Masterminds

A storm was making its way to Kagoshima.

In the eye of that storm, a person was walking on the waters. A cargo ship managed to get in the eye. The clouds hid the sun, so one couldn't tell who the person was. But they had a slender, feminine figure- they were a she.

The winds measured the length of her hair, but her face remained covered with a heavy mask. Then she stopped to look up at the dark sky. She took her mask off and revealed large burns scars on her face.

The ship vapourised along with the crew.

"My time. Has. Finally. Come!"

.

.

.

.

.

In the sewer, Ninomiya had heard what Hiori and Akame had to tell. Without giving it a thought, he had agreed to their plan. He would help them. And he would save humanity.

Ninomiya was now properly healed and informed. Seeing that their tasks were done, they began walking outside.

"Let's move!"

.

.

.

.

.

An old businessman, hair as white as snow, looked at his phone. It was ringing. He was in a meeting, so he had to reject the call. But when he saw the caller's name, he had to pick it up. This call was far more important than the meeting.

From the other end, a gentle voice of a teenager spoke to him with subservience.

"Sir, it has begun. What's our next move?"

He stopped to think for a moment before answering him.

"Issue the military."

He called off the meeting after hanging up. The other business people who had come here to talk to him were disappointed and began expressing anger.

"Jake?" he talked to his main bodyguard, standing next to him.

"Deal with these pesky insects. We've got a war to fight again."

He walked out of the room and lit a cigar. From behind the door, he could hear them screaming and shouting. But they weren't making all those noises because they were angry. They were crying out for their lives as his bodyguards dissected their bodies with knives.

Before he could get far enough, he stood still to hear someone curse him as loud as their voice let them.

"AAAKIIIITOOO!!!! YOU BASTARD! YOU WILL DIE A HORRIBLE DEATH!!!! I ASSU-"

He ignored the following sounds. Then he calmly called someone through the phone. It was picked up at once. He spoke softly.

"Mr. Prime Minister, have you got the request from Akise?"

"Yes!"

"Do as we tell you. War has been sent to our doorstep before we could, to theirs."

"..."

With that, he hung up. But he didn't stop smoking. Instead, he puffed in the smokes more heavily.

Akito Hotaru. His name was. Father of Ninomiya and Hiori. The wealthiest person alive on Earth- a trillionaire! And a mastermind.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Akame was the last to get out. Ninomiya walked before her. He was surprised at what he saw- a forest he had never known lay before the end of the tunnel. Hiori saw him and thought he needed more explanation.

"You see that mansion?"

Ninomiya looked hard before he found it.

"Yes. That one, right?"

"Hmmm. The most discreet mansion in the whole world. So don't you worry, brother. No one can find us here."

But why did they have to come here? Who would be searching for them- that sniper who was pursuing Akame? Or someone else?

Akame came forth to explain.

"That sniper. They were after me- but now that they know about you, they'll be coming after you."

"Brother, you've become their main target. You don't realize it now, but when that sniper found out who you were, big things started to happen."

Ninomiya didn't ask her what she meant by big things.

"Also, look over there! A storm is heading our way. So, we should get in."

Akame looks at the storm. Something didn't feel right, so she used her scanners. As she scanned from top to bottom, she felt a worrying presence. She zoomed in. But there was no one. Was it because her radars were malfunctioning?

As they walked inside, Akame was on high alert. But she didn't notice a blonde girl who had been lurking on them from afar.

That blonde girl...

She watched them go in from a safe distance. Over the radio, she asked the commander if she should assassinate them. But what her commander said next shocked her.

"Do not kill them. Under any circumstances, DO NOT KILL THEM!"

"HUH???"

The commander spoke seriously. But signs of childish delight leaked from their voice.

"Abort current mission. Change of plans. You're being assigned a new one."

"What could it be? I wonder..."

"Your new task... And this is very important. You cannot fail me."

"..."

She nervously waited for details of her new mission. It seemed very important, as if the bigger plan relied on it.

"Make friends with them. Over!"

"Whaaaaaaa...!!!?!?!?!"

She protested, but her radio had stopped responding.

She hesitated a bit. What would a predator have felt upon being ordered to make friends with their prey?

But orders were orders. And besides, making friends with their targets to betray them later was part of an assassin's job. She knew that perfectly well. After all, she was an ace. Not a newbie.

She changed her attitude, dropped a few 'suspicious' things, and began walking towards the mansion. She didn't care about the approaching storm.

She took a deep breath before knocking on the door.

.

.

.

.

.

.

-In The Future-

"The war begins..."

Akari then issued a command to her subordinates- ready all troops!

To herself, she pondered aloud:

"The fate of the universe rests on his shoulders. But who was that red-headed cyborg Alice spoke of?"

She had a million questions about who this new and uncalculated variable was. How big of a threat would she pose to her plans?

.

.

.

.

.

Akari thought hard and concluded using her powers for this day.

Her facility wasn't a facility; it was a breeding house.

In the depths of the command facility, a woman in chains was being held captive. She was called 'the failure' by the guards.

.

.

.

.

.

Akari looked outside another window to check on an army of her soldiers. They weren't wearing those suits because they didn't require those when guarding her. After all, they were the chosen ones- handpicked by Akari herself!

The chosen ones were given powers, so the radiation didn't affect them.

She held a mic and started speaking to the soldiers.

"Tomorrow. We shall go back 183 years into the past. To search for an important ally. Hear me, and believe me when I say the enemy is strong. Very strong. If anyone here does not wish to participate, they may leave at once. However, if you choose to come with the rest of us... you may have to give up your lives for the sake of this planet."

The soldiers stood unbothered.

"I'll say it one more time. Is anyone here who wishes to live instead of fighting for our planet?"

They all understood the risks. They all understood what their commander had just announced. But they remained as firm as their resolve.

Akari gleamed with pride as she acknowledged the unwavering determination of her soldiers. She cheered for them, and they all roared back in unison.

.

.

.

.

The past formulated a plan; the future, another.

There were two plans.

Only one of them would succeed.

But which?

Akari's? Or Akito's?

------------Chapter 5 END------------------