Targeting actions and traces [minor revision]

Since the incident at the sushi restaurant, Tsurumi Ryu has been kept by Curaçao's side. Amuro Tooru seems to be suspected, and Curaçao has assigned him a lot of trivial tasks to take up his time.

This subtle move, however, was like a beacon of light within the Black Organization, quite conspicuous. The signal that the newcomer Bourbon was being targeted by Curaçao spread, and everyone noticed him.

Amuro Tooru was having a terrible time. The prestige he had just built up within the organization was completely shattered. He was like a clown in a circus, with lower-level members gossiping behind his back and older members with code names mocking and ridiculing him when they met.

His presence became somewhat awkward; this feeling of isolation and bullying made Amuro Tooru's actions within the Black Organization extremely difficult.

-

Tokyo, a bar at night.

The small bar, tucked away in an inconspicuous corner, had an unremarkable interior, lacking loud music and dim lighting. Instead, the air was filled with the soft humming of a low, husky male voice.

This was a supply point known only to members of the Black Organization; the bartenders and bodyguards in the bar were all on their side. Meanwhile, in a dimly lit corner of the bar, a few people sat in small groups.

"Bourbon's been having a tough time lately, did he offend that woman?" A young woman with a butterfly tattoo at the corner of her eye said with a gloating tone as she took a sip of her drink.

"Chianti, you seem drunk." The usually silent and taciturn man sitting next to her suddenly spoke up and took the drink from in front of her.

Chianti's face immediately changed. She glanced at her partner beside her and said with a hint of malice, "Cohen, it's one thing if you're not thinking straight, but now your eyes are acting up too? I'm not drunk."

Cohen remained silent, but he did not return the wine to Chianti.

“You, Scottish, are you in charge of training the new recruits who got their codenames in the same batch as Bourbon, right?” Chianti’s tone shifted, and she looked at the corner booth with a malicious gaze.

The young man, wearing a baseball cap and dressed in all black, blended subtly into the darkness until Chianti's words drew everyone's attention.

Under the brim of his hat, Midorikawa Hikaru paused for a moment, then slightly raised his head to look in Chianti's direction, his cold gaze piercing her mercilessly.

“Chianti, if you have anger, you can vent it on the person who angered you, instead of biting innocent people like a mad dog.”

These words left no room for leniency. Hikaru Midorikawa knew very well what kind of person Chianti, who was also in the action group, was. She was irritable, arrogant, and a troublemaker. She disdained to befriend Vermouth and had an ambiguous attitude towards her superior, Gin.

With her neurotic personality, only Cohen was close to her within the organization. As a member with a similar codename, Midorikawa Hikaru couldn't back down or show cowardice.

Chianti was taken aback by Midorikawa Hikaru's response, especially his description of her as a mad dog. Her anger flared up immediately, and she slammed her hand on the table, ready to teach him a lesson.

At this moment, Vermouth, who had been sitting on the sidelines watching the commotion, spoke up.

"Alright, Chianti. Talking about codenamed members behind their backs is not allowed in the first place. Even if we keep it to ourselves and don't find out, it shouldn't be done here."

Even after she spoke up, Chianti remained indignant. She had no liking for Vermouth, especially since rumors circulated within the organization that Vermouth and the boss had an unusual relationship.

Chianti wanted to say something more, but Gin's cold, ruthless voice, laced with a warning, reached everyone's ears: "That's enough."

Chianti stiffened. Although she disliked and looked down on Vermouth, and sometimes even dared to talk back to her, she felt a fear that most people in the organization had when it came to Gin.

Hikaru Midorikawa saw Chianti sit back down, then his gaze shifted to Gin, who was three booths away. Gin was still wearing a black top hat, the brim of which covered most of his face, and his trench coat collar was turned up, obscuring his chin.

Gin is very sensitive to other people's gazes. When Midorikawa lingered on him for a few seconds, he caught the other person's attention. Before Gin could look up, he looked away and glanced at Vermouth, who was drinking.

A sharp, menacing gaze shot straight at him, causing Midorikawa Hikaru's spine to stiffen and cold sweat to pour down his back. He spoke to Vermouth while enduring Gin's probing and scrutinizing gaze.

This bar was rather secluded, a supply point known only to codenamed members within the Black Organization. This was only the second time Midorikawa Hikaru had been there; he hadn't been codenamed for very long, which was why Chianti dared to approach him. However, thinking about the recent rumors circulating within the organization regarding Bourbon, Midorikawa Hikaru felt a pang of sympathy for his childhood friend.

"The new recruit you're training is called Ray." Vermouth had just returned from abroad and wasn't very familiar with the new members who had recently been given codenames, but she had already met the one named Bourbon.

Hikaru Midorikawa nodded, feeling a headache coming on when he thought about the other party's style of doing things, but he greatly admired Ray's sniping skills.

“I heard she also has long hair.” Vermouth clearly knew a lot about Rae. She picked up her glass, took a sip, and glanced at Gin with a flicker of her eye.

Hikaru Midorikawa paused, not missing Vermouth's glance just now, but since it involved Gin, he had to interrupt her.

"Hmm. Has there been any operation recently?" Midorikawa Hikaru couldn't help but ask, thinking about the internal reshuffling within the organization in the past few days.

Vermouth raised an eyebrow, her gaze sharpening as she carefully examined the Scotch liquor in front of her. She ran her hand, painted with bright red nail polish, through her long hair and said with a smile, "Your information network is fairly good, but it's nothing major."

Hearing Vermouth's glossed-over words, Midorikawa Hikaru realized with alarm that something big had recently happened within the organization, but judging from her somewhat vague manner, it would probably be difficult to get anything out of her.

Midorikawa Hikaru tactfully changed the subject, and Vermouth followed suit, both skipping over the previous topic and the discussion about Rae.

Back at the safe house from the bar, Midorikawa Hikaru was still thinking about what had just happened. He sat on the sofa without turning on the lights, and after thinking for a while, he got up and took out an old-fashioned black cell phone from a hidden spot in the closet.

This is a basic mobile phone for seniors that has been phased out of the market. It only has the functions of making and receiving calls and sending and receiving text messages, which can avoid the possibility of being eavesdropped on and hacked.

After turning on his phone, Midorikawa Hikaru familiarly sent a text message to a phone number. Two minutes later, his phone rang once, and then a call came in.

"It's me. We've made progress on that matter. We've confirmed that his identity is fake. I'll continue investigating along this lead. Don't worry, I won't alert him," Midorikawa Hikaru said solemnly to his childhood friend on the other end of the phone.

"Okay. I understand, I'll be careful." After saying something on the other end, a peaceful smile appeared on Midorikawa Hikaru's solemn face.

After the phone call ended, a figure shrouded in loneliness sat silently in the darkness for a long time.

-

"Curaçao, when can I go on a mission? There aren't any missions that need me lately."

A sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy was slumped over a dark brown solid wood desk. He had short, fluffy black hair and a pair of dazzling golden eyes beneath his handsome eyebrows.

Tsurumi Ryuu idly twirled a black fountain pen. Ever since he took Amuro Tooru to the sushi restaurant last time, he had been kept by Curaçao's side, handling intelligence during the day and sleeping at the base at night without being allowed to leave.

Although he was slow-witted, after so many days, Tsurumi Kawakami had finally figured it out and understood that this was how he dealt with taking Amuro Tooru to the sushi restaurant.

"I promise I'll never bring anyone to a sushi restaurant again." Tsurumi Kawakami sat up slightly, holding up his watch and solemnly swearing to Curaçao, who was engrossed in his work.

Curacao, who had been annoyed all day, raised her head, her sharp heterochromatic eyes piercing Tsurumi Kawaru with cold indifference. After a few seconds of stalemate, she narrowed her eyes slightly, and the cold aura surrounding her eased temporarily.

Curaçao tapped the table and said calmly, "I warned you before not to talk about Lord Rum to anyone, but you still brought the newcomer along."

Tsurumi Nagare shrank back, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes. "I just wanted to eat sushi from a sushi restaurant, so I didn't think much of it. Besides, I didn't tell Bourbon about the rum."

After saying that, Tsurumi asked with some curiosity, "Why did Rum go to work as a chef at a sushi restaurant? Is it a part-time job?"

Curaçao's brow twitched violently, and her gaze towards Tsurumi Kawaru carried a hint of subtle pain. She decided to ignore it and simply picked out a file from a stack of documents beside her and tossed it to him. Then, she waved her hand impatiently and said, "Here, take this task. Go and prepare."

Tsurumi Kawakami's eyes lit up, and he cheered inwardly as he happily took the mission and left.

-

The next morning, Tsurumi Kawakami, who was preparing for a mission, met Midorikawa Hikaru again.

This mission requires working with the action team to shoot and kill Saburo Ida, the head of the Pharmaceutical Affairs Bureau, who was invited to give a speech at 10:00 AM today.

Because the mission required killing the target in full view of the audience during a speech, the task force assigned a sniper to assist in the operation.

Upon seeing Midorikawa Hikaru, Tsurumi Kawa was overjoyed, a big smile spreading across his face. However, before he could even greet him, he caught a glimpse of the long-haired man standing behind Midorikawa Hikaru and froze in shock.

Hikaru Midorikawa, carrying a bass bag, noticed his gaze and introduced him: "This is Ray, the new sniper."

Upon hearing the code name, Tsurumi Kawakami suddenly understood and glanced at the other person curiously. Meeting Rai's cold, scrutinizing gaze, he paused for a moment, then smiled amicably.

Tsurumi Kawakami looked away from Midorikawa Hikaru and told them the mission information that Curaçao had given him before they set off. As they talked, they went to the underground parking garage. Rae drove, Midorikawa Hikaru sat in the passenger seat, and Tsurumi Kawakami went to sit in the back.

"That guy named Saburo Ida will arrive at the venue at 9:50. There are three sniping positions nearby. We can discuss the details when we get there..."

Tsurumi Kawakami dutifully relayed the information to them.

As Midorikawa listened to him, a sense of unease crept into his heart. Privately, he followed the clues Amuro Tooru had mentioned and investigated further, uncovering quite a few related things. However, the deeper he went, the more disturbing and alarming the things he found became.

The Black Organization appears to be secretly researching a certain drug, and has many private drug development companies and research institutes, even involved in human experimentation.

Regarding the identity of the sushi shop owner, Kenjiro Wakita, Hikaru Midorikawa followed the clue of forgery and found out some things. He vaguely guessed the other party's true identity, but he was still short of evidence to confirm it. It was like a frosted glass, vague and indistinct.

As Midorikawa Hikaru thought about today's mission, a bad feeling arose in his heart. The organization had been making big moves recently, and the traces he had left behind through his private investigation probably wouldn't be able to be kept secret for long.

Just as I was lost in thought, the car stopped in a blind spot of the surveillance cameras.

Lei unbuckled his seatbelt and said coldly, "Get out of the car."

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded, opened the car door and got out. Midorikawa Hikaru quickly snapped out of his daze and followed him out. The two snipers exchanged a glance, and Rae smirked, slung a violin case over his shoulder, and turned to head towards the best sniping spot nearby.

Midorikawa Hikaru headed towards Tsurumi River. It was still early, and Ida Saburo hadn't arrived yet, so they decided to go to the venue first.

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