"Calm? How can I be calm?!" he growled. "That man trampled on my dignity, stole my love, and used despicable means to make a fool of me! If I don't avenge this, I, Akai Hideyoshi, am not fit to be a son!"
As he spoke, he walked quickly toward an old, locked cabinet in the room. That was the cabinet for the relics left by his adoptive father, Akai Tsutomu. Hideyoshi produced a key from somewhere, his hands trembling as he opened the cabinet door and solemnly took out a heavy object wrapped in oilcloth.
He unwrapped the oilcloth, and a well-maintained, old-fashioned handgun with a cold, hard metallic luster appeared before his eyes! This was a backup gun of the same model as the one Akai Tsutomu used during his life, symbolizing Tsutomu's will and the Akai Family's history of fighting against darkness.
Hideyoshi gripped the handgun tightly, the icy touch seemingly giving him a twisted strength and a belief in "justice." He turned around to face the shocked Akai Mary, straightening his back with a tragic and resolute expression, as if about to embark on a quest to slay a demon king.
"Mom!" His voice was somewhat distorted by emotion, but his tone was exceptionally forceful. "I can't let that demon Kanjuro remain at large! I'm going to find him! Using the gun Father left behind, I'll seek justice for myself and for Yumi! This is what a man of the Akai Family should do!"
He brandished the handgun, looking ready to die a heroic death at any moment.
Akai Mary looked at the dangerous weapon in her son's hand and the madness on his face driven by hatred and a false sense of "justice," and her heart nearly stopped beating. Great fear and a deeper sorrow seized her. She couldn't let Hideyoshi go to his death! Kanjuro's power was not something a handgun could contend with! Moreover... she took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the stormy waves in her heart, and said in as calm a tone as possible: "Hideyoshi, put the gun down. Doing this won't solve anything; it will only get you killed!"
"No! Mom! This is my only way!" Hideyoshi shook his head stubbornly, his eyes fanatical. "I must go!"
Seeing that she couldn't convince him with reason, Akai Mary steeled her heart, and a thought flashed through her mind. She looked at Hideyoshi with extremely complex emotions—pain, helplessness, and an unspeakable shame—but more than anything, a resolve to stop him from heading toward destruction.
She slowly stood up and walked in front of Hideyoshi, blocking his path to the door. her gaze was no longer just a mother's worry, but carried a firmness Hideyoshi had never seen before, one burdened with a heavy weight.
"Hideyoshi, listen to me..." Her voice was somewhat raspy, as if every word carried the weight of a thousand pounds. "You can't go to seek revenge against Kanjuro. Because... because..."
She paused, as if gathering courage, then closed her eyes and used all her strength to reveal the truth that was enough to completely shatter all of Hideyoshi's current "justice" and "conviction":
"Because... Mom... Mom is already... Kanjuro's woman."
"..."
Time seemed to freeze at this moment.
The tragic resolve on Akai Hideyoshi's face instantly frozen, then shattered inch by inch like broken glass. His eyes widened, his pupils shrinking to the size of pinpoints, as he looked incredulously at his mother, who was pale but carried a resigned calmness.
The... the gun in his hand fell to the floor with a heavy "clang," making a dull sound.
All his vengeful fire, all his "righteousness," and all the strength that had supported him to this point collapsed with that one sentence, turning into powder.
He had not only lost his lover, but now, even his final support, his supposedly invincible adoptive mother... was also... Akai Hideyoshi stood there dazed, looking at his mother, then at the gun on the floor that once symbolized his father's justice and strength but now seemed so laughable. His mind went blank.
The world completely collapsed before his eyes. Akai Mary's words, like a final judgment, were like a red-hot iron rod branded deep into Akai Hideyoshi's soul. His adoptive mother... had also become Kanjuro's woman? This destroyed his world even more than losing Yumi! This was no longer a simple case of stealing a lover; this was a complete defilement and trampling of his entire family and the foundation of all his beliefs!
"NO—!!!!"
A roar that didn't sound human, mixed with extreme pain, anger, and collapse, burst from Hideyoshi's throat. He violently pushed away Mary, who was trying to stop him, his eyes completely sinking into a chaotic madness—the primal madness of a beast pushed to a dead end and losing all reason.
He didn't even look at the handgun on the floor; at this moment, no weapon could compare to his primal urge to tear Kanjuro into pieces! Like a cannonball fired from its barrel, he crashed through the door and rushed into the night, with only one thought in his head—find Kanjuro! Kill him! Even if they die together!
Meanwhile, in the hotel suite where Kanjuro was staying, it was a different scene of charm and danger.
Miyamoto Yumi snuggled in Kanjuro's arms, her cheeks flushed and her eyes hazy, carrying a sort of laziness and dependence after completely sinking into him. Kanjuro's fingers gently twined through her hair, and he asked seemingly casually:
"Yumi, now... do you love me?"
Yumi answered without the slightest hesitation, looking up with a tone almost like a sleep talker's, filled with adoration and obsession, "I love you... now even more... especially... after... with Lord Kanjuro..." Her voice grew lower, filled with shyness, yet it showed her arousal even more. She felt an unprecedented sense of fit and belonging that went deep into her marrow, as if she were born to belong to this man.
A deep and knowing smile curled at the corner of Kanjuro's mouth. He clearly felt that his power, originating from the "spear of longinus," possessed an almost absolute attraction and conquering force over women. Once the most intimate relationship was established, that brand originating from the source of life would make them sink uncontrollably into the ultimate experience and sense of belonging brought by this power, making it almost impossible to resist. Yumi's current state was the perfect manifestation of this power.
He enjoyed this absolute control, and then, as if talking about the weather, he threw out an instruction that would be enough to make any normal person's soul scatter:
"Very good. Then, if Akai Hideyoshi comes looking for me later..." He paused, looking calmly into Yumi's instantly widening eyes, and clearly spoke the latter half of the sentence, "You help me... kill him, okay?"
!!!"
Miyamoto Yumi's body suddenly stiffened, the flush on her face instantly fading, replaced by a terrifying paleness! Kill... kill Hideyoshi? Even if she was already utterly disappointed in him, even if her heart already belonged to Kanjuro, the word "kill" still exploded in her mind like a thunderclap!
She looked at Kanjuro in disbelief, her lips trembling, wanting to refuse, wanting to question. But when she met Kanjuro's eyes, deep as an abyss and seemingly able to swallow all will to resist, when she recalled Hideyoshi's twisted face and heart-piercing words, when she felt that almost instinctive dependence on Kanjuro and the urge to please him within her... her inner struggle lasted for only a few short seconds.
Her resentment toward Hideyoshi, her complete farewell to the past, and her irresistible submission to Kanjuro finally overwhelmed her conscience as a police officer and her remaining humanity. The shock and hesitation in her eyes were quickly replaced by a twisted determination.
She took a deep breath, as if having made some kind of decision, and nodded vigorously. Though her voice was still a bit shaky, it was exceptionally clear:
"...I can. If... if he really dares to come and harm you, Lord Kanjuro... I... I will do it."
She even proactively looked around, her gaze finally landing on a sharp fruit knife next to a fruit plate.
Just then—
"Kanjuro! Get the hell out here!! I'm going to kill you!!!"
From the hotel corridor came Akai Hideyoshi's roar, like that of a dying beast, filled with despair and violence, accompanied by the heavy sound of banging on the door!
The curve of Kanjuro's mouth widened, as if the long-awaited play was finally starting. He stood up unhurriedly, straightened his collar, and cast an "appreciative" look at Yumi, who stood up with a pale face while tightly gripping the fruit knife.
"It seems the guest has arrived. Yumi, remember what you said."
Having said that, he walked calmly toward the door.
Meanwhile, Miyamoto Yumi tightly gripped that cold fruit knife, her knuckles turning white from the force, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. She stood behind Kanjuro like a beautiful puppet programmed with an ultimate command, prepared to use her former lover's blood to prove her... loyalty to the devil.
The door was about to open. Inside the door was the "new love" with a sharp blade and a firm heart; outside the door was the "old love" filled with hatred and falling into madness. An ultimate drama directed by Kanjuro himself, interwoven with betrayal, despair, and absolute control, was about to pull back its bloody curtain. "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The heavy banging on the door, accompanied by Akai Hideyoshi's heart-wrenching roars, echoed in the hotel corridor like a funeral knell. When Kanjuro unhurriedly opened the door, what met his eyes was Hideyoshi's completely distorted face, swallowed by hatred and despair. His eyes were filled with a web of bloodshot veins, and his chest heaved violently, like a trapped, dying beast.
"Kanjuro!!!" Seeing the target, all of Hideyoshi's anger found a focus. He suddenly raised a trembling finger, his voice deformed by extreme hatred, "You devil! Scumbag! Everything you did to me! Everything you did to Yumi! And to my mother... I want you to pay in blood!"
Kanjuro stood at the door, his figure tall and straight, his posture so leisurely that it formed a cruel contrast with Hideyoshi's madness. He didn't even bother to take a defensive stance, merely looking at Hideyoshi with a gaze like one looking at an ant, filled with faint mockery.
"Pay in blood?" Kanjuro chuckled, the sound bone-chillingly cold. "Hideyoshi, have you misunderstood something? From beginning to end, it was you who was stupid."
He deliberately emphasized the word "stupid," like a dagger stabbing into Hideyoshi's heart.
"It was you who was blinded by greed and believed that ridiculous 'Way of Heartlessness'; it was you who was mentally twisted and enjoyed that morbid sense of stimulation; it was you who personally pushed Yumi to my side, even... begging her to be intimate with me." Kanjuro's words were like a scalpel, precisely cutting open the ugly truth Hideyoshi was most unwilling to face. "Wasn't all of this voluntary on your part? Who are you putting on this victim act for now?"
.. 0 Requesting Flowers 0 --- "You're lying! You tricked me! You manipulated me!" Hideyoshi retorted hysterically, but his conviction was clearly lacking; Kanjuro's words brought back those memories he didn't want to recall.
"Oh? And..." Kanjuro seemed to recall something, the curve of his mouth turning even more cruel, his tone nonchalant, yet he dropped the final devastating bomb, "Regarding your mother, Akai Mary... I forgot to tell you, she indeed became my woman a long time ago. I must say, the 'tastes' of you mother and son are quite consistent in some aspects."
"Aaaaaah—!!!" This extremely insulting sentence became the last straw that broke the camel's back! The last string of sanity in Hideyoshi's mind snapped completely! Only overwhelming killing intent remained in his eyes; any plans, any consequences, were all thrown to the back of his mind!
"I'll kill you!!!" he roared, suddenly pulling out the handgun from behind him—the one he had dropped earlier and picked up again—the dark muzzle aimed dead at Kanjuro's chest! His finger squeezed the trigger!
At this critical moment!
A figure rushed out from behind Kanjuro like a bolt of lightning, spreading her arms without hesitation to block the way in front of Kanjuro!
It was Miyamoto Yumi!
Her face was as pale as paper, her body trembling slightly from fear and determination, but her eyes were exceptionally firm, even carrying a hint of cold, almost ferocious light. She stared deathly at the gun-wielding Hideyoshi and shouted with all her might:
..."Hideyoshi! Stop! You can't kill anyone!!"
Her appearance and her shout caused the completely maddened Hideyoshi's movements to jerk to a halt! He looked in disbelief at Yumi, who was blocking the way in front of Kanjuro, at this woman he once deeply loved but who was now using her body to protect the man he hated most. The immense shock, the sting of betrayal, and a residual trace of instinctive concern for Yumi caused his finger to freeze on the trigger, resulting in an extremely brief hesitation.
And in that split-second hesitation between life and death!
The corners of Miyamoto Yumi's mouth curled up strangely and clearly, revealing a cold smile mixed with pleasure, coldness, and complete determination! That smile, like a poison-dipped ice flower, instantly froze all of Hideyoshi's thoughts!
He saw it! He clearly saw that cold smile on Yumi's face, which was by no means forced but came from the heart, wanting him dead!
In the next second, Miyamoto Yumi's right hand, which had been hidden behind her back, swung out violently—tightly gripped in her hand was that glinting fruit knife! Without the slightest hesitation, taking advantage of the opening Hideyoshi exposed due to shock and that moment of hesitation, she used all her strength to stab fiercely toward Hideyoshi's gun-wielding arm and even his chest!
Puchi—
The muffled sound of the blade entering flesh clearly reached everyone's ears.
Time seemed to be stretched infinitely at this moment.
Akai Hideyoshi's eyes widened, his pupils reflecting Yumi's cold, smiling face and the blade close at hand. He felt a burst of sharp pain from his body, his strength receding rapidly like a tide. The gun in his hand could no longer be held, falling onto the expensive carpet with a "clatter."
He lowered his head, looking at the bright red rapidly spreading across his chest, then looked up at Yumi, his eyes filled with extreme shock, bewilderment, and a boundless despair after being completely abandoned and betrayed by the whole world.
He 張了張嘴, seemingly wanting to say something, but could only make "hurgh-hurgh" sounds of bloody froth.
His body swayed, and he finally couldn't hold on, falling straight backward. His vision blurred rapidly, and the last thing reflected in his eyes was Kanjuro's face with a satisfied, demon-like smile, and the figure of Miyamoto Yumi coldly pulling out the blood-stained blade.
The world, before his eyes, completely fell into eternal darkness. The Shogi Way he had pursued all his life, the love he had cherished, the family ties he relied on—ultimately, they all came to an end in such an absurd and tragic way.
Miyamoto Yumi stood in place, gripping the dripping fruit knife, panting slightly. She looked at Hideyoshi's corpse on the ground as it gradually lost its life, her face devoid of any expression, as if the person she had just killed was merely an insignificant stranger.
Kanjuro stepped forward, gently putting his arm around her shoulder, and whispered in her ear, his voice carrying praise and a pleasure of controlling everything: "Well done, my Yumi."
Yumi's body trembled slightly, then she relaxed, putting down her blood-stained hand and the knife, submissively leaning into Kanjuro's embrace and closing her eyes.
In the corridor, only the smell of blood silently pervaded. A tragedy that began with hatred and ended in betrayal and murder quietly concluded. And Kanjuro, who directed all of this, once again proved his terrifying ability to toy with and control the human heart. Another important piece of the Akai Family was completely wiped off his dark chessboard.
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: patreon.com/TLHimejima1
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.