Natsume-san rested her chin in her hands, leaning over Uiharu's desk, watching somewhat distractedly as Uiharu's fingers danced across the keyboard like fluttering butterflies.
"It's really a bother for you, Uiharu-san."
Sonoko Natsume murmured, her pupils slightly dilated.
"Not at all. I'm just happy to be of help to you, Natsume-san."
Even though she'd always known Uiharu-san was skilled with computers, seeing it in person was far more impressive.
It all seemed so effortless.
Uiharu's expression hadn't even changed, sipping tea and nibbling snacks while she easily handled what Natsume-san found so troublesome.
In just a few minutes, she'd fished out exactly what Natsume-san wanted from the vast, endless ocean of the internet.
It was almost like she'd just typed a keyword into a search bar. That's how Uiharu-san made it feel.
As various pieces of information related to the Level 6 Shift Project were intercepted, researcher details were automatically and continuously cross-referenced against this data. Rows upon rows of suspicious individuals popped up on the screen, their numbers steadily growing.
Judging from the intercepted information, there was very little data from before the Level 6 Shift Project was terminated.
But after it was scrapped, all sorts of materials began circulating online, with many researchers openly discussing it.
Of course, this 'openness' was only within the researchers' own circles.
However, the emergence of this list only made Sonoko Natsume more hesitant, because it was just too comprehensive.
Simply put, the number of people involved was far too large. At least thirty research institutes, roughly five to six hundred people, had some degree of involvement in the Level 6 Shift Project.
And this was just from the fragments circulating online. No one could be sure if there were more deeply hidden players behind it all.
Because of that, this list didn't have much practical value after all.
Just as Uiharu and Sonoko were talking, a page flashed up like a red alert siren. But Uiharu-san just tapped a few keys, and the red alert vanished instantly.
Unless a system was completely air-gapped, Uiharu-san could access almost anywhere the Academy City's network reached. Some in the underworld called her the 'Goalkeeper' of Academy City.
"Ran into a bit of trouble," Uiharu noted, seeing the warning prompt pop up.
Her face showed no panic, but rather a hint of satisfaction. Though her reaction seemed odd, it made perfect sense for Uiharu.
'If everyone keeps updating their systems and patching vulnerabilities,' she thought with some hope, 'maybe my workload will get a bit lighter.'
"The readily available, surface-level information is basically all here. To go any deeper, we'd have to breach some more core areas. I remember setting up some security programs in those places before; I'd need to disable them first," Uiharu explained seriously, turning around and meeting Natsume-san's gaze.
"That's alright, this is more than enough. Just this much already leaves me completely without a clue," Sonoko Natsume shook her head, looking bewildered at the dense list of researchers' names.
She had been far too naive.
If you didn't count the students, who were the most numerous people in Academy City? It was the researchers, naturally.
While they had a lead, the number of suspects was just too large. It didn't seem like a problem that could be solved... dealt with quickly.
A large portion of the researchers on this list had previously worked at institutes destroyed by Misaka-senpai.
"Actually, I also tried searching for information on the person who attacked you, Natsume-san," Uiharu said, sounding a bit regretful. "But unfortunately, I couldn't find any data on that individual at all."
"That person actually came from outside Academy City," Sonoko Natsume replied, still propping her chin. "An Anti-Skill teacher mentioned it to me a few days ago."
The networks of Academy City and the outside world were separated. Uiharu's reach was limited to within Academy City.
After Natsume-san finished speaking, she noticed Uiharu's gaze was still fixed on her.
"No wonder we hardly saw you or Misaka-senpai for a while. To think you were involved in something so huge without us realizing. That's a Tokiwadai Lady for you."
"And the Sisters... they're just so pitiful. To be treated like lab animals..." Uiharu now seemed agitated, her tone uneven, quickly shifting to one of indignation.
"You're exaggerating, Uiharu-chan. But if you want to visit the Sisters, you could go see Doctor Heaven Canceller these days," Natsume-san suggested after a moment's thought.
"I will," Uiharu nodded firmly.
Things for the Misaka Sisters were getting on track now. Academy City had allocated some dormitories to them.
Although their apartment locations were quite scattered, thankfully they were all within School District 7.
"Has Konori-senpai not returned yet? She was the one who asked me to come here," Sonoko Natsume said, remembering something else and glancing back towards the door.
As for asking Uiharu for help, they had a result of sorts—a list of nearly five to six hundred suspects. In a way, it was a huge haul.
"Senpai went to buy Musashino Milk," Uiharu said, thinking for a second. "Calculating the distance to the nearest supermarket... she should be back in about five minutes."
"I see. I suppose Konori-senpai called me here about the Judgment training camp, right?" Natsume-san made idle chatter with Uiharu, plopping her whole head onto the desk, her expression going slightly blank.
"So you already knew, Natsume-san," Uiharu said, quite surprised.
Konori-senpai returned a little later than expected.
She was carrying a large bag containing five full cartons of milk.
"Sorry I'm late," Konori-senpai said with an apologetic look directed at Natsume-san.
"It's fine, I haven't been waiting long," Sonoko Natsume replied, lifting her head from the desk and shaking it.
"Senpai, actually, about the Judgment training camp... I have some issues with physical fitness, so I'd like to withdraw from the training."
After a slight hesitation, a certain meatball haired girl who really didn't want to participate in the Judgment training camp said slowly.
And withdrawing from the training basically meant giving up on becoming a Judgment member.
"So you want to withdraw from the training?" Konori-senpai put down the milk she was holding and suddenly sighed.
"But if it's about physical fitness... Uiharu here didn't meet the standard initially either. Yet she's still an excellent Judgment member now," Konori-senpai paused for a moment, thinking before she spoke.
"Konori-senpai, I'm truly sorry. Besides the fitness, my club activities keep me quite busy too. We have field research every month, which involves traveling to many places."
Natsume-san continued, seeming dead set on avoiding the training.
She'd even skip PE class if she could, let alone participate in such high-intensity training.
"I understand."
Konori-senpai gave a slight nod, a trace of realization on her face.
After staying a bit longer at the Judgment branch, accompanied by a crisp sound of a door closing, Natsume-san's figure vanished through the main entrance.
Uiharu now looked somewhat dejected, but since it was Natsume-san's own decision, she could only support it.
"Natsume-san would actually be quite suited for Judgment. And if what Shirai-san says is true, if she could join Judgment, I'm sure everyone would be really boosted."
A thoughtful expression crossed Konori-senpai's face as she unconsciously began pacing on the spot.
Judgment was the largest student organization in Academy City with the most members, but mismatched with that status was the fact that they had no Level 5s among them.
If a Level 5 were to join, the feeling would be completely different.
Ever since hearing certain things from Shirai, Konori-senpai felt it was very necessary to try and recruit Natsume-san.
"Uiharu, why do you think Natsume-san doesn't want to join Judgment?" Konori-senpai asked, somewhat concerned.
"Maybe... because Natsume-san is just very busy?" Uiharu-san offered uncertainly.
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.