It wasn’t Zero.
As Morofushi Akihiko met those sharp eyes that made no attempt to conceal their anger, he instinctively recalled the past conflicts and arguments between his own friend and the man before him during their police academy days—though, of course, their relationship had eventually grown quite close. His gaze drifted away for a fleeting moment.
It couldn’t be Zero.
The image of his golden-haired, dark-skinned friend surfaced in his memory. After accepting the undercover assignment, he had prepared himself for years of separation from his friend, never expecting they would later cross paths within the same organization.
By then, his childhood friend had completely transformed his demeanor. A frivolous, mysterious smile now graced a face that had once been serious and earnest.
Deceitful, ruthless… leveraging his good looks to cultivate an air of mystery.
Morofushi Akihiko knew what he needed to do now. He should use a gentler approach to ease the tension, at the very least to divert Jinpei Matsuda’s attention away from him.
He never rushed when probing for information; Scotch had always been the most patient of hunters.
Morofushi Akihiko wasn’t wearing a mask, so his expression was completely exposed without any possibility of concealment.
No matter how furious Jinpei Matsuda became, he never lost his rationality.
Morofushi Akihiko needed to speak; Scotch could no longer remain silent.
But as the memory of his friend overlapped with the present, the soothing words Morofushi Akihiko had prepared suddenly vanished.
Through the car’s rearview mirror, Jinpei Matsuda saw those upturned eyes flicker for an instant. Then, in a calm, almost amused tone—as if mentioning someone entirely unrelated—he spoke.
“A friend?” he said.
Those blue eyes, with their upward-tilted corners, narrowed slightly, forming gentle curves.
“What friend?”
Kei Midorikawa said this.
Jinpei Matsuda: “…”
Jinpei Matsuda: “…”
The curly-haired young man had, at some point, lowered the leg he had been resting casually. His sunglasses were tucked loosely into the collar of his shirt. Perhaps due to static electricity, his already fluffy curls seemed even drier, softer, and more unruly in the confined space of the car.
Suddenly, Jinpei Matsuda’s anger dissipated. He raised an eyebrow. “Did you two have a fight?”
Based on his own assessment of both parties, he asked, “What did he do?”
Morofushi Akihiko merely smiled, though the warmth didn’t reach his eyes.
Now genuinely intrigued, Jinpei Matsuda pressed, “Is that why you went undercover?”
“Any further questions come at an additional price,” Morofushi Akihiko replied gently.
Jinpei Matsuda waved a hand dismissively; he truly had little interest in the finer details.
Nevertheless, his mood had improved considerably since getting into the car. The earlier gloom had lifted, and he even seemed somewhat cheerful.
“No wonder he’s been pestering me. Hah, next time I’ll have to give him a good laugh,” Jinpei Matsuda remarked before stepping out of the car and quickly disappearing from Morofushi Akihiko’s sight.
Morofushi Akihiko remained still for a few seconds before driving toward his safe house.
He drove steadily the entire way, reached his destination, parked the car, retrieved his keys, and unlocked the door to the safe house.
With a sidelong glance, Morofushi Akihiko scanned the interior, confirming it hadn’t been breached. Then, the expression on his face vanished entirely. His once-soft features turned cold and detached.
He had taken a dangerous gamble.
But it wasn't fatal or particularly dangerous.
From Matsuda's perspective, he had "disappeared" for two years. However, counting from the half-year since he—since this identity entered the police academy, plus the half-year of undercover training, and the subsequent year and four months he spent infiltrating the organization, it had been a total of two years.
Not including the information he hadn't yet uncovered from the past, just from the time he took over this body, it had been ten months. Aside from Kato Akio's initial contact, he had been completely disconnected from the organization.
And according to Matsuda, his friend was from the Jouhou-gumi. If that was the case… what were the chances that the other party didn't know he had returned to the organization?
Was his organization contact—the "sir" mentioned by Kato Akio—related to the friend Matsuda Jinpei spoke of?
Morofushi Akihiko didn't know, but since it had been at least ten months without contact, there shouldn't be any problem pretending to throw a bit of a tantrum, right?
Besides, what did Scotch's friend have to do with Kei Midorikawa?
Just like the slightly exaggerated title "Lord Matsuda" from that day, it was merely Scotch's mischievous sense of humor.
Morofushi Akihiko closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and only then did his slightly accelerated heartbeat calm down.
—When Matsuda Jinpei mentioned "friend," the emotional shift Morofushi Akihiko experienced was almost no different from when he encountered Zero in the organization six years ago.
That sudden, suffocating feeling of his heart stopping, followed immediately by uncontrollable panic, and finally forcibly suppressed to maintain the breathing and heart rate rhythm befitting a sniper.
Matsuda Jinpei wasn't the type to take out his anger on others. The previous day, it was merely a coincidence that Morofushi Akihiko happened to be in the line of fire, forcing Matsuda Jinpei to shift his attention onto him.
So the next day, Matsuda Jinpei had already forgotten about the previous day's incident and had Morofushi Akihiko drive him to one of the organization's bases, which was well-stocked with weapons.
"What are you used to using?" Matsuda Jinpei casually clocked in, ignoring the gazes of those around him, and directly led Morofushi Akihiko to a room equipped with various weapons.
Morofushi Akihiko stood at the doorway and didn't immediately enter.
Matsuda Jinpei paused, glancing down at the scattered parts of guns and bombs on the floor. Indeed, there weren't many convenient places to step. But just as Matsuda Jinpei was about to say something, Morofushi Akihiko effortlessly stepped into the gaps without touching even the smallest part, silently making his way inside.
Matsuda Jinpei swallowed back what he had intended to say and shrugged.
"Pick a few you like, take whatever you want," Matsuda Jinpei generously opened up his personal arsenal.
"Is that allowed?"
"These are all my personal collection; no need to apply separately to the organization."
Noticing Morofushi Akihiko's gaze lingering on the sniper rifles, Matsuda Jinpei was somewhat surprised. "You learned sniping?"
So "I" didn't know how to snipe before? Morofushi Akihiko pondered thoughtfully but didn't voice this thought.
After Morofushi Akihiko made his selections, Matsuda Jinpei finally spoke up. "Although I don't know exactly what's going on with you now, you're planning to return to the Koudou-gumi, right?"
"Yes," Morofushi Akihiko responded.
"Perfect timing, you wouldn't be much help here besides doing odd jobs anyway." As an expert in weapon modification and development, Jinpei Matsuda said bluntly, "But Taiska needs assistance lately, so you can go help him out."
Now Morofushi Akihiko was genuinely surprised. He looked at the curly-haired young man before him and said, "Thank you. I owe you one."
Whether it was for the sake of putting on a show for the Gong'an (which sounded a bit strange to say) or for the Soshiki, Morofushi Akihiko needed a reasonable promotion process.
Being noticed by a Daigou Kaiin while cleaning up a scene and taken away as a driver, then using that connection to get in touch with Daigou Kaiin from the Koudou-gumi, thereby gaining favor and climbing up the ranks—this was a very logical and fortunate path upward.
So Jinpei Matsuda, who voluntarily acted as this intermediary, had indeed done him a great favor.
"Hah." Jinpei Matsuda curled his lip, feeling rather pleased. "Just seeing that guy get annoyed is enough to make me happy."
Morofushi Akihiko maintained a smile on his face and didn't respond.
"He said he's coming to see me this afternoon." Jinpei Matsuda glanced at the time. "Oh, he should be here soon. Go and meet him."
"Understood. May I ask where Lord Taiska is currently located and if there are any specific identifying features?" Morofushi Akihiko inquired gently.
Jinpei Matsuda: "…"
Seriously, still acting? The curly-haired young man gave the man before him a strange look.
In reality, Morofushi Akihiko genuinely didn't know who Taiska was—he had never heard of this codename before. Just like when he didn't know Jinpei Matsuda's codename and could only address him as "Lord Matsuda," he now calmly looked at the only person who could give him an answer.
At that moment, the curly-haired young man's phone vibrated.
He glanced down at the message and said, "Oh, never mind. You don't need to go meet him. He's already here."
Just as Jinpei Matsuda finished speaking, steady footsteps gradually approached their location. The door, which had been left open, was pulled wider. Due to the lighting from the hallway outside, a tall, dark shadow fell across the floor of the room.
"Hey, didn't you tell me last time you were short on help? Look who I found for you." Jinpei Matsuda greeted him in a cheerful tone, his sunglasses sliding down slightly to reveal a glimpse of blue eyes. "Taiska."
This kind of behavior was extremely rare for someone like Jinpei Matsuda, proving only that the person who had just arrived was on very good terms with him.
"Haha, I really didn't expect you to remember." A familiar, cheerful voice with a hearty laugh came from behind. Morofushi Akihiko watched the shadow on the floor stretching all the way to his feet and slowly turned around.
A burly young man with short hair and stubble stood by the door, blocking almost the entire doorway. Even his height far exceeded that of an average person.
Seeing Morofushi Akihiko's face, Taiska, who had just been responding to Jinpei Matsuda, said in surprise, "You're here to help me?"
"Isn't that a bit of a waste of talent?"
Another Daigou Kaiin who knew Scotch.
A faint smile appeared on Morofushi Akihiko's face as he replied softly and gently, "Long time no see, Taiska."
"Ah, long time no see." Taiska responded just as cheerfully. "Scotch."
"Tch." Jinpei Matsuda folded his arms impatiently. "Why can you call him by his code name directly in front of him? Didn't you just say you didn't know him?"
Taiska couldn't quite grasp his meaning, but then heard Scotch—whose expression was unreadable in the shadows—speak slowly from the other side: "If that is your command."
"And if Taiska-sama has such a need."
Taiska: "…"
Taiska: "…Huh?"
"Um… maybe just call me Date?" Taiska, the Daigou Kaiin who shared the same face as Wataru Date, hesitantly spoke up in this awkward atmosphere.
Author's Note:
Matsuda: Great, I'm not the only one getting goosebumps now (?)
Matsuda: Wait, why aren't you calling him 'sama'?
Date: Huh?