Kami-Jutsu: The Yakuza's Son is Aware-Chapter 33: Onii-sama’s Bride!

After that, I reintroduced them to Ferry, and in doing so, stumbled upon a small conspiracy.

"Yes, he’s a lovely pet—"

"I’m a Divine Wolf famili—"

"—and judging by the way things look, it seems he kept our secret from you... Ah."

"Najimi, you idiot!" Ferry flinched.

I squinted, "Najimi, spill it."

I forced Najimi to finally disclose the truth, and as it turned out, they had known she would go through with this plan for almost eleven months beforehand.

They had even made an agreement not to tell me.

"Don’t look at me like that!" Ferry snapped, his fur bristling. "You know how she is; She threatened me!"

In the end, I had to play my own part in resolving the matter. That meant allowing Najimi to join me on my nightly missions.

Speaking of those missions, I had been secretly training in the woods with Grandfather. I was fairly certain no one knew about this particular progression in my drill, so far.

My swordsmanship had risen to a considerably high level since we began.

Grandfather’s proficiency was something to behold, especially for someone his age. Even when I increased my own strength to three times that of a regular human, he still defeated me with ease.

I was careful never to unleash my full power against him, for fear of accidentally injuring him. Yet, deep down, I suspected that even if I did go all out, Grandfather would still win.

There was something in his understanding of the sword that went beyond mere strength.

"Just see the sword as an extension of your body, and many other secrets will reveal themselves in due time," was the last piece of advice he gave me.

Over the course of nearly a year, I had also learned to handle firearms and knives with decent skill, training under Father’s men and various associates.

I knew I still had to hone these abilities further, but soon... soon I would try my hand at bringing down another mammoth syndicate.

A few months ago, I began to literally see Kami particles—shimmering golden dust that drifted through the air like smoke.

It didn’t truly change much, since sensing them had always been more practical than seeing them. Still, I suppose being able to visually perceive them was a sign of my growing mastery in the art.

The nights in Tokyo were far from peaceful. Najimi, Ferry, Mai, and I had taken to playing vigilante, hunting down gangsters and thugs. Though, it took every ounce of restraint I had to keep Najimi from killing someone.

"Oh no! It’s him—the Shinigami Ō!"

"What?! That brat who eats big Mafia for breakfast?!"

"But who are the others with him?"

Najimi, dressed in a dark outfit and wearing a brown fox mask over her face, tilted her head and spoke with haughty disdain.

"Hmph, bags of flesh and blood. You shall know me as Onii-sama’s Bride!"

"GASP! O-Onii-sama’s Bride?!"

As I had already suspected, Najimi’s martial arts talent far exceeded my own, even after all the training I had endured.

She was not only stronger, but far more practical in the application of her skills. When she fought, it was like facing five of her at once. Her focus and concentration had been almost supernatural from the very beginning, after all.

It wasn’t that I had expected her to be dead weight. But she had far surpassed my expectations.

*

The four of us were now kneeling in the living room, receiving an earful from Mother for returning home late on a night when, according to her, "the Shinigami Ō psychopath was roaming the streets of Tokyo."

"And somehow you roped Ferry into it too! Mai, you used to be so obedient!"

Mai and Ferry had long faces and droopy eyes.

I wonder why no one was concerned about the pet dog kneeling like a human.

While she continued to scold us, my mind began to drift elsewhere.

I wasn’t sure... should I really let Najimi accompany me on my mission to eradicate the mammoths who encourage pure evil in Tokyo?

She certainly had the skill to face someone like Yamada—and possibly win—given her tactical mind, practical nature, creativity, and martial arts expertise.

But Yamada was the only godman I had encountered so far.

I didn’t want a situation where... No. I shouldn’t think about i—

"Hey, are you listening, Ken-chan?!"

"Ah... What were you talking about?"

"Argh! Ken-chan used to be such a good boy!" Mother groaned, placing her palm against her forehead in dramatic frustration. "Najimi, this is entirely your fault!"

"Huh?! You make it sound like I’m some kind of villain! All I did was fall in love and help him understand it!" Najimi shot back, her voice sharp with indignation.

"Ken-chan is a pure maiden—"

I am a boy, Mother.

"—so you and your perverted antics will corrupt her pure soul!"

HIS pure soul, Mother.

The back-and-forth grew more heated with every exchange, until it escalated into the two of them actually pulling knives and engaging in a fight right there in the living room.

Father quickly appeared to mediate before either of them got carried away.

Don’t worry; this sort of thing is normal in the Kurosawa household.

My gaze drifted to our family’s crest hanging on the wall: a stylized image of a hand firmly gripping a sword.

I reminded myself then and there that I would not stop fighting for the clan until we had regained our former strength and standing.

For now, our progress was slow but steady. The Sabertooth Mafia was in serious decline, their influence eroding by the day.

The Spiders had all but vanished. Others like them had grown silent. Former business partners, once distant and wary, were beginning to return.

And Father had been smiling more often lately.

I had never been one to wear a wide smile myself, so seeing his genuine joy filled me with a warmth I could not quite describe.

Of course, there was one problem—Father had made it clear that he intended to eliminate the Shinigami Ō on sight. He would cut the vigilante down without hesitation if their paths crossed.

I couldn’t help but wonder... would he still follow through if I told him that the Shinigami Ō was me?

*

I entered my room with Ferry close behind and made sure to lock the door.

"Phew—"