DURARARA!! Vol.6 CHAPTER 5, PART III
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Skydeck on the rooftop of Sunshine Building, Ikebukuro
Sunshine 60 was once the tallest building in Japan.
Even though it had since passed the illustrious title to Shinjuku's Metropolitan Building, it continued to serve as a landmark to the city of Ikebukuro.
Even within Sunshine City, with its great selection of entertainment facilities including an aquarium and an indoor theme park, the panorama still stood out as a popular tourist attraction.
Above the panorama was a skydeck open to tourists only during weekends and holidays like the Golden Week. In a corner of the skydeck, a man in a bartender suit stood at leisure as he viewed the city.
"…Wonder if I can seek that flea out using these binoculars…not likely, I guess."
Shizuo, who was on the run from the Awakusu-kai men, made sure that he had thrown them off the track before climbing straight to the skydeck on the rooftop of the Sunshine Building.
He had chosen to come here because, compared to running somewhere with no one else around, it would be harder for the Awakusu-kai men to try anything if he came to a place where everyone could be looking. Furthermore, this place also had an advantage over department stores in that were anyone to come after him, he would be able to see them. But still this wasn't a place he could stay for long periods of time.
- Anyway. Doesn't look like they're calling the police or anything.
Shizuo considered things like these in his mind as he cooled his heated body in the wind.
- So. Where to go next?
- The Awakusu-kai people are probably going to the company and Tom-san now.
- Kasuka's apartment? Shinra's place? Neither feels like the right place to go.
- …Screw it.
It's all because I fell for Izaya's trick. I'm now getting my colleagues, family and friends in danger, too.
As this thought hit him, Shizuo grew mad at himself for having fallen so easily for such a crude trick.
The splendid city view lay itself bare before him. Shizuo looked down on it and continued to think.
- Ah, Celty should be able to ride that motorbike all the way up here without a problem. If worst comes to worst, I can probably just ask that courier to bring me Izaya up here.
The thought flashed in his mind for a second before he realized that he would be getting Celty into all the trouble he was in. He got rid of the thought immediately.
- Also I would be giving the staff of this skydeck a world of trouble if I beat Izaya up here and threw him off the deck. No, just no.
The man whose very existence defied common sense tiptoed in a weird way within the bounds of common sense in his head as he continued to think about his next step.
Though the entire Awakusu-kai was after him, he couldn't risk sending any of their men flying into the air because that would only further convince them that he was the killer. If that was to happen, Awakusu-kai would almost surely finish him off at all costs.
Had it just been him versus Awakusu-kai, he would have risked it. But if Awakusu-kai were to take his brother or his friends hostage, which they probably would…
- It's even possible that they would try to do things to that Akane girl just because she was seen with me.
Shizuo, having no idea that she was actually Awakusu-kai's VIP, began to worry about the girl who had tried to kill him.
But to let himself be captured without being able to prove his innocence was not an option either. The one who held the proof to his innocence was probably none other than Orihara Izaya.
- Did he kill those three men? …Not likely.
- There's no way that Izaya would have had strong enough arms to kill those three men bare-handed like that. First of all, why on earth would he want to make such total enemies of the Awakusu-kai folks in the first place?
- If he didn't do it himself, then he must have gotten the information beforehand that someone else was going to do it and tricked me into going there on purpose…
- F U C K T H A T B A S T A R D A N D H I S C O N V O L U T E D P L A N S .
Fighting back his own rage again, Shizuo considered heading straight for Izaya's hideout in Shinjuku.
If that notice had been fake, in that apartment he would at least find clues as to where Izaya might be, if not Izaya himself.
If he could negotiate with Awakusu-kai and offer those to them, the tables would be turned and they would be after Izaya instead.
- If I had my way I would rather beat him up and sink him into the depths of Tokyo Bay with my own hands. But well, he deserves that too.
- Other people will probably be in danger if I don't do it right away.
Having made up his mind, Shizuo was about to leave the rooftop when he heard his text message ringtone again.
- Speaking of which, it rang several times while I was trying to get Awakusu-kai off my tail.
Shizuo checked his text messages for the first time in the day. Information flooded into his brain.
- Dollars is being attacked…?
- Hang on, don't tell me Awakusu-kai's attacking Dollars because of what happened with me!?
Shizuo hastened to go through all his text messages. It didn't seem like that was the case.
A bousouzoku gang from Saitama was randomly attacking whoever claimed themselves to be Dollars members they could find in Ikebukuro.
- …A gang fight?
Ever since high school Shizuo had been through more of these than he cared to remember. He decided that it was probably nothing next to the current situation he was in. But just as he shifted the focus back on his own dilemma -
- The timing of all this is uncanny.
It could all have been a coincidence. But still, too much had happened to him in these two days. As he considered this, he couldn't help but notice how strange it was that so many troublesome happenings took place out of the blue in Ikebukuro - and especially around him.
The second last message had a photo attached to it.
"This…isn't this Raira's Second Ground?"
He used to be called out reluctantly to fight people from other high schools, and this was often the place of choice. In this place he was not unfamiliar with he saw two people he was not unfamiliar with.
- Kadota and…ah, the one who came to me the day before yesterday.
- Tom-san has said that he was the head of Toramaru or something like that.
- The injuries from me can't have healed this quickly. He's a tough one indeed.
As he thought back on the fight he had with the young man, Shizuo considered the situation again with a cool head.
- So Toramaru's the ones attacking Dollars?
- But then that Chikage guy didn't look like he was impossible to be reasoned with.
- Well, if Kadota's on it, it's gonna be taken care of somehow.
Shizuo thought optimistically as he went on to click open the most recent text message -
His face fell.
- …
- …This is disgusting.
Shizuo's expression changed dramatically.
This was nothing like his rage towards Izaya or towards his own stupidity. It was a completely different kind of rage.
The sender of that text message was "Nakura".
Written in the text message was, under the title "IMPORTANT INFORMATION!" -
(TO BE CONTINUED IN PART IV)