A Great Increase in Strength

Setagaya Ward, underground secret base.

"Those clothes suit you pretty well, Tanimura."

"You're too kind, Officer Iori."

Faced with Iori Ichika's teasing, Tanimura Wataru gave a shy little shake of his head.

He wore a special police uniform, complete with a badge of rank on his shoulder. It was a high-end, custom-made outfit, and even an ordinary person would look dashing in it.

Besides, Tanimura Wataru wasn't bad-looking. Otherwise, his younger sister wouldn't have gone through what she did.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Starting out as a superintendent..."

"You're the first person in the entire Metropolitan Police Department system to do that."

With Iori Ichika slapping his shoulder in her usual carefree manner, what could Tanimura Wataru say? He could only respond like a new employee:

"I look forward to learning from you, Senior Iori."

"And from you too, Senior Fuji."

"No need to be so formal. We're colleagues now, so I look forward to working with you too."

Fuji Seiko, her hair tied up in a high ponytail and her bearing heroic, held out her right hand and shook hands with the opponent she had fought to the death not long ago—now her colleague.

She was merely an 'Artificial Transcendent,' while he was a genuine Transcendent. In fact, he was the source of power for both her and her superior, Ichika. Besides, after reading his file, Fuji Seiko didn't dislike this young man, who still had a touch of scholarly air about him.

The law did punish evil,

but some evildoers deserved to die dozens of times over, even by the standards of a police officer like her.

Unfortunately, the death penalty approval process in Japan was so complicated it was despairing. Many notorious criminals had to wait ten or even several dozen years for a verdict.

Taking revenge and settling scores was a romantic impulse hidden in the bones of every ordinary person!

"What are you talking about?"

The door nearby opened, and a steady voice came from within.

"Director!" X3

The person who arrived was Director Takeya Haru of the Metropolitan Police Department. A career was a man's second spring; judging by his ruddy face and vigorous stride, he looked as if he'd returned to his thirties, when his energy had been at its peak.

"We're colleagues now, so there's no need to be so formal."

"If you have any problems, just tell me."

Director Takeya gave Tanimura Wataru, who had instinctively raised his hand in salute, an affectionate pat before gesturing toward the other side.

"Come with me."

"I'll show you a surprise."

"Oh, it actually survived?"

"Whine~~?"

Hearing its owner's words, the Shiba Inu—carefully tended to by a team of medical staff, wrapped in bandages like a mummy and even missing an eye—lifted its head slightly and gave its owner a 'resentful' bark.

After gaining magical power, it had become strong enough to tear tigers and leopards apart. Its intelligence had also skyrocketed.

It could understand its owner's words now, though it would almost have been better if it couldn't.

"Ah, sorry."

Faced with the dog that had taken a bullet for him twice, Tanimura Wataru awkwardly scratched his head.

Originally, the dog had only been a tool for one of his 'experiments.' Now, they had met again here.

Fate really was a strange thing.

"I can't believe this Akita Inu survived."

"Still, we have it to thank."

If the dog hadn't bought him time at the crucial moment, Tanimura Wataru would have died at the hands of the 'Rain Woman.'

"Mr. Tanimura,"

Fuji Seiko corrected him from beside them,

"this is a Shiba Inu, not an Akita."

Once they were fully grown, Akita Inus and Shiba Inus were easy to tell apart, but this one was clearly still a 'puppy.' It was easy to mix them up.

"Oh, is that so?"

Seeing that its owner had even got its breed wrong, the one-eyed Shiba Inu mummy grew even more melancholy.

Meet the wrong owner, and you're doomed for life; meet your owner, and you're doomed for life.

"Hahaha!"

"That won't do, Tanimura."

Iori Ichika gave Tanimura Wataru a hearty slap on the back and teased him without holding back.

"You're a proper Dog Demon. If you can't even tell dog breeds apart, the other demons will laugh you to death."

"Officer Iori... Senior, I'll be more careful."

Tanimura Wataru didn't mind Officer Iori's attitude. That carefree way of hers was something he'd only ever seen in close friends back in high school. By the time you reached university, everyone had to start planning for the future. Graduation day was the day you said goodbye forever.

"By the way, Wataru."

With the atmosphere so congenial, Director Takeya took the opportunity to ask,

"Can you turn other kinds of dogs into Transcendents too?"

After the Metropolitan Police Department had 'dug up the ground' in its search, it had even found both of this Shiba Inu's parents. They were ordinary pet dogs.

Combined with the abilities Tanimura Wataru had displayed, it was easy to guess the truth. But it was only a theory; they still needed to hear it from the person involved. Because the answer—

"Hmm..."

After closing his eyes to think for a moment, Tanimura Wataru nodded.

"I can."

Great!

As soon as Tanimura Wataru gave a definite answer, Director Takeya excitedly raised his hand. Even his fingers trembled as he pushed up his glasses.

The government's two Transcendents had both been made using serum from Shiba Inus. If Tanimura Wataru could turn large numbers of dogs into Transcendents, wouldn't Japan be able to produce Super Soldiers without end?

"If I'd known, I wouldn't have wasted a precious treatment opportunity."

Director Takeya's eyes fell on the Shiba Inu mummy. In the excitement of the moment, he'd spoken the truth.

?!

What did he mean?

The bandaged Shiba Inu, lying on the operating table, suddenly sprang upright.

I bled for the Metropolitan Police Department! I was injured for the Metropolitan Police Department! I demand to see the director!!

Wait, the director was the one who said that?

Then never mind~~

"However, there has to be an interval between transformations, and I can only turn three at most."

The Inuzuka Clan's Secret Technique came with dog-training skills, and they also sold various Ninja Dogs. Rumor had it that Kakashi's Eight Ninja Dogs had been bought from the Inuzuka Clan.

And although most members of the Inuzuka Clan focused on raising a single Ninja Dog, that didn't mean they could only control one. Inuzuka Kiba's older sister, Inuzuka Hana, fought with three Ninja Dogs. It mainly came down to cost and the amount of effort involved.

Akihi Yu had given Tanimura Wataru the ability to transform Ninja Dogs, without requiring years of training.

At the same time, though, this transformation had limits on both its timing and the number of dogs.

"I see."

After calming down, Director Takeya's smile didn't fade in the slightest.

What a windfall!

Not only had they gained Tanimura Wataru, a 'real' Transcendent, but once he transformed more dogs into Dog Demons, the government could extract more 'Transcendent Serum.'

By then, they could have a fully equipped Transcendent mobile unit at their command. If Transcendents caused trouble, they could quickly suppress—

Bang.

The door was pushed open, and a secretary rushed in with a mobile phone, his face full of anxiety.

"Director, there's been an incident!"

"Take a deep breath,"

Director Takeya, who had been imagining the future, glanced at the secretary in displeasure.

After experiencing so many 'supernatural incidents,' he was still so flustered and careless. He had no composure at all.

"Then give me your report."

"Yes, sir!"

After catching his breath, the secretary rattled off the news:

"The weapons and ammunition depot of the First Regiment of the Self-Defense Force's First Division in Nerima Ward has been robbed!"

????

Hearing this, Iori Ichika, Fuji Seiko, and their superior, Director Takeya, all looked as if to say, 'Are you messing with us?'

Tanimura Wataru, by contrast, didn't react. He simply went on playing with the little dog, who was covered in bandages.

"Robbed?"

"The First Division?"

Director Takeya took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

"Yes, Director."

How was that possible?!

Were the First Regiment's men all loafing around?

As he thought about it, Director Takeya grew less certain. The Self-Defense Force's First Division guarded Tokyo and consisted of four regiments. The First Regiment and Third Regiment drew most of their recruits from Tokyo Metropolis, the 49th Regiment from Kofu, and the 57th Regiment from Sakura.

Compared with the 49th and 57th Regiments, the other two were much less capable in combat.

During the last 'Earthquake Catfish' incident, the Japanese government had sent out its most 'elite' unit, the 49th Regiment. They'd still been beaten into a sorry state, but at least there had been no deserters on the battlefield.

As for the First Regiment, to put it bluntly, it was where various second-generation rich kids went to pad their résumés!

That couldn't be right. No matter how useless they were, there were over a thousand people stationed there. Surely they couldn't all be worthless?

"Come on. We're going to the scene!"

He waved a hand and brought along his three 'trusted aides.' No, four.

Including the Shiba Inu in Tanimura Wataru's arms, Director Takeya hurried toward Nerima Ward.

"Useless! You're all useless!"

"You couldn't even raise the alarm! You should all have committed seppuku on the spot!"

When Director Takeya and the four Transcendents climbed down from the helicopter, they saw the soldiers of the First Regiment standing in neat formation on the training ground.

A middle-aged man with the rank of colonel roared at the soldiers in fury. If he'd had a saber in his hands, he looked like he might have cut a few of them down to vent his anger.

Of course, he was only talking.

Seppuku had long since fallen out of fashion.

The last time it had happened was over fifty years ago. Only foreigners still believed that people in Japan committed seppuku at the drop of a hat.

If he tried to make this bunch of 'Tokyo brats' commit seppuku now,

they'd shoot him twice first!

"Sir, our opponent was a Transcendent."

"We... had no way to fight back."

A soldier spoke up, his neck stiff. What he meant was, 'If you can do better, why don't you try?'

"You—get out! Get out of my regiment!"

"Gladly!"

At that, the soldier took off his cap and turned to leave.

Being expelled from the Self-Defense Force meant losing his pay and having a black mark on his record. But if he couldn't be a regular soldier, he could just go home and inherit the family fortune.

After all, he'd only joined to pad his résumé. If he'd known he'd run into a Transcendent, who would have come to a dangerous place like this?

As the soldier left, the others also showed signs of eagerness in their eyes.

The colonel, who had witnessed it all, nearly fainted from anger.

A bunch of cowardly 'enemies of the nation.'

"What happened here?"

The colonel turned and saw Director Takeya approaching with three men and women.

The colonel took a deep breath and steadied himself.

This 'Director Takeya' was one of the most powerful people in Japan, a true figure of influence!

As the head of the not-yet-public Supernatural Countermeasures Division, he had been authorized by the Prime Minister's Residence to oversee everything related to the supernatural. His authority went without saying. The three people behind him looked extraordinary too. They were probably the legendary... Transcendents.

"Please, follow me."

Facing an official of such stature, the colonel didn't dare neglect him. He led everyone to the 'monitoring room.'

"Good grief..."

After watching the footage, Director Takeya could understand the soldiers' resentment.

The culprit was... a suit of armor!

That's right, the kind of traditional Japanese armor made from bamboo strips, leather, hemp rope, iron nails, and other materials. It wore an oversized helmet topped with a hornet-like ornament, an Evil Ghost mask covering its face, a long sword at its waist, and a shield-like guard at its side. It looked impressive, but could it stop bullets in modern society?

Hard to say.

If it had been ordinary armor, it would have been reduced to dust under gunfire.

But the 'armored culprit' that occasionally appeared at the edge of the surveillance footage was clearly no ordinary thing.

It had appeared in the First Regiment's base in broad daylight—or rather, in plain view—acting as though nobody else was there. The patrolling soldiers looked utterly bewildered. On the screen, the Self-Defense Force soldiers who saw the armor all exchanged puzzled looks.

They were probably thinking: who was out playing cosplay in the middle of the night?

The next second,

the soldiers turned around together.

Like foot soldiers clearing the way for a commander, the stiff-limbed Self-Defense Force soldiers on screen 'escorted' the suit of armor to the weapons and ammunition depot, opened the doors for it, and personally 'sent it in.' A few minutes later, they watched helplessly as it swaggered back out and left.

"So you're telling me it took you this long to catch on?!"

Under Director Takeya's rebuke, the regimental commander flushed and couldn't get a word out.

"Forget it. Let's go see the scene."

Director Takeya rubbed his brow. His earlier delight had completely vanished, leaving only deep exhaustion.

The Self-Defense Force had actually let someone stroll right in and empty its armory.

The story would be enough to make people die laughing!

Of course, the other side wasn't entirely to blame. From the surveillance footage, that "Armored Transcendent" clearly had the ability to control people. Who knew where he'd come from?

Tsk.

Quite the grand gesture.

High in the sky, Crow clicked his tongue as he watched the whole thing unfold.

What he'd given that white-haired old man was the Puppet Technique!

But when it came to making use of "puppets," the modern world was the true master.

Planes, ships, tanks, rockets. In theory, all of them were puppets. Compared to human-shaped puppets from the World of Fire that spat poison needles and flung shuriken, all kinds of firearms and artillery were every bit as deadly—and far cheaper, with vastly greater numbers.

Among the Six Paths of Pain, the Asura Path possessed high-tech weapons like "Five-Finger Missiles," "Missile Tracking," "Mechanized Armor," and "Strange Arm Rocket."

But apart from the "Head-Mounted Laser Cannon," the rest weren't all that far beyond modern technology.

And the Puppet Technique's combat power came almost entirely from external forces.

At the same time, with a Sealing Scroll, a Puppeteer could carry a vast array of gear.

After getting his hands on an entire regiment's worth of modern weapons and equipment, the destructive power that guy could unleash was enough to make Akihi Yu shake his head just thinking about it.

Puppet Technique combined with modern weapons was the most powerful combination for a short-term boost in combat strength. There was no better way to announce the arrival of a "new era." With that thought, Crow spread his wings and soared toward Katsushika Ward.

There were still too few actors. He'd recruit a few more and put on a grand show.

PS: In Japan, the ranks of the SDF's field-grade officers are divided into first, second, and third class, equivalent to senior, middle, and junior.