Evelyn's eyes were filled with everything she couldn't say.
Rage. Resentment. The sting of irony that felt almost like fate.
Of all people, she thought bitterly. It had to be you.
"I don't know how the hell it happened," she said, voice trembling, "but one minute I'm trying to pull off the job of a lifetime—and the next, I'm watching you slaughter half of Konpeki Tower like a damn storm."
Her knuckles whitened around the edge of the table. "Adam Smasher's dead. Saburo Arasaka's dead. You walked out of that tower a legend."
Her voice cracked. "And I got nothing. No eddies. No glory. Just a death sentence."
She let out a sharp, broken laugh. "Arasaka tore through every record I ever left behind. Dug up my entire life. Put a price on my head. You became a name whispered in reverence—and I became a loose end."
She looked at him again. "And now… the person who saves me is you? You tell me, Neo—how the hell am I supposed to feel about that?"
...
Neo didn't flinch under her glare. "Let's talk business," he said flatly. "You got to her before Arasaka's dogs, netrunners, or their pet assassins could. Why?"
Takemura took a slow sip of tea, eyes steady. "Because I wanted to meet you," he said simply. "The new legend of Night City."
Neo smirked faintly. "You already met me once—in Konpeki Tower. You could've tried to kill me again. Is this your way of avenging Saburo Arasaka?"
Takemura didn't answer right away. His gaze drifted to the television above the diner counter, where Arasaka's new CEO, Yorinobu Arasaka, was giving a public address.
The screen's light flickered across his scarred face.
When he finally spoke, his voice was low, heavy with conviction. "You did not kill Saburo-sama. Nor did your team. He was suffocated. Murdered by hands he trusted."
Neo raised an eyebrow.
Takemura's jaw tightened. "Yorinobu killed his own father."
Neo leaned back in his chair. "And yet, the new emperor of Arasaka blames me. Rallies the whole corporation against the Night's Ember crew. Clever politics."
Takemura nodded grimly. "Your heads—yours, your team's—they're worth millions now. Every merc in the city dreams of that payday, but no one's foolish enough to try. Not yet."
Neo gave a low chuckle. "So you, Saburo's loyal dog, come crawling out of the ruins with nothing but your word and your blade, saying the impossible—that your master was killed by his own blood."
Takemura's gaze dropped. "Yorinobu stripped me of everything. My implants, my access, my rank. He wanted me gone, dead, erased." He exhaled slowly. "He said I failed to protect Saburo-sama… and now, I am forced to find a killer who doesn't exist."
He looked up at Neo again, and there was something raw in his eyes—something human. "He even sent assassins after me. Men I trained myself. I survived, but barely."
Neo's fingers tapped once against the table. "You're still alive. That means something."
"It means," Takemura said quietly, "that the dog still remembers his master."
He sat straighter, shoulders squared. "Saburo-sama gave me everything. My life belongs to him. And since Yorinobu took his… I will take Yorinobu's."
His next words were steady, almost formal. "So, Neo… shall we work together?"
...
There was silence for a long while.
Neo studied him—not with suspicion, but curiosity. Takemura wasn't like the others. He wasn't driven by greed, or fame, or the endless chase for eddies. He was a relic from another era, one that still believed in honor.
He was the kind of man who'd stand on a burning bridge with a blade in hand, just to die for a cause no one else remembered.
Pure. That was the word.
Pure in purpose. Pure in loyalty. Pure in madness.
Neo finally spoke. "So Evelyn Parker was your bargaining chip? You knew I was looking for her, so you took her—to make sure I'd show up?"
Takemura shook his head. "She was… a message. Nothing more. You're not a man I could threaten."
He smiled faintly, almost self-deprecatingly. "Trying to use leverage against you would be like trying to threaten the tide with a handful of sand."
Neo chuckled under his breath. "Good answer."
He leaned forward slightly, tone sharpening. "Then let's get one thing straight. What we're about to discuss isn't for a third pair of ears."
He nodded toward Evelyn. "She leaves."
Takemura inclined his head. "Agreed."
Evelyn blinked, confused. "Wait—just like that? You're… letting me go?"
Neo's eyes met hers. "This time, yes. Only because Judy asked me to."
His voice turned colder. "Otherwise, I wouldn't care whether you lived or died."
Evelyn swallowed hard, her throat tightening.
"Here's my advice," Neo said. "Leave Night City. Don't look back. You won't survive another round."
She nodded quickly, her voice barely a whisper. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me," he said, turning away. "Just disappear."
And that was that.
...
Later that night.
Viktor's Clinic, Watson.
The familiar hum of old machinery filled the air as they stepped inside. Viktor was hunched over his desk, watching a recording of a street brawl when the doorbell chimed.
He looked up, wiping his hands on a rag. "Hey, Neo! Long time no see. You holding up all right?"
Neo bumped fists with him. "Never better. But he's not." He gestured toward Takemura. "This guy needs a little tuning."
Viktor arched an eyebrow. "You know, your idea of bringing me 'patients' is getting more and more interesting."
Neo smirked. "Viktor Vector, Night City's best ripperdoc—and my team's unofficial guardian angel."
Then, with deliberate calm: "And this is Takemura Goro. Former bodyguard to Saburo Arasaka."
The old ripper froze mid-motion.
"Wait—you're telling me this is the guy who used to guard the Emperor of Arasaka? Neo, you really don't do casual introductions, do you?"
Takemura bowed slightly. "Former bodyguard," he corrected quietly. "Now, merely an old dog with a broken spine."
Neo clapped Viktor's shoulder. "Do what you can for him. He's been through hell. I'll explain while you work."
Viktor grunted. "Fine by me."
Takemura was already lowering himself onto the operating bed, the faint metallic whine of his worn implants echoing through the room.
"Before we start," he said, "I should warn you—I have no money. If you'll take an IOU…"
Viktor chuckled. "Keep your eddies. Just remember who patched you up when you're back on your feet."
Takemura closed his eyes. "I will."
The lights dimmed, the surgical arms came to life, and as the machines began to hum, Neo leaned against the wall—arms folded, eyes half-closed.
Outside, the neon pulse of Night City beat steady through the clinic windows, like a heart made of electricity.
Inside, the old dog was being rebuilt.
And somewhere deep in Neo's mind, a single thought flickered like a blade's reflection:
This city doesn't need gods. It needs monsters with purpose.