Chapter 8
Two police vehicles pulled up outside a worn-down apartment building on West 42nd Street.
Detective McNab stepped out first, followed by Welters and Ryan.
The building looked old and poorly maintained. Graffiti covered portions of the walls, and several windows had been boarded shut.
"Alright," McNab said. "Standard procedure. We knock first."
Welters snorted.
"And if he runs?"
"Then we chase him."
"And if we're outnumbered?"
"Then we call back up"
Ryan looked up at the third floor window.
His Byakugan activated automatically.
The walls became transparent.
The apartments above them came into view.
People cooking.
Someone watching television.
A sleeping dog.
Then Ryan spotted a man pacing nervously inside Apartment 3B.
The man matched the description in the police database photo McNab had shown them moments earlier.
Anthony Russo.
More importantly, Russo wasn't alone.
"There are two men inside," Ryan said.
McNab looked at him.
"How do you know that?"
Ryan paused.
"...Lucky guess?"
Welters immediately groaned.
"Oh God, not this again."
McNab ignored the answer.
"Two suspects then. Good enough."
The officers entered the building and climbed the stairs.
As they approached the third floor, Ryan's Byakugan remained active.
Inside the apartment, Russo suddenly froze.
The other man in the room's phone rang, with his byakugan active he could see him mouth a few words
"Cops.... building," Ryan said quietly to himself
"What?" Welters asked.
The next second they heard shouting from inside.
"Cops! Move!"
A loud crash echoed through the apartment.
"They're running!" Ryan shouted.
The officers broke into a sprint.
McNab reached the apartment door first.
"Police! Open up!"
The answer was another crash.
"Forget it."
The detective kicked the door open.
The apartment was a mess.
A rear window stood open.
"The fire escape!" Welters yelled.
Everyone rushed toward it.
Ryan reached the window first and looked down.
Two men were already climbing toward the alley below.
Without thinking, Ryan vaulted through the window.
"ROOKIE!" Welters shouted.
Ryan landed on the metal platform with surprising ease.
The suspects looked up in shock.
"What the—"
One of them immediately swung a pipe at Ryan.
Ryan tilted his head slightly.
The pipe passed harmlessly beside him.
The man blinked.
Ryan stepped forward.
Gentle Fist.
His fingertips struck the man's shoulder.
The suspect cried out.
His right arm instantly went numb.
The pipe clattered to the ground.
"What did you do to me?!"
Ryan didn't answer.
The second suspect pulled a Gun
"Kid, get back!" McNab shouted from above.
Ryan ignored him.
The man's muscles.
His breathing.
His heartbeat.
The Byakugan showed everything.
The suspect squeezed the trigger.
BANG!!!!
Ryan had already ran chakra through his feet and sidestepped.
A quick strike landed against the man's wrist.
His hand spasmed violently.
The Gun fell from nerveless fingers.
A second strike landed against his thigh.
The man's leg buckled immediately.
He collapsed onto the fire escape with a scream.
Silence.
Both suspects stared at Ryan.
Ryan stared back.
"...Please don't make me hit you again."
The first suspect immediately raised his good hand.
"I surrender."
The second suspect nodded furiously.
"I surrender too!"
A few moments later, McNab and Welters reached the platform.
Both officers looked at the two incapacitated suspects.
Then they looked at Ryan.
Then back at the suspects.
Then back at Ryan.
Welters finally spoke.
"What."
Ryan smiled nervously.
"Self-defense?"
McNab knelt beside one of the suspects.
"No broken bones."
The detective checked the suspect's pulse.
"Pulse is normal."
The suspect tried moving his arm.
Nothing happened.
"What did you do?" McNab asked.
Ryan had prepared for this question.
"Pressure points."
Welters stared.
"You learned pressure points before learning how to use a service weapon?"
"...what can I say ...rich kid self defense classes are worth their money"
Welters looked toward the sky.
"Why is this happening to me?"
McNab stood up.
For the first time that day, the detective looked genuinely impressed.
"Pressure points don't normally do that."
Ryan shrugged.
"I practiced a lot."
The detective wasn't entirely convinced.
But the evidence was right in front of him.
Two suspects.
No injuries.
No shots fired.
No officers hurt.
Not bad for a rookie.
Unfortunately, Ryan's Byakugan picked up something troubling.
About a building away, at the back of it a a van was parked, black ,non descript , no plates
Jewellery
Weapons.
And six armed men.
One of them was currently speaking into a phone.
Ryan focused his hearing. He got nothing , he couldn't hear that far so he looked at his mouth
"...Russo got caught."
He made out that part but struggled to make out the rest
A pause.
Ryan's eyes widened.
That amount of jewellery.. wasn't from one heist
His gaze followed the speaker.
And then he spotted something even more alarming.
Sitting on a bench built into the van was a detailed map of Brooklyn.
With multiple jewelry stores marked in red.
This robbery hadn't been a one-time job.