"Sister?!"
The address, so ancient it was almost enough to make her lose her memory, startled Seno Ginba profoundly.
She vaguely recalled having a presence akin to a younger brother when she was still very young.
However, that presence had vanished before her memories had even fully formed.
Her family had offered no explanation, so Seno Ginba had selectively ignored it.
And this mysterious man who had suddenly appeared before her, calling her "sister," was essentially calling himself her brother!
Could he be...?
The leading man in black didn't seem to intend to exchange pleasantries with Seno Ginba. He simply smiled casually, then removed his mask, facing her alone.
Seno Ginba was so shocked her mouth fell open.
The face before her was a mirror image of herself!
Aside from the slightly more masculine contour of his cheeks, there were no other changes...
To an inattentive observer, they might even mistake this person for Seno Ginba.
Seeing that Seno Ginba was too stunned to speak, the leading man in black could only smile wryly.
"Chizuru Kojin, pleased to make your acquaintance..."
"Although our organization's original target had nothing to do with your Shinkan organization, I never expected to encounter you, elder sister, here."
"Since that is the case, I cannot simply stand by and watch you in danger, can I?"
"Moreover, due to the influence of that mysterious black mist, our various teams have lost contact with each other, making it unlikely we can continue the pursuit."
"Rather than working in vain, wouldn't it be better to attend to something meaningful?"
Seno Ginba blinked blankly.
"Perhaps..."
During their conversation, Chizuru Kojin maintained a soundproof barrier, preventing the other men in black, as well as Tanaka Kenkō and the fallen Kyuhaku, from hearing them.
They could only see Chizuru Kojin's hands moving across Seno Ginba's face, guessing he was being overly familiar, but knowing nothing more.
Even so, their current situation was extremely perilous.
After all, they didn't believe Chizuru Kojin would be so perverted as to engage in intimate acts in front of them; he would surely clear the area first.
His own subordinates were simple; a single command would make them withdraw.
As for the remaining Tanaka Kenkō and Kyuhaku, they would undoubtedly be dragged out and fed to dogs.
Neither of these two wanted to die, and both had absolute reasons not to.
The former had been meticulously planning for an unknown duration, even using divine sources to freeze his so-called "children," all for the sake of one day controlling Sakura...
He had felt on the verge of victory, and now he faced an insurmountable life-or-death crisis. How could he accept this?
As for Kyuhaku, he hadn't yet avenged the bloody massacre of the devout ascetics of the Emperor's Palace, and his last concern, Kanna Gūji, was also in danger. If he were to die now, he would certainly not die in peace...
At the very least, he needed to know Kanna Gūji's exact situation!
However, not wanting to die was one thing; being able to avoid it was another.
After all, hundreds of formidable men in black stood around them, alongside a lustful, powerful, and enigmatic Chizuru Kojin...
If these people decided to kill, they would surely face certain death.
So, what should they do...?
The two quickly began brainstorming.
But they could never have imagined that their lives were now in Seno Ginba's hands.
Because at this very moment, Chizuru Kojin was asking Seno Ginba about this very matter.
"Should both of these men be killed?"
Chizuru Kojin didn't know the identities of Kyuhaku and Tanaka Kenkō. He had only intervened and subdued Kyuhaku because he saw him attacking Seno Ginba.
As for the whole story and what had happened, he naturally had to hear it from Seno Ginba, the person involved.
Seno Ginba pursed her lips, appearing conflicted.
She also didn't know whether these two should be shown mercy or killed.
Her hesitation regarding Tanaka Kenkō stemmed from the fact that, although they were not on the same side and were always trying to harm each other, Seno Ginba had actually planned to eliminate Tanaka Kenkō after this operation concluded.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have asked her master for help.
But the problem now was that their operation had not succeeded, and Kanna Gūji was still alive in this world.
If she still insisted on killing Tanaka Kenkō under these circumstances, she would have to bear all the pressure from Kanna Gūji's side herself in the future.
She would also turn Tanaka Kenkō's remnants into her mortal enemies.
But if she didn't kill him, how could she conceal her relationship with Chizuru Kojin?
Seno Ginba was quite grateful to this brother who had inexplicably appeared to save her, and she genuinely didn't want to implicate him.
Although she didn't know what kind of organization Chizuru Kojin belonged to, it certainly didn't seem like a legitimate one.
If word of this got out, who knew what kind of trouble it would bring to Chizuru Kojin, and she might become a significant weakness he had in this world.
Her hesitation regarding Kyuhaku was that, although she didn't want him alive, she was extremely covetous of his physical body.
If such a powerful man were made into their puppet, he could undoubtedly exert extremely potent combat power.
However, the creation of a puppet required her to personally kill him first, and the process was also extremely foul, evil, and bloody...
If her cute brother were to witness this, who knew if it would arouse his disgust towards her.
After all, Chizuru Kojin seemed like a rather upright person, a proud and cold leader of assassins...
If her behavior caused him to feel indifference, it would be far too much of a loss.
There was also the matter of the ultimate decision resting with Chizuru Kojin.
Seno Ginba wasn't sure if this was Chizuru Kojin testing her...
If she unhesitatingly said to kill both of them, her self-willed brother might not necessarily comply. Instead, he might think she was just a simple-minded, ruthless fool, which was even less acceptable.
Therefore, she was truly at her wit's end.
Seeing Seno Ginba's prolonged silence and her deeply conflicted expression, Chizuru Kojin smiled understandingly.
"It appears Elder Sister cannot make a suitable decision at this moment..."
"In that case, allow me to make the decision for you!"