Kappei Hattori might be an apostle with an amazing superpower, but he would not survive on the frontline. He was far too used to being a commander, not a fighter. Apart from a lack of experience, he was also too much of a coward to be at the center of combat.
He excelled at one thing and one thing only—leading large armies to bully the weak and helpless. He was not one to fight losing battles.
This was why he put aside his rage and fear and complied to the wishes of the man in the mask. There was no denying the opponent's destructive capabilities. His life was at stake here and he was not going to do anything that might endanger it. Everything else was secondary.
Zhao Yao grinned as he accepted the new mission. He darted away with a swoosh, disappearing from view.
Once he was out of sight, Kappei let out the breath he was holding. He clenched his fists and turned to his secretary, eyes blazing with fury. "Heh heh, what you heard was Arabic?"
"It really sounded like Arabic." lamented the adjutant in aggrievement.
"Erm, yes, I believe so," the secretary replied subserviently.
Kappei ripped the headset from his ears and smashed it to the floor.
He shouted, "Gather all the men and phone HQ immediately. Tell them what had happened and request backup."
"Captain South Korea, I will capture him!" he announced through gritted teeth.
Just as Kappei Hattori regrouped with a dozens of Special Higher Police members and waited for reinforcements, something came into his vision as the weirdo appeared once ago.
Zhao Yao threw Shuichi Kotori and his fellow apostles onto the ground before Kappei Hattori. Old Cat had typed a message on his phone and he used the text-to-speech function which read out loud: "Here are the men you're looking for. There's no need to thank me for my help. Just keep a close eye on them so Captain North Korea can't get his hands on them again."
Then, he vanished again with a swoosh, leaving Kappei with no time to react to what had happened.
The men of the Special Higher Police looked at the Pine Needle Group apostles who were laying by their feet in confusion. They could not make sense of what was happening.
"Were there really two apostles just now?" Kappei wondered, "One named Captain North Korea, who wants to save Shuichi Kotori, and another named Captain South Korea, who wants to help us?"
Just as he thought that the situation could not get any weirder, the blinding white light had appeared again, robbing the men of their sight.
This time, they were better prepared for the assault since their eyes were not focused on a particular direction. Therefore, many of the men had their backs or sides facing the source of the light when Fish Ball beamed down its beam.
"Be careful!"
"He's back!"
"Don't face the light!"
In response, Zhao Yao snapped his fingers, directly manipulating the men's sight such that they could only see a sea of white, even if they turned away from Fish Ball.
"Foolish Japanese," he said, "I am Captain South Korea's nemesis, Captain North Korea! I will rescue whoever he tries to capture!"
He then turned to the Shuichi Kotori and company and asked, "So, do you need my help?"
Shuichi Kotori: "⊙ω⊙"
"Fire at Shuichi Kotori! Do not let that man take them!" Kappei ordered.
"But what if there's collateral damage?"
"Just fire! Now!"
Zhao Yao grunted coldly. Then, he robbed all the men of their sense of touch.
"You have all been corrupted by the evils of capitalism," he cried, "You need to be reformed, starting with your hair."
As Elizabeth maintained the illusion, Ares received telepathic orders from Zhao Yao to expand the Deflective Field to reach each individual person.
Instantly, he manipulated the force to comb everyone's hair back. Then, he chopped off their hair such that it stopped an inch above their ears. The men of the Special Higher Police now sported Kim Jong-un's Ambitious Cut, which had taken the North Korea hair scene by storm.
"Well, that looks good." Zhao Yao nodded satisfactorily. "All young men should have this Ambitious Cut. Your hair is only the first step towards greatness. I hope that starting today, you will follow in the footsteps of the great leader that popularized this style."
With that, Zhao Yao grabbed Shuichi Kotori and company before leaving with a maniacal laugh. All that was left was a mountain of hair.
The light dispersed as the members of the Special Higher Police finally recovered their sense of vision. Zhao Yao had long vanished and when they looked at their new hairstyles, all of them wore disconsolate expressions.
"He... He's a total nut job," Kappei said, utterly defeated.
He could not wrap his head around what the opponent's motive was. First, he would rescue the men he was trying to catch, then return them. Now, he was cutting off their hair for fun. Was this somehow entertaining for that psycho?
Unfortunately for him and the rest of the Special Higher Police, Zhao Yao soon returned...
Half an hour later, Kappei automatically tapped Shuichi Kotori's shoulder when a flash of light painted the skies. There was no emotion on his face when he said, "Shuichi, Captain North Korea is back. It's time for you to go."
This time, however, the crazy Captain did not take Shuichi Kotori away with him. This was because there were no longer any exclamation marks above their heads, which meant that there were no more missions.
They had been milked of their worth completely.
Therefore, Zhao Yao raised a hand and waved.
"Annyeonghaseyo," he bade goodbye cheerily, then zoomed away in a jiffy, vanishing from sight.
Almost immediately, a dozen black saloon cars arrived at the dumpster, surrounding it.
Kappei Hattori bellowed with rage as the men climbed out of their vehicles and rushed towards him. He slapped the first person that reached him.
"Why are you so late?!" he demanded angrily, "Do you know what you have caused us?"
"Mobilize every officer in the Tokyo Police Department. That psychopath better be brought before me in three days!!!"
This might sound like a reasonable timeframe, but it was not going to work. Equipping himself with Supercat Armor 2.0 meant that Zhao Yao could unleash more than ten superpowers at any one time. Seizing him would be no walk in the park. Even attempting to locate him would be hard.
As long as Zhao Yao did not permit it, it was completely impossible for ordinary apostles to discover him, much less apprehend him.
This was how Zhao Yao easily evaded capture in the next couple of days. In the mornings and afternoons, he would be out gallivanting with Bai Quan and Matsuo. When the sun set, he combed the city for missions. If he met members of the Spirit Army, he would milk them for all their worth. If he met members of the Special Higher Police, he would do the same.
He was a formidable troublemaker on the loose, wreaking havoc wherever he went in Tokyo.
In just two short nights, he managed to earn a whopping 1,200 * 2 experience points. It made Zhao Yao love Tokyo even more.
"Wow, Tokyo sure is a great place," Zhao Yao sighed in contentment, "In fact, I think I'll buy a piece of property here."
Bai Quan looked at him in alarm. "Boss, when did you become so rich? Are you thinking of opening a maid café?"
Zhao Yao shook his head, "Maid café? No way, it's too much trouble."
"By the way," he changed the topic abruptly, "How's your new superpower coming along?"
Bai Quan just smiled awkwardly in response. Cannon, who was in his arms, scrambled to answer the question.
"Bai Quan must be the greatest virgin in history! The improvements he has made has been remarkable. You are definitely not his match now, Zhao Yao!"
Zhao Yao pursed his lips. The greatest virgin in history? That sounded very much more like an insult than a compliment.
The two men and supercat continued to bicker playfully and chat animatedly. Matsuo, however, did not join in or say a word. Their recent encounter with the Spirit Army was lodged firmly in his brain. He could not stop thinking or worrying about when they would strike next.
Bai Quan noticed this. He patted Matsuo on the shoulder firmly and said, "Don't worry. Boss will take care of them. It'll be fine."
Matsuo tried to smile back, but it was strained and never reached his eyes. He could not relax or quell the stifling anxiety.
At that moment, a car stopped before them. Kuroko was in the driver's seat.
Today was the day they were going to have lunch with Nanako.