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Smoke wafted in the air as Kiryu sat on the wooden porch of his home, gazing out at the night sky. Here in Okinawa, the nights were always cool, regardless of the season. The breeze made the cigarette in his mouth taste all the better.
Kiryu had taken over as the head of Morning Glory Orphanage, where he took care of seven children, all of whom were dear to him. Some days he questioned whether he was fit to act as a caretaker, with his violent past being his legacy. And since they were all children, they wouldn’t know any better. In his presumptuousness, he took the offer to run an orphanage. It felt like a way to honor his own upbringing at Sunflower Orphanage.
As calm as Okinawa was, living here carried a few issues of its own, but his fists or his words helped to address them all. Kiryu had won the respect of the local yakuza family and while talk of land development may affect the orphanage here in Okinawa, that problem that had been deferred thanks to the intervention of an old friend of his. Compared to living within the streets of Kamurocho, relaxing his shoulders was far easier to do here.
With the kids asleep, he had time to look into the stars and contemplate his life here. The thought hadn’t crossed his mind until now, but all in all, he was happier these days. Snuffing out his cigarette in the sand at his feet, he stood up, shaking his head. He really needed to fall asleep if he was thinking about abstract notions like his happiness.
After checking to see if everyone else had gone to sleep, Kiryu returned to his room and lay on his futon. Snuggling under his comforter, he closed his eyes, allowing the waves of fatigue to take hold of him.
———
Someone kept poking his arm over and over again, making him stir. Kiryu groaned as he sat up, rubbing his eyes.
As Kiryu awoke, he looked around, finding himself inside an unfamiliar restaurant. This place… was not Okinawa. He found his arms resting on a wooden table. Delicious aromas filled his nostrils, making him alert.
“Where am I?”
In front of Kiryu was a plate of fried tofu and a pair of ornate wooden chopsticks.
“You must have been tired from running around all day,” said a woman, retracting her finger. “I helped myself to the menu while you took a rest. I assumed that you wouldn’t mind. Honestly, you should thank me for being so considerate, letting you sleep while dining with someone such as me!”
“Who are you again?”
Gasping in mock surprise, the woman pointed at herself, drawing his attention to her vibrant pink hair. More curious than the shade of her hair were her large fox ears, which conflicted with her traditional shrine maiden attire.
“Why, she is only Lady Guuji, the one and only head shrine maiden of Inazuma!” the chef cried, greatly offended by Kiryu’s ignorance.
He scratched his head and bowed apologetically.
“Uh… my bad.”
“Well, no matter. You should really try some of this. It is simply sublime! But maybe after you try the tofu. It is one of this shop’s specialties, after all.”
In front of him sat a small plate of tofu fried to perfection. After cutting it open with his chopsticks, Kiryu gasped. The outside layer was as crispy as be. The tofu on the outside crumbled out as softly as omurice eggs.
The shrine maiden then returned to helping herself to a massive plate of seafood cheerfully. Most notably included were expensive delicacies like crawfish and snowcrab.
“Hm, I guess I might as well,” he said.
“You should!” The priestess said cheerfully. “Good food is best shared with good company, wouldn’t you say?”
Kiryu ate the tofu, which was fried to a perfect, crispy texture. He nodded with satisfaction as he took a bite, savouring the dish.
“Here is the fresh Inazuma bass, Lady Guuji!”
A massive plate of fish then sat between the two of them, freshly steamed.
“You know, normally, this fish is waaaayyyy too expensive for me to consider getting, so I’m grateful for you, Kiryu-san. Mm~ Everything today tastes just divine!”
Ignoring the cryptic statement, Kiryu grabbed some fish of his own. Upon tasting it, the delicacy melted in his mouth and he began to eat more. This cuisine was heavenly, to say the least.
Lady Guuji then gestured to the chef, getting his attention. “Make sure to remember this man’s face just in case something happens.”
Kiryu raised an eyebrow, trying to remember how he even met Lady Guuji. The circumstances were a fog— he shook his head. Nothing came to mind. But the food was superb and the company, while eccentric, wasn’t troublesome. He raised his hand and ordered some beer.
He downed one beer, then a second. As he exhaled, Kiryu felt tipsy. Instinctively reaching into his pocket, Kiryu sighed as his pack of smokes was missing. Patting his gray suit jacket’s pocket, he realized that his lighter had vanished as well.
Well, whatever. Kiryu wanted to ease up on the smoking, at least around the kids. There was a day where he read up about the dangers of smoking for children and their brain development. Old habits died hard, so limiting himself became more of a long term project than an instant change. This would be a good opportunity to practice abstaining.
He reached for a piece of tofu instead, chewing on it to take his mind off from his craving. A small white bottle was placed in front of him. Its contents smelled of sake.
“Here!” the shrine maiden said. “This sake is so expensive that even I hesitate to drink it. Help yourself. It would be such a waste if no one enjoys any of it.”
Seeing two sake cups, Kiryu poured into both of them.
“Thank you,” Lady Guuji said, giving an elegant smile. With a certain gracefulness, she held up her cup of sake.
“To this exquisite meal.”
Kiryu put down the bottle, then clinked cups with Lady Guuji.
“Cheers.”
He downed the cup in one fell swoop, sighing blissfully as his cheeks began to burn. That sake was top class stuff, just as Lady Guuji said.
She, too, clearly impressed by the sake. Still unsure how he ended up here, Kiryu felt tense despite the festive atmosphere.
“I should go. Thank you for the meal.”
Kiryu straightened his suit as he looked around. The door was just a few seats over, just past Lady Guuji. Maybe eating one last piece of tofu wouldn’t hurt before leaving.
The chef smiled and held out the bill.
“Perfect, sir. Here’s the bill!”
Kiryu looked at the chef incredulously, he picked up his last piece of tofu. Since he was already eating, to humor the absurd situation, he looked for the price written at the bottom of the check. Seeing it, he stopped eating, causing half of the tofu to fall out of his mouth.
“10 MILLION MORA?!”
Kiryu stood up and pointed at Lady Guuji. “What’s going on?!”
“This lavish meal was very generous of you,” she said, her face turning slightly red as she drank. “I’m only saying that in jest. Serving anything else would have been insulting to a VIP such as me.”
Kiryu looked at the chef, who was just as surprised at him. “S-Sir… You gave your word when reserving this place.”
“Yeah man,” said another person as he grabbed the bottle of sake. The man looked like a demon and downed sake like one too. Laughing as he slammed the now empty bottle onto the table, the man grinned.
“That’s some damn good sake!”
“And who are you, exactly?” Kiryu asked. Something was wrong here. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, it didn’t feel like a scam. His scam-detector was a tool honed during an unfortunate period in his life when scams ran rampant and he fell for many of them.
“I’m Arataki, man. You invited me too.”
Kiryu raised an eyebrow, now confused more than ever.
He reached for his wallet, which, unlike his cigarettes, still rested in his pants pocket. Unknown currency exchange rates aside, Kiryu already knew that from the sheer amount alone, he wouldn’t be able to pay, but maybe it would just so happen that he would have—
A puff of air greeted Kiryu as he stared into his empty wallet.
“...”
“Hey, I don’t remember agreeing to this. I can’t pay for this. No one can!”
“Hey man, someone has to. You volunteered to do so.” Arataki crossed his arms, shaking his head with disapproval. He wasn’t preparing to strong arm Kiryu into paying— at least for now.
The chef raised his hand, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Not to worry, sir! If you can’t pay, we can set up an interest loan plan that you can pay off in twenty installments. There is an APR of 14.62 percent, but don’t worry too much about that.”
Undeterred, Kiryu stood firm. “I won’t pay.”
“Sir, you have to pay!” the chef cried. “You can’t just leave!”
“I won’t pay,” Kiryu insisted, calling the chef’s bluff. Alright, the chef would lose his cool and they would settle things. Or maybe Arataki would antagonize him. The truth would come to light, regardless.
“GUARDS!!! GUARDS!!!”
Multiple guards came in holding spears, surrounding the restaurant.
“Lady Guuji, are you okay?”
Lady Guuji looked at them, then at Kiryu. “Calm down, calm down! You’re working on a light novel series and it’s printing, remember?”
“Again… What are you talking about?!”
Lady Guuji shook her head softly, ignoring his words. “Not to worry, just keep on writing and you’ll make enough to pay everything off!”
Then she frowned, placing her fingers on her chin. “Wait, maybe I got you mixed up with someone else…”
As tensions rose, that sudden confession filled the room with silence. Kiryu took the opportunity to bolt out of the restaurant before anyone could recover. It was a hopeless situation.
The guards’ cries grew distant as he ran by unfamiliar streets.
———
Kiryu bolted down the streets of Inazuma, looking for a way out. Many passersby yelped as he ran past, turning left and right and left again to shake off his pursuers.
“Quit resisting! You are under arrest!!!” one guard yelled.
Kiryu kept running, ignoring the order.
“In addition to not paying for your food, you are under arrest for murdering the patriarch of the Izanuma region clan, Raiden Shogun!”
Confused, Kiryu stopped running. “Hold on, there’s been a huge mistake. I never killed anyone!”
“There was a key eyewitness,” a guard shouted as the guards surrounded him. Kiryu shrugged, sighing. Again, he had no recollection of this. The more that he couldn’t remember, the more infuriating the situation became.
"That's right, Kiryuuuuuu-chan!!!”
Majima snapped his fingers, dancing funkily as he walked past the guards, entering Kiryu’s line of sight. Dressed in fantasy clothes similar to the locals in town, the Mad Dog of Shimano strutted inside the ring of Inazuma guards.
His good friend/nemesis dressed in a set of brown crop top and baggy pants, somehow both fitting in with the others in Inazuma and sticking out more strangely than he usually did, which was an accomplishment in itself. After adjusting the scarf wrapped around his neck, Majima gestured at himself, showing off his clothes.
“Whatdya think? Pretty snazzy, right?”
A small white fairy flew in front, waving her arms frantically.
“Paimon thinks that this criminal should be arrested immediately and fed to the wolves! Leave it to the Inazuma guards! We are here to unwind, remember?!”
“Oh no, Kiryu-chan. Seems like yer in hot shit now. First you murder the fine samurai lady and now you’re leaving without paying. Resisting arrest too, come to think of it.”
Majima drew a dagger. The dagger’s blade was blue and its handle was silver, a different style from his usual weapon.
“So now, whatdya going to do, huh?”
Seeing a familiar face suddenly calmed him enough to get grip on himself. Nodding, Kiryu got into a fighting stance. This was familiar at least, like a grounding rock in a storm that was this absurdity.
“I get it now. So all of this was an elaborate ruse so you can fight me. If that’s how it’s going to be, then I won’t hold back!”
“Well… If a criminal is gonna try and take me out then I have to defend myself, eh, Kiryu-chan?”
Paimon kept flying around Majima’s face. “Paimon knew this would happen! He’s a criminal and Lady Guuji is handling it! We already did our job!”
Majima stepped past Paimon, ignoring her outburst. When he locked eyes with Kiryu, he laughed maniacally, then charged.
Despite the ridiculousness of it all, a smile formed on Kiryu’s face. There weren’t any loved ones in danger this time around— Majima wouldn’t do that out of his own volition. All that’s offered was a good old brawl, just how Kiryu preferred it.
Majima’s knife came at him with killing intent with every swing. Blood rushed into Kiryu’s head as he deftly avoided the attacks, looking for an opening of his own.
Lady Guuji appeared within the crowd, watching the battle with an amused look on her face.
Kiryu threw a kick towards Majima’s skull. Too slow. Majima ducked and wound his arm back, preparing to attack once more. Kiryu leaned back and narrowly avoided an attack aimed at his jaw.
His old friend was as agile as ever, which never failed to keep Kiryu on his toes. One might imagine that Majima could move so fast that afterimages could form— that was nonsense… there was no way that could happen.
Majima ran towards him then began to spin rapidly, becoming a dangerous top of death.
Seconds before the attack hit him, Kiryu plowed his fist into Majima’s chest, sending him flying. As Majima landed on the floor, his knife clattered to the ground.
“Hee hee! You’re still as strong as ever, Kiryu-chan.”
“Now am I free to go?”
“Oh, yer still goin’ to jail. You really did kill her.”
“What?!”
The guards then swarmed and promptly arrested him. Kiryu was taken to trial when alleged proof detailing his murder of Raiden Shogun surfaced. Following that, the sentence was dealt swiftly and absolutely. With his hands tightly bound in rope, Kiryu was taken away to be detained for ten years.
“Another ten years…” Kiryu lamented as he sat in his cell.
———
He woke up covered in sweat, gasping as he stared at the ceiling. The bars of his cell disappeared along with his dream. He sat upright on his tatami mat, looking around, now back in the familiar city of Okinawa. No prison sentence and no Inazuma. The morning breeze blew into his room, cooling him down. Seeing sunlight pour into his room, Kiryu shook his head and decided to get up.
With a bated breath, Kiryu stood up and reached for a cigarette as he walked to the beach just on the other side of the road.
Sitting down on the sandy shore, Kiryu placed the cigarette in his mouth, then lit it with a pocket lighter. As he took a breath, he blew out the smoke, then stared at the ocean with a pensive look on his face.
“I’m getting scammed in my dreams now, too?”
[End of Substory 120: Inazuma Dream]