Episode 17: "The Man Hell-Bent on Revenge"

Hyakuichitaro Senju
"Woah, woah, woah. Hold up a minute! Weren't you just goin' on about how Kazuma's all buddy-buddy with the CEO?!"

Tsuki Iroha
"You also said he's been collecting all sorts of bribes, right?
We've also been searching around for things to offer, but couldn't manage to find even a single one."

Yutaka Gotanda
"Unfortunately, that's due to Kazuma having all means of obtaining any type of sweet Japanese treats under his control.
It's become increasingly impossible for new employees to find any treats to offer. However, in the case of the the Azuchi-Momoyama Half-Baked Castella, that's a different story.
If you were to say, get your hands on one of those, everything could proceed according to plan. There wouldn't be any obstacles in our way."

The Azuchi-Momoyama Half-Baked Castella.

It came up in the conversation Kazuma was having with the CEO.
From what it sounded, it was a treat of legend. But could it be it actually does exist?

Yo Kuronaka
"I think that's the treat the CEO was going crazy over just the thought of. What even is it?"

Tsuruko Semba
"It's a delicacy given to the previous rulers of Neo Tokyo, the Otori Family.
Rumor has it that it's kept in a special golden box to ensure it remains perfectly preserved. Its rarity is unmatched."

Tsuki Iroha
"Ooo. Something that rare probably tastes practically divine!"

Hyakuichitaro Senju
"Are you serious? THAT'S what you're focusin' on? Well, no matter! Even if it's as rare as they say, we gotta find it. It's the only shot we got."

Tsuruko Semba
"Easier said than done. I mean, they don't call it a treat of legend for nothing. So much so that people don't believe it really even exists."

Minami Oi
"What would you do if we told you it actually does exist?"

Eiji Todoroki
"Hah! You must be joking. I heard every single TV station searched high and low for one and couldn't find a single trace of it!
There's no way you guys found something like that."

Q
"Hold on, let them finish."

Eiji Todoroki
"...Well, if you're going as far as to say that. Then prove it."

Minami Oi
"You see, we managed to hack into the Otori Family's database and gathered information that led us to identifying its owner.
We've cross-checked the information countless times, so we believe it's pretty solid evidence."

Minami took out a file, and spread its contents onto the desk.
She presented each document to Yo and the others, pointing to various portions of them.

Tsuruko Semba
"I-I can't wrap my mind around this! Could I take a look at this document?"

Yutaka Gotanda
"Go right ahead. Simply telling you that we have them in our possession wouldn't be enough to convince you, would it?"

Minami Oi
"Please take your time. We wanted to mitigate the risk of any leaks, so we apologize for only being able to offer printed materials.

After taking the documents from Minami, Tsuruko and the others began pouring over them, taking in the information.
Yo, who didn't know anything about the Otori Family, couldn't quite understand the gravity of the information. Eiji, on the other hand, was fully focused as his eyes were locked solely to the paper.
Everyone was incredibly invested. So Yo decided to leave its deciphering to the others.

Tsuruko Semba
"Hmm. I see, I see. There is indeed enough supporting evidence here.
But what I don't get is why it'd be at Aquamarine Park. I mean, that's an aquarium, right?"

Yutaka Gotanda
"The head of the marine life research institution produced remarkable results so the Otori's granted him a merit award, which included the treat as a prize.
Seems as though he had a big sweet tooth, and he chose to tell his good friend and owner of Aquamarine Park that he planned on eating it once he finally retired. To that end, it seems they chose to hide it somewhere inside the aquarium."

Eiji Todoroki
"If that's all true, then why hasn't it been given to the CEO?
Everything would be settled by just giving him the Azuchi-Momoyama, right?"

Q
"Reading here, it seems as though he was murdered."

Minami Oi
"That's correct. It was before the governing rules went into effect. It seems as though he got involved in developing weapons and was eliminated in an internal conflict.
His friend who owned the aquarium was also disposed of for the same reason."

Tsuki Iroha
"Eeek! That's like REALLY scary!"

Minami Oi
"Please. We need your help. If something happened to Mr. Gotanda and I as we attempted to retrieve it, our plans would fall apart.
That's why we really hope you all will lend us your strength."

Minami gave them a low bow as she made her request, but Yo and the others stood there, not being able to give them a prompt response.
One wrong move this week could be their last.
That's why they couldn't afford to make any rash decisions. The room was filled with a heavy silence.

Yutaka Gotanda
"Why won't you speak?! If you go to Aquamarine Park, you can obtain the Azuchi-Momoyama!
You can't be thinking of running away from an opportunity like this!"

Yutaka pounded his fist on the table.
The sound of it reverberated around the room, Yo and the others tensed up and found themselves at a loss for words.

Minami Oi
"S-Sir, you're getting too emotional. You're scaring everyone."

At Minami's words, Tsuki and Hyakuichitaro nodded their heads a few times with a serious look on their faces.

Yutaka Gotanda
"...My apologies. It seems I lost it there for a moment."

Yutaka gave a slight bow and pushed up his glasses.

Yutaka Gotanda
"But you must understand. I cannot allow Kazuma to continue trampling over the Shinagawa Tribe, our old home, any more than he already has.
We had a lot of members, and I didn't have the chance to get to know everyone. But the members of that Tribe were our original subordinates.
I can't stand idly by and let them suffer more than they already have."

Yutaka quietly let out those words as he touched his glowing Shinagawa Tribe earring.
Even though him and Minami had left their Tribe, they never cut their emotional ties with them. They kept their earrings as a symbol of that.

The walls in the office were decorated with photographs from those days.
Every one of them had people smiling shoulder to shoulder, showing the pride of the Shinagawa Tribe.
But those warm memories had been trampled over by Kazuma's rule, and now the past has become an unimaginable pain.

Yo could understand what Yutaka was going through.
In an effort to get revenge for Tsuki and Sui when they got hit by lasers on Space Envoy 3, Yo had challenged Zero to an XB match.
Even though Tsuki made it out safely, his desire for revenge hadn't subsided at all.
For it to fully fade away, he had to take down Zero with his own two hands.

Yo Kuronaka
"That settles it. We'll help you out, Mr. Gotanda."

Q
"Yeah. I don't have any objections."

Tsuki Iroha
"Yep! Sign me up, too! Let's do our best to get our hands on that castella!"

After Yo spoke up, all of the Trash Tribe members nodded and voiced their agreement.
Smiles filled with relief and determination appeared on Yutaka and Minami's faces.

Yutaka Gotanda
"Everyone... I can't thank you all enough."

Minami Oi
"Let's do our best to remove Kazuma from the Director's seat once and for all!"

Tsuruko Semba
"Well, now that that's settled, we should strike while the iron's hot! Let's make our way to Aquamarine Park!"

Hyakuichitaro Senju
"Yeah, let's go.... right... now..."

Hyakuichitaro was dozing off as he spoke.
Just as he slowly began sitting up, he fell back down, fast asleep.

Eiji Todoroki
"Hey, what happened to the caffeine you just ingested a few minutes ago?"

Tsuki Iroha
"Well, I mean, we've been at it all day! Even I'm a bit..."

When Yo looked over at the clock, he realized that daybreak was around the corner.
It made sense why everyone was so tired.

Yutaka Gotanda
"Let's end things here for now, we can focus all of our efforts on the castella tomorrow."

Yutaka kneeled down and slowly put Hyakuichitaro on his back.

Tsuruko Semba
"I'm so sorry for him."

Yutaka Gotanda
"Haha, please. Don't worry about it.
You're all staying at the Shinagawa Princess Hotel, right? I can carry him to his room."

Q
"Are you sure? It's quite a ways from here."

Yutaka Gotanda
"It's really not a problem. Out of everyone here, I'm the one who's moved the least today.
Plus considering what's in store for us, it's best we allow him to sleep in a warm comfy bed while he still can."

Minami Oi
"I'll come along as well. It might be for the best if we all move together from now on."

Yo Kuronaka
"Well then, let's head back."

Everyone left Yutaka's office and followed the cold hallways until they reached the outside.
The sky had changed from an ultramarine to a nice pale orange as the sunlight began rising up in the east.
The cries of the early morning birds could be heard echoing from between the buildings.

On the way to the hotel, Yutaka and Minami told the group nostalgic stories of how things used to be before the governing rules existed.
How business people in suits would be seen everywhere in Shinagawa City, and how huge the crowds in the early morning and evening were.
But now, everyone was afraid of the governing rules and very few people still worked.
In reality, they were heading to the hotel during the morning rush, but there wasn't a single soul to be found.
It hurt Yo's heart hearing how Zero had changed everything in Neo Tokyo.

Once they had arrived to the tenth floor of the Shinagawa Hotel, they all nodded at each other and returned to their respective rooms.

When Yo arrived to his room, he took a shower to clean himself off.
As the steam from his shower subsided, he crawled into his unchanged bed, and silently closed his eyes.