Only I Have the Law: Tokyo Fantasy Daily Life

Page 83

It really is me!

Hori Mio was quite surprised, wondering what the other party wanted to confirm.

But judging from the tone of the broadcast, it seemed quite urgent.

She put away her bamboo sword, picked up her sports bag containing her complete set of kendo protective gear, and strode towards the teaching building.

Hori Mio changed into indoor shoes in the shoe cabinet area and went up to the fifth floor.

Before she had even fully stepped into the corridor, she heard a loud argument.

"Teacher! You've been fooled by this girl! I saw her crawling on the ground, sneaking around peeping under other people's skirts!"

"No! I fell down! I couldn't get up right away!"

"You're still making excuses! Not only others, but you even peeked at mine... you even peeked at mine!"

"You just walked over there suddenly. I looked up, and from that angle, I naturally saw it—it was red..."

"Shut up! You pervert! Don't say another word!"

Angry roars echoed down the corridor.

Hori Mio stepped forward and looked to the side. She saw a girl who was about 1.54 meters tall with her hair in a bun standing at the entrance of the broadcasting room, her face flushed with anger.

Opposite her stood another girl with an equally angry expression.

Qingze stood between the two, watching their argument with a helpless expression.

Hori Mio stepped forward and politely inquired, "Aozawa-sensei, is there something you need from the public address system?"

"Ah! You've come at the perfect time!"

Tanaka Satomi, as if seeing a savior, quickly shouted, "Quickly explain things to this guy!"

Was there a large cockroach that suddenly appeared and scared you away?

"um, yes."

Hori Mio nodded, confirming this.

The disciplinary committee member sized up Hori Mio and immediately recognized her as the former captain of the kendo club. Her tone was tinged with suspicion: "You're not helping her give false testimony, are you?"

Hori Mio looked slightly embarrassed and scratched her head, saying, "Um... I'm terrified of small insects like cockroaches and spiders."

To outsiders, she appears tall and skilled with her sword, so they might think she wouldn't be afraid of these little insects.

But the truth is quite the opposite; she has a strong fear of all kinds of insects and is the type who can't help but scream and run away as soon as she sees them.

"See? I told you I was innocent! You'd better apologize to me right now!"

Satomi Tanaka immediately became assertive and aggressive.

The disciplinary committee member's expression faltered for a moment.

Despite the overwhelming evidence, she finally lowered her head sullenly and whispered, "I'm sorry, I misunderstood you."

Haha! You know that's good!

With her hands on her hips, Tanaka Satomi felt the frustration of being wronged that morning instantly vanish, leaving her in an incredibly cheerful mood.

The disciplinary committee member clenched his fists secretly as he looked at her smug expression.

The misunderstanding has been cleared up...

But the fact that my underwear was seen is absolutely true!

Damn it!

She silently cried out in her heart, not wanting to stay in this embarrassing place any longer, and bowed to Qingze, saying, "Teacher, if there's nothing else, I still have work to do at the student council, so I'll be leaving now."

After saying that, she turned around and ran away.

Tanaka Satomi was slightly taken aback, but then she realized what was happening and quickly turned to Aozawa and the others, saying, "Teacher, Hoshino, Yato, thank you."

But I have urgent business to attend to now, so I'll have to go first.

Before she could finish speaking, she had already chased after the disciplinary committee member, shouting as she ran, "Hey! As a member of the student council, can't you use your authority to help me get into the soccer club?!"

Aozawa watched Tanaka Satomi's hurried departure and couldn't help but twitch his lips.

He ignored the idiot and turned his gaze to Hori Mio, who was standing to the side.

In his field of vision, a blue tag was floating above Hori Mio's head.

Swordsman

Aozawa said gently, "Hori-kun, you seem to have something on your mind. Have you been having any trouble lately?"

Hori Mio paused slightly, instinctively wanting to deny it, but then changed her mind and asked curiously, "Teacher, am I that obvious?"

"No."

Hoshino Saori chimed in from the side, her clear black and white eyes darting mischievously before landing on Aozawa, teasingly saying, "Teacher, your observation skills are almost frighteningly sharp~"

"As a teacher, it is normal to care about the students' well-being."

Aozawa responded without changing his expression, then looked at Hori Mio again and suggested, "If there really is something, let's talk as we walk, instead of crowding at the entrance of the broadcasting room and disrupting the club's normal activities."

"It won't affect anything, it won't affect anything!"

The president of the broadcasting company quickly waved his hand, his face showing an expression that said, "We don't mind at all, please continue."

But Hori Mio clearly didn't want to talk about her troubles outside the broadcasting room.

She turned and walked towards the stairwell.

Qingze and the others followed.

As they descended the stairs, Hori Mio slowly spoke, revealing her concerns: "Teacher, it's like this."

I've been practicing kendo at the Genbukan, specifically the Shinto Munen-ryu style.

"Our teacher, Professor Hirano, used to be a passionate and spirited person, but recently something has happened to him."

He seemed to suddenly collapse, becoming extremely depressed.

"Sigh, I feel it's difficult for Shihan to continue improving his kendo skills under his tutelage in this state. I'm also worried that if Shihan continues like this, the dojo might have to close down."

"So that's it..."

Qingze pondered for a moment, then suggested, "Sometimes, to help someone regain their energy and spirit, they need a competition that can ignite their fighting spirit."

"How about we let Yato fight him?"

Upon hearing this, Yato-hime raised an eyebrow, her face immediately showing reluctance, and she was about to refuse.

Hori Mio shook her head first and said, "Sending Yato-kun would probably not work."

Hirano Shiseido is an 8th dan in kendo.

"Oh--?"

The words of refusal that were on the tip of Yatohime's tongue were swallowed back instantly, and a smile with a strong sense of provocation appeared on her face instead, "Eighth Dan in Kendo?"

I'd much rather see just how powerful a so-called eighth-dan in Kendo really is!

She can refuse to fight others, but she absolutely cannot tolerate being judged as "unfit" beforehand.

What makes you think she can't beat an eighth-dan kendo player?

Yatohime's competitive spirit was completely ignited, and she was determined to "go head-to-head" with her opponent.

Hori Mio looked hesitant, as if she was weighing whether this was appropriate.

Qingze encouraged from the side, "There's no harm in giving it a try."

After thinking for a moment, Hori Mio finally nodded and said, "Alright then, I'll take you to the dojo."

……

Genbukan is located at 3-8-21 Iriya-cho, Adachi Ward, next to the tranquil Toneri Park.

The dojo is a two-story building with an iron outdoor staircase on the back exterior wall that leads directly to the second floor.

That was the residence of Tetsuro Hirano and his family.

The ground floor is a spacious kendo practice area.

Normally, dozens of students practice kendo here, including high school students like Hori Mio and office workers who use their spare time.

Practice time is not mandatory; students can come to learn at any time according to their own schedule.

At this moment, Tetsuro Hirano, dressed in a traditional kendo uniform and hakama, appeared to be supervising the students' practice, but his eyes were unfocused and he seemed somewhat drowsy.

Although he was released by the Metropolitan Police Department after Yuma Ueno's death, the trauma inflicted on his mental health by that intense interrogation was far from easy to heal.

He often woke up in the middle of the night for no reason, and the scenes in the interrogation room of the Metropolitan Police Department would involuntarily float into his mind.

Even though the bucket was no longer in front of him, the feeling of suffocation and despair from being roughly pressed down on his head and forcibly submerged in water still came over him like a nightmare, making it impossible for him to sleep.

During the day, he was always absent-minded and had difficulty concentrating.

He knew that continuing like this would be bad for both himself and the temple.

But he seemed to be stuck in an invisible quagmire, unable to break free from this state of dejection and self-doubt.

Tetsuro Hirano was well aware of the root of the problem.

That was the "kendo" that he once took pride in and regarded as the pillar of his life, but it seemed so powerless in the face of reality. It could even be said that a certain belief of his had been shattered.

When he was in that cold interrogation room, the swordsmanship he practiced was no different from that of ordinary people who had never been exposed to swordsmanship.

Faced with the police officers' unreasonable violence, he could do nothing and change nothing.

After decades of hard work, honing one's spirit and physique, the final result is no different from that of an ordinary person...

So what's the point of him practicing Kendo?

What's the point of him spreading the way of the sword?

Is it just to collect tuition fees from the students?

Looking at his students practicing earnestly and shouting with great energy, he felt not gratification, but a sense of bewilderment.

Just then, the door to the dojo was pulled open with a "whoosh".

A familiar voice came in, "Master Hirano, someone has come to your door, specifically asking to challenge you to a match!"