Chapter Thirty-Three: The Boss of Squad Five

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The job of a security guard may seem simple, but in reality, it is quite exhausting. To put it bluntly, in the countryside, almost every household has its own "security guard"—they stay up late and rise early. Only, these guards are animals.

If this is true in rural areas, it is even more so in the city. To significantly improve the quality of protection, the profession of security guard emerged.

Before dawn had fully broken, with the moon still lingering over the mountains, Tomo Kirino was already dressed in his work uniform, brimming with energy, having prepared everything and ready to head out for the day’s duties.

He didn’t wake Kuroba Itsuki, quietly closing the door behind him.

In the darkness, Itsuki habitually opened his eyes, glanced around, stretched lazily, turned over, and closed his eyes again to continue sleeping.

As the first sound of a car horn pierced the morning air, Itsuki rose and stepped onto the balcony. From here, he had a clear view of the school gate, which was bustling with the morning rush. Dozens of private cars lined up outside the gates, opening doors, passengers alighting, doors closing, and cars driving away in sequence.

Watching the students in their uniform entering the school, Itsuki glanced down at his own clothes and wondered if he should get himself a set to wear as well.

After a quick wash on the balcony, he returned to his room, tidied the bed and covers back to their pre-sleep state, nodded with satisfaction, and left.

Outside the school grounds, out of view from the balcony, a group of a few dozen hoodlums squatted on the ground amidst a scatter of cigarette butts. Their dark circles betrayed their exhaustion.

“Beep beep beep.”

The phone of the apparent leader of the gang suddenly rang.

“Yes, we kept watch all night but didn’t see him come out. Yes, yes, that’s right.”

The gang leader nervously answered the call and then stood up from the ground.

“Withdraw. Go back and sleep.”

“Just leave like that, Boss? Are we being played?”

A younger gang member who had recently joined complained irritably.

“Who are you talking to? Me? When the boss tells you to do something, why so many complaints? If you’re this impatient, how dare you be out here mixing with us? Who even let you in?”

The leader had hoped to impress the boss and secure a permanent spot, but after a fruitless night of vigil, his mood was sour. Now, being questioned by a subordinate only ignited his temper.

“Smack.”

A sharp slap landed on the younger gang member’s face.

The young thug, for some unknown reason or perhaps a rebellious streak, struck back with a slap of his own.

Everyone else froze, their exhaustion momentarily wiped away, all staring blankly at the leader and the young gang member.

“Are you trying to start a rebellion?”

Feeling the burning heat on his cheek, the leader was stunned. He hadn’t expected this subordinate to dare strike him back. Without hesitation, he threw a punch.

Whether out of youthful bravado, influence of bad films, or a misguided sense of style, the younger gang member kicked in return.

The leader and the young thug tangled in a scuffle.

“What are you looking at? Fight! Come on!”

Fueled by sheer determination, the young gang member attacked without defense and surprisingly held his ground. The leader kicked him away, spat out a mouthful of blood, and ordered the watching subordinates.

“Alright.”

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Twenty gang members swarmed around the young thug, trapping him with a double-fisted grip.

“Everyone stop! Hands behind your head, squat down!”

Whether by coincidence or because someone had reported them, four unmarked police vehicles arrived. Over a dozen riot police poured out, guns drawn, surrounding the gang.

Before the gang could comprehend the situation, one by one they were taken away amidst a strange mix of confusion and resignation.

Meanwhile, their target, Kuroba Itsuki, casually strolled toward the classroom, hands in pockets.

“Who’s that boy? So handsome! Is he from our school?”

“Yes, I heard he’s a transfer student who arrived yesterday, but it seems like his family isn’t well-off.”

“No worries, I’m rich. I’ll just sponsor him.”

“Keep it down. That person’s already been marked by the Matsutani group. Don’t bring trouble on yourself.”

“What? Too bad, he’s so good-looking.”

On campus, three girls of varying builds walked toward the teaching building carrying their backpacks. Among the students all dressed uniformly in school attire, Itsuki’s casual clothes sparked a bit of gossip.

Normally, with his keen hearing, Itsuki would catch every word, but his mind was elsewhere—on one person, a woman. Thinking about what she told him yesterday, a wave of melancholy swept over him.

Regarding the attack, if others knew you intended to strike, they would be more wary, greatly increasing the difficulty. If only the attack had happened—it didn’t matter how high their defenses were, Itsuki was confident he could break through.

When it came to chasing after a girl, Itsuki wasn’t so sure. This was the first time he’d liked someone. According to her, many pursued her; she wished it could just be a battle—simple and straightforward: win or lose.

“Ugh, so frustrating. I should’ve learned from those older guys. Every time the diamond-level experts return from missions, they never discuss failures. They only talk about who they hooked up with or who they slept with. It’s all about that. I couldn’t understand it before, only focused on getting stronger to help my master. Now, I think I really should’ve listened more.”

“It’s okay. I can do this. I’m a genius. I’ll figure it out on my own.”

Recalling how easy it was for him to learn things and the label of genius he’d carried since childhood, Itsuki brightened and quickened his pace toward the classroom.

“Reimu, Reimu, here I come.”

Thinking of Watanabe Reimu and the way she haunted his dreams, he entered the classroom with a smile.

“He…”

“You…”

“What’s wrong?”

“How can he still come to school?”

There was still some time before class, and not everyone had arrived. Some were eating breakfast they brought from home, others chatting. When Itsuki entered, all eyes in the room turned to him.

“Morning, everyone. Did you sleep well last night?”

Unaware of their strange murmurs, Itsuki assumed their attention was because he was a new student and greeted them graciously.

“Tch…”

As they watched Itsuki, ready to say something, two people appeared at the door. Everyone quickly returned to their own business, ignoring Itsuki.

Uno Taku and Miyamoto Tsuneyasu entered one after the other without a word, glanced at Itsuki sitting in their seat, and then took their places.

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Two male classmates immediately brought breakfast to their tables.

“Burgers again?”

Uno frowned in dissatisfaction.

“Sorry, Taku, I’ll get you something else right away.”

The boy apologized hurriedly and rushed out.

Miyamoto said nothing, tore open his burger wrapper, and began eating. The boy who brought it sighed in relief and returned to his seat.

“Ahem, um…”

“Who is it? Say what you want quickly. Don’t disturb my nap.”

Just as Uno was about to rest his head on the desk for a quick sleep, a voice interrupted him.

“You’re not going to eat this, right?”

Itsuki stood beside Uno, eyes fixed on the burger and milk tea on the desk, swallowing.

The classroom fell silent again as the students secretly watched Uno’s reaction.

“Take it.”

To their surprise, Uno merely waved dismissively without losing his temper.

“Thanks, Uno. You’re really a good person.” Itsuki grabbed the breakfast and returned to his seat.

“Where’s Reimu? Why isn’t she here yet?”

Eating his free breakfast, Itsuki glanced at the empty seat to his left.

“Ding ding ding…”

The warning bell rang. The classroom remained noisy and unprepared for class. Only two sat quietly: Miyamoto Tsuneyasu and Itsuki.

When the class bell sounded, the teacher entered with a textbook. Observing the disorder, he cautiously looked at Miyamoto.

Miyamoto made no move, head down reading. The teacher sighed quietly, climbed onto the podium, and began a “voiceover” lecture that only a handful paid attention to.

“Quiet! The boss is here!”

Midway through class, Miyamoto suddenly raised his voice.

The entire classroom, including the teacher, fell silent.

“Teacher, please continue.”

A gentle male voice sounded from the doorway.