Tokyo: Rabbit Officer and Her Evil Partner
Chapter 193 - 114: A True Man Should Be So

Chapter 193: Chapter 114: A True Man Should Be So

In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the shift at the police box.

Around eight or nine in the evening, the izakaya was at its dining peak. The inner hall was filled with diners, and low wooden fences separated the dining areas. Six patrol officers sat around a long table, heads together as they ordered; Director Moriki sat at the head, inviting Watanabe Shun and Kazama Tatsuya to sit down... As for Fushimi Roku and Minamoto Tamako, they sat side by side on the inside near the wooden fence, whispering to each other.

Until the welcome dinner started, everyone had already arrived and taken their seats, but Minamoto Tamako was still arguing with Fushimi Roku about the "Egg Sauce" issue.

She was very angry, not only because Fushimi Roku was perfunctory and even refused to call her Tamako-chan, but also because "Egg Sauce" was her nickname in elementary school.

When she was in elementary school, the bad boys in her class often said, "Tamako means egg, so you’re a dumb egg," leaving her with very unpleasant memories from her childhood.

Giving people random nicknames like that is really despicable!

He has to apologize! Mr. Fushimi must apologize to her! At least sincerely say, "I’m sorry, I won’t call you Egg Sauce anymore," only then would she forgive Mr. Fushimi!

"I think Egg Sauce is quite cute, what a nice nickname, why can’t I call you that?" Fushimi Roku danced around the minefield again.

"No means no!" Minamoto Tamako puffed up her cheeks.

"Then you have to give me a reason, right?" Fushimi Roku asked while flipping through the menu.

"Think about it, when people hear ’egg’, they associate it with ’dumb egg’, ’oviparous creatures’, and ’fragile items’, all negative terms, so ’Egg Sauce’ is clearly a derogatory term! It’s like if I called you a ’fool’, would you be happy?" Minamoto Tamako argued righteously.

"That’s totally different, isn’t it?" Fushimi Roku disagreed.

"It’s exactly the same thing!" Minamoto Tamako crossed her arms.

"What a hassle, then what do you prefer I call you?" Fushimi Roku asked, pretending to be casual.

"Of course, it’s Tamako-chan!"

Minamoto Tamako realized she had been tricked as soon as she said it. Sure enough, Fushimi Roku, hearing this, immediately turned the tables, grinned with triumphant delight: "Oh—so you really want me to call you Tamako-chan?"

Minamoto Tamako blushed, feeling like a molten egg, steam puffing out from her head. Ignoring the fact that Fushimi Roku was a patient, she swung her arms like a windmill, hammering Fushimi Roku’s shoulders back and forth: "You, you’re talking nonsense! I’m mad now! I’m really going to get mad!"

...

On the other side, Kazama Tatsuya sat down beside Moriyama Yasurou, watching Minamoto Tamako and Fushimi Roku play around, suddenly feeling an invisible barrier between them—Minamoto Tamako no longer greeted him warmly as before, and Fushimi Roku didn’t reluctantly call ’senior’ as he used to—they laughed and fooled around, leaving him as an outsider.

Watanabe Shun had no idea what happened between them, and his slow nerves didn’t sense the odd atmosphere. He just kept clamoring for drinks to be served, whether beer or sake, insisting they should start drinking first.

The patrol officers all praised Senior Watanabe’s boldness, and the latter laughed heartily, slamming the table and declaring nobody would leave until they’re drunk, everyone cheered and echoed his sentiment.

"Youth is really wonderful," Moriyama Yasurou sighed.

Kazama Tatsuya froze for a second or two before realizing she was talking to him, then agreed with a sigh, "Yes, youth is indeed wonderful."

"I’m not that old, am I?" Moriyama Yasurou frowned.

"Uh, I didn’t mean it that way..." Kazama Tatsuya thought to himself that this whole topic was started by her, how did it suddenly become his fault?

"Just teasing you."

Moriyama Yasurou opened a pack of disposable chopsticks, picked up a side dish, and said nonchalantly, "Cheer up and smile; no one will look down on you, and today isn’t a somber day."

Kazama Tatsuya remained silent, unsure of what to say.

Moriyama Yasurou sensed the ’doom’ swirling around him, as if taking a step closer would turn her into a disheartened uncle. Before Kazama Tatsuya could adjust his emotions, she suddenly elbowed him right in the ribs, making him inhale sharply in pain.

"What are you doing?!" Kazama Tatsuya lowered his voice.

"Cheer up, don’t show that you have no future! I’m counting on you seniors to set a good example for the patrol officers!"

Moriyama Yasurou smiled ’kindly’ but with a hint of threat in her tone: "You’re an elite detective; even if you’ve resigned, you ought to maintain some elite composure, right? Snap out of it! I don’t care what you’ve been through; even if you’re faking it, show some success in your career and fulfillment in life!"

Upon hearing that, Kazama Tatsuya smiled wryly, "Got it."

He paused, then raised his voice, loudly announcing, "The next round of drinks is on me!"

The patrol officers cheered in unison, applauding Senior Kazama.

These days in Japan, workplace drinking gatherings usually have two rounds, the first at an izakaya where the meal bill is the main expense; the second round is at a bar or karaoke where the drinks are the main expense. Unexpectedly, the seniors covered all the costs for this gathering, making the patrol officers feel full of potential, thinking that one day they could become such generous detectives.

The waitstaff started to serve food, each person receiving a large mug of malt beer, and as they ate and drank, the atmosphere gradually became lively.

Everyone talked about amusing work stories, vented about the tough training, and even Director Moriki didn’t dampen the mood. Instead, he appeared with a guilty face, reflecting on himself, then cleverly claimed it was all for the good of his subordinates, which deeply moved the patrol officers, making them feel transferring to Sugamo Police Box was the best choice they ever made.

As they chatted, somehow the conversation bizarrely veered off course:

"Speaking of which, there are so many religious groups appearing in Sugamo recently."

"Oh! Are you talking about that Tenrikyo? I was also stopped by them for preaching during patrol..."

"And there’s Shohoin, Sakarikumo Temple, Chisenin, Hakusen Temple, Sozenin, Tokoan, Anraku Temple, Hafuku Temple... ah, too many to count."

"Exactly, we don’t even know if they’re genuine monks!"

"But I think that Aum Truth Sect is quite interesting. I heard the Hierarch has superpowers, can levitate out of thin air!"

"Are you an idiot? That’s obviously fake..."

...

As the patrol officers gossiped chaotically, Minamoto Tamako’s phone suddenly rang. She quickly walked out of the izakaya, answering the call on the relatively quiet street.

"Really? Thank you! I’ll treat you to some small cakes next time..."

After hanging up the phone, Minamoto Tamako hurried back, leaned over, and whispered a few words to Fushimi Roku. The latter’s expression changed slightly, and everyone sensed the shift in atmosphere, instinctively quieting down.

"Sorry, sudden case, we have to leave first." Fushimi Roku pulled out his wallet to settle the bill: "Gentlemen, please continue, we’ll meet again next time."

Minamoto Tamako pushed the wheelchair, and as Fushimi Roku passed by Kazama Tatsuya, he signaled for him to follow as he had private matters to discuss; Kazama Tatsuya was taken aback, glanced at Minamoto Tamako, and silently stood up, apparently ready to leave early as well; Watanabe Shun reacted quickly, putting down his drink and insisted on joining them to investigate the case.

The patrol officers watched the four leave, feeling like it was a classic scene from a drama: the main characters suddenly receive a mysterious call, abruptly excusing themselves from a banquet to go save the world, leaving the clueless underlings to continue indulging...

They felt a spontaneous admiration in their hearts: ’Elite detectives should be like this.’