Tap. Tap.
The crisp sound of a cane striking the concrete floor echoed through the warehouse.
A black baseball cap, a thin and slightly hunched figure, the old man slowly made his way forward with difficulty, leaning heavily on his cane.
Akai subtly pressed his lips together, sensing something off, yet he remained leaning against the load-bearing pillar without moving, watching as the elderly man sat down calmly in the metal chair positioned at the center of the FBI's encirclement.
He even yawned leisurely, looking completely at ease.
Akai chose to ignore him and continued waiting for his prey to appear. However, the hand hidden inside his pocket had already tightened around his pistol, prepared to engage at any moment.
But then, an FBI investigator hiding behind an oil drum suddenly rushed out without thinking. He quickly ran up to the elderly man in the baseball cap, bent slightly at the knees, and warned him in clumsy Japanese,
"Sir, you can't sit here! It's dangerous, so please leave immediately!"
"Is that so? Cough cough, thank you for the warning."
After coughing twice, the old man slowly rose to his feet and prepared to leave.
Watching the entire exchange, Akai immediately understood that the operation could no longer proceed. If they delayed any longer, the Organization would probably surround and wipe them out instead.
His gaze followed the old man leaving with his cane.
'A lower-ranking member? Or a disguised codename operative?'
"Camel."
"What is it, Akai-san?"
"Prepare to retreat. That man just now was most likely one of the Organization's members. Our plan's been exposed."
"?!"
Andre Camel's body visibly shook. He never imagined that his own kindness and impulsiveness would ruin Akai's plan.
'Wouldn't that expose Akai-san as an FBI mole?'
Thinking of that, he lowered his head in frustration. If only he had thought things through a little more carefully. How could an old man possibly appear in such a remote abandoned warehouse?
'Damn it!'
This infiltration mission into the Organization had been arranged by headquarters for such a long time, yet it had failed because of his recklessness.
Akai addressed the FBI agents hidden in the shadows. "All personnel, retreat. Operation canceled."
"Yes, sir!"
"Akai-san…"
Akai lightly patted Camel on the shoulder. Rather than blaming him, he reassured him calmly,
"Don't worry about it. Even if you hadn't stepped out, I think the plan had already failed. The Organization may have discovered my identity as an undercover agent long ago."
Was it Gin's doing? Or had that person figured it out?
Could it be that the moment he arranged to meet Gin here, his undercover status had already been exposed?
It was all far too strange.
But Camel remained convinced the entire failure was his fault. Akai-san was only comforting him. Filled with regret, he punched himself twice in the head before following the other investigators as they prepared to evacuate the abandoned warehouse.
Meanwhile, Ritsu had already arrived from Rainbow Bridge and reached Pier Four. However, the moment Curacao's voice came through the earpiece, his steps abruptly halted.
Especially after hearing the contents of the message, an expression of utter disbelief spread across his face.
"Macallan, it has now been confirmed that Rye is an FBI undercover agent. He's preparing to retreat. Your mission is to eliminate him."
"…You're saying Rye is a mole? Are you certain?"
"Certain. His plan tonight was to help the FBI investigators capture Gin. Hah… unfortunately for him, the Boss saw through the plan long ago."
"…Understood."
An FBI undercover agent.
His brother was an undercover operative too?
Whether it was instinctive understanding between siblings or simply because he heard the warehouse door slam open, Ritsu looked up just in time to see Akai, wearing his knitted cap, pushing open the rear exit of the abandoned warehouse.
So they had never stood on opposite sides after all.
They had always been walking the same path.
The heavy stone weighing on his heart finally disappeared. Raising a hand, Ritsu switched off the microphone. Since he didn't know whether Curacao was nearby, he didn't dare openly reveal his identity and instead tried mouthing words to let Rye know who he was.
But before he could finish forming the words, the pitch-black muzzle of a gun was already pointed at him.
Gunshots rang out.
Crimson flowers bloomed across the white fabric of his shirt.
No matter what, Ritsu could never have imagined that Akai would shoot him without the slightest hesitation. Even if Akai didn't know his true identity, they had still been "companions" for three years.
His body staggered forward and collapsed.
More painful than the physical agony was the fact that the person who had shot him, was his long-lost older brother.
To think he would die by his brother's hand.
What bitter irony.
"…Onii-san."
The moment Akai sensed someone nearby, he instantly drew the pistol hidden in his pocket. Already irritated over the failed mission, the instant he saw Ritsu appear before him, he fired without hesitation.
Macallan had originally been part of the plan as well. After capturing Gin, the next priority would have been shifting the focus onto him.
Now that unexpected prey had willingly delivered itself to his doorstep, there was no reason not to hunt.
Yet after firing three shots, he realized Ritsu seemed to be saying something to him.
'Watashi no namae wa Sasajima Ritsu desu.'
"My name is Ritsu."
Ritsu?
Akai's dark green pupils suddenly constricted violently. Even the hand gripping his gun began trembling.
He had never imagined that the Macallan he had spent three years beside would actually be Ritsu. That wheat-skinned little crybaby who used to burst into tears whenever he got "bullied" by him.
The difference in appearance was simply too great.
To the point where he had never recognized him at all.
So… he had just shot the younger brother he once cherished with his own hands?
With the microphone switched off, Ritsu fell to both knees, clutching the gunshot wound in his left abdomen. Two bullets had struck the exact same spot.
'As expected of a sharpshooter second only to me.'
Each of his legs had also been hit once. To fire four shots instantly and completely rob him of mobility, that was truly ruthless.
His vision gradually blurred. The pain caused his body to sway before collapsing onto the ground. Right before losing consciousness, he heard Rei's voice.
'Why is he here? Did he notice something was wrong and follow me?'
The fingers of his left hand slowly curled tighter as he struggled to rise.
He absolutely would not allow his brother to hurt Rei too.
"Rye!!! You bastard!!!"
Rei had originally intended to remain nearby and keep watch, but the instant he heard the gunshots, he rushed out. The moment he saw Akai still holding his firing stance and Ritsu collapsing to the ground, the thread holding together his composure snapped instantly.
Without hesitation, he drew his gun and fired at Rye.
This was the first time he had ever truly wanted to kill someone, even if that person was Ritsu's older brother.
Rei could accept Ritsu dying after the Organization's collapse.
He could accept Ritsu sacrificing himself to protect others.
But the one thing he absolutely could not accept, was Ritsu dying by his own brother's gun!
That irony was simply too cruel. Especially when they had been walking the very same road all along.
Two undercover agents.
Killing each other.
"Akai-san!"
Realizing Akai-san hadn't followed after them, Camel looked back just in time to witness the scene. He immediately lunged forward and pulled the stunned Akai aside, using his own body to block the bullet.
"Ugh!"
"…Camel?"
A gunshot wound to the shoulder wasn't serious. In fact, Camel felt somewhat relieved. After all, he had already caused the mission to fail. Taking a bullet for Akai at least eased some of the guilt he felt for ruining the operation.
"Akai-san, hurry and go! The Organization's people are already here!"
Akai cast one long look at the fallen Ritsu before gritting his teeth and retreating with Camel.
The mission had already failed; he couldn't afford to make another mistake.
He believed Bourbon would take him back and ensure he received proper treatment. The abdominal shot he fired shouldn't have been fatal.
"…Yeah. Let's go."
'I'm sorry, Ritsu. But why were you inside the Organization?'
A possibility slowly surfaced in his mind.
'Could it be…?'
----
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