Although she had expected it, hitting a wall with Kurobe Saburo still left Ameko feeling a little frustrated. She and Zhang Heng found somewhere nearby to hurriedly eat lunch, then rushed to the public hospital where Asano Naoto had previously been resuscitated.
After asking at the ward visitation registration desk, they found that Hayami Rinko was indeed no longer there. However, the head nurse passing by stopped when she heard the name.
"Senior Hayami did work here, but she's retired now. When I first arrived, I couldn't do anything right. Senior was the one who kept encouraging and guiding me. What do you need her for?"
Zhang Heng raised the fruit basket in his hand. "My father was in a very serious car accident before, and Aunt Rinko was the one who nursed him back to health. We wanted to thank her again."
This sort of thing was fairly common in hospitals. Many patients or their families would return after discharge to thank the attending physicians and nurses. Hayami Rinko, in particular, often received thanks because of her exceptionally conscientious attitude and meticulous professionalism. Combined with the basket of fruit in Zhang Heng's hand, the current head nurse did not doubt the two of them at all.
She tore off a sheet of paper, wrote down an address, and handed it over. "Good thing you ran into me. Senior Rinko is here now."
"Evening Cherry Care Center?" Ameko read the name of the place from the slip of paper.
"Yes. Senior Hayami never married and has no children. After retiring from the hospital, she went there to volunteer. She said she wanted to keep contributing while she could, and also find herself a place to belong in her later years." The current head nurse's tone was filled with respect.
After thanking her, Zhang Heng took the subway with Ameko to the nursing home in the suburbs. This time, with the staff's help, they met Hayami Rinko without much trouble.
She was teaching an elderly man who had almost completely lost his hearing how to arrange flowers. Seeing Zhang Heng and Ameko, she looked somewhat puzzled but still nodded at them.
Five minutes later, Hayami Rinko had settled the old man and walked over. "You are?"
Perhaps because of her profession, Hayami Rinko had looked stern and meticulous in the photos. Zhang Heng had worried that she might be difficult to talk to, but upon meeting her in person, he found her far more easygoing than he had imagined.
Zhang Heng handed over the fruit basket, and the three of them sat down on the sofa.
"We wanted to ask you about something. Do you remember that serious traffic accident twenty-two years ago? Two young men were racing the wrong way down the highway and eventually crashed into a large truck. One died on the spot, while the other was seriously injured. The injured man was called..."
"Asano Naoto." Hayami Rinko picked up. "I remember it. Not because the news was covering it at the time, but because that child was still so young. He kept fighting against death. You could tell he didn't want to leave this world, but unfortunately, I couldn't help him."
Zhang Heng and Ameko exchanged a glance. "We heard that you stayed by his side the whole time. I... we're his family. We wanted to know whether anyone visited him while he was conscious, or whether he asked to see someone."
"No, you aren't his family." Hayami Rinko shook her head. Her eyes seemed able to see through people's hearts, and under her gaze, Ameko could not help but feel her cheeks heat up.
Zhang Heng remained composed and added, "Distant relatives."
"..."
Hayami Rinko smiled but did not press the issue further. "If you're asking about someone else, I won't tell you anything without that person's or their family's consent. But as for him... it's rare for anyone other than the media to still care about him."
"What do you mean?"
"Asano Naoto was a very lonely child. During the three days he was hospitalized and receiving emergency treatment, only his grandfather came to see him once. I heard his parents had already severed ties with him... Oh, right, he seemed to have an uncle too, but that man only sent two subordinates to stand outside his door. They never went in."
"So, you're saying no one cared about him at all?" Both Zhang Heng and Ameko were somewhat surprised by that answer.
Hayami Rinko sighed. "People in our line of work are supposed to be used to life and death, but it's still rare for someone so young to leave this world in such loneliness. He never regained consciousness in the end. I don't know whether that was fortunate or unfortunate."
After leaving Evening Cherry Care Center, Ameko's expression was full of confusion. Contrary to what she had expected, meeting Hayami Rinko had not made the events of that year clearer. Instead, they had become even stranger, and now thick fog lay before them.
Asano Naoto's uncle clearly had not cared that much about his nephew. Twenty-two years ago, he had not even been willing to spare the time to visit him in the hospital. There was no reason for him to suddenly remember to avenge him so many years later.
But if the people who set fire to the seafood shop that night had not been from Onitō, then who were they? Why would they target Takeda Tetsuya, who had long since left the racing world? And why pretend to act in Onitō's name?
"No, this makes no sense logically." Zhang Heng said. "As things stand, their goal was to force your father to walk into Onitō's trap. But if they knew about this, they could have simply told Onitō directly and let Onitō deal with your father."
Their investigation had reached a dead end, and they had no other leads for the moment. It was getting late, and someone was still hungry after missing lunch, so Ameko went to the KFC by the roadside and got two family buckets to go. Then they took a taxi back to her cousin's small apartment.
As they stepped out of the elevator, Ameko searched through her bag for the keys. But in the next instant, Zhang Heng's expression suddenly changed.
He noticed that the apartment door was open. Though it was only a narrow crack, Zhang Heng clearly remembered that they had locked it when they left. Ameko could be a little adorably scatterbrained at times, but she would not make a mistake like that.
The girl grew anxious at the sight. She feared that Takeda Tetsuya had gone alone to turn himself over to Onitō. Although Asano Naoto's uncle had not cared much about his dead nephew, with the killer coming to his doorstep, he could not possibly let the man go, even if only to preserve his dignity as an underworld boss.
Ameko lifted her foot to rush inside, but Zhang Heng grabbed her.
A powerful warning rose in Zhang Heng's heart. In Takeda Tetsuya's condition, it was impossible for him to break free from the ropes by himself. Someone else had definitely helped him. And the state of this door was far too strange—neither fully open nor closed, as though it were telling anyone outside to hurry in and take a look.
Before he understood the situation, Zhang Heng intended to take Ameko away first. But the people inside had clearly heard their footsteps. The next moment, a figure rushed out from behind the door. Judging from his clothes, he was one of the same group as the men who had gotten out of the dark-blue Voxy outside the seafood shop earlier.
Zhang Heng had never trained in boxing, but he had always worked out, and his physical condition was still better than that of an ordinary person. Just as the man reached into his pocket, Zhang Heng had already stepped in front of Ameko and swung a full-force punch into his face. The man was completely dazed by the blow and fell backward into the apartment.
Zhang Heng had not fought anyone since graduating elementary school, so even he was somewhat surprised by the result of that punch. But he quickly steadied himself. This was not the time to marvel at his own strength. The urgent priority was to press his advantage. The other side was very likely carrying a gun. He was just about to pounce forward and follow up when a cold gun barrel pressed against the back of his head.
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