Tokyo: Rabbit Police and Her Evil Partner

Chapter 429 Hospice Care
Minamoto no Tamako knew that her partner Fushimi, like herself, pursued justice, hated injustice, and was willing to lead by example and contribute to social harmony and stability.

But she never expected that Fushimi-kun's faith would be so unwavering!

As the saying goes, one can see a person's true character in times of crisis. Even when faced with a life-or-death situation, Fushimi-kun was able to uphold his principles. He truly deserves to be the man she has chosen!

Genji admired her for about five seconds. Seeing that Fushimi Shika still maintained his 'heroic death' expression, she vaguely became a little suspicious. She felt that something was off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong.

Since hypnotizing a suspect carries significant risks, Fushimi, as a police officer, should naturally prioritize the other party's safety—until a conviction is reached, Uesugi Shion is merely a criminal suspect and enjoys the rights of a citizen.

Minamoto no Tamako thought there was nothing wrong with the above logic, but it just sounded awkward coming from Fushimi-kun's mouth.

At first glance, she thought it was righteous and glorious; but after careful consideration, she felt that something was very wrong.

Fushimi Shika took out his phone and called the investigation department, saying that Uesugi Shion had been found and was being taken to a nearby clinic for psychological treatment.

When Kinoshita Shojin learned of this, he was overjoyed. He immediately felt that although Fushimi Shika often slacked off, he was still quite useful in critical moments and was not really drawing a salary without working.

"Wait, we're coming to pick them up right away," Kinoshita Shojin told him not to hang up.

Detectives from the investigation department and bodyguards from the Uesugi family drove over and estimated they would arrive in less than twenty minutes.

Fushimi Shika decided to leave for a moment to avoid any strange misunderstandings caused by Uesugi Shion calling him "Dad" in public. After finishing his call, he said he needed to use the restroom and planned to sit on the toilet until Uesugi Shion was picked up.

Instead of properly guarding the suspect, Minamoto no Tamako followed behind Fushimi Shika. She couldn't help but ask, "Are we just going to let it go like this?"

"Otherwise what?" Fushimi Shika retorted.

"Then, what about the poison in your body?" Yuan Yuzi asked with a worried expression.

Fushimi Shika estimated her patience, after all, caring for a terminally ill patient is a mentally taxing task. When someone is terminally ill, it's not just the patient who suffers, but also their family, who have to spend every day monotonously caring for them, paying for medical expenses, and enduring negative emotions... If he pretends for too long, Minamoto Tamako might break down.

"It's alright, I probably have... two more years... no, six months to live."

He observed Gentama's expression, tentatively asked a question, and then quickly changed his words: "Six months is enough. I can finish what I want to do and then die without regrets."

Fushimi Shika plans to enjoy himself for six months. If Minamoto no Tamako can't hold on after six months, he will give her a surprise. He will then lie and say that he has found a miracle cure and cured the Nue poison in his body. Minamoto no Tamako will surely be overjoyed and cry tears of joy!
Upon hearing this, Yuan Yuzi felt a lump in her throat and couldn't help but think of dropping her little pearl again.

Only half a year...

How come it's only been half a year?

That translates to six months, the same amount of time they spend studying at the police academy.

Happy times always pass too quickly. Minamoto no Tamako felt that her six months at the police academy had gone by in the blink of an eye. If she were to calculate it in terms of Fushimi-kun's lifespan, she estimated that it would have passed in the blink of an eye as well.

She followed silently behind Fushimi Shika, her mind already replaying a mini-drama of Fushimi-kun's funeral:

It was a gloomy afternoon, and snow was falling heavily. People gathered at the cemetery to watch Fushimi's coffin be lowered into the ground. The pastor read the eulogy in a low, somber voice, and sobs could be heard intermittently from the crowd…

After the earth was filled in, Officer Tamako, Fushimi's best partner and companion in life, stepped onto the stage. Her face held a mixture of determination, grief, and remembrance. Holding a prepared speech, she solemnly began to speak:
"Looking back six months, Fushimi already knew his days were numbered, and he displayed an indomitable spirit of Bushido..."

Ok?
and many more……

Gen Tamako looked up and asked, "How do you know you only have six months to live?"

Fushimi Shika couldn't explain this; he couldn't very well say he'd just guessed it, could he? He gave a vague reply: "I know my own body best." Then he hurriedly went into the men's restroom, not giving Minamoto Tamako a chance to ask further questions.

Unable to follow her into the men's restroom, and worried that Uesugi Shion might escape or be kidnapped, Minamoto Tamako returned to the consultation room and waited outside until the detectives from the investigation department arrived.

The bodyguards breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that Miss Uesugi was safe and sound.

They carefully carried the sleeping Uesugi Shion to a car and took her to a more authoritative medical institution for a more comprehensive examination, to prevent her from being abused by the kidnappers or drugged.

Kinoshita Shojin verbally praised Minamoto Tamako a couple of times, claiming that she would definitely be promoted this year, which slightly improved her mood.

"By the way, Section Chief, do you remember the Cat Island incident I told you about before...?"

Yuan Yuzi is still unwilling to give up. She wants to use the power of the Metropolitan Police Department to eliminate the criminals on Cat Island and find out how to cure the Nue poison.

Kinoshita Shojin certainly remembered, but he only listened to it as a joke and never took it to heart.

He said that now is not the time to investigate, and that Yuan Yuzi should put it aside for now and finish the more 'important' work at hand.

Considering Uesugi Shion's mental state, Gen Tamako could only sigh deeply and admit that Section Chief Kinoshita was right; there was indeed no breakthrough at the moment, and they could not continue the investigation.

After everyone left, Gen Tamako went to the front desk to pay the bill. Miyazaki Chiko handed her the medical bill, glanced at it, and asked, "Why is there a phone number on this?"

"This is the consultation fee," Miyazaki Yuko explained with a smile.

Yuan Yuzi gasped. She felt that even robbing a bank wouldn't bring in money this quickly. It was only a two-hour consultation, so why was it so expensive?

Perhaps sensing her doubts, Miyazaki Yuko explained the details of the bill, and Minamoto Tamako realized that the bulk of the expense was in the cost of "outpatient diagnosis".

How to do?
She definitely can't afford such a large consultation fee!

Genji hesitated whether to use that huge sum of "ill-gotten gains." Using it to pay someone's medical bills shouldn't be considered embezzlement, right?

But then she thought again, this windfall came from Uesugi Shion. As the designer of Cat Island, she had used the lives of innocent people as bargaining chips, so this hard-earned money could not be used on her!

At that moment, Fushimi Shika slowly walked out of the restroom; his legs were a little numb from sitting for so long. Minamoto Tamako quickly pulled him back, and with her back to Miyazaki Yuuko, she whispered to him about what to do with the consultation fee.

"Just reimburse it through the company's accounts."

Fushimi Shika felt there was nothing to discuss, so he simply pulled out his credit card, slapped it on the table like a nouveau riche, and made Miyazaki Yuuko swipe the card to pay, and asked for an invoice.

Miyazaki Yuko took the credit card and was about to turn around to pay when Fushimi Shika suddenly called out to her, "Oh right, I remember now, could you..." As he spoke, he leaned forward, lowered his voice, and said in a way that avoided Minamoto Tamako, "Increase the bill a little more."

By falsifying bills, Fushimi Shika can earn a kickback.

Minamoto no Tamako has sharp ears. Even though Fushimi-kun tried to keep his voice down, she still heard him and immediately scolded him for this act of exploiting the company.

Fushimi Shika, exposed, showed no shame. He simply sighed softly, revealing a troubled expression: "I just wanted to save as much money as possible before I died, to leave Sakura some living expenses..."

Then, he turned around and accused Yuan Yuzi: "Do you think I'm doing this for my own selfish desires? I'm about to die, and you can't take money with you when you die. What use would I have for so much money?"

Minamoto no Tamako was startled, only then remembering that Sakurako was Fushimi-kun's sister. She was already all alone, and had finally found a relative. If Fushimi-kun also died, wouldn't she truly become an orphan?

Thinking of this, Minamoto no Tamako felt deeply ashamed, realizing that she had not considered Hiraoko at all, nor had she taken into account Fushimi-kun's predicament as his older brother.

"But...but no matter what, it's wrong to do this. You can't take money you shouldn't have..."

Yuan Yuzi paused. She wanted to say, "If you die, I will take good care of Yingzi." But she felt that the words were too heavy and couldn't bring herself to say them.

After observing for a while, Miyazaki Yuko suddenly interjected, "Does Mr. Fushimi have a terminal illness?"

Both women turned their heads simultaneously, wondering why Miyazaki Yuko had asked such a question. Minamoto Tamako felt there was nothing to hide, so she nodded and said, "Yes... can you give me a discount if I have a terminal illness?"

"I'm sorry, I can't." Miyazaki Yuko declined with a smile.

Minamoto Tamako muttered to herself, 'Then why did you ask that...?'

Miyazaki Yuko remained standing, pressing further, "Are you sure it can't be cured?"

"Probably not, the chances are slim..." The more Yuan Yuzi listened, the more uneasy she felt. She couldn't help but ask, "Why are you asking this?"

"We also provide end-of-life care services here."

Miyazaki Yuko bent down, took out a brochure from the drawer, and slowly introduced, "Many people don't know that terminally ill patients suffer enormous psychological pressure before they die. On the one hand, they feel guilty towards their families, and on the other hand, they are anxious about facing death every day..."

She paused, and seeing that Gentamako didn't interrupt, continued, "According to research, 97% of terminally ill patients have considered suicide. Although terminally ill patients are already dying, they must also have a need to leave with dignity..."

As she spoke, Miyazaki Yuko bent down and pointed to the promotional flyer: "Look, we offer hypnotherapy and pain relief services, but of course, a prescription for morphine from a hospital is required..."

Gen Tamako held the brochure in both hands and carefully read it for a moment. She did have this concern: what if Fushimi-kun couldn't take it and wanted to commit suicide in advance to collect insurance money?
When she was a patrol officer in Sugamo Koban, she encountered a similar situation: a father suffering from a terminal illness lied about his health condition in order to leave an inheritance for his wife and children, and then committed suicide to defraud the insurance company... Junko Horie's father was also suspected of doing something similar.

Listening to Miyazaki Yuko's explanation, Minamoto Tamako was somewhat confused and asked, "Why does hypnosis require morphine?"

“There are many types of hypnosis. The most common type, which has the fewest side effects, is verbal hypnosis. There is also drug-based hypnosis... such as using neurological drugs to help patients quickly enter a deep sleep state,” Miyazaki Yuko explained.

Fushimi Shika sat on the sofa listening, only concerned with whether Miyazaki Yuuko had over-reported the invoices, and completely unconcerned about the so-called end-of-life care.

Upon hearing Miyazaki Yuko explain the hypnosis method, he casually asked, "Why not just administer morphine for pain relief? Why go through all that trouble?"

Terminally ill patients often face immense suffering in the later stages of their illness and require morphine for pain relief to maintain basic sleep. Morphine was initially used as a clinical treatment drug, but its strong addictive properties led to its abuse and transformation into a drug.

“Morphine cannot keep a patient awake. Long-term morphine injections will cause the patient’s mental state to deteriorate. I can avoid this side effect and allow the patient to live like a normal person before his or her bodily functions completely fail.”

Miyazaki Yuko clasped her hands together and placed them on her knees, saying sincerely, "I only hope that everyone can live in a world without pain."

She once again radiated that indescribable maternal glow, as if she could make people forget all their pain and return to their mother's warm embrace.

Minamoto Tamako was tempted and felt it was necessary to buy Fushimi-kun "end-of-life care services"... Just as Miyazaki Yuko said, terminally ill patients are unable to live a normal life in the later stages of their illness. Fushimi-kun said he had six months to live, but the actual time they could spend together normally might be even shorter.

She eagerly flipped it over to check the price, only to find an even longer phone number.

...So expensive.

However, there's a reason why it's expensive. If the effects are really as miraculous as Miyazaki Yuko said, then Minamoto Tamako feels that the money was well spent.

The problem is, she doesn't have the money.

Are we really going to resort to that ill-gotten gain again?

Minamoto no Tamako felt that using the money to care for terminally ill patients was a good use of the money, so she immediately agreed and planned to let Fushimi-kun experience it first. There was a "trial package" on the brochure that could be experienced immediately at the clinic, and she thought it was worth a try.

Fushimi Shika said there was no need for that, as he was perfectly healthy.

With a look of sympathy, Miyazaki Yuko opened her arms slightly and said softly, "You must be suppressing a lot of unspeakable emotions, right? It's okay, we can talk about it privately..."

Fushimi Shika glanced at her chest. The latter was dressed appropriately, with a tight neckline. Her bra size was comparable to Kazama Senhime's, probably an F, or even slightly larger, because her clothes were not loose and were quite tight, making her look like a gentle and plump single mother.

Although this behavior was quite impolite, it was an instinctive reaction and was not noticed by Minamoto no Tamako or the person involved, so it wasn't a big problem.

"Let's talk then."

Fushimi Shika readily agreed.

He had originally planned to visit Dr. Arima, but since Dr. Arima was unavailable, he figured he could settle for his assistant, Miyazaki Yuko.

"plz follow me."

Miyazaki Yuko stood up and led Fushimi Shika into the consultation room. Minamoto Tamako tried to follow, but Miyazaki Yuko blocked her at the door.

"I'm sorry, the consultation was conducted separately."

(End of this chapter)