My love index is at its maximum.

Kuriyama Sakura frowned deeply.

Lu Xun, the Chinese writer, is quite well-known in Japan; she's familiar with him and has read several of his works. Tazaki Tsukasa's words, taken individually, are fine, but when considered in the context of Lu Xun, the style is completely incompatible…

Tazaki Tsukasa walked onto the overpass, turned around and looked at the minister who was still frowning and deep in thought below the steps, and said triumphantly: "Just three minutes ago, I gave myself a pen name, Lu Xun."

"...?" Kuriyama Sakura gritted her teeth as she walked up the steps, her eyes revealing a chilling murderous intent that showed despair for the world and a desire to kill everyone right now.

"Don't be discouraged," Tsukasa Tazaki comforted her. "Although you have no chance of surpassing me in intelligence, you can still work on other things, such as... weight!"

You're dead!

The minister was very angry, and his chest bulged out from his rapid breathing.

Tazaki Tsukasa thought with some relief that if he angered her a few more times, she might still be salvageable.

The weather turned slightly gloomy, and a flock of crows flew over the railway tracks, a sign that it was about to rain.

After finishing her rant, Kuriyama Sakura leaned against the rusty railing, gazing at the railway tracks stretching straight into the distance beneath Asahi Bridge. Tazaki Tsukasa was humming a song beside her, his words mumbled indistinctly; she struggled to understand the lyrics.

Just as I awoke from this dream.

It emitted an incomparably dazzling light.

Young man!

Let it become a legend!

Kuriyama Sakura's delicate, fair face showed an expression of interest: "How can one become a legend?"

"Just like me would be perfect," Tazaki Tsukasa said shamelessly. "Strong and powerful, brave and confident, smart and handsome, sincere and innocent, without any affectation or hypocrisy..."

“Tazaki-san…” Kuriyama Sakura sighed helplessly, “Please have some self-awareness, okay? You don’t possess any of the qualities mentioned above!”

"Can you be an honest person like me?"

"Humph……"

"The arrogant minister is truly the world's greatest treasure."

Kuriyama Sakura opened her mouth in disbelief: "Me, a tsundere?"

"100% pure tsundere. Let's not talk about that anymore, let's go to the convenience store where I work and I'll treat you to a fruit smoothie." Tsukasa Tazaki stretched happily and walked towards the convenience store: "I'll also introduce you to my most respected store manager, so you won't scold me for keeping it from you again."

Kuriyama Sakura rubbed her temples with her fingers as she followed closely behind him.

I hate this kind of scumbag behavior, but my body shamelessly betrays my thoughts. Ultimately, when I'm with him, there's a sense of connection that's more intimate than that of a romantic relationship; it's a soul connection where we can completely accept each other's flaws.

The two walked down the overpass side by side.

As night gradually fell, countless streetlights lit up in a boastful manner.

The streets of Yotsuya were crowded during rush hour. A cool breeze blew in from between the tall buildings, carrying a hint of autumn. The rain started soon after, so fine it was hard to see. The sidewalk underfoot was gradually turned gray by the rain. Office workers carrying briefcases and holding folding umbrellas hurried towards the station stairs.

Several fully loaded buses were zipping around the road like tanks, packed with commuters, students, and housewives. A crowd had gathered outside the approaching convenience store.

There were about ten people, led by a middle-aged man who looked arrogant. He was wearing a dark suit, a white shirt, and a gray tie like those worn by bank loan officers.

The rest of the people were all wearing gray overalls and lightweight rubber-soled cloth shoes, constantly moving items from the convenience store onto the van.

Tazaki Tsukasa took out his phone and called the landlady, but the number was unreachable. He checked his Line chat, and the message was still unread.

Something happened...

Tazaki Tsukasa unconsciously gripped his bamboo sword, cautiously observing the group ahead. Their eyes constantly scanned their surroundings, their muscles tense, as if ready to respond to any unexpected situation. All of them wore black Chinese dragon armbands on their shoulders, as if afraid others wouldn't know they were members of a formal yakuza group.

Kuriyama Sakura rested her chin on her hand: "It looks like your manager is in trouble."

"You go back first," Tsukasa Tazaki said to her.

"I'll just stay here and watch."

"Alright, stay away, don't come close."

"Here's the bag, be careful," Kuriyama Sakura instructed, taking the backpack he handed her and obediently standing under the eaves of a roadside shop to take shelter from the rain.

Tsukasa Tazaki, carrying a bamboo sword, walked up to the group and politely asked, "Excuse me, what happened at this shop?"

The man in the suit who looked like the leader turned around and smiled strangely: "Why is it a high school student?"

"Oh, what do you mean by that..." Tsukasa Tazaki thought for a moment before asking, "You knew someone would come to stop us?"

The man in the suit chuckled and shook his head: "Honestly, a small convenience store sent more than ten people. I thought some important figure would show up. But after waiting for ages, all we got was a high school student?"

Tsukasa Tazaki gave a harmless smile: "Can you tell me what happened first?"

"Why should a kid worry about so much?" The man in the suit reached out and patted his shoulder, saying dismissively, "Go home and study hard. Being a law-abiding taxpayer is what you should be doing. Don't meddle in adults' business."

When I beat you up later, I'll go easy on you... Tazaki Tsukasa took a deep breath and continued, "My patience is limited, so please explain the whole story right now."

The man in the suit laughed even harder, clutching his stomach with one hand and making an OK sign with the other: "Okay, okay, do you know that the owner of this store owes us 7500 million?"

Where is she?

"I was about to ask you that too." The man in the suit reached out a second time and grabbed Tazaki Tsukasa's shoulder. "You seem so concerned, do you know the shop owner? How about you help her pay back the 7500 million?"

Tazaki Tsukasa barely suppressed the urge to slap him, and hissed in a low voice, "Let go!"

calm.

Don't panic!

The situation is serious; panicking won't help.

The most important thing now is to find Sachiko, not to start a fight. A conflict here will definitely attract the police. Being taken to the station for questioning isn't the worst thing; what he's afraid of is wasting time.

"What kind of attitude is that?" The man in the suit reached out to slap him across the face.

The dozen or so people dressed as porters stood in a row, laughing and joking loudly at the boy who had suddenly appeared.

Tazaki Tsukasa raised his hand and used his bamboo sword to block: "Which organization are you from?"

The man in the suit cursed, "Looking for death?"

"I'll find out more later." Tsukasa Tazaki turned and walked back.

The man in the suit caught up: "Hey, you..."

Kuriyama Sakura, holding Tazaki Tsukasa's backpack in both hands, looked at the suppressed anger on his face and the man chasing after him with a punch in his hand, and shouted, "You just do what you want, leave the rest to me."

Tsukasa Tazaki nodded gratefully.

The minister knows himself well; he knows he's not one to take things lying down, and he must be feeling very frustrated right now. Since the cabinet minister's daughter has spoken up for him to vent his anger, there's nothing more to worry about.

He raised his knife, turned around, and slashed cleanly and decisively.

A scream of agony rang out.

The man in the suit was slashed and staggered back a few steps, then covered the red mark on his face and rolled on the ground.

The remaining dozen or so people stared dumbfounded at their leader's screams. After a few seconds of stunned silence, they all looked up at the boy holding the bamboo sword, shouted "kisama," a word used in fights, and charged forward, waving their fists.

The one who rushed forward the fastest grabbed Tazaki Tsukasa with both hands, seemingly trying to tackle the boy to the ground. However, in the next moment, his angry expression froze as if he had been plunged into a cesspool.

With a deft twist of his wrist, Tazaki Tsukasa's body traced a graceful arc like a dragon in the drizzle before disappearing from sight.

"Brush~"

A whooshing sound rang out, and Tsukasa Tazaki appeared beside him, striking him on the back of the head with half his strength. The next second, he was lying on the ground, clutching his head and howling in pain, just like his boss.

Kuriyama Sakura clutched her backpack tightly with both hands, her usually cool eyes now brimming with unprecedented emotion.

Without the constraints of kendo competition rules, Tazaki Tsukasa's formidable strength was truly and fully revealed to her.

As a young woman with a love for literature, she had absolutely no interest in violent scenes.

But the current situation... needs to be considered differently!

[The Perfect Young Samurai~! Kuriyama Sakura Stock Index rose 10 points, current stock price: 190]

As the system notification popped up, Tazaki Tsukasa was wielding a bamboo sword, aiming at the scarred man blocking his way. The man hurriedly tried to block with his baseball bat. With a flick of his wrist, the bamboo sword deflected the baseball bat and struck Tazaki squarely in the cheek.

"Ah~"

A heart-wrenching scream rang out, and Scarface squatted on the ground, wailing as he covered his eyes with his hands. Blood flowed down his fingers and quickly stained his entire arm red.

next.

The bald man, who was charging at you with a strange cry, leaped forward and pounced.

Tazaki Tsukasa delivered a powerful mid-air whip kick, sending him flying through the air, shattering the roadside glass, and crashing into the shop.

The next one held a dagger more than ten centimeters long. The gleaming blade reflected the streetlights, momentarily blinding Tazaki. He squinted, using his senses to subconsciously shift his body slightly, and the dagger pierced Tazaki's abdomen.

The pristine white shirt was ripped open by the blade with a sharp "rip".

Taking advantage of his momentum, Tazaki Tsukasa slammed his knee into the man's stomach. Before a scream could be heard, Tazaki Tsukasa swiftly turned and delivered a high kick, sending a man who was about to tackle him from behind flying. Without retracting his leg, he spun again and kicked the nearest man in the forearm.

With a "click".

The man whose arm bone was broken stared wide-eyed, his screams like those of a dying carnivore.

More than ten people collapsed to the ground in just five minutes.

Without even catching his breath, Tsukasa Tazaki took out his phone, took a picture of the insignia on their arms, and sent it to them. He then calmly returned to Sakura Kuriyama's side and said, "I'm going to Sangenjaya. I'll leave this place to you."

“I’ll go with you.” Kuriyama Sakura blurted out without thinking, then added, “I’ll have someone arrange things here.”

"it is good!"

Tsukasa Tazaki hailed a taxi, and the two headed together to Sachiko Tono's apartment in Sangenjaya.

Along the way, the rain fell in a regular pattern, sometimes heavy, sometimes light; sometimes light, sometimes heavy, making one want to yawn. On the elevated section of the Capital Expressway No. 3 Ring Road, the monotonous whooshing sound of cars passing each other at high speed echoed incessantly.

The Toyota Crown's sound insulation isn't exactly great, but its seats are quite comfortable. Tazaki Tsukasa took out his phone and sent the photos he'd just taken to his father-in-law.

[Tazaki: Father-in-law, could you please take a look at this symbol and tell me which organization it belongs to?]

[Tazaki: Black Dragon.jpg]

While waiting for a reply, he silently gazed out the window. Every ten seconds or so, a huge billboard atop a building would flash across his view. When he received his father-in-law's message, he happened to see a gas station advertisement featuring a grinning tiger holding a gas pump.

Let the tiger refuel you.

He looked down at his phone while recalling what Kana Shimamoto had said.

[Father-in-law: Such a huge black dragon, of course it belongs to those bastards from the Black Dragon Group!]

[Tazaki: Could you please explain in detail, Father-in-law?]