Never Not
Ch. 131: Negotiation

Rai, Ryo, Kei and Yuriko instantly spread to their respective destinations in search of the whereabouts of the bomb that the fake Black Shadow was about to detonate. Meanwhile, Shohei prepares to meet with Kazuya Toda at the restaurant which is also still located around his team's retreat.

A sea of pedestrians throngs the main street of Shibuya, a Tokyo district that never deserts. It seems, the bomb threat video circulating has not been watched by many people, given the release of the video in rush hour. The police were just on guard at a number of Shibuya crowded spots.

Standing in the middle of the crowd, Rai's eyes did not tire of looking around to find an oddity. In its place now, there is a group of SD children who are practicing marching band, there is a group of teenagers who are playing skateboarding and bicycles, and many people pass by with all the busyness. How could he protect everything in that place?

For a moment he thought back to Shohei's words.

"Remember, if the bomb really exploded and took a lot of casualties, then as the original Black Shadow you'd be accused of terrorism and become an international fugitive."

Ryo who was assigned to scout to the place where the game arena was open, could only frown in confusion. Not willing to waste any time, he immediately checked every suspicious item in that place.

"Hey, what are you doing?" reprimand the game arena officer as Ryo attempts to dismantle a suspicious black box.

"This is suspicious, let me check!" sahut Ryo's.

The officer directly pushed Ryo roughly. "Are you crazy? It's a carousel game machine.

Kei and Yuriko have also entered the largest plaza in Shibuya. They immediately moved to the hidden places of the shopping building, to check the bombs that might be placed there.

"The warehouse, toilet, and corridors around the ground floor emergency stairs are safe." Yuriko reported through an earpiece attached to her ear.

"Second floor is also safe" Kei replied, now heading for the third floor.

Thinking this would take a lot of time, he instead turned towards the security center of the plaza building. While running in a hurry, he directly broke through the CCTV monitoring room. Suddenly, the officer who was there was surprised to see his presence.

"I want to check the CCTV in every building!"

"Who are you?" The officer was confused.

"There's no time left to ask," insisted Kei want to take over their computer.

"Hey, what are you doing? Do you know anyone else can't get into this place? You have to get permission from the manager first if you want to see the building's CCTV footage!" ban that officer.

On the other hand, Shohei had headed for the restaurant that was on the 63rd floor of the skyscraper in the area. When he mentioned Kazuya Toda's name to the waitress, he was immediately led to the VIP room. The security of the VIP room was very tight, where he had to pass through the metal detector sensor door.

Once he arrived at the VIP room, his gaze immediately fell on Kazuya Toda who was sitting casually on the glass side of the building. What jolted him a little was that there were no other policemen like Kazuya Toda mentioned before. That is, the meeting was only designed for the two of them.

"Sit down!" welcome Kazuya Toda to show off his warm smile.

Shohei immediately took a seat before the highest official in the national security agency.

"Enjoying coffee while looking at the view of Shibuya from this height is amazing, isn't it?" said Kazuya Toda while offering hot coffee that has been presented in front of Shohei.

Seeing Kazuya Toda who started sipping coffee, Shohei took his cup and enjoyed the black coffee.

"I still remember giving you the award two years ago as the best investigator in the Metropolitan police," Kazuya Toda said, opening a chat, "Yamazaki-san, what do you think of the arms sales and money hoarding cases found in Tokyo's port warehouses? Honestly, it makes me sad and disappointed," he said again by showing a helpless look.

"Why are you sad and disappointed?" ask Shohei.

"As you know yourself, Eita Kaze behaves as a knight by confessing her deeds. I really didn't think he'd do that!"

"really. The bureaucratic official should work for the people, not for the leader."

Shohei's striking reply, made the corner of Kazuya Toda's lips tremble instantly. For a moment, the two men exchanged glances.

"Let's change this boring topic" Kazuya Toda said with a smile.

The old man then placed a wiretapper in the form of a ballpoint pen on the table. Looking at the ballpoint pen, Shohei's pupils widened.

"Do you know this ballpoint pen? This ballpoint was found by my men in Matsumoto's late office, when they were trying to secure the state files left by Matsumoto. I was a little surprised why there was a wiretap placed in the private workspace of the justice minister. So, I asked my men to check on the owner of this ballpoint pen. And surprisingly, only one fingerprint was detected. It's yours, right?"

Shohei Yamazaki. Choosing not to answer Kazuya Toda's allegations.

Kazuya Toda again commented on his favorite smile. "I've been wondering for a long time why a police investigator secretly tapped a minister who was in fact his own future father-in-law. And strangely enough, the wiretapping was not part of his duties in the police force. As a cop, you know, doing a secret investigation without a superior order is a code of conduct violation?" kazuya Toda said as he sipped the coffee quietly, but next the man's eyes shot sharply towards Shohei. "Ah, maybe for you the violation of the code of conduct in the work is not a problem, as long as you can create content material for a live broadcast conducted by Black Shadow. Because you are Mr. White, the figure that had been riding on Black Shadow all this time."

Shohei is getting petrified. It feels like being stripped naked when Kazuya Toda uncovers his identity as Mr. Whites. Even so, there were no panic or fear strokes on his face. His expression is still the same as before. Flat.

Shohei lowered his head, closed his eyes, then laughed cynically. "Finally it's out too!"

"Don't you think what you're doing could ruin your police career? Your unity won't be proud of what you're doing. Although as much as you catch a corruptor, if it is done in violation of the code of ethics, then you will not get an award. Even the removal of office may be waiting for you there," said Kazuya Toda with raised eyebrows.

"What about yourself? What can people be proud of for your actions as a state official? Aren't you ashamed of the image you created as a stern and honest official?" reply Shohei no less fierce.

"Politics is the art of attracting sympathetic people. Therefore, do not interfere in the parts that should not be!" The man again spread a poisonous smile, "What you're doing is a waste of time, because you and black Shadow won't be able to touch me!"

"I'm sure the truth will surely win" Shohei said loudly.

"What if the truth belongs to the victor? As long as you win it, that's the truth" Kazuya Toda replied confidently. "Ah, but it's not exciting if I win right away, right? How about we negotiate?"

"I won't negotiate anything with you."

"really? There's a bomb on the top floor of the shopping center." Kazuya's eyes stared at the plaza building that stood firmly across it. "If you take the wrong step, then the bomb will explode."

"Blow it up!" shohei said without blinking. Because, he believes Rai, Ryo, Kei and Yuriko can stop him in time.

Kazuya Toda smiled frailly. "I'm not sure you're going to say that after seeing this." He then showed me a video recorded directly on his tablet.

At that very second, Shohei's eyes hardened followed by a surprised expression. His firm facial lines combined with white skin appeared paled. How not, in the video shows Seina being held captive with her hands and feet tied, even her mouth gagged and her eyes closed. However, most astonishingly, there was a bomb attached to his body.

"The bomb was put on your girlfriend's body. It's thirty-five minutes from now. When the deadline expires, the bomb will blow up all the floors in the building. You can guess who will die first. But, everything can stop at my command."

"Why did you do this? Do you think those people's lives are worthless?" shohei asked with stifled anger.

Kazuya Toda even widened his smile. He leaned back while linking his fingers casually.

Shohei immediately reached into his pants pocket, then put up an earpiece to communicate with his team. "Please listen carefully! The bomb was on the top floor of the plaza and was attached to my lover's body. Please don't move, because I'm thinking of a plan to save everyone" Shohei panicked.

Rai, Ryo, Yuriko, and Kei were stunned instantly. Their movements immediately stopped just like that according to Shohei's instructions.

"What do you want?" shohei asked Kazuya Toda.

"That's easy. Hand over the original Black Shadow to me, and work under my command! Let's forget all this!" kazuya Toda. He then stood up and walked towards the glass wall that displayed the side of Shibuya that was crowded with all human activities. Crossing his hands back, he again said, "I am kind enough to make a good offer for you because I still remember you are the son of a great general. You're also an accomplished cop. The state does not need a hero of justice. Therefore, leave Black Shadow to me, for the stability of the country."

"What are you gonna do to him? Are you gonna make it a mash like Eita Kaze?"

"Please be like that!"

Shohei's face sank further into helplessness. Really, this was the decision that made him a dilemma. He had to choose one of his lovers and best friends. Where the two people had once been in secret contact behind him.

Meanwhile, Seina who was in captivity, looked shocked and in disbelief. The reason, Kazuya Toda's men deliberately played live chatter between Shohei and Kazuya Toda.

"Now you know, right? Your girlfriend was the brains behind the Black Shadow movement all along. He was the one who had Black Shadow kill your father because he knew your father was not in line with his mission! We were forced to do this to get him to give up Black Shadow!" said one of Kazuya Toda's men who looked after him.

Seina shook her head. Clear melt had poured out profusely from the corner of his eye. How could Shohei do that. He was more confident in the contents of the letter that Black Shadow had sent him.

"The attitude your lover takes will be a testament to how much he loves you!"

Shohei was still silent, fondling in the gamang that raged in his brain.

Kazuya Toda looked at his watch and said, "the remaining time is twenty minutes to four in the afternoon."

After being silent for a while and barely able to smile, a heavy soft voice finally came from Shohei's mouth. "I choose ...."

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