The pink fox seemed to be in a great mood, her face adorned with an affable smile as she handed him a book.
She said it was the Prophet's prediction about him. Takuya didn't know much about the Prophet, but he read the book.
Takuya was shocked. He had only just had these thoughts and hadn't even decided to act on them, yet the book had already laid out his future clearly.
Then, he was completely won over by the Arataki Itto in the story.
Arataki Itto's fists didn't just shatter rocks—they broke through the "closed-off" heart of the Blue Oni.
Arataki Itto's words convinced Takuya, so he left his clan. He wanted to find Arataki Itto and use his own hands to help his clan escape their plight.
That's why Takuya, now by Itto's side, said that "back then" he didn't understand Itto.
Having read the story in advance, the current Takuya truly knew Itto better than his "future self."
Back to the story, Takuya explained the Blue Oni's current situation.
["We've cut ourselves off from the world, severing ties with it by our own hands. We have no fixed home, no stable food source…"]
["The things I stole from humans were sent to my clan. Those things keep them from starving and ease their suffering."]
This… Inazumans sighed inwardly.
While they sympathized with the Blue Oni, they couldn't condone Takuya's actions.
Sure, this might ease the Blue Oni's "suffering," but what about the people who were robbed? They had their own lives to live, each struggling to survive.
Still, it seemed this Blue Oni named Takuya was truly acting for his clan. He stole wealth but didn't harm anyone, so he wasn't irredeemably evil, which is why Inazumans sighed.
A good person forced to do bad things was something no one wanted to see.
They only hoped that after the Prophet wrote this future, such things wouldn't happen again.
[Takuya: "The Blue Oni have always been the bad guys. It's only natural for bad guys to do bad things, and it won't affect the Red Oni's reputation."]
["The Blue Oni no longer exist! But the Red Oni must live on!"]
This was just Takuya thinking too simply. He thought the Blue Oni could take the blame for their actions.
But how could humans distinguish between Blue and Red Oni? They'd just pin it on the Oni clan as a whole.
Even if the culprit was found to be a Blue Oni, without the Prophet's book, how would ordinary people know the difference? They'd just think the Oni were bad.
In the story, the Tenryou Commission came to apprehend them. Takuya fled first, and Itto fought a big battle with the Tenryou Commission. But having been hit with beans by the Traveler earlier, he wasn't in great shape and struggled against their numbers.
Just then, three of the Arataki Gang's members—Akira, Genta, and Mamoru—arrived, using "taunts" to draw the Tenryou Commission away from Itto.
Having escaped the Tenryou Commission's pursuit, Itto finally had time to chase after Takuya.
Following Takuya's tracks, Itto found the ronin's hideout.
Readers couldn't help but marvel. This guy was definitely better suited to being a detective!
He accomplished what the Tenryou Commission couldn't! Talk about the "police" always being one step behind.
Before the ronin's hideout, Lumine asked Itto:
["Do you really understand Takuya's resolve?"]
Arataki Itto responded: Oh, my dear old pal, of course I do. Only a fool like Takuya would think his plan could work.
So now, I'm gonna kick his butt with my geta to make him realize his ideas are as dumb as a stupid mole rat.
Only then can I save his rotten ideas, which stink like the expired tofu Granny Oni cooked.
Ahem, speaking seriously, Arataki Itto said:
["Yeah, of course. I'm not that dumb."]
["The whole world only has fools like Takuya who think his ideas could work."]
["I'm here to save him. I won't accept any other outcome."]
Detective Tadpole (no typo) and his assistant Lumine entered the ronin's hideout together.
The ronin left guarding the place were no match for Itto. He easily taught them a lesson with his big club, freeing the hostages.
Among the freed hostages were Daisuke's parents.
Lucian drew an illustration showing Itto with the freed hostages, including Daisuke's parents, to commend Itto for doing a good deed.
But readers said, "Ma'am… you're so beautiful… Daisuke's mom is gorgeous, right?"
Daisuke's parents told Itto that Takuya had been protecting them, even giving them water and food.
He didn't seem like a bad-hearted person—more like a confused kid who made a mistake.
They hoped Itto, as his "family," could guide Takuya back to the right path.
[Itto replied: "Haha, don't worry. I won't let you down. I'll make him see sense."]
After Daisuke's parents left, Itto chuckled to himself with a sigh in his laughter.
["A kid who made a mistake. Heh."]
Readers were stunned. Wait, Itto, you're making us feel like we don't know you.
This isn't the Itto we first met! Can we go play with Onikabuto instead?
You're so mature now it's scary. If you keep this up, we're starting to get won over by you.
In the story, Itto faced no obstacles, smashing his way from the bottom to the top with his big club until he finally found Takuya on the upper level.
The ronin's leader, named Nogata, had been taken care of by Itto's club, but he still didn't give up.
He pulled out a mystical talisman, claiming that if he tore it, the place would explode in a burst of art.
But he didn't expect Takuya to "betray" him—the talisman was already in Takuya's hands.
Readers cheered—great job, Takuya! Not only did you avoid breaking the law, you earned merit!
Look at his actions: infiltrating a criminal gang to protect hostages, stopping the gang leader from silencing them, leaking their location to Itto and the Tenryou Commission.
And finally, preventing the gang leader's self-destruct plan. He's practically a top-tier secret agent!
It clicked! Now they understood how Kuki Shinobu handled the aftermath. Even I could do that!
Itto seized the chance to knock Nogata out with his club and was about to praise Takuya. But to his surprise, Takuya used the same method to threaten him.
["Step back! Or I'll tear this talisman!"]
Readers gasped—don't do something stupid! You were about to earn merit, and now you're done for.
Takuya did this because he didn't want to face Itto. He didn't want to confront the proudly living Itto after losing the pride of the Oni clan.
The Tenryou Commission arrived, and Takuya declared himself the culprit, telling them to arrest him. He wanted to sacrifice himself to clear Itto's name.
===✧✦✧===
Character Voice · Arataki Itto: About His Own Story
"You say I make a lot of sense? Was I spouting grand wisdom? I just think people… whether human or Oni, should live with dignity like this!"