I teach kendo in Tokyo

Naoto Ikeda was pressed on the table and the knife was inserted.

He struggled a few times symbolically at first, but his body, destroyed by an irregular life and alcohol, was simply unable to resist the three strong gangsters.

After struggling a few times, he gave up.

If life cheats you, just lie down and take it.

At the moment of giving up, Naoto Ikeda felt a sense of relief.

To be honest, he didn't understand why Shigeru Ikeda stood up again and again just now. Even if he stood up, nothing would change.

It's obvious that the outcome has already been determined.

What a stupid, stupid son.

If I had known better, as a father, I should have taught him a lesson: it would be easier to give up. If you want to live an easy life, you must give up frequently.

You see, as long as you give up, even death becomes no longer scary.

Giving up is such a good thing.

Ikeda Naoto, who gave up, began to hallucinate.

He saw a Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva holding a Zen staff and a red scarf around his neck.

——Are you here to extradite me to a blissful afterlife? How is it possible, someone like me...

The light behind Jizo became stronger and stronger, gradually engulfing Jizo's figure, leaving only the red scarf and the ringing sound from the shaking Zen staff.

The red scarf also disappeared in the light, leaving only the regular sound of the Zen staff, and then the light and shadow turned into scenes of rapid recall.

This is probably the legendary revolving lantern.

All the images appear to be repeating a closed loop that never ends: self-indulgence—venting—reflection and regret—and then self-indulgence again.

Naoto Ikeda looked at the repeated scenes and intuitively and deeply felt how hopeless his life was.

Yes, he is such a person, he was in the past, he is now, and if there is a future, I am afraid he will also be.

The scene is turning faster and faster. Probably the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva who caused this phenomenon can no longer stand this meaningless repetitive life.

It's like mud, a life without any value.

Suddenly, the rotation slowed down to standard 24-frame video speed.

Naoto Ikeda saw his young self and was reprimanded by the workshop director: What did you do! Waste! How many times did you make mistakes today? You have slowed down the progress of the entire workshop! You will cause everyone to get less bonuses. !”

Naoto Ikeda suddenly remembered this scene. This was...

The young Naoto Ikeda in the picture said: My son made too much noise last night and didn't sleep well...

Shut up! the workshop director yelled, You are not the first one in this workshop to marry a wife and have children! No one else is like you! So, the post-war generation just can't do it. When I was in charge of the American machine Despite the bombing, the factory's production targets were still met!

Is your son scarier than B29?

Naoto Ikeda watched this scene silently, and he remembered that his life did not seem to be a worthless reincarnation.

He had also been young in an era so long ago that he had forgotten it.

It was the child, the disaster star that changed everything.

The carousel continued, and Naoto Ikeda watched as he was scolded in class every day. After work, he had to run all out to the supermarket to buy discounted half-price bento boxes. In order to save money on milk powder for his son, the couple had half-price bento boxes for dinner.

He saw his son crying like an air raid siren in the middle of the night, and he had to get up with his tired body to help his wife change diapers.

He saw that in order to support the family, even his wife had to take over the job of pasting packaging boxes at home. The originally small and cozy home began to be filled with materials and tools that his wife used for her work.

He saw that his and his wife's smiles were gradually replaced by sad faces.

——Ah, as expected, it would be better if I didn’t give birth to Amao.

As expected, my life has become a mess since Amao was born.

If there was no Amao, then I should be living happily now.

The carousel changed again, and he saw his young self riding a bicycle on a sunny day, with his wife wearing a sunhat on the back seat.

She is more beautiful than the rose.

Life hadn't yet destroyed her skin, hadn't covered her beautiful hands with calluses, and her beautiful nails hadn't been smeared with paste from cardboard boxes.

She hugged Naoto Ikeda's waist and smiled happily.

Although the two of them are too poor to even go to the cinema, they can still feel the joy of life even if they are just riding bicycles in the fields.

Yes, this is what life is like, this is what life should be like.

Naoto Ikeda looked at the shining days spent with his wife and wanted to cry but found that he no longer had the ability to cry.

A dying person cannot speak or cry.

He can only wait quietly for the end of life.

It doesn't matter, soon the bastard who ruined his life will be sent over by the three gangsters.

He also did a lot of bad things and could not reach the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

When the time comes, father and son will go to hell together.

Naoto Ikeda was just thinking about it when the sound of the Zen staff sounded in his ears, and the revolving door froze on a new picture.

It was the delivery room of the hospital. The still beautiful wife was half sitting on the bed. Although she was extremely weak, she still smiled and looked at the child in her arms.

He saw his young self squatting beside his wife's bed, holding the baby's little hand with great joy.

He looked at me! He grabbed my hand! Naoto Ikeda shouted happily, My son's hands are so strong! He will grow up healthily in the future. I have decided that his name will be Shigeru. It must be as luxuriant as a big tree and as strong as dense weeds.”

His wife smiled and gently stroked Naoto Ikeda's hair.

Naoto Ikeda was confused. He couldn't tell where the memories were and where the reality was.

Is this... me?

Shouldn't I...

The revolving lantern ended, and in the light that kept sending images, the figure of my wife appeared.

That was not the young and beautiful wife in my memory, but the yellow-faced woman whose skin had been stripped of luster by reality, and whose nails could no longer be beautifully painted.

She looked at Naoto Ikeda and opened her mouth slightly.

She made no sound, but Naoto Ikeda heard it.

It's the end, do you still choose to continue escaping?

It’s the end, do you still want to surrender?

At the end of the day, you still don’t want to admit, are you a father?

Naoto Ikeda suddenly remembered the way Shigeru Ikeda stood up again and again.

The vitality is like lush weeds.

Naoto Ikeda suddenly remembered the emotion that flowed through his heart at that moment when he saw Amao coming.

It's the last thing anyway.

Just let this mud-like, worthless life play its last little role.

Naoto Ikeda bit his tongue, and the salty smell of blood suddenly filled his mouth. At the same time, the sharp pain briefly excited his sinking brain.

All illusions faded away in an instant.

The lights from reality were so dazzling that Naoto Ikeda couldn't see who was the figure in front of him.

He roared angrily, and using his last strength, he pulled out the scissors that were stuck on his body to fix the upturned skin, and stabbed the nearest figure.

He heard screams, but couldn't tell who screamed.

He grabbed the other figure's arm and bit it.

He couldn't tell whether the blood in his mouth came from the wound on his tongue or from his enemy.

At this time, his vision recovered a little, and miraculously he saw Amao still lying on the ground.

Without saying a word, he pulled out something unknown from the wound on his stomach and threw it over, trying to wake his son up.

Amao! Get up! he shouted, Run away!

While shouting, he turned around and pounced on the third gangster who should exist in his memory - only by dragging down all three of them could he give Amao a chance to escape.

He didn't know that at this moment, he looked like some kind of supernatural creature, like a zombie from a Romero movie.

Even well-trained enemies couldn't help but panic when they saw this shocking scene.

Therefore, the enemy took out his gun, and in desperation he took a powerful pistol without a silencer.

The first shot missed and hit Naoto Ikeda in the upper abdomen.

Naoto Ikeda was completely unaffected and continued to charge towards the last uninjured enemy.

Amao! Run!

The gunman fired three times with his pistol, and the last shot finally hit Naoto Ikeda's head.

When the bullet penetrated the back of the head, it took away a large piece of the skull and the brain matter was ejected.

Naoto Ikeda stopped moving and slowly fell to the ground, but his mouth was still moving, trying to make the last sound.

Still turning his neck, he turned his face toward his son—

The shooter cursed and fired again until the magazine was empty.

Fuck! What the hell? He looked at Naoto Ikeda who finally stopped moving, breathing heavily, What the hell is this? It's so evil!

No one answered.

Because no one knows.

At this moment, Shigeru Ikeda, the only one who knew what it was, stood up unsteadily.

Shan Mingmin, Zheng Taixian, and Fang Zhixi all looked at Ikeda Shigeru, keeping alert, fearing that he would suddenly become the same thing.

Shan Mingmin slowly reached for the rifle placed on the table next to him.

Shigeru Ikeda looked at the person who fell on the ground, then turned around and rushed to the nearest window, breaking it out.

His movements were so agile that he didn't look like he was seriously injured.