Bad Boys

February 6th
Amari High School, Aoyama-Itchome, Tokyo
14:25

After lunch on the roof of the school, Tamamo and I returned for afternoon classes, which went off without much trouble as everyone seemed to be busy with math, a subject in which Tamamo surprisingly excelled. Later, as classes ended and everyone was packing up to go either to their clubs or home, the same annoyed student from earlier came to talk to me, Haru, I think her name was.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I guess I was a little rude considering it was your first day here."
"Maybe my actions painted a picture of this place or what my grandfather would have wanted that doesn't match reality?"

"Ah, okay, it was fine, nothing special to be honest."
"Let's leave it in the past, Haru."

"????"
"Hey, why do you call me so casually?"

"Huh? Sorry? Haru is your name, right?"

"Oh, right, no, sorry, it's my fault again."
"I forgot that you are a foreigner."
"You see, in Japan, people usually call each other by their last name; first names are only used for very close people, like best friends, lovers, family."
"Calling someone you've just met by their first name is considered very rude and bad manners."
"Well, at least among the Japanese, foreigners obviously get a pass for being from outside."
"Although you'll avoid a lot of awkward moments if you follow this rule."

"Oh, okay, I'll keep that in mind."
"I completely forgot about that."
"Please don't be offended if I do it again; just consider it a mistake on my part, feel free to remind me."

"It's nothing..."
"Hey, while we're at it... would you like to go out with Yukiko and the others?"
"After school, we'll meet at the station and go to a new cafe that a friend of my grandfather's opened, it's in Sumida, near Shirahige Park."
"The shop doesn't have a name yet, but from what my grandfather told me, their pastries are quite delicious."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I don't have time today."
"My sister is being discharged from the hospital today, so I have to go back early."

"Oh! Is she okay? What happened?"

"Nothing major, she's fine from what I hear."
"She was suffering from a somewhat rare disease, so she was under observation."
"It's been a while since I last saw her, so I would like to see her again."

"Sure, no problem, I'll let the others know."
"Maybe we'll organize something later to welcome you and her."
"Oh, I'll let you go since it's getting late. See you later!"

Without waiting for my reply, Haru Yamamoto hurriedly left the classroom. Her cheerful demeanor was in sharp contrast to her behavior this morning. It seems that the shock of a foreigner was more than she could handle, and she became defensive. Although it's no big deal either way, it's better that these misunderstandings happen to me before Maria comes to class. Just as we were gathering our things, Xian appeared to give us some forms to fill out for school, but something else caught my attention. Haru was surrounded by several men in black: balaclavas, bulletproof vests, guns, a van. They bundled her into the vehicle while the poor girl struggled and fought to free herself.

"Oh shit! Xian, the window!"
"They're kidnapping Haru live in front of the school!"

"What? Oh no!"
"This is a big problem!" said the teacher, also looking at the window.

"Are these things common around here?"
"I'm sorry to bring you bad news, but I have to tell my mother that this school is not good for my sister."

"You don't understand, Elise, it's worse than you think!"

*Beep*Beep*Beep*

"Sorry, give me a moment, I have to answer," I said as I searched for the phone in my clothes.
"My mom just bought me the phone and it's probably her."
"Hello, good afternoon?"

"Hello? Is this Miss Elise, right?"
"The white girl from yesterday, right?"

"Yes, the one with the fox ears and tail, that's me."

"I'm Saeko, the girl who works in your mother's cafeteria."
"Oh... your mother... Mrs. Adelis told me to call you if there's a serious emergency and gave me this number."
"And this is a very serious emergency, I don't know what to do! I'm so sorry!"
"It all happened so fast! I couldn't believe it! Oh God! Oh my God!"

"Saeko! Saeko! Calm down."
"Listen to me, stay with me, calm down!"
"I need you to tell me exactly what happened."
"Please, be as clear as you can."

"It's your mother, she came back from work."
"She was here, I could see her through the window..."
"But... but..."
"Suddenly some men in black arrived in a van!"
"They grabbed her and took her away! I have no idea where they took her!"
"Everything happened so fast! I don't know what to do, we have to call the police!"
"But Mrs. Adelis was very clear yesterday that I should call you first."

In less than a moment, I could feel my body losing warmth, the sense of time fading. I could barely feel my own heartbeat while still holding my phone, unable to believe what I had just been told. But I couldn't lose it right now and run around the city causing chaos; now was the time to have a plan. Luckily, the right person for the job was standing right next to me.

"Alright Saeko, everything is fine."
"I've got it under control, give me some time and we'll call the police later."
"For now, close the shop and stay on the phone, everything will be fine, don't be afraid."
"......"
"Tamamo, take the phone, please, talk to Saeko and try to calm her down, you're better at that than me."
"....."
"'Now regarding the issue, Xian, we have a serious problem."
"Saeko just called and said that they kidnapped my mother a few moments ago."
"You were her bodyguard, right? Any ideas?"

"They kidnapped Mrs. Adelis!"
"Wow, that takes guts, they're definitely bold."
"Even agencies like MI6 wouldn't dare do that."
"Whoever did this is definitely not an ordinary person."
"They just kidnapped Haru and now your mother, I'm afraid it's no coincidence."

"Then what do you suggest? Who do you think it could be?"

"I honestly don't know, but I know someone who will soon."
"Come with me to the car, we need to do some driving."

Xian took us to the school parking lot where her car was parked - a flashy race car, a Ford Shelby GT Super Snake, clearly modified, certainly not something a teacher would normally use on a daily basis. After Tamamo and I got in, Xian started the car and we took off across town. The professional assassin made another call on her cell phone, telling someone to meet her at the docks in 20 minutes. Maybe even sooner, we arrived at the location even though it was late afternoon. Xian stopped at one of the warehouses and waited near the door for the person she had called earlier.

"You know, when I left... the army, I promised myself I wouldn't get involved in these things anymore."
"And now look at me, back in a foreign country, running a counterintelligence operation with people I barely know," I said sarcastically.

"Well, I made the same promise to myself."
"The last thing I imagined was having to rescue hostages after a class," Xian replied, also sarcastically too.

"Do you know who the person we are waiting for is?"

"An old friend of your mother's; he should definitely be able to find out where they've taken her."

"And how can you be so sure?"

Suddenly the metal gate of the hangar opened and a man standing there waved us inside. Xian maneuvered the car into the hangar.

"That's him, he's quite good at his job," the beautiful girl who was driving added.
"Just pay attention and don't say anything, I'll do the talking."

After the warehouse door closed again, a man walked up to the car and pulled aside a curtain in front of us, revealing a man gagged and bound to a chair. The man in the chair appeared to be brutally injured, with large streaks of blood across his body, but instead of showing mercy, the man orchestrating this gruesome spectacle only brought more pain. He took a wrench and mercilessly pounded on the legs of the man in the chair, hammering again and again until the poor man writhed in agony, his screams mingled with sounds of remorse. the boogeyman didn't stop there; he grabbed a nearby barrel of gasoline and poured it mercilessly over his victim.

The captive, knowing the consequences, struggled to speak, indicating that he was ready to tell the truth. When his gag was removed, he immediately said, "Tokai 6-chome, Ota-ku in Tokyo Bay!" But that wasn't enough to win his freedom. the boogeyman callously set him on fire with his cigarette. The man screamed in agony as he met his horrible death, prompting the tormentor to shoot him to end his suffering even as his body continued to burn.

Then the terrifying man calmly walked toward the car.

"Excuse me, Xian, but who did you say this person was?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, that's the inspector of the police department, Mr. Yamamoto," Xian replied.
"He was a good friend of your mother's during the war."
"His granddaughter, Miss Haru, was kidnapped by the same people."

"Now I understand why the gasoline," I muttered.

Finally close enough to see better, the man was old; his graying hair and age were evident. Yet his muscular frame was still visible beneath his clothes, and in his eyes, determination and anger burned as one. A man on a divine mission, living only for his granddaughter, and about to let the world know it. He was clearly far more dangerous than we had just witnessed.

"They're at the Nisshin warehouse complex, it's near here to the south."
"The idiots thought they could come to my house and kidnap me too.
"They look like foreigners, they don't even understand Japanese well."
"I'm not sure who's behind this, but they definitely have money, judging by the equipment they're using."
"This wasn't a coincidence, it was really well planned, like an operation."
"I'll clean this up first, I'll be there with the police in an hour."
"That's their window of opportunity to act, please Xian, save Haru."

"Oh yes, of course, no problem at all."
"Actually, I'm in good company today, these two girls here are also professionals."
"The one in white even beat me easily in Vienna," Xian said, a little nervous about the man.

The old man stared at me for a moment, but for some reason didn't give it any more importance.

"I don't care who does it, just don't screw it up."
"Go now, time is running out."

Xian immediately started the car and drove to the place where a man had already died. On the way, I checked that my gun was loaded and ready for an emergency rescue. The assassin looked at me a little scared before he spoke.

"Hey, you don't expect to go in there without a plan, do you?"

"Do I look like a girl with a plan?"
"..."
"Don't worry, I'm not that stupid."
"Anyway, Tamamo, you like shapeshifting, right? Do you think you can easily pass yourself off as someone else?"
"I have a little important job for you before I go in and tell everyone to go to hell"