Damn Dazai
[Waaah, you're such a good baby!]
[Naomi and her secretary must have encountered him at the beginning, so they would definitely have handprints on their bodies. Later, only Atsushi Nakajima was affected by Kyusaku's superpower. That's what he gained from becoming Dazai's apprentice.]
[Dazai, that slap felt so good!]
[Akutagawa: You've never said anything like that to me to coax a child.]
[Oh no, he's about to be caught by Lovecraft. And that silly guy even used his vines to make a little dog for Long-Sitting.]
Never mind, never mind, I'm still looking forward to seeing them later.
Chuuya's heart sank, and he quickened his pace.
When they arrived, only a few members of the detective agency remained; Yumeno Kyusaku was nowhere to be seen.
"Damn! How can it run so fast?"
Chuuya, feeling utterly humiliated, angrily slammed his fist on a nearby pillar. Dazai, who was about to turn and leave, seemed to sense something; could this familiar, annoying feeling be...?
"Mr. Hat?"
"Huh? Chuuya! What are you doing here!"
Hearing the commotion, Atsushi Nakajima turned around and saw Chuuya sulking. Atsushi's words seemed to confirm Dazai's guess, causing the man who was about to leave to turn around and exclaim in surprise as if he had seen something impossible.
"Damn you, Dazai! Why can't I be here?!"
Upon hearing the voice, Chuuya didn't even raise his head before retorting. After finishing, he looked at Atsushi Nakajima, who had spoken first, with some sympathy, but still clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction. He walked up to him and looked down at Atsushi Nakajima, who was still lying on the ground.
"You brat, my name is Nakahara Chuuya. Don't just call me Mr. Hat-kun because your family's famous detective calls me Hat-kun!"
Some of them were quite angry and said that ever since this kid called him that last time, they had been wanting to complain. It's not like he's the only one who wears a hat. Does this kid call everyone who wears a hat "Mr. Hat"?
"...Huh? That hat...Mr. Chuuya?"
Atsushi Nakajima hadn't expected that this very impressive hat-wearing gentleman—no, he should now be called Mr. Chuuya—would specifically come to talk about this matter, and he scratched his face somewhat awkwardly.
[Hilarious! You probably didn't expect that either!]
[Atsushi Nakajima asked people to simply take other people's titles and add honorifics to them.]
[Chuuya went to great lengths to correct him, but later, because Dazai kept calling Chuuya by his name, Nakajima Atsushi got used to calling him that.]
"Pfft! Hahaha, Chuuya still cares a lot about these little things!"
Dazai burst out laughing after reading the whole thing; he knew all too well Atsushi's natural straightforwardness.
"So what! Besides, there's obviously something wrong with him shouting like that, right? And where did Yumeno Kyusaku go?"
Chuuya couldn't help but make a comment, then walked to the opposite side of Dazai and stared intently into his eyes.
"Oh! Chuuya was talking about Q. I've been calling him by his code name for so long that I almost forgot what Q's real name was~"
And...wasn't Q released by the leader himself? Why is Chuuya suddenly in such a hurry to find Q? This isn't like you, Chuuya."
Dazai adopted a thoughtful expression, speaking in a light tone, seemingly unconcerned about Chuuya's question. However, at the end, his gaze turned inquisitive as he leaned closer to Chuuya and met his eyes.
The two were less than a foot apart, their breaths mingling, but they seemed to feel good about it, or perhaps they were already used to such a distance.
However, it was clear that the group of people who saw the two together for the first time felt something was off. Atsushi Nakajima opened his mouth several times as if to say something, but was interrupted by Dazai's eyes. He didn't know what to say and had to give up.
In short... Mr. Dazai must have his reasons for doing this.
Thinking this, Atsushi Nakajima nodded, confirming his own idea.
In the end, Chuuya was the first to look away, and a barrage of comments suddenly floated above Dazai's head in Chuuya's line of sight.
[This is way too close! It feels like Dazai could kiss me if he just lowered his head.]
This comment startled Chuuya, making him realize when he and Dazai had become so close.
"You wanted to know why, right? I'll tell you some information I just got my hands on, Dazai."
The moment Chuuya looked away, a fleeting emotion, one that even he couldn't quite define, flashed across Dazai's iris-colored eyes, quickly disappearing before his usual frivolous smile returned.
"Hmm~ Information from Chuuya? It makes me doubt the accuracy of the information~ After all, with a brain like that of a slug, he'd probably be helping someone count the money even if he were sold out!"
Chuuya clenched his fists at his sides, took a deep breath, and suppressed the anger that Dazai had stirred up. There was no going back on what had happened to Kusaku; he had to find a solution before danger struck. Chuuya's expression was serious.
“There is someone on the ‘group’ side who can make the host empathize with the trees.”
This might be the only reason why Chuuya enjoys dealing with intelligent people; they only need key information to understand the situation, saving him the trouble of explaining.
Upon hearing this news, Dazai's pupils contracted, and he quickly realized the key point.
"That's getting a bit bad..."
"So, have you seen Yumeno Kyusaku? Where is he?"
Chuuya asked again, his eyes fixed on Dazai Osamu, who was deep in thought.
"Unfortunately, Q had already boarded the train and left before Chuuya arrived. In the end, unless Q actively caused trouble for the 'group' members, they had no way of knowing about Q's special ability."
Besides, that kid's special ability is quite troublesome, so he'll definitely protect himself. Chief Mori probably knew this, which is why he let Q out, right?
Hearing Dazai's flippant words, if Chuuya hadn't seen the comments, he probably would have thought the same thing. But... even if he didn't know whether Kyusaku would be caught in the end, even if there was only a slight possibility that he would endanger the city, Chuuya wouldn't let it go unchecked.
[But then a bug occurred, and Kyusaku immediately found the nemesis of his ability.]
[Little Rabbit Slayer, I thought sharing information would solve this problem sooner.]
[I'm somewhat eager to resolve this matter ahead of schedule, but I'm also incredibly excited to see the Double Black Resurrection Night.]
Seeing such comments, Chuuya couldn't help but chuckle. These were clearly two completely different things. Even if he resolved the crisis caused by Kyusaku in advance, if they wanted to completely drive the 'Group' out of Yokohama or disintegrate it, they couldn't avoid confronting them.
Chuuya turned his gaze back to Dazai, pondered for a moment, and seemed to be considering whether it was necessary to tell Dazai that information.
But this action really hit a nerve with Dazai, causing his entire demeanor to drop, and his eyes to look at Chuuya with a blank and resentful gaze.
"So, in the end, Chuuya still didn't intend to ask me for help? He probably just wanted to ask me for directions and then leave. He's just a tiny little dog with a brain the size of a slug, and he doesn't even know how to ask for help. By the time Chuuya finds someone, Yokohama will probably already be destroyed."
As he spoke, Dazai feigned helplessness by shrugging, but his eyes remained fixed on Chuuya.
[You're so sweet, you little ghost!]
[Because Chuuya hesitated, his defenses were broken.]
[Dazai, don't break down! Actually, 3 + 0 doesn't equal 7, it equals 0!]
[The teacher upstairs should go to sleep.]
Chuuya glanced at the scrolling comments and then at Dazai. Although he was dressed in a sunny style, standing in the shadows, he exuded a gloomy aura. His face was frighteningly dark, and his eyes were fixed on Chuuya with a sticky and dangerous look. Just as the comments said, he looked like a male ghost, but Chuuya felt that this guy was more like a black mud spirit that had come to life.
"Tsk... I didn't say I wouldn't tell you. There's someone in their organization who isn't affected by Yumeno Kyusaku's ability. I found out by accident just now. The leader didn't know about this when he released him."
Chuuya finally gave in and revealed the information he had just obtained. However, this guy was not bad-witted and might be able to think of a solution. At least this guy had not evolved to the point of destroying the world, Chuuya thought with a sense of self-destruction.
"I see~ Is Chuuya just wandering around like a headless fly thinking that everything will be fine as long as he catches the person? Typical Chuuya's brain capacity—that's the kind of solution he can come up with~"
Dazai looked at Chuuya with a big smile, not forgetting to criticize Chuuya's plan, but his eyes flashed with interest.
If this was Chuuya's idea, then the question arises: what exactly is Chuuya trying to do? He knows this information but hasn't told Mori-sama; instead, he's trying to solve it himself.
Oh dear, it seems he's discovered some incredible secret. Thinking this, Dazai's smile widened even further.
Suddenly, Chuuya's phone rang, and a message from Hirotsu Ryūrō came through. Chuuya glanced at his phone, his expression grim.
"Mission failed. Q was taken away by the 'Group,' and our members were injured. Ah, it's news from the old man!"
Dazai moved closer to Chuuya and looked at the message with him, even reading it aloud.
Chuuya's veins throbbed. He turned around, grabbed Dazai's collar, and pulled him close, forcing Dazai to bend over. He lowered his voice, but his angry tone was still hard to hide.
"You bastard! Now that I've told you, hurry up and tell me how to solve this! What if things really develop that way?! Mengye has already been captured!"
Dazai, whose collar was being gripped tightly by Chuuya, showed no reaction whatsoever, and instead wore a smile.
"I already said that Chuuya's brain capacity is as small as a slug's."
"Why worry? Has Chuuya forgotten that Q's ability is triggered by the dolls he created? Others can control his ability by harming the dolls, and I can neutralize his ability by touching them. Besides, Chuuya, the Mafia had Q make several of these dolls back then to prevent this from happening~"
Aside from the first sentence, Dazai spoke almost right up to Chuuya's ear after that, but immediately pulled away and looked at Chuuya with a playful expression.
"So, has Chuuya prepared a reward for getting me to take action?"
Warm breath brushed against Chuuya's ear, but Chuuya's attention was entirely focused on the content of Dazai's words. Before he could relax, he heard Dazai add the following sentence, and various expressions changed on Chuuya's face before finally settling on anger.
Chuuya looked at Dazai with a dangerous smile, his knuckles cracking as he clenched one hand.
"Reward? Dazai, your ability seems to be a passive skill, right? As long as I capture you, do I need to give you a reward?"
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