Exchange (Soukoku & Shin Soukoku)

20- Joint Ability

"DOWN!"

Thanks to the executive's quick reaction, the three of them were able to avoid what could have been a tragic and early death. As chaos and panic spread, they took cover, avoiding getting hurt. People ran around crazily in all directions, and a few innocent ones fell to the ground, struck by bullets.

Chuuya, Akutagawa, and Atsushi crawled quickly and hid behind a wall, panting.

"Damn," the black-haired said. "What do we do now?"

"Should we call for reinforcements?" Atsushi suggested. "It would be a good time to leave."

"We can't leave yet," Chuuya denied, his face covered in sweat. "Not yet... Ajk! Damn it..."

Only then did they notice the mayor's side, which was soaked in blood. The two teenagers paled.

"Oh, shit..."

Chuuya tried to get up but failed; the wound was quite serious. Nevertheless, he remained steadfast.

"Those sons of bitches have special bullets," he muttered. "They must have altered them with that damn nullifying poison. I can't use my ability."

"We have to call Yosano-sensei!" Atsushi exclaimed. "She must be able to do something!"

He took out his phone and dialed a number, but no one answered. He tried again, and the result was the same. The call wouldn't go through.

"They probably cut off the signal or something," Akutagawa mentioned, "or maybe they have an ability user that prevents communication."

"That doesn't matter now; what matters is retrieving that formula and confiscating it," the redhead interrupted.

"Why not destroy it?" the tiger questioned.

"Because if we have the substance intact, Kajii and Dr. Yosano might be able to do something to reverse the effect."

They fell silent for a moment, but the noise coming from the main room was relentless. Gunshots, screams, and blows could be heard without pause. Could they escape from there without losing their lives?

"Listen, this is what we'll do," Chuuya said, with a fierce look. "We can't let them take the poison out of here under any circumstances. Most likely, they'll transport it by helicopter, so they must go up to the top floor. The elevator is blocked; I took care of that, so they must be using the stairs. The building has about ten or eleven floors, and considering how important the box is to them, they won't be in a hurry. So, they should be on the fifth floor, heading up to the sixth."

"It's pretty high; they'll get there soon," Atsushi remarked.

"Maybe, but you're a tiger, Atsushi. If you go ahead and climb up the outer walls, you'll reach them before they do. You have to stop them and prevent them from leaving."

"And what will I do?" Akutagawa asked.

"You need to go for Osamu. He's at Senso-ji Temple, a couple of blocks from here. It won't be hard for you to find him; I trust you."

"But what about you?"

"I'll be fine, Akutagawa. I can't use my ability, but I'm still the best martial artist in the mafia."

"But you're injured!" Atsushi protested.

"There's no time to worry! Time is running out, and you have to trust that I'll be okay. I can't do anything, but you can. You have to run."

Nakajima and Akutagawa looked at each other hesitantly, but in the end, they made up their minds and got up.

"I'll go after Dazai-san," the black-haired one agreed.