# 613
**Chapter 614: Yuzuri Nana’s Grand Dream**
Although Yuzuri Nana’s father owed money, these gangsters should’ve known she was just a twelve- or thirteen-year-old kid with no way to earn anything. There was no reason to hound her—unless they were after something her parents had left behind. That would make sense.
“Your father owed money. Where is he now?”
Yuzuri Nana was silent for a moment. “Dead. Just a couple of days ago.”
Lin Qiye turned to look at her.
“He was a wanted criminal. Ending up like this doesn’t surprise me,” she said flatly. “From the day he abandoned my mother and me, I stopped thinking of him as my father. I’m not paying the debts he racked up.”
Lin Qiye nodded, saying nothing more. It was someone else’s family matter; he wasn’t in a position to judge.
“What about Granny Tsuru? Is she all right?” Nana asked, suddenly worried.
“She’s already gone home. She’ll be fine.”
“Good.”
Only then did Nana exhale in relief. “Thank you…”
“No need. I’m repaying a favor. Without you, I’d still be stuck in that reef,” Lin Qiye replied.
They strolled a while longer before Black Pupil stepped out of the warehouse holding an IOU.
“That fast?” Lin Qiye asked, surprised.
“Seems you still underestimate my professionalism, Director.” Black Pupil smiled. “Besides, that guy’s spineless. Before I even got serious, he spilled everything.”
“What’s the situation?”
Black Pupil’s expression turned grave. “More complicated than we thought.”
Lin Qiye’s brows drew together.
“This IOU is fake.” Black Pupil handed it over.
Lin Qiye and Nana both froze.
“Fake?” Lin Qiye raised an eyebrow. “In what way?”
“Every way,” Black Pupil said. “The whole thing’s forged—amount, debtor, everything. Iwamuro Yusuke wrote it himself.”
“So her father never owed anything?”
“Correct.”
Lin Qiye glanced at Nana; she stood there blankly, clearly unaware.
He understood Black Pupil’s implication. “They’re using a fake debt as an excuse to hunt for something?”
“Exactly. And the water here runs deep.” Black Pupil continued, “Iwamuro isn’t the mastermind, just a pawn. A big yakuza syndicate is pulling his strings.”
“Yakuza?” Lin Qiye frowned deeper.
“He doesn’t know which one. The man he spoke to called himself Mr. I. They got him hooked on drugs, promised five million yen when he delivers the item, and supplied the gun through their channels.”
Nana, who had been silent, suddenly asked, “Was the accent Kanto or Kansai?”
Lin Qiye and Black Pupil blinked.
“Does that matter?”
“Japan’s largest yakuza groups are few. Kanto is controlled by the Samukawa and Kazamatsuri families—together they could crush any other syndicate ten years ago, the ‘Twin Terrors.’ Kansai’s scene is messier; the biggest now is the Kuro-Satsu Group, young and shallow-rooted, nowhere near the Twin Terrors’ dominance. The accent narrows it down fast.”
Black Pupil looked at Lin Qiye, who nodded. He went back into the warehouse to question Iwamuro again.
“How do you know so much about yakuza?” Lin Qiye asked curiously.
Nana turned her head, avoiding his gaze. “M-my mom loved studying yakuza and host clubs. After spending so much time with her, I got interested too…”
She gathered courage and looked up. “My biggest dream used to be renting Japan’s most luxurious host club, stacking ten champagne towers, and dancing with the most famous host in the country.”
Lin Qiye stared at her serious, slightly flushed face, utterly lost.
He didn’t quite get it, but it sounded impressive.
“Mm.” He nodded sagely. “Noble dream.”
Nana froze.
She’d braced for ridicule—everyone always gave her weird looks—but Lin Qiye had simply, calmly approved.
Doesn’t he find it strange?
While she was still dazed, Black Pupil returned.
“Kanto accent,” he reported.
“So likely Samukawa or Kazamatsuri,” Lin Qiye mused. “What could make those two families move so aggressively?”
He glanced at Nana; she looked just as clueless, so he shook his head.
“Forget it. Dispose of him—he’s outlived his usefulness.”
Black Pupil nodded and went back inside.
Lin Qiye told Nana, “The gang’s handled. Even if their bosses want you, they’ve lost their eyes. Lay low somewhere new with Granny Tsuru and they shouldn’t find you. Money’s no worry—I don’t have much left, but enough to tide you over.”
He had too much to do: reach Osaka, find Amemiya Haruki, repair White Slash, nurture a blade soul, locate the rest of his team, and uncover this country’s truth. He couldn’t linger.
And with so little intel, he couldn’t swagger into Tokyo beneath the Pure Land and wipe out Japan’s two biggest yakuza families.