Shirou's Thirty Million Avatars

"Don't set your sights on Erina. Your enemies should only be me and Mana, right?"

"You know about my affairs?" Shirou's expression darkened, and a trace of Conqueror's Haki, laced with draconic might, involuntarily leaked out.

Nakiri Senzaemon instantly felt his heart tighten, his breathing turning ragged.

Beside him, his granddaughter Erina was forced back several steps, her back pressing against the doorframe as she trembled uncontrollably.

"Enough! Take my head if you must, but I beg you to spare Erina."

"It seems you've been waiting for this day all along."

"Half a month ago, after I looked into your past, I knew this day would come."

Shirou pondered, his demeanor gradually calming, and asked in a low voice:

"If that's the case, why didn't you fight back? Half a month should have been enough time."

"Would it have mattered? Your influence spans nations across the world; even replacing a prime minister is just a word from you." Nakiri Senzaemon paused, then repeated, "You can take my head, but I beg you to spare Erina."

"Heh... Truly touching. But do you think that's possible?" The gloom on Shirou's face deepened.

Nakiri Senzaemon took a deep breath, stepped forward slowly, and knelt in a dogeza position, speaking again:

"Take my head as you wish, but please spare Erina."

This sight left Shirou silent.

His purpose in coming today wasn't to start a war.

But because of the man's attitude, he'd gotten a bit carried away just now.

"Can you make a dish?"

"If that will make you spare Erina, I'm happy to oblige."

Behind Shirou, Minezaki Yaeko stood dumbfounded, head lowered, her mind racing.

Until now, she'd believed Sakurai Shirou had booked a meal at the Nakiri family's place in advance.

'What's going on here? Weren't we here to eat? How did it come to this?'

'And why did old man Nakiri say Boss's influence spans nations worldwide? Wasn't Boss just the president of a large construction company?'

'That old man Nakiri, known for his iron will in public opinion—why is he so submissive in front of Boss? Even if it's for his granddaughter...'

She followed closely behind Sakurai Shirou, occasionally stealing glances up at him.

'Come to think of it, after Boss slimmed down yesterday, he looks a few years younger, almost like when we first met seven years ago.'

As she passed Nakiri Erina, still leaning against the doorframe, Minezaki Yaeko saw the mix of anger and fear in her eyes and wanted to offer a few words of comfort, but opened her mouth only to hesitate.

As a secretary, she'd used her own methods over the past seven years to stop some of Sakurai Shirou's indiscriminate killings, but that was all in the shadows.

Openly defying him, she simply didn't have the nerve.

Dozens of minutes later, in the Nakiri family dining room.

"Please, enjoy. This is a work poured from all my heart."

Nakiri Senzaemon, clad in a chef's uniform, stood solemnly by the dining table.

On the table sat three dishes: a sea bream sashimi, a dried fish snack, and a seafood soup.

Shirou glanced back at him, picked up his chopsticks, and took a piece of sashimi, biting into it gently.

In that instant, a vision of ocean breezes seemed to unfold before his eyes, a fierce appetite stirring within him.

In a flash, all three dishes were consumed.

"So this is cuisine at the world's peak?"

"From now on, I'll establish a new culinary academy and compete with Totsuki on fair terms."

Nakiri Senzaemon let out a long sigh and ventured cautiously:

"Does that mean you'll spare Erina? And what about Mana..."

"You two are outsiders; I can pretend you don't exist. But that woman, Nakiri Mana—I'll make sure she sees hell."

"I'm willing to take Mana's place..."

"Relax, I don't plan to kill her. Living is sometimes more painful than dying."

"Sigh..."

Nakiri Senzaemon sighed softly and didn't press further.

At least Erina was safe, no matter what.

As for Mana, he'd have to take it one step at a time.

Just then, a male voice came from outside the door:

"Director, there are so many people here—did something happen?"

Soon, the sound of bodyguards stopping him from entering echoed from outside.

"Let him in," Shirou said in a low voice.

"Yes, Boss."

The next moment, a middle-aged man walked in.

He stood at the door, swept his gaze around the room, then fixed his eyes on Shirou. Hesitation flickered across his face as he asked, uncertain:

"What's your relationship to Sakurai Shirou?"

"I am Sakurai Shirou."

"Doesn't look like it. Soma told me Sakurai was a big fat guy."

The man paused, his expression turning serious as he said:

"But since you say so, I'll take you for Sakurai."

"Yesterday, you won my family's restaurant from Soma and left him with quite a bit of psychological trauma."

"Today, I was planning to ask the Director to look into your background. Since you're here, even better."

"Have a match with me! I'm taking Yukihira Teishokuya back."

Chapter 59: Maybe That's Just Talent

"Oh...? Why would I bother competing with you?" Shirou countered.

"You're not afraid of losing, are you?" Yukihira Joichiro narrowed his eyes, trying a taunt.

"Heh... This isn't a Food War, but it's still staking a restaurant. You're offering nothing upfront and expecting to get something for nothing?"

"Of course not! I'm willing to put up money equal to the value of Yukihira Teishokuya as the stake for this match."

Shirou shook his head slightly, rejecting the idea:

"Not enough. That street—I'm planning to turn it into a residential district."

"Lose any one shop, and the whole plan falls apart."

"Yukihira Teishokuya might be worth just a single building to you, but to me, it's tied to the entire street. Its value equals that street's."

Yukihira Joichiro fell silent. There was some logic to what the other man said, but the problem was that while he had some savings, it was nowhere near enough to buy the whole street.

A few seconds later, he turned to look at Nakiri Senzaemon and ventured:

"Director, you know my cooking skills well enough. Could you lend me the money?"

Nakiri Senzaemon's face showed hesitation. As he mulled it over, he suddenly noticed Sakurai Shirou staring at him expressionlessly. He quickly averted his gaze and refused:

"Sorry, Joichiro. This is your match. I have no reason to interfere."

What's going on?

A flicker of confusion crossed Yukihira Joichiro's face as he thought to himself:

Isn't Sakurai just a wealthy contractor? Why does the Director look at him like a mouse spotting a cat?

Could it be he's got something on the Director?

Given how shady this guy is, that's probably it.

"Looks like I'll have to find someone else to borrow from."

"I'll lend it to you!"

Nakiri Erina seemed to have recovered from her fear. She stared straight at Yukihira Joichiro, her expression dead serious.

"Thank you very much! Then I won't hold back."

Yukihira Joichiro didn't refuse. Borrowing money from a junior was a bit embarrassing, but he trusted his cooking.

"If I win, besides Yukihira Teishokuya, all the shops on that street will belong to me."

"Fine." Shirou nodded slightly.

"Director, let me use the kitchen." Yukihira Joichiro looked at Nakiri Senzaemon.

"Go ahead. Use it as you please."

Nakiri Senzaemon paused, then said in a low voice:

"Be careful. Don't let your guard down."

"Don't worry, Director. I'll give it my all."

Yukihira Joichiro rolled up his sleeves and strode confidently toward the kitchen.

Watching him leave, Nakiri Erina hurried over to Nakiri Senzaemon's side and whispered:

"Grandfather, can we talk?"

"I know you have a lot of questions, but now's not the time. Let's wait until all the guests have left."

"No. Right now. Otherwise, I'm not sure what I'll do to our so-called guests."

Silence.

Nakiri Senzaemon let out a long sigh and nodded slightly.

No choice. To keep Erina from acting recklessly and causing a huge disaster, this was the only way.

"Mr. Sakurai, may I step out for a moment?"

"This is the Nakiri family estate. You can go wherever you like—no need to ask me."

"In that case, my apologies. Erina and I will take our leave for a bit."

Once the two had gone, Minezaki Yaeko slipped out of the dining hall without a sound and secretly followed.

In the courtyard, tucked away in a secluded corner, Nakiri Senzaemon let out a sigh.

"Erina, what do you want to know?"

"That person—who is he really? Why... are you so afraid? This is a society governed by law—can he just kill someone in public?"

"Erina, you don't understand. Where there is light, there is always darkness. And he is that darkness."

"So what? With the Nakiri family's influence, we shouldn't have to fear him."

"No. We are utterly incomparable to him."

Nakiri Senzaemon shook his head slightly, lifted his gaze to the birds soaring in the sky, and breathed a soft sigh.

"If he is an eagle overlooking the earth, then we are ants crawling on the ground."

"There are over two hundred countries in the world, and nearly every one of them hosts his enterprises, spanning every industry imaginable."

Seeing that Erina still didn't grasp it, Nakiri Senzaemon paused for a few seconds before speaking slowly.

"Let me put it another way, and you'll understand. At least one-fifth of the world's population are his employees."

"How is that possible?" Nakiri Erina asked instinctively.

"I find it just as unbelievable, but that is the unvarnished truth."

"Then... to be his enemy is to stand against the entire world, isn't it?"