DURARARA!! Vol.4 EPILOGUE II & NEXT PROLOGUE
WARNING: UNBETA-ED.
EPILOGUE II THE GROUP TALKS
Kawagoe Highway, Ikebukuro
"Attention, everyone! To make good three-five-eight marinade, the quality of the yeast and the ratio of the ingredients are key! As the name suggests, it's just a marinade made with salt, yeast and rice in a 3:5:8 ratio! It's really simple, but it works like magic in a lot of Japanese dishes!"
Wearing a pink apron with "Seiji LOVE" written on it, Harima Mika, the stalker girl with a long scar on her neck, was giving out cheerful instructions to others on how to cook.
Celty had an incredibly mixed feeling as she watched Mika, whose face looked the same as hers, was able to cook like an expert.
Celty seized the chance to learn to cook after the ten million reward had been retracted.
She had at first turned to Anri, but Anri didn't know how to cook either.
Then she asked Karisawa, but Karisawa knew nothing about Japanese cooking.
Celty had wanted someone good at Japanese cooking in order to learn how to make her target dish - three-five-eight marinaded sandfish - but she never expected Anri to bring Mika here.
Of course, Yagiri Seiji had come with her; upon meeting Celty, he had asked brusquely: "Have you given up looking for your head?" After Celty had nodded in reply, he had said: "So I'll have to look for it myself......" and looked as if he was up for some strange kind of challenge.
Celty saw Mika eavesdropping from behind a pillar and felt a little uncomfortable - but Mika's cooking skills were beyond disputable.
She was an expert with the cleaver and was able to produce a series of side dishes almost immediately. The three-five-eight marinade, which Celty had looked forward the most to, was done in no time as well.
Celty had bought some fish thinking that she would invite everybody over since this is a rare occasion -
"Nice! Now all we have to do is to put the fish inside and marinade it overnight!"
- Overnight......?
She was worried that they would end up starving that evening when Shinra clapped his hands and said:
"We'll do hotpot."
"Since this is a rare occasion, why not have a hotpot party and invite as many people we know as we can?"
♂♀
Meat Meat Greens Meat Greens
Meat Meat Greens Meat Greens
Tofu with sesame seeds wild greens with ponzu sauce
What goes with meat depends on how much fat comes with it
What was going on in the room could be summed up in these four lines.
That was how everyone was practically throwing themselves at the hotpot.
On the top floor of an expensive-looking apartment building on Kawagoe Highway -
The huge dining room was threatening to feel small thanks to all the noise and heat coming from the guests flooding the apartment.
Around the nice big table sat about ten people. Two equally-sized clay pots were sitting on their respective gas stoves specially prepared for the occasion.
There was hardly anything in common about the group of people that surrounded the hotpot: there were students in their uniforms, a man in a bartender suit, and even a Caucasian woman.
"Here here, the meat's ready!"
A young woman walked towards them with a huge plate in her hand and a smile on her face. Her apron was apparently made from a dakimakura of some manga character.
Chopsticks begun to fly over the table as a most inappropriate fight over food broke out.
On the sofa in the neighboring room, someone was watching everything that was going on in the dining room.
Though she looked comfortable with herself, there was something special about her.
The black figure who was sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed - had nothing above her neck.
A young man in a white coat sat down next to her.
The black figure had no head, but her hand had begun to move and was typing on the PDA she produced from her chest pocket.
[Are you not eating with them?]
"I feel full as long as I can see you smile."
The young man was saying strange things to his faceless partner. The figure shrugged and continued to type.
[You didn't have to do that. But, thanks.]
The man in the white coat looked embarrassed as he read it. He opened his mouth to express his mixed feelings as he listened to the noise of the shabu-shabu hotpot:
"Really, we've been through a lot in these few days."
[That's true.]
"About what happened...should I start from the neglect play I was put through......?"
[Don't call that neglect play!]
Celty grabbed Shinra's neck as if to strangle him - and the atmosphere suddenly felt normal again.
She looked serious all of a sudden and typed one question onto her PDA.
[So what exactly should I do?]
"What do you mean?"
[I still have no idea what exactly happened. Should I.....really keep doing that courier job......?]
"What made you have second thoughts all of a sudden?"
[I could get Shinra in trouble if I take suspicious jobs again even if I can deal with them - ]
Shinra closed the PDA for her before she could finish typing.
"We're family now. Didn't I tell you? A little trouble would be nothing...not to mention that I won't call anything 'trouble' as long as I'm in it with you."
[......]
"After all, I've overcome the major difficulty in my life - which was to make you love me back!"
Celty couldn't help but smile silently in her heart as the underground doctor said these things unembarrassed as if he thought it sounded cool. She picked up her helmet and pressed its forehead to Shinra's forehead.
They were so content and in love. The people around the dining table were enjoying the small happiness in their lives as well.
They were all members of the enormous family called the city -
And everyone was gradually finding a place to call his or her home in their routine.
It almost felt as if the city, while enjoying its holiday, remembered that it should give something back to its people.
♂♀
[But still, I struck gold that day. A lot of things happened that I couldn't even begin to understand, but I got 800,000 just in down payment...although the baggage ended up moving on its own. Does that count as a job accomplished or...?]
"Well, I wouldn't complain about it if I were you. That night was hectic for me, but I earned 200,000!"
[Ohhh! That's a million in total......the exact amount I had dropped!]
"Well done Celty! This is the power of our love!"
In fact, they were the exact bank notes Celty had dropped. Shinra and Celty had been working for a whole day for virtually no pay -
But whether they realized that or not was another story.
♂♀
CHATROOM
Tanaka Taro
Speaking of which, I had hotpot with some friends today.
Setton
Me too! What a coincidence.
Kanra
Ehhh!? Hotpot? At this time of the year!?
Kyo
What a coincidence indeed! We too got to enjoy some nice steamy hotpot today!
Mai
It was so good.
[Private mode] Kanra
So you guys got in here again.
[Private mode] Kanra
You had hotpot spot as well? Where? Have you already got friends to do hotpot with?
[Private mode] Kyo
Alas, alas.
[Private mode] Kyo
Better not think you can interfere in the glow of all the friendship we girls are basking in, Big Brother.
Mai
It's a secret.
Tanaka Taro
?
[Private mode] Kanra
That's why I said Mairu too should remember to use the private mode...!
Bakyura
I also went out to have sukiyaki with my girlfriend. You know that sukiyaki place? With an 1500-yen all-you-can-eat option?
Tanaka Taro
Ah, you mean that chain restaurant!
Saika
I had hotpot with Setton-san. It was very good
Kanra
Seriously, you guys need to have a sense of season!
Kanra
Hotpot is good only for winter, you know!
Shinjuku, Izaya's apartment
"Oy, Namie."
"What is it?"
Namie continued to digest trivial tasks without looking up from her own laptop. Izaya, eyes fixed on his desktop display, spoke with a refreshing smile.
"Want me to treat you to some hotpot? The shabu-shabu kind or the crab pot, pick whatever you think is good."
"Would you please refrain from using me to comfort your ego just because everybody else in the chatroom has friends to eat hotpot with?"
Izaya looked away slightly and shook his head at Namie's reply.
"......So you saw all that."
"I've been keeping track of that for a while."
"Does that mean...you also told my sisters about Celty?"
"Maybe. .......Really, your online gender-swapping's getting even more disgusting recently."
Namie, who kept an eye on the chatroom as she went on with her tasks, glanced at Izaya and said sarcastically as an ill-natured smile crept over her face.
"Despite that, though......I'm sort of surprised that you've got a human-like side. Well, guess you are Forever Twenty-One for a reason after all?"
"I see...looks like I will have to take you increasingly seriously. Damn, I should have limited the access to invited users only - like what Tsukumoya's done with his chatroom."
The evil mastermind who had been left out of the loop on all the recent happenings until the very end looked outside as he grumbled.
Shinjuku lay itself bare before his eyes as Izaya began to think to himself.
- Peaceful everyday life is something I decided I could do without since long ago.
- Though it's far from necessary for me, I do understand why it's desirable for most people.
Izaya, jealous of the other participants of the chatroom who seemed to be enjoying the peace of their lives -
Felt like he was jealous of the city Ikebukuro itself as he looked up at the sky through the window.
Swallowing the jealousy of guys like these -
The city enjoyed its holiday all the same.
NEXT PROLOGUE
After he was done being jealous of the city enjoying its holiday -
Izaya closed his eyes silently and smirked:
"Yeah......it's about time I began to enjoy my holiday as well."
The man who had been left out of the incidents that happened completely this time laughed as if it was his way of revenge.
"After all, there are always as many ways to start a fire as you want there to be."
♂♀
Evening of the day of the incident
Anri let her thoughts wander as she lay under her blanket.
She thought of the bandaged man who had helped Celty escape today.
- He had bandages over his face...but there's no mistaking it...it's him.
It was the Caucasian man whom she had seen talking to the man in the gas mask on her way back from the karaoke.
As memories of that evening rushed back to her, Anri covered her head with the blanket and tried to fight back the incessant cursings inside her body.
When she was talking to the guy the gas mask -
The Caucasian man had put his hand on her shoulder - and a disgusting wave of pressure had washed over her. She felt something cold and sharp run through her shoulder, and time stopped for a second inside her heart.
Her entire body felt ensnared, and it was impossible to move.
Jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg -
Every cell in her body was screaming in unison as the twisted sounds became a march and climaxed.
Screaming how dangerous the man right behind her back was.
Screaming that he was far more dangerous than Anri could imagine.
But that was why she had to love immediately.
- At that moment -
What had ensnared her was not the vibe coming from the man.
It was "Saika" gnawing at the insides of her body and making the incessant "Jeeg jeeg" noises.
She was the only person who noticed -
- That as he placed his hand on her shoulder, every cell in her body practically screamed, and "Saika" had materialized into a blade and come out of her shoulder, cutting deep into the palm of the man's hand.
As a result, the Caucasian male had become Saika's "child" against Anri's own conscious will.
Although it was obvious that he did something fishy for a living - although she knew that Saika would not interfere with his life any more than necessary - Anri still felt shocked that she actually cursed someone.
- If......
- If Saika moves on its own again someday and targets Ryuugamine-kun or Kida-kun this time......
Fear washed over Anri's body as she realized that she had overlooked the danger of the "curse" inside her.
Not in the sense that she herself might be possessed and manipulated -
Rather, Sonohara Anri feared that she would continue to use Saika to gain control over the ones she loved as she kept listening to the curses inside her body.
That "I love you" sounded like it would never stop -
♂♀
Inside Russian Sushi, the conversation between three Russians in their native tongue
"So, Igor, did something happen? You're Colonel Lingerin's Pocket Knife. Surely he wouldn't have sent you here for nothing......?"
"Yes, two of our members betrayed the organization."
"Haha! You mean us? Are you finally coming to finish us off after all these years?"
"No......it has been too long. Colonel Lingerin has no intention to do anything about you two. You probably don't know about the duo that did escape......"
"But it looks like they're hiding somewhere in Tokyo right now. Thought it would be better to let you know. I didn't expect myself to have to undergo plastic surgery for a little side job I took, that I didn't."
♂♀
Awakusu-kai, conversation between the executives
"So...we still haven't found Yadogiri?"
"......Other groups seem to think we already finished him off."
"That old fox......he's been sucking up to multiple groups besides us...he's grown to look down on us even more."
"Don't underestimate him. Although it's hard to accept the fact that we've been looked down upon by the manager of a talent agency......but there's so much more to him that we don't understand."
"......Did he pit us against 'Hollywood' because we were no longer any use to him?"
"Bastard thinks we can't get back at him."
"Don't be stingy with money when it comes to information. ......Whatever it takes, we have to make sure to see that trickster drown forever."
♂♀
Somewhere in Ikebukuro, conversation between several boys
"Ryuugamine-sempai is interesting. Yeah, really interesting. Maybe he'll be even more interesting to have as a friend than Kida-sempai."
"What's your proof?" "Your old insanity's coming back - " "Heheh - "
"I told you we were attacked in a van by some bousouzoku, didn't I?"
"Speaking of which, weren't you the one who invited one of those gangs here, Izumii?"
"Don't call me by my old surname. That would make me think of the face of my brother."
"Must have been a hard time for you, having a brother with a different surname. But anyway, guess it's better to have a different surname from a brother at a reform school, isn't it?"
"My brother......made a complete mess of Blue Square before I could even blink my eye. Did he even realize how hard it was to form this gang? I knew he was useless, but I didn't know he was that useless......"
"And how about that Ryuugamine-sempai who sounds like he's a little more useful? Tell us."
"......Ah, sorry about that...anyway, things looked desperate for us in every way. I wouldn't have been surprised even if he cried...but Ryuugamine-sempai...was smiling as if he was enjoying it."
"Really?" "Is he a masochist?" "Heheh."
"Really, he's an interesting sempai. He must have a lot of love."
"Love?"
"He has more love for anything abnormal and manga-like than we do, than anyone else does...even if that spells danger. That's the kind of person he is. That was why...Ryuugamine-sempai founded Dollars."
"I don't understand." "What does 'abnormal' mean?" "Go repeat elementary school."
"I'm gonna push you over!" "Heheh - "
"Don't start fighting...anyway, the Yellow Turbans had a good thing going with Dollars, but it ended too soon - they didn't even fight all that much. Wasn't that just boring?"
"So you're planning to start a new fire, Aoba?"
"Yeah, but......there are people out there who will try to steal the fire and use it for their own purposes. The first one of those we need to deal with is that hyena bastard......Orihara Izaya."
"Whatever it takes?"
"Right. But I'm gonna say it here - don't touch his sisters. I kind of like them. Remember? I told you they kissed me all of a sudden......"
"......I'm gonna kill you!"
"That hurts that hurts that hurts, stop it, stop it you fool! That's why you're gonna stay unpopular forever - because you get mad so easily at things like this......that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts! Wait! Something just cracked! Something just cracked inside me I can hear it that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts that - hurts - !"
"Oi, he's dying, Kuronuma's dying, for real." "Well, then we just kill him." "Heheh - "
♂♀
"Fires...you can just start with anything, in any way you can imagine."
Izaya smiled coldly and talked in front of Namie as if to himself.
"All I have to do is to gather the combustibles in one place - and throw a spark in."
The information broker shook his head with a dreamy expression on his face as if he could already see the fire burning.
"And then, I'm going to say to what Tsukumoya calls the 'city' - "
Cheerfully, cheerfully, he said as if only to himself -
In a tone that sounded like he was way absorbed in himself, his intoxication only slightly spiked with hatred, Izaya said:
"'Your holiday's over, bastard.' - Just that."
♂♀
Even the city would want to "take a break".
That I have already mentioned.
So what happens when its break ends?
Of course, the city would return to its routine and no longer be able to observe you.
Therefore, if you - for example - are to find yourself in a desperate situation in Ikebukuro -
Don't expect the city to save you. Go get the police.
All considered, the city is not likely to even notice you now that it has returned to its routine.
But keep in mind that you're part of this city too.
As part of this city, you'll just have to do what you're supposed to do, and do it well.
That way the city would, sooner or later, consider taking a break again someday.
I hope that I will be able to see you again.
I hope that your holidays will be blessed by the city -----------
Excerpt from the Afterword of Ikebukuro Attacks Back II, A Pedestrian's Guide to Ikebukuro, authored by Tsukumoya Shinichi and published by Media Works.
EPILOGUE II THE GROUP TALKS
Kawagoe Highway, Ikebukuro
"Attention, everyone! To make good three-five-eight marinade, the quality of the yeast and the ratio of the ingredients are key! As the name suggests, it's just a marinade made with salt, yeast and rice in a 3:5:8 ratio! It's really simple, but it works like magic in a lot of Japanese dishes!"
Wearing a pink apron with "Seiji LOVE" written on it, Harima Mika, the stalker girl with a long scar on her neck, was giving out cheerful instructions to others on how to cook.
Celty had an incredibly mixed feeling as she watched Mika, whose face looked the same as hers, was able to cook like an expert.
Celty seized the chance to learn to cook after the ten million reward had been retracted.
She had at first turned to Anri, but Anri didn't know how to cook either.
Then she asked Karisawa, but Karisawa knew nothing about Japanese cooking.
Celty had wanted someone good at Japanese cooking in order to learn how to make her target dish - three-five-eight marinaded sandfish - but she never expected Anri to bring Mika here.
Of course, Yagiri Seiji had come with her; upon meeting Celty, he had asked brusquely: "Have you given up looking for your head?" After Celty had nodded in reply, he had said: "So I'll have to look for it myself......" and looked as if he was up for some strange kind of challenge.
Celty saw Mika eavesdropping from behind a pillar and felt a little uncomfortable - but Mika's cooking skills were beyond disputable.
She was an expert with the cleaver and was able to produce a series of side dishes almost immediately. The three-five-eight marinade, which Celty had looked forward the most to, was done in no time as well.
Celty had bought some fish thinking that she would invite everybody over since this is a rare occasion -
"Nice! Now all we have to do is to put the fish inside and marinade it overnight!"
- Overnight......?
She was worried that they would end up starving that evening when Shinra clapped his hands and said:
"We'll do hotpot."
"Since this is a rare occasion, why not have a hotpot party and invite as many people we know as we can?"
♂♀
Meat Meat Greens Meat Greens
Meat Meat Greens Meat Greens
Tofu with sesame seeds wild greens with ponzu sauce
What goes with meat depends on how much fat comes with it
What was going on in the room could be summed up in these four lines.
That was how everyone was practically throwing themselves at the hotpot.
On the top floor of an expensive-looking apartment building on Kawagoe Highway -
The huge dining room was threatening to feel small thanks to all the noise and heat coming from the guests flooding the apartment.
Around the nice big table sat about ten people. Two equally-sized clay pots were sitting on their respective gas stoves specially prepared for the occasion.
There was hardly anything in common about the group of people that surrounded the hotpot: there were students in their uniforms, a man in a bartender suit, and even a Caucasian woman.
"Here here, the meat's ready!"
A young woman walked towards them with a huge plate in her hand and a smile on her face. Her apron was apparently made from a dakimakura of some manga character.
Chopsticks begun to fly over the table as a most inappropriate fight over food broke out.
On the sofa in the neighboring room, someone was watching everything that was going on in the dining room.
Though she looked comfortable with herself, there was something special about her.
The black figure who was sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed - had nothing above her neck.
A young man in a white coat sat down next to her.
The black figure had no head, but her hand had begun to move and was typing on the PDA she produced from her chest pocket.
[Are you not eating with them?]
"I feel full as long as I can see you smile."
The young man was saying strange things to his faceless partner. The figure shrugged and continued to type.
[You didn't have to do that. But, thanks.]
The man in the white coat looked embarrassed as he read it. He opened his mouth to express his mixed feelings as he listened to the noise of the shabu-shabu hotpot:
"Really, we've been through a lot in these few days."
[That's true.]
"About what happened...should I start from the neglect play I was put through......?"
[Don't call that neglect play!]
Celty grabbed Shinra's neck as if to strangle him - and the atmosphere suddenly felt normal again.
She looked serious all of a sudden and typed one question onto her PDA.
[So what exactly should I do?]
"What do you mean?"
[I still have no idea what exactly happened. Should I.....really keep doing that courier job......?]
"What made you have second thoughts all of a sudden?"
[I could get Shinra in trouble if I take suspicious jobs again even if I can deal with them - ]
Shinra closed the PDA for her before she could finish typing.
"We're family now. Didn't I tell you? A little trouble would be nothing...not to mention that I won't call anything 'trouble' as long as I'm in it with you."
[......]
"After all, I've overcome the major difficulty in my life - which was to make you love me back!"
Celty couldn't help but smile silently in her heart as the underground doctor said these things unembarrassed as if he thought it sounded cool. She picked up her helmet and pressed its forehead to Shinra's forehead.
They were so content and in love. The people around the dining table were enjoying the small happiness in their lives as well.
They were all members of the enormous family called the city -
And everyone was gradually finding a place to call his or her home in their routine.
It almost felt as if the city, while enjoying its holiday, remembered that it should give something back to its people.
♂♀
[But still, I struck gold that day. A lot of things happened that I couldn't even begin to understand, but I got 800,000 just in down payment...although the baggage ended up moving on its own. Does that count as a job accomplished or...?]
"Well, I wouldn't complain about it if I were you. That night was hectic for me, but I earned 200,000!"
[Ohhh! That's a million in total......the exact amount I had dropped!]
"Well done Celty! This is the power of our love!"
In fact, they were the exact bank notes Celty had dropped. Shinra and Celty had been working for a whole day for virtually no pay -
But whether they realized that or not was another story.
♂♀
CHATROOM
Tanaka Taro
Speaking of which, I had hotpot with some friends today.
Setton
Me too! What a coincidence.
Kanra
Ehhh!? Hotpot? At this time of the year!?
Kyo
What a coincidence indeed! We too got to enjoy some nice steamy hotpot today!
Mai
It was so good.
[Private mode] Kanra
So you guys got in here again.
[Private mode] Kanra
You had hotpot spot as well? Where? Have you already got friends to do hotpot with?
[Private mode] Kyo
Alas, alas.
[Private mode] Kyo
Better not think you can interfere in the glow of all the friendship we girls are basking in, Big Brother.
Mai
It's a secret.
Tanaka Taro
?
[Private mode] Kanra
That's why I said Mairu too should remember to use the private mode...!
Bakyura
I also went out to have sukiyaki with my girlfriend. You know that sukiyaki place? With an 1500-yen all-you-can-eat option?
Tanaka Taro
Ah, you mean that chain restaurant!
Saika
I had hotpot with Setton-san. It was very good
Kanra
Seriously, you guys need to have a sense of season!
Kanra
Hotpot is good only for winter, you know!
Shinjuku, Izaya's apartment
"Oy, Namie."
"What is it?"
Namie continued to digest trivial tasks without looking up from her own laptop. Izaya, eyes fixed on his desktop display, spoke with a refreshing smile.
"Want me to treat you to some hotpot? The shabu-shabu kind or the crab pot, pick whatever you think is good."
"Would you please refrain from using me to comfort your ego just because everybody else in the chatroom has friends to eat hotpot with?"
Izaya looked away slightly and shook his head at Namie's reply.
"......So you saw all that."
"I've been keeping track of that for a while."
"Does that mean...you also told my sisters about Celty?"
"Maybe. .......Really, your online gender-swapping's getting even more disgusting recently."
Namie, who kept an eye on the chatroom as she went on with her tasks, glanced at Izaya and said sarcastically as an ill-natured smile crept over her face.
"Despite that, though......I'm sort of surprised that you've got a human-like side. Well, guess you are Forever Twenty-One for a reason after all?"
"I see...looks like I will have to take you increasingly seriously. Damn, I should have limited the access to invited users only - like what Tsukumoya's done with his chatroom."
The evil mastermind who had been left out of the loop on all the recent happenings until the very end looked outside as he grumbled.
Shinjuku lay itself bare before his eyes as Izaya began to think to himself.
- Peaceful everyday life is something I decided I could do without since long ago.
- Though it's far from necessary for me, I do understand why it's desirable for most people.
Izaya, jealous of the other participants of the chatroom who seemed to be enjoying the peace of their lives -
Felt like he was jealous of the city Ikebukuro itself as he looked up at the sky through the window.
Swallowing the jealousy of guys like these -
The city enjoyed its holiday all the same.
NEXT PROLOGUE
After he was done being jealous of the city enjoying its holiday -
Izaya closed his eyes silently and smirked:
"Yeah......it's about time I began to enjoy my holiday as well."
The man who had been left out of the incidents that happened completely this time laughed as if it was his way of revenge.
"After all, there are always as many ways to start a fire as you want there to be."
♂♀
Evening of the day of the incident
Anri let her thoughts wander as she lay under her blanket.
She thought of the bandaged man who had helped Celty escape today.
- He had bandages over his face...but there's no mistaking it...it's him.
It was the Caucasian man whom she had seen talking to the man in the gas mask on her way back from the karaoke.
As memories of that evening rushed back to her, Anri covered her head with the blanket and tried to fight back the incessant cursings inside her body.
When she was talking to the guy the gas mask -
The Caucasian man had put his hand on her shoulder - and a disgusting wave of pressure had washed over her. She felt something cold and sharp run through her shoulder, and time stopped for a second inside her heart.
Her entire body felt ensnared, and it was impossible to move.
Jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg jeeg -
Every cell in her body was screaming in unison as the twisted sounds became a march and climaxed.
Screaming how dangerous the man right behind her back was.
Screaming that he was far more dangerous than Anri could imagine.
But that was why she had to love immediately.
- At that moment -
What had ensnared her was not the vibe coming from the man.
It was "Saika" gnawing at the insides of her body and making the incessant "Jeeg jeeg" noises.
She was the only person who noticed -
- That as he placed his hand on her shoulder, every cell in her body practically screamed, and "Saika" had materialized into a blade and come out of her shoulder, cutting deep into the palm of the man's hand.
As a result, the Caucasian male had become Saika's "child" against Anri's own conscious will.
Although it was obvious that he did something fishy for a living - although she knew that Saika would not interfere with his life any more than necessary - Anri still felt shocked that she actually cursed someone.
- If......
- If Saika moves on its own again someday and targets Ryuugamine-kun or Kida-kun this time......
Fear washed over Anri's body as she realized that she had overlooked the danger of the "curse" inside her.
Not in the sense that she herself might be possessed and manipulated -
Rather, Sonohara Anri feared that she would continue to use Saika to gain control over the ones she loved as she kept listening to the curses inside her body.
That "I love you" sounded like it would never stop -
♂♀
Inside Russian Sushi, the conversation between three Russians in their native tongue
"So, Igor, did something happen? You're Colonel Lingerin's Pocket Knife. Surely he wouldn't have sent you here for nothing......?"
"Yes, two of our members betrayed the organization."
"Haha! You mean us? Are you finally coming to finish us off after all these years?"
"No......it has been too long. Colonel Lingerin has no intention to do anything about you two. You probably don't know about the duo that did escape......"
"But it looks like they're hiding somewhere in Tokyo right now. Thought it would be better to let you know. I didn't expect myself to have to undergo plastic surgery for a little side job I took, that I didn't."
♂♀
Awakusu-kai, conversation between the executives
"So...we still haven't found Yadogiri?"
"......Other groups seem to think we already finished him off."
"That old fox......he's been sucking up to multiple groups besides us...he's grown to look down on us even more."
"Don't underestimate him. Although it's hard to accept the fact that we've been looked down upon by the manager of a talent agency......but there's so much more to him that we don't understand."
"......Did he pit us against 'Hollywood' because we were no longer any use to him?"
"Bastard thinks we can't get back at him."
"Don't be stingy with money when it comes to information. ......Whatever it takes, we have to make sure to see that trickster drown forever."
♂♀
Somewhere in Ikebukuro, conversation between several boys
"Ryuugamine-sempai is interesting. Yeah, really interesting. Maybe he'll be even more interesting to have as a friend than Kida-sempai."
"What's your proof?" "Your old insanity's coming back - " "Heheh - "
"I told you we were attacked in a van by some bousouzoku, didn't I?"
"Speaking of which, weren't you the one who invited one of those gangs here, Izumii?"
"Don't call me by my old surname. That would make me think of the face of my brother."
"Must have been a hard time for you, having a brother with a different surname. But anyway, guess it's better to have a different surname from a brother at a reform school, isn't it?"
"My brother......made a complete mess of Blue Square before I could even blink my eye. Did he even realize how hard it was to form this gang? I knew he was useless, but I didn't know he was that useless......"
"And how about that Ryuugamine-sempai who sounds like he's a little more useful? Tell us."
"......Ah, sorry about that...anyway, things looked desperate for us in every way. I wouldn't have been surprised even if he cried...but Ryuugamine-sempai...was smiling as if he was enjoying it."
"Really?" "Is he a masochist?" "Heheh."
"Really, he's an interesting sempai. He must have a lot of love."
"Love?"
"He has more love for anything abnormal and manga-like than we do, than anyone else does...even if that spells danger. That's the kind of person he is. That was why...Ryuugamine-sempai founded Dollars."
"I don't understand." "What does 'abnormal' mean?" "Go repeat elementary school."
"I'm gonna push you over!" "Heheh - "
"Don't start fighting...anyway, the Yellow Turbans had a good thing going with Dollars, but it ended too soon - they didn't even fight all that much. Wasn't that just boring?"
"So you're planning to start a new fire, Aoba?"
"Yeah, but......there are people out there who will try to steal the fire and use it for their own purposes. The first one of those we need to deal with is that hyena bastard......Orihara Izaya."
"Whatever it takes?"
"Right. But I'm gonna say it here - don't touch his sisters. I kind of like them. Remember? I told you they kissed me all of a sudden......"
"......I'm gonna kill you!"
"That hurts that hurts that hurts, stop it, stop it you fool! That's why you're gonna stay unpopular forever - because you get mad so easily at things like this......that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts! Wait! Something just cracked! Something just cracked inside me I can hear it that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts that hurts that - hurts - !"
"Oi, he's dying, Kuronuma's dying, for real." "Well, then we just kill him." "Heheh - "
♂♀
"Fires...you can just start with anything, in any way you can imagine."
Izaya smiled coldly and talked in front of Namie as if to himself.
"All I have to do is to gather the combustibles in one place - and throw a spark in."
The information broker shook his head with a dreamy expression on his face as if he could already see the fire burning.
"And then, I'm going to say to what Tsukumoya calls the 'city' - "
Cheerfully, cheerfully, he said as if only to himself -
In a tone that sounded like he was way absorbed in himself, his intoxication only slightly spiked with hatred, Izaya said:
"'Your holiday's over, bastard.' - Just that."
♂♀
Even the city would want to "take a break".
That I have already mentioned.
So what happens when its break ends?
Of course, the city would return to its routine and no longer be able to observe you.
Therefore, if you - for example - are to find yourself in a desperate situation in Ikebukuro -
Don't expect the city to save you. Go get the police.
All considered, the city is not likely to even notice you now that it has returned to its routine.
But keep in mind that you're part of this city too.
As part of this city, you'll just have to do what you're supposed to do, and do it well.
That way the city would, sooner or later, consider taking a break again someday.
I hope that I will be able to see you again.
I hope that your holidays will be blessed by the city -----------
Excerpt from the Afterword of Ikebukuro Attacks Back II, A Pedestrian's Guide to Ikebukuro, authored by Tsukumoya Shinichi and published by Media Works.