Tokyo: Rabbit Officer and Her Evil Partner

Minamoto Tamako finally figured out where the muffled banging was coming from.

She stared at Uesugi Shion, using her pink flip phone to message Miyazaki Shizuka, detailing the situation before her. The latter replied:

"She's showing her belly because she wants someone to play with. Just play with her for a bit, but try not to excite her too much."

Play with a mental patient?

Minamoto Tamako looked up, locking eyes with Uesugi Shion once again.

How are they supposed to play together?

It's three in the morning, and she's exhausted and just wants to continue sleeping.

But if she ignores it, Uesugi Shion outside could just keep banging around doing handstands, banging her heels and body against the wall, which would still keep her awake.

Minamoto Tamako once had a puppy, not the one named Jun, but a silly stubborn Shiba Inu.

That puppy, when it first came home, liked to howl in the middle of the night to get the owner's attention to come play, or it would scratch at the door wanting to sleep with the owner. Back then, Minamoto Tamako found it both annoying and endearing; now she felt the same way.

Oh well, she'll play with her for a bit.

Once Uesugi Shion exhausts herself, she will naturally return to her room to sleep.

Minamoto Tamako felt guilty, since she had accidentally let Uesugi Shion drink Ye Tea, so she extended a bit more patience towards her, treating it like looking after a child with special needs.

"Yoshi yoshi, good girl good girl~"

Minamoto Tamako gingerly approached, using a drying rod to poke Uesugi Shion's waist. The latter twitched, feeling ticklish, frowned, and looked quite displeased.

Minamoto Tamako felt that what she was doing was rude, and quickly put down the rod.

She originally wanted to play with Uesugi Shion, but ended up annoying her instead… Isn't this indirectly provoking a mental patient?!

Minamoto Tamako took a deep breath, reminding herself not to continue down this path.

She must soothe Uesugi Shion's emotions, align with her, understand her expressions and meanings, so they can get along better in the future, and maybe even figure out how to detoxify Ye Tea!

For the sake of Fujimura-kun, and for a good night's sleep in the future, she must give her all to play with Uesugi Shion!

Minamoto Tamako made up her mind, switched into work mode, propping her chin with her index finger and thumb, starting to think from Uesugi Shion's perspective.

Just how should she play with Uesugi Shion?

Suddenly, Minamoto Tamako had a brainwave, she recalled an old joke from the newspaper, about a doctor who saw a patient squatting with an umbrella in the corner of the room every day. To understand the patient's mental world, the doctor also started squatting with an umbrella nearby. Over a month later, the patient finally asked, "Are you a mushroom too?"

This joke sparked thoughts in Minamoto Tamako about "understanding differences", that sometimes companionship and empathy are stronger than forcing correction.

With this in mind, Minamoto Tamako decided to do handstands with Uesugi Shion!

Perhaps once she did a handstand, Uesugi Shion would willingly talk to her; or maybe she'd understand what Uesugi Shion was thinking once she was upside down!

Minamoto Tamako took a deep breath, pressing her hands against the wall base, pushed hard, and her body also went into a wall-supported handstand.

The world spun upside down before her eyes.

Uesugi Shion turned her face away, looking at her in surprise; Minamoto Tamako remained resolute, attempting to understand the mentality of the mentally ill.

"..."

The two were silent for a minute.

Uesugi Shion suddenly released her force, landing her feet back on the floor, standing up again.

Under Minamoto Tamako's astonished gaze, Uesugi Shion suddenly reached out, grabbed her ankle, and pulled it backward.

"Hey hey hey!!"

Minamoto Tamako's hands stretched out, alternately crawling, trying hard to keep balance. She wanted to pull back her feet, but unexpectedly Uesugi Shion clamped her calves with her arms, forcing her to maintain a wheelbarrow stance.

"Wa hahahaha!!"

Uesugi Shion, with her arms clamped on the 'wheelbarrow' handles', laughed uproariously as she ran around the living room; Minamoto Tamako couldn't even think to scold, her hands swung with afterimages, swiftly crawling upside down, afraid that Uesugi Shion would crash her face into the ground.

How did it come to this?!

Minamoto Tamako completely gave up, it's utterly impossible for a normal person to understand a mental patient's thought process, she just wanted to break free from Uesugi Shion's grasp quickly or surely, she'd soon collapse from exhaustion!

"Let go! Let go!" Minamoto Tamako shouted.

Uesugi Shion completely ignored, or perhaps didn't understand what Minamoto Tamako was saying.

She maneuvered the 'wheelbarrow' around the living room in a few circles, growing a bit bored, she suddenly stopped.

Minamoto Tamako seized the opportunity, panting heavily, as those few laps nearly wore her out completely.

Before she could catch her breath, Uesugi Shion suddenly turned direction, pushing her towards Jun, who was lying in the corner watching the show.

"Woof woof woof woof woof!!"

Jun was startled, his paws skidding in place, hurriedly dodging; Uesugi Shion saw, and drove the Tamako-brand wheelbarrow to chase after, determined to send Jun flying.

"Help! Sakurako, help!!" Minamoto Tamako called out for help.

She couldn't hold on much longer, her arms were burning from the high-intensity handstand crawling, now as sore as two noodles. If she continued running, she would be forced to use a face brake.

Taira Sakurako heard the call for help and came out to see what's going on.

Seeing this scene, she didn't help immediately, but rather took out a camcorder again, aimed it at the three of them in the living room, and calmly encouraged, "Go for it, Tamako, I believe you can do it."

"Can do what?! I can't hold it any longer!!" Minamoto Tamako shouted.

"Without going through devilish training, how can one day you become a famous detective and police chief?" Taira Sakurako thought they were undergoing some special physical training.

"What devilish training? It's Uesugi Shion going nuts here!" Minamoto Tamako was on the verge of tears, "Stop her!"

Upon hearing this, Taira Sakurako placed the camcorder on the ground, found a perfect low-angle shot, and walked over like a cowboy facing a bull.

Uesugi Shion, sensing an approaching peer, someone not to be trifled with, quickly halted, staring down Taira Sakurako, her face serious.

Taira Sakurako stood firm opposite, fists clenched, like facing a raging tiger.

The living room suddenly quieted down, the two exchanged fiery glances like bounty hunters in a desert standoff.

Only Minamoto Tamako remained, propping the ground and panting with heavy breaths.

With a plop, the watermelon hat atop Minamoto Tamako's head fell off, rolling like tumbleweed between the two.

"Heh!"

Uesugi Shion shouted suddenly, pushing Minamoto Tamako to charge at Taira Sakurako!

"Come!!"

Taira Sakurako responded with a loud shout, assuming a sumo stance, ready to receive Uesugi Shion's meaty charge!

In the blink of an eye, the three were about to collide, and Taira Sakurako sidestepped, letting Minamoto Tamako through, following with a sweeping leg right to Uesugi Shion's ankle.

Without restraint, Minamoto Tamako collapsed to the floor. She panted heavily, looking back, Uesugi Shion lost momentum, tripped, also fell to the ground.

Taira Sakurako seized the moment, rushing forward, clamping Uesugi Shion's legs, turning the situation around; now Uesugi Shion was the wheelbarrow. She looked dejected, like a knight defeated by goblins.

"Ah... whew..."

Minamoto Tamako rolled over, lying on the ground, feeling as if her heart rate soared to one hundred and eighty.

While she laid on the floor catching her breath, Taira Sakurako steered the Uesugi Shion wheelbarrow around the room, with her head hanging low as she crawled like a defeated warrior.

"What… are you doing?" Minamoto Tamako raised her head to ask.

"Isn't it obvious?" Taira Sakurako retorted: "I thought you had already figured out the rules of the game."

"...What?"

"Can't you tell from her expression? Clearly, an ordinary person still doesn't understand the game rules." Taira Sakurako smirked, unapologetic.

"..."

Minamoto Tamako's hair stood on end, almost forming question marks: "Weren't you just accusing me of doing some kind of special training? Did you make up these game rules yourself?"

"You can tell these things from the look on someone's face! Clearly, ordinary people still have no idea how to understand a mental patient's thought process," Taira Sakurako said confidently.

"Woof woof woof woof woof!!" Uesugi Shion shouted in perfect sync.

"..."

"""