After finalizing the mission objectives,
Xiang Nan and the others finally had a concrete target. The next step was to discuss how to carry it out.
That task fell to Beishi, the one who understood the story best. His suggestion was that the team first infiltrate the shogunate, kidnap a few high‑ranking officials, and probe them for information about the Tendōshū. Because they were forbidden to lay hands on plot‑critical characters, everything had to revolve around "non‑plot" targets.
At present the shogunate is under the Tendōshū's thumb. Although the current shōgun, Tokugawa Shige‑shige, keeps saying—like an old man longing to become a wise ruler—that he wants to shake off the Amanto's control, in reality he is nothing but a "puppet."
Before taking action, however, Xiang Nan and Beishi each had a few things to confirm.
So the two of them went—just the two of them—to the Yorozuya.
They wanted to meet the main cast.
They climbed to the second floor of Otose's still‑open bar, stood in the hallway beneath the Yorozuya signboard, and knocked on the door.
The Yorozuya office is easy to find in Kabukichō; the frontage is large and conspicuous.
"Anyone home?"
Beishi called out excitedly.
The paper‑sliding door was still lit from within, so the three residents were clearly not asleep.
"Anyone home?"
Beishi called again.
"Sorry … May I ask who you are?"
Up the stairwell came a spectacled teenager—Shimura Shinpachi, just returning from an errand.
Spotting Xiang Nan and Beishi, he hurried over, bowed, and greeted them with a smile.
In a men's kimono, he looked mild‑mannered.
"We'd like to ask the Yorozuya for some help," Beishi said, restraining his excitement at meeting one of the protagonists.
"Customers? … Ah, please come in!"
Shinpachi froze for two seconds, then quickly opened the door and ushered them inside.
You could see he took any work that came their way very seriously—after all, the shop rarely had customers. He, Gintoki, and Kagura mostly just drifted through their days.
The moment the door opened, a heavy smell of alcohol washed over them. There, sprawled bonelessly on the sofa, snoring away, was the series' absolute protagonist, Sakata Gintoki—white, curly hair and all, dead drunk.
Beside him, equally unladylike, lay an orange‑haired girl flat on the floor: Kagura, scion of the universe's strongest warrior race, the Yato.
"Sorry about this."
Shinpachi flashed Xiang Nan and Beishi an embarrassed smile and showed them to their seats.
Then he dashed to Gintoki and tried to rouse his boss.
"We have customers… hey, wake up!"
Shinpachi shook Gintoki's shoulders and hiss‑whispered.
"Huh? A pretty lady… did she fall for me at last? Nice choice…" Gintoki mumbled drunken nonsense.
"I'm starving… ah‑puh. If there's no rice, let's just kill someone—people are meat too, I bet they taste great…" Kagura echoed, equally incoherent.
Still half‑asleep, she staggered behind Shinpachi, opened her mouth wide, and bit him on the butt.
With his boss and coworker disgracing themselves in front of clients, Shinpachi blushed crimson, sweat beading on his forehead. Afraid the deal would collapse—or that Xiang Nan and Beishi would bolt—he shook Gintoki harder, eyes pleading.
But once Kagura's teeth sank into him, Shinpachi snapped. One mighty slap sent the prone Gintoki flying off the sofa. With his other hand he pinned Kagura's head to the floor, roaring:
"Quit the dirty jokes!!!"
"You two… ENOUGH!!!"
Thud!
Gintoki sailed several meters and crashed to the floor.
At least he woke up, sitting there with his trademark dead‑fish eyes, rubbing the fresh handprint on his cheek in a daze.
Kagura, still in pajamas, rubbed her eyes and surfaced from sleep‑walking.
"Shinpachi… didn't you say you were going home tonight?" Kagura asked, surprised.
"We have customers!"
Shinpachi cleared his throat, reminding them.
Gintoki and Kagura both turned to the nearby Xiang Nan and Beishi.
Xiang Nan, meanwhile, tore his gaze from the big white dog—Sadaharu—and glanced at Shinpachi.
Interesting… With an ordinary human body, Shinpachi shouldn't have been able to slap a living person like Gintoki clear off the sofa—but he did. That made no sense. According to Xiang Nan's own powers of perception, Shinpachi's physique lacked that strength.
To manage it, he must have drawn on something beyond himself—some mysterious force…
"So it really is an exaggerated style," Xiang Nan mused.
A power unique to this world—one that doesn't fit normal systems.
After a while the three Yorozuya members finally sobered up and faced Xiang Nan and Beishi in earnest. Shinpachi brought tea.
Beishi briefly explained the request:
They had been mistaken by the Shinsengumi for Jouishishi rebels; the Shinsengumi would likely issue a wanted notice. They hoped the Yorozuya could clear up the misunderstanding—or at least find a way for them to stay safely in Kabukichō.
Of course, for Xiang Nan and Beishi this commission was only a pretext to meet the protagonists. Gintoki's trio had no idea.
"So let me get this straight… you were staying in the same inn as that Zura guy, and the Shinsengumi decided you were rebels?" Gintoki asked, picking his nose, legs crossed lazily.
As he spoke he flicked out the booger like a pellet, prompting the Shinpachi beside him to land another punch with a cry of "Behave!"
"What can you do… the Shinsengumi are cops, you know? Scary stuff… we ordinary folks can't afford to tick them off," Gintoki said, nose now bleeding from the punch.
"If your IDs are clean, can't you just talk it out? Once they run the checks and see you're not with the wig guy, they probably won't do anything…" Shinpachi offered.
"No way. Didn't you hear? They fought the Shinsengumi and escaped," Gintoki cut in. "With those guys' personalities, this won't blow over."
He was clearly talking about Okita Sōgo and Hijikata Tōshirō.
Kondō Isao, that big gorilla, might be negotiable; the other two were the real trouble.
"Please—we're counting on you."
Xiang Nan stayed silent, leaving the talking to Beishi. Beishi produced an envelope stuffed with cash and offered it.
At the sight of money, Gintoki's and Kagura's eyes lit up.
Gintoki took the envelope, peeked inside…
A moment ago he'd looked utterly nonchalant; the next second he was solemn and righteous.
"Honestly—what kind of society is this? The Shinsengumi abusing their power, framing civilians—where's justice? Where's humanity? We, the Yorozuya, will see this through and get you the justice you deserve!"
Gintoki thundered indignantly.
Then he sprang up: "No time to lose, I'll handle it right now!"
Kagura naturally followed, balling her fists. "Absolutely right! Infuriating! Let's go settle things with the Shinsengumi!"
Shinpachi's face went dark. Without a word he leapt up and dropped‑kicked both of them across the room.
"You two just want the money to goof off—CUT IT OUT!!!"
Beishi burst out laughing at the sight.
Xiang Nan smiled too.
What interested him wasn't the slapstick—it was the latent power behind the scene, the illogical element.
Now he was certain: the world of Gintama wasn't merely special; it was also dangerous.
The danger wasn't the characters or the setting, but an unseen, intangible influence—one players could easily overlook.
"Interesting… a world like this in the multiverse—a very special 'battlefield environment' for players. Looks like we can't linger. We need to speed up the mission and get out fast."
With that thought, Xiang Nan glanced at the Yorozuya trio still tussling in a heap on the floor.