Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens

Enokida got onto the elevator in the Gates Building as he stifled a yawn.
He had gotten a sudden call just as he laid down to take a nap in his booth in the internet cafe. Lin had called him. ‘I"ve got something I need to talk to you about. Get down here." From the tone in his voice, it seemed he would not allow any form of refusal.
Enokida reluctantly accepted and waited in a cafe on the first floor. Minutes later, Lin came rushing in.
“...What is it?” Enokida asked as he wiped his eyes. “What"s got you all fl.u.s.tered?”
Lin sat down across from him and cut to the chase.
“We caught the robber from that case. Here"s his belongings.”
Lin took out a bag with the man"s wallet and cell phone inside and handed it to Enokida.
“We got his fingerprints too. I have them in here too.”
“What?” This case was not so important to wake someone up in the middle of the night for. Enokida scowled at Lin. “This is what you needed to talk to me about? Couldn"t you just have waited until tomorrow?”
He pouted.
“No. I"m getting there.”
Lin then brought up his main agenda, expression serious.
“I came across a bit of a problem.”
The drowsiness dissipated a little bit when Enokida heard that short statement. Is something interesting going on? Enokida"s expression lightened up, and he leaned forward, intrigued.
“He"s here.”
“Who?”
“A hitman. The one who came to kill Saitou a while back.”
“Ohh,” Enokida exclaimed once he found the memory.
The one who came to kill Saitou. Lin was probably referring to Nguyen.
Oh yeah, I guess that did happen, Enokida chuckled internally. It happened during the Yamakasa event this past summer. I believe Saitou gave me an earful back then.
“The man from Murder Inc?”
“Yeah, him. I saw that man walking around Hakata. He went into a business hotel.”
“Maybe he"s here for sightseeing?”
“And what if he"s here for work?”
Lin continued with a stern expression.
“What if he"s back to kill Saitou again?”
Nguyen was an employee from Murder Inc who had come to f.u.kuoka before to eliminate the former employee, Saitou. At the time, Enokida tricked Nguyen by giving him a subst.i.tute for Saitou. Lin was under the a.s.sumption Nguyen had found out the truth and came back to kill Saitou again.
“Oh?” Enokida grinned and said teasingly. “You"re actually worried about Saitou-kun?”
Lin shrugged in response.
“You have no idea how much trouble I got pulled into thanks to him. I had to fight inside a train bound for Kokura. I protected him with my life. If Saitou gets killed, everything I put on the line would be a waste.”
“Sure, sure.” Enokida nodded. Hitmen are as wary as ever, he smiled wryly. “I think you"re overthinking it, but I"ll look into it just in case.”
“I"m counting on you.”
Lin stood up from the chair.
Enokida brought his coffee to his lips when he seemed to have remembered something. “Oh by the way, the Ramens may disband soon.”
“......What?”
Lin stilled and turned speechless.

The Ramens were going to disband soon.
Lin questioned what he had just heard. He froze as he was in the middle of standing up from his seat.
“...What? What do you mean?” Lin sat back down again. His voice cracked. “Disband? I don"t understand.”
Everyone was at practice just the other day. They had to suspend it because of the rain, but aside from that it was an ordinary practice session. No one was acting off.
So where is this talk of disbanding coming from? Lin was confused.
“I heard from Gen-san yesterday that the Ramens would be disbanding.”
“Come on. You gotta be joking, right?”
Even as Lin asked, he had trouble believing Enokida would lie about this.
“What"s the reason behind disbanding?”
“Banbsan is going to quit being a hitman.”
Enokida answered calmly.
“...What?”
Lin frowned. Banba is going to quit being a hitman? Where is this coming from all the sudden?
Enokida saw Lin"s expression and c.o.c.ked his head questionly. “Huh? You didn"t hear about it? Banbsan"s going to quit soon.”
Lin did not hear about this. Not a word.
Lin was entirely lost. What the h.e.l.l? How"s all this been happening without my knowledge? Lin tutted in irritation.
“So why"s he quitting?”
“Don"t know. I haven"t heard more on the subject. Gen-san just said it was a motivation issue.”
“Motivation?”
Lin could not find a connecting thread. He frowned deeply in confusion.
After sipping a bit of his coffee, Enokida asked. “How long has Banbsan been working as a hitman?”
“I believe he said about nine years.” Banba had told Lin this only a few days ago.
“Well, if he"s been going at it that long, then maybe he just lost his drive to continue. Many ordinary people get sick of working at the same company after so long and change jobs eventually. Maybe Banbsan is considering to do the same.”
“That can"t be the reason.” Lin rejected Enokida"s conjecture. “I"ve been doing this for seven years and never once thought of quitting.”
“You"re a special case though.” Enokida pointed a finger to Lin"s face and said. “You were raised at a young age to become a hitman. You can"t imagine yourself being anything else but a hitman.”
Lin stuttered when Enokida pointed that fact out.
“Well, yeah...I guess that could be a factor…”
It was true. There was some sense to what Enokida had said. Lin had trouble imagining himself working a register at a convenience store.
His upbringing was unique. He had been bought at a young age and underwent training to become a human weapon. Lin had never considered any other ways to earn money other than through a.s.sa.s.sination.
Was it different for Banba then?
Lin tried to imagine the possibilities. What if Banba had a life completely unrelated from the underworld from the very beginning. What if he grew up in a normal household and had a peaceful, ordinary life when an incident happened one day to cause him to become a hitman. Banba could have always had the desire to quit eventually.
In the year Lin had been with him, Banba had not shown a single sign of this being the case. Or perhaps Lin had just never noticed. All Lin saw in Banba was the carefree, baseball-loving idiot who was always smiling.
Maybe I just missed the signs. The thought pa.s.sed through his head.
“The Ramens was a team that came together due to Banbsan initially. He went and invited people working in the underground to play baseball together. There are a lot of regular companies in the standard society that form their own baseball teams, right? Banba took a page from them.”
That reminded Lin of something Banba had said when he first met him: ‘This sort of work builds up stress." He then asked Lin to join the team. Perhaps Banba invited the other team members with the same reasoning. That said -
“But even if he quits being a hitman, I doubt he"d quit playing baseball too.”
Banba loved baseball from the bottom of his heart. It always looked like he was thoroughly enjoying himself even during practice sessions. Lin did not want to admit it, but even from an outsider"s perspective Banba looked cool when he saw him act so lively during games. He would shout the loudest, more than anyone else in support of his team, whether he was on defense or in the benches. He was always serious when it came to baseball - sometimes overly excessive about it - but it was clear as day how much he loved the sport.
And so, Lin had trouble believing someone like him could easily toss baseball away.
“There"s no way a baseball nut like him would give that up.”
“That"s not the issue.”
Enokida pointed at him again.
“Naturally I can"t imagine Banbsan to quit baseball either. But it"s not like we"re the only gra.s.s lot baseball team out there.”
“...What are you getting at?”
“Banbsan is a great sportsman. I"m sure he"ll draw a very clear and distinct line. If he"s going to quit being a hitman, I can believe he"ll also completely cut his ties with the underground.”
“In other words,” Lin frowned. “He"ll cut his ties with all of us?”
“Exactly.” Enokida nodded. “Banbsan"s next life would be in peril if he continues to hang out with us. And he"d like to live a casual, quiet life. He could live a desolate, peaceful life and join an upstanding team instead.”
“...Stop joking around.” Lin bore his teeth as he retorted back. “If he quits, who will defend second base?”
No one else in the Ramens could defend second other than him. Banba was an essential corner to their center line. And this was not just for defense. He was also the cleanup hitter on offense. He was a crucial part of the team.
“Besides, Banba is the Ramens" captain. If we don"t have him, then there"d be-”
“-no team.” Enokida bluntly stated. “Banba"s the one taking charge, so the team has been pulling through. Banbsan"s got an innate ability to lead.”
After Enokida finished the little bit of coffee he had left, he continued.
“Besides, it was Banbsan who won everyone over to begin with. That"s how we ended up joining the Ramens. If he is to leave, then there won"t be much reason for everyone else to continue being part of the gra.s.s lot team. Everyone is busy with work. They can"t keep doing it just for fun. Banbsan is the person tying all the members together.”
That applied to Lin as well. He started playing baseball because of Banba"s insistence. Lin did not enjoy it at first, but he started to recently.
“The hole Banbsan would leave is huge. There would be some strain in the team with him gone. It could get too hard to continue.”
And if that happened, the Ramens would disband. Genzo had alluded to that outcome when he mentioned it to Enokida.
Lin understood the idea. But he could not accept it.
“...Are you alright with that?”
When Lin asked, Enokida had smiled wryly in response.
“I don"t like the idea of the team breaking up either. It had been my dream to play baseball since I was little. But I can"t force my friend trying to turn over a new leaf from staying either. If Banbsan wants to return to a normal life, then I think we should help him achieve it. Don"t you think so?”
Enokida had questioned him. Lin was not able to nod in agreement right away.

Lin said his goodbyes and returned to the Banba Detective Office. Upon his return, he promptly collapsed onto the sofa. He was suddenly overcome by exhaustion. A lot had happened this evening. A large sigh escaped him.
Banba did not come home today as well. He did not return any of his calls either. Jeez, where was he and what was he doing?
Lin gazed at the ceiling absentmindedly as he thought back on his conversation with Enokida.
Banba may quit being a hitman.
Lin was left unaware he would do that. The news came out of the blue.
Just like Enokida, Lin was unable to find a clear explanation behind this. He could not comprehend it. Banba will quit the Ramens? This isn"t a joke. So he"s just going to leave after dragging me into it? What the h.e.l.l"s up with that? It"s bulls.h.i.t.
“...I told him he could talk to me at least.”
Lin muttered to himself in the empty room before clicking his tongue.
However, even if Banba approached him about it, Lin did not have the qualifications to stop Banba. He would have to respect Banba"s will if he had told him he wanted to quit being a hitman.
If Banba left this field, he would become an ordinary civilian. And if that happened, Lin - a hitman - would bring him trouble. It was just as Enokida said. In order for Banba to have a peaceful life away from the underworld-
“Then I have to leave after all…” Lin muttered desolately.
Someone like him would have to leave this office. Lin could not stay by Banba"s side once he washed his hands free of this world.
“Ah, d.a.m.n! This sucks!”
Lin shouted and gripped his head.
There"s no point worrying over this. I"ll question Banba once he returns and get all the answers I need, Lin decided resolutely as he fell into slumber.

It was late into the night around 1:30 am. It was a weekday, and so there were few customers. Jiro closed shop earlier than usual and walked around Nakasu.

There were food stalls lined up in rows alongside the river. Jiro dropped by the food stall he frequented. He decided he would have a drink before heading home.
“Good evening, Gen-san.”
Jiro poked his head between the curtains as he greeted the owner.
“Oh, hey Jiro.” Genzo smiled when he saw Jiro. “Nice to see you.”
There were no other customers besides Jiro. Jiro sighed and took a seat. “It looks like it"s been an easy weekday for everyone.”
Regardless how much Kyushu was said to be the largest entertainment district, it did not mean business was high everyday. There were times where they would barely get any customers on weekdays, especially on rainy days.
“You"re tellin" me.” Genzo nodded. “Anyway, you can take your time.”
“Thank you.”
“Would ya like a beer?”
“Why yes. And would you like some too, Gen-san?”
Jiro picked up a bottle of beer and turned the cap towards Genzo.
“I"ll gladly accept your offer.” Genzo expressed his thanks as he held out a gla.s.s.
They poured their drinks and toasted. After they downed the gla.s.ses" contents in one go, Jiro exclaimed. “Haaa, a drink after work is the absolute best!”
Genzo nodded along with him. “And a drink during work is great.”
After they drank together for a bit, they began to get a pleasant buzz. They poured another gla.s.s as they had idle talk. Around the third gla.s.s of beer, Jiro got drunk enough to grumble over his gla.s.s.
He rested his chin in his hand and muttered complaints.
“...Still, it"s hard raising a kid.”
“You gone on ‘bout that before.” Genzo remarked. “What happened this time?”
“...Well, you see,” Jiro sighed deeply before confessing what has been bothering him. “Misaki said she wants to work by herself.”
Genzo was startled to hear it. “She wants to be independent at that age already?”
“No, that"s not what I mean.”
Jiro explained the details. He revealed everything that happened with Misaki from the other day.
After hearing Jiro"s story, Genzo groaned in understanding. “I see. In other words, Misaki wants to be acknowledged by you. That she can handle her own jobs as well.”
“Yes, that is indeed the case…”
“But you don"t wanna have Misaki do that yet.”
“Exactly,” Jiro frowned and lamented. “I don"t know what to do~.”
“Hmm...I understand where you both are comin" from.”
It was a difficult situation. Neither one was right or wrong. Misaki wanted to be acknowledged and work on her own. But Jiro did not want her to get hurt. So Jiro was unsure what was the right approach to handle her. He had kept pondering what he should do, unable to find an answer.
“But I see what Misaki"s gettin" at.”
Genzo folded his arms and added.
“There ain"t one professional baseball player out there who never held a baseball bat when they became an adult, right? Most of them started playin" baseball in elementary.”
“I guess that"s true.”
“Naturally you don"t want them to get hit in the head or injured by a foul ball. As a parent, you worry a lot ‘bout that happenin". But if ya don"t let them practice battin", they won"t become a good batter.”
Jiro"s breath caught in his throat.
He had wanted Misaki to work with him to learn how to do the job. He had mentioned that to Misaki before. He supplied a believable reason, yet perhaps he just wanted to leave Misaki under his observation.
Jiro did not want Misaki to get hit in the head. He did not want her to get her feet injured by a foul. And so he did not let her enter the batter"s box. Instead, he went in to bat for her and told her to stand by and watch. She would not become a good player learning like that.
“...I was naive.”
Jiro reflected. Genzo added.
“I"ve said my share. Children sure liketa do crazy things...And when she does become independent, she may become your business rival, ya know?”
Jiro shivered at Genzo"s joke.
“Oh don"t suggest something so frightening.”

Jiro grimaced and downed his beer.
After Enokida tasked the police detective Shigematsu to match the fingerprints, he went to the business hotel near the Chikakushi exit at Hakata Station as Lin had told him. He did this to find out the reason Nguyen came to f.u.kuoka.
Enokida had hacked into the hotel reservations ahead of time. Nguyen was staying in room 513. Enokida entered the building and headed to the fifth floor on the elevator. After he pressed the intercom for room 513, the Vietnamese man appeared from inside.
“Hey.”
Enokida raised a hand in greeting.
Nguyen"s eyes were wide in shock to see his sudden guest. “...Enokida? Why are you here?”
“I actually happened to see you walking near Hakata Station earlier.”
“...Ah? Yeah.” Nguyen nodded when the memory came to him. “I went out and had dinner with an old colleague.”
“I saw you enter this hotel, so I figured to drop by and say hi.” Enokida grinned.
“Well come in. There"s not much though.”
Enokida stepped inside at his suggestion. It was a small, single room. Enokida took a seat set out. Nguyen sat cross-legged on top of the bed.
“So do you need something from me?”
Enokida shook his head when asked.
“Not anything in particular.”
He lied. He would not have come here without a purpose. But he could not reveal the reason to the other. He had to get information from Nguyen without revealing his connection to Saitou.
“I just found it odd that someone from Murder Inc"s HQ would be all the way out in f.u.kuoka. I was wondering if something interesting was going down.”
Nguyen smiled wryly in response. “You informants are much too curious. You"re the type to not live very long if you keep that up.”
“I"m under the same impression. But I can"t just let myself be out of the loop when there"s something I don"t know about.”
“You"re very hard working.”
Enokida managed to express his desires while keeping his real agenda a secret. Nguyen had consented. “Alright, sure. You"ve helped me a lot anyway, so I"ll tell you.”
“Great.”
“But I need something in return.”
“Okay.”
Nguyen took out a file from his bag. When he opened it up there was detailed information on a certain man.
The man"s name was Eitarou Bessho. He had a sinister looking photo clipped inside. His personal history, background, and the names of his family members were all listed.
“He"s the guy I"m after this time.”
“Who is he?”
“Someone who used to work for us.”
Nguyen continued to explain.
“That said, I"ve never met him in person before. He was apparently a talented employee under the f.u.kuoka branch, but he suddenly left the company thirteen years ago. Afterwards, he committed murder and was sent to jail.”
Enokida voiced acknowledgement as he glanced through the data. It was rather intriguing.
“I was sent here for when he gets released from jail.”
“You"re going to kill him?”
That was Nguyen"s job. They had to wipe off anyone who put the company at a disadvantage, just like how he hunted Saitou months earlier.
“After I make him talk a bit.” Nguyen added. “I have to get answers out of him, like why he suddenly left the company, why he committed murder, or how much he gave away about the company.”
“What murder did he commit?”
Nguyen pointed to the doc.u.ments. “There"s a local newspaper section about the incident made at the time.”
Enokida flipped through the doc.u.ments and found the newspaper in question. It was a copy of an old article. The crime Eitarou Bessho committed thirteen years ago was listed in it. The caption was: ‘A male was stabbed to death in f.u.kuoka. An unconscious man was arrested at the scene."
Enokida glanced through the article.

“The f.u.kuoka police force has detained the unemployed drifter Eitarou Bessho (28), who is suspected of robbery, murder, and breaking and entering.”

The pa.s.sage began with that sentence.
“Ah.”
Enokida"s eyes widened in the middle of reading the next line. A familiar name was listed in it.
He whispered with a dumbfounded expression. “This can"t be-...”
“Hm?” Nguyen c.o.c.ked his head, curious of Enokida"s reaction to the article. “What"s wrong?”
Enokida read through the newspaper article once more. He only became more certain.
There was no mistake. This was an article about that person.
“Hey, I have a favor to ask you.” Enokida had uncovered something he did not antic.i.p.ate. He immediately asked Nguyen. “Would you mind lending this article to me for a bit?”

Bottom of the Fifth Inning Banba left Masataka"s home the following morning. He slung his bag over his shoulder and bowed to Masataka in appreciation at the entrance of his home. Masataka laughed. “Don"t come again.” Banba returned a bitter smile before heading to the port. He purchased a boarding ticket and got on the ship scheduled to depart at 6:20.
The weather was terrible today as well, and the waves were restless. The ferry proceeded towards Hakata Bay while occasionally being shaken by the harsh currents. It took the same route as last time, and they returned to Hakata Pier in half an hour.
A familiar face awaited Banba at the boarding area for the Bayside Place Hakata ferry.
“Ah, Shigematsu-san.” Banba exclaimed.
Shigematsu stood in front of the entrance in the boarding area in a suit.
“Hey,” Shigematsu raised a hand once he spotted Banba. He had come to greet him. “I"ve been looking for you since I couldn"t get a hold of you.”
“Sorry ‘bout that. I had my phone off.”
Now that Shigematsu had mentioned it, Banba remembered to check his cell phone. Once he turned it on, he found that he had a couple of voice mails. Most were from Lin and Shigematsu.
“Still, surprised you knew where I"d be.”
Shigematsu stated proudly. “I figured when you mentioned you"d be gone for a while that you"d be visiting Masataksan"s place. And I"ve been on the lookout for you as the ferry was going to come in around this time.”
“As expected of a police detective.”
“Jeez.” Shigematsu shrugged. “I was unsure how to give this to you since I couldn"t make any contact.”
He took out a paper bag from his bag.
“Here.” And he handed it to Banba. “This is what you asked for.”
“Thank you, Shigematsu-san.” Banba took the bag as he expressed his thanks. “It musta been hard for ya.”
“Now that I"ve done this, I"m officially a corrupt cop.”
“You already was.”
“Oh shut it,” Shigematsu smacked Banba"s shoulder in response to his teasing.
Banba glanced at his wrist watch. It was already past seven. He did not have much time. “I should get goin" now.” He muttered.
“I"m in your debt, Shigematsu-san. Thank you.”
“Treat me next time.”
Banba smiled and turned on his heel.
“Banba.”
Banba stopped when his name was called. When he turned around, Shigematsu was looking straight at him, his expression stern.
“What"s the matter? Why are ya makin" that face?”
“...Never mind.” Shigematsu shook his head. “Be careful.”
Banba turned his back to him wordlessly and raised a hand in farewell.

After leaving Shigematsu behind at the Bayside Place, Banba crossed the street and entered the multi-story parking garage. He went and got his car. His mini Cooper had been waiting for its owner"s return.
Once Banba got inside, he opened the paper bag Shigematsu had given him. Inside was a survival knife. It was a collapsible one with the Smith and Wesson logo on the black blade. The blade was left out, unfolded and sealed in a clear vinyl bag. It had been collected by the police as evidence for the weapon used in a case thirteen years ago.
There were black specks of blood on a few spots on the knife. It was his father"s blood.
Instantaneously, the memory from back then came to life in his mind. His own shrieks. The pain aching through his body and the trembling. The cold eyes of that man looking down at him. And the face of his father bleeding and writhing in pain as he was stabbed by this very knife. The scene from thirteen years ago resurfaced in crystal clear clarity in the recesses of his mind.
As Banba felt the emotions he experienced from back then, anger began to steadily grow within him. He started to get hot, as though his blood was boiling.
Banba swiped a hand through his hair. He took deep breaths to calm himself down. He could not give into his anger this soon.
“...I"m goin" now, dad.”
Banba muttered to the knife before starting the engine.
It"s time.
This day had finally come - the day he would get to kill that man.
Banba held back his excitement and stepped on the acceleration pedal.

Nguyen drove his rental car to the prison within the city. He drove for thirty minutes following the car"s navigation system until the scenery around him transitioned from the city landscape to the country where he saw a brown building surrounded by walls.
The prison was quite unique. It was remote and yet daunting. As Nguyen gazed at it, he entertained the possibility of the day he would be thrown into a place like this.
Nguyen parked the car alongside the road slightly away from the building and watched the entrance. It was currently eight in the morning. Bessho should be coming out soon, according to the information the company supplied him. Nguyen kept waiting for the man to appear from inside the car. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and stifled a yawn. He was slightly sleep deprived because he was up talking with Enokida late into the night.
Eventually, the man came out. He was without a doubt Bessho. He was walking in Nguyen"s direction. Nguyen got out of the car.
He would wait for his opportunity to knock him out and drag him into the car. That was the plan. He took out a gun and waited for Bessho to draw near to an unpopulated area.
His target was approaching. Nguyen took action at the right moment. He leapt out from behind a corner and pointed the gun up to the man"s head.
“Don"t move.”
Bessho completely stilled at the stern voice.
“You"re Eitarou Bessho, right?”
Nguyen did not need to ask. The only difference from the photo he received from the company was that his hair was shorter, but otherwise his facial features have not changed much since his thirties. He looked fairly young for someone in his forties, perhaps due to the good treatment he received in prison.
Bessho slowly raised his hands.
“Who are you?”
He asked.
“You know exactly who I am.”
Bessho appeared to have some recognition. He muttered. “...the company sent you?”
“Yes. I"ll have you come with me.”
However, the man did not obey.
“I"m sorry, but I can"t let myself get captured here.” Bessho stated unbelievably calm with his hands still raised, despite the barrel of the gun being pointed at him. “I still have something to do.”
“Ha, like I care.”
Nguyen snorted. The very next moment, Bessho swiftly turned around and grabbed Nguyen"s arm. He drove his knee into Nguyen"s arm to make him drop the gun. Nguyen also grabbed onto the other"s arm, the two falling into a jostle.
Nguyen thought they could go about this peacefully, but he gave up on that option. If Bessho was going to be like this, then Nguyen would not show mercy.
Nguyen used his other fist to aim a blow at the man"s face. The hit landed, and Bessho staggered. His grip on Nguyen had loosened. Nguyen shook him off and held up the gun at him again.
“Don"t resist. Just give up.”
However, Bessho only resisted further. He quickly regained his posture and swung a kick up at the gun. The gun fell out of Nguyen"s hand and onto the ground from the blow.
Once Nguyen was armless, Bessho continued his a.s.sault. He threw punches at him, and Nguyen answered with his fists in turn.
Although it had been a while since Bessho had been active, he was still a former worker of Murder Inc. And Nguyen had heard he was talented as well. His skill did not seem to have dwindled over these past thirteen years. His blows were heavy, and he always aimed for vital spots. If Nguyen was too slow to react, it could be fatal.
He looked down on me, Nguyen tutted.
He had to wrap this fight up quickly. He batted the other man"s fist aside, dodging his attack. Nguyen took the opportunity, grabbed onto Bessho"s arm and twisted it. He stepped behind and wrapped an arm around Bessho"s neck in a choke hold.
“Urgh.”
Bessho groaned in pain when Nguyen added more force, putting strain on his throat. He struggled against Nguyen"s hold, trying to break free.
Bessho"s struggling caused Nguyen to lose his balance, and the two fell onto the ground, tangled up around each other. Nguyen pinned Bessho down as he tried to crawl away, adding pressure onto his forearms.
However, immediately following this action, Nguyen felt a chill. He saw the barrel of a gun out of the corner of his eye - it was his gun.
Bessho had picked up Nguyen"s gun while he had been strangling him and managed to turn it towards him.
When did he-!? Did he purposefully drop it on the ground to do this then? s.h.i.t, Nguyen"s breath caught in his throat. Nguyen released Bessho"s arms and immediately took distance before Bessho could pull the trigger.
Bessho sped off the very instant he was released. He turned away from Nguyen and ran.
“Wait, you little-”
Nguyen attempted to pursue after him. However, when a gunshot went off, Nguyen unconsciously crouched over to shield himself. Bessho fired shots at him as he ran.
There were a couple more warning shots. Nguyen hid behind a telephone pole, letting the bullets pa.s.s. By the time the gunshots stopped, Bessho was gone.
“...d.a.m.n.” Nguyen clicked his tongue.
The plan failed.
Nguyen returned to his car and left the prison area. He had been reckless. He had let Bessho get away. As expected of someone known as an artisan. Bessho had remained calm even when under attack and not a single one of his actions went to waste. This looked like it would be a more difficult job than Nguyen imagined.
He had to pursue after Bessho while he had the chance. However, he did not plan to search for him recklessly. He had a way to find his target"s whereabouts. Nguyen took out his cell phone and called an informant he knew as he drove.
‘h.e.l.lo?"
The other answered immediately.
“I"ll have you return the debt you owe me.” Nguyen stated. I"m glad I had him owe me a favor the other night, he smiled internally.
‘What do you need me to do?"
“Find out where Eitarou Bessho is.”
‘...Huh? Does that mean he got away?"
“Shut it.”
Enokida laughed cheerfully. ‘Haha!"
“Can you do it?”
‘Of course. It"s simple. I can pinpoint where he is from the cell phone"s signal. Thank goodness for GPS."
“Bessho doesn"t have a cell phone.”
According to the information the company supplied, the cell phone contract Bessho had under his name had been voided after he got arrested. There was no way a man who just got released from jail to have another cell phone.
‘It"s not Eitarou Bessho"s cell phone."
Enokida said in response.
‘There"s someone who"s going to meet Bessho. I"m going to look up that person"s cell phone."
Someone going to meet him? Who is it? A friend of Bessho"s?
Nguyen c.o.c.ked his head in confusion.
‘Anyway, you can leave it to me." Enokida expressed proudly. ‘I"ll find out where he is shortly."

Bessho was released from prison after many long years, and as he was heading to that place he was attacked by a man. The man was Asian, but his facial features were not j.a.panese. He did not recognize the stranger, however, he had an idea what he could be. He was an a.s.sa.s.sin sent by the company he worked for in the past. Anyone who betrayed the company antic.i.p.ated the company to send someone after them. Bessho was prepared for it.
Nonetheless, he could not allow himself to get captured. He still had a mission to carry out.
Bessho had answered all his clients" orders as a hitman flawlessly. He was praised for his work and received high payment for it. He prided himself as a professional hitman.
However, there was one job where he could not fulfill his client"s request. It was a forsaken job left incomplete. Bessho had another kill left undone thirteen years prior. Until he accomplished his task, he could not let himself be captured.
Bessho fought with the man and managed to get away. Shortly after, he flagged down a taxi and headed to f.u.kuoka City. As he approached his destination, old memories resurfaced. He had come here thirteen years ago. He had pa.s.sed by this very street. He still had a good memory of the place, even now.
The old, two-story apartment building had remained unchanged. Bessho got out of the taxi and headed into the room. It was on the first floor, in the room at the corner furthest on the right side. The door was unlocked. Bessho opened the door quietly and stepped inside, making sure to not make a sound.
Bessho"s eyes widened when he saw the room before him.
There was nothing in there.
There were no people. And there was not a single piece of furniture or electronic left in the room. The 2LDK room was completely empty.
Bessho stepped further into the room with his shoes on and stood in the center of the living room.
Ahh, that"s right. He realized.
Of course no one would be-
“No one is livin" here no more.”
Bessho whipped around when he heard an abrupt voice.
There was a man.
Someone was standing at the entrance of the living room. From the tone of his voice, he seemed to be a young man, but Bessho could not clearly see the man"s face from the dim lighting in the room.
“The apartment buildin" is gonna be demolished too.”
“So it seems.” Bessho acknowledge and asked the stranger. “Who are you?”
The man asked a question in return. “Who do you reckon" it is?”
“I have an idea.”
Another one from Murder Inc? Bessho shrugged. He thought he had shook them off his trail, but he did not expect another a.s.sa.s.sin to be sent after him. The company was overly cautious.
“Still, you sure figured out where I went pretty fast.”
“I bribed an officer to put a trackin" device on your clothes.”
I see, Bessho groaned. He did not notice. “So there are sellouts even in j.a.pan"s prisons now? This is like America.”
Bessho"s eyes finally adjusted to the darkness. He observed the man facing him closely. He felt the man looked similar to someone he met before. He recognized that face. “...Did we meet somewhere before?”
The man ignored Bessho"s question and asked his own. “What are ya here for?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Dontcha tell me you came to pay your respects now.” The man said mockingly. “You ain"t here for that.”
“It"s none of your business.”
“It is.” The man said softly, but anger lingered in his voice. “Ya came ‘round here to see someone from this home, right?”
The man looked over Bessho and continued.
“So I came here to see you.”
Bessho finally connected the dots.
The man he had attacked in this household thirteen years ago had a son in high school at the time - a child he had tried to kill.
“Are you...that brat?”
Bessho had not recognized him at all. His features had immensely changed over the past thirteen years. He had gotten bigger since back then. Bessho had mistaken him. Even though he was just a frail child at the time.
“I came here so I could kill ya.”
The man slowly approached him, one step at a time.
He held a knife in his hand. Bessho recognized its black and polished look. The knife resembled the one he once had.
I see how it is, Bessho smirked.
“You"re here to avenge your father, huh. Don"t make me shed a tear now.”
It was very convenient for the man to come to him. Now he did not have to bother searching for him.
It looked like he could finally finish the job he could not complete that day.
“You must"ve been harboring a grudge against me for these past thirteen years,” Bessho reached into his pocket, his hand grazing the gun he stole. “I"ll set you free from your resentment soon.”
Translation Notes: There were a lot of baseball puns during Enokida and Lin"s conversation, some that I tried to bring over and some that I just couldn"t. One was hipparu (引っ張る). This mainly means to drag or pull at something, but one of its many usages can mean "to lead (a group of followers)." But this can also mean "to pull the ball," like a pull hitter.
There were also some very specific terms that either are not used the same way in English or did not exist in English. For instance, a deadball in j.a.panese refers to when a batter gets. .h.i.t by the pitcher (usually in the head) while a deadball in English refers to a ball that is deemed not playable.
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Translation: Kaede726
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Editor: Voissane
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