight was coming to an end. The two of them stopped under a big tree while facing the city view. Kazuya put down the bag he was carrying and leaned on the iron bars before turning towards the detective.
"It's not that I am afraid of him, rather I am afraid of what he might try to do to you if he found out." He replied and gave a bitter smile.
As much as Kazuya didn't want to spend much of his time with this woman, he was being monitored like he expected. While being unaware of Tenma's growing concerns over his interest towards Yuriko, he had already decided to let her act as a smoke screen. She was already a detective at such a young age so the Kuroganes would have to think twice before making a move against her.
"To me? Hmph! I'd like to see them make a move against an officer of the law!" she clenched her fist and punched the air in front of her.
"Then does that mean…?" Kazuya didn't finish his statement on purpose and looked at Yuriko directly in the eye. He already knew that she only reacted to the threat and forgot about how she hadn't said anything about his so-called 'affections' for her.
"W-w-wait! That's not what I mean! I just reacted immediately to the threat!" she tried to cover for her carelessness and explain. "Though I don't really know how to react, you were true to your words and proved… what you said earlier."
Kazuya felt a little guilty about making use of this former acquaintance of his so he already formulated a plan that would help both of them. He wanted to avoid this girl's suspicions so the only way to lessen her guard against him was to gain her trust.
"I see… Well, I'm happy as long as I know that I didn't get an instant rejection because of my age." He gave a sigh of relief and was secretly thankful for the training Kanade had given him. This overly suspicious detective didn't seem to be suspicious of his act.
"Hey! Did you think I was narrow-minded?" Yuriko looked at him with an annoyed expression.
"Not at all. I wouldn't have considered being frank with you if I did. A lot of people seem to have the impression that people in my situation are really envious." He sighed. "What people fail to see is how much pressure and effort is involved."
"What do you mean?" Though the impression she had about Kazuya had already changed, seeing the boy who dominated the first day of the competition in such a vulnerable state, made Yuriko more curious about him.
In Yuriko's eyes, Kazuya looked like someone who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders. She couldn't believe her eyes because this boy had not even entered the real world yet. What worries could this kid possibly have that can make her have this feeling just by looking at him.
"Tell me Yuriko-san, from your perspective, does my life seem like a life of luxury to you? We did meet at a charity event that was for the rich and famous after all." he answered her question with one of his own.
"No person doesn't have proble… wait, what did you just call me!?" she reacted quicker this time as Kazuya used her first name. "Don't think that just because I didn't reject you means that we're close!" she snapped at him.
"I'm about to tell you secrets about me that many people don't know about. Doesn't that give me something?" he looked at her feeling disappointed. "Though you are correct when you say that no person has no worries, I wonder if those people have to put up with the arrogant family that once ignored me and my mother. Do they also have to put up an act so they can be used by the family who only recognized his existence after they found out that he can be used by them?" Kazuya tried to distract her once more so that she would get used him calling her by name.
"You…" though it had been vaguely put, Yuriko understood what he was trying to say.
"I am nothing but a prisoner that they want to use for themselves. This is the only thing I can do until I find a better way to keep my family safe. I do not want my family to have the same fate as the Muimina family who disappeared without a trace after the plot against them." Kazuya looked at the horizon and gaze a pained expression. He had already cast a small barrier to keep people from eavesdropping, so he began laying out the bait.
"(Muimina family's disappearance!? It was a plot by the Kuroganes?!)" Yuriko couldn't help but be shocked. Wasn't this the reason she tried to approach Kazuya?
Yuriko didn't know if she should be happy about getting some of her suspicions answered. Though she indeed approached Kazuya with the intention of knowing more about these incidents, she never would have expected that she would be able to get it by using his affections towards her. She couldn't help but feel a little guilty as she understood what kind of predicament, he was currently in.
Kazuya proceeded to tell her about how he had lost his memories and had to deal with everyone wanting the old him to come back more than accepting the current him. She had a rough understanding of the kid's history since this was not a heavily guarded secret after everyone heard the personal message at the end of the video that was almost like a farewell.
Though Kazuya indeed has appeared to be just a middle school student, after hearing most of what people didn't know about him, Yuriko couldn't help but see him as someone who had already thought like an adult. There was a little pity towards him because as she looked back to her own history, she would have still been enjoying her youth when she was his age.
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"Yuriko-san?" Kazuya called out to her as she had been silent the whole time he was talking. He knew that something that she wanted should be somewhere along the lines of what he already said but he didn't know exactly what it was.
Though Kazuya didn't actually know much about Yuriko even in his previous life, her personality was very similar to a person that was very close him. She was true to her principles and dedicated to her duty. It might have been fate or not, but for some reason, Kazuya ended up telling her about his experiences in this life as well. Though he left out the parts he shouldn't tell anyone, it was still very personal.
"Will you get angry at me if I said that I came to you for a purpose?" Yuriko made up her mind and looked at Kazuya seriously. She couldn't stand using his emotions for her personal gain even though it was not her intention.
"I won't. Rather, I am grateful that you would need something from me. I wouldn't have been able to spend time with you like this if it weren't for that." He quickly replied. "Feel free to ask me anything. It would be my pleasure to be of any help." he smiled.
"Idiot…" this wasn't what she expected at all. Though she might have had some awareness of her looks, she wasn't confident enough to consider herself a beauty. She didn't know why Kazuya had been treating her so kindly despite his current situation.
"You don't have to feel guilty about it, Yuriko-san. You introduced yourself as a detective when we first met remember?" he encouraged her to ask. This way, he could find out what she wanted from him while he had a good impression on her.
"I am working on a case that involves a series of murders that have been happening recently…" Yuriko finally gave in as Kazuya himself already offered his help. She started telling him the case that she was working on whilst trying to keep the details to a minimum.
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Kurogane Tenma sat near the window of his hotel suite while having a glass of wine. He was talking to the guards that he sent to look after his grandson.
"They are still together?" Tenma frowned after hearing the report. Kazuya and Yuriko have walked around after the competition. He didn't think that the two would have much to talk about because of the difference in their ages but it looked like that detective might have had a hidden agenda towards his grandson after all.
"(Are they suspicious of us? No… that can't be. I haven't heard of anyone looking into us after they took Shishio's statement.)" Tenma ended the call after he heard that the guards couldn't hear anything from their conversation and dialed Shishio's phone number.
"Yes father?" Shishio answered after a few rings. He was still in the hospital where many doctors were left baffled at his injury.
"How is your recovery going?"
"It… is going fine." Shishio hesitated a bit and decided not to say much. If Tenma had discovered that there might have been a possibility for his arm to never recover it's full functions, he would definitely be at a disadvantage.
"Why did you hesitate? Is there something you're not telling me?" Tenma immediately got suspicious. After what he had experienced with Kazuya today, he paired these troublesome father and son together and wanted to vent some of his frustrations towards Shishio.
"Everything is going fine father. I only hesitated because the doctors informed me that it might take longer for my recovery. The wound is healing at a slow pace and it's delaying the therapy at the moment." Shishio quickly explained. Both Tenma and him were informed that it had been a clean hit like they talked about when they hired the sniper so Shishio was quite upset when he heard about the problems he was experiencing.
"It may be related to stress so you should focus on recovery. I figured out another way we could deal with our goal after the recent failure. You should not dwell on the previous failure and move on to the next plan." Tenma tried to encourage him.
"Next plan? You thought of another way father? Wouldn't the Kouzukis be suspicious of us if we make another move this quickly?" Shishio couldn't help but be concerned. He wasn't capable of doing anything in his current situation.
"It was actually pretty simple. It's like this…" Tenma proceeded to tell Shishio about his revelation today.
"That…" Shishio was surprised. The answer was indeed simple but it was more effective and safer than what they planned. The only risk he could think of was if Kazuya discovered that they were involved.
"Those stubborn Kouzuki fools! It would be easy to take the boy away once that rotten old pledge of theirs is broken by him!" Tenma laughed. He truly felt like he had been overthinking to have overlooked something so simple. "Their tradition will cause the most talented person to ever emerge from that accursed family to belong to us!"
"But father… are you going to give up on Kazuya winning the competition?" Shishio couldn't help but ask.
"Don't be ridiculous. The boy would hold resentment towards us if he suddenly ended up losing due to my interference. This must be planned carefully. Not only will he need to have resentment towards that tradition which will not give him an exception, his mother and that old geezer Kou will have to choose between the boy or their corporation's unbroken reputation of being trustworthy." The two men agreed that they would have to figure out something that wouldn't let Kazuya be too suspicious of them.
"I will quickly come up with a plan." Shishio immediately took it upon himself to come up with a plan. Though he wasn't at fault for the plan that failed, he needed to make up for the failure since there would be no one else that Tenma could put the blame on.
"Good. It won't be long until the banquet so it would be better for you to complete your task because you only have until then to complete your task." Tenma reminded.
"Speaking of tasks, I had just received word that Shiroyuki Tomoyo had a knife stabbed to her chest today." Shishio reported.
"Yes, I was just informed that as well. It looks like our investment was not a waste after all." Tenma's mood lightened up. "Despite the current setbacks, things are slowly falling into place. As long as we succeed, not only will we be able to end the feud with the Kouzuki clan victoriously, our clan would have been guaranteed to prosper for the next two generations."
"I know what is at stake father. I will definitely accomplish this task." Though accomplishing his task meant sealing his position as the next head, Shishio was aware that Kazuya's officially joining their family was something that will benefit him and the clan in the long run.
Though their plan would mean that they were dropping the benefits that Kazuya would gain from controlling the Kouzuki corporation in the future, it couldn't be compared to what they would gain once they had successfully arranged a marriage between Kazuya and Kurumi. Now that Shiroyuki Tomoyo was out of the picture, they were one step closer to their goal.
-
The sun had already set when Kazuya and Yuriko's conversation had come to a standstill. Both of them hadn't noticed how time quickly passed by as they were both engrossed in their conversation.
Yuriko was glad that she had been honest with Kazuya from the start. She knew he had been a smart kid, but she never realized that his intelligence and sharp wit was so shocking. Her trip was truly not a waste as a lot of questions that were left unanswered were given some light as well as new revelations that she would have never uncovered if this boy had not trusted her.
"Looks like time passed by more than we thought." Kazuya glanced at the time and realized that they had been talking for a while. "Why don't we continue our conversation over a meal?" he offered.
"Don't you need to go to your grandfather? Won't he be suspicious?" Yuriko felt her hunger as soon as food was mentioned. "I know a place nearby that's quiet and has delicious local cuisine if you're interested in me treating you as thanks." Being the elder, she obviously offered to pay.
"You don't have to worry about Kurogane Tenma. He already sent some of his guards to watch over me as soon as I left the room." Kazuya secretly pointed towards some people who tried to act natural. One of them was obviously unaware that a person trying to read a newspaper in the night-time was definitely suspicious.
"You would make a great detective Kazuya." Throughout their conversation, she hadn't realized it but she had already referred to him by his first name. "Why don't you consider joining the force in the future? I can give you a recommendation!"
She was very impressed with Kazuya. His sense of awareness was above hers and his attention to detail was the real deal. She hadn't noticed the people tailing them but once they were pointed out, she was able to recognize the guards that were usually around Kurogane Tenma.
"I put it under consideration." though Kazuya wasn't the least bit interested, he didn't give an outright rejection. "There is still a long way before I have to decide."
"I hope you will give it some serious consideration. It would be a perfect fit for your talents." Yuriko smiled. If such a capable individual would join the force in the future, there would be no telling how much people he could help.
"I will definitely think about it. I think it would be quite fun to see you everyday." Kazuya joked.
"You—" before she could scold him, Yuriko's phone started ringing. Everyone knew that she shouldn't be contacted because of her absence so calling her meant that there should have been a major development.
"Please take it." Kazuya didn't mind and continued to walk beside her. The expression she showed when she looked at the caller's identity.
"Sanada speaking, is something the matter?" Yuriko didn't mind answering the call-in front of him because he was already aware of the case she had been working on.
Kazuya focused his senses and tried to eavesdrop on the call. It sounded like Yuriko's superior. The call was about someone who had been attacked in broad daylight by the suspect they were trying to find.
"!!" Kazuya immediately halted his steps as soon as he heard the name that was mentioned and immediately thought that he had misheard it. He clutched his chest as it felt as if it was tightening and tried to catch his breath.
"WHAT!? That can't be! Are you sure that they still weren't in shock when they identified the suspect!?" Yuriko was so surprised about what she heard that she failed to notice Kazuya's reaction to the update she just received.
"(This feeling…)" Kazuya was very familiar with this feeling. This feeling was something that he hadn't experienced just once, but several times in his past life. He didn't think that he would feel like this again because he had dedicated himself into preventing events like this from happening again.
"(So that's it…)" Kazuya looked at the night sky and sighed. Though he had not been aware of it, he had already considered Tomoyo as a companion that would be comparable to the ones he was once close to in Edea. He didn't think that there would be people like that aside from his family that he would care for but before he knew it, the robot girl that followed him around was already accepted as someone that he cared for.
"K-kazuya!" Yuriko's sudden voice immediately called him back from his thoughts.
"I apologize. The conversation looked quite serious so I wanted to give you some privacy." He quickly made an excuse while suppressing the heavy feeling on his chest.
"I want you to listen to me calmly. Your friend, Shiroyuki Tomoyo, Akabane Nanami and their teacher was attacked by the suspect we've been trying to identify. They were able to fend off the murderer but Shiroyuki Tomoyo is currently in critical condition at the hospital."
"I see…" Kazuya sighed in relief. He immediately had a reaction as soon as he heard that the robot girl had been stabbed in the chest. It was a relief to find out that she had come out alive.
"Why do you look like you're relieved!" Yuriko glared at him. She would have misjudged him if he truly was relieved after hearing that his friend was in critical condition.
"You misunderstand. I was relieved to find out that she survived. As long as she still draws breath, there would be hope for her to get better." Kazuya explained as he took out his cell phone and immediately dialed a number.
"Hello? Tsuna-san? We have a situation…"
.
.The first day of the national competition for gun marksmanship was full of surprises for all the fans and enthusiasts. Though it was not a competition that was very common because of the country's laws, the fact that the world stage has a competition on it, allowed the competition to be held once every two years. Very strict requirements must be met by the contestants and they are watched over by professionals.Kurogane Tenma was a known name amongst all those who were well informed of this competition because many records were set by this person when he participated. Though some of them have already been broken, his stellar performance in the past had served to be a common basis for today's competitors.Many held Tenma and his accomplishments in high regards especially in this competition. He was once part of the committee that oversaw the whole competition until he retired to focus more on the Kurogane conglomerate and his family matters. It was mostly his influence and guarantee that allowed his grandson, a middle school student, to be allowed to participate in the competition.Many were skeptical about Kazuya when Tenma had announced his grandson's participation in the event. No one had ever heard of 'Kurogane Kazuya' before. Many of the other participants had a certain amount of reputation in the field so they were clueless as to why someone as unknown as Kazuya had been allowed to participate.While it was true that the committee had given a lot of leeway towards Tenma because of the influence he still holds in their organization, they too were very reluctant to accept Kazuya's participation just because Tenma said so. It was only when they were shown a video of Kazuya's regular practice inside Tenma's shooting range were they able to accept the boy's qualifications.None of the other competitors nor their coaches believed that this 'Kurogane Kazuya' had real qualifications. Many of them conducted their own investigations. It wasn't really difficult for some of the people to find out Kazuya's background because some of the participants were commonly part of some military background.They indeed found out about this 'Kurogane Kazuya' and understood that Tenma's desire to change the boy's name to his own family's. Once they found out who Kurogane Kazuya really was, the competitors and their coaches wanted to shame the proud old man and his supposedly 'undefeatable' grandson.The desire to beat someone who had been reputed to conquer every competition he participated in fueled the competitive nature of the participants who knew. They even went as far as to inform the other people who had wondered about who Kazuya was when he made an appearance. This led to an unofficial united front against the youngest ever competitor to enter the stage.Kazuya had no idea about this and nonchalantly entered a room with the contestants. The tense atmosphere was strangely nostalgic and relaxing for him. It reminded him of how the mood was before the competitions at the academy where he was taught on how to be a hero."So earth can give of this feeling as well" Kazuya smiled and took a good look at those who were eyeing him. There weren't many situations where he could get this feeling, so he looked forward into seeing these people in action."Huh?" there were various competitors that were hailed as champions once before so the images that were put up were of the people who had attained great achievements in the past. Kazuya was able to find a picture of someone he knew with the title 'Triple Champion'.Triple Champion: Sanada Yuriko"Did my presence change this person's fate too as well?" Kazuya crossed his arms and thought. The idol who had nothing to do with him had her fate changed and so he was unsure who else might have had their fate change from having good fortune to bad.It may have been a natural thing in the eyes of others, but to Kazuya, it weighed heavily on his mind. What he wanted to do was merely change his life's tragedy and save those that he cared for. He did not want for any other people aside from those who did him wrong to suffer in the changes he caused."Am I still soft?" he sighed and gave a bitter smile. He somehow couldn't let this go because even though Hamasaki Hikaru had not done it especially for him, her songs helped him a lot in his previous life."Why the long face? Is my picture being here that unbelievable?" Kazuya turned to find Yuriko looking at him questioningly. The last time they saw each other was when the Kuroganes tried to target Kyouko so he tried not to think about that night.Yuriko on the other hand was different. She thought of various ways to get another chance to encounter Kazuya. Her recent efforts have proved to be fruitless because of how tight the Kurogane clan's security was and the boy's extended stay with them.This was why Yuriko immediately jumped at the opportunity when she was asked to become one of the judges for this competition. She felt that no one would be suspicious of her since people chosen to oversee the competition were people who performed greatly in the competition or those who are currently active in the military. These individuals would often talk to the competitors with the intention of recruiting them into joining the organizations they belong to in the future."I was just perplexed about whether I liked this younger version of you or the current you." Kazuya smiled at her. "I couldn't make a decision since both versions of you have their own unique charms." He knew that there was something that she wanted from him, so he tried to stay away from the topic as much as possible.Like Kazuya predicted, Yuriko's mind immediately got sidetracked. She wanted to get more information out of this boy to confirm her suspicions, but nothing seemed to go well whenever she would have this intention. She initially thought that Kazuya was fooling around but Kazuya bluntly told her that he was just thinking about her younger self while not being aware that she was around. She began to think that this boy truly had a crush on her."Oh? Unique charms you say?" while still not completely believing him, being a woman, how could she not like compliments? While being unaware that her initial purpose for approaching Kazuya was put to the back of her mind, Yuriko sought to see what he thought of her."The current you is very charming, beautiful and mature. I'm sure you have no shortage of admirers wherever you go." Yuriko immediately used one hand to grab the other. She couldn't believe Kazuya could say such embarrassing words straight to her face. "This younger version of yourself on the other hand is still beautiful but lacks a certain grace that the current you has. The one thing that this younger version of you may have that is to my advantage is that she is closer to my age and would probably consider my admiration for her unlike the current one that sees me as nothing but just a kid.""Wha" Yuriko had nothing to say after she heard his words. Kazuya gave her a gentle smile but she couldn't help but feel a hint of bitterness underneath it."I'll excuse myself and get my mind ready for the competition. I wouldn't dare lie to a detective, so I'll use my actions to prove it to you Sanada-san." Kazuya politely bowed and left for the competitor's waiting area. Since this woman was usually overbearing and treated him like a gopher in his previous life, interacting with her like this gave Kazuya some satisfaction."What a strange kid" Yuriko mumbled as she watched Kazuya's back until he disappeared. She expected him to turn back at least once but he did not do so. Her impression of him improved as he looked like quite a determined person who only saw the competition in his eyes.People who hold the title triple champions or double champions usually gained this title by placing first on various categories in the competition. Though Yuriko and Tenma were hailed as triple champions themselves, their participation when they received their titles were not limited to just three events."Let's see what you will show me." Yuriko grinned as she saw this as a challenge. Various people have tried to impress her before but all of them did not meet her expectations. Though she looked forward to what Kazuya was going to do, she didn't really have much expectations for it since she had only improved herself after she moved on from this competition and was confident that she could beat her previous records.It didn't take a long time until Yuriko and every single person who wanted to unite against Kazuya was left speechless. A record was broken every time he took the stage. This included beating the previous record he set on the same event."M-monster" those who looked down on Kazuya for being admitted to the competition because of his connections or identity felt as if both sides of their cheeks were smacked. Most of them rushed to check the other events they registered for to see if Kazuya had signed up for them as well.There were but three events that had strange occurrences. No one knew the reason why but 'Kurogane Kazuya' would start fast but would suddenly stop at certain intervals to look at the timer. Many people thought that he would have been able to beat the records if he didn't mind the time so much. There was only one person who thought very differently and kept her thoughts to herself."Seriously" she watched Kazuya with seriousness ever since he flawlessly broke his first record. She was disappointed after seeing him start glancing at the timer. It was only after he did the same thing at another category that was very familiar to her did she understand that he was doing it on purpose.The difference at the start was only a few milliseconds but Kazuya was slowly getting the hang of it. People stopped thinking whether he would be eliminated or not and just wondered if he would be able to break the record whenever he stepped on stage. The little game between these two gave a lot of tension towards the people who wanted to see records broken.It wasn't only until the end of the first day of the competition that Kazuya was able to successfully match the three records that Yuriko held down to the last millisecond.To everyone who witnessed this feat, even if the record was broken in the future, the competitor called 'Kurogane Kazuya' had just showed that not only can he beat records by a large margin, he also showed how much control he had by deliberately matching records.One of the judges, Sanada Yuriko however, was trying to control her heartbeat. Though she didn't expect anything much from Kazuya, she silently wished for him not to succeed in this crazy endeavor. The boy's intentions was perfectly clear to her. As long as her record wasn't broken, their names would always be beside each other in the records. He had chosen to stand beside her rather than walk ahead of her.With his actions, Kazuya was assured that the overbearing side of Yuriko would have a hard time showing itself. No matter what she wanted with him, Kazuya didn't want to get involved with someone like her who wouldn't hesitate to take him down if she found out any evidence of his not so legal deeds.*Bzzz Bzzz*After the participants were given back their personal items, Kazuya immediately received a call after his phone finished booting up. This was the personal phone he kept inside his storage ring so he exchanged the two by storing the other one as he pretended to rummage through his stuff"What is it Ika?""Boss! You were right with your suspicions against Hamasaki Hikaru! That girl had her identity changed by the Kuroganes!" he didn't mince with words and informed Kazuya of his discovery.A frown quickly appeared on his face. He had been reflecting over this woman before he met up with Yuriko and was thinking of ways on how to get her back to her career in Kazuya's previous life. This piece of news was something that he would have ever expected. Did the singer whose songs helped him in the past really work for the family that caused the tragedies he went through?"You didn't call me without finding out her real identity, didn't you?" Kazuya's tone changed. How he would proceed to treat this person depended on what her intentions were."Well" Ika felt a bit embarrassed. He was excited over this new discovery that he rushed to let his boss know right away. "I wanted to let you know as soon as I found out. I thought that it might have been vital for you to know since I don't know if you're in contact with this person or not." He explained."I appreciate the thought. I want to find out what her real identity is and if the person whose name she uses really exists." Kazuya replied and thought if the Hamasaki Hikaru who appeared in front of him was the real one or not. Though it was highly unlikely that it was disguise magic, surgery to make one look like another person was a method that existed in this world."I'll get right to it!" Ika was relieved that his excused passed and immediately ended the call."Was she sent to watch over me?" Kazuya wondered. He felt like he missed a big piece to complete the puzzle. Why had it been Hamasaki Hikaru of all people? Did the Kuroganes assume that he would like the way that woman looked? Hamasaki Hikaru was indeed beautiful but as far as he was concerned, he hadn't shown any interest in women.Kazuya's mind was occupied as he changed back to his regular clothes. He was completely unaware of the stares of both admiration and envy from his fellow contestants whose opinions of him changed after his unbelievable performance."Kazuya" a familiar voice reached his ears as he finished up buttoning his shirt. "You did very well today." Tenma gave him a warm and rare smile which surprised contestants that still remained. 'This terrifying old man actually just smiled like a real grandparent should!' they thought."Thank you grandfather." Kazuya bowed politely. He couldn't bring himself to smile back to this old man. At least, not with his current mood."You've broken this old man's records but kept getting distracted by looking at the time for some others. You could have easily broken them if it you weren't paying much attention to it." Tenma immediately brought up what he had observed.''" A hesitant Yuriko heard Tenma speaking as she was just about to enter the room. Kurogane Tenma was a person who she was warned to avoid so she didn't know what do to at the moment."Is there a reason as to why you deliberately didn't break these records?" how could Tenma not notice what Kazuya was doing? He was expecting this grandson of his to shock everyone and set records that couldn't be broken by a single person since he was carrying the Kurogane name right now.Though it sounded like Tenma had been direct, he had already seen his grandson talking to Sanada Yuriko. He was slightly concerned that Kazuya was like his father too much. Kazuya's actions indicated that he was rather fond of this woman so Tenma was afraid that the past would repeat itself in which Kazuya would make the same mistake that Shishio did with Kyouko."As expected of grandfather. I knew I couldn't let it past you." Kazuya grinned. "As you are already aware, many people use grandfather as a model in which they would slowly adjust to their own preference. This is because of grandfather's achievements in the past and the rare recordings of your performance.""What about it?" Tenma was slightly confused about the sudden compliments. The boy never sucked up to him so he felt that Kazuya was boldly misleading him."Though I doubt that many would use my example in the same way, it cannot be avoided that the recordings of myself would be used as review materials as well. This is what's most important. I may not have broken three records, but I matched three of them successfully." Kazuya's grin grew wider as Tenma seemed to have started to realize what he was trying to say."Experts like grandfather can already tell that I could have broken these records. So why didn't I? Why match the current record when I can break it?" Kazuya stopped his explanation. The participants who were curious at the bold and shocking claim turned towards Tenma and waited for an answer."Control." Tenma nodded as he looked convinced. "Breaking a record is one thing, but who can confidently say that they can match a record down to a millisecond?""That is correct. People can claim it as a fluke but doing it in three different categories will let the results speak for themselves." Kazuya confidently smiled. "Is my explanation satisfactory grandfather?""Yes." Seeing the shocked reactions from the other participants who were eavesdropping, Tenma gave a satisfied nod. "You should have told me of this plan of yours." Though Tenma had accepted it, it didn't mean that he dropped his earlier suspicions. The fact still remained that the records that remained unbroken were of the person who his grandson was flirting with earlier.Tenma felt that he needed to nip the bud before it grew. This was especially a dangerous time since the boy was reaching the age where he would be growing interests as well as fooling around with the opposite sex. Even his most impressive son had succumbed to his urges which led to Kazuya being born."I wasn't sure I could really do it so I felt that I shouldn't let grandfather expect something that I wasn't a hundred percent sure of achieving." Kazuya replied as if it was a matter of fact."Very well. I retract my former complaint. You did very well today. The competition had just begun so i want you to maintain your focus for the rest of the competition." Tenma held out his hand as if it was asking for something."?" Kazuya tilted his head."Hand me your cell phone. I will keep it for the remainder of the competition." He didn't miss the frown that quickly reverted to a neutral expression from his grandson. "This is to make sure that you will not have any distractions and keep your current state of mind.""I apologize but I'm going to have to decline." It was already too late to hide the fact that he had been displeased by Tenma's demand. "I've promised mother that I would call her daily so I'm afraid that is not an option."Everyone present, including Tenma's personal guards looked at Kazuya in surprise. There were very few people who could reject this old man but he did so without hesitation. They admired him for his courage but were worried about how Tenma would react."A promise you say? Is that more important than this competition?" Tenma was a little annoyed. This boy truly didn't show any regard for this face."Grandfather should be aware of how important certain 'promises' are. This is not something that I can consider no matter who is in front of me. I will however, give grandfather one as well" Kazuya glanced around in the room before turning back towards Tenma. "I promise in my name, I shall win this competition." Kazuya politely bowed before excusing himself without looking back at the frozen crowd.What Kazuya hadn't noticed was that as soon as he left, a wide grin appeared on Kurogane Tenma's face. This terrified even the guards who protected their master."I've found another way! The answer lay right in front of me the whole time!" he turned towards the door where Kazuya had left and ordered some of his guards to keep an eye on Kazuya who he saw leaving with the woman he had suspected was a target of his grandson's affection. He needed to think about this new revelation of his so he decided to leave.The events that happened inside the room soon spread amongst the contestants and the coaches who weren't present to witness it. 'Kurogane Kazuya' had given his grandfather a promise to win the competition with confidence. After today's result, many of the contestants hoped that Kazuya joining the competition would keep on with his usual habit of changing the competition he attended every year. He made most of the elites lose all hope in just the first day so rather than fighting against Kazuya for first place, many of them were sensible enough to settle for second."Looks like you're brave enough to tell me how you feel but you cower in the presence of your grandfather." Yuriko broke the ice and teased as they went up the stairs of the nearby park.Daylight was coming to an end. The two of them stopped under a big tree while facing the city view. Kazuya put down the bag he was carrying and leaned on the iron bars before turning towards the detective."It's not that I am afraid of him, rather I am afraid of what he might try to do to you if he found out." He replied and gave a bitter smile.As much as Kazuya didn't want to spend much of his time with this woman, he was being monitored like he expected. While being unaware of Tenma's growing concerns over his interest towards Yuriko, he had already decided to let her act as a smoke screen. She was already a detective at such a young age so the Kuroganes would have to think twice before making a move against her."To me? Hmph! I'd like to see them make a move against an officer of the law!" she clenched her fist and punched the air in front of her."Then does that mean?" Kazuya didn't finish his statement on purpose and looked at Yuriko directly in the eye. He already knew that she only reacted to the threat and forgot about how she hadn't said anything about his so-called 'affections' for her."W-w-wait! That's not what I mean! I just reacted immediately to the threat!" she tried to cover for her carelessness and explain. "Though I don't really know how to react, you were true to your words and proved what you said earlier."Kazuya felt a little guilty about making use of this former acquaintance of his so he already formulated a plan that would help both of them. He wanted to avoid this girl's suspicions so the only way to lessen her guard against him was to gain her trust."I see Well, I'm happy as long as I know that I didn't get an instant rejection because of my age." He gave a sigh of relief and was secretly thankful for the training Kanade had given him. This overly suspicious detective didn't seem to be suspicious of his act."Hey! Did you think I was narrow-minded?" Yuriko looked at him with an annoyed expression."Not at all. I wouldn't have considered being frank with you if I did. A lot of people seem to have the impression that people in my situation are really envious." He sighed. "What people fail to see is how much pressure and effort is involved.""What do you mean?" Though the impression she had about Kazuya had already changed, seeing the boy who dominated the first day of the competition in such a vulnerable state, made Yuriko more curious about him.In Yuriko's eyes, Kazuya looked like someone who bore the weight of the world on his shoulders. She couldn't believe her eyes because this boy had not even entered the real world yet. What worries could this kid possibly have that can make her have this feeling just by looking at him."Tell me Yuriko-san, from your perspective, does my life seem like a life of luxury to you? We did meet at a charity event that was for the rich and famous after all." he answered her question with one of his own."No person doesn't have proble wait, what did you just call me!?" she reacted quicker this time as Kazuya used her first name. "Don't think that just because I didn't reject you means that we're close!" she snapped at him."I'm about to tell you secrets about me that many people don't know about. Doesn't that give me something?" he looked at her feeling disappointed. "Though you are correct when you say that no person has no worries, I wonder if those people have to put up with the arrogant family that once ignored me and my mother. Do they also have to put up an act so they can be used by the family who only recognized his existence after they found out that he can be used by them?" Kazuya tried to distract her once more so that she would get used him calling her by name."You" though it had been vaguely put, Yuriko understood what he was trying to say."I am nothing but a prisoner that they want to use for themselves. This is the only thing I can do until I find a better way to keep my family safe. I do not want my family to have the same fate as the Muimina family who disappeared without a trace after the plot against them." Kazuya looked at the horizon and gaze a pained expression. He had already cast a small barrier to keep people from eavesdropping, so he began laying out the bait."Muimina family's disappearance!? It was a plot by the Kuroganes?!" Yuriko couldn't help but be shocked. Wasn't this the reason she tried to approach Kazuya?Yuriko didn't know if she should be happy about getting some of her suspicions answered. Though she indeed approached Kazuya with the intention of knowing more about these incidents, she never would have expected that she would be able to get it by using his affections towards her. She couldn't help but feel a little guilty as she understood what kind of predicament, he was currently in.Kazuya proceeded to tell her about how he had lost his memories and had to deal with everyone wanting the old him to come back more than accepting the current him. She had a rough understanding of the kid's history since this was not a heavily guarded secret after everyone heard the personal message at the end of the video that was almost like a farewell.Though Kazuya indeed has appeared to be just a middle school student, after hearing most of what people didn't know about him, Yuriko couldn't help but see him as someone who had already thought like an adult. There was a little pity towards him because as she looked back to her own history, she would have still been enjoying her youth when she was his age.Find authorized novels in Webnovelfaster updates, better experiencePlease click for visiting. "Yuriko-san?" Kazuya called out to her as she had been silent the whole time he was talking. He knew that something that she wanted should be somewhere along the lines of what he already said but he didn't know exactly what it was.Though Kazuya didn't actually know much about Yuriko even in his previous life, her personality was very similar to a person that was very close him. She was true to her principles and dedicated to her duty. It might have been fate or not, but for some reason, Kazuya ended up telling her about his experiences in this life as well. Though he left out the parts he shouldn't tell anyone, it was still very personal."Will you get angry at me if I said that I came to you for a purpose?" Yuriko made up her mind and looked at Kazuya seriously. She couldn't stand using his emotions for her personal gain even though it was not her intention."I won't. Rather, I am grateful that you would need something from me. I wouldn't have been able to spend time with you like this if it weren't for that." He quickly replied. "Feel free to ask me anything. It would be my pleasure to be of any help." he smiled."Idiot" this wasn't what she expected at all. Though she might have had some awareness of her looks, she wasn't confident enough to consider herself a beauty. She didn't know why Kazuya had been treating her so kindly despite his current situation."You don't have to feel guilty about it, Yuriko-san. You introduced yourself as a detective when we first met remember?" he encouraged her to ask. This way, he could find out what she wanted from him while he had a good impression on her."I am working on a case that involves a series of murders that have been happening recently" Yuriko finally gave in as Kazuya himself already offered his help. She started telling him the case that she was working on whilst trying to keep the details to a minimum.-Kurogane Tenma sat near the window of his hotel suite while having a glass of wine. He was talking to the guards that he sent to look after his grandson."They are still together?" Tenma frowned after hearing the report. Kazuya and Yuriko have walked around after the competition. He didn't think that the two would have much to talk about because of the difference in their ages but it looked like that detective might have had a hidden agenda towards his grandson after all."Are they suspicious of us? No that can't be. I haven't heard of anyone looking into us after they took Shishio's statement." Tenma ended the call after he heard that the guards couldn't hear anything from their conversation and dialed Shishio's phone number."Yes father?" Shishio answered after a few rings. He was still in the hospital where many doctors were left baffled at his injury."How is your recovery going?""It is going fine." Shishio hesitated a bit and decided not to say much. If Tenma had discovered that there might have been a possibility for his arm to never recover it's full functions, he would definitely be at a disadvantage."Why did you hesitate? Is there something you're not telling me?" Tenma immediately got suspicious. After what he had experienced with Kazuya today, he paired these troublesome father and son together and wanted to vent some of his frustrations towards Shishio."Everything is going fine father. I only hesitated because the doctors informed me that it might take longer for my recovery. The wound is healing at a slow pace and it's delaying the therapy at the moment." Shishio quickly explained. Both Tenma and him were informed that it had been a clean hit like they talked about when they hired the sniper so Shishio was quite upset when he heard about the problems he was experiencing."It may be related to stress so you should focus on recovery. I figured out another way we could deal with our goal after the recent failure. You should not dwell on the previous failure and move on to the next plan." Tenma tried to encourage him."Next plan? You thought of another way father? Wouldn't the Kouzukis be suspicious of us if we make another move this quickly?" Shishio couldn't help but be concerned. He wasn't capable of doing anything in his current situation."It was actually pretty simple. It's like this" Tenma proceeded to tell Shishio about his revelation today."That" Shishio was surprised. The answer was indeed simple but it was more effective and safer than what they planned. The only risk he could think of was if Kazuya discovered that they were involved."Those stubborn Kouzuki fools! It would be easy to take the boy away once that rotten old pledge of theirs is broken by him!" Tenma laughed. He truly felt like he had been overthinking to have overlooked something so simple. "Their tradition will cause the most talented person to ever emerge from that accursed family to belong to us!""But father are you going to give up on Kazuya winning the competition?" Shishio couldn't help but ask."Don't be ridiculous. The boy would hold resentment towards us if he suddenly ended up losing due to my interference. This must be planned carefully. Not only will he need to have resentment towards that tradition which will not give him an exception, his mother and that old geezer Kou will have to choose between the boy or their corporation's unbroken reputation of being trustworthy." The two men agreed that they would have to figure out something that wouldn't let Kazuya be too suspicious of them."I will quickly come up with a plan." Shishio immediately took it upon himself to come up with a plan. Though he wasn't at fault for the plan that failed, he needed to make up for the failure since there would be no one else that Tenma could put the blame on."Good. It won't be long until the banquet so it would be better for you to complete your task because you only have until then to complete your task." Tenma reminded."Speaking of tasks, I had just received word that Shiroyuki Tomoyo had a knife stabbed to her chest today." Shishio reported."Yes, I was just informed that as well. It looks like our investment was not a waste after all." Tenma's mood lightened up. "Despite the current setbacks, things are slowly falling into place. As long as we succeed, not only will we be able to end the feud with the Kouzuki clan victoriously, our clan would have been guaranteed to prosper for the next two generations.""I know what is at stake father. I will definitely accomplish this task." Though accomplishing his task meant sealing his position as the next head, Shishio was aware that Kazuya's officially joining their family was something that will benefit him and the clan in the long run.Though their plan would mean that they were dropping the benefits that Kazuya would gain from controlling the Kouzuki corporation in the future, it couldn't be compared to what they would gain once they had successfully arranged a marriage between Kazuya and Kurumi. Now that Shiroyuki Tomoyo was out of the picture, they were one step closer to their goal.-The sun had already set when Kazuya and Yuriko's conversation had come to a standstill. Both of them hadn't noticed how time quickly passed by as they were both engrossed in their conversation.Yuriko was glad that she had been honest with Kazuya from the start. She knew he had been a smart kid, but she never realized that his intelligence and sharp wit was so shocking. Her trip was truly not a waste as a lot of questions that were left unanswered were given some light as well as new revelations that she would have never uncovered if this boy had not trusted her."Looks like time passed by more than we thought." Kazuya glanced at the time and realized that they had been talking for a while. "Why don't we continue our conversation over a meal?" he offered."Don't you need to go to your grandfather? Won't he be suspicious?" Yuriko felt her hunger as soon as food was mentioned. "I know a place nearby that's quiet and has delicious local cuisine if you're interested in me treating you as thanks." Being the elder, she obviously offered to pay."You don't have to worry about Kurogane Tenma. He already sent some of his guards to watch over me as soon as I left the room." Kazuya secretly pointed towards some people who tried to act natural. One of them was obviously unaware that a person trying to read a newspaper in the night-time was definitely suspicious."You would make a great detective Kazuya." Throughout their conversation, she hadn't realized it but she had already referred to him by his first name. "Why don't you consider joining the force in the future? I can give you a recommendation!"She was very impressed with Kazuya. His sense of awareness was above hers and his attention to detail was the real deal. She hadn't noticed the people tailing them but once they were pointed out, she was able to recognize the guards that were usually around Kurogane Tenma."I put it under consideration." though Kazuya wasn't the least bit interested, he didn't give an outright rejection. "There is still a long way before I have to decide.""I hope you will give it some serious consideration. It would be a perfect fit for your talents." Yuriko smiled. If such a capable individual would join the force in the future, there would be no telling how much people he could help."I will definitely think about it. I think it would be quite fun to see you everyday." Kazuya joked."You" before she could scold him, Yuriko's phone started ringing. Everyone knew that she shouldn't be contacted because of her absence so calling her meant that there should have been a major development."Please take it." Kazuya didn't mind and continued to walk beside her. The expression she showed when she looked at the caller's identity."Sanada speaking, is something the matter?" Yuriko didn't mind answering the call-in front of him because he was already aware of the case she had been working on.Kazuya focused his senses and tried to eavesdrop on the call. It sounded like Yuriko's superior. The call was about someone who had been attacked in broad daylight by the suspect they were trying to find."!!" Kazuya immediately halted his steps as soon as he heard the name that was mentioned and immediately thought that he had misheard it. He clutched his chest as it felt as if it was tightening and tried to catch his breath."WHAT!? That can't be! Are you sure that they still weren't in shock when they identified the suspect!?" Yuriko was so surprised about what she heard that she failed to notice Kazuya's reaction to the update she just received."This feeling" Kazuya was very familiar with this feeling. This feeling was something that he hadn't experienced just once, but several times in his past life. He didn't think that he would feel like this again because he had dedicated himself into preventing events like this from happening again."So that's it" Kazuya looked at the night sky and sighed. Though he had not been aware of it, he had already considered Tomoyo as a companion that would be comparable to the ones he was once close to in Edea. He didn't think that there would be people like that aside from his family that he would care for but before he knew it, the robot girl that followed him around was already accepted as someone that he cared for."K-kazuya!" Yuriko's sudden voice immediately called him back from his thoughts."I apologize. The conversation looked quite serious so I wanted to give you some privacy." He quickly made an excuse while suppressing the heavy feeling on his chest."I want you to listen to me calmly. Your friend, Shiroyuki Tomoyo, Akabane Nanami and their teacher was attacked by the suspect we've been trying to identify. They were able to fend off the murderer but Shiroyuki Tomoyo is currently in critical condition at the hospital.""I see" Kazuya sighed in relief. He immediately had a reaction as soon as he heard that the robot girl had been stabbed in the chest. It was a relief to find out that she had come out alive."Why do you look like you're relieved!" Yuriko glared at him. She would have misjudged him if he truly was relieved after hearing that his friend was in critical condition."You misunderstand. I was relieved to find out that she survived. As long as she still draws breath, there would be hope for her to get better." Kazuya explained as he took out his cell phone and immediately dialed a number."Hello? Tsuna-san? We have a situation".
