Gojo spent the entire journey messing with Gin-chan, relishing the joy of having the other person under his thumb yet helpless to do anything about it. Meanwhile, he received a constant stream of "ding-dong" impression points from the human-shaped gold mine, Vodka. His mood was absolutely stellar.
When they finally hailed a taxi, the driver was so intimidated by the combination of two 1.9-meter giants and a burly man in black that he didn't dare utter a word the entire way, fearing they'd shoot him if they found him annoying. As the saying goes: In the land of the free, gunfights happen every day.
Once they reached the safe house and freshened up, the sky had turned dark. Being hungry and finding cooking too much trouble, Gojo dragged them to a nearby buffet, intending to reward himself for accidentally sleeping through the flight. Sigh, I prepared so many snacks and didn't even get to eat them on the plane.
Vodka, who instinctively felt that Kaiser was targeting him, was extremely reluctant to eat with him but ultimately had no choice.
Watching Gojo pile several plates high with delicate small desserts, Gin said helplessly, "You're still the same. Eating sweets all day—how do you not have diabetes yet?"
"Hey, hey, Gin-chan, that's uncalled for! You're not much better yourself. I bet every time you're on a mission, you just eat convenience store ready-meals, right?"
Having been called out, Gin remained expressionless. "No matter how unhealthy, it's still better than you." He had never cared much for gourmet food and simply ate whatever was available at the buffet.
Gojo devoured the desserts while simultaneously eating grilled meat; the two distinct flavors mixing together was... an acquired taste. As expected, Sendai's Daifuku is the best~ When can I go back to Japan?
Gojo suddenly realized something was wrong—Vodka, who seemed to have developed an immunity to the contrast in Big Brother's image, hadn't contributed a single impression point since they entered the restaurant.
He thought for a moment, then speared a tiny tiramisu with a fork. Leaning close to Gin, he said affectionately, "Gin-chan, it's been a long time since you've had sweets, right? Here, I'll feed you. Say 'ah'~"
Gin didn't even give him a glance. "Get lost."
Vodka, with fine sweat beading on his forehead, let out a sigh of relief. He knew it! No matter how good their relationship was, Big Brother would never tamely accept being fed by someone else!
"Eh? You really won't eat it? Then the photo..."
Gin's mouth snapped open at lightning speed, swallowing the tiramisu in one bite.
Vodka: What on earth has happened to this world?!
> [Ding! Impression points from story character Vodka increased by 500! Analysis: Admiration (for Gojo's gall).]
>
Guessing that if he pushed any further Gin would truly explode, Gojo decided to quit while he was ahead and called the waiter for the check.
The trio returned to the safe house around 9 PM. The place was spacious, with the living room and bedrooms on separate floors; upstairs had four rooms for resting.
Full of energy, Gojo originally wanted to drag Gin to watch some TV, but noticing the faint dark circles under the other's eyes, he realized Gin must have rushed over for this New York assignment without proper rest. A hint of guilt surfaced in his heart.
Gin, who expected to be pestered for a while longer, was quite surprised to find he could rest early. No matter how strong his physical fitness was, he was still human and couldn't compare to a certain "cheat-code" guy. He said nothing, washed up, and lay down to close his eyes.
[...Tch. I'm clearly exhausted, yet I can't fall asleep.] he thought.
The unexpected reunion with Gojo after three years had brought Gin an inexplicable sense of peace. That guy was just like before—he hadn't changed much. Still lawless and fond of making trouble, yet not lacking moments where he considered others' feelings.
At that moment, a "cat head" peeked in from outside the door, his snow-colored hair particularly conspicuous in the dark.
"Jin—I can't sleep alone."
Gin said speechlessly, "Didn't you sleep alone in Mexico too?"
"But this is New York! There might be vengeful spirits at night, so scary!!" Gojo leaned against the doorframe, mimicking a hanging ghost with hand gestures.
"...Whatever." Gin rolled over, not bothering to look at him.
Gojo, satisfied, came over and claimed the other half of the bed. It has to be said, two 1.9-meter men lying together made it a bit difficult to stretch their legs.
After a while, Gin couldn't help but look back. "Don't you think it's too cramped? Go sleep in your own room." Back in the training camp, they at least had two beds. Why was he coming over to steal the blanket now?
"No~" Gojo hugged the blanket. "We haven't seen each other in so long, what's wrong with best brothers sleeping together?"
Gin sighed. He had foolishly thought this guy would actually let him rest. Fine, he couldn't sleep anyway. The two began to chat idly, one sentence at a time.
"I heard you're doing quite well in Mexico?" Gin said mockingly. "The White Ghost, the Light of Mexico... and the FBI's Nightmare?"
"Are you laughing at me?" Gojo hummed. "Aren't you some kind of 'Top Killer' yourself?" Gin glared at him.
"Oh, right! I haven't settled the score with you yet!" Gojo suddenly changed the subject, acting pitiful. "It's only been three years and you have a new partner—that Vodka! Woe is me! I was so lonely and cold over there, and you went and found someone else behind my back!!"
Sarelo, far away in Mexico: The wind is quite loud today...
"What are you even talking about?" Gin massaged his temples.
Okay, he was wrong about him not changing. Over these three years, Satoru Gojo had become even better at acting spoiled and being shameless. Before, he was at least somewhat reserved; now, he was becoming increasingly thick-skinned.
> [Ding! Impression points from story character Gin increased by 500! Analysis: Helplessness.]
>
Ho ho~ bonus points! Gojo was happy.
"He's just a driver, or rather, a lackey," Gin explained casually. "You are my most..." Halfway through, he braked.
"Most what?" Gojo looked at him playfully, eyes sparkling.
"...Most annoying narcissist." Best friend.
"Nani?! You dishonest guy!"
Gojo reached out to tickle him, and the two messed around for quite a while before finally settling down.
"By the way, did you know Tequila actually likes raising hamsters in private... hm? Jin?"
"Zzz..."
Late into the night, Gin had drifted into a daze and fallen asleep. Seeing his sleeping face, Gojo stopped talking. He moved as quietly as possible to the other side of the bed to give the other person comfortable space.
"..."
But he was still so energetic! What was he supposed to do? Between the Reverse Cursed Technique and the system's physical enhancements, Gojo needed less and less sleep. Sometimes he was still vibrating with energy at 3 or 4 AM.
He boredly scanned the area with his Six Eyes. He didn't find anything special... except for a very lively bar downstairs that was packed even in the early hours.
Should I go see if New York bars are different from Mexican ones?
He thought it might be boring and considered trying to sleep after all... when suddenly! He detected a faint, lingering energy within the bar... it felt like an Ability fluctuation similar to Cursed Energy.
An Ability User in that bar?
Now that was something fresh.
Gojo confirmed that Gin and Vodka in the other room were sound asleep, then secretly teleported into a dark alley next to the bar downstairs.
Oops, forgot I was still in pajamas.
Gojo pulled a set of clothes from his inventory, changed, and strolled out of the alley. He strode into the bar with the bright neon sign.
[Wait, that's weird. Why are there only men in here?]
Seeing the blindingly bright male strippers on stage, he finally realized. This wasn't an ordinary bar.
Holy crap, this is a gay bar!
...What does an iron-straight man do when he accidentally enters a gay den? Asking for a friend, urgent.