Lu Zheng and Lin Wan walked arm in arm through the bustling streets of Kabukicho. A man and a woman, chatting in Chinese while curiously looking around, they were clearly foreign tourists. The seedier clubs left them alone, but staff from more reputable izakayas and bars politely approached, handing out flyers.
“How about this place?” Lu Zheng pointed to a quieter izakaya nearby. “Want to try some authentic Japanese food?”
“Sure,” Lin Wan agreed easily.
Inside, the izakaya had classic Japanese decor: low tables, tatami mats, red lanterns, cloth curtains, and a folding screen. The folk song *Sakura* played softly in the background. “Welcome!” A young woman in a kimono led them to a table and handed them a menu in Chinese, Japanese, and English.
“Well-prepared,” Lu Zheng remarked with a smile, noting the waitress had spoken in Chinese. “Your Chinese is great.”
“Thanks! I’m Chinese, studying here in Japan,” the waitress replied with a grin.
Lu Zheng: “…”
“What’s good here?” Lin Wan asked, smiling. “Give us some recommendations.”
“Of course,” the waitress said. “This izakaya is fairly traditional for Kabukicho. We don’t have many modern dishes, but our classic flavours are quite authentic. I’m not sure if they’ll suit your tastes, though.”
Lu Zheng blinked. He and Lin Wan hadn’t eaten much Japanese food back in Haicheng. Lin Wan jumped in, laughing. “No worries, just recommend away. We’re from Haicheng, we can handle it.”
“Alright then,” the waitress said. “I’d suggest grilled eel, tempura, and a sushi platter. If the gentleman wants more, you could add eel rice or beef rice. If you drink, we have sake from a Nara brewery.”
“Professional!” Lu Zheng gave a thumbs-up. “We’ll take your recommendations, plus one eel rice and one beef rice.”
“Got it, please wait a moment!” The waitress smiled, retreated, and soon brought complimentary appetisers.
Lu Zheng looked at Lin Wan. “You seem in a good mood. Is your evidence the real deal?”
Lin Wan shook her head. “All three sets of evidence are real.”
“What? Split into three?”
Lin Wan nodded. “As long as one team delivers, Haneda Mahiro’s looking at twenty years in prison.”
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow. “Only twenty? I thought it’d be the death penalty for killing so many people!”
Lin Wan hesitated.
“But you don’t have evidence for that, right?” Lu Zheng shrugged.
Lin Wan pouted but nodded.
Lu Zheng chuckled.
“What’s that chuckle mean?” Lin Wan asked, annoyed.
“Just a laugh,” Lu Zheng said, grinning.
Lin Wan bared her teeth but stayed silent as the waitress returned with sake and small dishes. “Enjoy!”
Once the waitress left, Lu Zheng continued. “Bombs, gunmen, an ambush at the Tokyo police headquarters. They’re not just letting this slide, right?”
“Of course not,” Lin Wan said. “But the Tokyo police and Interpol’s Japan branch are handling it now.”
“Fair enough,” Lu Zheng nodded. “Still, he dared to come after you. I’m tempted to pay him a visit tonight with a sword.”
“Don’t you dare!” Lin Wan jumped, startled. “This is Japan!”
“Exactly, it’s Japan. I wouldn’t dare back home,” Lu Zheng said matter-of-factly.
“Uh…” Lin Wan knew what he meant. They’d already broken rules in Italy. “Look, it’s being handled. This is a police matter, not personal. Stay out of it,” she said, lowering her voice. “Don’t expose yourself.”
“Relax, I get it. It’s official business, not personal. I won’t act,” Lu Zheng said, nodding. He popped a sushi piece into his mouth. “Hmm, not bad.” A big reason he wasn’t acting was that Lin Wan was safe. They had the upper hand, after all.
Lin Wan tried a sushi piece. “Pretty good, very fresh.”
Lu Zheng poured sake for both, clinked glasses, and drank. He smacked his lips. It was just fermented liquor, not as good as Huadiao wine. “Back to the Japan branch tomorrow?” he asked.
Lin Wan shook her head. “No need. We got the receipt at the Tokyo police headquarters. Hong Liang just needs to sign at Interpol’s Tokyo branch tomorrow, and we can head home.”
Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow. “Did you take leave?”
Lin Wan grinned. “Yup, told them not to book my flight and took Friday off.”
“Nice!” Lu Zheng gave another thumbs-up.
Lin Wan accepted the praise, then asked, “So, where are we going tomorrow? Got a plan?”
Lu Zheng: (꒪⌓꒪)
It was a spur-of-the-moment trip. He hadn’t thought that far. He only knew three places in Tokyo: Ginza, Kabukicho, and Akihabara. So…
“Akihabara?” he suggested, blinking.
“Sounds good!” Lin Wan nodded. “The famous anime hub. Let’s check it out.”
“Deal!” Lu Zheng mentally gave himself thirty-two thumbs-ups. *Stocking up on random knowledge pays off!*
They ate and chatted, Lin Wan sharing funny stories from the police headquarters. What stories? Her taking on two gunmen with submachine guns, of course. When giving statements, none of the Japanese police believed it, even with Hong Liang and Jiaotiano as witnesses.
“And then?” Lu Zheng asked.
“They’re cops, so I didn’t go too far,” Lin Wan sighed. “I just knocked down ten doubters with bad attitudes, dislocated a few joints, and tweaked a few meridians. Oh, I fixed them afterward, of course.”
“You’re too kind,” Lu Zheng said solemnly.
“Thanks, I think so too,” Lin Wan replied, giggling.
They lingered over supper at the izakaya, chatting late. By the time they left, it was nearly midnight. Kabukicho was even livelier. “No wonder it’s world-famous for nightlife. So vibrant!” Lin Wan said, shaking her head. “But there’s not much left to see. Let’s go.”
Neither was the type to revel in chaos. Seeing it once was enough; they didn’t linger. Lu Zheng’s hotel was a fifteen-minute walk, so they strolled back. Leaving Kabukicho, they turned onto a quieter street. The noise faded, streetlights dimmed, and pedestrians thinned. Apart from stumbling drunks and hurried late-night workers, the street was nearly empty.
Looking at the dated buildings, Lu Zheng realised Tokyo’s development had stagnated for years. Arm in arm, they passed more drunks and even a few scattered homeless people. “Who’d think, just one street away…” Lin Wan shook her head.
A middle-aged man with gold-rimmed glasses approached, talking on a phone tucked against his shoulder while rummaging in a briefcase. Noticing his awkward movements, Lu Zheng and Lin Wan stepped aside to let him pass. He nodded and smiled politely.
But as he brushed past them, his briefcase dropped. “Swish!” Two daggers appeared in his hands, thrusting towards their chests.
