Raikou Akihito upon searching his name on the local website, you can find a whole list of news article, forums and websites about him. They were mostly from overseas. It was disarming to think that there are people out there who knew him, even as a criminal mastermind.
There were websites from his fans dedicated to him and his evil-doing. They rejoice in his evil act and some even wrote fan fiction about him, curtailing of his escapades which undoubtedly fuels his ego.
Despite him massacring entire families for his gain and selling children's organs, it was absurd that there were people who stood by him and cheered for his escape. It was disturbing to think such things.
I was appalled by that fact itself.
.
"Kirishima, this is where we die," crowed Akihito in triumph. "You and I, on this very roof, completing the Final Problem. I'm sad to think that we'd end up like this."
I tried not to scoff.
"I'm merely playing your sick game, Akihito," Kirishima pointed out. "I'm not sad at all. I doubt I should be."
I could hear them talking through the receiver on my ear. It was a strange conversation between two dangerous Yakuza men. I was far away, positioned on the roof with a sniper rifle next to me – doing what I do best.
Taking out potential targets.
"Have you said goodbye to your wee lass?" he asked. "She's a cute one. Sticking by you even though you're a fucked-up idiot. I don't understand what goes through your simple minds at all. She's your weakness. She's going to die because of you."
"I'm here, aren't I?" Kirishima replied, he sounds disgruntled. "Your wish is done. Your little game ends here. We're going to jump to our deaths, like a lover's suicide pact. Don't you understand how ironic it is?"
"If you don't jump, you'll know what'll happen," he said. A laugh. An obnoxious one.
Far away, I got up from my roost and proceeded to the next one. The rifle bumping against my back. Glancing at my watch as I jumped over roofs, I kept pace with the second hand – knowing that time was of the essence.
"You've been playing God since you're fifteen. You should quit it before it comes to get you."
Akihito chuckles. "You don't know anything," he said with glee. "You're just a little chess piece in my grand game. And you're just a pawn."
Farther away, Wolf kicked down a faded red door and swarmed into a dilapidated building, some went upstairs while the rest went down to the basement to arrest the occupants. It was chaotic, people were screaming in fear, but none got hurt.
"What don't I know, Akihito?" Kirishima asked. "I know what you want. That's why you've revealed yourself after all these years. You're just eager to see me grovel at your feet. You just want me to cower and beg."
At a different location, Leopard swarmed into a rundown two storey housing estate, arresting anyone living inside. There were plenty of screaming but no one got injured.
"I know you won't do that, you're too proud to bow down to me," he said with a nonchalant shrug. "But it's okay, I got you right where I want you to be. A chess piece that I wanted. At the very least, this is how I imagined our last seconds to be."
It was the same for the other teams of the Armed Police Force. Thanks to the tip and pressure coming from the powerful civil servant, the Army organised a nationwide stint within a day in an attempt to end the illegal activities once and for all.
Apart from the ground team, the snipers have their own mission. We were tasked to take out the foreign secret agents that came to the country illegally and we received their positions or place of stay from the powerful government official.
This simple fact itself was absurd.
It was going too well.
I've got one more target left. I was reaching to his hideout. As I stepped onto the roof, I accidentally unleashed a booby trap and I heard the typical sounds of a shotgun clicking. Cursing, I jumped to avoid the blast and I felt shearing pain on my left thigh.
Letting out a yell of pain as I went down on one knee, I struggled to contain the burning sensation from overtaking my senses. It was a tough fight. My leg was burning. It hurts too much. Amidst the painful haze, I saw the agent running away.
"Motherfucker!"
I had to get him. I needed to complete my mission, so I did what I had to. Ignoring the pain, I set the rifle up and adjusted the scope. I took my time in getting the right shot and when I knew it was time, I took a deep breath, to settle my racing heart and another breath before I took the shot.
He dropped like a sack of potatoes before he could clear the roof.
"Goddamnit!" I yelled. "AHH!"
My leg looked disastrous. The bullets from the shotgun had embedded themselves onto my leg, the balls were splayed in an arc. I could see them glistening against the blood. I began to wrap a bandage around my thigh, just tight enough to slow the blood flow but not tight enough to restrict movement.
It hurt like a bitch and my energy is spent. I need to call for medic.
"This is BE-34, Lieutenant Amelia Irfan," I said breathlessly and sat to ease my aching leg, setting the rifle in-between me. "I need a medic ASAP."
"State your location."
I wanted to answer the order. Granted, it was an automatic response, but I stopped myself. No one answered the radio in such a way. Not even the corpsmen. They knew where I was, my last location. That order made me doubtful.
"State your position."
This is not good.
"Corpsmen, give me a sitrep," I said. Grunting with effort, I stood and grabbed the parapet as a wave of pain shot through me. "This is BE-34, calling to medic corpsmen, over!"
Silence over the radio comm meant that someone has hacked into the radio wave and listening to our highly classified conversation. I needed to move positions and get to safety immediately. I took out my earpiece and left it on the parapet, limping towards the cat ladder.
I knew where I needed to go next.
.
Kirishima heard the shotgun blast. He heard her yelling in pain. He tried not to react, but Akihito caught on almost instantaneously and gave him an innocent leer.
"Are you perhaps doing something behind my back, dear Kirishima?" Akihito asked serenely. "I've told you not to play with me, didn't I? Only one can play this game."
Kirishima could feel dread creeping up his spine. He didn't like what Akihito had said and he began to worry about Amelia. He heard her asking for a medic, repeated her order but no one answered. A few seconds after, there was no sound from her, which meant it was radio silence.
It hurt.
It hurt not knowing.
Honestly, Akihito was getting annoying. He wishes he could shoot him in the head and be rid of his confusing rambling, but he needed to wait until the signal is given. He needed to be patient and it was the hardest thing to do.
"I'm not playing a game," he said. He tried to keep his voice level. "You are."
Akihito laughed like he won a jackpot. "You can't hear her anymore," he said. "I don't like it when people do things behind my back. I've told you specifically!"
He felt dread filling up his chest.
Is their plan breaking down?
Will she be okay?
He had no way of knowing. For the first time in his life, he felt helpless.
"It's time to go."
He tried to stall. Honestly, that came up in his thoughts. He knew that he needed to trust her and her team. They were the best in what they do. They know what they're doing. He should trust them, and he took a deep breath, following according to the plan.
"I don't understand. Why do you want to go? Don't you have a lot of things planned? Aren't you too young to say goodbye to this world?"
Akihito looked at Kirishima and smiled as if he pitied the other man. "My plan doesn't end with me, Kirishima," he replied with a triumphant grin. "It'll continue as long as anyone believes in me. It'll continue whether you like it or not."
There it was. That was the clue that they were itching to find out. "But why would you want to fall to your death?" he asked curiously. "You have everything that you need and more."
"Because I'm bored of this world," he said with a dramatic shrug. "You've gotten boring. There's no one else who's interesting enough to keep me living in this world."
Kirishima grew fearful and resentful. It was the stupidest reason he has ever heard. There were people out there fighting to stay alive and yet here he was, itching to die. He's even planned his death, like a diva in mourning.
The building they were on was four stories, they're going to have a broken leg or arm at most. It won't kill them, Kirishima knew and he thinks Akihito was planning on shooting himself in the mouth before falling to his death. That was the only way to die.
The bulge in his jacket was evident enough.
.
Hours earlier, we gathered inside an undisclosed building where we could be briefed about the Operation Final Problem. At least five teams from the Armed Police Forces have gathered, including the tech teams, medic teams, and ammunition teams.
While we waited to be briefed, we suited up. Each soldier was busy with gearing up including myself. I could feel my boyfriend's steady gaze on me, and I looked up to see him watching intently. I was checking the earpiece if I was on the right frequency, if communication was working, and double-checking with the rest of the boys. I handed one over to Kirishima.
"It's a two-way communication device."
He nods as he took the earpiece. I went to tighten my laces and tighten the straps around my shin to prevent dislocating my ankles. Taking the bulletproof vest from Quinn, I strapped it across my stomach and closed the top flap. I was in all black today, this mission requires swiftness and camouflage against the cityscape.
"Is this how you look like in missions?" he asked curiously.
I rolled my eyes as I pulled on my fingerless gloves and strapped them on. Choosing not to answer his question, I went to take my ammunition supply, sniper rifle and my helmet by the back – to ensure that everything was working fine before we begin the mission.
When I came back to the group, I find that Kirishima had already struck up conversation with the boys and were seen discussing something very seriously.
"Hey babe, the boys and I were discussing about the time that they got beaten up because of me," he said jovially as he threw an arm around me. "And the fact that your boss was so cool saving your asses."
The boys and –
He's getting too comfortable with them already. I looked at him curiously, surprised yet pleased that he was making friends with my colleagues. This mission was also because of him, and I was hesitant in getting them in but thanks to the power from the civil servant, we were all brought in.
Usually for a large-scale operation like this, to have everyone on board in less than a day's notice was no mean feat especially with the information of the target locations and the enemy. The information that we're getting are from years of surveillance and spying.
And it's come to this.
.
When it comes to missions going sideways, there is always a backup plan. A rendezvous point where we've agreed to go to if we happened to get gravely injured or if we happened to be separated from each other. I was making my way there – half-hopping and half-jogging.
Angry tears were blurring my vision and it took all I had in me not to burst into tears at how painful my leg was. Panting and sobbing, I retreated to the rendezvous point where I knew the boys were hold up. To be let in, we had come up with a secret code and that is to knock on the door with rhythmic beats.
A few seconds later, the door opened a crack. The occupant took a look at me, and the door closed once more. Hearing the lock turn, the door opened wide. A soldier peering at the side, gun ready to shoot anyone who was lurking behind me. I ducked underneath him and entered the safe room, asking for a medic to check on my leg.
One approaches and blanched when he saw the damage. Leading me to a chair so I can sit, he began to prepare to extract the balls from my thigh. He handed me a sweet drink, set up a drip on my arm and injected morphine into the drip before he began taking them out.
Hearing the metal balls clinking onto the metal bowl was out of this world.
"Oh, thank God, Amelia!"
I turned to see Frank and Lucas making their way towards me. Worry evident on their faces. It looked like they made it back in one piece.
"I'm glad you made it before they cracked down on our locations," I said. "They've got the whole works here, being able to hack into our radio waves."
"Yeah it's shitty."
"Where's the rest of the boys?"
"They're at the basement waiting for orders. I'll let them know that you're fine. At least they'll worry less." And off he went downstairs.
Frank went to ask the medic. "Medic, does she need a transfusion?" he asked.
"She didn't lose too much blood," the medic replied. "If she was thirty-minutes later, she would need an emergency transfusion."
"Is that from a shotgun?"
"The agent set a trap," I replied with a sigh. "Shotguns are damn scary. It hurt like a bitch."
"How're you gonna fix those holes in her leg?"
"I can only do emergency first-aid and keep her alive," he explained as he wrapped gauze on me and a bandage. "Patching up and skin grafting is a doctor's work. She's not allowed to get out and do any strenuous activities anymore."
I sighed. "Well, you heard him."
"Let's head upstairs."
.
Upstairs was where the action was. Monitors upon monitors were stacked on one side of the room and three to four people were seated watching them. I recognised Seth from the Tech department and the other two must be from outside.
The last one was the powerful civil servant.
Each monitor showed a different scene. However most was not moving and two of them were busy typing away on the keyboard. It flickered once and then a different image was shown. One monitor showed the traffic, one showed a long wide angle of two men on a roof.
It was Kirishima and Akihito.
Another showed a good view of the two men opposite. The camera must be on the opposite building, on the floor above them. The last few were from body cams that were still working. I looked at every single one of them, wondered if the mission is going to end cleanly.
"Moriyama-san, this is Amelia."
The man in question turned. He was in his late forties, with laugh lines and a receding hair line. He was in a suit and he beamed when he saw me, extending a hand for a handshake.
"Hello, I am Moriyama Haruki. Pleased to meet you," he greeted formally. "I have been wanting to meet you, Amelia Irfan. I am sure we have a lot to talk about after this."
"The pleasure is mine, sir."
"Come have a sit," he said, offering an empty seat. "We are going to give Akihito a pleasant surprise soon."
"Are we still on radio silence?" I asked as I sat next to him, taking a headset so I can hear the conversation between Akihito and my boyfriend.
"Yes unfortunately," he said. "My men are trying to establish a secure network as we speak. It won't take any longer."
"What surprise do you have for him?"
He smiled. It was full of secrets and I was taken aback at how malicious it looked. He must've been keeping tabs on him for a long time. To be able to finally nab him and put him behind bars would satisfy anybody like him.
However, I wondered if he wanted to put him in prison.
He glances at his phone. A screen with a countdown could be seen on display. A blue bar filling up and it was at 99%. I wondered what it was and I wondered how long it took to be at 99%.
"Any minute now," he said.
As soon as it turned 100% and the bar full of blue, the telephone rang. The ring surprised me, the room was so quiet I did not expect it to ring. Moriyama answered the call and spoke in a language I was surprised he knew.
"Try to speak to him," Moriyama told.
I adjusted the headset and brought the microphone to my mouth. "Ishikawa Kirishima, this is Lieutenant Amelia Irfan speaking," I said. "I hope you're okay, babe."
On the monitor, I saw his head going up and his eyes rounding with shock but the emotion disappeared almost immediately. It was a quick flash of emotion. It must've been tough for him. Despite the quick reaction, Akihito saw it and he frowned.
I covered the mike. "He knows something's wrong," I said.
"Don't worry, we're closing this immediately," he replied and spoke to his microphone. "Do it."
A few seconds later, Akihito's mobile phone rang. The two did not move and we waited to see him take his phone out of his pocket. A quick conversation and then the call ended abruptly. Akihito looked like the world had abruptly halted.
"Hey, I told you not to play with me, Kirishima," he warned as he checked his phone, growing visibly frustrated. He was unraveling. "Only one can play this game!"
"Careful now."
"Get ready for a handgun," I warned.
True to what I said, Akihito took his gun out and pointed at my boyfriend. I gritted my teeth, I was powerless here. I wished I could be there to gun the idiot down. But I knew that I needed to trust Moriyama and his men. I was sure they had someone there.
"Shoot after him."
"He's not going to let you shoot him," I said firmly. "His death is his own. He won't allow it."
I watched with agony. Akihito mouthed something and then he shot thrice at Kirishima. The same moment where Kirishima has shot him thrice in his chest. The gunshot made me jump despite knowing what'll happen. My heart went up to my throat as I watched him fall to the ground.
Then I watched as Akihito put the gun to his mouth and –
BANG!
.
Obviously the operation was highly classified and no one knew what had happened. No public knew what transpired on that day. Only the ones who had supported Akihito in his grand schemes knew.
They cried foul of what happened and some were planning to exact revenge for him.
Due to the mass of people rooting for him and to dismantle the network of one deceased Raikou Akihito, Moriyama Haruki has given Wolf a highly classified mission. The Army was more than pleased to be working with the government, to assist in bringing down a powerful crime syndicate.
Information about the network was given to us in droves and we were given two years to dismantle it. It was a tight schedule and it would be hella gruelling. The criminal network was comprehensive, interlinked and deep so Moriyama Haruki was following as well as our tech team.
We were to leave within a week's time.
We were told to pack just the necessities and take the time to say goodbye to our family and partners. Two years was the longest we'll be apart.
I've spent a few days with Amalina, going on a short trip to the beach as she had to return to school today for her final examinations. I sent her to school, wished her good luck and watched her head to her exam hall.
Sighing, I turned around to where my motorbike was parked. I was leaving in a day's time and I have yet to arrange a day out with Kirishima as he had been busy dealing with his side after the whole fiasco.
I sat on the motorbike and wore the full face helmet. I took out my phone to type a message when Kirishima called. Rolling my eyes at the coincidence, I took off the helmet and answered the call.
"Hey babe!"
"Hey, how are you?"
"I'm feeling great. By the way, are you free this evening?" he asked.
"Yeah, where do you have in mind?"
"My main house."
"What?"
"My grandfather wants to meet you," he said. "He wants to have dinner together. I've been stalling the dinner for as long as I could but I couldn't anymore. He's been insisting for months now. Is that okay?"
"I don't mind," I said. "What should I wear? I don't have a dress suitable for dinner."
He paused. "Then we should go dress shopping," he said. "Where are you now? I'll come get you."
"I'm on my motorbike," I said. "Let's meet up at town then."
"Okay, see you there!"
This should be exciting.
.
"I think you should've gone with that cream heels instead," Kirishima said as he glanced down at my outfit, admiring his picks.
He had gotten a blush dress with lace puffed sleeves. The dress was made of soft material, cascading down my sides till the top of my knees. A set of jewellery to compliment the dress, and a pair of black low cut heels. I had to stop him when he wanted to buy a handbag to go along with the dress.
"Hey, black is good with everything," I said. "You look good yourself, boy."
Kirishima was in his usual get-up; a black turtle neck underneath a white shirt that's unbuttoned. A black waistcoat with a chain across and a black jacket over. The last piece of clothing was a nude fleece coat that reached till his knees.
"Well thank you," he said and opened the passenger door. "Let's head to the dinner. I'm getting hungry."
The drive took twenty minutes, and we conversed about everything and anything that doesn't lead to my two-year long mission. It was a sensitive topic for the both of us and I was unsure how well he took it.
It wasn't easy. I was sad I'm gonna leave him for two years. It hurts a lot and it hurts more because it's my job. I knew Kirishima won't say anything that'll make things worse between us but I wished he did.
The main house was spectacular. Kirishima's house was enormous, but this was twice bigger. An estate built following the traditional Japanese housing design, incorporating some modern architecture aspects and a sprawling koi pond at the front of the estate.
I tried not to fawn over the pond nor the beautiful garden as we walked hand-in-hand towards the dining hall. I was nervous, excited and a little apprehensive to meet his grandfather. I did briefly spoke with him but that was it.
I wondered how he looks like.
Walking through corridors that lead us to depths of the house, we finally reached the dining hall. Two of their servants were already waiting for us, standing by the doors and slid them open, inviting us inside.
Honestly, I was expecting to see an elderly man in his seventies as Kirishima's grandfather. Boy, I was wrong entirely. Seeing him much younger made me do a double take but I was taught not to be rude in front of guests, so I simply shook his hand while trying not to second guess.
"It's finally nice of you to bring your girlfriend over, boy!" his grandfather exclaimed. His name was Ishikawa Naruhito - a handsome man in his early sixties. He was wearing a suit – to match with the occasion. "Sorry I don't have another female companion over. The wife and I are not on good terms."
"Why would you two be, old man?" he asked.
I held his arm. "Don't ruin dinner," I said.
His grandfather let out a boisterous laugh, surprised and pleased at my statement. Waving at us to take a seat, we sat down in front of the scrumptious spread.
The food was plentiful and it smelled delicious. It's been awhile since I ate a complete meal. I swallowed hard, it made me hungry already.
"I heard from Kirishima that you're going away for work for a long time," Ishikawa-san started speaking as he began helping himself to the food. "Where are you going exactly?"
"Russia," I replied. "We'd be deep undercover so there won't be any point of contact."
"How long would you be there?" he asked.
"Two years."
"Wow that's very long. Anything can happen within the two years."
"Old man –"
"Shut it, boy," he snarled. "She's solving our problem, going deep into the hearts of Russia because of our mistake. You should do something about it."
"Like what, Grandfather?"
"Have I not taught you anything?" he asked, his voice rising higher.
I didn't know if they're about to launch into a fight or if it's a normal conversation. Is this how these two act when they're together? I continued eating the sashimi albeit a little apprehensive about these two men.
"What are you suggesting?"
"Why, marry her insane ass then!"
A stunned silence and then I spurt out the water I drank, coughing a little. What a straightforward and unflinching grandfather! I tried hard to keep myself from laughing.
"You're out of your mind!" Kirishima yelled as he handed a serviette. "You can't just spring this shit over dinner. This is why I don't eat with you, old man! And she's here! Doesn't that make it more awkward?"
He shrugged. "I thought of asking you but well it slipped out," he said as he took some noodles onto his plate. "I mean how long were you two even dating?"
"Officially not long," he replied. "A few months at most."
"And I had to spring the question because he took too long," I added.
Ishikawa-san let out a horrified gasp and pointed an accusing finger at his grandson. "I didn't think you'd be so ... so normal, Kirishima!" he cried. "You were always the ... pragmatic kid!"
Kirishima let out a groan and dropped his face onto his hands while I laughed, enjoying his embarrassment. Ishikawa-san gave me a wink and offered more food to me, stacking up crab and lobster pieces on my plate.
Despite being surrounded with Yakuza men, eating in their Yakuza estate, I was comfortable and at ease. I was ironically at the most safest place in the world.
He changed the topic after that, sticking to safer topics like my family and he talked more about his old escapades that made Kirishima shrink in horror and embarrassment.
After dinner, we walked hand-in-hand to the front yard where the car was parked. The atmosphere has gotten a little sad, and we were both too preoccupied with our own thoughts to speak about anything.
Despite the silence, it was comfortable.
As soon as we got home, Kirishima and I lingered longer by the car. Any excuse to stay longer together. Maybe tomorrow we can meet up for dinner. Maybe for lunch.
A lot of maybes.
A lot of what ifs.
"Look I'm sorry my grandfather talked about marriage during dinner," he said. He held my hands. "It must've been surprising and abrupt. Our relationship isn't that long either."
"Yeah, it was an awkward topic."
He smiled. "I'll give him a good telling off," he said and changed the subject as he swung my hands. "I'll miss you. When are you leaving?"
"The day after tomorrow," I answered slowly. "At three in the morning."
"Can I stay with you tonight?" he asked. "Just watch some movies, eat some popcorn and just ... you know just spend our last moments together."
I squeezed his hands. I was about to suggest that too. "Let's go upstairs."
.
Wolf – an eight member team – an elite team, part of the Armed Police Forces is set to leave the country to embark on a perilous mission that'll span two years over the border.
Saying goodbye was bittersweet but it was part of the job. Each soldier saluted to their family members, partners and friends. Both sides holding onto their tears of farewell. A solemn prayer was held and we left to enter the departure hall.
Waving at Amalina and Kirishima who mysteriously popped up in the middle of the crowd, I felt my chest and my throat tightening. I could feel the tears coming out and I forced them down, knowing that it's part of the job.
It's part of the job.
We cleared immigration and went down to the ground where we'd board the military airplane. There we met Moriyama Haruki and his tech team. Our tech team were already there as well. The plane was already being stuffed with ammunition, food supply and tech.
"Gather here for a briefing, guys!"
"Alright so this is going to be the start of a very long mission," Frank started speaking. "It'll be long hours, tough gruelling journeys and it'll be difficult both physically and mentally. But I know we are as tough as that. What are we?"
"WOLF!!!!"
The boys were in high spirits and I couldn't help the smile from forming.
"And what do we do?"
I glanced at Quinn.
"NO MISTAKES!!"
.