Reincarnated Shield Hero [Minor revision + 290 words]
The sun shone brightly, and a gentle spring breeze blew. Golden sunlight poured over the Tsurumi River, and a light breeze swept by, causing pink and white cherry blossom petals to fall onto the river's surface, swirling and drifting downstream.
On the stone bridge in the distance, a young man in a black trench coat stood in the middle of the bridge. He looked down at the slowly flowing river below, where light and shadow danced on the undulating water, like the shimmering gold light refracted from a shattered piece of glass.
Dazai Osamu stared at the rippling river surface, his deep, dark eyes indifferent, but his tone was cheerful despite his expressionless face. "Indeed, this kind of weather is perfect for swimming."
After muttering to himself, he braced himself with both hands, stepped over the stone bridge railing, and jumped off without hesitation.
With a splash, water droplets shot out from the surface.
The pink and white cherry blossoms, carried downstream by the current, were swept away and tangled up by the riverside weeds.
The splashing water gradually subsided, and the bubbles that had been rising from the river surface burst abruptly upon contact with the air.
A few seconds later, the river calmed down, and everything returned to normal, except that the person standing on the stone bridge had disappeared.
-
Inside a newly opened clinic on Leibo Street.
In the simple but fairly tidy and clean operating room, a doctor in a white coat, looking somewhat unkempt, was performing an operation.
The stark white surgical light shone directly on an operating table, on which lay a skinny, blond man. His right trouser leg had been cut open, and there was a gunshot wound on his thigh, with the bullet unfortunately lodged inside.
Mori Ougai used tweezers to remove the bullet and threw it into a tray next to him. He then took off his disposable gloves and threw them into the medical waste bin next to him.
He walked to the washbasin and carefully washed his hands. In a deep, elegant voice with a hint of nonchalance, he said, "Thank you for your patronage. The surgery will cost 30,000 yen."
The skinny, blond-haired man sat up on the operating table, propping himself up on his injured leg. His triangular eyes darted around restlessly as he looked at the unsuspecting black-clad doctor with his back to him. His right hand quietly reached towards his waist.
Mori Ougai looked up at his glasses, then took a tissue from the side to dry his hands: "I don't recommend you take action against this patient, after all, we're on someone else's turf."
As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp scalpel gleaming with a cold light grazed the neck of the skinny blond man. Behind him, a blonde girl holding a huge syringe appeared out of nowhere, staring at him with an icy expression.
The skinny, blond-haired man froze, swallowed hard, and withdrew his hand tremblingly. He looked nervously at the approaching quack doctor and said, "Dr. Sen, I... I don't have any money on me."
After saying that, he quickly added, "But I know a secret about the Takase Association. Could I use that information to pay for the surgery?"
A new doctor recently arrived on Leibo Street and opened a clinic in the resource-scarce slum. This information was already common knowledge on Leibo Street, but the blond, skinny guy never expected that the doctor was actually a superhuman.
The skinny, blond-haired man was shot in the crossfire during a shootout with a small gang that had allied with the Takase Association. Afraid to go to a hospital and lacking the money to treat his wound, he came to this clinic with nowhere else to turn, so he never intended to pay for treatment.
A hint of surprise flashed in Mori Ōgai's dark red eyes. After a pause, he surprisingly put away his scalpel.
He looked at the skinny, blond-haired monkey with a smile and said, "Sure, as long as your information is valuable enough."
-
After seeing the patient off, Mori Ougai cleaned, disinfected, and put the surgical instruments back in their place. His cell phone rang; it was an alarm he had set an hour earlier.
He turned off the alarm clock, walked straight outside, pushed open the door and glanced out. After not seeing the person he was looking for, he turned around and went back to the clinic.
Standing in front of the medicine cabinet where drugs and utensils were stored, Mori Ougai stared at the lock hanging on it for a while. When he reached out and picked up the lock, he knew that it had been picked before.
The dejected young man, whose eyes were visibly dark and whose chin had short stubble, had a hint of helplessness in them. He quickly glanced at the medicines in the cabinet and found that one bottle of sleeping pills was missing, and three rolls of bandages were also missing from the bottom.
Mori Ougai sighed and muttered, "I told you not to take medicine indiscriminately, Dazai. I hope it's not too late."
He hung the lock back on the medicine cabinet, turned off the lights in the clinic, locked the door, and walked toward the nearest river.
-
The river water in early spring was still cold. The icy chill seeped into his internal organs through his clothes, which became even heavier after being soaked, and dragged the black-haired boy downstream, about to sink into the muddy riverbed.
The air in his lungs was about to run out, the pounding heartbeat in his ears became clear, and the boy, who was about to sink to the bottom of the river with his eyes tightly closed, suddenly opened them.
His golden eyes, as bright as glass, suddenly burst forth with dazzling light. His black hair swayed in the water, and his stretched-out body suddenly exerted force, like a fish swimming in the water. A few breaths later, the boy broke through the surface of the water.
After the black-haired boy came into contact with the air, not only his nasal cavity but also his lungs felt a burning sensation. He coughed and choked for a while before he recovered.
The black-haired, golden-eyed boy looked around. His golden eyes, moistened by water, became even clearer and brighter, but there was a blankness in his eyes.
Although he didn't know why he was in the river and the surrounding scenery was unfamiliar, after responding to the summons, he should have arrived at the location of the mission spoken of by the voice in his mind.
As the black-haired, golden-eyed boy struggled to clear his thoughts, something in the river bumped against his side, nearly pulling him underwater.
He instinctively reached out and grabbed what had bumped into him. His hand touched a thick, water-soaked garment, and as he moved upwards, he touched an arm that was still warm.
The boy's golden eyes suddenly narrowed, and he hurriedly grabbed the arm and pulled hard.
Seeing the unconscious person, the boy did not forget the first aid measures. After a series of actions, the person quickly regained consciousness.
Dazai Osamu hissed softly, carefully touching his red and numb cheek, and looked at the person who saved him with a strange gaze.
The other person had the same black hair as him, a youthful face, and a pair of round, golden eyes. He looked not only a little dull but also silly.
After a moment's thought, Dazai Osamu politely thanked the boy who had saved him, broke free from his restraints, and returned to the embrace of the river.
"Eh—!!"
The golden-eyed boy exclaimed in surprise, then stretched out his long arm and pulled Dazai Osamu back.
Dazai Osamu struggled to break free from the person behind him, but the hands reaching out from under his armpits held him tightly. He angrily turned his head and shouted at the golden-eyed boy, "Let me go! Don't disturb my journey to my appointment with Kasuga no Izumi!"
The golden-eyed boy was taken aback, and his strength immediately loosened. He said apologetically, "Oh, is that so? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
Dazai Osamu was caught off guard. It was as if a heavy stone was tied to his feet. He was dragged underwater by his heavy, wet clothes and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
On the bank, Mori Ougai, who had followed the river all the way, witnessed the whole thing. A glint of light flashed quickly in his dark red eyes. Before he could think about it, the squeaking and screeching from the river interrupted his thoughts.
Mori Ougai looked up and saw Dazai Osamu resurface after being submerged in the water, grabbing the boy who had just saved him and talking incessantly.
"Are you an idiot?" Dazai Osamu cursed.
This was the first time he had ever met such a straightforward person. Dazai Osamu loosened the bandage on his wrist, which was now damp and uncomfortable, and shouted angrily, "Or are you getting revenge on me?"
"Huh?" The golden-eyed boy looked at him in confusion: "But didn't you say you were on your way to an appointment? I'd better not disturb you in this situation."
Dazai Osamu was speechless, choked by what he had just said. He paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Mori Ougai watching the commotion from under a tree on the shore, and his expression immediately became completely composed.
He slapped the water with one hand and waved the other haphazardly at him. Dazai Osamu called out listlessly, "Oh, Mori-san, are you done with your work?"
The golden-eyed boy looked in the direction Dazai Osamu was looking, paused slightly after making eye contact with him, and then swam towards the shore with him.
As they swam toward the shore, Mori Ōgai had finished processing the thoughts that had just occurred in his mind, and he glanced helplessly at Dazai Osamu.
He then looked at the bewildered boy who was looking around and gave him a gentle and approachable smile: "Thank you for what you did for Dazai earlier. My name is Mori Ougai and I am a doctor."
"Huh? Are you talking to me?" The golden-eyed boy was slightly surprised, but after realizing what was happening, he gave the two of them a bright smile: "No need to thank me, I didn't help you with anything."
After speaking, he hesitated for a moment, then introduced himself: "My name is Liu."
Mori Ōgai didn't miss Ryū's hesitation; after all, it was impolite to only mention his name after he had already introduced himself. But the ruthless doctor didn't care about that at all; he was more interested in the story behind Ryū's hesitation.
Mori Ougai's smile remained unchanged. He was about to ask a question when he was interrupted by Dazai Osamu, who was standing to the side: "Hey, even if Mr. Mori has someone new that interests him, don't forget about me. Besides, being all wet and smelling like grass is really awful."
After saying that, Dazai Osamu sneezed loudly at the opportune moment. He rubbed his itchy nose, muttered something under his breath, and squeezed past Mori Ougai, who was blocking his way, to stand in front of Ryu.
Dazai Osamu: "Idiot, didn't anyone teach you not to talk to weird old men?"
Liu frowned and retorted, "I'm not stupid."
Dazai Osamu was speechless: "Is that the point?"
Noticing Dazai Osamu's deliberate or unintentional obstruction, Mori Ougai, wearing a white coat, smiled and interrupted their pointless argument, directly suggesting to Ryu, "Dazai is right, it's uncomfortable to be all wet. Ryu, would you like to come back to the clinic with me? It's nearby, consider it repayment for what you did earlier."
Liu's eyes widened slightly, somewhat surprised: "Is that alright?"
Sensing his interest, Mori Ougai's smile became even more genuine. Dazai Osamu, who had once again been ignored, said loudly in dissatisfaction, "As expected, you really are an idiot! Who would go home with someone they've just met? And Mr. Mori, you've gone too far, using my words as a pretext."
No one paid attention to his words. Mori Ougai and Ryu had already walked far away. Dazai Osamu stared at their backs for a while before following them, resentfully.
-
Back at the clinic, Mori Ougai treated Ryu very attentively, quickly figuring out Ryu's background in just a few words.
Mori Ougai poured him a glass of water and casually asked, "So, what are Ryu's plans next?"
After changing his clothes, Liu, who was wiping his head with a dry towel, stopped and hesitated for a moment before shaking his head: "No."
A glint of light flashed in Mori Ōgai's eyes, and he looked at him with a smile: "If you have nowhere to go, you can stay here with me for now."
As he spoke, he looked up at Dazai Osamu, who was sitting on the sofa and bandaging himself: "Since I'm with Dazai, could you please keep an eye on him for me? After all, things like this happen often, and it has been quite a headache for me."
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