When Haruki heard that he felt a big chill, he turned his head slowly in the direction the voice was coming from:
''Ah, mom it's you, don't scare me like that''
"What do you mean don't scare me like that? Do you have any idea what time it is? where you were? when I arrived I searched the whole house, I was about to call the police.
"Oh, you don't have to worry, I was at Emi's house doing a school assignment.
"Don't lie to me, I called there and Emi said you weren't there.
''Ah, well''
"Tell me Haruki, what have you been doing? Were you vandalizing?
''No, Mom''
''Then what were you doing-'' (at that moment Haruki strikes his mother in the neck and knocks her unconscious).
"Sorry mom, I don't have time to explain
Haruki took his mother to her room, he laid her down on the bed and covered her with the sheet, he took beer cans that were in the refrigerator and spread them around the room and also spread the liquid around the room, after that he went up to the bedroom.
Ah, I can't believe it, I won all that money, well part of it I will keep and invest but the other part I will use to buy some things hehehe
Haruki appeared and said:
''I would like to congratulate you, from the reaction of the other humans you did a good job, but you better be prepared''
''Prepared for what?''
''Well, I'm sorry I didn't mention it in our previous conversations, but Kurogami also has several Onis allied to him, surely they also have pacts with humans, it means they might be after you, showing your powers in public might attract their attention''
''Ah, that, it was kind of obvious, I was already expecting it, but what can they do to me? kick my ass? haha''
(Hikari was silent and faced Haruki).
''Hikari, a boy talking to a supernatural being in his bedroom...that reminds me of an anime that I can't remember the name of, I think it was also a manga, I don't remember the name now just know it ended with ''Note'' I can't remember the rest of it''
"I see
''Well Hikari I'm going to sleep, tomorrow is a new day, I need to think better about my fighting career''
The next morning Haruki came downstairs as his mother came giddily out of her room:
''Ah Haruki.... I had such a strange dream..... I had come home but you were gone''
"Oh mom, you came home last night very drunk, I had to take you to your room but you kept drinking
''Oh, I'm sorry....I'm a terrible mother....''
''No mom, you don't have to worry about that, I love you anyway''
Emi got up from her bed and walked downstairs, she saw her grandfather Mr. Hiroshi sitting in the living room sad and Emi approached.
''What happened Grandpa, did something happen?
"Oh Emi, my dear granddaughter, sit down we need to talk
"What happened?
"Emi, do you know how long we've been together?
''Ah, well, about ten years, since my parents died in that car accident
"Yes, my beloved son died, since that day I swore I would take care of you forever, but...
''Tell me Grandpa, what's going on?
''Emi, I went to the doctor and he....''
''What Grandpa, tell me!
''I have irreversible cancer, he doesn't know how long I have to live''
''Oh Grandpa!
Emi and Mr. Hiroshi hug each other and start to cry.
''Emi my dear, I'm sorry I can't be here to see you graduate from high school, go to college, get married please forgive me''
"No Grandpa, you don't have to apologize for anything!
"Please Emi, don't tell Haruki, I don't want him to know.
"Grandpa, Grandpa, Grandpa!
And the two of them spent all that morning together crying.
Haruki had breakfast with his mother and decided to go for a walk in the neighborhood, he didn't want to go alone so he went to Emi's house to invite her, he thought ''I haven't talked to Emi that much these last few days, I think going for a walk with her, is a good idea to remember the good times'', Haruki rang the doorbell several times but no one answered, Emi was watching Haruki from her bedroom window, she was not feeling well after receiving the news of her grandfather's illness, so she didn't want to go out or meet anyone.
Haruki was walking through the streets and Hikari was beside her, the two were talking about blessings:
''So Hercules, Zeus, Thor and Odin.....all existed?''
''Yes, all the Gods of ancient human mythologies were inspired by humans who made pacts with Onis or spirits.''
''That's cool''
Suddenly Haruki noticed that in an alley a boy was being robbed, the bandit was holding a knife and said:
''You'd better give me everything you have, unless you want to get blood all over those fancy clothes of yours''
At that moment Haruki attacked the robber with a kick.
"Oh, what? Another boy?
"Hey bro, that knife of yours isn't even good enough to cut bread.
The boy who was being robbed was in the dark part of the alley so that it was not possible to see his face.
"What did you say, kid?
"What? You're not only badly armed, you're also deaf?
The mugger attacked Haruki stabbing him several times, but Haruki was not affected, Haruki grabbed the mugger's arm and with his right leg he kicked the mugger twice in a row, one in the stomach and the other in the face, it was enough to knock him unconscious, Haruki took ropes that were in the trash nearby and tied up the thug:
''Whew, that was close, are you okay?''
When the boy came out of the shadows Haruki realized it was Ryota, Ryota faced Haruki with a surprised expression on his face after that he ran out, Haruki seeing this said:
''A ''thank you'' would be nice, if I knew it was Ryota I would have helped the thug commit the crime''.
''You know very well that I would remove your blessing if that happened''
''I know I know, I was joking, you have no sense of humor Hikari, you always take everything too seriously, anyway I better call the police to come get this guy''
At that moment there was a big thunderclap, rain clouds were forming in the sky and the robber said:
''Come on man, I've never robbed anyone, it's about to start raining, let me go and I'll never do it again''
"Hummmm let me think.....No, look on the bright side, you learned that you can't mug people while I'm around, soon the police will come, and I'm not in the mood to get wet, so goodbye
Haruki ran out into the house, a heavy rain had started:
"It was a good thing you did, Haruki, to help someone who had hurt you in the past.
''You have a pretty short memory for a Hikari spirit, I said I would have done otherwise if I knew it was Ryota''
''But then you said you were joking
''I was joking about helping the thug, but if I had known it was Ryota I wouldn't have done anything.''
''I see....''
Haruki walked into the house and just then the rain became even heavier:
''I'm home''
''Haruki! What happened to your shirt?''
Haruki saw that his shirt was full of holes made by the thug
''Oh, that, that's just a really old shirt''
"I bought it last week
"Oh, that's right, I forgot, so it must be moths
Oh, sorry, it's been a while since I cleaned your closet
That's okay, no problem, Mom
Haruki went up to his room and lay on the bed and prepared himself because that same week he would fight again for more money, and so he did, week after week Haruki fought the most diverse opponents, the fame of the Invulnerable grew more and more, however Masashi was always present and always lost money with the bets, one night when Haruki had beaten his most recent opponent Masashi who was watching from one of the boxes was very angry:
''Damn, damn, damn! That bastard has already made me lose 6000000 yen.
''Ah...Mr. Masashi could I ask you a question?''
''You already have''
''Ah, well, it's just that
"Speak up
''Well, if you always lose because the fighters you bet on lose to the invulnerable .... why don't you start betting on him? '''Don't be stupid, it's not that simple, I am a Yakuza representative, almost all the fighters I bet on are former members or relatives of Yakuza members, moreover those who are not members or relatives of former members were handpicked at meetings for their extraordinary skills, The betting market, be it in illegal casinos or underground fights, plays a big role in the Yakuza and is a source of money, we don't choose a fighter randomly, Hades for example was chosen because his father was a big member of the Tokyo Yakuza and did a lot for the organization, it's a matter of honor''
''Ah..... got it...still why don't you suggest that the Yakuza start betting on the invulnerable?''
''SHUT UP!''
Misashi actually couldn't stand the thought of losing or being thwarted, when Haruki beat the fighters Misashi had bet on it was as if Haruki was making fools of him and the entire Yakuza.
''Um this can't stay like this....Matsuda, Ryuk!''
''Yes boss!''
''I want you to follow that guy to where he lives and give him a good scare, I want you to beat him until he bleeds.''
''Ah...are you sure boss?...he seems to know how to fight....''
"Come on, this is a ring fight, anyone can beat anyone, it's just a matter of luck
''But you just said that-''
"SHUT UP AND OBEY!
"YES, SIR!
And so they did, Matsuda and Ryuk two of Misashi's henchmen followed Haruki as he walked out of the Tatami, they both followed and said:
''He's a lot younger than I thought he was''
''No, from his height he actually looked like someone from high school.''
''I know we're Yakuza, but I don't feel right beating someone up just because the boss lost money, besides he won fair and square.
''Well, you know how Misashi is, if you don't hit that kid who's going to get hit is you.''
The two started walking quickly towards Haruki, and then Hikari said in Haruki's ears: ''There are two men after you'', at that moment Haruki looked back but it was too late, Matsuda hit Haruki's nose but it didn't affect Haruki:
''Man, why did you do that?''
''Ah, well, I, you know, it's just that I-''
''Shut up Matsuda just hit him''
Ryuk and Matsuda were trying to hit Haruki but he was dodging, barreling and defending,
While Matsuda advanced with a powerful punch and while wearing an English punch in his hand Haruki acted with sharp reflexes, executing an agile sidestep to avoid the punch, at this moment Haruki unleashed a sequence of quick fist strikes, directed at Matsuda's torso, seeking to destabilize him, finishing him off with a punch to the nose.
Ryuk, taking advantage of the opportunity, leaps into the air in an acrobatic movement, attempting to deliver a spinning kick toward Haruki. With impressive agility, Haruki executes a 180 degree spin, avoiding Ryuk's attack and countering with a powerful front kick to the chin.
As the battle continues, Haruki shows off his martial arts skills gained from Hiroshi's training, switching between kicking and punching techniques with impressive fluidity. Haruki uses fast circular kicks to keep Matsuda and Ryuk at a distance, while throwing precise punches at strategic points to undermine his opponents' resistance, despite which Haruki is hit by several blows.
At one point Haruki thought: ''Who are these guys? What's the reason they're here? Are they Kurogami's envoys? On the other hand, Matsuda and Ryuk said to each other:
''Man something's wrong, he beat us up but we still managed to hit him with strong blows, but he still doesn't seem to have suffered any damage and has plenty of energy for someone who just fought in the Tatame ring.
''Shut up Matsuda, you think I didn't notice that? This guy must be on some kind of drug, heroin, cocaine or some new drug''.
''Since when do these drugs make you invulnerable to blows?''
''I don't know''
At that moment Haruki starts to attack Matsuda, Matsuda gets scared and pulls out a revolver and shoots Haruki in the head, Haruki stands still with his head up.
''Matsuda you idiot!!!!! what do you think you are doing!!!???? you didn't have to shoot this guy in the head, the boss didn't send us here to do this''
"I know, I got scared, I'm sorry''
''Now it's no use apologizing, you killed the guy without the slightest need''
''Wait, isn't it kind of weird that he's still standing? Shouldn't he be lying on the ground?''
The two started to look at Haruki who started to lower his head slowly until he was looking directly at the two, Ryuk and Matsuda heard when the projectile that was in Haruki's forehead fell to the ground, Haruki's face was intact and Haruki faced the two with a scary face until he said: ''That wasn't funny, that wasn't nice'', Matsuda and Ryuk when they heard this ran away in fear, while they ran they talked:
''What was that Ryuk?! the shot didn't do anything to him, is he really human?''
"I don't know Matsuda, shut up and run!
Haruki stared as they ran:
''Really, what was that, a robbery? Robberies in Ueno aren't as rare as in the rest of Tokyo but these guys were carrying firearms, it's not that easy to get one of those in Japan, they must be part of some big organization, anyway I better go home, I want to eat mom's chicken wings, it's been a while since she's made them''
Ryuk and Matsuda went to Misashi's house to report what had happened:
''So, did you two do what I told you to do? From the bruises on your faces you must have engaged in hand-to-hand combat with him''
''Yes boss, he's very strong but that's not the most impressive thing''
''How so?''
''I boss.....there was a moment when he came at me, I got scared so I shot him in the face''
''YOU WHAT? DID I TELL YOU TO DO THAT? WE CAN'T EXECUTE SOMEONE JUST LIKE THAT''
That's the point, nothing happened to him, he stared at us and there wasn't even a bruise on his face
''What do you mean?
''Yes, he wears something that makes him invulnerable to any physical attack, that's why he doesn't lose to anyone''
"You are two idiots, you have never done anything so violent and still leave the guy alive, you know what can happen if he denounces you to the police and come to me? will create a huge problem and my uncle will take it out on me''
"But boss, like we said, he was shot in the face, it's just that-''
''SHUT UP! Don't be stupid, it's obvious that you missed the shot, but tell me, did you find out where he lives?
''Yes''
"Great, next week when he gets out we'll pay a little visit to the people who live with him .... and it'll be right around dinner time''.
To be continued.