The man Byakuya had noticed was tall and thin, wearing a black overcoat.
His behavior looked no different from the pedestrians around him, but a small yellowish stain on the back of his clothes had caught Byakuya's attention.
Though the stain was hard to identify, Byakuya's extraordinary perception allowed him to determine it wasn't ordinary residue.
Whether animal or human fat, it was suspicious enough.
"Is that so? Let's follow him and see. Try not to let him notice."
Koori Ui said quietly.
Byakuya and Koori Ui began tailing the man in black, maintaining a distance that wouldn't easily give them away.
They hadn't followed for long before the man turned into a narrow alley.
That made him even more suspicious.
Byakuya and Koori Ui immediately moved to follow.
Byakuya was in front. Just as he was about to turn into the alley, three black rinkaku tentacles suddenly lashed toward him.
The three rinkaku tips converged into a single point, aimed directly at his forehead.
In that instant, Byakuya's Three-Tomoe Sharingan activated reflexively.
But Koori Ui was behind him and couldn't see it.
Though the ambush was completely unexpected, the attack was still too slow for his Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
The incoming rinkaku seemed to move in slow motion—the result of his Sharingan's perception granting him "prediction."
Simply put, by reading his opponent's movements, he could predict their next trajectory. It appeared as though he could see several seconds into the future, making the opponent's actions seem slowed.
Byakuya immediately sidestepped, dodging the kagune attack. Now he could confirm the man in black was definitely a ghoul.
And this rinkaku clearly matched the A-rated ghoul "Hyena's" profile.
Byakuya tentatively identified this as his mission target.
"Amaha!"
Koori Ui reacted quickly, immediately activating the suitcase. Two Quinque briefcases ejected from within.
He threw one to Byakuya while his other hand was already drawing his own Quinque.
Byakuya caught his briefcase, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan already deactivated—he didn't want Koori Ui to see it.
The B-rated Quinque "Thorn" deployed from the briefcase, transforming into a tachi.
Byakuya's gaze locked onto the man in black, who had at some point donned a hyena-shaped mask.
"Hyena" frowned when he saw his ambush had failed.
He'd already suspected these two tailing him were Doves, but he hadn't expected even this move to be dodged.
He immediately realized these weren't ordinary investigators. Without certainty of victory, he needed to retreat.
"Hyena" tried to retract his kagune and flee, but Byakuya wouldn't give him that chance.
The three rinkaku tentacles were still converged at a single point, having just passed the left side of Byakuya's head.
Byakuya reversed his grip on the tachi and thrust leftward, piercing through all three tentacles at once. Now "Hyena" couldn't retract them even if he wanted to.
Rinkaku was inherently fragile. Combined with the Quinque's sufficient killing power, penetrating the kagune was effortless as long as enough force was applied—and Byakuya was plenty strong.
But he didn't stop there. He violently twisted the tachi's angle and drove it into the ground, pinning all three of "Hyena's" tentacles down completely.
"Damn it!"
"Hyena" realized he was in deep trouble, but no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't free his kagune.
While he panicked, Byakuya had already released the pinned "Thorn" and closed the distance.
A high roundhouse kick connected with "Hyena's" head. Byakuya's strength was considerable, but it only shifted "Hyena's" head position.
At most it briefly darkened his vision and made him dizzy—ghoul physical defense was simply too strong.
But Byakuya had more than one Quinque. His "Hiruko 1/76" had always been kept in his inner pocket, and now it proved useful.
While "Hyena" was staggered, Byakuya immediately drew the dagger Quinque, circled behind him, and destroyed the kakuhou at the base of his kagune.
Just then, Koori Ui closed in as well. He wielded an A+-rated koukaku Quinque called "Hanging Ice"—shaped like a long spear but with hidden mechanisms.
The "Hanging Ice" in his hands suddenly transformed, its spear form fragmenting into numerous razor-sharp, flexible blades that severed "Hyena's" head.
Even with ghoul regeneration, ordinary ghouls couldn't survive decapitation—especially since Byakuya had already critically damaged "Hyena's" kakuhou.
At most an A-rated ghoul, "Hyena" couldn't withstand consecutive lethal blows. The decapitation ended him completely.
[Ding! Host defeated an "A-rated ghoul." Reward: 10 Fusion Points!]
[Ding! Host completed first CCG-assigned mission. Reward: 10 Fusion Points!]
"Excellent work. Your reactions weren't at all what you'd expect from a rookie—this mission really was no challenge for you."
Koori Ui praised Byakuya readily. "Conveniently, his kagune was fully deployed, meeting the requirements for Quinque fabrication. In a few days, you'll be able to upgrade to an A-rated Quinque."
Byakuya only nodded slightly, saying nothing more.
His mind wasn't on getting a better Quinque—it was on the Fueguchi family situation.
He didn't know their current circumstances. If Fueguchi Asaki hadn't been killed by Yamori yet, that would be the best scenario.
"Mission complete. Other investigators will handle the scene cleanup. Want to head back now?"
Koori Ui asked for Byakuya's preference.
"It's still early. I'd like to walk around Ward 19 first."
Byakuya said.
"Works for me. I'll head to the branch to file the report. Watch yourself."
Koori Ui nodded.