"Speak." he said simply.

"Her full name is Tanaka Himari. She's twenty-three and, as you know, she's blind. Apparently, she wasn't born blind. A car accident when she was a teenager."

Eiji remained silent for a moment.

"Hm... what else?"

Hiroshi replied:

"She lives in Osaka with her parents and Tsuya. She works at her parents' konbini. Boss, she's flying to Japan tonight. I have some photos I found on her Instagram account. Do you want me to send them to you?"

Eiji cut him off before he could finish.

"Yes. Is that all?"

"For now, yes. If you give me more time, I might be able to find out more about her."

Eiji shook his head.

"No need, I'll find the rest myself. What about you? Just make sure you know her schedule, I want it by tomorrow morning at the latest. What about Hiroshi? Don't bring this up with my father." he ordered before hanging up, not even giving Hiroshi time to respond.

"Tomorrow..." He sighed, leaning back on the sofa, looking up at the ceiling.

"Why do you intrigue me so much, Tanaka..." he murmured to himself as his phone vibrated.

"Hm?" Eiji looked at the screen, and there she was... Himari. The photo showed her at the beach; she was wearing a white summer dress with a straw hat, laughing out loud, holding her hat as if it were about to fly off, her hair falling just above her shoulders, similar to black silk. Her eyes were unfocused, but radiated a warmth and happiness that made Eiji's heart beat faster.

Eiji sketched a lazy smile.

"Well, aren't you a little beautiful thing ?" he murmured, his thumb brushing the screen before he set the phone down on the table beside him.

"Tomorrow." He promised again.

After a restless night when he'd barely slept, as much out of impatience to get home as out of a desire to see her up close, without the danger around them this time, Eiji was already ready to head up to his car to finally catch the jet.

He came out of the bathroom, and saw Jamal standing by the door; he'd already put the suitcases in the car while Eiji was still asleep early this morning. He knew how quickly Eiji wanted to leave this place.

Hearing his footsteps, he looked up.

"Boss, ready to go?"

Eiji nodded, buttoning the sleeve of his crips black shirt.

"Let's go, at last." He slipped on his holster before putting on his suit jacket.

"Where's Toma?" he asked as he walked passed him.

Jamal's exasperated sigh was heard.

"Already in the car, but he won't drive. I'll drive, the idiot's got a hangover."

Eiji's deep laugh echoed in the empty hallway.

"Classic."

They descended the stairs, without stopping at the reception desk; his father had already paid for the suite anyway. As they left the Lotte Plaza, Toma was already in the car, asleep against the window, mouth open and glasses on his nose. And this man is in charge of keeping Eiji alive....

"You weren't kidding, he's still breathing, I hope?" he asked, tapping the window, waking Toma with a startdle yelp.

"I wasn't asleep!" he exclaimed, wiping the drool from the corner of his lips with the backs of his scarred fists.

Eiji let out a laugh, settling into the back seat and closing the door behind him.

"Yes, and I'm the Queen of England. Idiot. How much did you drink to get to this shitty state?"

Jamal replied as he settled behind the wheel.

"10 whiskies. And I stopped counting the tequila shots."

Eiji burst out laughing, a rare but sincere sound.

"What?! Did you want to kill yourself or something?!" Toma merely grunted, while Jamal laughed before setting off for the airport.

After a long time and many red lights-much too long, the smell of food still present and pervasive, the endless traffic and the unbearable shrill horns-he turned off his hearing aid.

After these tortuous moments, the airport was finally in sight. At the stairs of the private jet, two stewards were waiting for them with smiles so bright they almost seemed sincere.

Eiji, unsurprisingly, was the first to disembark. Turning back on his hearing aid

"Eiji-sama" The two stewards greeted him, bowing their heads.

"It's a pleasure to have you on board."

Eiji nodded curtly, already climbing the steps.

"Phew, finally." he grunted as he took his seat.

The interior of the jet was sober: black carpet, white sofa and gray seats, black marble bar and white counter. Nothing to do with the flashy colors of the hotel; it was more his style.

One of the stewards entered.

"Eiji-sama, may I offer you something to drink?" he asked politely.

"A whisky. And bring me some snacks as well." he said, without taking his eyes off the window, his chin resting on his fist.

The man nodded.

"Right away."

Jamal settled into the seat opposite, while Toma reclined on the sofa, drifting back to sleep. His chestnut hair was a mess, sticking to his scarred eyebrow. A scar he claimed to have gotten in a bar fight, but Eiji knew the truth: it was a bike accident. But Toma refused to admit it. According to Jamal, Toma had said, "The boss wouldn't care anyway, so what's the difference?"

But Eiji did care, in his own quiet, cold way.

Seeing his pensive expression, Jamal asked.

"What are you planning? You've got that look. The look you get when you're about to do something you shouldn't."

Eiji smiled, one leg resting on the other. His suit pants hugged his muscular thighs.

"Your observations are sometimes frightening. Let's just say I'm planning to greet a new friend."

Jamal"s dark eyes narrowed.

"Are you talking about this woman? Boss, with all due respect, why are you bothering with this?"

"Hm... and why not?" he said, just as the jet took off.

Jamal sniffed, shaking his head.

"You're something else."

The steward returned with the drinks and snacks. He bowed and left.

"I know." he said, taking his glass and sipping deeply.

The flight lasted 13 hours. When they finally arrived at Tokyo's Haneda airport, Eiji, too exhausted, had fallen asleep during the flight. Jamal was the only one to stay awake the whole time.

On landing, Jamal stood up and shook Eiji's shoulder hard enough to wake him up.

"Boss, we've finally arrived."

Eiji stretched, his eyes still heavy with sleep, and yawned as he straightened up, showing off his six-foot frame.

"Really?" he said, stretching to chase away the sleep.

Jamal nodded.

"Phew, finally. Wake him up. I'll take the car. You two go home without me. Give the report to my father for me."

He pulled out the contract signed by Big G, still soaked with the smell of his blood, and handed it to him.

Jamal frowned.

"Where are you going?"

"My penthouse." he said simply before stepping outside.

Outside, the fresh Tokyo air hit his face, a contrast compared to the air in New York. "Home sweet home."

Ignoring the greetings of his subordinates, he headed straight for his waiting car.

"Get out." he ordered his chauffeur, taking his seat on the driver's side, waiting patiently for him to get out.

"I'll drive myself."

The driver, accustomed to such requests, got out and gave way to him. Without thanks or politeness, Eiji settled in and drove off.

As he drove through Tokyo's traffic, he felt a sense of belonging, but also of excitement: he was planning to see her, now. So he stepped on the gas pedal.

His luxurious apartment was 30 minutes from the airport. He'd never told anyone about it; everyone knew he had this apartment, but he'd never mentioned exactly where it was. This penthouse was for those times when he wanted to be alone, away from his family, just to breathe for a moment, away from the chaos.

Toma and Jamal did as instructed. They arrived at the gates of the Sato clan's mansion, hidden in the mountains near Kyoto. Behind the gates stretched a long driveway leading to the traditional Japanese mansion, which consisted of a courtyard and a garden with a carp pond. The gates opened and they walked down the driveway to the house. Armed men stood at the gates. Eiji's mother, Hana, stood at the door, smiling, happy to see her firstborn, but her smile disappeared when she saw that only Toma and Jamal were there.

She frowned.

"Where's Eiji?" she asked, disappointed.

They bowed their heads respectfully.

"He told me he had something to do before coming here." said Jamal, straightening up.

"I see... Well, let's hope he shows up tonight or at least tomorrow. Ren's in his office." she said, pointedly, before walking in.

"She's going to yell at him..."

Silence before he added.

"Again."

They then entered the house, walking towards the office of Ren, their Oyabun.

Stopping in front of the door, Toma laid a firm hand on Jamal's broad shoulder.

"I'll leave this with you, and stay outside with the others if you need me. Good luck, my friend." Then he left. Jamal knocked on the door.

"Come in," called a deep, stern voice. Jamal obeyed.

"Boss" bowed his head respectfully, feeling Ren's intense gaze upon him. This man inspired fear in every sense, and his imposing stature didn't help. The only people here who weren't scared were his children and his wife. His wife, even scarier in a strangely cute way, but he was afraid of her all the same. This man was madly in love with Hana, so he obeyed his little wife at a glance.

"I've come to bring you my report," said Jamal, straight, voice firm, but the sweat on his brow betrayed his nervousness. He took the contract out of his jacket and handed it to him.

"They ambushed us in a dark alley." He didn't mention Himari and Tsuya, as that would mean there were poeple who witnesses and ran off right after. He knew Ren wouldn't be pleased.

Ren took the contract.

"Ambush? And what happened?"

"We shot them down, there weren't many of them."

"Hm... I see, and where's Eiji this time?"

"He didn't tell me, sorry boss. He just mentioned he had something to do elsewhere."

Ren hummed.

"I see, you're dismissed." he said, waving dismisive hand. Jamal obeyed. Ren would surely question Eiji later.

Back at Eiji's, he changed in his room: suit replaced by a long black coat, white shirt, slim suit pants and leather shoes. He was getting ready to go to the konbini indicated by Hiroshi. He'd sent him her schedule too; Hiroshi is the best at finding out information about people.

She was working at 5 p.m. today.

He parked not far from the konbini, in an old parking lot rarely used because of the thugs around. He turned off his car and put on a mask, in case Tsuya was there; he didn't want to be recognized, at least not yet.

The konbini was small but well-maintained, warm and welcoming, with a simple sign: "The Tanaka's".

As he entered, the fresh smell of food and drink caressed his nose. The store was empty at this hour. He pretended to be looking for a snack. And then he saw her, at the cash register, serving a customer with a warm smile.

"She's acting as if nothing happened yesterday... why?" thought Eiji.

"Here you go, Mrs. Ito," she said, holding out her bags.

"Thank you, Miss Tanaka, you're lovely." said Mrs. Ito, triggering a small laugh from Himari. Eiji's heart leapt at the strangely cute sound.

When Ms. Ito left, he picked up a random snack, a packet of potato chips, the taste of which he didn't know or care about.

He placed the item on the counter.

"Hello, just a bag of chips for me." His deep voice echoed in the empty store, his intense gaze fixed on her.

Himari nodded with a polite smile, awkwardly reaching for the bag. She passed the item, and the machine announced the price aloud.

"150 yen" announced the robotic voice.

"Great stuff." he said, surprised, pulling out his black credit card to pay.

"I pay by card." He say

She laughed, shaking her head.

"Yes! Thanks to my father, he made this for me, and also this! Look." She pressed a button on the computer keyboard.

"Payment by card!" she ordered and the terminal was ready.

"I see... impressive..." he said as he swiped his card over the machine, the little beep sounding.

"Yes, it is!" she said proudly.

"Say, have we met before? Your voice sounds familiar."

"No," he lied smoothly.

"Hm... odd," she shrugged.

"I'd have remembered if I'd met someone as beautiful as you."

he flirted unabashedly. Which made her blush.

"O-oh, thanks! You too, I mean your voice is beautiful, I mean!" she stammered, making Eiji smile.

"Anyway! My name is Himari!" she said happily, holding out her hand.

Eiji looked down at her hand before taking it, which was as soft as it looked.

"Eiji." he said, lightly squeezing her hand, which she felt was rough.

"Eiji..." she repeated as if testing his name on her tongue.

"Pleased to meet you, Eiji!"

"The pleasure is mine..." Her gaze still on his face, she was even more beautiful up close.

The moment was broken by the voice of a man emerging from the back of the store. He was thin, but his presence commanded respect. Himari let go of her hand, and Eiji felt the chill of the sudden emptiness. This irritated him, but his face remained neutral.

"Himari," Himari's father said, stepping behind the counter.

"Everything okay?" he asked, eyeing Eiji's tall stature and attire with suspicion.

Himari nodded.

"Yes, Father, I was just greeting our new customer!"

Eiji greeted him with a nod.

"I won't trouble you any further." He turned to Himari.

"It's been a pleasure, Himari. I'm sure we'll meet again." He said, a promise, or a threat, perhaps both. But one thing was certain, Himari had caught Eiji Sato's eye, and that? was something dangerous.

"Made by Lazulie"

Note: Oyabun, supreme leader of the clan, a kind of "godfather."