章節 19: As Unlucky as Ever
編輯: Atlas Studios
Fujii Mikako skipped along the way to the Kiryuu family's dojo.
Although she was not a child anymore, she could not help but skip like a little girl as she walked.
Fujii had been to the Kiryuu family's dojo only twice. The last time she had been there was more than a year ago. At that time, Kiryuu Kazuma's father was still alive. He'd looked at Fujii as if she was his daughter-in-law.
That had made Fujii feel very awkward. Since then, she had been too shy to visit the Kiryuu family again.
Besides, at that time, Fujii and Kazuma were not as close as they were now.
If that had been the case, Fujii would probably have gone to the Kiryuu dojo every day.
'It's not too late to start going to his dojo every day,' Fujii thought happily.
'I will definitely practice until late every day to prepare for the qualifiers. It doesn't seem to be a bad idea to let Kiryuu-kun send me home every day.'
She thought about this as she turned the corner of the street following her memory.
The door of the dojo was already in sight.
Suddenly, Fujii noticed a few sneaky people lurking at the entrance of the dojo.
They saw her too. Their gazes made Fujii nervous.
The leader took out a big device with an antenna and seemed to be saying something.
Fujii sensed danger.
She took the bamboo sword from her back. She did not know how much her kendo skills could help, but…
Fujii recalled how Kiryuu-kun had beaten up the yakuza hooligans yesterday.
'Are they here to take revenge on Kiryuu-kun?'
'Did something happen to Kiryuu-kun? Was he captured by these people?'
A bunch of terrible scenarios popped up in Fujii's mind, making her anxious.
However, she did not lose her mind.
Yesterday, she was knocked out by a bat before she could do anything. If it were not for Kiryuu-kun, she might have been tainted.
Fujii was still scared as she recalled the situation back then. She felt chills down her spine.
She glanced at her bamboo sword and decided not to rely on it. It'd be a better idea to run away.
She remembered that there was a police watchhouse on the way here.
Fujii Mikako turned around. At this moment, she heard an angry shout from behind. "Hey! Woman! Stop right there!"
Fujii ran off immediately.
***
One minute ago.
Bandō, who was still waiting in front of the Koshikawa Girls' Junior High, received Ota's report via the walkie-talkie. "Bandō-san, we saw the girl who's with Kiryuu Kazuma when he beat up the Tsuda Family yesterday. She could be Kiryuu Kazuma's girlfriend. Should we get her instead?"
Bandō frowned.
He knew very well that their boss did not like to involve innocent people. It would be fine if she really was Kiryuu Kazuma's girlfriend, but if they later found out that she was not, the boss would definitely let her go. At that time, some people on this kidnap mission would definitely have their pinkies cut off…
Bandō did not want that. He decided to follow the boss' instructions strictly and kidnap Kiryuu Chiyoko only.
So he picked up the walkie-talkie. Just as he was about to give the order, he heard a shout from the other side. "Hey! Woman! Stop right there!"
It seemed that the girl had noticed them.
"Hold on!" Bandō hurriedly shouted. "Don't chase after that girl! Ota! Wait!"
However, no one answered. There was only static noise from the loudspeaker.
Bandō cursed, "F*ck!" He started the van and shouted at the person standing outside, "Get in!"
Before the person could get inside the van, the engine had already roared to life.
Fortunately, his subordinate was rather agile. He jumped onto the moving van and got inside.
Bandō drove the van straight to the Kiryuu dojo.
***
Fujii ran quickly. After all, the Kendo Club was a sports club too. They also placed heavy emphasis on physical training. Therefore, Fujii was a fast runner.
However, the three hooligans ran even faster.
In any case, running was a survival skill for them. Whether it was chasing someone or escaping when they were surrounded, running fast would always be useful.
Fujii felt that someone had grabbed onto her bag, so she let go and threw it away.
This made her heart ache because she had secretly brought some cosmetics in her bag today.
In this era, teachers and the student union's Disciplinary Department had the right to check students' bags. They would confiscate things like cosmetics.
Usually, Fujii would not bring cosmetics to school.
She brought it today because she was saved by her hero Kiryuu Kazuma yesterday.
Before leaving her house this morning, the scene where Kazuma had beaten up the yakuza hooligans suddenly flashed across Fujii's mind. Before she knew it, she had stuffed her newly-bought lipstick and foundation into her bag.
She'd regretted it on her way to school and wanted to go home to put down those cosmetics.
But that would make her late for the morning training, and Daimon Goro would punish her to run laps on the field.
In the end, Fujii had had no choice but to bring her cosmetics to school.
Now, her lipstick and schoolbag had fallen into the hands of yakuza hooligans.
Fujii could not help but turn back to look.
It was at that moment when another hooligan screamed and pounced toward her.
Fujii did not have time to take her bamboo sword out of the cloth bag, so she hit the hooligan's head directly.
Actually, bamboo swords used to be called bamboo bag swords. Hence, it was not wrong to hit someone with it while it's wrapped in cloth.
After that, Fujii realized that she would not be able to outrun them. Hence, she took a stance to prepare for the fight and shouted, "Help!"
The watchhouse should be nearby. When the police officer on duty arrived, the yakuza would have no other choice but give up…
Fujii was quite confident in her own swordsmanship. In the past, she could even defeat "assistant coach" Kiryuu Kazuma. Even though Kazuma had suddenly become stronger than her, she believed that she'd have no problem fighting off a few small fries!
She had lost yesterday only because it was a sneak attack!
Fujii encouraged herself and held the bamboo sword as she assumed a stable stance.
The hooligans sprang toward her.
"Face!" she shouted, striking her opponent's face with her bamboo sword.
It was a hard hit. Fujii had learned her lesson yesterday, so she did not hold back and struck with all her might.
The hooligan fell to the ground.
At this moment, something rushed toward Fujii's face—it was that thing with an antenna!
Fujii swung her sword and knocked down the incoming iron block. However, at this instant, the last hooligan standing suddenly rushed over and held Fujii by her waist.
Fujii used the handle of her bamboo sword to hit the man's back with all her strength.
She's truly strong. The arms hidden under the sleeves of her sailor suit were actually very muscular. She would have absolutely no issue defeating an ordinary man.
However, even after a few hits, the yakuza hooligan did not seem to have any intention of letting her go.
Then, using his physical advantage, the man pushed Fujii backward, knocking her onto a pole.
The sharp pain in her back made Fujii scream. The strong pressure almost flattened her lungs.
At this moment, the yakuza hooligan who was the first to be defeated by Fujii stood up. He took out a gunny sack and put it over Fujii's head. Then, he hit the back of her head with a club.
Fujii stopped struggling.
Then, they heard a police whistle from afar. The police officer on duty at the watchhouse whistled as he rushed over.
The man who was holding Fujii's waist lifted her up with a roar. Together with the other one who had just covered Fujii's head with the sack, they took to their heels and ran away, abandoning their last comrade who was still lying on the ground.
The policeman rushed over. He looked at the gangster who was still lying on the ground with both hands covering his head and hesitated. In the end, he decided to subdue this gangster first and called for reinforcements.
***
From afar, Bandō saw Ota running over with Fujii Mikako over his shoulder. The girl had lost consciousness.
He slammed on the brakes and stopped the van before them. Bando cursed, "F*ck! I didn't order you to take her!"
"Then… should I leave her?"
Bandō hesitated for a moment and gestured the pair to get into the van. "Bring her up. We can only make do since you have her. Take off the sack and cover her mouth."
Bandō's order was quickly executed. He started the car and drove away.
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