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>>2650869
“So you actually met her in person...argh.” Captain Suwabe grunted as he fixed the bandages around his chest, barely covering the eerie cyan glow of the shards of shattered ragnite embedded into his skin. His situation has only worsened as the months passed, and unlike the last time I met him, the effects are now openly visible to the eye.

“Suwabe-dono, should I call the...”
“I can handle this later.” He rebounded, catching a breath as he buttoned up his coat. “Tell me, did she say anything else?”
“Nothing we don’t already know of, other than offering me to work for her.”
“An offer to work under her?” The captain stroked his mustache, “Sounds very much like the Sima princess indeed.”

“Suwabe-dono, has she made similar offers to you in the past?”
“One of the last words I heard on board Haruna.”
“And you…”
“I told her ‘Over my dead body.'" he said with a confident smirk, “My only regret was that I had to reject an invitation from such a lovely lady.”
“I take she doesn’t like rejection at all?”
“Oh she hates it,” Suwabe said proudly as he pointed at his chest. “ Need I say more?”

“Captain...from what time I spent with her, I have a distinct feeling that Admiral Sima may have her loyalty elsewhere.” I managed, anticipating the captain’s opinion on the subject.
“You’ve noticed as well.”
“I suppose.” I nodded in response. “I couldn’t see why the admiral princess of the former Yu Dynasty would pledge her allegiance to the same people that destroyed her family’s Empire... or why the Khaganate would allow the existence of a fleet consisting of nothing but people they’ve conquered.”

“Except if there was a specific reason,” He inferred, placing a hand on his chin. “For example, something that tied her firmly under the Khagan’s authority?”
It was one of the hundreds of possibilities in this situation, though still the most reasonable one.
“But either way,” Suwabe clasped his hands together, moving away from the subject. “Whatever her reason is, her merry band should not impede with committing to our cause.”
”Remember, Kurokawa, our job is to deliver Yamato to the Empire, not to uncover the Beiyang Admiral’s secret or whatnot. ”

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>>2650872
“Speaking of which, have you decided a role for yourself yet?” he asked half-curiously.
“Ah… that…” I managed, taken slightly aback by the Captain’s change in topic.

There were approximately three ‘teams’ that will be operating in tandem with each other on the day of the heist. One would be in charge of drugging the food during the ceremony and neutralizing the entire area as a whole, the second team is then charged with the careful transport of goods and cargo onto Yamato. As for the third group, Satoru suggested it was there to fetch that ‘certain benefactor’ he and Itaru had been hinting at all this time. Given the little time frame they are given to operate before Yamato leaves port, the third group would most likely end up as the last on board Yamato, possibly chased by enemies if they were a bit more careless.

>Participate in the sabotage in the ceremony (w/ Hibari and Akane)
>Participate in the transport of supplies and goods abroad Yamato (w/ Yanagi and Tewi)
>Participate in securing a Beiyang insider (w/ Satrou and Itaru)
>Confront Aiteng one more time. (w/ Margaret)

>>2650873
>>Participate in securing a Beiyang insider (w/ Satrou and Itaru)

>>2650873
>Participate in the transport of supplies and goods abroad Yamato (w/ Yanagi and Tewi)

>>2650873
>Confront Aiteng one more time. (w/ Margaret)

>>2650873
>Participate in securing a Beiyang insider (w/ Satrou and Itaru)

>>2650873

>Participate in the sabotage in the ceremony (w/ Hibari and Akane)

>>2650873
>Participate in securing a Beiyang insider (w/ Satrou and Itaru)

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“I will aid Satoru and Shirataki-senpai at securing our collaborator.” I stated my decision, “They could use another hand in their role.”
“Their role is without a doubt the most dangerous of the bunch.” he nodded, slightly concerned with my decision. “Just remember, Yamato leaves port at 1:00am, be sure to be there on time, even if it means calling off the asset’s extraction.”
“Yes sir.”

My dismissal was followed by a short ride back to the cafe. Technically, the place was closed a week before the operations, the reason why the shifts still existed was for us to clear out and scrub everything clean before the heist commences. Normally, this meant there shouldn’t be a single customer around, yet today was apparently a special occasion.

Exiting the concealed garage, the first sounds that entered my eardrums were the loud noises of people arguing, straight from the store. Or at least it was someone speaking in a rather high volume. Said voice belonged to neither Hibari or Yanagi, nor did it sound like anyone that I knew of.

Could it be a disgruntled guest? It would seem so.
Disregarding putting on my uniform, I entered through the compartment’s back door.

“Sorry miss, but we are closed for to…”
“Hi there cutie, missed me much?”
My heart nearly came to a halt after witnessing the scene before my eyes.

Chu Fuxiang sat casually on the counter, legs crossed and with her head held high as a display of dominance. Yanagi stood beside her, cold sweat running down her forehead, Hibari was positioned in front of me, ready to reach out for a weapon. But of course, no weapons were left lying around with everything pretty much cleared out at this point.

“Lost of words already?” The feral beast snapped her finger twice in my direction, snickering. “Can’t believe you’re this glad to see me.”
Jumping off the counter, she quickly moved right beside me, shoving Hibari away effortlessly despite being about the same height. I instinctively backed away from her, only to hit the wall and realize I’ve been pinned into a corner.

“Oh, don’t be so scared. I haven’t done anything yet...” Fuxiang ‘whispered’ deliberately in my ear, the volume loud enough for everyone else around to hear. No doubt did she do this in order to stir up the situation even more.
Viewing over my shoulder, I was met with the doubtful, incriminating gazes of my two partners. Fuxiang being around is never good news, but what worried me far more was that she apparently knew we were here, despite the cafe having closed for over a week.

>Signal Yanagi to escape while Hibari and you deal with Fuxiang (+1 Engineer)
>Signal Hibari to escape while Yanagi and you try burying as much of the hatchet as possible (+1 Sniper)
>Write in

“What do you want...?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” she purred, a hand playing with my hair. “I want... you.”

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“Just kidding.” Fuxiang laughed with a shrug. “I’m here for work.”
Work? That would be a reasonable explanation for anyone else, just not when those words are coming out from the mouth of someone like Fuxiang.

“What work?” Hibari demanded, pointing a broom at the pirate. Meanwhile, Yanagi and I focused our attention on the windows. Though sealed, the sun outside was still bright enough to allow some natural light in the shop.
Slowly, the pirate backs away from my position. “You know, It really, REALLY bugs me that I don’t get to do things the way I do in the good old days.”

Was this supposed to be her way of airing grievance? It certainly didn’t sound like so, nor did the boots and silhouettes standing around the cafe’s entrance. A chilling sensation ran down my spine as I stared at the articulating pirate, who by now climbed onto one of the tables lying around.

“But guess what? I’ve been given the permission to release all those pent up desires today!” She exclaimed, throwing up her hands. “Provided that boss gets what she wants of course.”
And like a stiff mannequin used as a puppet, her head turned slowly to face the door.
“Lads! Aren’t ya’ll as excited as I am!?”

Fuxiang’s theatrical performance was followed closely by an intense banging on the cafe’s door, along with the crisp sound of shattering glass as our windows were broken into a million pieces one by one.

“So the Lord Admiral wants us all arrested.”
“Quite the insight you have there, cutie.” The pirate laughed sarcastically as her men poured into the compartment.

>Put up some resistance
>Comply with the arrest
>“Do we have the right to remain silent?”
>Write in

>>2660340
Signal Hibari to escape while Yanagi and you try burying as much of the hatchet as possible (+1 Sniper)
>>2660345
Comply with the arrest

>>2660340
>Signal Hibari to escape while Yanagi and you try burying as much of the hatchet as possible (+1 Sniper)

>Comply with the arrest

>>2660340
>Signal Hibari to escape while Yanagi and you try burying as much of the hatchet as possible (+1 Sniper)
>Imply that the Admiral is trying to press us into service as a replacement for Fuxiang, so us and her have a common goal to avoid that.

>>2660345
Also, we didn't notice the Admiral's men on the way in. We must be a really shitty insurgent.

>>2660340
>Signal Yanagi to escape while Hibari and you deal with Fuxiang (+1 Engineer)
>>2660345
>Comply with the arrest

>>2660340
>Signal Yanagi to escape while Hibari and you deal with Fuxiang (+1 Engineer)
>>2660345
>Comply with the arrest

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I had expected as much seeing Fuxiang show up sober in our doorstep. Regardless of how things may turn out, someone must alert the rest of the crew about our situation, and monitor any further action Beiyang might take.
In this case, Hibari, being the smaller of us three, had a more reliable chance of getting away.

As I eyed Hibari to give her the signal, the intruders finally broke into the store.

It was upon seeing Fuxiang’s men in person when I realized why none of us saw them coming. The intruders were not numerous, only half a dozen to be exact, all dressed in civilian clothing like their leader.
While garnished more outlandishly than a normal pedestrian, they look no different from the local street thug found anywhere on the world- a far cry from the common image of the highly organized Beiyang Fleet. But their ability to stay covert wasn’t their only quality I had to worry about. These people, like their leader the Mad Dog of Palawan, had the lust for violence burning in their eyes.

Hence I’m not going to let them have it.

“Fine, take me in,” I yelled, surrendering my arms out, giving a nod to Yanagi, she too followed suit.
The answer, as expected, took all of them by surprise.

Taking this act of distraction as a cue, Hibari quietly slipped away into the back of the store, off to seal the tunnel and alert everyone else back at headquarter. With everyone’s eyes on Yanagi and I, we’ll just have to buy her some more time.

“Oh? Why so compliant, all of a sudden?”
“There is nothing to hide.”
“You’re not going to entertain me a little?” Fuxiang jumped off the table, kicked away some chairs as she made her way towards me. “Come on, throw some punches, try running away, call in your friends. Nothing?”
Sweat trickled down my forehead as I watched the pirate close in. Yanagi and I may have surrendered ourselves, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t rough me up regardless.
“Nothing.”

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“That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
The next thing I felt was a forceful yank on my shoulder, then air forcibly squeezed out of my lungs as Fuxiang struck my chest with a knee. Then my mind disorienting for a second before the body followed, planting itself onto the wooden floor below.

“Tie these cunts up.” I heard the Mad Dog command, clearly unsatisfied with our lack of resistance. “Boss wants them back in one piece, and… wait, where’s the other one?”
“The other one?” I heard one of her men spoke as my I lie on the floor gasping for air.
The realization of Hibari’s absence, as well as her subordinates’ ignorance on that matter, placed a rather satisfactory smile on Fuxiang’s face.

“Ahhh, cheeky bastards.” She said, kneeling beside me and patting me on the cheek. “Prepared a little game of hide and seek for me, ay?”

“Lads, bring these two back, and bag them up properly this time.” She said gleefully, turning to her men. “Imma stay to have a little bit of fun.”

“Aye, Captain!”

Her men promptly replied, and the next thing I felt was a boot stomp to the face.

By the time I woke up, I found myself lying prone on the cold, damp ground of some dimly lit environment… which was the most I can make out with a bag placed over my head. I had no idea how much time has passed since my encounter with the violent band of pirates, but from the dull pain in my chest and on my face as well as the scent of my own blood in my nose, I’d assume it wasn’t that long ago.

I tried to sit up, but the restraint of ropes on my wrists and ankles made it all the more difficult to accomplish. As I struggled to get off the ground, I felt someone grabbing me by the shoulder, followed by a yank that got me into a sitting position. That ‘someone’ then proceeded to take off the bag placed on my head.

In front of me was the familiar face of the Admiral’s nephew, Sima Guang, wearing a blank expression as he threw the bag placed on my head earlier aside, showing little intention to removing the rest of the restraints. While protesting was an option, seeing the saber holstered on his belt doused that idea out of existence.

The next thing that entered my vision were the rows of metal bars, made to keep some ferocious beast in check. The place- a large room with barred cells, to be exact- was barely lit with a few light bulbs hanging from the ceilings outside the cell, and the discolored, peeling walls and ceiling only made the atmosphere feel less settling. It’s almost as if I’ve ended up in some sort of an underground dungeon...

With the young Sima standing right next to me, I waited quietly as I heard a door opening, and footsteps closing in-

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“I hope your way there wasn’t too rough.”
I recognized this soft, gentle voice a bit too well.
The Beiyang Fleet’s Admiral, Sima Aiteng, appeared from around the corners of my cell, looking just as good as she was the last time I saw her.
“I did say we will meet soon, though I would prefer it to be in a different manner.” she sighed, slight disappointment hanging over her smile.
“Sima-dono, what is the meaning of this.” I had no idea just how much she knew about our plans, though by the extent of her actions I assume she’d known at least a bit… and god knows how much further she’d be willing to go.

“You and your friend are under arrest for suspected partisan activity,” she spoke. “I can guarantee your safety, but that depends on how cooperative you choose to be.”

>Insist on being innocent
>Demand information on Yanagi’s well being
>Ask what she wants to know
>Write in

>>2667150
>Insist on being innocent

I bet she's on to us because you anons blabbed out that we work at that cafe.

>>2667150
>Insist on being innocent

>>2667150
>"Is this how you intend to press me into your service? By pressuring me with fake accusations? Well now I definitely won't work for you. Just execute me right now"
>Be as indignant as possible
>Answer any attempts at interrogation with "Are yo ustill insisting at maintaining this farce?"

>>2667150
>Insist on being innocent
and if that doesn't work, do >>2669246

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While her nephew watched on silently, the Beiyang Admiral paced around the cell, her steps orderly and rhythmic. Despite the change of circumstances however, her tone hasn’t changed a bit.
“For one, as far as I am concerned, your unit was dispatched to defend Osaka to the very last man, yet somehow you ended up here, alive. No records of surrendering either.”
“Steppe Barbarians are the last group of people I would trust with my life.”
That, on the other hand, was true. By that stage of the war the Tengar Khaganate was accepting no surrenders. Their objective in the Osaka campaign was to raze Zipang’s capital to the ground, along with all its inhabitants and people defending it.

“True, but you also just so happen to work at one of the only cafes left in Kure, right around the corner from our headquarters…” She stopped, looking me directly in the eye. “That’s, a bit too much of a coincidence, don’t you say?”
“So is this how you’re going about to pressure me into service? Placing accusations on my head with nothing to back it up? What’s stopping you from executing me now?”
Taking up a more aggressive tone, I tried to turn the tables around on her. Despite saying so much, none of her words convey that she had any proof of any partisan activity. It was a very accurate speculation, but still a speculation nevertheless.

“Well you see, Kurokawa-kun.” The Admiral smirked ominously, arms crossed around her ample chest. “I like to seek out capable and diverse talent. Sometimes quite relentlessly, as Ruohua would put it. Whoever this partisan leader might be, I would much rather recruit than to fight him. We might have been enemies before, but I’m sure some of our goals align.”
She paused for a moment, checking if I had any response. Realizing that I had nothing to say, she added a final piece to her answer.
“Now, I don’t want to upset the third prince with potential partisan activities in his newly granted realm. He would feel… rather humiliated by such an event.”

There was something truly terrifying about this woman. The same sweet, welcoming voice that served a banquet meal for my sister and I was now casually throwing out passive aggressive threats. Since she was very much willing to hire someone like Fuxiang and let her run free, chances were that she will indeed go through on her threats. The same warmth that embraced me just weeks ago have now manifested as chills that trickled down my spine

Temur, the Khagan’s third son, was the general in charge of Zipang’s land invasion in the first place. Needless to say, he wasn’t too fond of us despite being given this conquered nation as part of his domain.

>I’ve stated my answer. There’s nothing for me to hide
>Why don’t you bring some evidence onto the table then, Sima-dono
>You seek to recruit partisans, yet at the same time you work for the Khaganate, what exactly are you up to?
>Write in

>>2675682
>You seek to recruit partisans, yet at the same time you work for the Khaganate, what exactly are you up to?
>Be imcredulous and don't imply we're a partisan.

>>2675682
>You seek to recruit partisans, yet at the same time you work for the Khaganate, what exactly are you up to?

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>>2675740
>>2675843

“I really don’t know what to tell you, Sima-dono.” I told her, putting up the most defeated facade I could.
“I have no idea what you want. No partisan activity, no conspiracies, nothing. ”
The act worked like a charm, as the Admiral frowned, her features softened. Taking this chance, I decided to follow with something more.
“You work for the Khaganate, the same people that destroyed your family and country, but at the same time you go around recruiting partisans. What exactly are you up to?”
“…” The admiral did not reply, and I didn’t intend to cut her any slack.
“To humiliate those who you defeated?” I continued, barely catching a breath. “For fame? Or is it really like what many people here say, so you can rule over Zipang like how the previous emperors of the Yu Dynasty aspired to?”
…
…
The admiral fell silent, her expression softened as she let out a melancholic sigh. Her nephew, who stood beside her, looked like he somehow took more offense to my words than she did.

“We may need to try a different approach,” Sounding slightly frustrated, the Admiral turned to her nephew.
“If he refuses to taste the wine, then let’s see how he likes poison.” Her nephew jeered, appearing quite eager for this notion to go through.
The admiral, however, signaled another gesture at him.
“No, Guang, bring in the other VIP. Perhaps someone else can make him a little more cooperative.”
“Understood.” The young officer left on swift feet, and in moments brought back another person, bounded and bagged just as I was earlier.

“Yanagi!?” I exclaimed, instantly recognizing the figure brought forth.
“S-Subaru?” She responded with my name as the younger Sima ripped the bag off her face. Shock and anxiety were well written across Yanagi’s face, though surprisingly, she did not suffer bruises or any physical injuries as I did with Fuxiang.

“As you can see, she was not harmed in the slightest.” Aiteng pointed out, as if giving presentation. “But as per procedure, the both of you must be tied up.”
“Should the two of you choose to cooperate, then I can consider releasing you both on parole,” she concluded with an exasperated sigh.
“And if we don’t?”
“I believe you know the answer to that quite well, Kurokawa-kun.”

>Cooperate for a quicker release while pretending to know nothing.
>Reject and stay indignant
>Try negotiating a better deal
>Write in

And I shall be archiving this. Will be taking a break for the rest of the week (and the next). As always, I'll signal on twatter when the next thread will be up

>>2683551
>Reject and stay indignant
>Summarize our entire position aloud so that Yanagi knows what to say.
>While trying to subtly garner Aiteng's sympathy by appearing all the things she likes at people.

Even if we fail, we'll hopefully distract her long enough so that the others can carry out the plan.

>>2683551
>Reject and stay indignant
>>2684199
I say we buy time for the inevitable "Margaret breaks in and saves us" scene