Chapter 72 The Same Kind They are the same kind
Takanashi Chika didn't put down the bottle. After thinking for a moment, she said, "You hurt him, and I want you to make amends."
“Okay!” he readily agreed.
Chinatsu didn't make any requests, and she genuinely didn't know what she should want; asking for too much or too little would be inappropriate.
She wanted Karasuno Goku to say it himself, and then they would negotiate the price.
Karasuno Yukari clearly understood her meaning. He reacted extremely quickly, speaking almost the instant he understood: "As long as you don't hurt yourself, I'll give him the entire intelligence team!"
Like a thunderclap, all Chizuru heard was the booming thunder and the sudden flash of white light; her mind remained frozen for a long time.
Like an old, worn-out cassette tape that finally started spinning again, Takanashi Chika realized what the other person meant.
The entire intelligence team... was given to Gin?
Has Karasuno Goku gone mad?
Not to mention that Karasuno Goku is equally ambitious, even if Karasuno Goku were to actually send it, Karasuma Renya would never agree.
It's a scam!
Karasuno Goku wanted to trick her into putting down the bottle so he could then come over and restrain her.
"Are you worried I'm lying to you? Even if you put the bottle down, does that mean you won't hurt yourself again? If I fail, you can threaten me again. There's no need to hurt yourself now."
Chizuru Takanashi, however, remained vigilant. What if Karasuno Goku changed his mind and locked her up, preventing her from even harming herself? There are always many ways to control someone.
"What do I have to do for you to believe me?" Karasuno Goku looked at Mori Ougai beside him, trying to get him to help him think of a solution.
After thinking for a moment, Mori Ougai said with a smile, "How about this? I will be the witness. If he goes back on his word, I will definitely urge him to do it."
“You’re in cahoots with him,” Takanashi Chika said, distrustful.
Mori Ougai sighed and said, "So what are you going to do? Really commit suicide? Have you thought about how many people would die if you died? Although you were threatening him, it was only in a moment of desperation to save Gin. Now that Gin is out of danger, it doesn't matter whether you have the bottle or not."
Mori Ōgai, the young bird, took a step closer.
Chizuru Takanashi also nervously took a step back.
"Why bother? Even if I walk up to you step by step and take that bottle away, you won't dare to actually poke it." Mori Ougai approached Takanashi Chinatsu again.
Chika's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and her hands began to tremble.
Mori Ōgai is right.
She dared not commit suicide, just as the organization had controlled her for so many years; as long as there were people she cared about, she would never dare to die.
Mori Ōgai won; he saw through everything.
His trembling hand gripped the bottle, gently scratching the skin near his throat, but never penetrating deep inside.
Takanashi Chika was prepared for the bottle to be removed, but then Karasuno Goku kicked out and landed hard on Mori Ougai's waist.
The leader of the port Mafia, resembling a black garbage bag, flew towards the wall with a "whoosh".
"Rintaro!" Alice screamed.
Ryunosuke Akutagawa reacted quickly, hastily using his supernatural ability to catch Mori Ougai with his clothes. Although he glared at Karasuno Goku, he dared not make a move without Mori Ougai's orders.
"Are you blind? Didn't you see she's injured again?" Karasuno Goku angrily cursed.
Mori Ougai rubbed his lower back, his scarlet eyes darkening.
Takanashi Chika was shocked. What audacity! Karasuno Goku actually dared to kick the leader of the Port Mafia.
A "ding" sounded—it was a text message.
Takanashi Chika held half a bottle of liquor in one hand and took out her phone with the other to check the message. It was from Gin, saying that he was alright.
"Gin is alright now, right? China, put the bottle down. I promise you I will definitely keep my word." Karasuno Goku's eyes were filled with worry and hope.
Holding onto the bottle was pointless, and Takanashi Chika didn't dare to actually commit suicide. The compensation Karasuno Goku had promised couldn't be confirmed for the time being, so she took a deep breath, went with the flow, and lowered her hand that was holding the bottle.
Karasuno Goku hurriedly stepped forward, snatched the wine bottle from Chizuru's hand, and then breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
"You child, you're too hot-tempered. What if you hurt yourself? I was wrong this time. I was too headstrong. Next time, we can discuss things together. You don't need to hurt yourself." Karasuno looked at the wound on her throat with heartache, then glared angrily at Mori Ougai.
Mori Ougai touched his nose and ordered Akutagawa, "Go and call the doctor."
"Yes." Ryunosuke Akutagawa quickly went to do it.
Takanashi Chika remained wary of Karasuno Goku, worried that he might suddenly turn on her. However, even after the doctor finished bandaging her up, Karasuno Goku watched anxiously and with heartache, showing no intention of turning against her.
She tentatively asked, "The compensation you mentioned before..."
"Give it to him, give it all to him, it's not like it's anything good anyway." Karasuno Goku said casually, even feeling that the intelligence group was unlucky because Takanashi Chinatsu was injured.
Chinatsu Takanashi was stunned. Could it really be true?
Karasuno Goku had clearly expressed his ambition before, so why is he now abandoning even the intelligence team?
"Chika, please, don't scare me like that anymore." Karasuno Goku reached out and gently touched the bandage on her neck with his fingertips.
It's so light that Takanashi Chinatsu can't feel it at all.
Chika Takanashi turned away, unable to comprehend the Karasuno Prison before her.
The bar counter was put back up, and the floor was cleaned.
Mori Ougai gestured for the boss to leave temporarily, took a bottle of red wine and walked over to the two of them, while Akutagawa Ryunosuke also brought three wine glasses.
"Come on, have a drink, you two." Mori Ougai poured the drinks and handed over two glasses.
“China is injured and can’t drink.” Karasuno Goku took the two cups of wine and drank them all by himself.
Mori Ougai smiled, his tone meaningful: "This is the first time I've seen you care about someone so much."
"China is different from you."
"So you've finally found your kind?"
Karasuno Goku curled his lips into a smile, his eyes filled with joy.
"Same kind?" Takanashi Chika pondered repeatedly in her mind. What same kind? She couldn't understand their conversation at all.
She looked at Mori Ougai, whose smile was so gentle, just like Karasuno Goku's. Are all those in positions of power the same? Because they are high above, because they are in control, they don't care at all about how the ants below them might act.
Mori Ōgai met Karasuno Gakuen on the battlefield.
She began to ponder the information she had gathered earlier. Mori Ōgai had been the leader of the port Mafia for several years now. As for what happened on the battlefield, how old was Karasuno Goku at that time? A teenager?
However, judging from their interactions, Mori Ougai clearly respects Karasuno Goku, treating him as an equal or even peer.
The leader of the Port Mafia and... Raven Number One?
Takanashi Chika felt a subtle unease, but couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.
The two drank their drinks, while Takanashi Chika sat quietly to the side, glancing at the entrance of the izakaya every now and then.
Chuuya Nakahara has not returned yet.
But the message just now was indeed sent by Gin, using the code that he and his sister had set up beforehand.
As she turned her gaze away from the doorway, she noticed Karasuno Yu was propping his head up with one hand, his cheeks flushed, and staring intently at her.
She sat up straight, picked up the cup, took a sip of warm water, and dared not look him in the eye.
"Chika, you are different, unlike everyone else." Karasuno Goku said earnestly, "If it's you, I'm willing to give you anything you want, but there's one thing: you have to stay with me for a long, long time and never leave me."
He expressed his obsession.
It also asserts sovereignty.
"Even Gin can't take you away from me." Karasuno Goku's eyes were fierce.
Chinatsu pursed her lips, her inner resistance growing stronger.
"Splash—"
The chandelier on the ceiling fell down.
Just like Scotland before, anyone who annoys or offends China will suffer misfortune.
But the chandelier failed to hit Karasuno Goku on the head.
The chandelier, connected by wires, stopped abruptly less than half a meter from Karasuno Goku, swaying precariously above his head.
An alarm bell rang in my heart in an instant.
Alertness heightened, Takanashi Chika suddenly stood up, staring at Karasuno Goku in shock.
The chandelier didn't hit him!
Did her luck fail her?
Only greater luck can withstand the curse of misfortune, and that person is someone Takanashi Chinatsu knows only once.
Karasuno Goku's true identity was about to be revealed.
But Karasuno Goku seemed completely unaware, even lazily stretching and then getting up to take China's hand.
"Are you bored? Coming to an izakaya but not being able to drink is really boring. Shall we go for a walk?"
Takanashi Chika looked at Mori Ougai again. Karasuno Goku seemed to completely disregard Mori Ougai, and Mori Ougai was used to it and didn't seem angry at all.
Would Mori Ougai really have the patience to work for Karasuma Renya, even if he were a carefully groomed successor?
No, it won't.
Even the entire organization couldn't possibly stand up to a superpowered organization. Theoretically, even Karasuma Renya wouldn't dare to go head-to-head with Mori Ougai.
But when they met on the battlefield, Karasuno Gakuen summoned Mori Ougai with a single message, and Karasuno Gakuen even kicked Mori Ougai away...
Everything about it felt eerie, and something about everything seemed very wrong.
unless!
unless! ! !
Takanashi Chika swallowed back the guess that was on the tip of her tongue and followed Karasuno Goku out of the izakaya.
Yokohama's nights are chaotic, but tonight it's unusually peaceful.
The bright moon hangs high in the sky, and the stars twinkle.
The two walked along the streets of Yokohama, Karasuno Gaku constantly trying to find topics to talk about, such as Hoshizuki, the organization, and the subordinates that China cared about.
He tried to find a topic that China was interested in in order to quickly build a closer relationship with her.
But Chika's mind was in a mess at the moment, and she even forgot the most basic pretense of politeness, remaining silent in the face of Karasuno Goku's overtures.
"China is still blaming me, isn't she?" Karasuno Goku sighed.
Takanashi Chika shook her head and said, "No."
"I'm sorry, I didn't know Gin was so important to you." Karasuno sighed, looking wistful. "I've already made a mistake once, and I didn't expect to make the same mistake again this time."
Did you make a mistake once? Which time?
If Takanashi Chika is not mistaken, is Karasuno Goku referring to the adoptive father who killed her back then?
"Will the master agree to you handing the intelligence group over to Gin?" Takanashi Chinatsu observed Karasuno Goku's expression.
Plain and casual.
It was as if it were a trivial matter.
He will agree.
"You knew the gentleman would agree without even asking?"
Karasuno chuckled, stroking China's soft hair with his fingers, and said, "Of course he'll agree, because it's China's wish."
A spark of electricity within the brain.
Even the most oblivious person could see at this moment that Karasuno Goku didn't take Karasuma Renya seriously at all, and that everything was actually decided by him.
Either Karasuno Gaku had harbored thoughts of betrayal from the beginning, or Karasuno Gaku's true identity is Karasuma Renya, and his current identity is merely a disguise he has put on for himself.
How could that be? So young, so capable, if Karasuno Goku were Karasuma Renya, why would he struggle to become the second-in-command of the organization? He could clearly control the entire organization.
"Does Chizuru like fireworks?" Karasuno Goku stopped and looked up at the sky.
Chika followed the other's gaze and saw fireworks blooming under a sky full of stars, like orchids and chrysanthemums, or even like countless ribbons.
It was at this moment that Chinatsu suddenly realized the truth.
It's her.
Karasuma Renya appeared before the public in this guise for her sake.
They were of the same kind, Karasuma Renya believed.
How absurd.
"Chika, fireworks are beautiful, but they are fleeting like shooting stars. It's not easy to preserve this beauty for a long time." Karasuno Goku took out a gem. It was a blue gem, but it shimmered with a red light under the moonlight.
What a nice view.
It was more beautiful than any gem that China had ever seen.
Whether it was China's imagination or not, she felt a faint, elusive halo around the gemstone.
"What is that?" she couldn't help but ask.
"This gem is called Pandora. Legend has it that Pandora sheds tears under the moonlight, and her tears can grant immortality."
A white flash of lightning coursed through Chizuru Takanashi's mind, and she suddenly remembered the organization's true purpose—immortality.
We must reverse the flow of time and bring the dead back to life.
This is something Vermouth once said, and it's also the organization's biggest secret.
“You like to seek benefits for others, but you always forget about yourself. Gin has the intelligence group, but you have nothing and even hurt yourself. That’s not fair.” Karasuno Goku handed the gem to Chizuru.
The gem, the size of a pigeon egg, was heavy and cool to the touch. Takanashi Chika held it in her hands, unable to put it down.
"Legend has it that this gem, though possessing the power to grant immortality, is also a cursed gem, and anyone who obtains it will meet a violent end."
Takanashi Chika's finger trembled. A curse?
Karasuno Yu laughed again, "It's fake. I've had it for so many years and I'm still very lucky. It's just an ordinary gem, except that the color is more vibrant and the crystal is clearer."
Chizuru Takanashi, however, dared not treat this lightly.
This must be a test.
She guessed the other person's identity and also guessed who they were looking for.
Karasuma Renya is looking for someone whose luck is comparable to his. If someone possesses great luck, they will naturally not be cursed by a gem. This is the tool he uses to select his kind.
"Would you like to accept it? I can use it to make a necklace for you."
"I don't believe in these things." Takanashi Chinatsu casually returned it.
"You don't believe in curses?"
"I don't believe in eternal life either."
Karasuno Goku couldn't help but laugh out loud.
He tilted his head, looking at China with great interest, his eyes almost overflowing with tenderness.
"You know our organization's ultimate goal, right?"
Chinatsu nods, but her tone is disbelieving: "Immortality is an absurd topic. The drug can prolong Father's life, but it cannot make people immortal, let alone reverse time."
"But he succeeded."
Takanashi Chika looked at Karasuno Goku in disbelief.
Karasuno Goku spoke casually, as if discussing what to eat for breakfast tomorrow: "Research on rejuvenation has already been successful."
Looking at Karasuno Goku's youthful appearance, even though Takanashi Chika had already guessed, hearing the truth still made her heart tremble slightly.
"Impossible. If it had succeeded, why would we have sent Shiho to study abroad? Wasn't it so that she could inherit her parents' research and continue the research on immortality after she returned?"
Karasuno Goku smiled and shook his head.
He was confident and composed, but his words were cruel: "The Miyano couple are very capable researchers. They have actually completed the research on APTX4869. The so-called taking over and restarting the research with Shiho Miyano is just a smokescreen. Otherwise, how do you think they died? Rum couldn't get involved, and Gin didn't have the ability. Do you really think a research institute with that level of security would catch fire for no reason?"
Takanashi Chika was terrified. If the research succeeded, the Miyano couple would be useless, and they might even expose the organization's secrets, so naturally, she had to be silenced.
"China doesn't need to be sad. The organization has also treated their children well. It can be considered a blessing for their hard work and dedication to the organization."
Is losing one's life a blessing?
Is it a blessing for a child to lose their parents and grow up in the shadow of an organization from childhood?
A surge of anger welled up inside her, and Takanashi Chika wished she could send Karasuno Goku to hell right now, but there was nothing she could do and she could only listen quietly.
"China, there's no need to waste your energy on unimportant people."
“But Akemi Miyano is my friend, and Shiho Miyano calls me 'older sister'.”
"If you like it, you can keep it as a pet."
A single, casual remark plunged the Miyano sisters into hell.
Takanashi Chika took a step back, looking at Karasuno Goku with a complicated expression.
They have different values.
Chinatsu Takanashi could never agree with Karasuno Goku's attitude of treating everyone like ants.
"Qianna?"
“I don’t like you, Karasuno Goku,” Takanashi Chika told him earnestly.
Karasuno Goku looked surprised and asked urgently, "Why? Did I do something to upset you?"
"Because you don't treat the Miyano sisters as human beings at all."
"Just because of this?" Karasuno Goku clearly couldn't understand.
"And Gin, Rum, Vermouth... or rather, the entire organization, you don't treat them like human beings."
Upon hearing this, Karasuno immediately retorted, "No, Chika, I value you highly. You are different from them all. Only you are the same kind of person as me."
“I am not like you,” Chinatsu Takanashi said firmly. “As you have seen, my luck comes from taking the luck of others, unlike you, who are born with good fortune in every aspect.”
"You're calling me an oddball?"
"Aren't you one of them?"
Karasuno raised his hand, almost as if to slap him hard.
Chinatsu Takanashi was already clutching a card in her hand.
A moment later, Karasuno Goku lowered his hand again, looking at Takanashi Chika with disappointment.
“You’re too young, China, you don’t understand what you’re rejecting at all.”
Takanashi Chinatsu had now confirmed the other person's identity: "Father."
"Didn't we already decide to play dumb?"
"I just find it all so boring." Takanashi Chinatsu took a deep breath, weary of everything around her.
What she was fighting against was never any organization, but rather those favored by fate.
In other words, what she was fighting against was actually Lady Luck herself.
She couldn't understand why fate would favor such a person, who was evil, cruel, and utterly wicked.
Is the so-called "luck" and the so-called divine justice and retribution just empty talk?
People are gathering here.
It's an action group.
It's Gin, it's Bourbon, it's Scotland, it's Rye, it's all the forces behind them.
Chinatsu no longer wanted to play along with the other party; she wanted to try and see if everyone's all-out effort could succeed.
"You're all alone right now, aren't you?" Takanashi Chinatsu looked around, not noticing the raven's presence.
"Yes." Karasuno Goku chuckled.
“There are action teams, police and FBI around here. Tell me, Father, how do you escape?” Takanashi Chika took two more steps back.
Gin stepped forward and stood beside her, his gun already pointed at Karasuno Goku.
This was the first time they had located "Karasuma Renya".
Chinatsuko Takanashi chatted with Goku Karasuno the whole way, and in fact, she had already dialed Gin's number, transmitting everything that was happening here without missing a single detail.
The lack of action was due to fear of Karasuma Renya, while the collective action was because Karasuma Renya was Karasuma himself.
"I have a question, China, is Gin your biological brother?" Karasuno Goku... no, it should be Karasuno Renya who asked China with a smile.
"yes."
"How did you manage to evade the investigation?"
“It’s simple, a machine bug.” Takanashi Chinatsu tossed away the Pandora gem in her hand.
"I'm really lucky." Karasuma Renya smiled broadly.
Gin stepped forward and stood in front of China, completely blocking her view.
Karasuma Renya completely ignored Gin and continued to look at Chinatsu behind him, as if Chinatsu was the only person he could see.
“Sir, you can’t escape now.” Gin said coldly, trying to draw Karasuma Renya’s attention to himself.
"That's amazing. Did China arrange all of this?" Karasuma Renya said with pride.
Gin frowned deeply.
"Chika, you don't need to worry about anything. Whether you were born lucky or not, even if it's all because of magic, you are unique in my eyes. There is no one in this world more suitable for me than you. Magic is just a tool; what matters is the person who uses it. As long as you are willing to come with me, I will treat you well for the rest of my life." Despite being forced into a corner, Karasuma Renya still confidently invited Chika.
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Author's note: Yes, Karasuma Renya's eyes have always been only for China!
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