Tokyoites don't have martial virtue

After school that day, a student council member approached Kyushu Makoto and gave him a cardboard box.

"What is this?" Kyushu Makoto asked, frowning as he looked at the cardboard box.

"These are Saki Karasawa's personal belongings that she left in the newspaper club's activity room, but she hasn't come to tidy them up," a student council member requested. "Could you please give them to her?"

Just to be on the safe side, Kyushu Makoto opened the cardboard box to check, and found that it contained a bunch of stationery and books, not a prank package.

"Wouldn't it be more convenient for you to hand it over to her in person?" Kyushu Makoto asked again.

"Because... our current position isn't really suitable for talking to her." The student council member didn't try to hide it, only his voice was a little softer:

"Kyushu-kun has been having meals with Karasukawa Sakifumi a lot lately, so I thought I'd ask you for a favor."

"Your student council is really high and mighty~" Kyushu Makoto took the cardboard box and agreed: "Alright, leave it to me."

......

"Oh right, I have your package here." After leaving school, Kyushu Makoto called Karasukawa-senpai:

"You want me to deliver it to your house? I'll keep it for you, and you can just come to school to pick it up tomorrow, right?"

"You said you'd treat me to dinner, and you'd even cover my meals for the next three days?"

"...Okay, anyway, I'm not scheduled to work today."

After hanging up the phone, Kyushu Makoto decided to go to the Karasukawa family's house.

I have no idea what this woman is thinking. It's just a bunch of unimportant junk, but she insists that Kyushu Makoto deliver it to her house.

However, she promised to treat Kyushu Makoto to dinner, which he found hard to refuse.

Taking the tram, Makoto Kyushu arrived at Karasawa-ya.

"Hello, I'm Sakifumi Karasukawa's classmate~" Makoto Kyushu knocked on the door of the shop with the "CLOSE" sign and went inside.

He casually placed the cardboard box on the bar, and Mr. Karakawa also came out of the kitchen.

The former gangster was still wearing a long-sleeved shirt, a checkered apron around his chest, white gloves to cover the missing little finger, and sunglasses to conceal his criminal appearance.

If he didn't do that, many guests would probably want to run away the moment they saw him.

"Oh! It's the kid who came to visit last time." Mr. Karakawa seemed to be deliberately imitating the way young people greet each other, which sounded a bit awkward.

"Saki went out to help buy groceries. Why don't you sit down for a while?"

"Is your store not open for business yet?" Kyushu Makoto looked around the deserted storefront.

"Izakayas are usually busiest around 8 or 9 pm, there's no need to keep them open now," Mr. Karakawa asked, leaning on the bar and staring at him.

"But the kitchen has already started preparing. Saki said she'll pay for your meal. What would you like to eat?"

Since Mr. Karakawa said so, Kyushu Makoto naturally didn't stand on ceremony and picked up the menu to look at it: "Try your signature curry rice set meal."

"Wife! One curry set meal!" Mr. Yagawa shouted loudly to the kitchen.

A moment later, Mrs. Karakawa brought out the meal. In addition to the steaming hot curry chicken rice, there were miso soup, seaweed salad, pickled dishes, tamagoyaki (Japanese rolled omelet), and other side dishes, making it a simple Japanese set meal.

Kyushu Makoto scooped up a spoonful of curry and tasted it. As the review website said, the taste was indeed unremarkable, just "not bad".

However, considering that this set meal costs less than 1,000 yen, the food is indeed very cost-effective, and it is almost on par with Matsuya, which is known as the "most affordable canteen in Wano Country".

After finishing his meal, Kyushu Makoto collected all the bowls, chopsticks, and trash, put them on a plate, and pushed it towards Mr. Karasawa on the other side of the bar.

Mr. Karakawa was somewhat surprised as he silently observed the boy eating.

When eating, Makoto Kyushu doesn't say "I'm starting" or "Thank you for the meal," and his eating movements are quite wild, as if he's engaged in a fierce battle with the food, which might scare the surrounding guests.

However, a closer look reveals that the table remains clean after the boy finishes his meal, and he wipes up any spilled sauce with a napkin.

Mr. Karakawa didn't know how to evaluate Makoto Kyushu, only feeling that he was in a quantum superposition state between the conclusions of "causing trouble for others" and "being well-mannered"... "Unconventional" would be a more appropriate description?

"How does it taste?" Mr. Yagawa asked casually.

"Not bad, there's a lot of room for improvement," Kyushu Makoto replied politely.

“If it’s not good, it’s not good. Just say so!” Mr. Karakawa clearly saw through the other person’s true thoughts and laughed heartily.

"But our selling point is that it's cheap and plentiful, plus the warm service from the owners! Hahaha!"

"Most importantly, there are no other competitors in this location, right?" Kyushu Makoto wiped his mouth with a tissue and replied.

"Although it's not as bustling as shopping districts like Ikebukuro and Ginza, there are still quite a few office workers who come here to eat."

"It's all thanks to a reliable local lawyer who helped us find a good location," Mr. Yagawa sighed, thankful.

“This used to be an izakaya, but the owner passed away and his son transferred it to us.”

"Hey, you guys are really lucky~" Kyushu Makoto nodded:

"Senior Yagawa has been gone for a long time. Anyway, her things have been delivered. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now."

"Wait a minute." At this moment, Mr. Karakawa stopped him.

Mr. Karakawa subconsciously clenched his wrist, then asked resolutely, "Saki... how are you doing at school?"

“She’s still ostracized by her classmates and has practically no friends. It’s her own fault.” Kyushu Makoto thought for a moment and replied, “But I check on her regularly, so she’s not having a really bad time.”

"Is that so...that's good..." Mr. Yagawa seemed troubled and conflicted.

"I heard from someone that you're the classmate she framed, right?"

"Yes, I will never forget the trouble she caused me." Kyushu Makoto expressed his thoughts quite frankly:

"Considering that she hasn't officially entered society yet, I'll assume she's just gone astray and is still worth saving. If she were a member of society like you, sending her to prison would be the most suitable outcome."

“Phew…” Mr. Karakawa let out a long sigh, his gaze towards Makoto Kyushu becoming complicated.

Immediately afterwards, he bowed slightly and respectfully to Kyushu Makoto: "My daughter has caused you trouble, I'm so sorry!"

"What are you doing?" Kyushu Makoto was amused by his sudden action: "Do all the people of Wano Country like to bow and apologize at the drop of a hat?"

“I really want to apologize to you!” Mr. Yagawa’s voice trembled slightly: “I have been a very irresponsible father and ignored your reminder, which is why so much trouble has been caused.”

Mr. Yagawa casually picked up a cigarette, but stopped himself from lighting it.

“When Saki was little, I often told her that ‘being a yakuza is a cool profession,’ setting a bad example for her.” Mr. Karakawa’s gaze inadvertently drifted to the clock opposite him, a little guilty.

"I was very uneasy at the time. What if my daughter found out how dirty and disgusting the underworld's work was and started to hate me?"

"But the more you try to hide it, the stronger the backlash becomes, even leading Senior Karasawa astray." Kyushu Makoto's gaze burned as he met Karasawa's, their two imposing eyes locked together.

"If the truth hurts, a lie hurts a hundred times more. It's always better for families to communicate more."

"So I'm an incompetent father," Mr. Karakawa said with a wry smile, adjusting his sunglasses to prevent his eyes from startling his guests.

"Saki has barely managed to keep her student status, but there is a warning record in her file, which will make it difficult for her to go to university and find a job in the future."

"But these are all things she has to face on her own. As her father, all I can do is support her from behind, which means giving her more money."

After saying that, Mr. Yagawa sighed again, as if he felt very sorry for his daughter.

"Is he atoning for his sins not as a 'gangster,' but as a 'father'?" Kyushu Makoto interlaced his fingers and smiled. "At least you have the intention to make amends, which is good."

"Hmph, thank you for the compliment~" Mr. Karakawa sighed, leaning forward on the bar counter:

"Hey bro, you seem really steady and reliable, completely different from those unreliable high school brats. It might be a bit selfish of me to ask this, but could you please look after Sakibun a little at school?"

Mr. Karakawa was quite shrewd; he deliberately made this request after Kyushu Makoto finished his meal, clearly understanding the principle that "one is obligated to another for their food."

“I will help her on the premise of ‘urging her to get back on the right path’.” Kyushu Makoto nodded, his tone unchanged: “In other words, if she is determined to continue her ways, I will not let her off easily.”

"Oh... that works too." Mr. Yagawa breathed a sigh of relief upon receiving a positive reply: "Come visit more often in the future, and feel free to contact me if you need anything... consider it as repaying a favor to you."

"Okay." Kyushu Makoto nodded. "Then I'll take my leave."

Just as he was about to leave, the sound of wind chimes came from the shop entrance, and Karasukawa Sakifumi, dressed in sportswear, returned pulling a shopping cart.

"Dad, I've bought everything." Karasu Sakifumi placed the shopping cart at the door and said to her father in a calm tone.

"Does she work at your store?" Makoto Kyushu asked curiously.

“Saki said before that she was going to work outside to make up for our losses.” Mr. Karakawa smiled and scratched his head.

"She works at a coffee shop and helps out when she has free time... She's quite talkative, and the customers all like her."

"It's a good thing that she's not participating in club activities now, and that she's gaining social experience through part-time work," Kyushu Makoto nodded in satisfaction.

Upon seeing Makoto Kyushu, Karasukawa Saki immediately stepped forward, bent down, and smiled slightly.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Kyushu-kun. Could you stay with me for a little while?"

72. Friend of the Crows

“No problem, where do you want to go?” Kyushu Makoto nodded in agreement to Karasukawa Saki’s invitation.

Since we're already here and have eaten, it wouldn't be appropriate to refuse her in front of her father.

“I’m going to the backyard anyway, and I wanted you to look at something.” Karasu Saki waved to him, signaling him to follow.

As she passed by the kitchen door, Karasu Saki picked up a plastic bucket filled with kitchen waste such as bones and leftovers.

The backyard of the Yagawa family is rather narrow, consisting mainly of a lawn and some common vegetation, without any special landscaping.

In the corner of the backyard, there was a small storeroom made of sheet metal, with chains wrapped around the door.

"This is my mother's old motorcycle; she hasn't ridden it for who knows how many years," Saki Karasuka casually explained.