Chapter 705 - 705: Oh! Hoh~ Hoh~ Hoh~ Do You Remember the Old Days?

"Hikari-kun, I was wrong, I know I was wrong."

"I won't cause you any more trouble. Let's call it even for what happened before, let's make peace!"

Hikari said nothing, closing in step by step.

"Don't push me!", Anjou Takaya suddenly roared, his eyes wild, "I don't want us both to lose! Stop! Stop! It's not too late to stop now!"

"You?", Hikari laughed, "With you being like this, how could you possibly make us both lose?"

"M-my uncle is coming here right now!", Anjou Takaya cried out shrilly, as if clutching at a lifeline.

"He's a chief superintendent from the Metropolitan Police Department! If you lay a finger on me, he'll kill you for sure! You're done for if you cross him, I'm telling you! You still have time to apologize to me now!", Anjou Takaya spat out the threats with practiced ease.

But Hikari's steps never stopped, "How are you so sure your uncle will come?"

"Of course! I secretly texted him just now! He's definitely on his way!", Anjou Takaya pulled out the phone he'd been hiding behind his back, gripping it tightly in his hand like a protective charm.

But Hikari suddenly smiled. The smile was faint, yet it sent a chill down Anjou Takaya's spine.

"You don't know... that I deliberately gave you time to call him over?", Hikari said slowly.

Anjou Takaya's sneer froze on his face.

Before he could process the meaning of those words, a foot came down with tremendous force, stomping hard between his legs.

"GAAAAH!"

A miserable, inhuman scream tore through the silence of the factory. Anjou Takaya's eyes bulged, his face turning purple-red as his body curled up like a shrimp, convulsing violently.

At that moment, writhing in spasms, he looked like a crushed insect, "My uncle... he'll never let you get away with this..."

"Hikari... you'll regret this!"

Tears and snot streaming down his face, Anjou Takaya cursed in a garbled, hoarse voice.

Facing these threats, Hikari stomped his foot on the man's face and casually wiped the dirt off his shoe sole, "Stand up straight before you threaten others."

Hikari paid no mind to Anjou Takaya's threats, but Haruno Kasui beside him looked worried.

"Hikari-kun, maybe we should leave first. Anjou Takaya's uncle is from the police department, he might have a gun..."

Though she was deeply shaken by the sight of Hikari single-handedly demolishing over a dozen thugs just moments ago, Haruno Kasui still instinctively believed that no one could stand against a gun.

Worried that Hikari might get hurt, she wanted to persuade him to leave.

"No rush," Hikari's gaze swept over Haruno Ayato, who stood frozen like a wooden dummy, "Do you want to leave?"

Dressed like that, looking every bit like girl, Haruno Ayato slowly lifted his head.

Those previously vacant eyes gradually focused, harboring within them a bone-deep hatred, venomous and sharp.

"I'm not leaving...", He stared at Anjou Takaya writhing on the ground, his raspy voice trembling with emotion, "I want to watch... watch them pay!"

After shooting Anjou Takaya a hateful glare, Haruno Ayato turned to Hikari, his eyes red-rimmed, "Thank you, Hikari-kun... thank you for saving me."

"I was... too stupid before. I offended you in many ways. Please forgive me."

"But now... please... don't leave. I want to see with my own eyes... see them get what they deserve...", Haruno Ayato knelt on the ground, his voice filled with regret and humble pleading.

"Then be patient," Hikari moved his shoe off Anjou Takaya's face and said casually.

Haruno Kasui had wanted to say something more, but seeing the deep hatred and pleading in Haruno Ayato's eyes, she bit her lower lip and ultimately stood beside Hikari, pressing close to him.

She didn't think she could help much.

But she didn't want anything to happen to this good person who had saved her and her brother.

Even if it meant taking a bullet, she would muster the courage if it meant keeping him safe.

Time passed amid oppressive silence and Anjou Takaya's intermittent groans.

No one knew how long it had been...

Bang!

The factory's rusted iron door was kicked open from outside, slamming heavily against the wall with a deafening crash.

Dazzling flashlight beams shot in first, sweeping across the mess of groaning thugs on the floor before finally fixing on Anjou Takaya, curled up on the ground.

Three figures appeared in the doorway, silhouetted against the light.

At the lead was a uniformed policeman, fat-headed, broad-faced, with a grim expression, none other than Chief Superintendent Anjou Shuji.

Behind him trailed a portly police superintendent who had once covered for Anjou Takaya at the station, bowing and scraping.

And a young, heavily made-up gyaru with evasive eyes, Haruno Kasui's former "bestie," Ayaka.

Anjou Shuji's gaze swept quickly across the scene. When he saw his nephew Anjou Takaya curled up, groaning, with blood staining his lower body in a miserable state, his face instantly became dark, veins bulging on his forehead.

He jerked his head up, his sinister gaze locking onto the few people still standing in the center of the factory floor. Especially the calm, handsome boy.

"Who did this?"

His voice was not loud, but it carried a bone-chilling coldness that echoed through the empty factory.

Hearing his uncle Anjou Shuji's familiar voice, Anjou Takaya, who had been lying on the ground playing dead for a while, suddenly lifted his head, his eyes blazing with wild joy.

He pointed at Hikari and screamed in a shrill, furious voice, "Uncle Shuji! It was him! That bastard Hikari did this to me! He crippled me, he wants to end the Anjou bloodline!"

"You have to be careful... he moves very fast!"

Anjou Shuji's face darkened as he followed his nephew's pointing finger and opened his mouth to curse.

But the moment his gaze landed on Hikari's extraordinarily handsome face, he froze.

That face looked very familiar, he'd seen it somewhere before...

Anjou Shuji furrowed his brows.

In a flash, a crack opened in his memory.

Anjou Shuji's pupils contracted slightly as he blurted out: "You're... Lady Rika's 'sworn younger brother'?"

Anjou Shuji suddenly remembered where he'd seen Hikari before, and also recalled who he was.

And hearing this, Hikari remembered too.

He had indeed met this Chief Superintendent Anjou before.

It was last week, when he first accompanied Ikazuchi Rika on a case. After they successfully solved it and were escorting the suspect back to the station, they'd crossed paths.

At the time, Ikazuchi Rika wasn't in good shape and had asked the station to send a car to back them up. The superintendent driving that car was none other than this very Anjou.

By rank, Anjou Shuji was a chief superintendent, while Ikazuchi Rika was only an ordinary superintendent, technically his subordinate.

Of course, with Ikazuchi Rika's family background, Anjou Shuji would never dare pull rank on her.

He'd even been quite friendly and courteous toward Hikari, as Ikazuchi Rika's sworn brother.

Hikari hadn't expected that Anjou Takaya's so-called "perverted uncle, Chief Superintendent Anjou," whom he was always going on about, would turn out to be an "acquaintance."

But compared to Hikari, Anjou Shuji was actually far more troubled.

Because he'd come in a blaze of fury, determined to tear apart whoever had harmed his nephew.

Yet the last thing he'd expected was for that person to be Ikazuchi Rika's brother.

The sworn brother of the eldest daughter of the Ikazuchi family. A young lady with such unfathomable backing that even he wouldn't dare cross lightly.

'What a thorny situation!'

In just a few seconds, Anjou Shuji had made his calculation.

Like a performer in a opera changing masks, the gloom on his face receded like the tide, replaced by a smile that could almost be called "kind." The speed of his transformation was astonishing.

"Oh my, I didn't expect it to be Hikari-kun," Anjou Shuji rubbed his hands together, his tone even taking on a hint of warmth.

"Uncle? He beat me like this, you can't let him off!", Anjou Takaya couldn't believe his ears.

"Shut up! What do you know!", Anjou Shuji barked harshly, then turned back to Hikari with a beaming face.

"Lady Ikazuchi Rika is a subordinate I hold in high regard, so her brother naturally counts as half a nephew to me. I think today's incident is purely a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!"

"Hikari-kun, look, if this blows up, it won't look good for anyone. How about... we settle this privately?", Anjou Shuji took a couple of steps forward and said amiably to Hikari.

His friendly demeanor was a complete one-eighty from the ferocious look he'd had when he kicked the door in.

"And how does Chief Superintendent Anjou propose we settle it privately?", Hikari smiled, as if somewhat tempted.

Seeing Hikari seem interested, Anjou Shuji's smile widened, as if everything was under control, "Simple! Your conflict with Takaya all stems from these two clueless siblings."

He glanced at Haruno Kasui and Haruno Ayato with contempt, as if they were mere ants.

"Just hand them over to me to deal with, and then bow your head to Takaya here and apologize. I'll make the call, and we'll consider this matter closed! How about that?", Anjou Shuji said cheerfully.

"Uncle Shuji!", Anjou Takaya cried out in desperation.

Hikari had completely ruined him below the belt, destroying his future happiness. There was no way a simple apology could just sweep that under the rug! He wouldn't accept it!

But compared to Anjou Takaya, Haruno Kasui and Haruno Ayato found the scene even harder to bear.

Both siblings' faces had turned deathly pale.

They never would have imagined that the evil mastermind they'd assumed was utterly ruthless turned out to be someone Hikari knew.

Not only that, but he'd spoken of them as if they were worthless, like slaves who could be traded at will. Infuriating beyond belief.

But at this moment, the fate of the two siblings truly lay entirely in Hikari's hands.

If Hikari so much as nodded, they would fall into an abyss of no return.

Haruno Ayato stared at Hikari, his face pale. He couldn't understand why Hikari, who had appeared as their savior, was now "chatting so pleasantly" with the perverted superintendent who had tormented him.

Was there really no justice in this world?

Haruno Ayato had already given up hope.

And Anjou Shuji stood there smiling, waiting for Hikari's agreement.

In his view, as a chief superintendent, he had already shown considerable "restraint" out of respect for Ikazuchi Rika.

Being so polite to Hikari was already giving him plenty of face, being plenty humble.

He couldn't imagine any reason Hikari would refuse.

Seeing that Hikari didn't respond right away, Anjou Shuji thought he was worried about something and even considerately added, "Hikari-kun, don't worry. I always keep my word. As long as you apologize to Takaya, this matter ends here."

Facing the smiling, sincere-looking Anjou Shuji, Hikari merely smiled faintly, lifted his gaze to meet his eyes, and said, "What if I say no?"

The air froze solid.

Anjou Shuji's smile instantly stiffened on his face.

Beside him, the Haruno siblings' eyes lit up.

"Hikari-kun, I've already made a major concession and shown plenty of respect to Lady Ikazuchi Rika. I hope you won't make things too difficult for me, and give me a little face too. After all, even a clay figurine has its temper."

Anjou Shuji's expression remained smiling, but there was a sinister, venomous glint in the corners of his mouth and eyes, like a serpent flicking its tongue, ready to strike at any moment.

"Face?", Hikari sneered, then suddenly raised his foot and gave a casual kick.

"AHHH!", Anjou Takaya screamed, flying like a burlap sack and crashing heavily against a concrete pillar.

"You have no face with me at all," Hikari said to Anjou Shuji with a smile.

"You!", Anjou Shuji's face turned completely livid, rage finally shattering his facade, "You little bastard, you're asking for death!"