Ryusei Sato

Japan. Tokyo. 2004.

What were the odds of getting cornered in an alley...by girls...? Ryusei didn't know either. Of course, he'd heard in passing that it was best not to enter that area at night. They said it was a "dead zone" and they'd carry you out feet first.

But it so happened that this area significantly shortened his path to Tosva’s gathering place.

Sato expected everything: yakuza, drug addicts, thugs... but girls? He was even a little confused. Sukeban. What a surprise. He'd only seen girls like that in movies.

He didn't know how to act properly. They were girls, after all, but they were unlikely to get along if he started flirting like usual. The problem was, Ryusei didn't hit girls, but judging by their smirks, they were more than willing to hit him.

Long black fleece skirts, cropped sailor suits with embroidered sleeves and backs. Bats, brass knuckles, knives, and bikes.

Well, the atmosphere around them is not at all sexy as he thought, but gloomy, like a cemetery.

They cornered him in a dark, cramped alley, hitting him with a bat a couple of times as a precaution. He would have fought back, but they were girls.

The sound of someone's footsteps made everyone fall silent, and Ryusei held his breath in anticipation.

The crowd around him parted along the walls to allow the man to pass.

A girl in the same uniform, over which was thrown a signature jacket with red embroidery "Head of the 4th Squad." She stopped looking down at Sato as he sat on the ground.

Ryusei decided that he needed to get out of this situation.

• Hello... I was just passing by... said Ryusei, forcing a friendly smile.

I'm in real trouble.