Boom—
The Osprey helicopter exploded, erupting into a massive fireball as it crashed into the Aquarium. Flames blazed, mixing with the distant sirens of ambulances and fire trucks and the ongoing gunfire, wrapping the entire venue in a suffocating tension.
Outside the Aquarium, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police officers saw the downed helicopter and burst into excited, furious shouts.
"Good! Good explosion!"
"Who the hell shot that thing down?!"
"Who cares! Whoever it was, that was beautiful!"
They had all witnessed the helicopter strafing the Ferris wheel moments ago. Every single officer felt their heart in their throat.
That Ferris wheel was still loaded with civilians. If it had collapsed, the casualties would have been unimaginable.
Da-da-da—
Just as they started to feel relief, gunfire rang out again. The officers quickly ducked back down.
Right. The armed mercs were still out there!
...
"Captain, did you see that just now?"
"Yeah, damn it. That was a Stinger anti-aircraft missile!"
"What do we do now?"
"What else? Retreat. We've already completed what we were paid for. If we keep fighting, we'll all die here."
"Right now, the cops are still manageable, but if the Self-Defense Forces show up, we're toast. There's also that sniper... and the maniac who fired the missile. If we don't retreat now, it'll be too late."
The leader of the Black Organization's hired guns made the call decisively, issuing the retreat order through his headset.
These were men who had seen real war, living with death daily. Even in retreat, they remained disciplined, laying down suppressive fire and pretending to fight to the death, all while heading to the extraction point Tequila had prepared.
Tequila didn't stop them. He didn't want to stay either. Gin's aircraft had been shot down—if he stuck around, he'd just be cannon fodder.
As for whether Gin had survived or not, that wasn't his concern.
If Gin was dead, all the better. That would open up the ladder for others to climb.
On the roof of the parking garage, Toru calmly put away the anti-aircraft launcher.
The distance had been too short, the angle perfect—one shot, direct hit.
He had brought several rounds of ammunition, but now, none of them were needed.
After placing the launcher back into the car, he ignored Hayasaka for now. She was still frozen, staring at him in disbelief.
Instead, he took out his phone and dialed a number.
Inside the Ferris wheel cabin, Curacao was still staring in stunned silence at the fiery remains of Gin's helicopter. She was momentarily at a loss.
The bombs didn't go off. Now even the helicopter had been blown apart by a missile. What was she supposed to do?
Curacao was more than capable of jumping off the Ferris wheel, even from this height.
But what made her hesitate wasn't the height, it was whether she should return to the Organization at all.
Just moments ago, the Organization had activated a triple-layer plan to retrieve her.
First, a terrorist-style attack by hired mercenaries.
Second, the bomb planted by Vermouth.
Third, Gin's final card—an Osprey helicopter.
That triple-layered safety net was precisely why Curacao had given up on escaping and planned to return.
But now, everything had failed.
She had options again.
Just leave the Organization? Walk away forever?
But she wasn't sure she could actually escape their pursuit. Her abilities were exceptional, but only with the Organization's backing.
No matter how capable one person was, they couldn't compete with an organization that strict and vast.
If she went back and her betrayal was discovered, she would die.
As Curacao hesitated, the phone she had taken from Jodie suddenly rang.
The caller ID didn't show a number. Instead, it displayed her name.
She stared at the screen for a moment, then answered.
"Curacao?"
A young man's voice came through.
"It's me. Who are you?"
"CIA Japan Branch Director."
"You're Fujiwara Toru?"
"That's right."
"What do you want from me?"
Curacao hadn't expected the caller to be Toru himself.
"I'm giving you a choice. A chance to leave that Organization."
"You want me to work for the CIA?"
Curacao instantly understood his motive. "...I'm not working for the CIA. You people are even more untrustworthy than the Organization."
As someone from the Organization's inner circle, she understood the CIA well. In terms of ruthlessness and disregard for human rights, the CIA could be even worse than the Black Organization.
If she joined them, she could be betrayed at any time. She'd rather stay with the devils she knew.
"Heh. Not the CIA. Work for me."
"Is that any different?"
"Of course it is. You should understand exactly what that means. Oh, and by the way—thanks. Because of you, Kir and Bourbon's identities remain safe."
"How do you know? Are there other spies in the Organization?"
Curacao's expression grew tense.
Toru chuckled and didn't answer.
He had only been bluffing, but her reaction had confirmed everything.
"Curacao, look to your lower left, at the Ferris wheel cabin."
Curacao followed his instructions, glancing down through the glass.
In one of the lower cabins, an old man sat with a few children. They were pressed up against the window, peering out in fear.
She recognized them—Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, and the others.
"If I hadn't blown up that Osprey, those kids would've died. Don't deny it. You still have a heart. You still have a conscience."
"...You've wanted to leave the Organization for a long time. You were just afraid you wouldn't be able to escape. Am I wrong?"
Toru paused, then continued. "Now I'm giving you that chance. I'll forge your death certificate and give you a new identity."
Curacao gave a bitter laugh. "I stole CIA data. I caused you people serious damage."
"What does the CIA's loss have to do with me? Honestly, the data you hold is more valuable to me."
Curacao went quiet.
This man, Fujiwara Toru, clearly had ambition beyond his current post.
"Curacao, I don't have time to talk all day. You have thirty seconds to decide."
"No need to think. I'll work for you."
"Good choice. Tokyo, Toshima Ward, Otsuka Station... Room 507. Door password: 3496. It's a safehouse only I know about. You can make it there on your own, right?"
"No problem."
Curacao hung up.
She kicked open the Ferris wheel cabin door, jumped out from the highest point, landed on the steel frame, and slid down rapidly like Spider-Man, vanishing into the shadows.
Back on the Ferris wheel, Shuichi was leaning against a steel beam, catching his breath.
The image of the Osprey strafing him was still burned into his mind.
He had nearly died.
If someone hadn't fired that anti-aircraft missile, he would've been blown apart.
"Is that... Curacao?!"
Shuichi spotted her escaping and figured she had regained her memory.
He started to give chase, but hesitated, then gave up.
If Curacao could escape, then that meant Jodie and Kazami might be down or injured in the cabin. That took priority.
And besides, while tracking Curacao would be difficult, there was someone else he had seen through his scope—someone more important.
He quickly climbed up the Ferris wheel. Upon finding Jodie and Kazami unconscious but alive, he let out a breath.
"Jodie, Jodie, wake up!"
He shook her hard.
"Huh? Shuichi...? Damn, Curacao escaped!"
Jodie came to, furious and panicking.
"Forget her. She's gone. We won't catch her."
"Sorry... it's my fault."
"Can you still move?"
"I'm fine. No injuries."
"Then let's go. I spotted a big fish."
"Big fish? Who?"
"Vermouth."
Jodie's eyes went wide, her body jolting like she'd been shocked.
"You saw Vermouth?!"
"Yeah. While I was sniping, I spotted her blending in as a tourist. She probably thinks no one noticed, but we can catch her before she slips out with the crowd."
"What are we waiting for?! Let's go! I'll kill that woman myself!"
Jodie's voice was full of fury.
Vermouth—the Thousand-Faced Witch—was the one who had killed her parents.
Shuichi had initially wanted to go after Gin, but Gin had too many bodyguards and layers of defense. It would be nearly impossible to get a clean shot.
So, settling for Vermouth wasn't bad. At least he could help Jodie settle her grudge.
The two of them quickly left the Ferris wheel.
On the parking garage roof, Toru watched through his binoculars.
Seeing Curacao leave, he had been about to do the same, but then noticed Shuichi and Jodie moving out.
"Their destination..."
He traced their movement with his high-tech binoculars.
The system quickly scanned faces in the area. In a quiet corner, the AI matched a familiar identity.
"Vermouth? So she's still here."
Well, it wasn't exactly stupidity.
She had entered legally as a tourist, so she could easily leave the same way—or vanish by changing identities.
What she hadn't counted on was Shuichi spotting her from up on the Ferris wheel.
Toru sighed.
Guess he wasn't leaving yet.
Returning to the car, he opened the trunk and pulled out a case containing a pristine MK22 high-precision sniper rifle.
With calm precision, he attached the silencer, loaded a round, deployed the bipod, and set the rifle on the edge of the parking structure.
He pulled the bolt and aimed the 16x scope toward Shuichi and Jodie.
"Distance 400 meters. Humidity... wind direction southeast, wind speed..."
Toru began calculating the sniping parameters.
(To be continued.)