Shīno felt unable to trust any of his employees completely, but he placed complete faith in Kazutaka. Since he understood Shīno’s worries, Kazutaka always cooperated, but this kidnapping felt utterly unexpected.
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Kazutaka wondered where they were taking him. They'd said that they wouldn’t harm him but they were thieves after all. Just how far could he trust them? After traveling quite some time, Kazutaka felt the car turn off of the expressway. He couldn’t hear anything from the outside. The only hints he had he gained from their conversation. Kazutaka listened intently but they hardly spoke. Kazutaka had no idea how many of them were there or where they were heading. He heard words like “pier,” “Tokyo,” “not using hotel,” “call later,” and “expert is coming.” He had no choice other than to believe those words. Kazutaka remained submissive to their demands.
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Shortly after that, Kazutaka heard the chief calling someone. The car kept moving for several more minutes until it eventually came to a stop. The engine was killed.
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“We may be spending the night here. Toshi-kun, can you get us some bento?”
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A voice, sounding as if it came through the speaker, replied, "Okay." Kazutaka heard the sounds of people entering and exiting the vehicle.
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The chief’s voice said, “He’s calm, very cooperative.”
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Several footsteps approached Kazutaka. A low voice suddenly spoke from right next to Kazutaka.
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“Should we take off the blindfold and gag, Yuri?”
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“You’re probably right. It’s not like he can run away or anything. Go ahead and take them off, Ren.”
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Someone bent down next to Kazutaka. Something touched his face. Shortly after, a flood of bright light shone into his eyes. Because he had been blindfolded for so long, his eyes had become accustomed to being in the darkness. Kazutaka found himself having to close his eyes tightly in order to look away from the sudden bright light. It felt too bright to open his eyes. A manly voice spoke, sounding surprised. “Is he just a kid?”
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“A kid wouldn’t transport jewelry, Ren.”
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“But he is rather...”
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He didn’t actually say the word childlike, but Kazutaka knew that’s what the man was thinking.
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“Let me tell you something.” Although his arms and legs were not free yet, and he couldn’t open his eyes in the sudden light, Kazutaka attempted to protest as much as he could.
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“I’m not some kid, but an adult, a contributing member of society. Look up Nagomi Kyōshitsu under the Minamihama City Board of Education in a phone book. Call them and ask for Kazutaka Yui, adaptation class counselor. They’ll know who I am.”
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The chief’s kind voice asked, “Counselor? If you report to the Board of Education, you’re not a senior volunteer, are you?”
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“Not a senior volunteer. I run a publicly funded class for school-phobic children. My official title is middle school teacher.”
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“Why is a school teacher working at Shīno’s store?”
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“I’m not his employee. I was just asked to take care of this transport.”
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There was an awkward silence. Kazutaka slowly opened his eyes and saw two of them. One was small and slender. He wore a black top and a matching pair of trousers and was looking down at Kazutaka. The other one was in a white, short sleeved T-shirt despite the cold weather. Behind them both stood a heavily-bearded man. That must be “Todo-san.” Kazutaka thought.
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There was another young and skinny man with brown hair. Kazutaka assumed that was “Toshi-kun.”
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“Which is easier, Ren? Opening the case? Or removing the handcuffs?”
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The man in black seemed to be the one who’d been beside Kazutaka the entire time, the chief with a gentle voice. The chief was now talking to the T-shirt guy in a whisper. Kazutaka decided that the T-shirt man must be the lock-picking expert.
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Although the blindfold and gag had been removed, his arms and legs remained tied up. Since he couldn’t get up, there was no way Kazutaka could intimidate these thieves by glaring or actively protesting. Knowing it would be bad to irritate them so much that they would say, "He’s become a nuisance. Let’s just get rid of him," Kazutaka took a deep breath and became quiet.
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The man, whom they called Ren, bent down to check out the attaché case. In a matter of less than three minutes, he got up.
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“It’ll take quite a while. The remote control uses infrared. It’ll take me about five hours to figure out the frequency for each of the locks. Over 20 hours total.”
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“What about the handcuffs?”
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“These handcuffs are state of the art, recently developed in the States. The remote control for them has a fingerprint sensor. Only authorized persons can open them.”
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The chief crossed his arms upon hearing this news.
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“We’re getting on a ferry at five o’clock. Do you think you can make it in time?”
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“That’ll give me 17 hours. I might be able to break three of them at the most by then. I can tackle the last one after getting on the ferry.”
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“I don’t wanna drag this poor man onto the ferry.”
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They were making Kazutaka’s life miserable. If they truly had pity on him, they would turn around and take him back. But Kazutaka knew that he shouldn't risk pushing any of their buttons. This was no time to be defiant.
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“Let’s get started now.”
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“We’re counting on you, Ren. Can you untie him, Todo-san?”
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“Are you sure about that, chief?” the macho looking man, the one they called Todo-san, asked in his very deep voice as he frowned.
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“It’ll be all right. He says he’s a school teacher. Let’s hear his story as we work. I’d like to know why he was helping Shīno. His stomach was growling earlier, too. He needs to eat something. Give him one of those bentos you got from the convenience store, Toshi-kun.”
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The young one said, "Okay," then moved away. Quickly returning, there was a rustling sound as he removed a bento from a shopping bag.
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Without softening his stern look, the man called Todo-san untied the rope, which was tethering his arms and wrists together, then freed his legs. Todo-san supported Kazutaka’s back to help him sit up. Only the handcuffs and the attaché case were still intact. For a split second, Kazutaka toyed with the idea of knocking everyone down and running away. The group consisted of the chief, Todo-san, Ren, and Toshi-kun. Four people, eight fists. Kazutaka had one attached to the attaché case, leaving only one hand free. Kazutaka knew there was no chance he could get away.