Nobume's Perspective
Hidden in the shadows of the city, Nobume moved with quiet precision, just as she had been trained to do. But her mind was far from calm. The explosion she had triggered to ensure her mission's success still echoed in her thoughts. She had slipped away unnoticed amidst the chaos, but instead of feeling the satisfaction of a completed task, there was an unfamiliar weight in her chest—conflict.
The Black Lotus prided itself on efficiency and silence. Every strike was meant to be swift, final, and unnoticed. But the explosion… it had been loud, chaotic, and it had drawn far too much attention. Her mind tried to rationalize it: It was just a safety measure. If she had failed to kill Shizuo in the fight, at least the blast should have taken out Tom. But things hadn't gone according to plan.
Now, she understood the gravity of her situation. As the smoke settled in her mind, the realization came crashing down—Black Lotus had sent another team, an elite group of assassins, to ensure Tom's death. They hadn't told her, hadn't coordinated with her, and now those assassins were dead because of the explosion she triggered.
They would count that as betrayal.
Nobume leaned against the wall of a narrow alley, feeling the cool stone press against her back as she caught her breath. I killed them. Her hand tightened around the hilt of her sword, seeking the familiar weight to anchor herself. Her thoughts churned violently, conflicting emotions tugging her in opposite directions. She had been raised in the shadows, trained to obey without question. The Black Lotus had strict rules, rules that she had followed without fail—until now. She knew what happened to traitors, and she knew soon, they would come for her.
But was she a traitor?
Her life had been shaped by the Black Lotus, taken from the streets by Karasu, her mentor, who had molded her into the perfect weapon for the organization. She owed them her life, didn't she? They had given her purpose when she had none. And yet, for the first time, she was starting to see through the cracks in that purpose.
Since when did I start doubting them?
She had never questioned the missions before. She had been taught to trust their objectives, to follow orders blindly, but now… now she wasn't so sure. Her thoughts spiraled as she replayed the events in her mind—the explosion, the bodies, the chaos she had caused. Her training told her to suppress the doubts, to follow orders without hesitation, but she couldn't shake the growing sense of unease. Something had changed.
The Black Lotus had sent her into this mission without all the information, and now she was paying the price. But it wasn't just the failure that gnawed at her—it was the deeper realization that she had been used, a tool in their plans, discarded when it suited them.
So why does this feel different?
Nobume found herself slipping through the backstreets of the city, her movements second nature. She made her way to an old hiding place, a crumbling, forgotten building at the edge of the city, one of the few places she knew she could be alone. Sitting in the dim light of the abandoned structure, Nobume closed her eyes and allowed her mind to wander.
Karasu had trained her well. He had drilled obedience into her, taught her to be efficient, to never question the mission. And she had done it all, without a second thought. She had believed that as long as she followed the rules, as long as she obeyed, she was on the right side. But now? Now she wasn't so sure. The explosion, the deaths of her fellow assassins, the needless destruction—it all weighed heavily on her.
Her gaze fell to the floor, her mind filled with the faces of the dead—her own comrades, caught in the blast. She had justified it in her mind, telling herself it was part of the mission, but now it felt hollow. She couldn't escape the thought that the Black Lotus had sent her in blind, without the full picture. They hadn't cared if she lived or died, as long as the mission was completed.
So why am I even here?
Her thoughts drifted back to the battle, to Reiji and Shizuo. She had watched from the shadows, expecting the explosion to finish them off. But instead of cold satisfaction, she had seen something unexpected—Reiji, fighting through the chaos, using his own body to shield Tom. Shizuo, throwing himself into the fight, determined to protect his friend at all costs. There was no personal gain for them. It wasn't a transaction, like the missions she had been sent on.
It was selflessness.
They fought to protect each other, even when they didn't have to. Even when it would have been easier to let go, to walk away. And that was something Nobume had never experienced. She had always seen the world as a cycle of give and take. But Reiji and Shizuo—they didn't fight for themselves. They fought for each other. And somehow, in that moment, Nobume realized the life she had lived, the one she had been so sure of, might have been wrong all along.
For the first time, Nobume felt the stirrings of something deep inside her—a sense of justice that went beyond the cold calculations of the Black Lotus. Reiji's selflessness had shaken her. Was that what true strength was? The ability to protect, to fight for something greater than oneself?
The more she thought about it, the more certain she became. There was something more to this world than the cold, transactional existence she had known. There was something deeper—something right.
But could she follow that path? Could she break free from the Black Lotus and find her own way, guided by this new understanding of justice? Or would she remain in the shadows, bound by the rules she had always known?
Nobume opened her eyes, staring at the cracked ceiling of her hiding place. The world was changing around her, and she was at a crossroads. But one thing was certain—she couldn't go back to the way things were. Not after everything she had seen.
For now, she would wait. She wasn't ready to make her move, but the seeds of doubt had been planted. And as long as those seeds grew, she knew she would be walking a new path—one that would lead her far from the shadows she had once called home.
Black Lotus Headquarters
The dimly lit room at the heart of the Black Lotus headquarters buzzed with tension. The leaders of the secretive organization sat in a semicircle around a large table, their faces shrouded in shadow. They had gathered quickly after receiving word of the mission's disastrous outcome—what should have been a quiet elimination had turned into a catastrophe.
"Dead assassins, a building in ruins, and the target still alive," one of the higher-ups began, his voice cold and controlled. He leaned forward, his hands clasped. "What should have been a small, silent mission has now become a public spectacle. One that could expose us."
Murmurs of agreement rippled through the room. The Black Lotus operated on one guiding principle: the less others knew about them, the safer they were. Secrecy was their greatest defense. And now, that defense was in jeopardy.
"The explosion was reckless," another leader added, his tone sharp with disapproval. "We've always prided ourselves on eliminating targets quietly, leaving no trace. Now we're dealing with a mess of dead bodies, public destruction, and too many witnesses."
"The police will investigate," another voice chimed in. "If they find the bodies, they might trace them back to us. This is more exposure than we've ever allowed before."
The leader of the group, a man rarely seen but whose authority was absolute, spoke from the shadows at the head of the table. His voice cut through the air like a blade. "The less known about us, the better. We do not leave a mark. This disaster risks exposing our existence in ways we can't control."
The tension thickened as the leader's words sank in. He continued, his voice low but commanding. "The explosion and the dead bodies—they will draw attention. Investigators will come. They will ask questions. Even if they don't find us directly, the whispers of our existence will spread. We can't afford that."
Another leader grimaced, his fingers tapping restlessly against the table. "Who is responsible for this? Who ordered such a reckless attack?"
"No one ordered it," came the response from a senior leader, his voice calm and grim. "This was the work of one person—Nobume Imai."
At the mention of her name, silence fell. Nobume Imai, one of their most skilled assassins, had never been known for failure. Until now.
"She triggered the explosion," the senior leader explained. "But that wasn't part of the mission. The directive was to eliminate Tom quietly. This public display… goes against everything we stand for."
"She's missing," another leader added. "Nobume hasn't returned to report. And with the fallout from this mission, there's a possibility she's gone rogue."
The leader at the head of the table narrowed his eyes. "Betrayal comes in many forms. Whether she intended to or not, Nobume has drawn too much attention to us. If she's not already working against us, she's a liability. And we do not tolerate liabilities."
"She broke our code," one of the senior members said coldly. "Our assassins work in silence. No traces. No witnesses. Nobume failed on every count. Whether by incompetence or choice, she betrayed the Black Lotus."
The leader's voice was sharp and final. "She's no longer one of us."
The room fell into a tense silence as the weight of the decision settled over them. Nobume Imai, once their finest assassin, was now their enemy.
"So what do we do now?" one of the lower-ranking members asked hesitantly.
The leader's eyes gleamed beneath his hood. "We hunt her. She will be captured and made to answer for her actions. If not—kill her and bring back the body."
The other leaders nodded, their expressions grim. Failure, in the Black Lotus, was not tolerated.
"Send word to the others," the leader commanded. "Nobume Imai is no longer one of us. She is to be eliminated."
The room fell silent once more. Nobume, the hunter, was now the hunted.