I planted a sacred tree in Tokyo.

Chapter 21 Earthquake Catfish

the next day,
"Yukihi, come with me for a moment."

"it is good,"

The fact that the teacher personally came to call her surprised Akihi Yu, who was about to eat her lunch, but she already had a guess in her mind.

"Autumn Day, don't be nervous."

"Just answer whatever the other person asks."

When the teacher pushed open the door to the small conference room,

Sure enough, there were two policewomen in uniform sitting inside.

One of the policewomen, with short hair, looked like a recent graduate, still carrying the air of a student, with a hint of trepidation in her eyes; the other, more mature policewoman, was much more capable and composed, and it was clear that she was the leader of the two.

?

With a perfectly timed expression of surprise, Akihi Yu stood frozen at the doorway until the mature policewoman smiled, stood up, and gestured with her hand.

"Yuu Akihi?"

"Please come and sit down."

"Okay, sure."

Like a normal student suddenly encountering the police, Qiu Riyou sat down awkwardly in front of the two policemen and subconsciously glanced at the teacher in charge.

"Professor Yuanzhu, please rest assured, we will not make things difficult for this student."

"Could you give us some space?"

The two policewomen could tell at a glance that the teacher cared a lot about the student.

This is not surprising: the student in front of us, named 'Akihi Yuu,' is handsome, wears a neat school uniform, and exudes the aura of a 'good student.' In addition, we know from what we know before that he also has excellent grades. Any normal teacher would like this kind of student.

Especially in public schools where there are so many troublemakers.

"Ok."

After the police spoke, the teacher had no choice but to nod, leave the small meeting room, and close the door behind him.

"So, let's get started."

The two policewomen took out a recording pen, as well as a pen and paper.

"Yuu Akihime, do you know Nogi Yamamoto?"

really,

"Ah, Yamamoto-kun?"

Yes, I know him.

Qiu Riyou was taken aback at first, then nodded, and then hesitated before speaking.

"But Yamamoto-kun hasn't been to school for three days."

"That's precisely why we're investigating this issue,"

The mature policewoman interrupted Qiu Riyou, firmly seizing the initiative.

"Akihi-kun, when was the last time you saw Yamamoto-kun?"

"It's in the men's restroom on the third floor."

"Well, because of family reasons, I've recently become the target of bullying by some classmates."

There was nothing to hide about these things. Qiu Riyou slowly recounted her previous experiences in detail, her tone calm, without any resentment or anger, only a faint sense of helplessness.

What's the point of arguing with a dead person?

However, the problems left behind by Yamamoto are somewhat troublesome.

"That's how it was. I pushed them aside, ran out of the toilet, and ran into the class president, Nao Iai."

After briefly describing what happened that day, Akihi Yu asked again hesitantly:

"Yamamoto-kun, is something wrong?"

Such behavior is normal; for it to alarm the police and require them to come to the door, it must not be a simple matter.

It's worth noting that the island nation's police department handles more than 30,000 'missing persons' cases every year, and 80% of them reappear on their own within a week.

The rest... might be found much later in places like Aokigahara, Tojinbo, or on the train tracks; or they might fall into the hands of the Yakuza and disappear without a trace. It's only been three days; given the speed at which the Japanese police investigate, they shouldn't have been able to start this quickly.

The two policewomen exchanged a glance but did not answer Qiu Riyou's question.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Qiu Ri."

The mature policewoman stood up and extended her right hand.

"Oh, you're too kind."

Shaking hands with the other party also marked the end of the conversation.

Yamamoto was just a nobody; the problem should be those three gangsters.

Standing in the corridor, watching the two policemen leave below, Akihi Yu stroked her chin.

Those three thugs were peripheral members of the "Crippled Tooth Group," which is why the police were investigating so actively: in fact, it was precisely because of them that Akihi Yu decided to target the "Crippled Tooth Group."

It seems the police force is still far too large.

Lowering her eyes, Qiu Riyou walked towards the classroom; at the same time, two crows silently took flight from the rooftop.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"senior,"

"Why should we investigate a delinquent who has only been missing for three days?"

As they left in the police car, the young policewoman couldn't help but speak.

Her name is Kawai Mai. She just joined the Adachi Ward Police Station this year and is a low-ranking 'patrolman'.

It's perfectly normal for people to go missing in island nations!

Especially for a delinquent like 'Yamamoto,' it's perfectly normal for him to go to his friends' houses for ten days or half a month without contacting his parents.

"Different,"

The experienced policewoman driving the car shook her head slightly.
"The target, 'Yamamoto,' is connected to the 'Crippled Tooth Group,' and it's said that behind the 'Crippled Tooth Group' lies a major case that has shaken the entire island nation." Although referred to as a 'senior,' the mature policewoman 'Fuji Seiko' is merely a patrol chief and has no idea about the inside story: unlike Iori Kazuka, who was a high-achieving student who directly passed the Class I civil service exam and was parachuted into the police inspector position, her path to becoming a 'patrol chief' after graduating from high school is the typical promotion route.

"Next, we're going to Huangying School to find out more about Akihi Yu's sister."

? !
The crow that landed on the police car tilted its neck, a glint of red light flashing in its eyes.

"Royal Cherry Blossom School, I'm so envious."

Young policewoman Maya Kawai crossed her arms, her face full of longing.

"Students graduating from which region are eligible to directly participate in the National Civil Service Examination (Category II)?"

Rumble~~~
???

A violent tremor suddenly came from below, and police cars—no, all the vehicles moving forward on the road—lost their bearings.

Cars left twisted, charred tracks on the concrete road! The sounds of brakes, collisions, horns, and alarms filled the air!
"Ah, senior! This is—"

"earthquake?"

Earthquakes are nothing out of the ordinary for island nations like Tokyo.

Tokyo experiences about 40 perceptible earthquakes every year. While magnitude 4 and 5 earthquakes are not commonplace, they are certainly not rare.

"careful!"

While loudly reminding her junior colleague, the experienced policewoman swerved the steering wheel and crashed into a fire hydrant on the roadside.

Bang! !

With a muffled thud, the police car crashed into a fire hydrant.

The deformed fire hydrant blocked the police car, and a trickle of water flowed out.

"Cough cough,"

A few seconds later, the car door was pushed open, and two policewomen, having unbuckled their seatbelts and deployed the airbags, climbed out of the deformed police car.

"What is the Japan Meteorological Agency doing? How come they didn't detect such an obvious earthquake?"

The young policewoman, her hat missing, rubbed her shoulder and grumbled.

The sudden braking just now almost broke her neck.

"Earthquakes aren't that easy to happen—"

The mature policewoman froze halfway through her sentence.

because:

Boom! !
Amid the violent tremors, a nearby house suddenly 'bulged' upwards, its walls riddled with cracks resembling a spiderweb.

The next second, this human-built structure crumbled into dust like a biscuit!
"What is that?!"

Smoke and dust poured down like a waterfall, and amidst the flying debris, a huge monster emerged from the ruins.

This is a black, fish-shaped monster with a huge, flat head. Two rows of sharp teeth are revealed in its open mouth, and two long 'whiskers' sway like giant pythons. On its back is a vermilion torii gate wrapped with white shimenawa.

"Get away from—"

Just as she was recovering from the shock, the mature policewoman loudly reminded her junior, but it was too late.

Bang!
A piece of flying debris hit the young policewoman on the head.

Amidst the splatter of blood, the young policewoman collapsed without uttering a sound.

???

"Mai. Damn monster!"

Seeing his beloved junior lying in a pool of blood,

Enraged, the mature policewoman drew her pistol without a second thought.

What censorship, what rules, what consequences?
boom! boom! boom! boom! boom! boom!
Go to hell!

The bullets whistled out and all hit their targets.

However, the monster that emerged from the ground didn't even glance at her.

Its hill-like body fell forward, crushing a house like a biscuit with a thunderous roar, and then:
The fish-shaped monster twisted its body, as if it were in water, and its huge body began to 'sink' into the ruins.

"Monster! Monster, monster!"

With her sharpest weapon useless, the mature policewoman suppressed her anger and trembled as she lowered the gun.

Should she pull out her baton and go up to fight this mountain-sized monster hand-to-hand?

Pfft

Just then, a hissing sound came from the ruins.

The invisible gas stirred up the smoke and dust, creating a turbulent trail.

Natural gas pipeline?
Before the experienced policewoman could react, her eyes suddenly lit up.

Boom~~~
A tiny spark suddenly expanded.

Mars ignited the leaking natural gas, eventually turning it into a blazing skull?

Hehehehehehe~~

Amidst the piercing laughter, the enormous fiery skull stretched out its 'body,' conjuring skeletal hands and feet.

"What kind of monster is it this time?"

She instinctively raised her pistol again, the sweltering heat instantly drying her throat and turning her hair dry and brittle. Although her identity as a 'police officer' kept her standing there, what could she do?

The bullets had no effect on the 'big fish,' so how could they possibly be effective against this skeleton that was clearly made of 'fire'?

Just as the mature policewoman was feeling desperate, a white mist surged in.

This is?

The fog arrived so abruptly, like a rolling curtain, swallowing up the city, roads, and buildings.

Immediately afterwards, a 'figure' walked over.

(End of this chapter)