After receiving Amano Hiro's personal confirmation, the last trace of doubt in Yoshimura Eto's heart disappeared.
The "Carnage" that had stirred up a bloody storm in the 12th Ward was indeed carried out by the same man who now sat calmly drinking coffee in front of her.
She steadied herself, and soon her playful smile returned, as if the shock from earlier had never happened.
"Hiro, won't you reconsider?" she asked lightly, her tone coaxing. "I promise that even if you join, you will never be restrained."
"No." Amano Hiro's reply was still crisp and unwavering.
He brought the topic back and asked again, "When exactly are you planning to attack Cochlea?"
Yoshimura Eto blinked, curiosity flickering in her eyes. "What, do you have a friend locked up inside?"
Amano Hiro lifted his coffee and looked at her over the rim of the cup, giving an ambiguous answer.
"You could say that."
Yoshimura Eto set down her cup and said calmly, "It is still only a preliminary plan. The specific timing has not been decided yet."
Amano Hiro nodded. "Then let me know when it starts."
"Sure." Yoshimura Eto smiled slightly. "Then let us exchange contact information first."
After chatting for a few more moments, Amano Hiro and Rize stood up to leave.
Watching the two about to depart, Yoshimura Eto could not help asking again, "Are you really not going to reconsider joining us?"
Amano Hiro simply waved his hand and left the café with Rize.
Looking at their gradually receding figures, Yoshimura Eto let out a soft sigh.
Kamishiro Rize's luck was truly good. Meeting Amano Hiro had completely altered the trajectory of her original fate.
If Amano Hiro were willing to join their plan, the chances of success would undoubtedly increase significantly. What a pity.
Amano Hiro and Rize did not return to Anteiku. Instead, they went straight home.
The two nestled together on the sofa, watching television and enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
Rize gently rested her head on Amano Hiro's shoulder and said softly, "Hiro, I still cannot control my RC cells very smoothly. Do you have any insights?"
Amano Hiro stopped rubbing his cheek against her hair and began to carefully explain every detail of how he controlled his RC cells. He described the process with great precision.
However, when Rize tried following his method, the results were still not ideal.
Amano Hiro rubbed his cheek against her hair again and comforted her. "No need to rush. We have plenty of time."
Rize lightly nudged him back with her head. "Mm."
Perhaps everyone's way of controlling RC cells was different. Other people's experiences could only serve as reference.
In the end, Rize would have to figure it out herself. Fortunately, they were not in a hurry. They could take it slow.
As they continued watching television, Amano Hiro gradually shifted until his head was resting on Rize's soft thighs.
Rize smiled slightly and gently stroked his hair, as if she were petting a well-behaved large dog.
Suddenly, Amano Hiro turned his head inward and buried his face against her lower abdomen, taking a deep breath.
"Mmm..." His voice came out muffled. "Smells so nice..."
Rize laughed softly at his behavior. "Hiro, that move is a little perverted."
"Mmm..." Amano Hiro spoke with his lips still pressed against her lower abdomen. The warm breath tickled her, making her laugh uncontrollably.
...
Night fell, and sirens wailed along the elevated highway.
Several police cars escorted an armored transport vehicle, moving in orderly formation through the darkness.
Inside the transport vehicle, a blond young man bound tightly in heavy chains was crying loudly.
Tears mixed with snot covered his face as he sobbed and muttered incoherently, "Big brother... I want to see you so much, big brother..."
At that moment, atop a building beside the elevated highway, a black-haired boy wearing a black half-mask stood silently.
Kirshima Ayato. Kirishima Touka's younger brother. The objective of this operation was to rescue the ghoul inside the transport vehicle.
As the convoy was about to pass beneath him, he suddenly leapt, jumping straight down from the high building.
During the fall, his Ukaku burst open behind him, like blood-red wings blooming in the night.
Countless sharp crystal fragments formed from his kagune glittered under the moonlight. With a wave of his hand, they poured down like a torrential rain.
Bang bang bang.
The four police cars at the front were instantly riddled with holes. The sound of windshields shattering rang out one after another.
One police car lost control and crashed into the guardrail on the right. Its fuel tank ruptured and exploded, and blazing flames immediately engulfed the entire vehicle.
The driver of the transport vehicle jerked the steering wheel in an attempt to avoid the wreckage, but still inevitably slammed into the burning debris ahead.
The heavy vehicle overturned with a screech of grinding metal, sparks trailing along the ground as it scraped across the asphalt.
The police cars behind quickly halted sideways, officers raising their guns on alert.
"Move!"
With a low shout, members of Aogiri Tree who had long been lurking in the shadows appeared simultaneously.
One member's Kakugan glowed crimson as a massive arm formed from his Koukaku easily flipped over a police car.
Another Ukaku ghoul moved nimbly through the air, using blade-like projectiles formed from his kagune to precisely knock the weapons out of the officers' hands.
Ordinary police officers were no match for ghouls. They could not even delay them, and were completely wiped out by the members of Aogiri Tree.
Kirshima Ayato landed lightly, his Ukaku slowly folding back behind him as he strode toward the overturned transport vehicle.
Suddenly, a dull thud came from inside the vehicle, followed immediately by a violent explosion.
A scorching blast of air rushed toward him, forcing Ayato to raise his arm to shield his face.
"Get him out. Hurry up," he ordered sharply.
Just as his subordinates were about to move, a miserable scream came from inside the vehicle. "It is so hot."
This was followed by a string of crying and muttering. "Burning to death. Big brother, big brother, big brother. It is so hot."
With a final howl, the heavy iron door was violently blasted open from within.
A figure burst out through the flames and launched a series of rapid kicks at Kirishima Ayato, shouting nonstop, "Big brother, Brother Yamori."
Kirishima Ayato retreated repeatedly to dodge, trying to explain, "Hey, you bastard, we are..."
Seeing that the other party was incapable of understanding human speech, he stopped wasting words. With a swift turn and a backward kick, he sent the man crashing down beside the guardrail.
The blond young man collapsed on the ground, crying and shouting, "My burning feelings for big brother even flipped the car over. But so what."
After saying that, he began rolling around on the ground like a tantrum-throwing child.
Kirishima Ayato took a deep breath and pressed his fingers to his throbbing temple.
He turned and waved to his subordinates behind him, each word squeezed out through clenched teeth.
"Take this idiot away."