Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor.
At first, everyone thought they were medical personnel, until a voice, already distorted by crying, came from afar.
"Satsuki-chan!"
Everyone turned their heads at the same time.
Emi stumbled in all the way.
She probably rushed over directly from Odaiba, wearing only a carelessly thrown-on light-colored coat, underneath which she was still wearing the thin shirt she usually wore while staying in the underground research area.
Her already untidy hair was completely messed up, her eyes were terribly red, and the tear stains on her face had not even been wiped clean.
When she turned into the corridor, her foot slipped, and her shoulder almost hit the wall. Someone beside her instinctively reached out to support her, but she shook them off directly.
"Where is Satsuki-chan?"
Before anyone had time to answer.
Emi had already seen the door at the very end.
Her steps became even faster as she rushed straight toward the treatment area.
"Satsuki-chan!"
The two trauma team members guarding the door immediately stepped forward and stopped her.
"Miss Suzuki, emergency treatment is currently underway inside, you cannot go in."
Emi reached out almost instinctively.
"Let me—"
Her voice stopped abruptly.
She looked up at the people in front of her, and then looked past them at the closed door.
Emergency treatment.
These few words seemed to suddenly shove something back into her almost out-of-control brain.
Emi knew what these words meant.
The people inside were saving Satsuki.
The medical personnel needed space, order, and must never be subjected to any interference at a time like this by someone rushing in.
If she forced her way in, what if something was delayed...
Emi abruptly pulled back her extended hand.
"...I am sorry."
What should she do? What if she had shouted too loudly just now and affected the people inside?
She stood in place, her breathing still heavily disordered, and tears were still falling. Anyone could see her emotions were on the verge of collapse, yet she managed to forcibly control herself.
The people in front of the door were visibly stunned.
Emi did not look at them again, only asking in a low voice:
"She is still inside, right?"
"Yes."
"Are the doctors all inside?"
"Yes."
Emi nodded.
"Then I will not go in."
After she finished speaking, she even took the initiative to step back two paces, fearing that standing too close would also obstruct the people inside.
Maki had originally prepared to come over and stop her, but seeing this, she stopped her footsteps.
Emi lowered her head and wiped her face hard with her sleeve. She seemed to still want to ask how badly Satsuki was injured, but her lips moved a few times and in the end she still did not speak.
She knew the people outside did not know either.
Continuing to ask was meaningless.
So Emi turned around, walked slowly to the other side of the corridor, and squatted down not far from the rescue area.
She did not sit on a chair, just pressed her back against the wall, her two hands tightly wrapping around her knees.
From this moment on, she unexpectedly became unusually quiet.
She did not cry out loud, nor did she communicate with anyone.
When someone passed in front of her, she would even take the initiative to pull her legs inward a little bit to avoid blocking the path of the medical personnel.
But after watching her a few times, Maki felt that Emi right now was even more concerning than before.
She kept staring at that door.
Her eyes were terribly red, but there were not many expressions left on her face.
The fear, panic, and helplessness from when she ran in all the way had not disappeared; they were just all forcefully suppressed by her, mixed with resentment suppressed to its absolute limit.
Someone wanted to kill Satsuki.
Someone had prepared automatic weapons, explosives, and even specially arranged a second batch of people, just to make sure Satsuki would not come back tonight.
Emi lowered her head, buried her face between her arms, and the ten fingers wrapping around her knees tightened bit by bit.
The corridor fell silent once more, but the atmosphere became even more oppressive.
After an unknown amount of time, footsteps faster than before suddenly sounded outside.
This time, everyone present raised their heads.
They could tell these were Shuichi's footsteps.
Sure enough, Shuichi appeared, jogging from the corner of the corridor.
He had clearly rushed over all the way.
The dark suit on his body was still fairly neat, but his tie had loosened a bit, and his originally neatly combed hair was also a bit messy. The secretary following behind still held a coat and a file bag, and all of them walked very quickly.
Everyone stood up.
"Big Brother."
"Head of the family."
Shuichi only nodded at everyone.
After Kenjiro saw his expression clearly, his heart suddenly sank.
Shuichi's face was extremely gloomy.
He had known this older brother for decades. Even back when he lost his composure and begged Shuichi not to drive him away, he had never seen Shuichi look this bad.
He silently swallowed back the words he wanted to say.
Shuichi first glanced at the innermost treatment area, then saw Emi squatting by the wall. His gaze lingered there for a moment before turning back to everyone.
"I have already received the report from the head of the trauma team on the way."
As soon as these words came out, the corridor immediately quieted down.
Emi also raised her head.
Shuichi did not deliberately pause.
"Satsuki was not shot. The injuries confirmed so far mainly come from blast impacts, vehicle collisions, and trauma caused by glass fragments."
"Her vital signs have remained stable from the scene to the hospital, and no life-threatening internal bleeding or obvious intracranial injury has been found so far."
When he reached this point, his voice finally eased a bit compared to when he first came in.
"As for losing consciousness earlier, the doctors judge it was mainly caused by continuous collisions, blast impacts, and excessive fright."
"The examinations are not all over yet, but the conclusion given to me by the trauma team is very clear—there is no life-threatening danger right now."
After the last sentence fell, the corridor was actually silent for two or three seconds.
It was as if everyone needed a little time to truly understand what this sentence meant.
Afterward, Kenjiro heavily sat back down on the chair, lowering his head and rubbing his face with both hands. The shoulders that had been tense all this time finally relaxed, and he opened his mouth, finally letting out a long breath.
"Phew... It is good that she is fine... It is good that she is fine..."
Maki slowly put down the fountain pen she had been holding in her hand. Endo had been sitting very straight all along, and only at this moment did his body finally lean back a little. There was still no obvious expression on his face, he just closed his eyes for a moment.
As for Sasaki, he took off his glasses with slightly trembling hands, took out a handkerchief, and slowly wiped the lenses.
Fujita Tsuyoshi had been standing in his original position all along; after hearing "no life-threatening danger," his jaw, which had been tense for a long time, finally relaxed.
Emi in the corner of the wall did not make a sound.
She just buried her face a bit lower, and her shoulders trembled slightly. After a while, a very soft sentence was heard:
"That is great..."
At this moment, everyone truly felt that the thing that had been pressing on their chests ever since receiving the call had finally loosened a bit.
Satsuki was still alive.
And she would wake up.
This news was much more pleasant to hear than if they had made tens of billions.
Shuichi likewise fell silent for a moment.
He looked at these people's reactions, and the expression on his face also softened slightly. But when his gaze fell back onto that closed door, that slight loosening that had just appeared quickly disappeared.
Because the person survived, it did not mean that what happened tonight was just over like this.
Quite the contrary.
By now, they could finally start thinking about another matter.
Someone actually dared to kill Satsuki?
Still right here in Tokyo, Saionji's stronghold?
Someone had prepared automatic weapons, grenades, and a second batch of gunmen in advance, genuinely executing an assassination attempt targeting Satsuki herself in downtown Tokyo.
And if the trauma team had been a little later, if there had been one fewer person responsible for the protection, if a certain car had not blocked those few seconds...
The fear that had just receded from everyone's hearts quickly turned into an increasingly intense anger.
Kenjiro raised his head first.
Endo also sat up straight again.
Maki did not speak, but her hand holding the fountain pen noticeably tightened a bit.
Shuichi still looked at that door.
After a while, he spoke.
"In all these years, I have seen many people go against Saionji."
The voice was not high, and even maintained the restraint of his usual speech.
"Some want our land, some want the banks to cut off our funds, and some in the political and financial circles try to find ways to stop Satsuki from doing certain things—none of that matters."
"Since interests differ, there will always be people standing on the opposite side, and Saionji has never expected everyone to like us."
Shuichi slowly turned around.
"But tonight is different."
There was no other sound in the corridor.
"Someone does not want Saionji to lose a sum of money, nor do they want to force us to withdraw from any business."
His speaking speed was not fast, but every single word became heavier and heavier.
"They want to kill my daughter."
Kenjiro's expression completely sank.
Shuichi looked toward Masato.
"Everything at the scene that can leave an identity behind should be handed over to SIS for a re-investigation. Why Washio got those weapons, what kind of people contacted him, and who that second batch of people tonight was—I do not want just a report sent over by the police in the end."
"Yes."
Masato lowered his head.
Shuichi looked toward Sasaki again.
"The Metropolitan Police Department, the Public Prosecutors Office, and all procedures that may be involved later will be cooperated with by the legal department. Whatever S.A. used tonight, and whatever problems should be borne, we will handle it ourselves. But if anyone thinks they can use this opportunity to hide the real attackers behind the scenes—"
"Then let them try."
Sasaki's expression became solemn.
"Understood."
Finally, Shuichi did not make arrangements for each person one by one.
In fact, it was no longer necessary.
The people standing here all knew what they should do.
Whatever could be investigated within Japan would be traced all the way back starting from vehicles, accounts, firearms, and personnel; if these clues eventually crossed national borders, then S.A.'s lawyers, investment institutions, and relationship networks in the United States would naturally continue to take over.
Things would always be left behind.
People needed to stay in hotels, guns needed transportation, vehicles needed registration, and money would not appear out of thin air.
As long as someone really organized this attack tonight, it was impossible for there to be no traces at all.
Shuichi looked back toward the treatment area.
Across that door, he could not see his daughter.
Yet a few hours ago, Satsuki was right there, being chased and shot at by assault rifles with people, overturned by explosions, and injured over and over again in vehicle collisions.
Even some of Saionji's people had died at the scene.
Shuichi remained silent for a long time.
When he spoke again, his voice had completely calmed down instead.
"I do not care whether the final investigation finds out it is yakuza, Americans, or whoever thinks they are hiding far enough away."
"Nor do I care how long it takes, how much money is spent, or how many of Saionji's connections are mobilized."
"Not a single one of the people who dared to point their guns at Satsuki tonight should be let off."
Shuichi's gaze swept across everyone's faces one by one.
"What Satsuki suffered tonight, I want them to—repay a hundredfold."
He paused slightly, his tone turning vicious and stern.
"At all costs, by any means necessary."
"Understood?"
Everyone looked straight at Shuichi.
Kenjiro lowered his head first.
Followed by Endo, Maki, Masato, Sasaki, and Fujita Tsuyoshi.
"Understood."
The voices of several people rang out in the corridor simultaneously.
Not loud, but incomparably firm.
Shuichi looked at the people bowing their heads, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled.
Just at that moment, the indicator light above the innermost door, which had been lit all along, went out.
Immediately afterward, the door opened from the inside.
Everyone's attention was instantly snatched away.
Emi, who had just squatted back down by the wall, jumped up almost the exact moment the crack of the door appeared.
She ran faster than anyone else.
"How is Satsuki?!"
The doctor had just walked out from inside, and Emi had already rushed up in front of him.
This time the trauma team members did not stop her again.
The doctor was evidently also startled by the girl who suddenly lunged over, but soon recognized her.
"Miss Suzuki, please rest assured."
He took off his mask.
"The eldest miss is in no life-threatening danger."
Emi looked at him unblinkingly.
"She... has she woken up?"
"She has woken up."
The doctor nodded.
"Her consciousness is clear, and no abnormalities have been found in her basic neurological responses. We still need to continue observing for a period of time, but for now it can be confirmed that the most dangerous situation has been ruled out."
Emi's lips moved slightly.
The body that had been standing straight suddenly went limp.
The person beside her reached out to support her, but did not make it in time.
She fell straight down to sit on the floor.
Her two hands wrapped around herself again.
Her head also buried down along with it.
"That is great..."
Tears dropped onto her sleeves one by one.
"That is great... Satsuki-chan is fine..."
Halfway through speaking, she started laughing again.
Her voice still carried a heavy crying tone.
"She is fine... She is really fine..."
This time, no one went to pull her up.
Kenjiro just let out a long breath and leaned against the wall.
Maki lowered her head, finally putting the fountain pen she had been holding all this time back into her notebook.
Masato and Sasaki did not speak either.
Until this moment, this group of people who had been stubbornly holding on to handle various matters since hearing the news truly believed that the worst outcome of tonight had passed.
The doctor waited for a moment.
Then looked back at Shuichi.
"Head of the family."
Shuichi walked over immediately.
"Are there any other issues?"
"The eldest miss needs quiet recuperation right now, it is best not to let too many people go inside tonight."
The doctor slightly turned his body to make way for the door behind him.
"However..."
He looked at Shuichi.
"After the eldest miss just woke up, the very first thing she did was ask whether you had arrived."
Shuichi was slightly startled.
The doctor continued:
"She said she wants to see you."