Chapter 512

Kai Toru quickly shared his thoughts.

It's the pebble, it's the smooth pebble!

On this gravel ground, the surface of the pebbles is actually very smooth, and Horikawa Nen is a 58-year-old civil bureaucrat who is extremely close to old age, and he's wearing leather shoes, so even Kai Toru, this vigorous young man, almost slipped due to tension and intense mental focus, let alone Horikawa! This guy still has to divert attention to watch the surrounding police and the detonator in his hand!

Therefore, when seeing Horikawa Nen also slip on his soles, a lightning-fast thought, like lightning splitting darkness, exploded in Kai Toru's mind!

Those gravel stones… are slippery! Back when street kids fought in parks, many slipped! That guy was wearing leather shoes, stepping on them…!

"Make him slip! Make him lose balance!"

A thought based on countless field experiences and delinquent background flashed through Kai Toru's mind like lightning.

Directly tackling or colliding is extremely dangerous, but making the target lose balance on their own can maximally reduce the instantaneous impact on the bomb!

"Uesugi Chief, Watanabe Management Officer, cover me!" Kai Toru said in a low voice: "Too late!"

At this moment, Uesugi Muneyuki was still hesitating, but Watanabe Minami gritted her teeth, and the young Special Mission Unit Superintendent made the most resolute judgment in an instant: "Good! We support you! Be quick!"

"Good! Kai, it's up to you!" Uesugi Muneyuki finally nodded too.

"Yes!" Kai Toru nodded fiercely, and thus, in the blink of an eye, the action began!

"Put down weapons! Put down weapons!"

Uesugi Muneyuki suddenly pushed through the crowd, extending both hands toward Horikawa Nen, indicating he only had a flashlight in his hand: "Don't get excited! Horikawa-san! We can talk about anything, nothing is off-limits! Tell us what you want, okay?"

"There's nothing to talk about between us! This country is already dead!!!" Horikawa Nen, seeing the surrounding police all put away their guns and also seeing Uesugi Muneyuki wanting to negotiate, couldn't help but scream while slowly backing away: "Get farther away! Who let you approach me? Don't come over! If you come closer, I'll press it!"

However, the surrounding police had indeed all put down their weapons upon Uesugi Muneyuki's order, so Horikawa Nen also slightly lowered his guard, while simultaneously, his mind had to focus on the countless police surrounding him, pay attention to the detonator, and sneakily move deeper into the Imperial Palace, so his steps unconsciously slowed, and his attention wasn't enough on the action.

At the moment when Horikawa Nen's right foot bore his full weight and was about to step onto that smooth gravel.

"Wah wah wah wah~~~!"

As if cheering himself up, and as if wanting to attract the opponent's attention and intimidate the enemy through an "ape cry," Kai Toru let out a near-roaring battle cry, pouring his entire body's weight and explosive power into his right arm, and hurled the sturdy metal Imperial Household Agency flashlight like a baseball, precisely and fiercely smashing toward the spot just ahead where Horikawa Nen's right foot was about to land, between several pebbles!

"Crack!" a crisp impact sound!

Almost simultaneously, Horikawa Nen's right foot firmly stepped down! The smooth pebble was already hard to gain traction on, plus the interference from the rolling cylindrical flashlight, his ankle suddenly twisted outward!

"Huh!? What…" a stunned, painful groan squeezed out from Horikawa Nen's throat!

The excruciating pain from the ankle twist and the immense inertia from losing balance made his body completely lose balance, his whole body like a twisted doll, uncontrollably and miserably crashing hard toward the side-front!

This falling angle was crucial—he fell sideways, maximally avoiding his body weight directly and violently impacting the bomb on his chest!

And at this very moment, Uesugi Muneyuki and Watanabe Minami moved! Both simultaneously pointed the three strong flashlights from the Imperial Household Agency at Horikawa Nen's eyes!

Bright flash!

The Assistant Section Chief of the Imperial Household Agency Library Division was blinded by this move, his vision going white, and out of human bodily instinct, he immediately tried to cover his eyes with his hand.

"Auntie!!"

Kai Toru hesitated not at all, having already activated upon throwing the flashlight, and charged like a leopard!

He didn't go to grab Horikawa Nen's right hand holding the detonator (too dangerous, might trigger an unconscious press), but instead used his full body weight and momentum, with a precise side tackle, tightly locked Horikawa Nen's left torso and left arm, and forced his head down toward the ground beside his own chest, simultaneously using his body as a buffer pad to minimize the direct impact force between him and the ground!

"Bang!" The two heavily fell onto the gravel ground.

Now! Uesugi Muneyuki immediately turned his gaze toward those nearby.

Open the door! Release Ikeda!

Almost at the same moment, the surrounding Special Mission Unit members who had reacted swarmed forward! They now had no reservations—Kai Toru had already borne the greatest risk.

"Subdue!"

"Control the right hand! Detonator!"

"Quick!"

Several pairs of hands wearing tactical gloves tightly pressed down on Horikawa Nen's limbs, and Ikeda Erena followed, using her utmost professional technique to instantly lock the wrist of his right hand holding the detonator, and twisted hard!

"Ah Ah Ah!!!" Horikawa Nen let out a cry of pain, the detonator flew from his hand, and was barely caught in midair by the lunging Uesugi Muneyuki!

"Detonator secured!"

"Target subdued!"

Roars followed one another, filled with the trembling of having survived calamity and the incredulous ecstasy.

Success?

It actually succeeded!

"Despicable! Too despicable! You lot of imperial lapdogs! Actually taking advantage of someone's peril!"

"Ku ya xi! Ku ya xi!!!"

With the detonator taken, Horikawa Nen became like a mad dog whose spine had been pulled out, though still shouting curses, the greatest threat had already been removed, he unwillingly glanced at the already nearby Ninomaru Garden, trembling all over with rage.

"Ikeda!!!" Watanabe Minami's shrill roar followed: "Make him quiet!!!"

Ikeda Erena finally got her chance to shine, the Tall Beauty hesitated not, delivering a precise, controlled palm strike that fiercely cut into the nerve cluster on Horikawa Nen's neck side.

Horikawa's cursing stopped abruptly, his body stiffened violently, then went completely limp, sinking into unconsciousness.

"Got it!" Uesugi Muneyuki gripped the detonator, feeling like he was holding a hot potato, afraid that if he didn't grip tight enough it would fall, and if he gripped too tight it would explode: "Date!!"

"Here I come." Date Nagamune, like a heavy yet swift beetle, immediately stepped forward, similarly taking the detonator from Uesugi Muneyuki's hands with both hands slightly trembling, his head soaked in sweat, he performed extremely professional movements, carefully turning over the detonator, opening its interior with specialized tools, like conducting a precision surgery, slowly stopping the function of this chilling device.

Every second felt like a century.

Until Date Nagamune finally stammered: "Detonator function disabled confirmed!"

"Target already subdued, confirmed, target already subdued!"

"We need a bomb disposal expert! Repeat, ten thousand urgent! We need a bomb disposal expert now!" Acting Unit Chief of the Special Mission Unit, Nango Yui, almost shouted into the walkie-talkie: "Target temporarily unconscious! We need the Security Department's bomb disposal expert!"

"Received, received, bomb disposal expert is already en route, can arrive in as fast as five minutes! Until then please maintain suppression!" The Police Commissioner Tamaru's roar immediately came through the walkie-talkie.

Roars followed one another, filled with the trembling of having survived calamity and the incredulous ecstasy.

When five minutes later, the Security Department's bomb disposal experts arrived, and when the vest was completely removed and swiftly transferred into the blast-proof container for sealing, only then did everyone truly and thoroughly exhale the stale air they had held for so long.

"Bomb defused! Scene secure!"

These words spread across the entire Imperial Palace via radio, and also reached the temporary command post.

Inside the temporary command post, a deathly silence lasted for two seconds, then was broken by a kind of near-exhausted panting and the heavy sound of people collapsing in relief.

Director of the Imperial Household Agency Maeda Toshisuke slumped directly onto the ground, continuously wiping the cold sweat soaking his head with a handkerchief, his fingers still trembling slightly.

Chief Kenji and Chief Steward Takeuchi made eye contact, both seeing the fortune of surviving a calamity in the other's eyes; even Vice Minister Nakajima couldn't help loosening the tie that was choking him breathless.

Director Maeda wept openly, repeatedly pressing his fingertips against his Jingming Acupoint, muttering to himself: "Thank goodness... thank goodness... truly... Lord Toshie protect us!"

The Chief Steward beside him also let out a long breath, as if he had just walked a round through the Gate of Ghosts.

At the scene, the atmosphere tense to the extreme instantly dissolved.

Replacing it was an incredulous, almost exhausted ecstasy. The Imperial Police officers could no longer maintain their solemn expressions; many slumped directly onto the ground, panting heavily, while others excitedly slapped each other's shoulders, their faces glowing with the relief of escaping death.

Likewise, the news sped toward the Cabinet Crisis Center.

The already limp Prime Minister Yamada and Kanchoukanbou Onoda and the others quickly learned this news from Watanabe Eiji's mouth!

"The bomb is defused!" Kanchoukanbou Onoda and Prime Minister Yamada embraced excitedly, the Kanchoukanbou shouting in the Prime Minister's ear.

"Really?" Prime Minister Yamada wept with joy, he feigned deafness: "Louder! I can't hear!"

"Really! Really defused!"

"Huh? Really~~~? Can't hear!!!" Prime Minister Yamada was still feigning deafness, but he could no longer suppress his ecstasy: "Seems like it's real? Who? Who did it?! I'll reward him, heavily reward him!"

"I'll reward him too!" National Public Safety Commission Chairman Higashi Kotaro excitedly hammered the desk surface with both fists.

"Me, me, me... ugh ah!" Police Commissioner Tamaru simply fainted away.

"Seems like it was still the Special Mission Unit who did it! A young person seized the chance and made Horikawa slip..." The Minister of Defence barely maintained his calm, but his constantly trembling hands had already betrayed him: "Seems like it was that... Vice Minister of Justice, Kai's son..."

Soon, all gazes, whether on-site or through surveillance screens, focused on those few young detectives who had just completed a heaven-shaking reversal, this legendary department that deployed collectively in a flash, the Metropolitan Police Department's trump card and last line of defense!

In national crisis, think of loyal generals! In chaotic times, think of loyal subjects!

The Special Mission Unit again! They've achieved merit again!

And this time the first merit goes to — the Special Mission Unit Assistant Police Inspector currently rolling on the floor, who sprained his shoulder and wrist from moving too much, Ministry of Justice Administrative Vice-Minister Kai Mineaki's son, Kai Toru!

(Chapter End)