Chapter 6

second target
​

It’s been a week since that incident. Kana was discharged two days after she was admitted but I didn’t tell Hiroshi and Hayate what happened that night. For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to inform them about her.
 
“What’s the status of your project?” tanong ni Hayate kay Hiroshi.

“It’s been compromised.”

“What?” I butted in. “What happened?”

He heaved a heavy sigh. “They managed to track the weapons. It must be Sir Tora. Now I won’t be able to continue that research.”

“What did they say?” tanong ko ulit.

“See for yourself.”
 
He placed his KT on the table and a holographic image of the current head technician of the Technology department appeared.
 
“Hiroshi of Atama family, please see me after you finish your final requirement. And from now, you are forbidden to enter our facilities alone, unless you let one of our staffs accompany you all the time. In addition, we will inspect your laboratory to see if you have been doing unauthorized researches. That’s all. Good day.”
 
Natahimik naman kami matapos niya ‘yong sabihin. Hayate and I carefully watched Hiroshi’s expression. We didn’t want to anger him in this kind of situation.
 
“That just means you have a poor data security,” Kana suddenly remarked. “Getting traced that easily . . . the future of the Technology department seems bleak.”
 
Kana continued bandaging her left wrist as I broke out in a cold sweat while staring at her. I could feel the tension in the room and I knew Hiroshi was just a second away from snapping. Before they could go at each other’s throat, Hayate immediately drag Hiroshi to the other room while I marched toward Kana.
 
“You really don’t know how to pull your punches, do you?” I commented.

“I just stated the truth,” she nonchalantly replied.

“But—”

“Own laboratory in the technology department? A temporary suspension instead of the normal punishments that students must go through whenever they violate rules? He’s been privileged since he was born and I’m sure he’s been showered with compliments because of his so-called brilliance. It’s about time someone reminds him of his shortcomings.”
 
Hindi naman ako nakapagsalita matapos niyang sabihin ‘yon at naalala ko ang nangyari noong nakaraan. When I held her weapon, what happened during the time of its creation flashed into my mind. That must be the root of her displeasure.
 
“You can say it in a nicer way though,” I muttered but she scoffed at me.

“No way.”
 
Napailing na lang ako habang pinapanood ko siya. They’re both blunt so I always worry whenever they start bickering.
 
Lumabas naman sina Hayate at Hiroshi sa kwarto at mukhang kalmado na siya ngayon. However, it seemed like he had already equipped himself against Kana. There was a familiar device attached to his ears and I remembered the time both of them wore that because apparently, according to them, I was too loud and pesky that time.
 
It was a a noise filter, one that blocks undesirable frequencies and they set the parameters into which they couldn’t hear my voice at all. Those damn guys.
 
Well, this time, he must have used that to completely shut off Kana’s voice.
 
At least, hindi natuloy ang away nila.
 
Naging busy naman kami sa kanya-kanya naming working area. Hayate kept tabs on the current wanted list and updated our journal while Hiroshi continued tinkering with the wires and devices on the floor. Kana, on the other hand, was training by herself and assessing the condition of her body.
 
I stared at her and her image that night resurfaced in my mind. The way she took down the Shinigami was a lot similar to how Kuya Mitsuo used to fight. She might be an Executioner but according to our intels, the Jikko clan became more cautious and didn’t send any people outside of Shima after what happened that time.
 
‘Trying to read my mind?’ she suddenly asked.

I smiled at her. ‘Yeah. A bit.’

‘I’m glad no one of you is from Heren clan.’
 
Bigla ko namang naalala si Ate Naomi. Strong Senshins and those who have the disposition of being leaders usually can hear inner voices even if their minds are closed through continuous training and honing their senses to the limits. However, there are people who are born with that kind of ability.
 
‘Why? Are there nasty secrets buried deep in your mind?’ tanong ko at napatigil naman siya sa ginagawa niya.

She looked straight into my eyes and smiled. ‘Secrets are supposed to be like that,’ she said. ‘Careful, J. You really wouldn’t want to dig deeper.’
 
Her words sounded like a warning and the coldness of her voice was enough to send shivers down my spine. Pagkatapos no’n ay bumalik siya sa pagt-training habang napaupo na lang ako pabalik sa working area ko.
 
“Hey, guys.”
 
Napatingin kaming tatlo kay Hayate. He was staring at the screen of his laptop with a perturbed expression on his face. The three of us walked toward him and saw what he was looking at.
 
“What the hell?”

“That’s horrible.”

“Is this live?”
 
My heart sank as I watched the aftermath of the explosion. People were running away from the building while it was completely engulfed by fire. Bodies were sprawled lifeless on the ground and some were still confused to what just happened.
 
“Shall we go?” tanong ni Hiroshi.

“Yeah,” Hayate replied. “We need to know whether this is an accident or a work of a terrorist and murderer.”
 
Agad naman kaming nag-prepare pero napatigil ako nang makita kong nakatingin pa rin si Kana sa screen. She was gripping her scythe so hard that her knuckles were turning white.
 
“Kana,” I called but she didn’t respond. “Kana!”
 
Nang sinigaw ko ang pangalan niya ay do’n lang niya ako narinig. She realized we were all looking at her but she immediately gave me a quick smile before running toward her work place. Nagkatinginan kami ni Hayate at alam kong napansin niya rin ang kakaibang kinikilos ni Kana.
 
“Let’s go,” she said as she opened the door.
 
Ever since we came in the world of humdrums, she started getting suspicious. I guess we have to monitor her closely this time.
 
***
 
Pagdating naming do’n ay nagkalat na ang iba’t ibang grupo para sa kanya-kanya nilang mga trabaho. Police officers were assisting the medical team in saving and helping those who were injured and in critical condition. There were also rescue officers and firefighters who bravely marched into the building to see if there were still people left inside. Reporters were trying their best to relay the situation to the public while some were interviewing witnesses.
 
Lalo lang lumubog ang puso ko nang makita ko ang mga biktima. They were all disabled.
 
The explosion came from a facility for people with disabilities and seeing some of them in tears and in disbelief was too hard to look at.
 
“Bakit nakatayo lang kayo r’yan?!” Nagulat naman ako nang sumigaw sa amin ang isang officer. “Tumulong kayo! Ang dami pang nangangailangan ng tulong!”
 
Agad naman kaming kumilos matapos niyang sabihin ‘yon. The four of us were dressed in police uniforms so we could observe and investigate better.
 
‘Reina, come with me,’ Hayate said while pointing at the facility. ‘Kana, inform us immediately once you detect any changes in temperature, pressure, humidity or anything around here. Hiroshi, secure the perimeter. I also want to see the explosion itself, as well as its details, so recreate it using one of your programs.’
 
Tumango kaming lahat sa plano ni Hayate at nagsimula kaming dalawa na maglakad papunta sa facility. It was still burning but the fire was starting to get smaller. We marched inside and went to the opposite side of the building. Makapal pa ang usok sa loob pero napatigil ako nang may makita akong kakaiba sa sahig. Pinulot ko ‘yon at mukhang tama nga ang hinala namin kanina.
 
‘I found some remnants of a phone.’

‘I see. So it was a radio-controlled explosive.’

‘Yeah. It was triggered by a mobile phone.’
 
Clutching the fragments of the phone, I breathed deeply and used my sixth sense. The phone got destroyed 34 minutes ago and that must be also the time the explosion happened.
 
“This is surely done by a humdrum,” rinig ko kay Hiroshi mula sa communication device sa tenga ko.

“Too messy to be considered as a work of Shinigamis,” dagdag ni Kana.

“Identifying the suspects will be hard,” Hayate commented. “We need a lot of information.”
 
Lumabas kami ni Hayate at nakita namin sina Kana at Hiroshi sa bandang gilid. We decided to go home first to plan our action. This kind of crime might be considered as S-level due to the extent of its casualties and the panic it caused in the city and the people.
 
Pagbalik namin ay agad sinet-up nina Hiroshi at Hayate ang equipment at devices nila.
 
“I already sent a piece of residue I found inside the facility. We just have to wait for the confirmation of the Technology department but based on its structure, it’s probably similar to Semtex—a plastic explosive,” Hayate explained.

“I already got the CCTVs around the facility,” sabi naman ni Hiroshi kaya napatingin kami sa laptop niya. “Let’s see what happened.”
 
He played the footage around 45 minutes ago. There were ten people, mostly staffs and visitors, who went inside and left the facility before the explosion. At exactly 3:48 P.M., a loud blast was heard, destroying the whole building and causing a fire. Some bystanders were caught in the explosion and they got thrown away by the shock and impact.
 
“I guess we have our suspects now,” I remarked, thinking about the ten people who went out before the blast.

“Yeah. Time to meet our second target.”
 ​

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