Chapter 205

When Shuichi Akai received the email, it was already past midnight and he was about to go to sleep because of the time difference.

Of course, after reading the email, he was initially sleepy, but now he couldn't fall asleep.

What does it mean that Usakabe Saiki sent him this email?!

This wording didn't sound like his usual nonsensical ramblings that no one believed; rather, it sounded like he had finally confirmed something genuine.

Shuichi Akai quickly recalled whether anyone else in the FBI besides himself was currently in the United States.

It seems not. Could it be someone from the CIA... but that's not necessarily true. Organizations assign tasks randomly, and there are undercover agents working undercover. How could they assign tasks based on your affiliation? He's an FBI agent, and he's still in Japan right now.

However, while many of America's officials do frequently travel abroad on missions, it seems that apart from the Middle East, Usakabe Saiki has never been abroad. He is very immersed in the Japanese environment and atmosphere, content to be a child returning home.

Usakabe Saiki, who is usually unreachable when needed and never shows up otherwise, has actually gone to America and actually caught a genuine undercover agent...

Shuichi Akai couldn't help but wonder, what big move is the organization up to in the United States?

So he made a phone call to his companion.

Rei Furuya has the advantage of being on the home ground, and when he's undercover, he can occasionally go back to the National Police Agency. While it's a bit difficult for Shuichi Akai to return to FBI headquarters, he can still find opportunities to contact his comrades.

"Show!" Judy was overjoyed to receive his call, but then worried. "Why are you contacting me all of a sudden? Did something happen?"

"The organization may be planning some major operation in the United States recently, so be careful."

Judy immediately became serious: "Okay, in what aspect?"

"……have no idea."

Judy: "...?"

The usually reliable Shuichi Akai was suddenly acting so unreliably. Jodie thought for a moment and came up with an excuse for him: "Is the source of the information rather vague? Are there any other clues?"

"Potnis might be there."

Potnis.

Judy had seen this codename in Shuichi Akai's previous reports, but there was only a sketch, not a photo. It seemed that she hadn't met Shuichi Akai many times and hadn't had the opportunity to take a picture of him.

He is nominally the head of the organization's smuggling route in the Middle East—but he is not responsible at all. Instead, he is very idle, often causes trouble, and spreads rumors that people are undercover agents. He has a very bad relationship with the organization's members and is even being subtly ostracized. In addition, he is a cadre because he is the organization's second-generation member, so he seems to be incompetent. If he were arrested, he probably wouldn't know anything.

Therefore, its importance has always been ranked low.

But not long ago, Shuichi Akai sent another urgent intelligence message, saying that Potts had most likely found out his identity, but he couldn't figure out where the leak came from. He asked them to check how secure the fake identity they had made for him was and if there was any possible opportunity for it to be leaked... Only then did everyone start to take this guy seriously.

That's Shuichi Akai! A top-notch FBI ace, whether it's an undercover operation or anything else! How could he be discovered?! There must be something wrong with them!

After investigating, they found nothing, so they could only strengthen the fake identity as much as possible.

How Potts learned of Shuichi Akai's true identity and why he didn't report it to the organization remains a mystery.

The FBI's current discussion suggests that they hope Shuichi Akai can test the waters and see if a cooperation can be reached—not that he needs to betray the organization, but rather that they can provide assistance when needed. Of course, it's not about getting something for nothing; they will try their best to provide whatever the other party wants. In fact, it would be better this way, as it would give them leverage over the other party's alleged bribery.

The problem was that when Shuichi Akai asked about the other person's hobbies, he simply said, "Forget it, it won't work."

Why doesn't it work? Everyone has hobbies! With hobbies come weaknesses. Even though he came back from the Middle East, the data shows he wasn't turned into a war machine; on the contrary, he's quite lively... Could it be that he's hiding something deep inside?

Shuichi Akai: "...It wasn't really hidden, rather it was quite obvious, but most people probably wouldn't be able to tell..."

Having said all that, Shuichi Akai had no choice but to produce evidence, releasing photos he had taken of Saiki Usui's house.

Yes, he couldn't find the opportunity to photograph Usui Yasaki, but during the time he stayed at Usui Yasaki's house, he must have had the chance to take some indoor photos.

Everyone fell silent upon seeing the photo.

Oh, this.

This pink piano, this skull, this green coffee table, this colorful chandelier covered in little stars that perfectly satisfies a girl's heart, this spider plush toy half-stuffed into a tacky vase...

This aesthetic is indeed difficult to fathom, making it impossible to know where to begin in trying to please someone!

There's no way to tell what's beautiful and what's blinding to that guy. If a carefully chosen gift is seen as the latter, it might actually anger him...

Alright, alright, it seems Shuichi Akai knows what he's doing, let him decide how to handle it himself.

Before Shuichi Akai could get any updates, the person involved went directly to the United States... Judy became nervous.

"What if he comes looking for evidence or something? We've already cleaned up the mess..."

Shuichi Akai paused for a moment: "That guy has never been one to talk about evidence... or rather, it would be easier to handle if he had evidence."

At least let him know where he went wrong!

So far, all we've got is various indirect evidence suggesting he's been exposed, but there's no real evidence whatsoever. The other side keeps pretending not to know, which puts a lot of pressure on him. He's constantly worried that Gin and the others will somehow figure out his identity from the flaws that Usui Saiki noticed.

Judy: "…………"

"Anyway, find out where he is now."

Shuichi Akai checked in Japan and found that the identity of Usui Saiki is legal in society. If he were to travel abroad, he would probably use this identity. By checking his entry records and flight tickets, he could roughly determine his destination.

After finishing discussing work-related matters, and considering they were still boyfriend and girlfriend, Shuichi Akai asked with concern, "You sound tired. Have you been working overtime lately?"

"Ah... there's been a problem within the FBI."

Shuichi Akai immediately tensed up: "What's going on?"

Could it be that Usaku Saiki discovered his identity because he had an informant in the FBI?

That would explain why Usaku Saiki immediately identified him as an FBI agent upon their first meeting; perhaps he already had information on him…

"No, no, no, it won't affect you. It was Brad who wanted to play the hero and killed a few bomb experts who came to the meeting to recruit him..." Judy finished quickly, then sighed, "It's all done now, but we've embarrassed ourselves in front of a lot of foreigners. Fortunately, the team next door recently solved a big case, which has somewhat redeemed our reputation... Let's not talk about that. I've applied to go to Japan next month to support you. Is there anything you need to tell me?"

Shuichi Akai was relieved again.

But how exactly Usaku Saiki knew his identity has now become a mystery again.

After dutifully informing his colleagues and catching up with his girlfriend, Shuichi Akai hung up the phone and continued to ponder while staring at the email.

Thinking about it calmly, there are two main possibilities for why Bo Ye Saiki sent him this email.

One type is a well-intentioned reminder: The organization has followed my advice and caught a genuine undercover agent. You should also be careful and run away if necessary.

Another type of warning is the one with a twisted sense of humor: I'm serious about catching undercover agents, and you're next.

The email was meticulously crafted; even if he were arrested and the organization checked his phone's emails and saw this letter, they wouldn't suspect that Bo Yezhai was tipping him off... It might even have been sent to a group...

Oh, right, send it to the group.

Shuichi Akai thought for a moment and then sent an email to Scotland.

Has Potts said anything to you recently?

He and Scotland are both snipers, and sometimes they need double insurance for operations. In addition, he hasn't joined the organization yet, but when he was exploited by Usoppaiji as a middleman, Scotland was the one who smoothed things over. So their relationship is okay, and it doesn't seem abrupt for him to ask this question.

Most importantly, Usakabe Saiki also complained that Scotland was like the Japanese Public Security Bureau. If it really was a mass distribution, and Scotland was an undercover agent, then Scotland's feelings right now are probably similar to his...

Scotland was also awake and quickly replied: "No, not recently. The last time we chatted was around New Year's. Why are you suddenly asking this? What's wrong with Potts?"

Akai Shuichi: "………………"

What? Could it really have only been sent to him?!

Could this be a premonition, meaning he's next to be arrested...?

Shuichi Akai's mentality is also a bit unstable right now.

This is bad, really bad. If we're not careful, Judy won't need to come to Japan to provide support next month; she can just stay in the US...

Or perhaps they are hoping that Usoppai is acting crazy again, doing things out of the ordinary, and simply sending him an email without actually intending to expose him now.

Shuichi Akai had already drawn up a series of plans in his mind.

He wouldn't be scared off by a single email from Usakata Saiki, but he still needed to make preparations.

It would be fine if it were just him alone, but it becomes troublesome when you add his two relatives in the organization.

If we had prepared in advance, we could have taken Miyano Akemi with us if we were exposed, but Miyano Shiho's security level is too high, making her impossible to contact. Even the sisters' meetings are restricted, let alone those of other people...

Hideaki Akai lit a cigarette, and while thinking about something, casually replied to an email to Scotland.

[Potnis said he caught an undercover agent in the United States.]

Scotland knew that Rye wasn't the type to gossip, and after receiving the email, he was already curious about what Usaku Saiki had done, so when he saw the reply, he couldn't wait to open it.

"...???"

Scotland quietly forwarded it to Bourbon.

Bourbon: "...???"

He calculated the time difference and made a call to Bo Yezhai, who actually answered.

"Bourbon? What's up?"

"I heard you caught an undercover agent?" Bourbon, relying on his position as an intelligence agent, always openly probed for information. "Who is it?"

Usoya Saiki replied casually, "You don't know him. And where did you get this information from?"

Bourbon: "Well..."

“I know you won’t answer, after all, I only sent this message to Lai.” Bo Yezhaiji said with heartache, “That Lai guy, he really does spread everything, if he’s not an undercover agent, then who is! I’ll tell Vodka right now! Tell him to come back to the country and arrest Lai first!”

Bourbon: "...Vodka is in America too?"

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I was just asking."

After hanging up the phone, Bourbon, like a busy little bee, immediately emailed Vodka to ask a question.

[I heard Potts caught an undercover agent? Is it true? What's going on?]

—With Usui Saiki's ability to spread rumors about people being undercover agents everywhere... is he just spreading rumors or is he just stumbling upon a lucky coincidence?

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Extra chapters at night featuring landmines

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The undercover agent's inner circle (x)

Akai: I'm going to sleep.

Brain: Thin Leaf caught a real undercover agent

Akai: (opens eyes)

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FBI: As long as they're not war machines, they can be bribed if they have interests.

Akai: Show photos

FBI: Forget about this aesthetic sense; you might end up making a fool of yourself by trying to flatter someone.

Thin Leaf: I'm so wronged...

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So far, everyone thinks that Usaku Saiki got lucky.

Only Akai, who knew the truth, looked haggard.

He really doesn't fit in with everyone.