Chapter 3 : Injured Pride

Tsukudo-cho, Narumi Detective Agency

A week had passed since the investigation on Kizami's husband, and both Raidou and Narumi were back on the dull work of the archives. Thanks to the money from their latest work, the agency would be able to survive for the following months.

''Raidou, pass me the 34D box.'' asked Narumi with a pair of small glasses on and a pen hanging out of his mouth.

The youngster took the short ladder and looked around the written boxes. It was a mess, no wonder Narumi couldn't get all of the files ordered in time. As he searched for the box, his thoughts drifted away for a moment and his eyes showed only a brief moment of doubt. He came back to reality and grabbed the numbered crate when he remembered the numbers.

He put the box on a small, freed portion of the desk. He was about to come back to the table where Narumi was doing his part of the job, when he heard Narumi sighing in frustration.

''Raidou, I said the 34D box, not the 34B.'' Narumi pointed out to the youngster seeing he didn't give him the right item.

Raidou looked baffled for a short second and saw his error. He was going back to take the right box, but Narumi stopped him in his tracks.

''Raidou, what's wrong?'' he asked the young man, lighting a cigarette and sticking it in his mouth.

''Nothing.'' Raidou answered back in a monotone voice.

''Don't avoid the subject, Raidou. Something is wrong and I can see that.'' The youngster stopped in his work and faced the smoking man. ''You aren't concentrated on the work and you are making mistakes one after another. Let's not forget that I had to wake you up five times in a row this week.''

He smashed his cigarette down in the nearly filled glass ashtray and starred intensely at his apprentice.

''So, I'm going to ask you again, what's wrong Raidou?'' He demanded.

The youngster was staring at both his mentor and the dozing cat. Both waited for an answer from the young man, but his answer wasn't even in the subject of the conversation.

''Do you want me to take out the 34E, too?'' He was back on the job given at the beginning.

He was clearly avoiding the subject and Narumi knew he couldn't get further than that with the youngster. He would always change the subject about himself to something about the present, anything as long it didn't concern him.

Narumi had known Raidou for almost half a year and he didn't even know his favorite color or food. The youngster was a mystery in itself.

When Narumi took a breath of desperation, all individuals heard lots of footsteps coming toward them. The old detective had no idea who it was until the door opened, smashed the wall and it wasn't Tae.

It was a man in his thirties and Raidou immediately recognized him.

It was Oto Hokuto, Kizami's husband and an angry man. Before Narumi had the chance to open his mouth, the mad husband almost ran toward Raidou, grabbed him by his collar with one hand and lifted him a foot above the ground. The youngster held the man's arm as a self-defense reflex, but quickly found out he couldn't do anything as the man had already the advantage and was about twice Raidou's weight.

''Where is Kizami, you little piece of sh...'' He raised his fist in the air, ready to strike the defenseless youngster, but a clicking noise halted the man in his aggressive behavior.

Narumi was holding Raidou's pistol. He always kept it in his desk in case of an emergency and gave it back to Raidou during investigations. The black cat was hissing furiously at the man and could jump at anytime on the assaulter's face. One would be quite surprised by Gouto's jumping skills.

''Let go of my apprentice, slowly or I swear I will shoot.'' Narumi threatened the man with his apprentice's pistol.

Narumi wasn't kidding around. Raidou had only seen a few times where Narumi was truly mad and the follow-ups were usually bad for the unfortunate people. The hulking man followed Narumi's commands and let go of Raidou. The youngster walked away from the raging man, avoiding eye contact.

''Now, on your knees and hands in the air. Raidou, go get the handcuffs.'' Narumi directed to Raidou.

Everything went smoothly when Raidou arrived with the handcuffs. Narumi exchanged the pistol with the metallic devices with his apprentice and handcuffed the man as Raidou continued to point it at his attacker. Gouto stopped hissing when the the man's hands were restrained. Raidou would have to give credit to Narumi's military training for sparing him a punch in the face.

Narumi put the cuffed man in a chair and gave a sign to Raidou to lower his weapon.

''I suppose you know him, Raidou?'' asked Narumi while he was getting a cigarette.

''Oto Hokuto. Fisherman, living in Harumi-cho and husband of Kizami Hokuto.'' Raidou spoke up, frustrating the angry man even more.

''So, you do know Kizami!'' He clenched his teeth together.

''Only through client and business relationship, Mister Oto.'' Raidou explained.

''Bah! Client, my ass! You came to our apartment a week ago, you rat!'' The angry man yelled.

Narumi looked at Raidou, who only shook his head in disagreement. It wasn't like Raidou to go to a client's property and visit them. Let alone never say it to Narumi.

''There must a mistake, Mister Oto. Raidou didn't leave the agency to see your wife. He's under my supervision.'' Narumi told the angry fisherman calmly. ''And who told you it was him? Who visited your wife?''

''The neighbors. They saw this kid enter our apartment and speak to my wife. When I got home, she was missing.'' His anger began to turn into sadness. ''I asked the neighbors if they knew him and one of them said 'Yeah, it's the apprentice of Shouhei Narumi in Tsukudo-cho'.''

''Well, for the last time, Mister Oto. Raidou didn't visit your wife. In fact, he wasn't out of my supervision since two weeks ago. If he was out for a night, I would have known.'' pointed out Narumi. ''Now, when you burst into the agency, you asked my apprentice; 'where was your wife'. What is going on?''

The angry man looked back at the youngster and then shifted his eyes toward the cat who meowed menacingly.

''Kizami has been missing for a week now and someone's been trying to kill me since.'' He finally told the two men.

''Someone is trying to kill you?'' Narumi asked.

''Yeah! For a week, I had to avoid near death accidents. A statue of the nearby church nearly crushed me, I was attacked by a raging dog, a train nearly rammed into me and when I was fishing for my work, I got myself tangled in the nets and almost drowned!''

''Sounds like a lot of unfortunate accidents, Mister Oto.'' Narumi tried to point out.

''No, they were not! It doesn't have to do with the unlucky waves that happened two months ago! Every time I was in an accident, I saw a strange silhouette and it looked like that kid! You have to believe me! Keep me here and I swear I'll pay you triple your service, if you find the killer!'' he pleaded to Narumi.

''Keep you here? You can cross that off the list, Mister Oto. We will investigate those strange accidents, but you'll not stay here. We will only call you at your home if we find out anything.'' Narumi put out his limits to the worried husband.

''Alright, alright! Just find this other guy and my wife, I beg of you. I... I love her, you know.'' He told them, in a pitiful voice.

Raidou simply headed to the armoire to change into his investigation outfit and collect his needed tools in case of an emergency in a dreadful silence. Quickly, he walked out of the agency with a clenched fist under his cape. Whoever or whatever was disguising as Raidou Kuzunoha the 14th must be stopped before all of this gets out of hand.

Special thanks to Bonnia for the beta-reading.