It was a bright and sunny Wednesday afternoon in late October. The leaves were starting to change color and there was a slight chill in the air signaling the coming of fall. Sai was sitting comfortably on the couch in his living room, focused intently on the gaming console in his hands. He was deeply immersed in the role-playing video game he was playing, focused on leveling up his character and progressing through the game's story. 

To an outside observer, this scene would have appeared perfectly mundane and normal. A man relaxing and passing time on his day off by playing video games was hardly unusual. However, the game Sai was playing was no ordinary game. He was playing an otome game, a story-based game targeted at a female audience involving romantic relationships between the player's character and selectable male characters. This genre of gaming was highly atypical for most men to play. 

An otome game could make some people uncomfortable or judgmental if they saw a man like Sai playing it. The stigma surrounding men enjoying media forms traditionally targeted at women persisted in society. Some might make assumptions about Sai's intentions or interests if they realized he was engrossed in playing out romantic narratives. However, these judgments would be far off base. Sai was not playing this game for his own entertainment at all.

The true reason behind Sai's gaming was his adopted daughter, Kurumi. Sai had taken Kurumi in and raised her as his own child after the tragic deaths of Kurumi's parents over 20 years ago. Kurumi's father Tobio, had been Sai's closest colleague and best friend when they worked together. Before Tobio and his wife passed away unexpectedly in an accident when Kurumi was very young, Sai had promised his dear friends that he would take care of their beloved daughter and raise her as part of his family. 

Sai took this promise very seriously and had dedicated himself to providing the very best life possible for Kurumi. When she grew older, Kurumi developed an interest in otome games and visual novels. While Sai himself had no innate interest in the romantic themes of these games designed for women, he wanted to support his daughter's hobbies. Whenever a new otome game would be released, Sai would obtain it for Kurumi to play.

To better share in her interest, Sai would often play through the games himself first before Kurumi got a chance to play them. This allowed him to discuss the characters and stories with her and gave them something they could bond over together. So in reality, while it may have seemed unusual from the outside that Sai was playing an otome game, he was simply being a devoted father wanting to connect with his daughter over her favorite hobby.

The depth of Sai's care and commitment to the promise he made to his late friends was evident in how earnestly he engaged with something so far outside his own interests, just to make his daughter happy. His openness and willingness to support Kurumi's enjoyment demonstrated the incredible parent he had become over the past 20 years. What could appear on the surface to be peculiar behavior was simply a man keeping his word and being the best father he could be. Sai's love for Kurumi could inspire others to look beyond surface judgments and first impressions.

Sai was far from an average ordinary man. For the first 40 years of his life, he had lived in the shadows serving his country as a covert agent for the Japanese government. Sai was a highly skilled spy and soldier, carrying out dangerous top-secret missions in service of Japan's national security interests. His work demanded he lead an inconspicuous life hidden from public view. 

Four years ago, Sai had decided the time had come for him to retire from the intense life of espionage and military operations. Having devoted his entire adult life to his clandestine work, Sai was ready for a change of pace. His years of service had provided him with a generous pension that afforded him financial independence. If he desired, he would never need to work another day in his life.

In his retirement, Sai sought to explore interests and hobbies he had been unable to indulge in during his previous career. One of these newfound passions was immersing himself in anime and video games, partly as a way to bond with his adopted daughter Kurumi over her interests. Through Kurumi's influence, Sai had come to greatly enjoy many popular anime series, including Dragonball, Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, Attack on Titan, and Sword Art Online.

Among these, Bleach with its focus on swordsmanship and supernatural conflicts deeply resonated with Sai. Inspired by Bleach, over the last few years Sai had disciplined himself to master the art of kendo, along with training in a variety of other martial sword styles. His natural athleticism and dedication to training allowed him to swiftly gain expertise far surpassing that of most hobbyists. Sai relished the challenge and satisfaction of perfecting his skills to precision levels.

On this particular quiet afternoon, Sai had been looking forward to finishing up the otome game he was playing in order to discuss it soon with Kurumi. But as he neared the end of his gaming session, Sai's sharpened senses picked up an alarming disturbance. From another room, he heard the sharp and unmistakable sound of breaking glass.

Instantly Sai's demeanor shifted from relaxed to battle-ready. His instincts and lifetime of specialized training kicked in as he stealthily moved to investigate the source of the sound. He knew someone must be secretly and illegally trying to gain entry into his home by breaking a window. Sai felt confident he could handle any home intruder with his abilities, but he proceeded cautiously. Moving silently through his home, muscles tensed and ready to strike in a split second, Sai prepared to confront whoever had dared to violate the sanctuary of his home.

Though Sai had left his career of danger behind him, his previous life continued to shape his reactions and capabilities. The skills he had spent decades honing would never fade. Sai's military past and mastery of combat permeated his entire being. So while on the surface Sai seemed to be living a peaceful retired life, underneath he remained constantly vigilant and ready to unleash his formidable talents. Any trespasser in his domain would swiftly regret their foolish mistake, for this unassuming man harbored exceptional abilities and instincts. Sai lived prepared for combat at any moment while keeping his extraordinary talents discretely masked from public knowledge.