Tokyo: My Superpower Refreshes Every Week

A bewitching tone whispered in his ear, gentle and soft.

Uchino Saburo's heart nearly stopped from fright. Thinking of his subordinate who had just exploded, he was filled with despair.

In the past, he had thought of many ways to die: assassination by enemies, usurpation by his son, or defeat in the Yakuza's internal rivalries. But he had never imagined dying like this, nor had he imagined that death could come so swiftly. He was only forty-three years old! Still so young, with such a bright future! In the mornings, he was as energetic as he had been in his youth.

"Stop! Just spare my life, and I'll do whatever you say! I beg you, please show mercy, Lord Dio!" Uchino Saburo's face was full of pleading, the defiant figure from before gone, replaced by a puppy craving its master's touch.

Aozawa said with a smile, "No."

Black Chrysanthemum patterns spread across Uchino Saburo's cheeks.

"Bastard!" He raised his gun to shoot again.

BOOM. He watched as his right arm suddenly burst apart, the bright flash reflecting in his pupils. Dark gunpowder smoke billowed up. Fissures spread across his body in an instant, causing him to explode completely.

A handgun fell onto the table.

No matter how many times he saw it, Aozawa always found a certain beauty in such explosions, as if he were back in his childhood, playing with firecrackers.

"Beautiful, don't you think?" Aozawa turned his head. With just a casual glance, five burly men nearly wet themselves on the spot.

One immediately fell to his knees, sobbing and begging, "Spare us, Lord Dio! It was all Uchino Saburo, that bastard! He forced us to do it!"

"We swear eternal loyalty to you!"

The five men, stripped of their earlier arrogance, became sheep trembling before a ferocious tiger.

"No." Aozawa shook his head, strode forward, and patted each of them on the head. Black Chrysanthemum patterns appeared on their cheeks.

The five men kept begging for mercy, not daring to resist. Their leader died holding a gun; unarmed, they stood no chance.

"Farewell." The thought of detonation crossed Aozawa's mind.

BOOM. Five explosions merged into one, amplifying the sound. The flames and gunpowder smoke merged into a cloud, the brilliant display reflected in Taria's pupils.

A twinge of fear arose in her heart. Is this a Demon or a deity? Doubts flashed through Taria's mind as she remembered the elders in her tribe saying that people must revere fire, must revere the gods of nature. In the past, Taria used to think those tribal elders were just being mysterious. It was their ignorant beliefs, she thought, that kept their country mired in poverty. Even a bicycle was a rare means of transportation there. Not to mention roads, which were mostly natural dirt paths. When it didn't rain, dust filled the air. When it rained, Gambia's skies turned a hazy gray, and the ground became so muddy that stepping in it could mean sinking to the knees. She hated that country, that kind of place. But now, at this moment, even that country seemed achingly nostalgic to Taria.

"Sister, are we going to die?"

"Don't be afraid, I'm here." She hugged her little brother tightly, staring at the golden-haired man before her. He looked both demonic and divine. Her eyes were filled with fear, but she did not beg for mercy. She couldn't speak Japanese, but she understood it. Begging for mercy clearly wouldn't move the man before her.

Aozawa glanced at the siblings and said nothing, just turned his gaze to the window.

CRASH! The glass window was deliberately smashed.

Fully armed SAT members appeared inside the room. They unclipped their ropes and raised their submachine guns, equipped with bulletproof helmets, vests, and other gear. The infrared thermal imager clearly captured Aozawa's figure.

"Dio, don't move! You're surrounded!" Okayama Buji shouted. He didn't immediately open fire but decided to say a few words; opportunities for a face-to-face conversation with Dio were rare.

Sunaga Takashi held a knife in his right hand, a trace of curiosity in his eyes. So this is the Superpower User, Dio, they spoke of? He doesn't seem dangerous at all, probably because there's no hostility. He wondered how quickly he could close the distance after their conversation ended.

"What a pity. You're a step too late," Aozawa answered with a smile.

Okayama Buji let out a sigh of relief. At least he's willing to communicate.

He shouted, "Dio, all these things you've done—what exactly is your purpose? What are you trying to create? Or do you simply want to destroy all order?"

"That's an excellent question. Allow me to tell you." Aozawa hadn't left immediately because he wanted to play a little joke on the special task force, to let them rack their brains over something that didn't exist. After all, there are no JoJo-related manga in this world, only titles like Bleach, Naruto, and One Piece. Even if he revealed his plan, no one would recognize it as Dio's plan from the second dimension.

"I am looking for a way to ascend to Paradise."

These words caused Okayama Buji's pupils to dilate. He realized that whatever Dio said next would likely be incredibly important. He took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Do you also believe in God?"

"I believe in no deity. The Paradise I speak of is related to the spirit. Where the spirit flows, its power should also evolve. I am referring to the culmination of that evolution." Aozawa spoke somewhat slowly, as if reminiscing, though he was actually just recalling Dio's lines. "I imagine you cannot comprehend the meaning of my words. To put it simply, one who reaches Paradise attains true happiness."

After a pause, Aozawa continued, "So-called happiness cannot be attained even with invincible Superpowers, vast wealth, or a position above all others. This I already know. The true victors are those who witness Paradise. No matter the sacrifice, I must go there."

"Paradise…" Okayama Buji's expression turned solemn. Many thoughts raced through his mind. Every religion in the world had fantasized about such a place: the afterlife. According to the descriptions in their sacred texts, the afterlife had both good and bad aspects. Good worlds were called Heaven or Paradise, while bad worlds were known as the underworld or Hell.

"Do humans have souls?"

"As for that question, I will answer you the next time we meet." Aozawa did not reply immediately but smiled. "Our conversation for today ends here."

The thought of an explosion crossed his mind.

The ground beneath Okayama Buji and the others suddenly split open. Flames shot up from the ground. Sunaga Takashi leaped back to avoid them, only to realize the flames wouldn't harm him; they were silently turning the ground beneath them into nothingness. Everyone fell directly into the room below.

"Dio!" Okayama Buji yelled.

Aozawa's body shifted from solid to translucent, then vanished from the room. Marked Detonation could not only completely destroy an object but also allow him to control which part of it was destroyed. For example, if he marked this building, he could choose to destroy any part of it. Of course, this also meant that after a detonation, if he wanted to cause another explosion, he would need to re-mark the building.

「Hisamatsu Apartment, 201, task force headquarters.」

The living room was lit. Emily sat there, biting her thumb. Paradise… where the spirit flows… is 'spirit' the same as 'soul' here? Her brain felt insufficient; the amount of information this time was simply overwhelming. If this news got out, it would startle even the old men in the Vatican. That would be the best proof of God's existence in this world—the place millions of believers dream of.

"Is there really a soul after death?" Iwaki Kususuke couldn't help but ask.

Ito Otome said expressionlessly, "From a medical perspective, I can responsibly say it doesn't exist. The human body is just a highly precise machine. When it dies, the machine is broken. Would you think a broken machine has a soul? However, Superpower Users do exist now. So, my view has shifted; souls might possibly exist."

"No, I don't think it's likely the soul." Emily shook her head, speaking firmly. "Dio mentioned 'where the spirit flows.' Spirit—he used that word, not soul. This already highlights the difference. The culmination of the spirit is Paradise. Perhaps there's a world that exists only in spirit. Dio kills those people to observe where their spirits go. He wants to use this to find the path to Paradise…"

Emily squatted on the couch, biting her thumb again, lost in thought. Why did Dio choose Japan? Dio is clearly a Caucasian from Europe or America; he could have chosen places like New York or London. If it were merely about slaughtering Yakuza, those places also have plenty of gangsters, wealthy individuals, and corrupt politicians. Yet he specifically chose Japan. Could it be that Japan's location is special? To ascend to Paradise, does Dio have to perform some kind of ritual here?

All sorts of guesses flashed through Emily's mind.

Suddenly, she jumped up and shouted, "Bring me a map of Tokyo!"

Miyaji Yosuke brought the map and spread it out on the table. With a pencil, Emily connected the locations of Dio's crimes, trying to see if any pattern emerged. From Shinjuku to Ikebukuro, to Kyoto, to Saitama. She marked on the map the locations where Dio had killed people during each incident. Ultimately, she derived a pattern that showed no discernible logic whatsoever.

Emily fell into deep thought. Is this some kind of ritual? But what rules would such a ritual follow? If this rule could be deciphered, could they predict Dio's next target location? Emily furrowed her brow, then shook her head. No, that seems unlikely. According to Dio, he himself is also searching for a way to ascend to Paradise. This means even he isn't entirely certain; he only knows of Paradise's existence. Then who told him about Paradise, or how did he discover it?

A series of questions flooded Emily's mind. And these questions could likely only be answered clearly by Dio himself.

Her small hand clenched. She pounded her fist on the table and let out a heavy sigh. "Forget it. For now, let's compile this into a report for the CIA."