Junpei was a fine actor, Aizawa had to acknowledge as he climbed the fire escape on the rear of an apartment. Hand over hand, one foot at a time. Junpei's pleas at the water park had almost convinced him that his involvement was by association only.
Uncomfortable instinct had put him on a flight to Tokyo, where Junpei had driven to get rid of Eito's remains. Maybe Junpei had thought he was in the clear…Maybe he even thought he'd gotten off easy. But, when the kobun had gotten back into the car and locked eyes with Aizawa in the rearview mirror, his expression had been easy to read.
The game was up, and he knew it.
And since he'd been so insistent on Eito's sole guilt, even under torture, Aizawa had already decided he'd go a little harder on him for the second round.
Rarely had Aizawa ever had the opportunity to engage in truly sensationalized violence. It was, more often than not, impractical. Messy. Loud. His time with Junpei had been a rare indulgence, and the brutality left behind its lasting high. Flaying the man alive until he had every last detail had been a case study in the luxury of savage.
Goro was the root of the problem; it was he who'd noticed Momo at the club, and it was he who gave voice to his disgusting suspicions that Danchou had merely taken her for himself — and it had been him behind the blackmail. The rumor had not spread far, only among that crew. It was not good enough, however, to simply solve the mystery.
He needed to save Momo, too.
It might have been easier to let her go to Shiketsu now. Once Goro was dead, no one would come to Yaoyorozu Asao bartering his daughter's reputation for cash again. She could transfer and that would be the end. The idea, however, of the accusation — that he'd been sleeping with a student, a child — wasn't one he could turn his back on, even if it stayed within the confines of the Yaoyorozu estate. No. He needed to save Yaoyorozu's reputation with her family, and by proxy restore his own.
Goro was the last loose end to tie off, and then Aizawa could sleep at night without any ghosts in his walls.
Aizawa wanted a cigarette, but he didn't want to risk the glowing butt giving away his presence. He'd checked on his phone several times, and he could see Goro's phone was pinging inside the apartment across the street. The lights behind the curtained moved, flickering, from a television. He waited longer. Waited until the television turned off, then he waited longer still.
He entered through the unlocked window next to the fire escape. The window was silent on its tracks. He closed it behind him. Goro was asleep in the armchair across from the television. He drank of stale smoke and cheap beer.
It was disgustingly easy. He had the rope around Goro's throat in a split second, and the struggle was surprisingly brief. Goro's feet thumped against the floor for a second before Aizawa hefted him, dragging him up in the armchair via his neck to get his heels off the ground. He braced himself and waited as Goro's movements softened. Softer. So weak.
He didn't want Goro dead though, not just yet. But once Goro had passed into the realm of deeply unconscious, Aizawa let him down. Bound him. He pulled him up over one shoulder and shoved him out onto the fire escape. He stuffed Goro into the trunk of his car and covered his face with a chloroform rag just as the sun was beginning to rise.
Triumph was hot in his veins as he considered his next move; the next thing he needed to do. He made a brief stop at his apartment to shower and change.
He packed a briefcase with tools for later. He already knew in his head what he wanted to do to Goro for the trouble he'd caused — pliers to rip out his nails. A pick and hammer to sever the fucking fingers off. Then, he was going to cut him, and Aizawa was going to enjoy the shit out of that. He was going to make it last. When he was done, maybe he'd finish what he started with the rope, and string Goro up.
But this time, he'd listen to his feet kick.
It was Kobayashi at the Yaoyorozu's gate house, and he gave Aizawa a long look before turning to the other guard.
"I'm going to escort this one," Kobayashi announced, and he came around to get in Aizawa's passenger seat while the second guard logged Aizawa's information. "Tell Mr. Yaoyorozu I'm bringing Eraser Head to see him."