Chapter 395: DNA Comparison Results
Keqing remained entirely non-committal to Toru Amuro's proposition for a mutual exchange of information. She crossed her arms, her amethyst eyes cool and unyielding. "I will give you the exact same answer as before. If you want to trade intelligence, you will have to take it up with the intelligence department yourself. As for the outcome of those negotiations, I cannot guarantee a single thing."
"I understand." Amuro smiled, the pleasant curve of his lips hiding any trace of disappointment. In truth, he hadn't expected Keqing or the others to agree to his request right out of the gate.
His thoughts briefly drifted to Raiden Ei, the elusive Minister of Intelligence for the Inazuma branch. What kind of person was she, really? If she was capable of raising someone as utterly inhuman and lethal as Glenlivet, would she prove even more difficult to handle than the boy himself?
Amuro suppressed a quiet sigh. He had done his best for today. As for the rest of his probing, he would simply have to wait until an opportunity arose to visit Osaka and investigate the situation on the ground.
"Then, to change the subject slightly," Amuro began, shifting his weight casually. "What are your thoughts on that strange 'Zoo Syndicate'?"
He kept his tone light, masking the genuine concern gnawing at him. An unknown, violent syndicate suddenly popping up on his radar posed a severe threat to the safety of the Japanese public. Naturally, as an undercover agent, he couldn't express this righteous concern directly. He had to frame his inquiry through the lens of a wary Black Organization operative.
"After you extract whatever information you need out of Spider, do you plan to cooperate with them?"
"Of course not," Keqing shot back instantly, not a shred of hesitation in her voice. "Didn't Ganyu make this clear earlier? That brainless syndicate can't even begin to compare to your organization. Why would we possibly lower ourselves to cooperate with them?"
Amuro offered a dry, polite smile. 'If they can't compare, they can't compare. There's really no need to emphasize it so harshly.'
Still, it hardly bothered him. He possessed zero actual loyalty to the Black Organization. It didn't matter to him in the slightest if the Teyvat executives looked down on the crows.
Beneath his calm facade, a knot of tension loosened. Knowing that the formidable Teyvat Organization had no intention of establishing further ties with the Zoo Syndicate put him significantly at ease. Teyvat boasted far too many outstanding, highly capable members; the last thing Japan needed was for them to ally with another volatile underground syndicate and provide them with tactical assistance.
"That is good to hear," Amuro said smoothly. "I hope you clearly realize that only the Organization serves as your best and most suitable partner in these matters."
Keqing gave a curt nod, appearing entirely indifferent to his corporate pitch. Standing quietly nearby, Ganyu shifted. Her gentle eyes flickered as if she wanted to interject, seemingly holding a vastly different opinion on the matter of 'suitable partners.' Yet, after a brief moment of hesitation, she pressed her lips together and remained silent.
"Then, I will ask one last question. Regarding the intelligence extracted from Spider..." Having obtained the answers he needed, and having secured a clear direction for the threads still left hanging, Amuro prepared to take his leave from the opulent halls of the Jade Chamber.
Before stepping away, he needed to lock down a timeline for Spider's interrogation results. "What is the absolute earliest you can send that file to me? You should know, I assured Rum I would have something concrete to show for my visit to the Jade Chamber today. If I return empty-handed without any actionable intelligence, it will not be easy to explain away."
It was a smooth, calculated lie. While he had briefly mentioned to Rum that he intended to investigate this new 'Zoo' syndicate, it was strictly a low-priority side task for his free time. His primary directive—and Rum's main focus—remained fixated on hunting down Sherry. If Rum hadn't specifically inquired about his schedule, the second-in-command likely wouldn't even know Amuro had set foot in the Jade Chamber today.
Amuro leaned in slightly, his tone lowering into a conspiratorial hum. "Your Miss Yelan took Spider away quite overbearingly right in front of my eyes earlier, and I didn't attempt to block her for a single second. I have made things exceptionally easy for your side, so I hope you will extend the same courtesy to me. After all, Rum is a notoriously impatient man. If this takes too long, it won't end well for me."
Keqing narrowed her eyes slightly. She firmly believed Amuro hadn't blocked Yelan simply because he lacked the tactical advantage at the time, not out of any misplaced goodwill. Still, the fact remained that he hadn't interfered, making his current request perfectly reasonable.
"Of course." Keqing tapped her chin, calculating the necessary hours before giving a firm nod. "Three days, then. Within three days, I will ensure a complete copy of the intelligence squeezed out of Spider is sent directly to your hands."
Amuro raised a blonde eyebrow, genuinely surprised. "Three days? That is quite fast for a full psychological break."
Keqing's lips curved into a faint, confident smirk. "Naturally. Yelan is a consummate professional."
With his final inquiry settled, Amuro offered a polite bow and took his leave. Unfortunately, word came down from the upper floors that Miss Ningguang was still tied up in pressing business matters, denying him the chance to speak with the Tianquan in person before his departure.
The drive back from the Jade Chamber was quiet, the hum of his Mazda's engine the only sound filling the cabin. Halfway down the mountain road, Amuro's phone buzzed with a sudden notification.
He didn't pay it much mind at first, keeping his eyes on the winding asphalt. But when he finally stopped at a red light and opened the message, his casual demeanor vanished. Staring at the block of heavily encrypted text, his expression instantly darkened.
The sender ID displayed a string of randomly generated, unfamiliar numbers. To the untrained eye, the content itself was a jumbled, incoherent mess of characters—looking for all the world like a spam text carelessly sent to the wrong number.
But Amuro knew better. His fingers flew across the screen, running the text through a specialized decryption algorithm. As the jumbled letters rearranged themselves into clear Japanese, he recognized the sterile, precise reporting style of his Public Security subordinate, Kazami Yuya. It was the final results of the highly classified task he had assigned weeks ago.
The screen glowed harshly in the dim light of the car. The DNA comparison results between the blood sample acquired from Masumi Sera aboard the Bell Tree Express and the genetic material extracted from the charred corpse found at Raiha Pass were finally conclusive.
The match was negative. There was zero blood relation between the two samples.
Amuro's grip tightened on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.
In other words... Shuichi Akai really wasn't dead.
That FBI rat had been putting on an elaborate, flawless act with Kir all along. He had faked his own brutal execution to slip completely off the Black Organization's radar, allowing him to operate from the shadows with total impunity.
Amuro's mind raced, piecing the terrifying implications together. In that case, Kir definitely isn't loyal to the Organization anymore either. The only question left is whether she was a planted undercover agent from the very beginning, or if she flipped and betrayed the Organization after being captured by Akai and the FBI.
He shook his head, his sharp eyes narrowing at the windshield. No, it's impossible for Kir to have flipped later.
If she had merely been a captured crow forced into compliance, Akai was far too paranoid to trust a true Organization member with something as critical as his own fake death plan. Wouldn't the FBI agent have worried that Kir might take the execution seriously, putting a real bullet through his skull to prove her loyalty to Gin and atone for her capture?
The only logical conclusion was that Kir, just like him, was a rat from the start.
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