Chapter Eighty: Bewilderment

Within the city of Tokyo.

Ryuze Koshiro and Keigo Masaki had once again arrived in this devastated disaster zone.

The air was thick with the scent of disinfectant. Tents had been set up in many places, and wounded people, their heads wrapped in bandages, sat on the ground with nothing but a piece of cloth beneath them.

Groups of disaster victims stood in long lines to receive the free food being distributed, most of them silent.

An oppressive atmosphere hung over the entire disaster area, starkly contrasting with the bustling, undamaged half of Tokyo.

It was like the glaring disparity between the slums and wealthy districts of Africa.

“Here you go, hold on to it!”

“Thank you!”

“Next!”

...

“Don’t worry, there’s enough for everyone!”

Relief workers were serving bowls of miso soup and rice balls to the refugees lined up before them.

Watching these scenes, Ryuze Koshiro clenched his fists, the veins on the back of his hands standing out.

“Damn those Nagans! Damn Miyazawa! Damn Tango!”

He felt a bitterness in his heart. Anyone with a shred of conscience would have their sense of justice inflamed by the bleakness before him.

“I’m going to kill Miyazawa right now!”

Keigo Masaki, who aspired to be a savior, felt his own fury stoked by what he saw.

The Nagan was dead, and though Tango was out of reach for now, Miyazawa—the other chief culprit—could not be allowed to escape!

“Alright!” Ryuze Koshiro nodded vigorously.

In truth, even if no one laid a hand on him, Miyazawa was doomed. From the moment he became a giant, his life force had begun to ebb away; death was already fated for him.

Keigo Masaki quickly found a hidden spot, transformed into a silver giant, and appeared above Tokyo!

Citizens in the disaster zone, clutching half-eaten rice balls, stared in shock at the reappearance of the silver giant. Most had believed that Tiga and the other two Ultramen, champions of justice, had perished at the hands of the villainous giant. No one expected that one of the silver Ultramen would emerge again.

Speculation ran rampant among the people about the purpose of the silver Ultraman’s return.

Keigo Masaki shot into the sky above Miyazawa, whose body lay on the ground, warning lights flashing red. Drawing a deep breath, Masaki began to gather energy, invisible waves shimmering from his chest.

Sensing danger, Miyazawa struggled to prop himself up. Looking skyward, he saw Masaki floating above, energy swirling around him.

“No one can kill me!” Miyazawa roared, his eyes bloodshot. With a mighty heave, he flung open his arms to gather his own energy.

A blinding clash erupted as two beams, each filled with destructive force, collided with a searing brilliance.

There was never any doubt about the outcome of this duel of light.

Miyazawa perished in the blaze, reduced to ashes by Keigo Masaki’s Zeperion Ray, leaving no trace behind in this world.

Standing on the ground, Ryuze Koshiro narrowed his eyes against the glare, feeling a rush of exhilaration.

...

Meanwhile, at his post monitoring Miyazawa, Shinjo muttered, “Damn... You killed Miyazawa just like that—satisfying, sure! But how am I supposed to explain this to headquarters?”

He stared blankly up at the giant in the sky, voicing his complaint.

“Oh well, I saw nothing, I know nothing...” Regaining his senses, Shinjo covered his eyes with both hands like a bashful girl, murmuring to comfort himself.

......

“When two opposing energies collide, the giant will shut down. At that moment, the Artdis can fire the Megas Cannon as a final attack to destroy the giant! That will solve everything!”

In the TPC base command center, Norii stood with both hands planted on the white conference table, speaking excitedly to the others.

He and Dr. Yatsuo had already worked out the specifics!

“Leave it to us!” Commander Munakata’s brow furrowed, and he clenched his gloved fist.

Norii continued typing rapidly and rhythmically at his keyboard, the staccato clatter heightening the tension in the room.

“The Megas energy module is ready!” Norii then turned to Rina. “As long as we reverse the Megas system and use the energy module to shine light upon the giant, we can bring it to a halt!”

Rina understood his meaning. This operation required her, the ace pilot of the Victory Team, to carry it out—there could be no room for error.

“Then it’s in your hands!” Captain Hijikata said to them sternly.

“Remember, there will be only one chance!” Norii rose to his feet, his expression grave.

“Understood.” Rina paused, then nodded firmly, her beautiful eyes filled with determination.

“Huh!” Norii suddenly exclaimed.

“What is it, Norii?” Captain Hijikata looked at him in confusion.

“Just now, the silver giant reappeared and killed Miyazawa! His life signs are completely gone!”

“How could that be... Weren’t Tiga and the other two giants all... gone?” Rina said in disbelief.

“So the giants... were not dead after all?” Captain Hijikata murmured.

“Heh, that must have been Masaki.” Daigo’s lips curved into a barely perceptible smile.

“Miyazawa’s death was well deserved!” Captain Hijikata composed herself and continued, “Since Miyazawa is now dead, there’s no need for Shinjo to remain in Tokyo. Norii, contact him at once and have him return to join this mission.”

With that, Norii immediately contacted Shinjo in Tokyo.

Receiving the message, Shinjo launched his ship like a rocket straight into the clouds, heading back to TPC headquarters.

———

In the Tokyo disaster zone.

“At last, some of the anger in my heart has been vented!” Ryuze Koshiro said to Keigo Masaki, who had returned to human form.

“Me too,” Masaki nodded, having personally destroyed Miyazawa. “Now only Tango remains!”

“From the way you speak, it sounds as though you know Tango?” Ryuze Koshiro asked, a little puzzled.

“That’s right.” Masaki lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled a long plume of smoke.

“He was a classmate of mine in middle school. Even then, he was timid and weak—a guy anyone could bully.”

Masaki glanced over with a smile. “Back then, even I bullied him!”

“I see...” Ryuze Koshiro nodded thoughtfully. “Perhaps it was all that negativity he absorbed as a child that turned him into the madman he is now.”

“Maybe.” Masaki shrugged. “He’s chosen to set himself against all humanity. That’s his own decision.”

“Is it really his own decision...” Ryuze Koshiro mused. If he hadn’t been bullied since childhood, if his heart hadn’t been filled with so much negativity, perhaps Tango would never have turned against humanity as he has.

“Sometimes, the source of many disasters is humanity itself.”

A sudden sense of the darkness within the human heart weighed on Ryuze Koshiro, and he couldn’t help but feel a faint pang of sympathy for Tango.

He quickly shook his head. How could he possibly feel sympathy for someone like Tango?

He accepted a cigarette from Masaki, sat down on a relatively clean piece of rubble, and started to smoke... In the depths of his dark eyes, there lingered a faint trace of confusion...