Results and Warnings

"Big brother was right after all—"

The moment the gunshot rang out, Vodka quickly ducked behind a fire pillar, pulled a pistol from under his coat, and his usually amiable face contorted into a fierce and menacing expression.

In the dimly lit parking lot, the tension instantly escalated with the sound of a gunshot. It was unclear who fired the shot from the darkness, but it was clear someone had been hit; a faint smell of blood filled the air.

Tsurumi Kawaru, holding a silver box in his arms, crouched nervously in the corner. He listened to the sounds outside and then cautiously peeked out.

Figures moved about, accompanied by gunshots and screams, and the stench of blood in the air grew stronger. It seemed that the parties who came to make the deal had gotten into an internal conflict, and although the reason was unknown, they were now trapped in the parking lot.

Tsurumi glanced at it a few times, then shrank back, carefully moving towards the vodka. He lowered his voice: "What do we do now? Will Gin come to pick us up?"

Vodka's lips twitched, his small eyes glanced at the box in his arms, and he raised his hand to press down his hat, saying, "If we stay out for too long, Big Brother will notice something's wrong."

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded seriously, glanced at the chaotic parking lot, and suggested to Vodka, "There must be another exit here. Should we try going somewhere else?"

Vodka was somewhat surprised by his words, but after thinking for a second, he nodded, pointed in a direction, and said, "Take the box."

Tsurumi Kawakami quickly nodded, hugged the box tightly, and followed Vodka. The two avoided the commotion over there and carefully made their way to another exit.

They had only walked a few meters when a black gun, seemingly out of nowhere, shot the fuel tank of a white car next to them. The pungent smell of gasoline filled the air, and the next second the fuel tank exploded, the resulting heat wave sending the two men flying.

The sudden explosion acted as a pause button, and the gunfire in the parking lot eerily ceased.

Tsurumi Kawa was thrown back and crashed into a fire pillar with a clang. The entire wall behind him caved in in a human shape. The silver box in his hand fell to the ground, and by sheer coincidence, one of the clips came loose.

Vodka, who had also crashed into the wall, let out a painful groan, clutching his chest as he got up from the ground. He coughed violently a few times; the impact of the explosion had left him with considerable injuries.

He raised his hand to wipe his mouth, his sunglasses and hat having been lost in the heatwave.

Tsurumi Kawakami shook his head, which was still shaky, and leaned against the wall to get up from the ground. He patted the dust off his hoodie and pants and searched for the box on the ground.

When he saw the damage to the box, he looked at the vodka somewhat bewildered, and if he hadn't misheard, something inside seemed to have broken.

Tsurumi Kawaru carried the box to the vodka box. "Is everything inside alright? I think I heard some glass breaking just now."

Vodka pressed his chest to check his ribs, then turned to see Tsurumi Kawaru as if nothing had happened. He was not only lively and energetic, but his face was also rosy and showed no signs of injury.

"...You're perfectly fine."

Tsurumi Kawakami blinked his golden eyes. "Perhaps I'm just thick-skinned."

Vodka's lips twitched, his gaze falling on the battered box in his hands. He examined it for a moment, then re-fastened the loose buckles.

Meanwhile, another group of people in the parking lot noticed the commotion and remembered that the other party to the transaction was also present. Soon after, a series of chaotic footsteps approached.

Vodka narrowed his small eyes, handed the box back to Tsurumi Kawakami, and waved, saying, "Let's go quickly."

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded, carrying the box, and jogged forward with Vodka and the other man.

In the dimly lit parking lot, two groups of people chased each other, one after the other. Vodka seemed to be very familiar with the terrain of the place.

Tsurumi Kawaki followed the crowd, making several turns and using vehicles and fire lanes to successfully shake off the people following behind, and finally reached another exit.

Bright lights, colorful neon signs, and a cacophony of noise instantly dispelled the lingering smoke and grime that Tsurumi Kawakami had carried from the underground parking lot.

A look of disbelief crossed Tsurumi Kawaru's face. He watched as Vodka straightened his coat, glanced in the direction he was going, and then followed him forward.

The black Porsche remained parked in the same spot. The two walked forward one after the other. Tsurumi Kawaru opened the back door and got in. As soon as he looked up, he met Gin's cold gaze in the rearview mirror.

"What's going on?" Gin asked coldly.

Tsurumi shrank back, about to speak, when he saw Gin withdraw his gaze and turn to look at Vodka.

Vodka touched his face, one hand on the steering wheel, and explained what had just happened to Gin with a not-so-good expression.

Gin gave a curt "Heh," and coldly ordered, "Drive."

Vodka immediately started the car.

Tsurumi Kawaru sat in the back row with his suitcase in his arms. Through the gap, he could see Gin radiating cold air in front of him. He tapped the suitcase, not wanting to make a sound and risk bad luck.

Back at the organization, Tsurumi Kawakami followed Gin around like a little follower, carrying a suitcase.

At that moment, Gin turned around and glanced at him from head to toe. Tsurumi Kawa immediately stopped and looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression. Vodka, who was standing next to him, guessed what Gin meant and took the box from him.

Vodka, carrying the suitcase, patted Tsurumi Kawaru on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Today's mission is complete. You can go back now."

Upon hearing that he could go back, Tsurumi Kawakami's eyes lit up. He nodded, said hello, and then ran off.

Vodka looked at Tsurumi Kawa's cheerful figure with a complicated expression. After returning to the safe house, he casually placed the silver box on the table without checking its contents, and stood in front of Gin with a serious expression.

"Brother, something's wrong with Suzi wine..."

-

Meanwhile, Tsurumi Kawaru returned to his residence and saw Amuro Tooru sitting in the living room as soon as he opened the door.

He waved and greeted them, then stood in the entryway to change into slippers before running into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water.

After gulping down a glass of water, Tsurumi Kawakami let out a long sigh of relief, feeling as if he had finally come back to life. He opened the refrigerator, took out the cake he had bought yesterday, and then sat down opposite Amuro Tooru.

Has there been any progress on the matter from before?

He scooped a bite of cake into his mouth, puffed out his cheeks, and looked at Amuro Tooru with a curious expression.

Amuro Tooru shook his head, his expression grave, and said, "There's no news yet, but this result already corroborates some things. The research the Black Organization is involved in probably has a very wide reach..."

The news that Tsurugi Ryu had brought back the video from Kawai Jiro had greatly surprised Amuro Tooru. After the initial shock, he immediately realized the importance of the matter and contacted the Public Security Bureau to begin an investigation, but the results were not ideal.

Moreover, because of this incident, Amuro Tooru also noticed some problems within the public security system. Instead of making a fuss, he instructed his subordinates to begin a private investigation.

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded, swallowed the cake in his mouth, glanced at Amuro Tooru who was deep in thought, and carefully told him about what happened tonight.

Amuro Tooru snapped out of his daze, frowned after hearing his words, and said, "Even Gin rarely encounters this situation. Who are you trading with this time?"

Tsurumi Kawakami shook his head: "Vodka didn't tell me anything, but I remember the name of the bar where the deal was initially made."

Amuro Tooru pondered for a moment, "That bar is probably just a transit point, but the other party knows Gin, and you sounded quite familiar with him, so it's very likely that the Black Organization supports them and they often cooperate with them."

He silently noted down the name of the bar, intending to have the police investigate it later.

After finishing that, Amuro Tooru suddenly remembered something else. He looked up at Tsurumi Kawaru, tapped the table, and said, "By the way, Vermouth is back. Be careful of her. It's said that Vermouth also has a code name, the Thousand-Faced Witch. She's very good at disguise. Don't be fooled by her."

Tsurumi blinked, suddenly remembering the information about Vermouth that Curaçao had told him earlier.

He nodded. "Okay, I understand."

After delivering this message, Amuro Tooru left.

Another week passed in the blink of an eye. During this week, Tsurumi Ryuu did not receive any news from Vodka, so he stayed at home for a rare period of time, whether playing games or reading comics, he lived a very carefree life.

Vodka: My brother and I will pick you up at 7 PM.

The phone on the sofa lit up, but Tsurumi Kawakami was busy playing games and didn't see it. As it got dark, his stomach started growling, and he picked up his phone to order takeout, only to see the message.

He was so startled that he immediately checked the time; there was still an hour until seven o'clock.

Tsurumi Kagawa muttered something under his breath. After finishing his takeout and cleaning up the trash, he received a message from Vodka a few minutes before seven o'clock, asking him to come downstairs.

He changed his shoes and went downstairs, where he saw a black Porsche parked in the shadows of the trees.

Just as he opened the back door and was about to get in, Tsurumi Kawaru noticed that there was already someone sitting in the back. The person waved at him when he opened the door.

"Hi, long time no see." It was Vermouth.

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded to her, closed the car door, and glanced strangely at Gin in the front passenger seat and Vodka driving the car.

"Is it a mission?" He even asked Vermouth.

Vermouth looked at him with a smile, her charming eyes glancing lightly at Gin before turning her head and saying, "No, we're going somewhere."

Tsurumi Kawakami said "Oh," and asked, "What place is that?"

Vermouth's smile faded slightly, and a dark glint flashed in her eyes. She raised her hand to brush the hair that had fallen onto her shoulder, and her gaze met Gin's in the rearview mirror.

Gin's gaze held a warning. Vermouth's brow twitched slightly, the words she was about to say stuck in her throat, but she ultimately couldn't bring herself to say them. She said mysteriously, "You'll find out when we get there."

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded, somewhat disappointed but also curious, and said, "Okay. Is it very far?"

"That's hard to say, it might be quite far."

Hearing her words, Tsurumi Kawaru felt something was off, wondering to himself if the location of that place could possibly change.

But the atmosphere inside the car was vaguely strange. Tsurumi Kawaru's intuition told him not to say anything more at this time, so he didn't ask any more questions. He just looked out the window and became more and more curious about his destination.

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