Kill the Masked

A couple days later, Taki had returned with the news. We got the green-light to commence operations. Aoi and I had visited the government officers multiple times over the month to formulate a plan.

Hiro was especially helpful in locating some of the bases the Red-Foxes have in Japan. We also managed to snuff out their business partners and collaborating gangs.

Their main quarters was a large building that served as a casino. Our job would be to infiltrate the base, steal data, and to halt their expansion to Japan. The government was vague on those terms, meaning we can do whatever we see fit.

It’s August now, it has been a month since I had gotten my injuries, they are more or less fine now. Aoi was also operational. Summer’s hell was in full motion the entire month, and so was our plan.

As agreed upon, I will be leading a team of mafia members mixed in with government officers. Aoi and I were in this team, along with Hiro and iota.

“やった !” (hooray!) Shouted iota. “I’m on this mission after all!”

“Bear in mind that the only reason you were chosen was that we needed someone who wouldn’t catch anyone’s guard.” I told her sternly.

“Basically you’re saying I look cute and harmless” Said Aoi as she stuck her tongue out at me.

“All you will do is act as a distraction. Follow the plan, and don’t try anything else.” Responded Hiro as he flicked iota’s forehead.

　 いたい ! (ouch!) Cried iota.

I spotted Aoi just standing alone, so I went up to her. Her eyes perked up as she saw me approaching.

“I’m counting on you today Aoi” I said as I thumped my chest twice.

“Back at you, Gray.” Said Aoi as she returned the gesture.

Things were silent between us afterwards. Neither of us said anything.

The operation will start tonight, so we all had to sleep in and rest during the day. Everywhere I went, people in the mafia were cheering for us and encouraging us. I kept reminding them to save the celebrations for when the mission is completed.

When night fell, we met up with the government officers and went over the plan once again. Then, we headed off.

The Red-Foxes’ headquarters was massive, and it still operates as a casino. At night was its busiest time. It was bustling inside with crowds of people, men in sleek suits while women wore stylish dresses, everyone was adorn with shining jewelry. We were also no different.

At the back of the room, there were snacks and desserts laid out on tables, along with a forest of wines to choose from.

I’m sure if Evan were here, he would be extremely happy, the man loves booze. We showed the guards our fake membership cards, he scanned it, then let us in.

“Enjoy your time here,” He said.

And we walked off.

We made sure to spread out

I was clad in a sleek gray dress-shirt along with leather shoes and a red tie. My fingers were weighed down by the many fake rings I had adorned it with. Hiro wore something similar to mine and sported flashy earrings. He walked with iota in his hand.

Iota had chosen to curl her hair a bit tonight, she had it tied in a ponytail and had a single braid running down the side. She wore a revealing red and black dress, it revealed a lot of her back, and barely clung onto her breasts. I caught a couple men staring at her, she waved at them as Hiro pulled her along, he had a frown etched onto his red face.

Aoi had gone with the same hairstyle as iota, except that she wore a headband of flowers. She also had matching gold earrings and painted nails. She wore a simple blue dress that was a bit too small for her. It squeezed her chest tightly, and showed a lot of her legs. I tried not to stare at her, and just kept walking. I suddenly felt a hand pressed against mine.

“Aoi! I thought we agreed that you would be with one of the government officers tonight!” I whispered as I pulled her close.

“I can’t act naturally around any of them!” Said Aoi as she puffed her cheeks.

Pop!

I used a finger and poofed all the air out. “Alright alright” I conceded. I grasped her hand tight, it was sweating, and so was mine. I felt embarrassed and happy, but I know this was all just for the mission. When all is done and I tell Aoi the truth, she will never see me the same again. I clenched my hands a bit tighter.

We went over to the snack table to grab some snacks, then we found a table to eat at. There were guards standing at each station. I eyed the corner of the room, there was a wooden door that had two guards at each side.These guards were different, they were wearing kitsune masks. I noticed their belt was bulky, and the outlines of a pistol in their pockets.

“It’s been a while since we went out like this.” Said Aoi as she was eating her strawberry shortcake.

Right, we have to act natural, and keep a conversation going.

“Yeah. That dress really suits you Aoi, I rarely see you in clothes like these.” I replied.

“Well then, savor the sight as much as you want.” Responded Aoi as she blushed.

Suddenly, there was a large commotion happening at the center. I saw iota limp in Hiro’s arms. Hiro’s face was twisted in anger, and he was surrounded by 15 men.

“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM IOTA!” Roared Hiro, his combed hair was now a mess, his eyes were strained and wild and drool was coming down from his mouth. The men started closing in on them. Hiro set iota down and raised both his arms up. He bent his leg, shifting his weight from one leg to another. The atmosphere was tense, everyone froze as if time had stopped.

I saw a couple guards rushing in, however, none of the masked guards had moved. I heard the breaking of glass and tableware, the snapping of a table in half, and bodies hitting the floor. The guards went over with their tasers to stop the fighting, but the men surrounding Hiro quickly disabled them and knocked them out.

The masked guards by the door still haven’t moved yet. Come on! Was this not enough for them to step in??

BAM!

A gunshot rang through the air. Everyone screamed and started running. I froze. I looked at Hiro and saw that he had pulled out his pistol, he had it raised high, and smoke was still coming out of it.

Damn it. I guess we have already switched to plan B now.

With everyone running hysterically, and all the guards knocked out, I saw the masked guards take out pistols and started moving towards Hiro. They shot at him.

Suddenly, more masked guards came out of the wooden door. There were 20 more of them now. They all had their pistols pointed at Hiro. A shootout began.

The only ones who fell were the masked guards, for Aoi and I had taken our guns out, so did the 15 men that Hiro had fought.

Bingo.

We had caught them off guard. The only casualties were the masked guards. They were Red-Foxes, so we won’t get in trouble for killing them. We each picked up a mask and wore them. I looked inside my mask and saw a little chip on it. Hiro was right, the masks were the keys to the inner layers of their den.

These masks only had one red line dashed across each side of the face. These were one whiskers, the lowest ranked in the Red-Foxes. What we need is a Red mask, which can access everything.

We all wore the masks on our faces, and changed into more comfortable moving clothes. Except for iota, who is supposed to remain here. She had already done a good job with Hiro acting as a distraction. I breathed out, the worst of my worries was over.

I walked over to her. “Good job, you and Hiro both did well.” I said as I pulled her up.

“Well it’s as expected!” Exclaimed iota smugly.

I laughed. “Alright, remember, you’re to remain here, pretend that…”

“Yeah yeah, pretend that my friend is stuck in this building so I can’t leave him yet.” Interjected iota.

I nodded. “And also report to us…”

“Using our little headphones and speakers, gotcha, I will let you know all that goes on at the front.” Replied iota.

“Do not try anything…”

“Else that is dangerous, since I’m here to act as a distraction and that’s all.” Finished iota.

“Yep, looks like you got everything!” I exclaimed as I flashed her a smile and a thumbs up.

“Alright everyone, let’s move out!” I said as we all rushed to the wooden door. I heard a little beep from my mask as the door opened. We then stepped into the well lit hallway, we were now in the den of the Red-Foxes.

I eyed the many security systems that were secretly laid out all over the place. There were cameras, motion sensors, laser and sound alarms. I was glad that we had the government working with us, they were using some sort of interference system, which has disabled most of the security. However, the mask chips and the security of the main quarters were still active, they used a different system than the rest.

Having memorized the layout of the place hadn’t helped much. This place was built like a maze, even so, Hiro walked in the front confidently. I noticed that there weren't as many guards here as we had expected. We had probably fished them all out with the earlier commotion.

We eventually reached a door, there were two masked guards, they were one whiskers.

“Hey, what are you doing? Get back to your posts!” Growled one of them.

We froze. We didn’t know how to correctly respond to this, however, before any of us could say anything, Hiro walked up to him and grabbed him by his collar.

“Look you little fucker, you’re just a one whisker. Know your place and don’t go ordering us around.” Said Hiro in a low and menacing voice. He then slammed the guard against the wall, he fell and Hiro stomped on his face. I heard the sharp crack of his mask, and blood was coming out of his nose.

The other guard took out his taser and charged at Hiro. Hiro did a low sweep and the guard fell. He then got on top of him and held him in a hold.

As we had been told, the one whiskers weren’t much of a threat. I remember that back on the plane, we were attacked by two whiskers, they knew how to fight, but were also much below our level.

“We are three whiskers, our masks were broken from the fight from earlier. Go report this to your boss. Get us all three whisker masks.” Commanded Hiro.

“Y-Yes sir!” Stammered the guard as he ran away.

“Wow!” Exclaimed Aoi. “This was brutal Hiro, even by mafia standards.”

“This is normal in the Red-Foxes, the weaker get picked on by the strong. If they’re too weak, they would be quitting or have been killed by now. However, if they haven’t done any of that, they would eventually move up the ranks. It’s how they weed out the weak.” Replied Hiro as he wiped some blood off his mask.

I clenched my fists. This reminded me of how the GrayWolves used to be like when Father had been in charge. It disgusts me.

We stood there for a bit, then finally, we heard quick footsteps coming down the hallway. The one whisker had returned, and following behind him was a woman wearing a red kitsune mask. I saw Hiro’s fist clench.

He raised his fist up, and we followed him.

The red mask walked towards us. “Here’s your three whisker masks.” She said as she handed each of us the masks in her hands. When handing them to Hiro, she paused for a bit and leaned in. She licked him on the face, Hiro shuddered.

“Back to your positions.” She ordered. Then, she walked past us, as she did, I got shivers running up my spine. Her eyes were that of a hunter’s, they were analyzing us, and for the entire time she was here, she had never let her guard down, there had been no openings at all. Her body was both tense and fluid, as if poised to attack us at any time.

I saw that Aoi and Hiro were tensed up too. So that was their red masks, are they all that powerful?

“That was one of the red masks, some of the most elite of the Red-Foxes, a bit like the GrayWolves’ elites.” Explained Hiro.

“Are they the strongest?” Asked Aoi.

“No, they pale in comparison to the black masks. Even you and Gray together wouldn’t be able to take one down.” Replied Hiro.

Now my palms start sweating. Can anyone really be that strong?!

Hiro had led us to another gate, which opened after scanning our masks. We kept walking, and as we did, I noticed that the doors and walls got thicker, and we ran into the guards more frequently. They were at first all one whiskers, now it was two whiskers.

The guards all raised their fists as we passed by. I guess the raising fist was the Red-Foxes’ salute, which explains why Hiro had done it earlier with the red mask. We then stopped at another gate.

“Take off your masks and follow what I do.” ordered Hiro. He then took his mask off, and pressed the nose of the mask against the scanner.

“Beyond this entrance, there will only be 3 whisker masks and higher” Said Hiro as we each took turns scanning our masks.

This time, as we were walking down the hallway, no one raised their fist in salute. I guess since we are all three whiskers here, there is no need to be polite.

“Hey! What are you guys doing here? And in such large numbers?” Asked one of the three whisker guards as we approached another gate.

“We were dealing with the commotion down at the gambling lobby, heading back to our posts right now.” Replied Hiro calmly. He then walked forward to scan his mask, however, the guard stepped in front of him.

“Just a minute. No one has left through these doors other than commander Itsuka.” He said. We all froze.

“Vixen,” Said Hiro.

Now the guard froze. “There’s no fucking way…” He muttered. Then, he stood to the side and raised his fist up. We looked at each other, confused. We each scanned our masks and passed the gate.

As we walked down the hallway, Hiro said the word vixen to each guard we passed. They all stepped aside and raised their fists. I was getting this nagging feeling about Hiro now. He seems to know the Red-Foxes really well.

At the next gate, Hiro scanned his mask, however, the gate didn’t open.

“What’s wrong now?” Asked Aoi as Hiro scanned the mask again. The gate still won’t open. I heard footsteps, guards were coming from behind us, we reached for our guns.

“Strange. It seems they changed this gate. We need a red mask to open this one.’ Said Hiro. The footsteps were getting closer and closer, I could hear the breathing of the guards, they were probably at the turn of the corner.

The first person I saw was that red mask woman. Itsuka I think it was her name. She was followed by a couple of three whiskers. All of them were pointing their guns at us, we did the same.

“Good job, Commander Hiro. This trap was perfect, now we can finish off the GrayWolves.” Sneered Itsuka.

Commander Hiro?!! All of our eyes went wide, I turned around and saw Hiro quickly grab Aoi in a choke hold, and pressed his gun towards her head. A clang followed as her pistol fell on the ground and she tried to free herself.

I turned around and pointed my gun at Hiro.

“Don’t move a muscle, or I will shoot.” Said Hiro, his gaze was calm and emotionless.

くそ！ (shit!)

I smiled, wow. They got the better of us, they really got us good. Hiro had been in the GrayWolves for two years now, I had never once doubted his loyalty. He always played a large part in our missions and also helped train our mafia members. He quickly became one of the few elites in the GrayWolves mafia.

To think the entire time he was with the Red-Foxes… they were always ahead of us by several steps. Even this plan was all part of their game.

I was pulled back sharply, and felt a slender arm crush my neck. Itsuka had me in a choke hold, another clang ensued as my pistol fell out of my hand. I quickly looked at Aoi, she was limp in Hiro’s arms, and she had her pinky and thumb slightly raised on her right hand. I did the same, and fell limp against Itsuka, pretending to have passed out.

Our secret language was something that not even Hiro knew about, it was just a thing between the four of us. Underestimating our bonds was probably the only mistake Hiro has made. And he will pay dearly for it.

As I pretended to pass out, I heard commander Itsuka speaking with commander Hiro. It turns out Hiro was also a red mask! Damn, knowing how strong Hiro is, I have an idea of how powerful the red masks are.

Aoi and I were carried through the gate and were brought deeper into the Red-Foxes’ den. I noticed that only the two of us made it through along with Itsuka and Hiro, the rest of our team was left behind, along with the three whisker guards. Sharp and loud sounds along with flashes started filling the hallway behind us, there was a shootout. Through the smoke I couldn’t see much of anything. It was over in less than a minute.

The hallway was stained a harsh red, and not a single person was left standing. Even though the ones killed were all government officers, I still felt sad. Over the past month that we worked together, we had formed a bond of trust and friendship with them. I gritted my teeth.

Suddenly, my earpiece turned on, I noticed that it was a message directed towards everyone. Hiro had stopped to listen to his earpiece.

“It’s Hiro Time!” Said iota.

Aoi and I both opened our eyes at the same time. We were startled and confused now, Aoi screamed as Hiro suddenly slammed her on the ground, and planted his foot on her head. I was dropped down as well, though not as hard as Aoi was.

“This bitch disgusts me, always following Gray around like some dog. Yet she still has the audacity to call herself a GrayWolves executive. What a joke. Her pretty face and figure don’t fit the type of person she is.” Said Hiro as he pressed down harder on Aoi’s head, her hair came undone.

“Though she would make the perfect plaything for the boss. So don’t ruin her up too badly.” Replied Itsuka with a smile. I clenched my fist for a moment, however, I forced myself to relax soon after. I have to play dead. I can’t do anything rash.

“Itsuka, mind taking off your mask? It’s been sometime since I’ve seen your face.” Said Hiro.

“W-Well sure.’ Said Itsuka as she took her mask off. She had violet eyes that complemented her deep purple hair. She was a real looker, and looked to be around my age. She was blushing a lot. I think she might have a thing for Hiro. Curse that lady killer!

“You’re as beautiful as ever, my love.” Said Hiro as she walked towards him and he reached a hand out to pat her head.

“Glad to see you safe, Hiro. I’ve missed you.” Responded Itsuka as she closed her eyes and smiled in pleasure.

“Can you lend me your gun for a bit?” Asked Hiro as he stroked her hair.

“Sure.” Replied Itsuka as she handed him her gun. Hiro then quickly raised the gun up and shot at Itsuka from point blank range.

Itsuka’s entire head was blown to bits and smeared across the walls like a painting. Her body fell, blood gushing out of her neck. I was soaked in it, my clothes becoming a dark red.

“You can wake up now, Gray, Aoi.” Said Hiro as he reached out to pull us up. “Don’t think I didn’t notice the secret signals you kept sending with your fingers.”

Oh wow, so he did know about this too! This man was incredible.

“Who’s side are you on?” Asked Aoi as she violently glared at him.

“Whichever side I swore my loyalty to. The GrayWolves all the way.” Replied Hiro as he took his right hand and thumped his chest twice.

“Who else was part of this secret plan of yours?” I asked.

“Just me and iota.” Responded Hiro.

“I have so many questions for you, but I will leave them for when we get out of here.” I said.

“Yep, I’m ready to answer them. But first, we still have to get to the control room. Itsuka was the boss of this base, with her out, everything else will be easy.” Said Hiro as he led us past one gate and another.

We then reached a locked door, where Hiro took out a card and scanned it. I heard a click as the door opened.

The control room was not what I had expected. There was light coming through the large bulletproof windows, and the room was spotted with various indoor plants. There were bean bag chairs, a sofa, coffee maker and a large TV. I was reminded that even though the Red-Foxes were a mafia, they were still people.

“This it?” I asked as I walked over to a computer.

“Yep,” said Hiro.

I inserted a USB drive into the computer. It will copy the files so that we have one, and will corrupt theirs. With their files and data corrupted, they can no longer use it, and would be expanding to japan blindly.

As the USB was still copying the data, Aoi had grabbed the microphone and connected it to the speakers.

“To all Red-Foxes, this is Aoi, executive of the GrayWolves, you have lost. Either surrender now or be completely destroyed. If you surrender, drop all your weapons and take off all of your masks.” Boomed Aoi’s voice through the announcements system.

Hiro had disabled the security interference system and the security cameras turned back on. I saw at first no one moved. However, once one person had taken off his mask, the others followed in a chain reaction. Not everyone had surrendered, but a good half of them did.

The USB had done its job now, so I pulled it out. Aoi, Hiro and I all thumped our chests, this had been our victory. For some reason, the cameras at the casino and the front hallways were all blacked out still. Then, static noises came in through our ear-buds.

“Grayfish! All of a sudden, a whole bunch of people wearing red masks came in through the front, there’s also a huge black mask guy!” Said iota frantically.