Fujiyama Gangsta Paradise Part 1, also called Chapter 22, is the twenty-third chapter of the Black Lagoon manga. It was originally released in April 2004.
Plot[]
In Japan, Rock uses a telephone booth to call Benny, who asks him if he found the motherboard that he mentioned before. Rock replies that he will try to find it, adding that Balalaika needs him to accompany her as an interpreter after the call. Browsing his computer at the Lagoon Company office, Benny tells him to take his time since he and Dutch have no plans for the next two weeks, and Revy knocks on the booth glass to get Rock's attention. Ending the call, Rock asks Revy, who has come with him to Japan to protect him, how she likes Japan so far. As they walk together in the city, Revy remarks that several men have tried to hit on her and then called her "gaijin" after she began to speak English.
Later, Tsugio Bandō talks with Balalaika and thanks her for meeting him and the Washimine Group face-to-face, asking for her name. Interpreting on her behalf, Rock informs Mr. Bandō that Laptev has briefed Balalaika and she is eager to set up a base in Tokyo. Remembering that Laptev's group got pushed about by the Chinese recently, Bandō comments that he can help out Hotel Moscow and their alliance will be unstoppable. Balalaika rhetorically asks him if the Washimine Group is a member of the Kanto Peace Council, to which Bandō answers that the council has not heard them out despite paying hefty tribute to their higher-ranking brothers in the Kōsa Council. He then tells Balalaika that he has heard that she is adept even among the Russians, making her smugly smile. Willing to demonstrate her group's power, Balalaika calls one of her men in Russian and orders him to begin the attack.
As she closes the cellphone, the building slightly shakes from a nearby explosion, shocking the Washimine gangsters. Balalaika remarks that she has just blown up one of the Kōsa Council's clubs and that Hotel Moscow prefers to show their force via decimation instead of threats with guns. Although Yoshida is shocked, Bandō appreciates her gesture, agreeing to her methods. After the meeting, Rock and Revy sit in a taxi while Revy is excited at the explosion news whereas Rock is dismayed. Noticing a Japanese New Year's festival nearby, Revy asks Rock about it and tells the driver to stop. She tries out a shooting game and hits the targets, joking that she wishes that she had her Cutlass pistols. When Rock comments that gunfights do not work in Japan and that Japanese police cannot be bribed like Roanapur's cops can, Revy asks him if he is getting sentimental about Japan. She asks him if he has family in the country, but Rock jokingly reminds her that she once told him that nosiness can get one in trouble.
He elaborates that his older brother got a government job whereas he had to apply to college twice and only got a regular job. Despite his comment, Revy recommends that he at least send his parents a note even if they do not care about him, saying that he will not get to see them anymore after they leave Japan. Briefly thinking about her own troubled childhood, Revy remarks that Rock certainly grew up in an ordinary and moral family. He jokes that his family screwed up plenty since he is with the Lagoon Company, making Revy show a small smile. Continuing to play the game, one target does not go down, so the annoyed Revy knocks it down with her rifle's barrel and asks the booth keeper to give her a prize. Rock tells Revy that the man has said that she cheated, making Revy cuss out the man in English. As Rock holds her back and pleads with her not to make a scene, a tall man advises her to enjoy herself and calm down, and next to him stands a young girl.