Chapter 20: Boss Mori makes his appearance, and the president's reputation is...
Before we knew it, we had arrived at the commercial street. Fukuzawa-sensei picked out a children's clothing store that looked pretty good and led Yoriichi and me inside.
As soon as we entered the store, a female sales assistant came over to greet us and asked very politely and kindly, "Sir, what kind of clothes would you like to buy for your children? We have a wide variety of children's clothing here, all of which are suitable for two children."
I was inexplicably bewildered by my children's complicated expression. Although it felt nice to be recognized as family, my father is Minato Namikaze, and no one can replace him. I had to explain this clearly.
I was about to correct the shop assistant's slip of the tongue when I noticed that Yoriichi had opened his round eyes wide. He looked at Fukuzawa-sensei and then at me, and he actually seemed a little happy, which made me speechless for a moment.
The fact that Fukuzawa-sensei is regarded as Yoriichi's father must have made the boy somewhat happy. After all, Yoriichi's biological father was really terrible. The serious, steady, yet gentle and considerate Fukuzawa-sensei is indeed someone people would want to see as a father figure.
It's not surprising that Yoriichi would have such aspirations.
When Fukuzawa Yukichi heard the female shop assistant's words, he paused for a moment, looked at Yoriichi and me with some difficulty, and seemed to be considering whether or not to explain our relationship.
When he saw Yoriichi's obvious delight, he didn't explain, but pointed to the Japanese-style children's clothing hanging on the hanger and asked the shop assistant to take it down.
The female shop assistant brought over two children's kimonos that fit me and Yoriichi. Ms. Fukuzawa took them and handed them to us, saying, "Try them on."
I took Yoriichi straight to the changing room to change clothes. Since we were both kids, we shared a changing room.
After closing the dressing room door, I decisively took off the coarse cloth kimono that was handmade during the Warring States period and changed into a modern, mass-produced cherry blossom pink dress that the shop assistant had helped me choose. I immediately felt like I had completely escaped that ancient era.
After fastening the belt, she noticed Yoriichi still touching the overly soft fabric in his hands and casually asked, "Why aren't you wearing it? Don't you like this pattern?"
I think the sunflowers on the picture are quite cute. Wearing them makes Yoriichi, who always seems withdrawn, look a bit more cheerful.
"No, it's just that this fabric feels even better than my brother's clothes."
After Yoriichi explained, he slowly started changing his clothes. Although he only said half of what he meant, I could already guess what he meant. This brother-complex guy was probably regretting that he couldn't let Kokushinobu Tsugikuni wear clothes made of this kind of fabric. He really is always thinking about his jealous older brother.
Seeing Yoriichi's white belly exposed after she took off her clothes, I felt a bit perverted looking at her like that, so I pushed open the dressing room door and said, "I'll go out first, you can take your time getting dressed."
When Ms. Fukuzawa, who was waiting outside, saw me come out, she asked, "How is it? Does it fit?"
"It's great. The sales assistant has a good eye; the size she picked out is perfect, and it's very comfortable to wear." Saying this, I twirled around cutely and asked, "Teacher, does it look good?"
Fukuzawa-sensei's expression suddenly turned stern and looked a little scary, but I wasn't scared at all, because the teacher's expression proved that I was really cute right now!
In the end, Ms. Fukuzawa didn't answer my question. She just patted my head with her big, warm hands and then asked the female shop assistant next to her to pick out another set of children's clothes for me to change into.
Me: "…………" Fukuzawa-sensei's behavior is easy to misunderstand! He was just preparing another set of clothes for me to change into, but why is he behaving like a certain Mori-surname boss who likes to change the clothes of young girls?
Just as this incredibly awkward thought crossed his mind, a flippant voice suddenly rang out from the shop entrance, "It seems that Lord Fukuzawa has finally come to appreciate the beauty of young girls."
Seeing the disheveled middle-aged man in a white coat standing at the door, my lips twitched. What a coincidence! How could I run into Mori Ōgai here? And at a time like this, it's easy to get my reputation ruined!
With his hand already on the sword hilt, Fukuzawa-sensei coldly asked his delinquent junior brother's teasing, "What is Dr. Mori doing here?"
"Of course, I'm buying a little dress for adorable Alice-chan. It seems I can exchange experiences on buying clothes for young girls with Lord Fukuzawa in the future!"
Mori Ougai's cheerful voice was full of anticipation, while Fukuzawa-sensei completely ignored this scumbag junior who was trying to ruin his reputation. He turned to the female shop assistant and asked her to prepare two more sets of underwear for me and Yoriichi. He remained extremely calm throughout the process, which was truly admirable. As expected of the president of the Armed Detective Club, his mental fortitude was indeed strong.
"That's too much~" Mori Ougai complained, his face turning into a bun in an instant. Fukuzawa-sensei looked at him seriously and said, "No need to beat around the bush, what exactly is Dr. Mori's purpose in coming here?"
"As for the purpose..." Mori Ougai's crimson eyes flashed with an unusual light, and he looked serious again, almost frighteningly so, instantly exuding the dark aura of a Port Mafia boss. "If you see a promising prospect you like, come and say hello."
Mori Ougai's ambiguous gaze fell on me, and the feeling of being stared at by a cold-blooded creature suddenly swept over my entire body, making me involuntarily hide behind Fukuzawa-sensei, feeling a chill run down my back.
“Ge is my student! Don’t you dare make a move on her!” Teacher Fukuzawa emphasized, protecting me, his voice colder than usual.
"Lord Fukuzawa, you misunderstand. My affection for Uta-chan is absolutely not because she is a young girl!"
Mori Ougai's seemingly upright explanation actually made it sound like this was the real reason he liked me!
I peeked out from behind Mr. Fukuzawa and said righteously, "Mr. Mori, the big brother with bandages on his face yesterday said you're a scumbag lolicon, and that if you say you like me again, I'll call the police and say there's a pervert here."
"I remember Dazai-kun only said I was a lolicon, but he never used the word 'scumbag'."
"Just hearing about Mr. Mori's fondness for young girls makes him seem like a scumbag!"
With Fukuzawa-sensei standing in front of me, I spoke quite bluntly. Mori Ougai wasn't angry at my assessment; instead, he covered his face and burst into laughter. "Uta-chan is really quite interesting. I knew I wasn't wrong; you're a born mafia boss!"
Mori Ougai, having lowered his hand, lost his smile and truly revealed the aura of a Port Mafia boss, which made my heart skip a beat. I then cried out like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, "What do you mean, a born mafia member?! Are you trying to drive a wedge between me and Fukuzawa-sensei?!"
"At that time, you showed no emotion in your eyes when faced with corpses and blood all over the ground, or rather, you didn't care about such a cruel scene at all. You had no empathy whatsoever. This is a quality that only a naturally cold-blooded person would have. It's very suitable for being a member of the Mafia."
Mori Ougai looked at me with a half-smile, his tone of admiration filled with malice, making me want to stomp on his face. What kind of ridiculous conclusion is this? He did it on purpose, didn't he? He definitely said it on purpose in front of Fukuzawa-sensei.
I hurriedly spoke to Mr. Fukuzawa, not knowing how to explain my situation. I did not feel anything about the bloody scene in the warehouse yesterday, but that does not mean I am inherently cold-blooded.
Just like when the Sound Ninja and Sand Ninja invaded Konoha during the Chunin Exams, I felt sad when I saw the bodies of Konoha ninjas after the chaos ended, even if I didn't recognize them. But I didn't feel much about the bodies of the invaders. No matter how many died, it wouldn't stir up too many emotions in me, because it was their choice. Since they chose to invade Konoha, they couldn't blame anyone for their fate.
After experiencing the bloody and brutal Fourth World War, on that battlefield where tens of thousands of people died, my entire mindset changed, and I can say that I grew up completely.
So when I saw the bloody scene in the warehouse yesterday, I felt no emotion. Since those people chose to join the underworld, they deserved to end up like this. It's not worth wasting any feelings on them.
Perhaps my thinking seems cold-blooded to many people, but I believe I have tried my best to live a positive and healthy life. It is already a great achievement that I have managed not to kill anyone. It is simply impossible for me to devote extra sympathy to those Mafia members who died in shootouts.
But how can I convey this feeling to Fukuzawa-sensei?
Seeing my bewildered look, Mr. Fukuzawa gently patted my head and said in a soft voice, "It's okay, no need to rush to explain. Kaga is a good child, that's an indisputable fact."
That warm pat on the head and those even more comforting words instantly soothed me, making me feel completely relaxed. Then I glared fiercely at Mori Ougai.
The man wasn't annoyed at all; instead, he said with great anticipation, "Lord Fukuzawa is really too boring. If you get tired of being around him, you can come find me sometime. Alice really likes you."
"That day will never come!" Teacher Fukuzawa said in a cold and stern voice, "Don't use your humanoid ability to seduce Uta. If I see you doing that, I'll cut her down with my sword!"
"That's too much! How could you bear to bully such a cute Alice-chan, just like that boy yesterday?" Mori Ougai complained. "He's also your student, isn't he? Calling Alice-chan a monster right off the bat. No wonder he was taught by Lord Fukuzawa. My Alice-chan was bullied so much yesterday that she didn't even have an appetite for cake. A little revenge shouldn't be a problem, right?"
As I spoke the last sentence, a cold light flashed in Mori Ougai's crimson eyes, and that surging, dark malice reappeared, making me shudder. I then remembered that Yoriichi hadn't come out of the changing room, and I hurriedly turned and ran towards it.
At that moment, Mr. Fukuzawa had the same thought as me. As he rushed towards the changing room, he drew his katana from his waist and slashed open the door, revealing the scene inside.
Yoriichi lay unconscious on the ground, and Alice was drawing on his face with crayons, turning his handsome little face into a little cat's face. When she saw me, she greeted me with an innocent and cute smile: "Uta-chan, we meet again! I'm taking my revenge, so don't stop me."
Seeing that Yoriichi was not in mortal danger, I breathed a sigh of relief. Especially when I realized that Alice had not kidnapped Yoriichi, but was simply drawing on his face like a real mischievous child, my expression softened. I went into the changing room and said, "Go ahead and draw, I won't stop you."
I crouched down beside Yoriichi and probed his body with my chakra to check on him. Only after confirming that Yoriichi had simply been drugged with a harmless sedative did I feel relieved. I thought to myself, "As expected of the Port Mafia; they actually managed to get their hands on a drug that could knock Yoriichi out. You know, his breathing technique has extremely strong resistance to any drug, yet he was still subdued without a sound. He's clearly still too inexperienced; he needs more guidance from Fukuzawa-sensei."
"What does Dr. Mori mean by this?" Fukuzawa-sensei, who also witnessed the scene, questioned his unscrupulous junior brother. Mori Ougai, who had previously exuded the aura of a Port Mafia boss, was now grinning from ear to ear. "It's Alice-chan's request. If I help her take revenge on your disciple, she'll show me ten different dresses!"
Fukuzawa-sensei remained silent for a moment, then subtly moved two steps to the side, probably feeling that standing next to this scumbag junior would lower his own standards.
I used my chakra to expel the sleeping drug from Yoriichi's body, and Yoriichi, who was in a daze, immediately woke up.
He opened his eyes blankly, saw Alice standing close by, and exclaimed "Ghost!" before sitting up and reaching for the wooden sword hanging at his waist. Alice immediately dropped her crayons and ran out of the dressing room, moving quite quickly.
"Rintaro! Let's go back!" Alice called out as she ran to Mori Ougai's side, indicating that he had already taken his revenge.
"Then hurry back and change into your little dress, Alice-chan! I can't wait!" Mori Ougai impatiently dragged his humanoid ability out, while Alice said impatiently, "I know, Rintaro is so annoying!"
As we reached the store entrance, Alice turned to me and said, "Song-chan, next time we meet, you not only have to treat me to cake, but you also have to play with me!"
Fukuzawa-sensei, who had just sheathed his sword, suddenly gripped the hilt again, radiating a chilling killing intent. It seemed he truly intended to kill Alice, who was trying to seduce me.
Fearing that the teacher and Mori Ougai would fight here, I quickly grabbed his hand holding the knife, and looked over anxiously with my watery eyes, not wanting the teacher to clash with the Port Mafia leader again because of me.
Fukuzawa-sensei looked down at my anxious face, and upon sensing my mood, sighed, then slowly released the knife from her hand.
At this moment, Alice was still waiting for my answer. Although she possessed Mori Ougai's special ability, she was just like a real little girl. Remembering the promise I made yesterday, and the fact that Alice hadn't actually hurt Yoriichi today, I couldn't refuse her directly. After considering it for a moment, I gave my answer.
"If we weren't enemies then and I had the time, we could have played together."
Mori Ougai immediately said with an expectant look, "I'll also ask Uta-chan to wear a pretty little dress then!"
"Get out!"
I didn't hold back in confronting that lolicon; I never want to see him again.
A note from the author:
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