"Goodness... Who would do such a thing?"
Makoto frowns at a group of screens on display detailing the news of a serial killer's newest victim. Sakamoto watches with a blank face.
"There are some scary monsters out in the world, Mako-Chan."
She turns to him agitated that he nearly walks off without yet again.
"How would you know about that? Personal experience?"
He abruptly does an about face nearly colliding with her.
"Keep following me and you'll find out. Don't you have a bedtime?"
"Why ask if you knew I'd still be here? I took a train with you! I'm not going to leave until I find out more about you."
"At least you're not trying to sneak around and stalk me like some retard..."
He marches on with his unwanted companion down the streets of Shinjuku. She grows increasingly uncomfortable with rhe cavalier and lecherous atmosphere. Not even a few minutes on the road of the Red-Light District are they approached by a well dressed man eyeing her.
"Hey there, you being paid by this guy to follow him around? I can pay you more just sit still."
Makoto graciously declines.
"No payment involved, sorry."
Immediately after another man comes to recruit her.
"Excuse me, ma'am! If you'd like, would you sample this perfume?"
"A-Ah... No thank you."
A third one shows up with a partner, and another, and another, until Makoto loses Sakamoto from the wave of men. Eventually she finds herself lost after running away.
"You're from Shujin, right?"
She turns to a police officer who looks at her with suspicion. She nods frantic to explain herself.
"Y-Yes, but I'm here looking for a fellow classmate! I believe he may be up to no good..."
"What's his name? I might have seen him."
"Ryuji Sakamoto, dyed blonde hair, his teeth filed to fangs and you can only tell he's in uniform by his pants."
"Ah... I have seen him. Follow me."
"Thank goodness...!"
Makoto fervently follows the officer, but quickly finds something off putting, several things actually. He doesn't ask for her name, nor any other questions and doesn't call in to any units, but she lays these worries to rest with her own rationalizations. This is hardly an emergency, an annoyance at most in his eyes, but her worries return as they venture to a far darker side of town.
"He went down this way."
"Did he?"
She enters a narrow and shallow alley. A dead end greets her with no lights around. She turns and notices the officer staring at her in an unnerving way. His face falls to a grimacing scowl and he pulls out a knife.
"Students like you are the worst... I saw how those men were chasing after you. Any decent student would be home by now."
"What are you...?! Y-You're not a real officer!"
"I killed that corrupt cop and took his uniform to lure in trash like you... Go ahead and scream. In this part if town, no one will care."
She enters a self-defense stance. Years ago she took aikido classes, and though she hadn't practiced for some time, she was far from rusty. Makoto knows she can't let the fear in her take over. She waits for him to get close and thrust his knife before countering with a party. She throws his offending arm to the side before striking his nose with her palm.
"Get away from me! Ah-!"
She stumbles back holding her arm. A shallow cut bleeds through her sleeve. The murderer only tilts his head left and right with a small pop.
"You can't fight... You're not like them. You're just a degenerate."
The psychopath goes to attack her again, but gags from his shirt collar being pulled from behind, a wheeze follows a yelp as he's thrown back by Sakamoto.
"You've got awful luck, Mako-Chan..."
The murderer stands up bleeding from his nose and eyes. Makoto gasps having heard of this...
"That man is... He's suffering a mental shutdown!?"
"Yeah and no. The truth is he's on auto-pilot. He was probably like this before the one behind it all got to him."
Makoto's eyes widened at his words before becoming stupefied at the next scene. It isn't a fight. It's an instant defeat. She blinked and before she knew it, the whole incident was over.
Sakamoto hates weaklings picking on weaklings. The strong earned the right for their play things, and the weak obey, but the weak should work together with the weak to become strong. This is what he believes in. He abandoned Makoto only for a short time to steal wallets from the crowd, but when looking for her after gathering enough yen for dinner, he couldn't find her in any of the clubs.
Either she had went home or found herself in trouble. Was it luck or some predestined form of fate that allowed him to hear her cry upon being cut? He doesn't care. This human puppet runs at him with the intent to kill. He only sneered a moment mumbling
"Goro, you need to find better toys...!"
He leans forward with his tongue put to mock his newest playmate, waiting for the exact moment before everything ended in a single strike, his left hand blurs as the fake officer stumbles back with his jaw completely unhinged. A bruise with faint smoke on his sunken cheek before his back hits the ground. Sakamoto turns around to face Makoto as he stuffs his steaming hand into his pocket.
"Yo. You hungry?"
"... Huh? W-What!? How could you be thinking about food at a time like this!?"
"It's dinner time, egghead. I haven't eaten all day."
"You just punched out a killer! W-We need to report this to the police! Immediately!"
"Fine..."
For Makoto, this is important and even a sign of events to come, but Sakamoto only found this all a nuisance. He couldn't imagine someone so weak being such a big deal, but after the cops hauled him away, people began crowding around him. Of course, due to the violent nature of his action, the police detain him.
He's been arrested before and knows what to expect, but imagine his surprise when a woman in a grey suit arrives instead of an officer. She sits down in front of him with a familiar red eyed glare.
"Ryuji Sakamoto."
"Present."
"You have an interesting record..."
"You mean the ones with all the black lines? I like to play ad-lib with it. Makes for fun conversation."
"How did you find yourself in that situation? I could only imagine what was going through your head..."
"This is annoying and this guy's a waste of space. Why am I still here? It isn't like I killed the guy."
"Are you certain about that Toyataro Oh-"
"I don't care for his fucking name. You seen mental shutdoens and psychotic people. It's the same M.O. ain't it?"
"... You've faced people like that before is what you're saying."
Sakamoto leans back in the chair sighing.
"I fight a lot of things. People. Animals. Freaks. Monsters. Why are you picking on me though, lady? Interested in me or something?"
She nods and places a folder on the table.
"I am. Someone is protecting you. Someone pays for your way into Shujin Academy, and though you've only just joined, I can tell you're not the diligent type. Those people outside may think you're a rugged hero, but I know you're up to something, and I will figure it out."
"Okay. Check out the Okumura Company, y'know, owned by Kunikazu Okumura? You should get your lead there."
She blinks with a confused face as to why he would randomly say that. A lead to what? Kunikazu? The government corruption? The source of the mental shutdowns? Before she can ask any further questions the door opens. Goro walks in with his polite façade on. For her, this is who he really is.
"Sae-san. I'm afraid we'll have to let him go. Try not to be upset with-"
"Hey! ~ Goro!"
His careful mask he has spent years crafting, years sculpting, immediately falls away as Sakamoto approaches him.
"... Sakamoto."
"Quit being cold to me when in public! I know you love me!"
"I hardly swing that way, sorry."
"We BOTH know that's a lie. This your partner?"
Sakamoto thumbs to Sae who looks between them puzzled more than ever.
"You two know each other? Akechi-kun?"
The detective growls under his breath. He has to play it cool. Stay in character. He smiles patting Sakamoto's back.
"Why, yes. We grew up in the same orphanage for a time. I'd say he was my first friend."
Sakamoto's wide smile shrinks into a grin.
"God doesn't like liars, Goro. I'll check you later. Sorry for stealing your thunder for a day."
He ruffles the detective's hair and leaves. Sae watches the blonde delinquent before looking to Goro.
"Akechi-kun... I never knew you were raised in an orphanage."
"That isn't what you're about to ask about."
"That boy was with Makoto. They go to same school. I need to know for her safety what he's like."
Goro shakes his head at her with a light chuckle.
"I'll tell that story later. Did he tell you anything useful?:
She nods and pulls her phone out.
"I'm going to have a few connections I made investigate Okumura Foods. Hopefully the lead he gave me isn't a false one. I doubt anything of substance will be found so we won't be digging deep."
Goro's eyes fade with a shifty glance as her attention is off of him. He hates that even in his deepest part of his heart, he must admit that he's impressed with Sakamoto, for now the boy has pointed the law at the target as well. After all, the goal isn't to kill Haru, but dispose of her father for his impetuous ambitions.
He wasn't lying when he said they were friends.