When Tsuzuki's phone rang again in his pocket, he took it out, rejected the call from work, and then turned off his phone. No matter how badly he was needed back at the ministry, he couldn't afford any distractions right now.
He continued through the streets of Kyoto until he reached his destination: the famous and high-class restaurant known as Kou Kaku Rou. He stared at the sign, unmoving, as he debated walking away and reporting into work instead. After all, this reeked of a trap set by Muraki. He took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and then entered the establishment.
The place was surprisingly empty considering the time of day. Tsuzuki awkwardly glanced around the old-style restaurant until a girl dressed in a kimono approached him. "Can I help you, sir?" she asked, bowing.
"Ah, yes. Um, I'm looking for the owner," Tsuzuki said, stumbling over his words.
"Ah, the owner?" her eyes widened slightly. "Well, he's-"
"Right here." A man stood in a doorway that Tsuzuki hadn't noticed before. Everything about this man, from his appearance to his clothes to even the way he carelessly slouched against the doorframe made him seem laid back or even lazy. However, upon a closer look, Tsuzuki knew that his mannerisms were similar to a lounging cat that was still more than ready to spring into the air and pounce on some unsuspecting prey at a moment's notice.
"You're the one who called me out here, right?" Tsuzuki asked.
The other man nodded. "Come with me so we can talk somewhere more private," he said.
Tsuzuki hesitated for a moment, but eventually followed the man as he left through the doorway he had been standing in. After all, he had come this far already. He couldn't back out now.
"You can call me Oriya," the man said as he led Tsuzuki through a series of hallways. "As you already know, I'm a friend of Muraki's."
Though the letter that had summoned him had mentioned that, Tsuzuki still flinched upon hearing his enemy's name. "I know," he muttered.
"I'm surprised you actually came," Oriya continued as he led Tsuzuki into a room. "It was hard to write to you without sounding suspicious, especially since I had to mention my connections to someone who tried killed you." He settled onto the floor and gestured for Tsuzuki to do the same. Tsuzuki sat stiffly on his knees, not taking his eyes off Oriya.
"You promised to tell me secrets about Muraki. The offer was hard to turn down," Tsuzuki said. "Also, I wanted to know how you managed to send me that letter."
"I only offered you secrets about Muraki's past, not secrets like those," Oriya said. "Just remember that I'm friends with Muraki. I know many of the same things that he does."
That remark didn't make Tsuzuki more comfortable. "I'm kind of curious as to what sort of friend sells secrets to someone who wants to see him dead," Tsuzuki said.
Oriya's eyes widened for a moment, and then he looked away. Just as he opened his mouth to reply, two girls in kimono brought in two trays of food: light meals presented elegantly on fine laquerware. Tsuzuki eyed the meal before him suspiciously, longing to eat it but still worried that this meeting was some sort of trap. Oriya gestured for one of the girls to him with a wave of his hand and whispered in her ear. She then pulled away and bowed, and the two girls left together.
"I'll be honest," Oriya said after they had left. "The reason for this is because I have a favor to ask of you. I want you to save him."
"Save him?" Tsuzuki scoffed.
Oriya nodded and picked up his chopsticks. "This isn't the first time I've tried to sabotage Muraki in order to try to save him. After all, I did give the key card to his lab to the people who were looking for you." Tsuzuki's eyes widened, and Oriya glanced up in time to notice. "I take it they never told you that, then?" he said before taking a bite from his meal.
"No," Tsuzuki said. "No one has really talked about the events of that night."
"I'm not that surprised," Oriya said. "I did nearly kill the young blond one, so that's probably something they don't want to bring up." Tsuzuki clenched one fist and glared. Oriya continued, seeming not to notice Tsuzuki's reaction. "I was supposed to be a distraction sent to delay them. However, I soon realized how much you meant to them and gave up my key much earlier than planned. I hoped that, somehow, the events caused by my actions that night would change him. However, I was very, very wrong." Oriya took another bite from his meal. Tsuzuki sat still, internally seething with rage. Oriya calmly continued. "I know what Muraki did to him," he said. "The young boy. I know how he suffered at Muraki's hand. I hoped that I could reach him by telling him that Muraki suffered worse things. However, the fact that he didn't tell you anything about me says that he ignored my words. Such a shame."
"Why should I help you, after you've just told me all that?" Tsuzuki snarled, trembling in rage.
Oriya sighed and lowered his chopsticks. "You're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you? I'm giving you a chance to save countless innocent lives. Muraki is too powerful. I doubt you'd be able to kill him any time soon. Giving him what he wants wouldn't work because I doubt you'd willingly sacrifice yourself for his benefit, and it probably wouldn't help him anyway. What he needs is for someone who can understand and sympathize with him to reach out to him. All of the files on him are encoded, altered, or erased, so there's no way you'll be able to learn about the real him without my help. He's twisted, crazy, and sadistic, yes, but in reality, he's just a wounded animal angrily lashing out at a world that beat him down. Muraki is just a product of his upbringing. I know that this doesn't excuse his actions, but a dog that bites becomes much easier to feel sympathetic toward after you see the conditions it was brought up in. I'd rather not put down this particular hound just yet, not without trying my hardest to save him first."
"I can't," Tsuzuki said. "I can't forgive him for what he's done."
"I'm not asking you to forgive him," Oriya said. "I'm asking you to save him. There's a difference." Oriya glanced up as one of the girls came back, a binder held in front of her. She knelt to set it at Tsuzuki's side and then stood again and left. Tsuzuki shot it a curious glance but then returned his attention to Oriya. "I'm sure this has been a lot for you to take in," Oriya said. "You're free to leave whenever you wish. I'd just like for you to take that with you and look through it when you have a chance. It would be nice if you'd be willing to help me. After all, it would work out favorably for both of us. He would leave you alone and stop killing, and I would have my friend back."
"What's in this?" Tsuzuki asked, picking up the heavy binder.
"His childhood," Oriya replied. "As I said, records of what he experienced are almost impossible to find. However, I lived through many of those experiences with him. I saved paper records of much that he went throuh. News articles, letters, pictures, I even snuck a look in his diary once and then later copied down everything I remembered. I did this in anticipation for something, although I was never sure what. At first, I thought it was in anticipation of a trial, yet even after his brother was killed without ever seeing any legal action against him, I still kept what I had collected and add new things to it. I now know why I saved these things, and that's why I'm giving you copies of everything. I know you say you refuse to help me, but please read that before making your final decision."
Tsuzuki stood, hugging the binder to his chest. "I'll read it. I doubt I'll end up seeing Muraki like you want me to see him, but either way, I'm sure something in here will help us stop him."
"If that's what you feel is best for him, then I won't stop you," he replied.
Tsuzuki shifted awkwardly, not sure what else to say, and then got up and left down the same hallway that he had entered through.
Once outside, he pulled out his phone and turned it back on. Instantly, his phone was flooded with missed messages from work. Before he could even check any of him, his phone went off again, startling him so badly that he almost dropped the bulky binder. He quickly composed himself before taking the call.
"Hello?" he said.
"Tsuzuki! Where the hell are you?! I've been trying to reach you for nearly half an hour!" Konoe shouted into the phone. Tsuzuki flinched.
"I'm sorry, chief. But I thought this was my day off, so-"
"Days off don't matter right now! This is serious! Muraki is back! Because you weren't around, I had to send Hisoka with Tatsumi and one of the Gushoshin twins, but you need to get here now!"
"Right! I'm on my way!" Tsuzuki hung up, shoved the phone into his pocket, and ran toward the train station. Although the sun was hot on his skin, the iciness of dread ran through his veins. The meeting hadn't been a trap; it had been a distraction. If anything happened to Hisoka, Tatsumi, or even the Gushoshin, Tsuzuki thought to himself, it would be all his fault for falling for such a stupid trick.