Chapter 23 Rather than stalking someone and causing them harm, it's better to detain them on the spot! ...
"jingle--"
The phone rang, and Kitagawa Ryusei answered it without even looking at it: "Hello?"
The voice on the phone was excessively lively: "Little Liusheng! Guess who I am? I bet you didn't check the caller ID!"
Having spent all day with a group of colleagues who were being disciplined by their work and were constantly sighing, Kitagawa Ryusei was a little unaccustomed to hearing this person's voice for the first time.
He held the phone a little further away: "You guessed right, second-year graduate student."
As he spoke, he forwarded the suspicious individuals from the surveillance footage to the work group. Because they were too blurry, and the individuals were very wary and didn't show their faces, they weren't suitable for drawing a portrait.
Another round of cursing erupted in the group chat, and everyone voluntarily started working overtime.
"Aren't you at work today?" Kitagawa Ryusei asked Hagiwara Kenji as she worked.
Even through the phone, he could imagine Kenji Hagiwara's beaming expression: "Hagi's off today~ It's a pity that the class president and Jinpei both have to work, otherwise we could have gotten together."
Then he changed the subject: "But Xiao Liusheng, you're still working even when you're on your days off. If I ask you out ten times, you'll be doing exceptionally well if you can come out five times."
"So you've really grown estranged from Hagi-chan after all?" Kenji Hagiwara's voice sounded extremely aggrieved.
Kitagawa Ryusei's forehead twitched: "..."
At times like these, he would admire Matsuda Jinpei’s patience and tolerance, and feel that one cannot judge a book by its cover.
"If you don't invite me to meet up ten times a month, then you're a second-year graduate student."
"Waaaaah~ Ryusei is so scary now!" Kenji Hagiwara complained, "I even went to the First Investigation Division today to keep an eye out for that suspicious person from before."
Ignoring the series of empty wails, Kitagawa Ryusei and the others, having had their fill of acting, finally spoke up: "How was it?"
Not long ago, when Kitagawa Ryusei returned home from working overtime, she found a suspicious man loitering at her door.
The other person noticed someone passing by and their actions were clearly nervous and flustered.
As they passed each other, Kitagawa Ryusei smelled gunpowder on the man, so she took note and notified the Metropolitan Police Department.
Unfortunately, some time has passed since then, and the Metropolitan Police Department has yet to provide a result.
Because nothing happened, he eventually forgot about it because he was busy.
Kenji Hagiwara's voice deepened: "He's a bomb thief. The investigation department found tools for making a homemade time bomb in his residence, but someone sensed something was wrong and escaped."
"Xiao Liusheng, are you really not planning to move?"
“Not for now. If they really are here to scout the place, then other residents could also be in danger,” Kitagawa Ryusei replied, then paused, as if thinking of something, and lowered his voice: “...It can’t be such a coincidence, can it?”
Kitagawa Ryusei now lives in the Asai Villa area near Yoshioka 3-chome, which was also his first place of residence when he came to this world.
In his original world, this was also his property, and it was his favorite of all the safe houses in Tokyo.
Unfortunately, it was later destroyed by its enemies.
Thinking of this, Kitagawa Ryusei couldn't help but wonder: Could this house also be destined to be lost?
“Ryusei, are you still listening? I was saying you should install a security camera at the front door of your house,” Kenji Hagiwara said. “Jinpei and I suggested you move to the area near the Metropolitan Police Department a long time ago. It’s too lonely for one person to live in such a big house. It’s not enough for us to just visit occasionally!”
They were already quite familiar with each other, so Kitagawa Ryusei didn't hesitate to reveal his wicked nature, spouting nonsense without batting an eye: "It's been really cold lately, I need someone to warm my bed, do you have any recommendations?"
"..." The other end of the phone suddenly went silent.
"Hahaha."
After a long pause, Kenji Hagiwara chuckled awkwardly, unsure how to change the subject, and could only ask in a dry voice, "Do I look...like a hand warmer?"
The smile didn't disappear, it just shifted. Kitagawa Ryusei's work fatigue vanished, and she finally couldn't suppress her laughter: "Hahaha, just kidding."
Hearing the young man's unrestrained laughter, Kenji Hagiwara was incredulous: "..."
In just two short years, Xiao Liusheng has been corrupted by his group of colleagues, sob sob!
"Thank you, second-year student," Kitagawa Ryusei said, his voice still rising as he finished laughing, "I'll treat you to dinner when I'm done."
"I'm going to eat you out of house and home with Kojinpei!" Hagiwara Kenji angrily made up his mind when he discovered that he was surprisingly easy to coax.
After the phone call ended, the study, which had been somewhat lively, fell silent once again.
Kitagawa Ryusei shut down the computer, stared blankly at the black screen for a moment, then got up and drew back the curtains in the study.
The study has excellent natural light, making the room instantly bright.
It was past lunchtime, and his stomach was empty.
Kitagawa Ryusei took a bite of the bread that was meant for his breakfast, then spat it out.
Like paper.
He calmly pulled out a tissue to wipe his mouth and fed the rest of the bread, along with its packaging, to the trash can.
The consequences of drinking coffee on an empty stomach have arrived as expected.
Kitagawa Ryusei felt a burning pain in his stomach.
It's obvious that the refrigerator in the kitchen is empty, otherwise I wouldn't have chosen bread-flavored paper for today's breakfast.
Forced into a corner, Kitagawa Ryusei, not wanting to starve to death at home, had no choice but to go out.
Last night, the temperature in Tokyo dropped significantly again.
Kitagawa Ryusei, who usually wears a light-colored shirt under her trench coat, had to give in to the weather and changed into a turtleneck sweater, which made her look much softer.
He picked up the key to the front door, changed his shoes, and went out.
First, she went to a nearby Yoshinoya to get a beef bowl to go, and then Kitagawa Ryusei bought some instant food to store in her refrigerator.
Although he usually eats in the police station canteen, who can resist the sense of security that comes from having a refrigerator full of food?
Even if the house is empty and nobody's there, at least the refrigerator should be lively and bustling.
With that thought in mind, he stuffed a few more bottles of mineral water, milk, and coffee into the cart before going to pay the bill with satisfaction.
Shortly after leaving the convenience store carrying large and small bags, Kitagawa Ryusei, with his keen observation and sensitivity to sight, noticed something was amiss behind him.
Someone is following him.
Dozens of meters away, several cars drove by, blocking the view. A figure took the opportunity to move forward a few steps and found a hidden blind spot to hide.
The other person appeared to be wearing a baseball cap, and their blurry silhouette flashed past in the gaps between the passing vehicles.
I don't know if this stalker is professional or incompetent.
Despite possessing above-average tracking skills, his gaze was so intense that he seemed afraid of being overlooked.
After silently cursing to himself, Kitagawa Ryusei continued walking, only slightly changing direction.
If it were just an ordinary criminal, Kitagawa Ryusei could certainly handle it alone, but considering that it might involve criminal cases he had handled before, at least two police officers should be present during the enforcement process.
He casually took out his phone and called Nakajima Yuzuru, whose address was closest to his. He said succinctly, "Nakajima, I'm being followed. I'll send you the exact location via email."
"What?!"
A few kilometers away, a young man with a buzz cut, who was lying on his sofa at home working on his laptop, suddenly sat up: "How many people? Do we need to bring guns? Should we notify the others?"
After asking several questions in a row, Nakajima Yuzuru's first thought was that the fugitive criminal intended to take revenge.
"There should only be one person. Just to be on the safe side, bringing a gun is fine," Kitagawa Ryusei replied casually, showing no awareness of the danger he was in.
However, this was hardly a dangerous situation for him.
Yuma Nakajima clearly thought so too.
After hearing this, the young man, who had been rummaging through the drawer, sat back down: "Oh, alone."
He immediately lost his nervousness, held the phone between his face and shoulder, and continued typing with both hands, humbly asking, "So what did you call me to do? To applaud for you?"
Surely it couldn't be something like "destroying the body to cover up the crime"...
With such limited fighting power, even if you chop it up and make dumplings, it wouldn't be enough to serve this guy as an appetizer.
If he rushes over and sees something he shouldn't, wouldn't that have a bad influence?
At that moment, Nakajima Yuma felt exceptionally considerate.
Unsure of what strange image she held in the other person's mind, Kitagawa Ryusei turned her head to look behind her through the mirror of the shop in front of her, but did not see the person following her.
But he still had the energy to crack a joke: "When we catch someone, should I carry them back or hug them?"
Of course, we'll hand it over to the sucker to be dragged back.
The sucker, Nakajima Yuzuru: "...This counts as overtime!"
"I guess you were working overtime for free anyway." It's just a difference between field and office work.
"..."
Without saying another word, Kitagawa Ryusei put away his phone after sending the confirmation email, turned around and slipped into a deserted alley.
Once the target disappears from sight, the other party will definitely come to check if they have any real intentions.
Sure enough, he didn't have to wait long before footsteps came from not far away.
...Not decisive enough, Kitagawa Ryusei sensed a hint of hesitation in the other person's footsteps.
If he was just gathering information, he shouldn't have followed them; if he was trying to silence them, he wasn't swift enough.
I never expected to run into such a third-rate criminal.
The footsteps grew closer. Kitagawa Ryusei carefully identified them, pulled out a folding baton from his lower back, and hid around the corner to wait.
The person who arrived walked lightly, was probably wearing sneakers, and was slender and tall.
Strangely, when he turned the corner, Kitagawa Ryusei showed no signs of the wariness or defensiveness expected of someone in his profession.
Suspecting that his guess was wrong, the baton that was supposed to be pulled out was urgently withdrawn.
Taking advantage of the blind spot, Kitagawa Ryusei delivered a solid punch the instant the stalker peeked out.
He didn't hold back his punch; it went straight for the opponent's stomach.
—Even if he's not a criminal, he's a pervert. It's better to detain him on the spot than to keep him around to harm others!
*
Half an hour ago, Rei Furuya walked out of the training field in a good mood.
—He hadn't had such a satisfying fight with anyone in a long time.
Although the fight ended in a draw and one side of his face was swollen, it didn't stop him from mocking Ray, who was rushing to get his teeth fixed:
A newcomer in the action team, ha!
Intelligence team member? Ray raised an eyebrow, admitting to himself that he had indeed underestimated his opponent and was puzzled by their hostility.
They met for the first time and immediately started sparring at the training ground. Judging from their expressions, it seemed like just a normal friendly match between codename members.
Another tricky member of the organization.
The two men had different expressions, and silently agreed in their hearts, before turning and walking in different directions.
...
The training ground was some distance from the safe house, so Rei Furuya decided to have lunch outside first.
He planned in his mind to find a part-time job nearby once the swelling on his face subsided, looking at the shops along the roadside.
Having gotten used to working three jobs in the US, Jiang Guling is finding it a bit difficult to adjust to having some free time.
He wore a mask to cover the injuries on his face, and a blue and white baseball cap was firmly on his head as he walked along the street with one hand in his pocket.
The area is a residential area where most people choose to cook at home, and there aren't many young people like him going out on the street.
So when the tall, slender figure in the black trench coat appeared not far away, he immediately caught his attention.
Only a familiar profile was revealed before the other person immediately turned around, picked up the shopping bags, and left.
...Ryuu?
The moment that name popped into his mind, Rei Furuya involuntarily took a few steps forward.
I want to see it more clearly.
In the distance, a young man's reddish-brown hair swayed gently in the wind—a color he recognized.
"It's him," he thought to himself.
I never expected to meet you here.
Knowing that her childhood friend had met with Kitagawa Ryusei not long ago, Furuya Rei knows nothing about him except that he has changed a lot.
He knew nothing about his specific job position, where he lived, the length of his hair, or his body temperature.
Rei Furuya didn't ask, partly because Rai's sudden appearance interrupted their conversation, and partly because he felt he wasn't ready yet.
But the moment you unexpectedly see this person, all the waiting and preparation are thrown to the back of your mind.
Kitagawa Ryusei was on the phone, seemingly in a good mood. His trench coat was unbuttoned, and the hem swayed as he walked.
Rei Furuya knew he wanted to catch up.
Even if we can't meet because of his current status, what if we could just take a look?
...I just glanced at him to make sure he hadn't lost weight and was having a proper lunch before leaving. I wouldn't follow him for too long or get caught...
He finally found an acceptable excuse for himself and followed cautiously behind, so engrossed that he didn't even notice the changes in his surroundings.
Before a gust of wind could even reach his face, Rei Furuya instinctively reached out and intercepted the sudden attack.
My entire hand and half of my arm instantly lost all feeling!
They didn't even have time to see each other's faces clearly before they launched a rapid attack and subconscious counterattack based on muscle memory.
Kitagawa Ryusei hadn't expected such an amateur stalker to have such high-level fighting skills, and his eyes suddenly sharpened.
But for some reason, the opponent suddenly stopped exerting force at the crucial moment.
Without saying a word, he grabbed the man's hand that was about to pull back, twisted it behind his back, and slammed it hard against the wall!
“Ryusei, it’s me!” Rei Furuya blurted out upon seeing this.
It wasn't loud, but it was deafeningly loud on the quiet path.
As soon as the words were spoken, both of them froze on the spot.
Rei Furuya was unable to move because his hands were bound, while Ruki Kitagawa had a blank expression and showed no reaction.
A deathly silence instantly swept through the alley, dividing this area into its own world, shutting out all sounds from outside.
Their heartbeats were therefore all the more distinct.
Kitagawa Ryusei remained frozen in place, neither speaking nor releasing him, simply remaining silent.
A few strands of golden hair peeked out from under the baseball cap, and the skin beneath the sweatshirt was a familiar wheat color.
Rei Furuya was facing the wall and couldn't see Ryusei Kitagawa's expression, but as the silence went on, he began to panic uncontrollably.
He lowered his voice, his tone cautious: "...Ryusei?"
The person behind him still did not respond.
"jingle--"
The silence was broken by Kitagawa Ryusei's phone ringing.
He didn't check the caller ID, and even with one hand still restraining the person in front of him, he answered the phone almost as if he had been rescued, his movements slightly flustered—
It's as if they urgently need something to distract them.
"Kitagawa-kun, I'm almost there, where are you?"
It's Nakajima Yuzuru.
Kitagawa Ryusei opened his mouth, but no sound came out: "..."
Rei Furuya also remained silent.
He coughed a few times to clear his throat before saying in a hoarse voice, "...It's alright now."
"What?" The young man on the other end of the phone didn't hear clearly.
After a long while, so long that Nakajima Yuma was starting to wonder if he had messed things up, Kitagawa Ryusei finally found his voice and closed his eyes: "It's resolved."
"Thank you for making this trip. Just send me the documents you're responsible for, and go back and get some rest..."
Realizing what the other person was saying, Furuya Rei fell silent.
He remained in an uncomfortable position, his wrists aching from the unconscious pressure, yet he made no attempt to break free.
He turned his head to look at the person behind him.
He looked up and met Kitagawa Ryusei's gaze.
Rei Furuya pursed his lips and called out that name for the third time.
Unlike the previous two times, this time it carried an overwhelming longing and tenderness, along with a hint of apology for leaving two years late and without saying goodbye:
"Ryuu."
Click.
A sudden sound rang out.
Rei Furuya was startled and looked down at the sound.
The familiar, coldly gleaming handcuffs were tightly fastened to his right hand.
On the other end, there was the young man in the black trench coat in front of him.
Kitagawa Ryusei sneered, revealing a row of snow-white teeth.
The swift and powerful punch struck again, slamming heavily against the wall next to Rei Furuya's face!
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