Chapter 72 Light and Dark: Vermouth's destructive desires were hard to conceal.
An empty alley.
A stray cat darted out of the trash can, kicking an empty soda can as it ran, making a piercing sound in the silent alley.
Behind the pile of garbage is a small, dilapidated, gray door, its color blending into the wall and easily overlooked if one doesn't look closely.
At that moment, the door was pushed open from the inside.
Only when it's opened can you discover that although the door looks incomplete, it's much thicker than a regular fire door, and you can feel how good the sound insulation is just by looking at it.
A red-haired young man emerged from behind the door, wearing a military green windbreaker and a mask. He left without looking back the moment the door closed.
The gate lost its support and crashed heavily behind them.
The alley looked very deep; it was hard to imagine finding a place like this in Tokyo.
After taking only two steps, the young man stopped, took off his jacket which reeked of smoke and alcohol, and casually threw it into the nearby trash can.
Next came masks, gloves, and fingerprint films.
Almost every time he turned a corner, a conspicuous feature disappeared from his appearance.
In the end, the young man's clothing style completely changed, and his ordinary face, along with his most striking red hair, was removed.
The special material is kneaded between the fingers into a ball, just the size of a fist, easily held in the palm of the hand, and can be stuffed into a pocket without anyone noticing.
He took his phone out of his other pocket, dialed a number, and asked without hesitation after the call was connected, "Any results yet?"
The young man's hesitant voice came through the phone: "We've been investigating for ages, but we still can't find out what the problem is..."
Hearing the sound, he raised his hand and scratched his hair twice: "We guessed that the organization's infiltrators in other competitors' homes have been discovered."
Otherwise, how do you explain the sudden and coordinated attack on the Black Organization by various Japanese yakuza groups?
It can't be because it's fate, or that the Black Organization's days are numbered and they are destined to die.
After hearing his guess, Kitagawa Ryusei first lowered his eyes to think, then confirmed the statement, his voice calm and unhurried, just like his footsteps: "It's not impossible, no one can guarantee that there is only one list."
He thought for a moment, then adopted a reassuring tone: "When a building is about to collapse, it's not surprising that some people want a piece of the pie. These gangs always have a few secret channels for distributing intelligence, so it's not your fault if you can't find out."
The young man on the other end of the phone thought so too. He seemed even more indifferent than Kitagawa Ryusei, leaning back in his work chair: "Anyway, it's not a bad thing."
"But boss, why have you been working with Team Zero these past few days? Is there still no news about the missing undercover agent?"
Several days had passed since the undercover agent went missing, and it wasn't exactly a secret among them.
Kitagawa Ryusei has been even busier than before during this period, and he hasn't been seen at all, but things still haven't made any progress.
"They are not out of contact."
Upon hearing this, Kitagawa Ryusei frowned slightly, but quickly smoothed it out: "This matter is still under investigation, so don't draw any conclusions before the results are in."
The so-called "unable to contact" means that the special signal transmitter installed by Zero Group in the vehicle of the Valley Zero was blocked.
Because most of the organization's bases are equipped with signal jammers, this little gadget, which can neither locate nor transmit messages for security reasons, has only one function: to help Team Zero determine whether it is convenient to contact the undercover agent.
So all they can prove right now is that Furuya Zero is at the organization's base, or somewhere else where signals are blocked.
Thinking of this, Kitagawa Ryusei had no desire to say anything more and decided to end the conversation: "Alright, right now those people hiding in the shadows are busy double-crossing each other. They may know more about the organization than the police. While the organization is in disarray, we might get some unexpected gains by following behind them."
"Wow~ It sounds like we're not exactly good people."
Before the other end could finish its reflection, Kitagawa Ryusei abruptly hung up the phone, leaving behind a busy tone.
The scene outside the alley could be seen from a short distance away; cars were driving back and forth on the road, and horns could be heard from time to time.
You can get out in just a few dozen meters.
However, Kitagawa Ryusei turned around at that moment.
He put his phone back in his pocket and said coldly to the person behind him, "Following someone is not a polite thing to do."
...
The alley was deserted; even the stray cats that had been wandering nearby were nowhere to be seen.
The young man's voice echoed slightly, making it sound as if he were talking to himself.
After waiting a moment, Kitagawa Ryusei remained calm and patient: "Did you think I was bluffing you, Vermouth?"
Guess if I'm carrying a gun?
Only after those words had completely landed, and a moment later, did the blonde woman emerge from the shadows and come into Kitagawa Ryusei's view.
She looked on with interest, seemingly unperturbed even when threatened, and gracefully approached, then stopped a few steps away: "I thought Gin was a step too slow and had you leak the organization's list before he made his move, but I never imagined that Kitagawa-kun would actually be able to survive that guy."
"It's true... you can't judge a book by its cover."
Gin, vodka, bourbon... I never expected that one or two of them couldn't even determine whether someone was alive or dead.
"It's very simple to do this."
Kitagawa Ryusei's body language was relaxed, showing no tension at all because of Vermouth's appearance, and even jokingly replied to her: "As long as Gin is mine, that's fine."
"..." Vermouth seemed to have heard the most interesting joke in the world, and burst into laughter: "I would rather believe that Your Excellency has come back from the dead."
“Then let him come back to life,” Kitagawa Ryusei shrugged dismissively, going along with her suggestion.
"And what are you doing following me?"
The young man appeared overly calm, as if the woman in front of him wasn't a favorite of his current enemy, the Black Organization BOSS, but merely an acquaintance he happened to meet on the street and had to stop and exchange a few perfunctory words with.
Vermouth's feelings toward the person in front of her have been a rollercoaster ride, from initial admiration and resentment to her current complex emotions.
"I never imagined you would become the organization's biggest threat. Kitagawa-kun, who is backing you?"
"..."
Kitagawa Ryusei remained silent for a long time before asking from the bottom of his heart, "Do I really look that unlike a policeman?"
Why are these people questioning him?
Hidden in the alley behind them was Tokyo's largest underground casino. Vermouth was amused by his serious expression and let out a pleasant laugh: "Why don't you believe Gin is one of yours?"
The two exchanged a silent glance.
They had seen too many bizarre and outlandish things in the underworld, and could see through the other party's true nature and purpose at a glance.
Vermouth was not angry about the organization's impending collapse; in fact, she was somewhat pleased.
But she will absolutely not make a move, at least not yet.
Kitagawa Ryusei's thoughts were quite simple, almost written on his face—he just wanted the organization to collapse.
He also knew what Vermouth was worried about.
"You're scared, aren't you? Although you hate Karasuma Renya for using you in experiments, you're even more afraid of losing your protection after the organization falls and facing an even more cruel and terrible fate..."
So they simply handed their fate over to others, observing from the sidelines whether the organization lived or died.
Her words struck a nerve, and Vermouth's eyes darkened, her tone turning dangerous: "Kitagawa-kun, that's not very gentlemanly of you."
Not only is he not gentlemanly, he's also extremely annoying.
This time, Kitagawa Ryusei had no patience to play any more gentlemanly games with her. Capturing Vermouth had never been part of his plan from the beginning, and this woman wasn't worth his time.
After guessing that Vermouth was a successful experiment of the organization, he knew that if she fell into the hands of the police, she would definitely not reveal any information about the organization. On the contrary, leaving her out might have a surprising effect.
This does not conform to the professional standards of a police officer, but Kitagawa Ryusei gave himself a lot of leeway in dealing with the organization.
"I'll be going now if there's nothing else."
Thinking this, he turned and left, exposing his back to Vermouth, completely unconcerned about her attacking from behind.
Just as Kitagawa Ryusei never expected to run into Vermouth, Vermouth herself never thought about it either.
The organization is now facing a series of misfortunes. She was ordered by the BOSS to investigate the list, but there were still no results. Who would have thought that in the past two days, many gangs have attacked the organization's base, causing huge losses to the organization.
Karasuma Renya's paranoia had long since penetrated to the bone. He suspected that not only the authorities had obtained the list, but all the organization's secrets had been exposed to the public. He threw several tantrums at the manor.
"I wish I could just die of anger like this," Vermouth thought with immense regret.
Known as the "Thousand-Faced Witch," she spent a long time investigating several casinos and bars in Tokyo, and the moment she saw Kitagawa Ryusei in disguise, she confirmed her target.
I just didn't expect that the person behind all these layers of skin was actually an "acquaintance".
She couldn't capture anyone who had escaped from Gin's clutches all by herself; Vermouth never intended to take action in the first place.
As the young man was about to step out of the alley, seemingly unconnected to the dark alley behind him and the secrets hidden within, he walked into the warm, superficial world without any hesitation.
At that moment, Vermouth suddenly felt that perhaps all of this could really end.
"..."
"The organization has a total of 73 bases in Japan, and 31 of them have already been lost."
Kitagawa Ryusei kept walking.
You have to believe half of what this woman says after hearing it just once, and then you have to wring out the rest and go through several rounds of discerning its truthfulness.
—Rei Furuya has complained to him more than once.
He sincerely suggested, "If you really want to cause trouble for your old boss, you can go back and sell this information."
Vermouth wasn't annoyed by the interruption. She pulled out a cigarette from somewhere, lit it between her fingers, and put it to her lips.
Smoke billowed from her red lips, blurring her beautiful face.
Sure enough, once she uttered the first sentence, the rest of the conversation flowed much more smoothly. She continued, "Recently, too many people have betrayed the organization, and the disgusting research department has just made a new breakthrough. The BOSS has gone so far as to want to brainwash everyone in the organization."
She knew this day would come from the moment Junairik's research results came out. Vermouth escaped unscathed because Karasuma Renya feared a conflict with the elixir of immortality, and Gin, by concealing his sharp edges and behaving extremely obediently, dissuaded the BOSS from his plan.
Otherwise, the two of them would be the first to be affected.
Even so, one's safety cannot be completely guaranteed.
The thought of having to work with a bunch of good-for-nothings with nothing but Karasuma Renya in her head made Vermouth feel disgusted, and an uncontrollable urge to destroy rose within her.
They should all just disappear; they shouldn't have existed in the first place.
The blonde woman exhaled another puff of smoke, obscuring her face hidden in the shadows.
As soon as the woman finished speaking, Kitagawa Ryusei stopped moving forward, his leather boots halting in the stark contrast of light and shadow on the alley and street.
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