Black Bullet - Volume 5 - Chapter 2.06

6

A loud wham echoed across the control room, making the operators sit bolt upright in their seats.

Atsuro Hitsuma, not caring about the pain in his fist as he slammed it against the terminal, winced as he scrunched his eyebrows downward, all but crushing the cell phone in his other hand. “All right,” he managed to squeak out. “Let me know if anything happens.” Then he stormed out of the control room.

As he walked along, he bashed his fist against a vending machine down the hallway. “Shit… Shit! This is ridiculous! He got Hummingbird?!”

“Oooh, Mr. Hitsuma, you’re gonna have to answer for that, huh?”

Hitsuma rolled his eyes toward the voice. A completely unfazed Yuga shrugged at him, apparently enjoying the show.

“I told you that you should’ve let me take care of him. Hummingbird just didn’t have what it takes.”

“Whether she did or not, could any one of us have predicted that she’d lose? She had a one-hundred-percent mission completion rate!”

“One hundred percent of a bunch of small-fry hit man jobs. How could anyone be proud of that record? That’s all she had the capacity for, really.”

Yuga’s reaction to his colleague being killed went far beyond indifference and into the realm of coldhearted callousness.

“Rentaro Satomi… God.”

“So is it clear who we’re dealing with now, Mr. Hitsuma? Next time, why don’t you—?”

“—No! Not yet! We still have Swordtail! And I’m done screwing around. It’s no mercy from here on in! I have to get them killed!”

Yuga wrinkled his nose as he chuckled. “Well, do what you like,” he said chidingly. “But hasn’t Inspector Tadashima been calling for you?”

Hitsuma blinked, stood up, and looked at his watch. The idea of having to act cool and deal with him when one of his top assassins was dead didn’t exactly appeal to him, but he couldn’t delay the inspector any longer. It could lead to some completely avoidable misunderstandings.

“You hold down the fort here,” Hitsuma grunted as he passed by. Yuga responded with an uncharacteristically stern face.

“Mr. Hitsuma, about that inspector… He’s pretty angry, all right? Make sure you keep your guard up.”

“Tadashima is?” Hitsuma shook his head, dismissing this warning. “I don’t care. He’s almost up for retirement anyway; he’s not gonna risk his pension trying to rock the boat. There’s no way he’d ever come near the truth. That’s why I chose him as my partner.”

“Well, hopefully so. Just watch he doesn’t trip you up, all right?”

The smell of defeat was in the air.

The steering wheel of his beloved car creaked in his hands as it thundered down the road. He had the accelerator all the way down, forgetting the fact he was on duty, and he was well beyond the highway speed limit. Dark Stalker, one of his men, was openly revolting against him. If he couldn’t count on Swordtail to quiet things down, the organization might start asking some very unwelcome questions.

“God damn you, Rentaro Satomi…!”

Hitsuma found himself having trouble dealing with his emotions. If he met with Tadashima like this, he might notice something was up.

So he decided to take a quick breather in order to release some of his stress. I have enough time for that, he figured, as he spun the wheel and got off the highway, turning across several narrow roads until he reached a street lined with bars and restaurants.

He stopped in front of a dingy-looking building. Going up the stairs, he glanced at the nameplate of the Tendo Civil Security Agency. He opened the door, using a key he had made for him, only to find the office brightly lit by the evening sun through the window.

Deeper inside, behind an ebony-colored desk, Kisara Tendo sat with her back turned to him. Stealthily, Hitsuma crept up to her, then brought his hands around her head.

“I’ve come to see you, Kisara.”

The girl in black, only noticing him once he spoke, sluggishly raised her head to meet Hitsuma’s gaze. Her eyes were glassy and devoid of life. They were turned toward him, but they didn’t actually seem to be looking at anything.

“Oh…Mr. Hitsuma,” she slowly intoned. It was a 180-degree difference from her usual lighthearted self.

“What were you looking at?” Hitsuma said, smile deepening as he followed her eyes. “…Oh, did it show up?”

The soft chiffon fabric shone beautifully, extending out across the pleated skirt. It was a full-length dress, as pure and white as a young woman’s chastity. The mannequin it was on had its head covered in a see-through veil that ran down to the shoulders. It was the wedding dress Hitsuma bought for her—one he spared no expense on.

Kisara had been like this ever since she heard Rentaro died at the Plaza Hotel. Pre-wedding jitters, perhaps, or something like it. Hitsuma appreciated how pliable it made her.

His previous research indicated that Rentaro had feelings for her. Hitsuma could have any woman he wanted. To him, taking Kisara for his own had deeper meaning. The moment Rentaro was dead and this girl was his, his revenge would be complete.

“We should hurry with the ceremony, Kisara,” he said, a twisted smile on his face as he ran his hand through her black, silken hair.