[Boss, this guy tried to mess with you. I taught him a lesson. See…] 21:45 "Read"
[Y??Y] 21:46 "Read"
"Pfft~ Hahaha~"
Upon seeing Nogami's message, Sasaki had a hunch.
After all, tonight, besides Toda, no one else had a grudge against him.
Other than him, Sasaki couldn't think of anyone else who would trouble him.
And upon seeing the photo Nogami sent, his suspicions were confirmed.
But this photo...
Toda was naked, in a squatting position.
His pale, delicate skin, clearly indicating a privileged background was marred with bruises of various sizes.
His once handsome face was now battered, showing an unwillingly made "ahegao" expression while making a peace sign.
This photo was really an eyesore... another look... so weird... another look...
After laughing enough, Sasaki looked around, standing by the roadside, and composed a message in response.
[Send me your location. I'll come over and talk.] 21:47 "Read"
[Okay, boss!] 21:47 "Read"
[Location] 21:47 "Read"
...
Arriving at a small alley not far from Yukizakura Izakaya.
Sasaki glanced at Toda Ken, who was huddled in the corner clutching his torn clothes, looking like a heroine fallen from grace, and then looked quizzically at Nogami standing beside him:
"You didn't... do that to him, did you?"
Saying this, Sasaki's face showed a frown.
He didn't care much about such matters, but having a subordinate with unusual sexual orientation working under him made him feel a bit uncomfortable.
"No, no, not at all, boss. I'm completely normal. We just beat him up a bit and took some 'artistic' photos. We didn't do anything extra."
Being a delinquent, Nogami had seen far more than ordinary students.
So, as soon as Sasaki spoke, he knew what he meant and he hurriedly explained himself.
Nogami was very much normal; he just found that this form of threat was most effective on these face-loving rich boys.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be interested in doing such things.
Nodding in acknowledgment, Sasaki walked slowly to Toda Ken, squatted down, and gently asked:
"Do you still recognize me?"
Hearing the familiar voice, the latter trembled all over, like a humiliated princess, and lifted his head, trembling.
His tearful eyes looked at the familiar face and knew that this seemingly kind person was the leader of these delinquents.
Toda Ken, tearfully, pleaded:
"P-please, let me go. I promise I won't trouble you again..."
"Relax, I won't harm you. I'll call an ambulance for you."
Smiling as he agreed, Sasaki stood up and walked towards the alley entrance while taking out his phone.
"Boss, aren't you going to give him some other punishment? These guys who act arrogant just because they have some money at home won't learn their lesson unless we beat it into them..."
Sasaki waved his hand at Nogami, who was following and advising softly, as he dialed a number:
"Hello? Are you busy?"
"Hm, what's up?" A voice as cold and brittle as thin ice came through the phone.
Before Sasaki could say anything, Fujitsubaki continued:
"If you want to ask about those things... you probably aren't at home, right? According to the time, you should have received the package by now."
"I'm not at home."
Responding subconsciously, Sasaki shook his head and said:
"That's not what I wanted to ask. I wanted to know, if an experimental subject has some family connections, do you still want them?"
There was a brief silence, and then a reply came.
Fujitsubaki's tone remained unchanged as she spoke.
"Possible, but try to avoid such people. If they are definitely involved in criminal activities, that's different."
"You know that with the higher-ups no longer paying attention to this experimental project, obtaining subjects has become more difficult. If those rich businessmen and politicians start paying attention, I can handle it, but too many people will affect the experiment. I can't shift my focus to these matters."
"I understand."
Knowing that Fujitsubaki wasn't incapable of handly this matter but just wanted to avoid trouble, Sasaki had no more concerns.
After that, they didn't exchange any further pleasantries and hung up.
Under normal circumstances, though Sasaki held grudges, he wouldn't resort to drastic measures just because someone wanted to teach him a lesson.
It's not like he couldn't handle it; there was no need to escalate over minor skirmishes.
But those were normal circumstances.
Nogami was simply after money, so after beating him, Sasaki didn't send him to Fujitsubaki.
So why not Toda?
Even after teaching him a lesson and taking photos.
The reason is simple: their goals were different.
Nogami was after money and had no interest in the people around Sasaki.
He never tried to harass Otome.
But Toda Ken was different.
His reason for wanting to teach Sasaki a lesson was because of Sister Yuuka.
It was because of the people around Sasaki.
If Sasaki showed even a bit of leniency and let Toda go, it would mean placing Sister Yuuka's safety in that guy's hands.
In the short term, Toda Ken would be cautious because of the photos.
But over time, he would figure out that if he could get a hold of Yuuka, he could control Sasaki.
Moreover, the tolerance for such "artistic" photos is much higher among boys than girls.
Even if it were exposed, it would just be embarrassing; at worst, he could study abroad.
Given Toda Ken's family background, this wouldn't be difficult.
So once he had completely offended this guy, he couldn't let him go.
Sasaki didn't see himself as a good person, nor particularly bad.
He just didn't want to leave a ticking time bomb near the ones he wanted to protect, so he felt no psychological burden for what he did.
"I've called an ambulance for Toda. You guys stay here and wait."
Standing a bit away from Sasaki, Nogami, who had caught snippets of the conversation, was suddenly brought back to his senses by his words:
"Yes!"
Because of the distance, he only heard a few scattered words from the conversation.
'Experimental subjects... rich businessmen and politicians paying attention...'
Even though he didn't hear much, just these few words, combined with Sasaki's monster-like strength, were enough to make Nogami think of many things.
Evil experiments... human enhancement... world domination... aliens...
The very thought of it made his blood boil.
His chūnibyō spirit ignited, Nogami forcefully assured:
"I'll definitely complete the task you've given me, boss!"
Not understanding why he was suddenly so enthusiastic about waiting there for a while, Sasaki frowned and said:
"Why are you shouting so loud?"
"Keep your voice down!"
"Yes!"
Nodding solemnly, Nogami reached into his pocket and handed the money he had taken from Toda to Sasaki:
"This is what I found on Toda..."
Glancing at the handful of banknotes he handed over, Sasaki took two-thirds of it after a moment of thought and said:
"Good job."
"It's only right for the boss to take a share."
Nogami didn't show any reluctance and even looked happy.
Because he knew, once the boss took the money, it meant he was considered one of his own.
In the future, if Nogami encountered trouble, Sasaki would back him up.
Given Sasaki's strength and background, this was worth far more than a few banknotes.
For people like them who liked to fight and cause trouble, there would always be times when they ran into tough opponents. In such cases, having a strong backer was essential.
Compared to the potential of broken bones and limbs in the future, this little offering was nothing.
"Do your job well. As long as you don't get into things you shouldn't, I'll look out for you."
"Don't worry, boss. At most, we just collect protection fees and get into small fights. We won't do anything we shouldn't."
"Good."
Nodding in acknowledgment, Sasaki waved his hand:
"Wait here for a while. I'm leaving now."
"Take care, boss."
Walking out of the alley and heading towards home, Sasaki suddenly thought about what Fujitsubaki said earlier about having already sent the package to his home.
"Aunt Kyouka wouldn't mess with my stuff... would she..."
...