Naomi paused for a moment, searching her husband's expression. She could see the determination in his features and could tell that he wouldn't do anything rash again.
Without a word, she wrote down the address on a small piece of paper and handed it to him.
"I'll keep dinner in the oven for you honey." She said with a smile.
Tetsu nodded before swiftly leaving the house.
A few minutes later, Ai came down the stairs after washing her face. She felt a little bad about how she acted in front of her father, especially since she knew that he had done what he did for her sake.
"Where's dad?" She asked.
Naomi smiled softly, not removing her attention away from the stove.
"He's gone to make amends."
"What? To who?" Ai was confused initially, however her expression changed to one of anxiety.
"Don't worry, your father may be stubborn, but he is a reliable man."
Seeing how her mother didn't seem worried, Ai decided to trust her father once more. But if he messed it up, she wouldn't forgive him easily.
By the time Tetsu arrived at the address given, the sun was sitting upon the horizon, giving off a glorious orange glow that painted the sky.
He took a moment to catch his breath before walking up to the door and knocking.
"I'll get it mom."
Ken opened the door and felt his eyes bulge for a moment. Ai's father was standing outside of his house, a sheen of sweat evident on his forehead, likely from running all the way here.
He saw the gruff man's gaze move to his right shoulder which was still placed in a sling, catching a tinge of remorse that flashed onto his features.
The two stood a few meters from each other, neither saying a word.
It was then that Tetsu bowed deeply, his body reaching 90 degrees.
'Eh!?'
Ken was taken aback. He thought of many reasons why Ai's father would appear here, but this was certainly out of his calculations.
Before he could say anything, Tetsu spoke out while he stared at the ground.
"I'm sorry fer everything that happened. I dealt with the problem so there is no need ta worry"
His Kansai accent seemed thicker than usual, likely as a result from his emotions running high.
"If yer gonna blame anyone, then blame me. Please don't hate my daughter."
'Huh?'
Ken was gobsmacked. Why would he hate Ai? It's not like she was the one who wanted to be blackmailed, if anything it was that turd Keiho that he really hated.
"Firstly, I don't hate your daughter, we are good friends. She was victim just like me in all of this."
"Secondly, there's no hard feelings. As long as you dealt with that piece of garbage, then we're even."
As far as Ken was concerned, as long as this all went away he would be fine. Of course it wasn't ideal that he'd been injured, but with his Fatigue Management skill it wouldn't take long for him to recover.
He may miss out on some of the mission rewards for the Kanagawa Tournament since he wouldn't get to play much, but it could certainly be worse.
Tetsu's eyes widened, his mind suddenly feeling blank. He had expected to receive some form of resistance from the teenager whom he had treated so poorly ever since they met.
Not only did he intentionally try to get in the way of this boy's relationship with his daughter, he also beat him up, injuring his shoulder and preventing him from pitching in the upcoming crucial matches.
Yet instead of malice, he was met with forgiveness and understanding.
'Is this guy a saint?' Tetsu thought.
'No… I saw his face back then after I injured his shoulder. He looked like he wanted to tear me apart.'
More guilt came rushing into his psyche, even after hearing Ken's forgiving words.
He lifted his head and moved closer to Ken.
"Punch me."
"EH!?"
Ken looked at the man who seemed like a crazy person and couldn't help but take a few steps back. Just what kind of person says something like that?
"Hit me Ken… I can't accept yer forgiveness, not after what I did." He said, jutting out his chin so as to give Ken a bigger target.
"What the hell man? I don't wanna hit you."
"HIT ME!"
"You want me to injure my damn fist too?" Ken said, a frown forming onto his face.
Even now his left knuckles still hurt from the two punches that he landed on Tetsu that night. If he were to take another swing, he was worried they might break on his iron chin.
"What's with all this commotion?"
Yuki appeared next to Ken in the next moment after hearing the shouting at the door. She looked at Tetsu for a moment, as if trying to remember his face.
"Ah, you're Naomi's husband!" She said, pointing her finger at him.
Seeing that Ken's mother had arrived, Tetsu pulled his chin back and calmed down somewhat.
"Ah ye, I'm Tetsu." He said, bowing slightly.
"Yes yes I remember." A smile formed on her face.
"What brings you here today? Did my son do something bad?"
Ken rolled his eyes, thinking it was a little funny that his mother would think he was in the wrong by default, despite the situation.
Tetsu felt a little awkward, but he still responded truthfully.
"Er no ma'am. I came here to apologize to yer son."
Yuki tilted her head in confusion, "What for?"
Ken's eyes suddenly widened and he began to panic. He had told his parents that he had injured his shoulder by running into a pole. If Tetsu spilled the beans, it wouldn't just be him in trouble, Ken would also cop it.
He tried to gesture at Tetsu to keep his mouth shut, but it was to no avail.
"I was the one who injured yer son, so I came to apologize." He said simply.
"Hmm? And how did that happen?" Yuki said, her tone changing ever so slightly.
Ken who was familiar with this tone suddenly felt the hairs on his neck stand up, sensing danger. However, he knew that if he tried to leave it would only make it worse for him.
He tried to send mental messages with his eyes to Tetsu, telling him to shut his damn mouth, but it was too late.
He began to explain how they had gotten into a fight thanks to a misunderstanding, sounding apologetic throughout. It wasn't until he mentioned that he had punched Ken a few times that he felt an icy cold sensation take hold of him.
WHOOSH
THUD
Tetsu felt the world around him spin for a moment before he was suddenly staring at the orange sky. It took a few moments to register that he had been knocked onto his back by something fast.
Ken's jaw dropped as he saw the entire thing.
'M-Mom just dropped iron-chin Tetsu like he was nothing…'
He couldn't understand how someone so petite could hold so much strength behind her punch. Yet the evidence was right in front of his eyes, no matter how unbelievable it seemed.
"I'll come visit tomorrow to see your wife. We can have a nice conversation over some tea." Yuki said to her downed opponent, not a shred of remorse on her face.
She then turned to Ken who suddenly shrunk in size, "Let's head inside, there's a few things we need to chat about Kenny~"
Ken paled, but he had no other choice but to comply. He looked at the grounded figure of Ai's father and felt like throwing a few pairs of shoes at him, but he was not given the chance.
'Damn you Tetsu!'