Tokyo Surprise (12 page)

“Granny, we have to go after him!” Josh cried, leaping to his feet and looking up to see if he could make the jump across. If he climbed higher up the tower and found some way to
push himself off with enough force...

“No,” said Granny Murata, coming up to Josh and grabbing him by the shoulders before he could run after Yoshida. “We do not have time for that right now.”

Yoshida bowed and waved mockingly at Granny Murata. Then he caught Josh’s eye.

Josh stared back.
This isn’t over, Yoshida
, he thought. He was pretty sure this was not the first time the Murata family had seen off the Yakuza boss – and he was determined
it wouldn’t be the last.

“Let’s get Kiki to this show. Are you able to go on, dear?” Granny asked, helping Kiki to her feet.

“Yes,” she said, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. “I won’t let Yoko go on in my place.”

“Good!” Granny said with a smile. Her dentures glimmered white in the glare of the floodlights. “Let’s get you to that studio.” She spoke into a device on her
wrist. “Yamamoto-san, we have Kiki. Is Jessica with you? Good. Meet us at the car.” She pulled on her belt and two cords with clasps on the end spooled out. With an expert aim, she
threw a small grappling hook into the air. It clamped on to one of the metal struts of the Tokyo Tower. Granny tugged it twice, then in a few swift movements she had clipped one cord onto
Josh’s belt, another onto Kiki’s dress, and all three of them were moving towards the edge of the roof.

“Granny...!” Josh gasped, but barely had time to catch his breath before they had launched off the roof and into the air.

Time stood still as they hung there for a second – Josh could see the streets of Tokyo glittering all around them, and Team O’s car down below, and Mr. Yamamoto and Jessica coming
out of the building and looking up...Kiki’s dress streamed out behind her in the breeze...and then they fell.

Josh’s stomach seemed to stay behind on the roof as the ground rushed up to meet them. The wind tugged at his hair and made his eyes water. The cords spooled out of Granny’s belt
with a high-pitched noise – but then Josh realized that was Kiki.

“Eeeeeeeeeeeheehehehe!” She started to giggle as the cords caught them and lowered them gently to the ground beside the car. “That was great!”

Jessica was waiting at the bottom. “You okay?” Josh and Jessica chorused to each other at exactly the same time. “Of course,” they both answered.

“Let’s go,” Granny said. “We’ve got a show to catch.”

After a crazy, hyper-speed drive through Tokyo, Granny pulled the car up to the stage door of the TV studio. Josh smiled to himself, remembering that the last time they were in
the car with Granny, she was scolding Kiki’s bodyguard for driving too fast!

The rest of Team O stood outside the building, waiting to greet them. Nana gave Josh and Jessica a big grandmotherly hug. Then Kiki leaped out of the car, the skirts of her now mostly ruined
dress flying behind her, to gasps of amazement from the studio technicians.

“Ayumi,” someone shouted as Josh and the others followed her through into the backstage corridor. “Guess who’s back!”

“Kiki?
Kiki!
Oh my, is that really you?”

“It’s me,” said Kiki, running up to a woman wearing a radio mic and carrying a clipboard. “Sorry I’m a little late! Do I still have a job?”

“Are you joking?” Ayumi gaped at her. “Someone tell Yoko Yay her services are not required. What
happened
? Did you escape?” she asked.

“The National Police rescued me – the thug who kidnapped me got away and I didn’t even see his face!”

Out of the corner of his eye, Josh spotted Granny Murata nod ever so slightly. Kiki had picked up her lines brilliantly, for such a short in-car briefing.

“Tell me the rest as we go,” Ayumi said. “Maybe we can work it into the show. In fact, I’ve got a
great
idea...” She started to lead Kiki down the
corridor.

Kiki stopped her. “Wait – my friends!” she said, running back to Josh and the others. She shook hands with Nana, Sachiko, Nakamura and Mimasu, hugged Granny and Mr. Yamamoto,
and bent down to give Josh and Jessica a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you all,” she whispered.

“No problem!” Josh grinned, trying not to go bright red.

“You’ll all come to the show, right?”

“Kiki, come on, we need at least ten minutes to get you into your costume,” said Ayumi. “I promise they’ll have the best seats in the house.”

Kiki let Ayumi pull her away, and a security guard appeared and escorted Josh, Jessica and the others down a corridor full of TV equipment.

A scream and a crash made them stop in their tracks. Granny’s hand went straight to her belt and Josh realized that he had already dropped into his ready stance. But then around the corner
came Yoko Yay, flanked by security guards and followed by her army of squealing girls.

“You cannot do this to me!” she said, kicking out at a potted plant as she passed. “My grandfather will have something to say about this! You’ll all suffer!” She
tried to seize some equipment to smash, but the security guards walked her firmly towards the exit. Josh and Jessica high-fived each other as she was frogmarched away.

Josh and the others were whisked through a door and out into a huge arena with hundreds of seats, nearly all filled. The guard found them places in a roped-off part right in the middle. A young
couple passed them, carrying refreshments. Josh heard the girl say, “I wish Kiki was here. Yoko Yay’s rubbish – but I suppose at least she’s only presenting.” Josh
exchanged an enormous grin with Jessica. The audience hadn’t been told! Boy, were they in for a surprise.

“Sachiko-san, thank you for the disguises,” Josh said, settling down in his chair and reaching for a complimentary drink of water. “And Mimasu-san – those fold-up katana
were
genius
! Although I think I might have lost mine,” he added.

“Don’t worry about it,” said Mimasu with a smile. “I have lots of other fun toys I’d love you to try out.”

Before Granny could protest a beeping sound started coming from her pocket.

“Granny!” Jessica protested. “You can’t have your mobile on during the show!”

“Do you wish me to hang up on your father?” Granny asked, showing them the caller ID. She answered the phone, and chattered away in Japanese for a few seconds, then nodded. “Oh
yes, they are fine, but we cannot talk long,” she said, glancing at Josh. “We are just about to watch a show together.” Granny winked at them. “Yes, we’re getting
along wonderfully. Yes? Yes, of course...I understand completely. Please give my regards to Julia.” She hung up. “It looks as if your parents will be staying in Africa for a little
while longer,” she said. “And, so, that means you’ll have to stay with me a little longer. If that is agreeable to you, that is,” she asked with a smile.

Josh grinned back.
Are you kidding?
he thought.
Spending more time with my ninja granny? Best. Summer. Ever. If only we’d caught Yoshida...
It gave him the chills to think of
the Yakuza and the Iron Fist still out there, causing trouble. But one day he swore the Muratas would beat the Yoshidas for good!

Suddenly the lights in the arena started to go down. A hush fell on the audience. Granny switched off her mobile phone.

A light appeared onstage. It looked as if it was being projected through rippling water. Then as the light grew brighter, Josh realized the whole stage had been turned into a river of silk that
ran around three smaller stages, each set up with band equipment. A waterfall of blue gauze was hanging in front of the centre stage.

The silhouette of a girl carrying a guitar appeared, projected onto the flowing wave of blue silk. Three guitar chords rang out, and then the lights went up, the waterfall descended, and the
crowd went wild. Josh and the others all leaped to their feet in applause. Kiki grinned at them all and waved.

“Thanks, thanks, everybody!” she cried. “It feels so great to be here!”

Josh knew precisely what she meant.

The crowd filled the Ajinomoto Stadium with waves of noise that echoed between the huge screens showing advertisements for fizzy drinks. One of them flashed up the score:
EXTRA TIME: JAPAN 1 – 0 PORTUGAL.

Josh leaned forward, his heart in his mouth, as out on the pitch the Portuguese striker turned on his heel and managed to get the ball past the Japanese defenders.

“No!” Kiki Chiba squealed and hunched down in the seat next to Josh, half-hiding behind her Japan scarf. The striker barrelled towards the goal with the defenders in his wake. Josh
could feel the crowd around him breathing in, clutching their flags, all eyes on the white figure in the goal.

“Save it, Shini...” Josh muttered.

The striker feinted right, then sent the ball arcing towards the left side of the goal. Shinichiro Hanzo – the best player in the J League, maybe the best goalkeeper in the world –
leaped like a cat, snatching the ball just before it crossed the goal line. He landed and rolled, the ball safely cradled to his chest.

The crowd went crazy as he stood up and booted the ball down the pitch to the waiting feet of a Japanese midfielder. He turned to the home fans and raised both hands in triumph.

“Go Shini!
Hai, hai, hai!
” Kiki shrieked happily, leaping out of her seat and jumping up and down.

“It’s not quite over yet...” Jessica said. She was glancing from the action to her watch and back, her face full of tension. “Come on, ref, blow the whistle!”

The Portuguese and Japanese players were scrapping over the ball in the centre circle, fighting for control...

Then the ref blew his whistle.

The crowd roared again. Kiki screamed with joy, the strength of her pop-singer lungs making Josh’s ears ache.

“Come on!” she said, flinging the end of her scarf over her shoulder. “Let’s go down and congratulate him!”

The twins shared a glance. “Erm...okay!”

Josh tried to look cool, casual – but it was hard to be cool and casual when he was being waved through a VIP door and into the private areas of the stadium. The place
was massive, and the corridor he, Jessica and Kiki walked down felt like it would never end. Finally, they came to a lift, which took them down to
another
corridor.

As they walked, Jessica put a hand over her nose. “What’s that smell?”

Josh grimaced. “I think it’s...
feet
.”

“Ah, here it is,” said Kiki. “Locker rooms.” She pushed open a swinging door, and the twins followed her through into a large room full of wide wooden benches, lockers,
and rows of hooks in the walls. It was empty. “We did take a while to get here,” Kiki said. “I guess they’ve all changed. Maybe Shini’s waiting upstairs...”

“Wait,” said Jessica. “Did you hear that?” She walked over to an archway in the wall. An identical room lay on the other side, and as Josh walked up behind her he heard
it too –
voices
.

“
Ieie
,” one of them said. “
No
. I will not.”

It was Shini. Josh peered around the archway, and saw him standing with his arms folded and his shoulders hunched, glaring at a man in a large overcoat and a hat.
That’s odd,
thought Josh.
It’s very warm outside and even warmer down here.

Shini looked up and saw Kiki and the twins. The other man glanced at them, though Josh couldn’t see his face. Then he strode off through a door, slamming it behind him.

“Hey, Shini,” Kiki said. “What was all that about?”

“Oh...nothing,” Shini said, shrugging. “He was just a fan. A bit...intense. They ask you very odd things. You know.”

“I do.” Kiki laughed, and it seemed to brighten Shini’s mood. He smiled at her, then at Josh and Jessica. Josh beamed back.

“That was amazing!” he blurted out. “The match, I mean. You were great.”

“
D
ō
m
ō
arigat
ō
.” Shini grinned.

“Shini,” Kiki said, “these are my friends, Josh and Jessica Murata. They’re half-English, visiting from London.”

“Oh really?” said Shini, still smiling. “Who will you be cheering for on Saturday?”