Chapter 367
2-in-1-Chapter
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The side effects were significant.
However, Leo had a plan more complete and refined than the one Maiko Maeda had proposed—there would be no issues.
"Leo, I know you don’t usually help people without compensation. I get that. So, I’ll pay you for this."
"Alright. Thanks."
"No, it’s who should be thanking you. Are you staying a while longer? Or heading back? If you are, you can ride with ."
"No, I’ve got sothing else to take care of. Once Maiko calls you, just let know, okay?"
"Alright then. See you later, Leo."
............
.......
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As Leo stepped out of Afterlife, the sky had opened up—heavy rain poured down in sheets.
In most cyberpunk-thed dia, rain and darkness are tightly intertwined.
But in Night City, clear skies weren’t rare. In fact, a torrential downpour like this was unusual.
Leo got into the Delamain cab that had been waiting outside the Afterlife entrance.
"Take to Wakako Okada’s pachinko parlor."
........
...
.
More than ten minutes later, Leo stepped into the pachinko parlor and walked straight through the bustling arcade toward the back room.
"Leo? What brings you here?" Wakako looked up from her seat in the inner chamber, clearly surprised to see him walk in.
"Nothing much. Just thought I’d co by and have a little fun."
"You? A gambling addiction? That’s impossible. I can tell at a glance what kind of man you are. No vice for gambling, no vice for won, no vice for drugs. A model citizen. So tell honestly—what are you really here for?"
"Ms. Wakako, I’ve heard you have nine sons. All of them hold senior positions in the Tyger Claws, correct?"
Wakako’s eyes narrowed slightly. "What are you trying to say?"
"Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m just curious—do your sons have any plans to expand their turf?"
When Wakako said nothing, Leo smiled faintly and continued.
"Maybe you haven’t heard yet, but the heads of the Masafusa-gumi and the Hanakami-gumi are planning to visit Cloud soon. If sothing unfortunate were to happen to them, wouldn’t that be a pity?"
Wakako hesitated, then said quietly,
"A country cannot be without a ruler even for a day. If the leaders of the Masafusa-gumi and Hanakami-gumi were to perish unexpectedly, their subordinates would fall into chaos. In the ensuing struggle for power, a great deal of blood would be spilled."
She paused, then added, "I’m a rciful woman. I don’t like to see unnecessary bloodshed. So, to prevent such tragedy, I believe my sons would be more than willing to step in and stabilize the situation."
Afterward, Wakako’s gaze sharpened slightly.
"But what should I offer you in return?"
Wakako didn’t believe for a second that Leo would ask for nothing. In Night City, people like that weren’t unheard of—but they usually didn’t live long.
"I’m quite fond of Japantown. But I don’t bear the na Arasaka or Shigemi. Unless sothing miraculous happens, I’ll never own a piece of Japantown in this lifeti."
"That truly is a sha. I’ve always dread of owning a little corner of Japantown—sothing I could truly call my own, even just a sliver."
This old fox of a woman—Wakako—imdiately understood what Leo ant without needing it spelled out.
—Cloud.
Cloud was co-managed by the Masafusa-gumi and Hanakami-gumi. It was one of the most famous adult entertainnt centers in Night City.
Its profits could easily be described as flowing in by the truckload.
In Wakako’s eyes, it was no surprise Leo would have his eyes on Cloud.
Truthfully, she herself had been eyeing it for quite so ti. But while all nine of her sons were high-ranking mbers of the Tyger Claws, if they tried to annex the territory of the Masafusa-gumi and Hanakami-gumi without cause, the clan’s long-standing talk of "honor and justice" would beco a laughingstock.
That’s why Wakako had never dared to make a move—and her nine sons had remained obedient.
But now, things were different.
If what Leo said turned out to be true...
If the heads of the Masafusa-gumi and Hanakami-gumi really did suffer an accident in a few days...
Then Wakako’s nine sons could step in under the banner of "preventing internal strife," and quickly divide up the territory.
As for Cloud?
Leo wanted it.
So she’d give it to him.
Wakako had earned her position as the queen of Westbrook precisely because she knew when not to be greedy.
True collaboration ant ensuring that everyone you partnered with got their fair share.
The kind of fool who wanted to keep everything for themselves—either never made it to the top, or got shot in the back the mont they turned around.
The eting with Wakako went smoothly.
Their goals were aligned. There was enough to go around. In fact, Wakako stood to gain more than Leo did. So naturally, she had no reason to refuse.
She even voiced concern that Leo might not be able to take out the heads of the Masafusa-gumi and Hanakami-gumi alone, and subtly offered to send reinforcents.
But Leo declined.
After leaving Wakako’s pachinko parlor, Leo got into another Delamain cab and headed straight for Lizzie’s Bar.
Judy, whom he had parted ways with at Afterlife earlier, hadn’t co back to the bar. She had gone ho to care for Evelyn.
Inside the bar, Leo found Suzie Q of the Mox.
He didn’t mince words.
He ca straight out and laid the entire plan on the table—the operation to liberate Cloud.
Suzie could be trusted. Back when they took down Jotaro Shobo, they had fought side by side. Leo trusted that Suzie would be able to manage Cloud properly.
In truth, the Mox had reached their current strength and prosperity in large part due to Suzie’s leadership. Once the plan succeeded and the Tyger Claws withdrew from Cloud, the club would need soone to take over managent—and in Leo’s eyes, Suzie was the most suitable candidate.
As for Maiko Maeda? She was as good as dead.
To Leo, there was no essential difference between Maiko and Evelyn. Both had tried to change their fates by stepping on others. The difference was that Evelyn, at the very least, could say sothing that made people listen. Maiko, on the other hand, had nothing to offer but veiled sarcasm and smug insinuation.
Moreover, even if Maiko were kept alive, it would be more harm than good. Regardless of whether she was given a role at Cloud, it was obvious that she would eventually stir up trouble. Better to eliminate her from the beginning—cleaner and simpler.
Of course, Suzie wouldn’t be handed Cloud so easily. On the day of the operation, she would have to send people to help suppress Cloud’s security staff and the remaining Tyger Claws.
That was Leo’s plan from the start. He had never intended to rely solely on Tom and Roxanne—two dolls—to seize control of Cloud.
Judy’s modified behavioral chip could indeed turn an ordinary person into a capable fighter, but only to a point. Even if they were two well-trained soldiers, expecting them to hold down the entire Cloud compound was unrealistic. Reinforcents from the Mox would be necessary.
Besides, Cloud would beco Mox territory after this. It only made sense that the Mox should invest effort into securing it.
After hearing Leo’s plan—especially how cleanly he had laid out the follow-up asures—Suzie was left speechless. She was stunned that he had found a way to handle everything so decisively, without leaving any loose ends.
If everything went smoothly and their negotiation with the Tyger Claws succeeded, once they took Cloud, they wouldn’t have to worry about future retaliation. That said, Suzie still had a lingering question.
"Mr. Leo, since you’ve thought through everything so thoroughly, why are you giving Cloud to instead of managing it yourself? Even if you don’t know how to run a club, you could’ve just reinstated the original managent team, couldn’t you?"
Leo shook his head.
"There are two reasons. First, my primary base will soon be in Latin Arica. I likely won’t be coming back to Night City very often. If I manage Cloud myself and sothing goes wrong, it’ll be a problem."
"And the second reason is... I can’t take inco from Cloud. Not because I think the money is dirty—just..."
Leo paused, realizing that the more he explained, the less sense it seed to make. In the end, he simply said, "Let’s just say it’s a matter of personal principle."
"Mr. Leo, there’s no need to explain. I understand."
Everyone has their own principles. They might seem foolish to outsiders, but every person has their own reasons for the choices they make.
Suzie saw nothing wrong with earning inco from Cloud. But if Leo chose not to, she could respect that.
In fact, Leo had considered letting Cloud be self-managed. But that wasn’t realistic—not in Night City.
Cloud was a goldmine. On any given day, countless eyes were watching the place. When it was under Tyger Claw control, smaller gangs and lowlifes dared not interfere. But once the Tyger Claws pulled out, every petty thug would be crawling out of the woodwork, extorting protection money.
Tom and Roxanne had Judy’s modified behavior chips—but so what? Even if Judy didn’t destroy the chips after this was over, as she had promised, the two of them alone couldn’t handle full-ti security operations.
Only the Mox had the ans to protect Cloud. And only the Mox would treat the dolls fairly, without exploiting or draining them, offering them a life different from the one they had endured.
"I understand. I agree with your plan. I’ll keep two squads on standby. Once you give the signal, I’ll send them straight to Cloud."
"Leo, no matter how you look at it, I’m getting a hell of a deal out of this. And the Mox are not the kind of gang to treat benefactors poorly. I’m willing to transfer thirty percent of Cloud’s inco to your electronic bank account."
"Don’t worry—it won’t be Cloud’s money. I’ll take it from Lizzie’s Bar instead. You know how we run things there. We make clean money—selling legal braindances."
"No need," Leo said, waving his hand repeatedly. "You’re being too polite, Suzie. Give that money to the staff instead."
Even though Cloud’s inco wasn’t small, running such a large club ca with heavy labor and material costs. Managing a venue of that scale wasn’t easy. If Leo took thirty percent for himself, the lives of the dolls would suffer as a result.
And he didn’t really care about the money—there were plenty of ways to make it. But for those dolls, that inco was their livelihood.
To many, earning millions took a lifeti...But to him it would only take an aftennon. He could afford to be altruistic.
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