The planet turned, its satellite following in silent pursuit.
Humanity's greatness was no longer bound to the earth; the vast cosmos was becoming the territory of the future.
Even separated by thousands of miles, far beyond what the naked eye could perceive, they could still observe minuscule details by leveraging technological superiority.
After pinpointing the exact location, Uiharu escalated her access, securing permissions for the satellite's onboard imaging systems.
As one of Academy City's premier hackers, Uiharu's skills surpassed even those of Misaka-senpai, whose abilities provided their own advantages. At this point, few systems could truly block her intrusions.
That said, satellites were particularly sensitive assets.
Even though she was only leveraging a minimal level of access, Uiharu took the task with utmost seriousness—yet the whole process went surprisingly smoothly.
As satellite imagery streamed in and data was continuously compiled, crucial intelligence finally fell into their hands.
"Misaka-senpai, the target is on the rooftop of the third building ahead to your left. The building's ownership is tied to a food company, and I've already taken control of its internal surveillance systems. If needed, I can also trigger the fire alarm to evacuate the premises."
"However, based on the intel we've gathered, it appears there's another girl there besides Shokuhou Misaki-senpai."
"I've cross-referenced the face with the Person Identification Database—it's Kouzaku Mitori, who is officially listed as deceased."
The torrent of information was a stark contrast to her usual quiet demeanor. Only when she was fully immersed in her work did Uiharu Kazari truly shine.
"Understood."
Misaka-senpai gave a firm nod, her gaze locking onto a building several dozen meters away.
Steadying her breath, magnetic forces surged at her feet. Using the attraction to steel reinforcements within nearby structures, she executed a series of daring, high-altitude leaps.
Academy City's very own Spider-Girl, now free from the strange state of a Level 6, had returned to her original ability level.
At least until she fully grasped the Earth's magnetic field, refined a reliable personal formula, or regained immense computational power and AIM diffusion field support, true free-flight and moving through the air like wind would remain a distant goal.
"By the way, how are things on Sonoko's end?"
Misaka-senpai asked as she moved, a note of concern in her voice.
Though their plan seemed feasible, a sense of unease lingered. After all, their opponent had effortlessly dismantled the combined efforts of the three Tokiwadai students.
Even with the addition of an unpredictable teleporter, it was hard to feel completely secure.
For now, there wasn't much more she could do. She could only hope that after locating Shokuhou, they could break Kihara Gensei's control over Mental Out and turn the tide, however slightly.
"Their signal is experiencing some interference, but the comms are still online. I can hear Shirai-san teasing Natsume-san."
"I think Shirai-san might still be bothered that they kept things from her earlier."
Uiharu hesitated before replying.
With limited time for explanations, Misaka-senpai had only covered the most critical points. Shirai-san's behavior was probably her way of trying to extract more information.
Well… probably.
"Teasing?"
Misaka-senpai sounded surprised, and Uiharu confirmed it.
It definitely counted as teasing—Natsume-san certainly sounded flustered.
If Onee-sama hid things to protect me, to keep me out of danger, then this person trying to steal Onee-sama's attention is definitely doing it on purpose! She wants Onee-sama all to herself!
Such were the inexplicable thoughts running through a certain Judgement member's mind, far off on the battlefield.
Whenever Misaka-san was involved, her brain tended to short-circuit.
Due to limitations in their communication gear, the three teams couldn't maintain a real-time connection.
Both of the other teams could only contact Uiharu, not each other, which certainly didn't help coordination.
On the bright side, it spared Misaka-senpai's ears from certain… noisy distractions, allowing her to focus on the task at hand.
"But they really do get along well," Uiharu remarked thoughtfully after a moment.
The bickering sounded more like friendly banter, and a small smile found its way onto Uiharu's face.
Hearing about part of Misaka-senpai's ordeal had initially dampened her spirits, but now she felt inexplicably better.
Having comrades to rely on, working together toward a shared goal—that was the real reason they could shake off their gloom.
"Yeah, don't be fooled by how much Kuroko argues with Sonoko. In some ways, they might be closer than she is with me."
Misaka-senpai sighed softly.
While Sonoko was always polite and friendly with her, she was also somewhat quiet and reserved. With Kuroko, she seemed much more open and unrestrained.
"Mhm, I think so too."
Uiharu nodded in agreement on the other end, earning a curious glance from Saten-san beside her.
On the vertical surface of the building, a lone figure accelerated, closing in on her target location.
--+--
Meanwhile, on another front, things were not going well for Natsume-san.
The three-person team consisted of Natsume Sonoko, Natsume Reiko, and their current designated transport.
But said transport seemed to be overstepping her role, attempting to disrupt her teammate's mental peace with a constant stream of chatter.
"Ugh, she's so annoying. I don't wanna listen."
Natsume-san felt a sudden urge to cover her ears. Dazedly holding onto Shirai-san's surprisingly soft and slender hand, she seemed thoroughly distracted.
With a faint spatial warp, the trio vanished, only to reappear elsewhere. Their arrival point had been pre-adjusted for light and shadow, keeping them perfectly concealed.
Guided by Natsume Sonoko herself, they had been carefully observing Kihara Gensei's position, with Accelerator also falling within their surveillance range.
Natsume Sonoko's own movement speed was far slower than teleportation. To guard against any sudden moves from Kihara Gensei, using Shirai-san as their transport was essential.
You're up, Shirai-san.
"By the way, since when did you get an older sister? She looks very mature, but she doesn't talk much, does she?"
Seemingly tired of her previous topic, Shirai Kuroko changed the subject, lowering her voice slightly.
She glanced curiously at the tall girl, Reiko, who was also holding her hand.
This girl, who bore a seventy or eighty percent resemblance to Natsume-san and had joined them voluntarily, had piqued her curiosity for a while, but other matters had kept her from asking.
Probably not a clone. The original is only 145 cm tall…
"That's not true! I'm the older sister!"
The previously unshakable expression instantly crumbled. Drawn away from her observation of Kihara Gensei, Natsume Sonoko's voice was full of protest.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.