Chapter Text
“Sakura-san, this plan is too risky! What if they catch you?”
Nirei flinched, voice wavered, his round face paling as the worst-case scenarios played out in his mind behind those alarming brown eyes. It was a look Sakura had seen countless times. Nirei’s anxious demeanor only frustrated him.
“I can take them all.”
“I know you’re an excellent fighter, very excellent, but I can’t help you if things go south,” Nirei's voice tinged with concern.
Despite wearing his short-sleeved blue police uniform, Nirei didn’t look remotely imposing. He was better suited to blending into crowded places and gathering information than to a brawl. Even Sakura had to admit that undercover work was more Nirei’s strength. But this was Sakura’s plan, and he wasn’t backing down.
“You’re right,” Sakura crossing his arms. His sharp, heterochromatic eyes locked onto Nirei’s. “I’ll go alone. You don’t have to come with me.”
Nirei’s face hardened as he raised his voice in protest — uncharacteristically louder than usual. “You can’t go alone! That’s against the rules of investigation!”
Sakura huffed in irritation, but before he could retort, the glass door swung open.
“Waa… Come on… Nirei-chan, Sakura-chan, what are you two arguing about today?”
Kiryu’s weary voice rang out as he stumbled into the office, fanning himself to cool off. Tsugeura followed closely behind, grinning, seemingly unaffected by the sweltering mid-July heat.
“Just back from patrol, huh? You look exhausted,” Nirei greeted his colleagues.
“Yeah, I thought I was gonna totally melt,”
Kiryu groaned as he slumping into a chair at his desk, his face flushed from the heat of sunlight. He switched on a small fan aimed at himself, then grabbed a water bottle, drinking deeply. Beads of sweat clung on his face and his pale pink hair, as if he had just taken a shower. As he pulled the hair tie from his damp pink hair, releasing the fragrant, clean scent of shampoo mingled with soft sweat in the air.
A contrast to Tsugeura, whose shirt was drenched in sweat yet somehow still looked fresh and lively after nearly two hours in the heat.
Tsugeura leaned over to talk to his pink-haired partner, a playful smirk on his face as he began preparing a protein shake. Sitting on his desk “Consider it a little training. This heat doesn’t even compare with a speck of my daily workout schedule.”
Kiryu gave him an exasperated look, muttering under his breath. “It sounds fitting for you alone, Tsuge-chan.”
Sakura's odd eyes glanced at his colleagues, who brought back the stifling heat of summer outside with them. A sense of relief gradually seeped in his chest. When the police officers returned, worn down by the oppressive weather, it was clear that the town of Makochi had remained serene today — still at peace after the storm of chaos that had ravaged it years ago.
As the heat under Kiryu uniform started to dissipate, he glanced back at Nirei. “By the way, what were you two arguing about earlier? I could hear you from outside.”
Nirei quickly spilled his problem to his coworkers. “You have to stop Sakura-san! He said he’s planning to go undercover in Chinatown tonight, and if something happens...” His face twisted at the thought. “If the goons from that night see Sakura-san, it’ll be a disaster — especially since he’s off-duty!”
Sakura scowled, baring his little white fangs. “I’ll be fine on my own. I can handle it. You don’t need a partner in any activity in off-duty time”
His blond partner shot a fearsome look in response, “But I already know your target and purpose. I'm not allowing you to venture out there alone into that dangerous den.”
Kiryu raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Ugh… such a heated argument…” Before turning his gaze to Sakura, who stubbornly insisting on his stance. “But Sakura-san, Nirei-san is really concerned about you.”
A hint of flush climbed on Sakura's face. He still wasn't familiar with it.
From the day Sakura first stepped into Makochi, the air filled with bright heat of care and concern crashed down on him, blindly sparkling to the point that it pricked all over his skin, and couldn’t accept them all at once. And no matter how many months or years passed, he still couldn’t get used to the genuine words of care from those around him. He always felt uneasy when receiving such gentle kindness. This sometimes led him to feel a sense of uh… guilt… about his kind partner and all of his friends deep down.
Just then, Nirei burst out, “If you go, I will definitely accompany you.”
Sakura flinched. He pointed a finger at the petite blond guy, trying to mask his embarrassment by accusing him. “You were shaking in your boots just a moment ago! What’s with the sudden bravery?”
“Because I need to muster more courage than usual! That’s why I’m trying to stop you from taking this risk tonight!” Nirei protested.
Tsugeura's laughter cut through the spectacular quarrel, chiming in after he had been listening intently, “Chinatown? Is that related to the case you two took on a couple of days ago?”
At that moment, the large orange-haired officer swung his legs off the edge of his desk, looking at the two with a suddenly serious expression. Even Kiryu leaned in, intrigued.
Sakura responded vaguely. The memories played back to him, vividly.
After the chaos in Makochi city subsided, the Chinatown area on the east side had transformed into a vibrant hub for tourists from neighboring cities. Strangers came and went at all days and nights, only falling into a deep slumber during the silent hours just before dawn.
The case had unfolded two nights prior. In the dead of night, police received reports of a murder in a narrow alleyway rarely frequented by pedestrians. Sakura and Nirei were the first responders, discovering the victim was a young man in his early twenties named 'Imai Eijiro', a local food delivery worker. His cold body lay abandoned on the concrete pavement, discarded like trash, with a single deep gash on his neck — a fatal injury that had taken his life instantly.
That had made Sakura fricking furious. He must really hate himself if he can't catch this piece of trash killer.
Onlookers gathered at a distance, whispers of speculation floating around as Sakura collected evidence. One particularly interesting tidbit he overheard was that ...the deceased had just left a luxurious teahouse called the Crimson Moon Tea House alone before he was found dead. The crowd was filled with buzzing whispers that grew louder, expressing shock and confusion. …That teahouse belongs to Suo. Could it be his doing?
Sakura perked up at the mention of ‘Suo’.
Suo...?
He didn’t know anyone by that name, but who in this town wouldn’t recognize the opulent 'Crimson Moon Tea House' standing proudly in Chinatown?
Sakura engraved both names in his mind.
Then he turned on his heel and headed straight for the group standing at the alley’s mouth. He tried to ask (and even press) the locals about Suo, but everyone who heard that name wore expressions of fear, as if they had just spotted a venomous snake slithering nearby their feet. They all quickly clamored away, eager to escape, and before long, the gathered people dispersed entirely.
Leaving only a group of nearly ten burly men who watched the officers from a distance, their eyes filled with defiance. It was clear they were thugs who influenced Chinatown — an area where the local police had little power. Sakura didn’t like that one bit.
Only an old man with a white beard, dressed in a navy changshan and resembling a calligrapher, dared to approach Sakura and warned him in a grave voice.
“It’s not Suo-san’s doing... If you want to keep your life peaceful, stay away from him—”
Sakura smirked. …Another threat came. Suck!
He had heard threats like that throughout his career as a police officer (though he’s a rookie cop). He had already proven that nine out of ten threats felt empty and ineffective. Besides, his life had never been peaceful since childhood. Adding one more threat wouldn’t change anything. His curiosity and thirst to reveal secrets of this case burned in his mind like a raging fire, driving him to move forward without hesitation.
...He really wants to know who this Suo is that everyone in the neighborhood is trying to keep quiet about. Does he have anything to do with the murder case?
That’s why Sakura was eager to investigate the area surrounding the crime scene again and gather information in Chinatown tonight. Nirei was determined to keep him from going.
“I’m fine alone” the young man with dual-shaded hair insisted, attempting to reason. “I’m just going to check it out. I’m not going to cause any trouble,”
“Not a chance,” Nirei countered loudly. “You’re going to look for clues about someone named Suo, right? We can’t identify who he is. Plenty of goons in that den were his, and you’re bound to run into them soon!”
Sakura ruffled his hair in frustration, “Right now, we haven’t encountered any suspects except for him. We need to investigate this anyway. The time doesn’t really matter.”
“That's not accurate! Questioning people during the day means you're working, but going undercover after hours is far more dangerous!”
“Lower your voice, or Lieutenant Hiiragi will hear us.” Sakura attempted to make a final offer “Then, I’ll just pretend to be a tourist wandering around alone.”
“No!” Nirei shot back, determination in his gaze. He stood his ground.
A mix of irritation and displeasure flushed him as Sakura felt cornered against the wall by his partner, and he couldn't fight back. With Nirei's kind-hearted nature, this petite guy could be incredibly stubborn. But he wasn't ready to abandon his resolve either.
Soft giggles came from Kiryu, who had been listening quietly. “Naa… Sakura-chan, you give him a tough choice.” His bright green eyes were lit up while trying to figure out a way for his friends. “Nirei-chan is really good at gathering in-depth news. You’ll find lot of clues if he’s with you.”
A tsk from the young man with dual-shaded hair.
Kiryu raised a hand to his chin, considering. “So, who is this Suo? Do you know anything, Nirei-chan?”
The smaller man swiftly alerted and pulled out his cherished ‘top secret’ notebook from his uniform pocket, flipping through its pages until he found the relevant information.
“I don’t have much on him. I don’t know his age, and he’s not someone who’s very public. All I know is he’s a mysterious figure controlling financial routes that might be illegal in Chinatown. Rumor has it he might even be behind smuggling goods and illegal trade of organs, making him more of an urban legend than a real person. People in that area won’t give any more information, and it’s said that the Crimson Moon Tea House is his property. That’s about it.”
Kiryu whistled. “A mysterious mafia boss behind Chinatown? You two, this case of yours is serious.”
“That bastard definitely exists. Otherwise, that old man wouldn’t have warned us. And whoever that scumbag is…,” Sakura interjected. His differently colored eyes sparkled with excitement at the prospect of a new challenge as usual. “If he’s breaking the law, he deserves to be punished. I won’t let ordinary citizens in this town die for nothing.”
Suddenly, Sakura nearly fell over as Tsugeura playfully slapped him on the back. “That’s the spirit! That’s what makes you a true cop!”
“Yeah, you’re always so passionate.” Kiryu nodded in agreement.
Sakura swatted at Tsugeura’s hand, rubbing the sore spot on his back, anger etched on his face. Nirei looked from one of his coworkers to the other, feeling more deflated than ever.
“Can’t someone stop Sakura-san?”
“Investigating a case comes with risks, especially when dealing with big shots. If we try different methods, we might uncover some solid evidence. Moreover, righteous investigating is such a virtue.” Tsugeura supported wholeheartedly, leaving Nirei feeling hopeless.
Kiryu rested his chin in his hand on the desk, a reassuring smile on his face as he looked at his petite colleague. “Besides, Nirei-chan, people like him won’t listen to anyone no matter how much them try to stop him, right?”
Hearing that, Sakura crossed his arms again and huffed in annoyance.
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