CH 204

Chapter 204 – Torimoto’s Thoughts

The worst, huh…? I guess he was right. This is like fanning the flames of war, so to speak. I got the feeling that if the three forces clashed with all their might, there would be nothing but tragic consequences.

After the war, there would probably be many casualties left lying around.

“Or, instantly crush one side with overwhelming force.” (Torimoto)

“What do you mean by that?” (Kuzuhara)

Kuzuhara and Sayuri both looked at me with great interest.

“The longer the war drags on, the greater the damage will be. Then the best thing would be to shorten the war as much as possible and bring an end to it with minimal casualties. Well, the easiest way to do that would be to side with the Hosen Group and exterminate the Order in one go.” (Torimoto)

When the followers heard my words, they began to seethe with anger.

“Hey, what are you saying?!” (Shakuhara)

Shakuhara, who was standing behind me, couldn’t remain silent and started to shout.

Under the stares of everyone in the room, I continued in an even more matter-of-fact manner.

“The war has to go on until one side or the other is either annihilated or admits defeat. So for those involved, wouldn’t it be better for the weaker side to fall quickly so that the war can be over sooner?” (Torimoto)

“That… What you’re saying might be true.” (Chake)

“Oi, Chake?” (Kuzuhara)

Everyone’s eyes turned to Chake, who suddenly opened his mouth and began to talk.

“In the first place, one of the reasons we came here was to make sure that these women wouldn’t be killed by the yakuza. Saito-san has a soft spot for women.” (Chake)

“Hey, you idiot! You didn’t have to tell them that!” (Kuzuhara)

I see. Even though they were hunting men, it seemed that Kuzuhara still didn’t want them to die. He was probably already vaguely aware of the reason that Sayuri and the followers were hunting men.

Men had played them, betrayed them, and killed their loved ones. That was why they hated men. Perhaps Kuzuhara was aware of this background and didn’t want to kill them or let them die a reckless death.

What a sweet man. So much for the character ‘evil’ written on his back.

“There is only one way to preserve the religious order while finishing the war in a short period of time and minimizing the damage to the city.” (Torimoto)

When I spoke once more, the feeling of tension in the air grew taut. They were probably wondering what I was going to say again. And as such, I spoke my thoughts.

“And that is to form an allied force consisting of the Inochi-shirazu, the Apostles of Peace… and the Maiden’s Rebirth Order and crush the Hosen Group.” (Torimoto)

“Oi, Torimoto. You know what you’re saying, right…?” (Kuzuhara)

“Yes, of course. Despite what my appearance may suggest, I’m not such a fool that I wouldn’t understand what I just said.” (Torimoto)

“Then what was that just now? You want us, and even the Apostles of Peace, to work with them to crush the yakuza?” (Kuzuhara)

“I think this is a compromise that achieves what we all want.” (Torimoto)

“In what way?! They were the ones that started this war in the first place! If we stick our heads into this, we’ll take huge losses!” (Kuzuhara)

“But this might allow us to limit the damage to the city. And… this is the yakuza we’re talking about. With no functioning police force, who would acknowledge the yakuza’s presence?” (Torimoto)

“…Are you saying it’s the yakuza that’s going to be crushed?” (Kuzuhara)

“Besides, I remember hearing that Ryudou apparently had associations with the Higuchi Group.” (Torimoto)

“You… where did you get that from…?” (Kuzuhara)

“I have my own intelligence network.” (Torimoto)

When I had looked into Ryudou’s background, the only thing that jumped out at me was the Higuchi Group. Well, it wasn’t surprising that they were connected. In fact, I thought he was the kind of guy who would naturally be associated with a group like that.

“Yakuza don’t mess with upright citizens. That was one of their unspoken rules, but what about under the current situation? In order to survive, the yakuza would steal from the weak without batting an eyelid, no?” (Torimoto)

In fact, Sol had reported in her investigations that she had seen lower-ranking yakuza attacking upright citizens and stealing food and other necessities. The current circumstances meant that they could no longer be concerned about unspoken rules.

“Kuzuhara-san doesn’t approve of Sayuri and the others here being wiped out by the yakuza. Then why don’t you lend them your power and wipe out the yakuza instead?” (Torimoto)

“Tch, easier said than done.” (Kuzuhara)

Because it was their business, not mine. Of course it was easier for me to come up with a proposition.

“But then we’d be the only ones compromising. It’s just a benefit for them, isn’t it?” (Kuzuhara)

“Is that so? A man lends them a hand. Their lives would be saved by a man. Wouldn’t this leave an overwhelming impact on the women?” (Torimoto)

“That’s…” (Kuzuhara)

Kuzuhara hesitated to speak and shifted his gaze from me to Sayuri.

She seemed to be listening closely to our conversation. She calmly closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them back up, she spoke in a dignified tone.

“I, too, do not wish to indiscriminately scatter the lives of my followers. I would rather avenge our enemies while protecting our lives.” (Sayuri)

It looked like she was going to accept the proposal, but she continued.

“However, joining hands with men, who should be eliminated, goes against our God’s doctrine.” (Sayuri)

Ah. So it won’t be that easy, huh?

I mean, this ‘God’s doctrine’ she was speaking of didn’t even exist. It was just an imaginary god of their dreams that lived inside them. Well, what they said was what they believed, so it was their own ideology in the end.

“…Kuzuhara-san, do you think you can join forces with them?” (Torimoto)

“Hah? …I couldn’t say. Since the last incident, we Inochi-shirazu have been increasing our numbers, but it’s still only a drop in the bucket. Well… that’s where the Apostles of Peace come in.” (Kuzuhara)

“Yeah. They already have an army. The weapons they possess are all ones that are not normally available.” (Torimoto)

Because of me.

“If we make an alliance with them, won’t the Inochi-shirazu have enough hands to deal with this?” (Torimoto)

“That’s true, but… I don’t think ol’ Otaka would approve.” (Kuzuhara)

Certainly, he was a person who upheld the ideals of justice. Normally, it would be difficult to think that he would join a war so easily. But that was only if that war was an incident outside of his scope.

The war was being waged in a territory under the jurisdiction of the Apostles of Peace. Their families lived there, too. Since that was the case, there was no reason for them not to intervene.

“Sayuri-san, let’s say that both forces decided to lend you their power. In which case, you would be able to stand up against the yakuza and spare the lives of many of your followers. Instead, will you stick to your doctrines and die a senseless death on the battlefield?” (Torimoto)

I stressed the words ‘senseless death’ for good measure.