Chapter 554: We Always Waste Too Much Time on Meaningless Things


    In a specific prison on the outskirts of Edo.


    "Alright, let''s go in," Kawaki looked up at the visiting room and said softly, "He must be waiting for us."


    "Okay!" Standing next to Kawaki, Kagura and Shinpachi nodded together.


    ...


    Watching Kawaki in a gray prison uniform sitting behind the visiting room glass, Shinpachi cheered happily, "Gin-san, we did it! We''ve tried every method and finally got your sentence reduced!"


    "Just one year, eleven months, twenty-nine days, twenty-three hours, fifty-nine minutes, and fifty-nine seconds, it''ll pass in the blink of an eye! That''s great, aru!" Kagura, with her fists clenched, was visibly excited.


    "Is that so, less than two years then..." Kawaki suddenly realized, pressing his face against the glass as he spat angrily, "What a load of crap! Why are you all so happy to tell me this terrible news? And what''s with these exact details?! One year, eleven months, twenty-nine days, twenty-three hours, fifty-nine minutes, and fifty-nine seconds, what the hell is that?! Just say two years!"


    "It''s all thanks to Kawaki-san; with his negotiations, two years became one year, eleven months, and so forth," Shinpachi looked gratefully at Kawaki sitting beside him.


    "It took a lot of effort, so you''d better thank me, Kawaki," Kawaki said, arms crossed, with a slight chuckle.


    "Thank you, my foot! You''ve just made it sound shorter again!"


    "Unfortunately, much of the documentation has been secretly altered and deleted," Shinpachi explained.


    "It was Gin-chan who started the trouble, and the prison guard''s misdeeds were also pinned on Gin-chan, aru," Kagura added.


    "That bastard..." Kawaki gritted his teeth angrily, "Not just the crimes, but he''s even framing me for his perverted behavior?"


    "That warden, I heard he was untouchable before because his dad is a high-ranking officer at the police headquarters. That''s how he got his current position," Shinpachi continued, "It''s likely his underlings who clean up after him. For now, we can only continue to investigate the warden''s misconduct. We''ll keep doing everything we can, so please bear with it for a bit longer, Gin-san."


    Shinpachi said that he had wiped away the drool that had inexplicably started to form at the corner of his mouth as he got up eagerly.


    "Guard your rear!" Kagura added a reminder after wiping away her drool and stood up.


    "See you in two years at the Shampoo Islands!" Kawaki stood up, said this to Kawaki, and then turned to leave.


    "Two years, my ass!" Kawaki shouted back.


    "Kagura, Shinpachi, let''s speed things up," Kawaki said earnestly to the two beside him.


    "Yes!" both Kagura and Shinpachi nodded earnestly.


    "That''s right! That''s the spirit! Get me out of here faster!" Kawaki raised his hands, nodding in approval.


    "Otherwise, Sadaharu will eat all the barbecue!"


    "Is that what you mean by fast?!" Kawaki slapped the glass, yelling, "Cut it out, you idiots! Shinpachi, Kagura, were you drooling just now because of the barbecue?! Does Gin-san mean less to you than a meal?! But seriously, why must you eat barbecue while Gin-san is in jail?! I want some, too!"


    "Don''t worry, Kawaki, two years or whatever, it''ll pass in the blink of an eye," Kawaki turned back, shrugged his shoulders, and spread his hands, "Isn''t that how it always goes in the anime?"


    "And then, two years passed..."


    As the caption appeared over Kawaki''s head, his forehead turned black, and after a few seconds of silence, he raised his head, veins popping in anger, "Absolutely nothing has changed!"


    "No, it''s just that you added two more years to your sentence. Two years have passed!" Kawaki held up a finger and lied solemnly.


    "Right!" Shinpachi and Kagura nodded simultaneously.


    "Right, my foot!"


    The events began two days ago...


    ——Flashback line——


    "What are you doing, Tsukki?" Kawaki pulled the kunai from his head, climbed back up, and complained, "I was just discussing strategy with them. The incident started at that club, and since they''re minors, they aren''t allowed in, so it has to be me. I''ll thoroughly check inside and out!"


    "Shut up," Tsukuyo put down her meat and sat beside Kawaki, giving him a cold reminder.


    "There''s a cosplay club in Yoshiwara, too..." Hasegawa, quietly eating at his table, mentioned.


    "Sorry, I can''t make moves on people I know," Kawaki blurted out without thinking, then quickly corrected himself, "No, no, no, I didn''t mean anything lewd by that! I just want to investigate! You know, Kawaki must be suffering right now!"


    "It''s you who''s suffering!" everyone at the table shouted back at him simultaneously.


    "It''s you who wants to confess everything, aru," Kagura squinted her eyes, clearly disdainful.


    ...


    That night, in Yoshiwara.


    "Are we really okay with just leaving it be?" Tsukuyo leaned against the door to Kawaki''s room, her arms crossed and her cigarette pipe in one hand, speaking softly, "The Hyakka have already found evidence that the warden tampered with the case files. Just leak it, and he''ll be suspended immediately. His father, the police commissioner, has already disowned him..."


    "Really?" Kawaki, engrossed in his game, responded without looking back as if he genuinely didn''t care.


    "Do I need to pass this on to Kagura and the others?"


    "Why are you asking me?" After finishing his game, Kawaki put down the controller and turned around, puzzled.


    "I just..." Tsukuyo turned her face away, hesitating.


    Seemingly realizing something, Kawaki gently smiled and approached Tsukuyo.


    Seeing Kawaki stop before her and stare intently, Tsukuyo''s face flushed, "What... what are you doing?"


    "Well, even though it''s a fruitless effort, thank you anyway," Kawaki said softly, his eyes gentle, "No need... in every sense."


    "You..."


    "Everyone in this world has something they must protect; you do, too, right?"


    "Yoshiwara..."


    "Yes, so..." Kawaki squinted, smiling, "Just focus on what you need to protect right before you. Don''t worry about my affairs; besides, what I need to protect isn''t trivial matters like these."


    "What is it then?"


    "Tsukuyo, never be curious about a man because..." Kawaki''s expression shifted slightly, warning softly, "It can be hazardous."


    Tsukuyo snorted and walked away, turning her back to him and speaking disdainfully, "Only an idiot would be curious about a man like you. Sorry, I''m not one."


    "That''s good. But thanks anyway~" Kawaki smiled and waved at Tsukuyo as she walked away.


    [Where exactly is this man looking?] Tsukuyo thought as she walked, then pulled out a piece of paper detailing the warden''s crimes from her pocket and tore it to shreds. [No matter how much I probe... I can''t see clearly.]


    Watching Tsukuyo leave, Kawaki stroked his chin and murmured, "Sometimes she does seem like a regular woman."


    "That''s right~ Tsukuyo tries hard for a man," Hasegawa, who had arrived in a wheelchair unnoticed, squinted and smiled.


    Hearing this, Kawaki chuckled softly, then turned and strode back into his room.


    As for what followed with the prison incident...


    Kawaki heard that he was released from prison after just a week...