Near the ruined roof line of the 251st floor, Netero sat cross-legged on a narrow structural beam, a wooden cup of cold tea resting on his knee.
The wind howled through the shattered concrete dome, tearing at his white robes, but his body remained perfectly still. He was entirely alone.
'Ten Dons below. Zoldycks outside. And the boy in the middle.'
Two familiar presences moved along the outer edge of the district with their aura suppressed almost to nothing. Brief leaks during impossible bursts of movement across the high-voltage lines were enough for Netero to recognise the discipline behind them. He did not need names yet. They were hovering along the perimeter, waiting for the board to resolve.
Netero took a slow sip of tea, his eyes closed. He stayed where he was only long enough to map the converging groups. If the two familiar assassins committed to the medical route, observation would end.
In a darkened sedan parked three streets away from the eastern medical bay entrance, the glow of portable monitors illuminated the pale features of Morena Prudo. Beside her, a high-ranking liaison for Prince Tserriednich adjusted his earpiece, monitoring encrypted audio feeds.
"The Ten Dons have activated the Shadow Beasts under their own kill order," the liaison reported in a low, precise voice. "Their commanders are clearing witnesses around the target corridors."
Morena didn't look at him. Her eyes were fixed on a secondary screen showing a live telemetry breakdown of Yuzuki's physical condition, stolen directly from the hospital's internal servers.
"The Mafia's timing is convenient," Morena said smoothly, her gloved fingers resting on a data drive. "Let them take the public blame. If the boy dies under a pile of Shadow Beast corpses, the Association will launch an investigation into the Ten Dons, not the Kakin royal family."
"And the Zoldycks?" the liaison asked. "Illumi has his instructions to hold the Shingen-ryu master."
"The Zoldycks have their own contract and their own timing," Morena replied coolly. "They will exploit whatever opening the Mafia creates, but they are not taking orders from the Dons. Record every frame of the fight. I want every visible spatial distortion, every technique activation, and every change in his movement documented. Any fresh blood or tissue is to be collected separately and routed to my private archive."
---
The underground ambulance route was a narrow, dimly lit concrete arterial tunnel running beneath the lowest transit bay. The air was heavy with diesel fumes, cold rain runoff, and damp earth.
Three orderlies pushed two gurneys rapidly down the concrete incline. The civilian transfer first, Yuzuki's medical frame several metres behind. A heavy medical ambulance idled in the recessed lane behind them, its emergency flashers casting red patterns across the wet concrete. Bisky and Wing followed several paces uphill, scanning the overhead utility pipes and maintenance hatches.
Around them, the lower medical concourse was in chaotic retreat. Orderlies pushed wheelchair-bound patients through side exits, while sirens blared continuously along the ceiling. Yuzuki watched through his silk mask as the orderly steering his gurney stumbled, sweat dripping from the man's chin onto the rubber mattress.
"Keep moving," Yuzuki whispered, his hand grasping the frame to stabilize his thoracic brace. "Don't stop on the incline."
The moment Yuzuki's gurney crossed the next emergency threshold, a heavy, reinforced steel bulkhead slammed down with a deafening hydraulic crash, sealing the lower lane shut.
Yuzuki, the three orderlies, the civilian patient, and the idling ambulance were locked on the lower side. Bisky and Wing were trapped on the upper ramp.
"Yuzuki!" Bisky's voice echoed muffled through the blast steel as she struck the barrier, her fist leaving a severe dent in the heavy metal plate. "Stand clear! I'll take this door off its tracks!"
"Don't!" Yuzuki called back, forcing his voice past the burning ache in his throat and thorax. "The ceiling will collapse! Keep the upper bay clear!"
The three orderlies panicked, abandoning the lead gurney and scrambling against the reinforced side walls as the hydraulic seals locked. The bedridden civilian patient groaned in confusion, clutching a thin hospital blanket against the chill air. Yuzuki's bruised fingers tightened on his sheet. His aura reserve was critically low, his thorax bound tight, but his Six Eyes locked onto the dark tunnel exit ahead.
A compact man in loose clothes stepped from behind a support pillar ahead of the gurney. Dark hair framed a short beard, while oversized sunglasses hid his eyes despite the underground lighting.
A metallic vibration answered from behind Yuzuki. High above the stalled ambulance, a gaunt figure crouched along a water main, one blade-like forearm trembling so quickly that its edge blurred.
The gaunt figure dropped behind the gurney. His vibrating forearm carved through the ambulance's axle and undercarriage. The heavy vehicle collapsed sideways across the narrow tunnel with a scream of tearing steel and exploding tyres, completely blocking the route back towards the bulkhead.
The compact man with the cloth stepped forward from the front, snapping a square piece of fabric wide. It expanded across the tunnel like an enormous wrapping sheet, its edges curling around the front of Yuzuki's gurney. If those edges closed completely, everything enclosed inside would be reduced with it.
Yuzuki lay on the vibrating mattress, his breath catching in his raw chest as the two Shadow Beasts sealed the route behind and ahead, watching the fabric close in as the tunnel exit vanished into shadow.
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