Chapter 131
It wasn’t for nothing that Chiba Bank was a Data Bank favored by criminals and high-ranking individuals, widely renowned for 'never' leaking Customer information.
The level of its security system was truly incredible.
The fact that even that terrifying cyborg Ninja chose to paralyze the Surveillance network using a Net Virus and bypass it rather than Break Through head-on said it all.
metal tiles morphed into spikes and shot upward, transforming into blobs of mercury that floated in the air, Aiming for the Ninja’s face, limbs, and chest.
It was a brutal offensive that seemed aimed at annihilation rather than just stopping an Intruder, but the Ninja’s response went One Step further.
When the floor turned into a metallic swamp that pulled and stabbed at him, he gave up on keeping his feet on the Ground and soared vertically.
As if gravity had been reversed, he leisurely pushed off the ceiling, twisting the direction of his Cutting Wire like a whip mid-air to slice through the liquid metal blobs.
Twisting his body in midair, he kicked away the deadly cones Shooting toward him, using the recoil to propel himself forward.
And I was at the end of that zigzagging trajectory.
“Crazy.”
At this point, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
He was a truly Crazy Ninja.
Swaaaaak――――!
By the time the thought crossed my mind that this might be dangerous, a chilling sensation had already was right before my eyes.
The Ninja’s pitch-Black Katana. He was trying to kill me even if it meant throwing his main weapon.
My life flashed before my eyes. The Microchip had just turned off, of all times.
There was no way to block or dodge it.
I’m screwed.
CRUNCH―――――CLANG.
Just as I thought I was going to meet a futile death, a Metal Wall shot up from the floor and blocked the blade the Ninja had launched.
He had thrown it with such brutal Force that the blade had smashed through multiple layers of Titanium Alloy barriers like tofu, the marks of it barely stopping at the very last layer were clearly visible.
“Gasp.”
As someone who had just stepped foot on the threshold of death, I let out a trembling breath, and only then did the Account Room’s announcement voice ring out.
Top priority: Customer Protection. We Guide you to the evacuation route.
Then, the wall slid open from where I stood, and the tiles leading to the newly created Emergency exit glowed blue, highlighting the path.
Thank God my gamble paid off.
I was certain the Data Bank’s security system would consider the cyborg Ninja an Intruder (since anyone could tell he wasn’t a Customer), but I wasn’t sure how it would judge me, the person he had kidnapped.
I was worried it might lump me in with the same Intruder gang and Attack me, but fortunately, the Data Bank seemed to recognize me as a Customer since I possessed the entry pass for Box No. 5 - the Man Hunter’s Memory Drive.
Thanks to that, I lived.
If the Protocol prioritizing Customer Protection hadn’t activated, I would have died without a doubt.
[Test Subject, it is not yet time to relax. Please escape quickly.]
Just as I was about to ease my mind a little, the AI Assistant spurred me on.
It wasn’t over.
The cyborg Ninja’s gaze was still Tracking me.
If I had felt malice or hostility, I would have accepted it. I had experienced gazes filled with such emotions before.
But this tin-can Ninja was different. Even his killing intent felt like a coldly forged blade. I could feel the apathy of a Butcher simply doing his job, a disregard that treated even himself as a mere tool.
Was this how the protagonists in movies felt when chased by the Killing Machine Terminator?
As I lowered my body and sprinted along the blue path like an arrow, the metal room rapidly narrowed.
The floor and ceiling I slid past formed a slope, creating cover that deflected the projectiles from the elongated pistol the Ninja pulled from his coat.
If I hadn’t quickly hidden my body behind it, my head would have been pierced by bullets.
Still, I eventually made it out alive.
I was Outside now.
Srrrrrk.
The open Emergency exit door melted and closed, and through the gap, I saw the murderous data room transforming from a Cube to a sphere, and from a sphere to a point, attempting to suffocate the Intruder.
And inside it, was the sight of the cyborg Ninja Persistently deflecting the metal spikes until the very end, drawing closer One Step at a time.
“…”
Logically, there was no way he could escape from in there and chase me, but I took several steps back just in case.
Just when I thought I was far enough, I felt the faint vibration of an Explosion and looked back in horror.
Fortunately, the closed Metal Wall remained intact. It was firmly holding its place.
I waited quietly for a few more minutes, but there was nothing unusual. The Data Bank was as silent as if nothing had happened.
“…He’s dead, right?”
When I muttered to myself, the tenant in my head replied.
[I am not sure. This Assistant has never seen a Test Subject like that before either.]
It sounded somewhat appalled.
* * *
Thank you for using the Chiba Data Account Bank. Have a pleasant day.
Well, I doubt it’s going to be a pleasant day.
I had somehow succeeded in defeating the Ninja, but that didn’t mean all the risk factors had disappeared.
It was the same when I left the Data Bank.
They definitely had to know about the commotion in Account Room No. 5 - the Crazy cyborg Ninja and the Suspicious Customer running away from him - yet the bank employees asked nothing about it.
As I tried to Leave the resplendent lobby, the staff merely threw questions like, “Were you satisfied with your use of the bank?” and “Do you have any intention of revisiting?”
As if I would revisit, I was terrified it would appear in my nightmares, so there was no way. I casually tapped one out of five stars for satisfaction and walked Outside.
Even if the Data Bank’s principle was “We do not ask about customers, we never leak Customer information,” did it Make Sense to be this indifferent?
They should have at least asked about the Malfunction of their own security system.
It made me anxious, as if they were saying they already knew everything.
Also, there was the possibility that the cyborg Ninja had colleagues.
He might have kidnapped me, entered the Data Bank, and hacked the security system all by himself, but it was more reasonable to assume he had a helper assisting him.
That Helper might not even be just one or two people; there could be a massive corporation or Faction behind the Ninja.
A Group that employed such a ridiculously Powerful hitman couldn’t possibly be a trivial Organization.
For that reason, worrying about a potential pursuit and preparing for a sudden Attack, I took the expensive Mitsibichi Unmanned Safety Taxi, took a roundabout route, paid a hefty fare, and finally arrived home - the Kabuki Building Condominium.
By then, the sun was high in the sky.
It was 2 PM.
I had gotten off work around 5 AM… and after going through all sorts of things, I returned home at this hour.
Before I knew it, there wasn’t much time left until my next shift.
The thought of it crushed my body with immense fatigue and emptiness.
Dragging my exhausted body up to the 10th floor of the building, I was greeted by a face I hadn’t seen in a while.
“Masked Asian!”
It was the Rooster Comb Yakuza, Shimizu Dick.
Any other time, I would have chatted with that frivolous Thug, but not today.
Good to see you. But I’m too tired, so I think I need to go in and sleep quickly. Let’s talk later…
That was roughly what I was thinking of saying in my head.
The face of the Yakuza running from afar looked unusual.
It wasn’t his usual drug-addled, hazy face, but a startled expression accompanied by an urgent voice.
“You’re alive!”
“Of course I’m alive. What―.”
“Your room is completely trashed! How come you’re so late? I thought you got caught by a gang or those dangerous bastards or something.”
I actually had been caught by a very dangerous guy, too.
Anyway, what?
Trashed?
Feeling an Ominous Premonition, I gave Shimizu Dick a brief reply, “I was late because of work, it’s nothing,' and hurried to my room.
My room. Kabuki Condominium Unit 0973.
I realized something was terribly wrong when the flimsy plastic door greeted me wide open.
I definitely locked it when I left.
A chilling sensation brushed down my spine.
The inside was desolate.
I didn’t have many pieces of furniture to begin with, but it was even worse now. All the appliances were smashed to pieces.
There were a dismantled bed frame and mattress, a broken Garment Steamer that had vomited out all its clothes, a shower room and restroom littered with glass shards and junk, a dented vending machine and refrigerator.
Literally trashed.
It looked like gangsters had rummaged through the place. They had made a complete mess of the house, as if looking for something.
Upon checking, only one thing was missing amidst the Pandemonium.
My trophy.
The plastic case containing the Man Hunter’s severed prosthetic arm was gone.
Realizing that fact, I flopped down onto the sofa with its springs and sponge sticking out.
Raindrops leaked in through the torn shutters and broken window. The Cold wind was biting and freezing.
“…”
What should I do?
Right. Maybe I should have expected this too.
The fact that they attacked me on my way home meant they roughly knew who I was, where I worked, and where I lived.
Naturally, they must have already searched my house thoroughly, and when they couldn’t find what they were looking for, they kidnapped me.
No, maybe it was different bastards from the start. The ones who robbed my house might have no connection to the Ninja at all…
“…”
My head felt like it was going To Explode.
Right. I won’t find an Answer like this anyway.
Let’s put aside the complicated thoughts and do what needs to be done first.
I forcefully pushed the thin, creaking door - which had become even more ruined than before - shut with a screeeech.
Then, I turned on the Cyberwatch Messenger.
I needed someone to help me in this hopeless situation.
After debating between two registered contacts, I reached out to one person.
[Hey, Nakamura-kun. Our cutie New Full-time Employee! What’s with the Denwa (Phone Call)? You don’t usually contact me!]
It was Dragon President.
Hearing his heavily drunken voice, I momentarily wondered if I had called the wrong person. He had gone out saying he was going to drink vodka with Red Mountain, but I didn’t expect him to still be drinking.
I was debating whether I should hang up and call my other Superior.
Perhaps sensing something unusual in my voice as I said “no, it was nothing,” Dragon President’s voice sank low.
[…Is something wrong? Tell me. Anything is Fine.]
His voice was serious, completely devoid of his usual ridiculous Dobon-go Speech Pattern.
After I briefly explained the situation I was in, the boss remained silent for a moment before speaking.
[Wait a minute. I’ll go… No. I’ll send someone. That’s better. They’ll arrive soon. So don’t move a muscle and stay right there.]
And then he hung up.
How much time had passed?
As I stood there blankly, I heard the sound of knocking on the door.
He said soon, but they really arrived in the Blink of an eye. I didn’t think even five minutes had passed.
BANG BANG BANG BANG―!
I didn’t know who it was, but he had sent a hot-tempered person.
Slightly on Guard at the sound of the door being pounded as if it would break, I shouted in an annoyed voice.
“The door is open!”
Because the door lock was broken, I couldn’t even lock it.
It was when I stood up from my seat with a sigh.
[Test Subject, is that person Outside right now someone you know?]
The door opened.
“…”
And Sey was there.