Outbound

Intel Operation, Part 3

"Plan? What are they talking about?" Jun whispers. Jun and Naoya listen carefully, straining to catch the details of the conversation. "Can't really hear the words," Jun mutters, frustration clear in his voice. "But it sounds like they're planning something big." "I can't recognize who's voice it is but I can clearly tell he is someone from five years ago when I used to work with commandments." Naoya's eyes narrow in concentration, his mind racing to place the voice. After a moment of silence, his eyes widen as recognition hits him. "No way..." He mutters, realization dawning on him. Jun turns to Naoya, picking up on the shift in his demeanor. "You know who it is?" he whispers urgently. Naoya nods, a steely determination in his gaze. "Yeah, I know exactly who it is. It's the Fifth Commandment - Nero. He was one of the harshest and most brutal members back then." "If you were the sixth one, doesn't this mean this guy was closest to you?" Jun asks. Naoya nods, a hint of unease in his expression. "Yep, I answered directly to him. He was a tough one to please for sure. And now, he's risen to a higher rank. Not good news for us." He adds, "He is most likely leading commandments and any role below now." "Seems like it," Jun mutters, his brow furrowing in thought. "Question is, what are they planning? It can't be good, especially if Nero is in charge." "Don't forget, we aren't here to fight. We are here to learn if commandments are after us or not. Since Akira wasn't able to go to other floors."

Jun nods in agreement. "You're right. We can't afford to get discovered now. Let's just listen in for a bit longer and see what else we can learn." They quietly return their focus to the conversation below. As they continue to listen, the conversation below switches to discussing potential target locations. It quickly becomes evident that Commandment is gathering intel on important individuals. Naoya and Jun exchange a worried looks. This can't be good. Naoya hears a female voice utter "Point Extort" Naoya's eyebrows furrow as a female's voice mentions "Point Extort". He turns to Jun. "Did you hear that?" Jun nods, his expression darkening. "I heard it as well. Point Extort. They're planning something serious." Naoya's eyes narrow further, urgency lacing his words. "This is bad. If they're planning something against people as influential as Point Extort's group, it could have far-reaching implications." "I don't know what Point Extort exactly is though, Boss." Jun says. "It's an influential and highly secretive information network," Naoya mutters, his eyes glinting with understanding. "They operate discreetly, often providing crucial information to those who can afford their steep fees. If Commandment is setting their sight on them, it means they could be after their resources and connections." He continues, "Here comes the worst part. If they after Point Extort, it can mean one of two things. One, they are after me so they want to gain intel from them. And for second, they are planning to assassinate an important politics figure." Naoya's face darkens as the gravity of the situation sinks in. "You're right, both scenarios are dangerous. Either they're after us and using Point Extort as a means to find our location, or they're planning to take out a prominent person to gain an advantage." "Point Extort is not exactly connected to any organization. They operate themselves and offer intel related to practically any person inside Japan at the cost of hefty money." Naoya keeps on speaking, "However, I don't exactly care about the politics stuff if they aren't tied to us. If they aren't after us, I won't be interfering their business." Jun frowns as he processes this new information. "So you're saying that Commandment only gets involved if there's a big fish to fry?" "That is the troubling part. I am hoping that the big fish is not us. I also noticed that Takemoto is sitting on the corner over there. I don't exactly know why he isn't talking." He continues, "He's usually more vocal, especially during meetings like these. The fact that he's remaining silent is concerning." Naoya suddenly realizes, "Wait, could this mean...He noticed we are in this vent? Is he trying to signal that the meeting is about us?" Naoya says.

Naoya's eyes narrow with suspicion as he scrutinizes Takemoto's demeanor. "He does seem unusually quiet...Maybe he knows we're here and is trying to tell us this meeting is about us without arousing suspicion." Takemoto raises his head to the vent for a split second just to confirm that he is indeed aware. Naoya's eyes widen as he sees the quick glance towards the vent. "He definitely sees us. He's trying to warn us subtly." "We just got our confirmation. Point Extort intel will be about us. Let's get the fuck outta here." Naoya says. Jun nods, already preparing to leave. "Agreed. We've got what we came here for. Let's get out before we get caught." With that, the two of them silently start to retreat backward in the ventilation shaft. They carefully maneuvered backward through the ventilation shaft, their movements now even more cautious than before. Every slight movement was planned to avoid making any unnecessary noise. Finally, they reached the entrance to the vent. "Great, nobody is using the restroom. Let me put on this fat suit thing again." Naoya says. Jun watches as Naoya puts the fat suit back on, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "Glad to see that ridiculous thing came in handy," he teasingly remarks. "I am sweating bullets right now. Let's get out of here." Naoya says wiping his forehead with his hand. Jun nods in agreement. "Yeah, let's go quickly. We've stayed here way longer than we needed to." The two of them quickly exit the restroom, their movements a bit less stealthy now that they're out of the main building. Once outside, they make a beeline for the getaway car neatly placed just outside the entrance so they climbed in and found the car's keys inside the car. Jun turns the ignition and pulls away from the curb, the engine purring to life. "Let's ditch this area before someone notices us," he says, his eyes scanning the mirrors for any suspicious activity. "The girls did a pretty good job. The cameras in third floor wasn't working." Jun says.

Naoya smirks faintly, appreciating the skilled work of the girls. "Yeah, they definitely pulled it off. Disabling the cameras on the third floor should have given us enough time to get in unnoticed." He then notices how warm inside the car is. "Let me get this stupid fucking fat suit off." Naoya says with an annoyed grumble. Naoya's fingers fumble with the buckles and straps, cursing under his breath as he tries to peel the fat suit off. Jun can't help but chuckle at his friend's struggle. "Having fun in there?" "Shut the fuck up and drive." Naoya says. Jun laughs softly as he drives, enjoying the light mood after their daring mission. "Don't be so grumpy. It was your idea to use the fat suit, remember?" "It worked, remember?" Naoya states while breathing fast. Jun grins, conceding the point. "Alright, yeah, it worked. I'll admit that was smart, disguising ourselves like that." He casts a glance at Naoya, who's still struggling with the fat suit. "Need some help there? You look like a hot mess."

"Be quiet!" Naoya yells in annoyance. Jun chuckles, the atmosphere in the car lightening. "All right, all right. No need to get so dramatic." He continues to drive, the car smoothly navigating the roads. "As much as I would love to keep this banter going on, I am not comfortable about Point Extort getting involved with us." Jun's demeanor turns serious, the laughter replaced with a serious expression. "I know what you mean. Point Extort is no joke. They've got connections and information on practically everyone." "Hayakawa dealt with them before, he knows how to feed them fake information. However, it obviously won't keep them off the track for too long. We'll discuss about this with the entire crew when we are back." 

Jun nods, his grip on the steering wheel tightening slightly. "You're right. We'll need to talk it over with the others, especially Hayakawa. But for now..." he trails off, his gaze shifting towards the road ahead. "Let's just focus on getting back safely."