Tokyo: I'm really not a killer

Almost at the same moment he landed, several heads popped out of the second-floor windows of the police station, followed by a piercing shout: "Over there! He jumped out the window and ran away!"

"Chase them! Split into two groups!"

The sounds of hurried footsteps and sirens rang out simultaneously inside and outside the police station building. Several police cars parked in the courtyard roared to life, their headlights piercing the night as they sped towards the alleyways on either side of the police station building.

When Hideaki Shiraishi heard the noise behind him, he was terrified, and his adrenaline surged, overpowering the pain in his body.

He had only one thought in his mind: run! Run to the right, just as the mysterious man had said!

He stumbled and rushed into the depths of the alley, which was narrow and winding, filled with clutter and trash cans, barely wide enough for one person to pass quickly.

Behind me, the beam of a flashlight swept over me, and the footsteps grew closer.

"Stop! Run again or I'll shoot!" an officer shouted a stern warning.

Hideaki Shiraishi dared not stop; he rushed forward with all his might, rounded a bend, and saw the faint glow of streetlights at the alleyway ahead.

According to Yuan Zhensheng's previous description, after exiting this alley, turn right and run another fifty meters, there will be an abandoned bicycle shed...

Just as he was about to rush out of the alley, a police car suddenly drove up and blocked the entrance, its blinding headlights shining directly at him. Two officers jumped out of the car.

Blockade ahead and pursuers behind!

Hideaki Shiraishi suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. He instinctively tried to back away, but footsteps were already behind him.

Finished!

Just at this critical moment, an inconspicuous little iron gate on the side of the alley was kicked open from the inside with a loud bang.

A petite figure suddenly rushed out, her small hand waving forcefully towards the police car and officers at the alley entrance!

It's Rin Shinomiya!

She threw out a large bag of flour mixed with pepper and chili powder, which instantly created a pungent white mist at the narrow alley entrance.

The two police officers who had just gotten out of the car were caught off guard and were choked by the powder, coughing violently, with tears and snot streaming down their faces, and their vision blurred.

"This way!" Shinomiya Rin called out in a low voice, grabbed the stunned Shiraishi Hideaki's wrist, and dragged him through the small iron gate.

Behind the iron gate is an internal passageway piled with miscellaneous items, which connects to the kitchen area of ​​an old commercial building next to the police station.

This is one of the backup routes that Komi Yui planned based on her memory. The passage is complicated and dirty, but it can temporarily avoid the main streets.

As soon as the two rushed in, Shinomiya Rin slammed the iron gate shut and used a pre-prepared iron bar to block the doorknob.

"Hurry! They'll be coming around soon!" Shinomiya Rin said urgently.

Her heart was pounding, and her face was flushed with excitement and nervousness. Although it was just following the instructions of Hara Masaki and Komi Yui, waiting at the designated location and carrying out a simple rendezvous mission, it felt incredibly thrilling.

Still shaken, Hideaki Shiraishi stared at the strange girl in front of him, wearing sunglasses and a wig, and asked, "Who...who are you?"

"Stop talking nonsense! If you want to live, come with me!" Shinomiya Rin didn't have time to explain and dragged him through the dimly lit passage.

The passageway reeked of a strange mixture of rotting food and cleaning agents. They walked through an area piled high with vegetable baskets and garbage bags, pushed open a creaking iron door, and entered a darker corridor.

The sounds of sirens and shouts could be heard in the distance, but they became muffled and indistinct here.

According to Komi Yui's description and the markings that Hara Masaki had scouted beforehand, they needed to cross this corridor and leave through the freight exit on the other side of the commercial building, which led to another intricate network of alleyways.

Meanwhile, on the street outside the police station's main entrance, several police officers were running around shouting:

"The target jumped out of the window! Ran into the alley to the west!"

"The west entrance to the alley is blocked! But... but the suspect used an unidentified powder! Visibility is obstructed!"

"The contact has been spotted! There may be accomplices!"

"Requesting reinforcements! Seal off all surrounding intersections!"

The streets outside the police station were completely blocked off, red and blue police lights flashed everywhere, and riot police officers, armed with riot shields and batons, began a grid search radiating outwards from the police station.

Roadblocks were quickly set up, and passing vehicles and pedestrians were strictly checked.

Yamamoto Koji and Yoshioka Akio led a group of men out of the police station's side door. The former was cursing, while the latter looked livid. He had just been at the entrance of the detention area, and the prisoner had escaped right under his nose. This was an utter disgrace.

"Boss! Over here!" Akio Yoshioka spotted his colleague coughing and rubbing his eyes next to the police car at the west alley entrance, as well as the white powder left on the ground.

Yamamoto Koji crouched down, dipped his finger in the powder, smelled it, and frowned: "Chili powder? Damn, they're quite well-prepared!"

His gaze swept over the commercial building next to the police station, which had several small doors and windows on its side.

"Yoshioka! Take a few men and search that building! Focus on the kitchen, warehouse, and delivery passageways! They might have gotten in through there!"

"Yes!" Yoshioka Akio immediately led his men to rush towards the commercial building.

Inside the commercial building, Shinomiya Rin and Shiraishi Hideaki had just emerged from the freight exit and returned to the alley. They were two blocks from the police station, but the sound of sirens could still be clearly heard.

"Where to go next...?" Hideaki Shiraishi asked, panting heavily, his legs still weak.

Shinomiya Rin glanced at her watch, then looked around.

According to Yuan Zhensheng's plan, they should have met up with him here, or at least seen the marks he left behind. But when she looked around, the dimly lit alley was deserted, with only the faint light from the distant streetlights.

What about the markers? What about the original, untouched people?

A sense of unease swept through Shinomiya Rin's heart. Had something happened to Hara Masaki? Or... had he changed his plans?

Just then, footsteps and the beam of a flashlight came from the alley entrance!

"Search this area! Don't miss any corner!"

It's the police! They've come to search us!

Shinomiya Rin's expression changed. Without thinking, she grabbed Shiraishi Hideaki and ran into the depths of the alley.

She remembered this alley; it led to an old neighborhood slated for demolition, where the alleyways were like a maze, easy to hide in, but also easy to get blocked out.

The two ran wildly through the maze-like alleyways, with footsteps and shouts following them closely.

Several times, the beam of the flashlight almost grazed their backs. Relying on her memory and a fierce determination, Shinomiya Rin led Shiraishi Hideaki through piles of debris and broken walls, barely managing to create some distance between them.

But there were too many police officers, and they were clearly familiar with the area, closing in from multiple directions. Shinomiya Rin could hear the dispatching voices coming from the walkie-talkie; the encirclement was tightening.

"No... I can't escape..." Shiraishi Hideaki was exhausted and leaned against the wall, panting heavily, his face full of despair.

Shinomiya Rin was also exhausted. She looked at another fork in the road ahead and quickly made a decision in her mind. Komi Yui had mentioned that there was an abandoned power substation in the southeast corner of this old neighborhood, a secluded location where she might be able to hide temporarily.

"Come with me!" she said through gritted teeth, pulling Shiraishi Hideaki towards the southeast.

They had just turned into a narrower alley when suddenly the roar of an engine and blinding headlights came from ahead!

A black sedan suddenly sped in from the other end of the alley, its headlights blazing, heading straight for them!

Rin Shinomiya and Hideaki Shiraishi were so frightened that they instinctively lunged to the side.

The car braked sharply, its tires screeching against the pavement, and came to a stop less than two meters in front of them. The door opened, and a man in a black jacket and a baseball cap jumped out.

The visitor was Yuan Zhensheng. He had changed his clothes and his face was expressionless.

"Get in! Quick!" he hissed, glancing warily at both ends of the alley.

In the distance, the sounds of sirens and footsteps were rapidly approaching.

Rin Shinomiya and Hideaki Shiraishi, as if grasping at a straw, scrambled into the back seat of the car.

Yuan Zhensheng quickly sat back in the driver's seat, shifted gears, and sharply turned the steering wheel. The car fishtailed on the spot, turned around, and sped back in the direction it had come from.

Almost at the same time they rushed out, several beams of flashlight and the figures of police officers appeared at the alley entrance.

"A car! A black sedan! It's heading east!" came the urgent shout over the walkie-talkie.