Chapter 29
Augh... my whole body hurts...Well my lower back to be precise
Kasumi slowly opened his eyes, only to be met with two pairs of small eyes staring directly at him.
"Who are you, kid?" he muttered, his voice rough
Sitting in his lap was a little girl. At his question, she turned her head, looking past him.
Huh? I'm in a car?
"Oh, Kasumi, you're finally awake?" Kindaka's voice came from behind.
"Phew… Thank god. We thought we accidentally killed you," Rion said casually
"Yeah, as an apology, we cleaned the knife for you. Now you can use it as your first weapon" Nagumo added, resting a hand on Kasumi's shoulder from the backseat
"Congrats... You're a lucky man for having friends like us," Sakamoto said dryly.
Kasumi turned his head to look at the backseat. It was a mess—Rion was sitting on some woman's lap, with Nagumo, Sakamoto, and Kindaka all crammed together like sardines. There was barely any space to breathe.
"...What the hell is this? And where's Uzuki? WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!" Kasumi shouted, his eyes darting around.
"I'm right here ?" Uzuki said from the driver's seat, his tone completely unbothered. "Been here since the beginning."
"Jeez, what is he?! Your boyfriend?" Rion scoffed, arms crossed.
Kasumi ignored her, glancing down with a frown. "...Oh. And what's this midget doing in my lap?"
"Come on, don't be harsh, Kasumi. The place is cramped, so we had to put her there" Kindaka sighed. "Unless you'd prefer Nagumo or Sakamoto on your lap?"
" as long as I say no hom-
"Anyways" Kindaka interrupted him"that's the chairman's daughter and wife. Our mission is to get them to safety"
Kasumi glanced at the kid in his lap, noticing how uncomfortable she looked. Trying to lighten the mood, he spoke up, his tone oddly serious.
"What do you call a fish without an eye?"
The girl hesitated, still scared. "I… I don't know…"
"A fshhhh," he said, staring at her with an intense glare.
"…" She blinked, completely lost.
Kasumi tilted his head. "Laugh" he ordered.
"Hiik…!" she squeaked out in fear.
Everyone in the car stared in stunned silence at Kasumi
"What the hell was in that knife, Rion?!" Sakamoto demanded, looking at her incredulously
" I think we ...should've killed him for real " nagumo said looking at Kasumi with a disgusted look it was the first time he saw him have a face like that
"Man… what a way to kill the mood. Alright, Sakamoto, your turn—try to make Konomi laugh," Kindaka said, nudging him.
"Huh?" Sakamoto looked taken aback.
"Haha! I love it! Go ahead and make her laugh," Rion chuckled, clearly entertained.
Sakamoto sighed, then silently tucked one leg into his shirt, puffed up his cheeks, and mumbled, "Chubby assassin."
Kindaka shook his head. "That's even worse than Kasumi."
"BOOOORING! What kind of comedian are you?" Rion groaned.
"Dang, I wish I got a video of that," Nagumo muttered.
"Pfft..." Konomi tried to stifle a laugh.
"Oh, it's working!" Rion pointed at her with a smirk.
Kasumi crossed his arms, looking genuinely disappointed. "I still think my joke was better."
Then, without warning, he picked Konomi up and dropped her onto Nagumo's lap.
"Get off me, I don't like you," he said flatly.
"That's petty" Nagumo sighed. He glanced down at Konomi, who looked like she was about to cry.
"It's okay, Konomi. It's not your fault," he reassured her, patting her head.
Sakamoto, still puffing his cheeks, thought to himself, Maybe kids just like fatties…
Kasumi turned to Kindaka. "Now that I think about it, you said you knew Miss Satoda. Were you just colleagues, or was there something more going on between you?"
"Hah?! That was so random! What kind of question is that?" Kindaka exclaimed. "Well, to answer your question, we were just colleagues. Nothing more, nothing less."
"Hmm." Kasumi stroked his chin. "Well, Miss Satoda's been looking pretty lonely these days. I asked if she had a husband, but she told me she doesn't need one."
Rion's eyes widened. "Ooooh yeah... How about when we finish this mission, you two go on a date?"
"C-Calm down, kids. These matters aren't as simple as you think..." Kindaka scratched his head, clearly flustered. "I mean, look at me. I'll be hitting my forties in a few years—way past the time to be worrying about these kind of things"
He sighed, shaking his head. "Besides, we're assassins. Having a family is ridiculous."
Kasumi smirked. "Well I don't think the age of assassins will last another ten years... So why don't you two settle down, retire, have kids, and die peacefully while you still have the chance?"
Uzuki's eyes widened slightly, caught off guard by the comment.
Kindaka, on the other hand, burst into laughter. "And live the rest of my life off retirement money? Hah I'd rather die fighting than that!"
"Hm?" Rion with her head outside the window, widened her eyes as she spotted something being tossed from the window of the car ahead.
"Hand grenade! 50 meters ahead!" she shouted, quickly shielding Konomi.
!!!
Everyone in the car froze, their expressions shifting from shock to panic.
The grenade hit the road, bouncing once before rolling directly beneath their car.
Kasumi's right hand shot down , grabbing the grenade before it could explode
"Idiot! Bombs don't work that way—it'll still explode!" Rion shouted, her voice sharp with panic thinking kasumi wanted to crush the grenade
Kindaka tensed, grabbing Konomi's mom, ready to jump out at any moment.
Kasumi tilted his head, lifting the grenade up. "Hmm? What'd you say?"
Rion's eyes widened in disbelief. "WHY THE HELL ARE YOU STILL HOLDING IT?!"
"Chill," Kasumi said, spinning the grenade on his finger before stopping. "I snapped the fuse in half before the spark could trigger the explosion."
She glanced at the grenade, noticing the small dent just as he had described.
"B-But this bomb looks modern… it shouldn't even have a fuse inside" Uzuki stammered.
"..."
BEEP. BEEP. BEEEEP.
Kasumi didn't hesitate—he hurled it out of the car, sending it spiraling into the open space outside. "Welp, not our problem now… just gotta hope it doesn't screw up a satellite or something."
"No, we still have a problem," Sakamoto said, pointing ahead.
A man stepped out of the still-moving vehicle ahead, his hands encased in gauntlet-like devices.
With a single leap, he landed on the car's hood, denting the metal beneath his weight. His right hand shot toward Konomi, but before he could reach her, multiple hands blurred into motion, yanking her out of harm's way.
Undeterred, the man raised his other hand, revealing a hidden weapon embedded within his gauntlet.
BOOM!
The car exploded, flames engulfing the wreckage. Luckily, everyone managed to escape in time—except Konomi and Nagumo, who were nowhere to be seen.
Kasumi landed on his feet, hands skidding against the ground to stop himself as his eyes quickly scanned the chaos ahead. But before he could even lift his head—
Thud!
Something slammed into his face, knocking the air from his lungs. "Gah—!" The force sent him crashing backward, his body colliding with a parked car.
Bang!
Dazed, he blinked, glancing down,only to find Rion sprawled on him rubbing her face against chest
Kasumi frowned. "Oi!" He called out, trying to snap her out of whatever daze she was in.
Rion blinked rapidly. "H-hah? Ah… sor—whatever." Her face turned red, and she quickly turned to leave. But just before she did, her gaze flickered to Kasumi's chest one last time before she muttered a curse under her breath.
Sakamoto approached, extending a hand to help Kasumi up. "What was that about?"
Kasumi smirked as he took the hand. "No idea. Probably jealous my chest is bigger than hers."
" haah !? "
Kasumi shrugged " Don't blame her though I would feel jealous if I saw a woman with bigger chest than me ... I do chest workouts everyday and you just come in and have a bigger one just because your a girl ? Hah as if I'll let that happen "
Sakamoto stared at Kasumi, utterly baffled. "Look... we have a mission right now. Can you focus?"
Kasumi, however, ignored him, rubbing his chin in thought. "Two months ago, I saw this girl posing by the side of the street with a chest bigger than my head. I asked her about her workout routine, and she told me her name was Pro Ste Toot."
He threw his hands up in frustration. "What does that have to do with my question?! And WHO THE HELL NAMES THEIR CHILD THAT?!"
Sakamoto let out a long sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Kasumi... I don't want to kno—"
Before he could finish, a motorcycle crashed into Kasumi, slamming him back against the car with a loud thud.
Rion, still gripping the handlebars, barely spared him a glance before turning to Sakamoto. "Hop in. Kindaka wants to see us."
"What about him?" Sakamoto pointed at Kasumi, who lay motionless, feigning being unconscious in hopes of earning some sympathy.
"Tsk, leave him." Rion scoffed, revving the engine.
" Huh!? "
__________
Kasumi walked into the parking lot where Kindaka had told them to meet. All that running gave me a headache... Seriously, what did I even do to her? he thought, rubbing his temple.
'Who the hell is blasting loud music this early in the morning?!'
Kasumi's eyes drifted toward the center of the lot, where a group had gathered in a circle around a white van, music blaring from its speakers. Squinting, he tried to make out what was happening. What are they doing?
He walked closer.
Kindaka glanced over his shoulder, spotting Kasumi approaching. "Took you long enough. We waited five minutes for you. What, did that weak explosion knock you out?"
"Tsk ...ask her." Kasumi jerked his thumb at Rion, who was casually smoking nearby. His eyes narrowed at her outfit—a sleeveless undershirt. "Why the hell are you dressed like that? You look like some divorced, middle-aged man."
In response she just flipped him off
Kindaka exclaimed. "We don't have time for this." Crossing his arms, he continued, "Since you were late, I'll catch you up. I caught the guy who attacked us earlier. Tried to interrogate him, but he wouldn't say a word."
He gestured toward Nagumo. "Nagumo chopped off his arms, thought the pain would loosen his tongue a little. That's why the music's so damn loud ,to drown out his screams."
Kasumi raised a brow. "And?"
"And it was pointless. That psycho didn't even scream—just kept rambling about how he 'deserved this' because of his bad deeds"
"Bad deeds?"
"It's something gamblers do—rack up good deeds so they can win," he said, shaking his head. "Hear that, kids? Don't gamble, or your brain will rot like theirs."
"Too late for that" Sakamoto muttered, side-eyeing Kasumi.
"What about the driver?"
Nagumo raised his head. "That's on me. Sorry. He threatened to poison the car."
"Huh? And you just complied like a good boy?" Rion scoffed.
"Not exactly. Konomi was with me, so I couldn't take any chances."
Kasumi rolled his shoulders, stretching his muscles before heading toward the van.
"What are you doing?" Kindaka called out.
Kasumi smirked. "Gamblers understand each other better than family. Just give me a minute."
Kasumi opened the van door, stepping inside while Kindaka watched with a dumbfounded expression. "Ah, Nagumo left a real mess back there, so try not to get any blood on your shoes... Here, wear this." He tossed a rain jacket at him.
Kasumi slipped it on before entering the van.
The man inside looked up weakly, his face pale. "I told you clowns already—I'm not saying anything," he muttered, voice hoarse. "Tsk… If you're here to kill me, just do it."
Kasumi raised a hand in a calming gesture. "Now, now, no need to act tough. I'm just here to talk."
"Well, I've got nothing to say," the man scoffed. "So just get this over with."
Kasumi sighed. "Huff… What's with you, man? Is it really worth throwing your life away for whoever sent you?" He pulled out a cigarette pack, tapping it lightly. "Wanna smoke?"
The man scoffed. "What, are you playing the good cop now?"
"Is that a yes?"
He exhaled through his nose, then shrugged. "Sure. A ciggy wouldn't hurt."
"Great." Kasumi lit a cigarette, placing it between his lips before offering one to the man. "Sorry about… this." He gestured toward the severed arm on the ground.
"Yeah… haha, no kidding. At least he could've left my left hand for, you know…" He winked.
Kasumi smirked. "You mentioned bad deeds earlier. I take it you like gambling?"
"Yeah, karma… Turns out it's bullshit. I only survived this long because I was just a little above average as an assassin. Karma had nothing to do with it." His gaze drifted downward, eyes carrying a hint of sadness.
Kasumi grabbed his shoulder. "I don't believe that. I think the only reason you're still alive is because of your good karma. You're an assassin, sure, so bad deeds were inevitable. Maybe that's why you lost your arms,but you're still breathing, aren't you?"
The man's eyes widened. "Huh?!"
"So, refusing to talk won't do you any good. It'll only push your bad karma further, and trust me, I'd be more than happy to deliver the divine judgment right here and now," Kasumi said, his voice calm "So, what's it gonna be, Hansuke?" He locked eyes with him.
"My name is Higuchi! Who the hel—" Higuchi started, but his voice faltered as he met Kasumi's gaze. It was clear Kasumi didn't care.
"It happened yesterday when I got a message from a guy named Tim Cheddar. He just told me to kidnap the chairman's family members… I thought it was bullshit at first, but then he sent the money right away. When I was about to block him, he sent me another message—it was a picture of my apartment."
Kasumi gave a slight nod. "Mhm. Go on."
"That's when I got scared. I knew this wasn't a joke. Then I got a third message—it was the coordinates of a secluded building. I went there and met with the driver. There was supposed to be a third person, but she refused to show up. Probably didn't trust us or had some other assassin bullshit going on."
"Hold on… third?" Kasumi interrupted.
"Yeah. She's a bit famous. You probably know her."
Kasumi narrowed his eyes. "Who is she?"
"The Thorn Princess."
"What?! You can't be serious..." His face tensed for a moment, a bead of sweat forming—then, just as quickly, he regained his composure. "Who's that? Well i dont care see ya "
Higuchi sighed in relif as he saw kasumi leave
Kasumi suddenly halted in his tracks. His expression darkened. "You still tried to kill a fucking kid."
In an instant, a suffocating wave of killing intent filled the van.
"W-Wait! You said you wou—please, I beg you! Don't kill me!" Higuchi stammered, his voice trembling. To him, Kasumi no longer looked human—he was a demon in flesh.
Kasumi's fist shot forward, stopping just inches from Higuchi's face.
"Just kidding hansuke" he said casually, his tone dripping with mockery. "You can go."
Higuchi didn't respond. His eyes rolled back, and he slumped forward, unconscious. A damp stain spread across his jeans with some yellow liquid dripping from it