Chapter 114: Yorinobu Arasaka Must Die; The Aldecaldos’ Revolution!

Wanting Yorinobu Arasaka dead was cool but actually pulling it off is a different story.

Even if Takemura Goro somehow managed to breach the tower, fight through Arasaka's guards, and stand face to face with Yorinobu himself—how far would that get him?

Because killing a man like Yorinobu wasn't the same as killing Arasaka.

Arasaka wasn't a man anymore. It was a system.

A monster built out of legacy, fear, and power—so massive that no blade could cut deep enough to reach its heart.

It was the true nightmare of this world:

Not that it couldn't be toppled, but that even shaking it an inch was nearly impossible.

Takemura could try, but his revenge would only ripple the surface. The high-ranking executives would already have chosen their sides—Arasaka Tower was just a battleground of politics now.

Neo understood it better than anyone. Inside any organization, loyalty didn't come from doing the right thing. It came from standing in the right line.

Saburo Arasaka had three children.

The eldest, once the heir apparent, had died in an old corporate war—a loss that had gutted Saburo and left the empire's succession open to chaos.

Then came Yorinobu, the rebellious son. Born to inherit everything, yet desperate to destroy it all. He wanted freedom, independence—a world without his father's shadow. A romantic fool with a genius's mind and a traitor's heart.

The third child, Hanako, was different—calm, calculating, and frighteningly competent. She had been Saburo's quiet favorite. If not for Yorinobu's betrayal, she might have led Arasaka into a new golden age.

And so, when Saburo fell, the empire fractured. Each surviving heir gathered their loyalists, their factions, and their armies. The boardroom wars began. The once-monolithic Arasaka Corporation splintered into rival camps.

 But fractured or not, it was still a fortress. Too large and too powerful for any outsider to challenge directly.

Even Yorinobu, sitting in the middle of the storm he created, was beyond Takemura's reach.

And Takemura knew it. But men like him… they didn't stop because something was impossible. They stopped when they were dead.

Neo wasn't surprised. This was exactly how he expected it to play out.

Takemura's vengeance, noble as it sounded, would change nothing.

...

Panam leaned against the hood of the Thorton, crossing her arms. "So, what now? Things seem pretty wrapped up. You heading back to Night City? Maybe go see your two little angels?" She smirked. "Or coming with me back to the Aldecaldos?"

Neo's gaze stayed fixed on the horizon. "Not done yet. There's still one loose end I need to cut."

"Oh?"

He smiled faintly. "We killed most of NightWalkers at Rocky Ridge, but not all. The ones who slipped away will crawl back to their base by now. Might as well finish what we started."

Panam blinked, then grinned. "You're insane."

"Maybe," he said. "But efficient."

...

After their raid at Rocky Ridge, Neo and Panam rode north—toward the old Maelstrom fortress carved into the mountainside.

It was there, deep in the cracked bones of Rocky Ridge Mountain, that the gang's true stronghold stood.

When Neo had crushed their assault on the town days ago, a few survivors had escaped—wild dogs scattered to the wind. But he'd sensed them through his haki.

They'd seen what he'd done. Seen their brothers cut down like cattle.

And like all cornered beasts, they'd fled to the one place that still felt safe—their den.

Neo had let them go on purpose.

Chasing down every last one would've been tedious.

Better to let fear drive them home, gather them in one place, and then erase them all at once.

By now, they'd be back in their base, licking wounds, thinking the storm had passed.

But Neo's storms didn't pass. They circled back, stronger.

"Panam," he said quietly. "Go tell Saul what's coming."

She nodded. "Got it."

...

Minutes later, Saul came storming over, eyes wide as Panam explained.

"You're telling me," he said slowly, "that before this Kang Tao ambush, you and Neo already took down the Maelstrom NightWalkers in Rocky Ridge?"

Panam shrugged. "Yeah. And now he wants to finish them off."

Saul's mouth opened, then shut. He just stared for a long moment before muttering, "Holy hell."

He walked over to Neo, still half in disbelief. "Mr. Neo, if you don't mind me asking—what happens to everything in their base? The gear, weapons, supplies—"

Neo didn't even blink. "All of it belongs to the Aldecaldos. I don't want a single eddie."

That made Saul pause. Nothing came free in this world, least of all from a man like Neo. "That's… generous. So what do you want from us in return?"

Neo turned, his tone sharp but measured. "Absolute trust. Absolute loyalty."

He reached out, lacing his fingers through Panam's hand as he spoke.

"Panam is mine," he said simply. "And she'll return to your clan eventually. When she does, I don't want conflict. I want cooperation. Listen to her counsel. Don't dismiss her voice. A family led by one opinion isn't a family—it's a cage."

Saul studied Neo for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Understood. From this day forward, Panam's my second-in-command. We'll make decisions together."

Panam blinked, caught off guard. "I… what?"

Saul grinned. "You heard him. Congratulations, deputy chief."

For once, Panam was speechless.

Neo just smiled faintly. "Good. That's settled."

…

Neo turned his gaze eastward, toward the ridges glowing under the morning sun.

The ghosts of the NightWalkers were waiting up there.

And soon, there'd be none left to haunt the Badlands.