Fulfill your end of the bargain

"I'm home," Natsuo exclaimed as he entered the penthouse and kicked off his sneakers. When no one responded to his announcement, he looked around in the dark space, but no one was there.

"Ayumi?"

The slender figure walked around the living areas, peering into the kitchen and bedrooms, but the petite black-haired woman was nowhere to be seen.

Natsuo pushed the glass door open and stepped onto the balcony to see if she was having a cigarette, but she wasn't.

The sun had set and the sky had turned dark, painting the cityscape with dark clouds and twinkling stars.

He let out a frustrated exhale and leaned against the railing to watch as the city lights sparkled in the twilight. He used to admire the scenery almost every night, but now the glowing horizon barely caught his attention.

A hollow feeling had taken hold of him. Everything was quiet, still, and empty.

His blue eyes glanced at the ground distance from the 49th floor. He had thought more than once about how easy it would be just to leap and be done with everything.

Darkness whispered to him, coaxing him to end the pain. Never feel hopeless or helpless ever again. Nothing but sweet, silent oblivion.

He shook his head, pushing away the thoughts that tried to persuade him to take the easy way out. Even if everything around him seemed to be crumbling, he still had Ayumi. She was the first person he considered a true friend, someone who accepted him for who he was.

Besides, just maybe, if his boyfriend ever woke up again, they could finally be happy and get the life they both deserved.

He imagined the two of them living together in peace without worrying about Jiro's work as a yakuza. He dreamed of how they could live simply and comfortably, enjoying life to the fullest.

People would probably judge them and be confused by their relationship, but Natsuo wouldn't care. Not anymore.

Imagining a better tomorrow, he smiled softly at himself. He couldn't give up now, for Ayumi's or Jiro's sake. He would have to keep going, no matter how difficult it would be.

(Elsewhere at the same time)

"I'm supposed to do WHAT?!"

A woman's shout boomed throughout the dim room. Ayumi's chest heaved as she stared in disbelief at the female yakuza boss standing before her.

"You heard me, dear. You will kill a man and Takuya's life will be spared," the crime syndicate's first lieutenant repeated and puffed her long pipe.

She had just finished her backstory about the man nicknamed the Baron - the man Jiro was supposed to kill, but since he disappeared after his incident, he wasn't able to do it.

"It was our understanding that Takuya was very capable of doing this, but he had just retreated somewhere to regain his strength from an accident his pupil reported. We kindly let him have his time to recover, but... if you are telling me the truth, he can't just walk over here and fulfill his duty, can he?"

The smoke she exhaled sailed through the air in a lazy wave, dissipating slowly. Ayumi clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, cursing herself for spilling the truth out of anger. She could have just lied that Jiya had left overseas, far away from the life he had once known, escaping the yakuza and the dangers it brought.

The two women were inside the yakuza leader's office, which was elegantly decorated with a grand mahogany desk, fancy chairs, and decorative rugs. One single paper lamp offered a bit of light in the otherwise dark and smoky room, making shadows play on the walls.

"Who is this man? Some nasty old man from the yakuza?" Ayumi snorted scornfully.

"No, not from the yakuza. He is quite a well-known and famous businessman," Mika Kamiwara explained with a slight smirk. She raised her finger, suggesting she was about to continue.

"The man is a loyal customer here, spending nights with our girls whenever he visits Tokyo. You should know that he has a fetish... for necks. This can be used to your advantage."

Ayumi remained silent for a second, considering the situation. She knew she agreed and there would be no turning back, but she was taking a huge risk. It all came down to one thing - saving Jiya. She had to do it. Even though she knew that getting caught would have severe consequences, she didn't care.

"And you will really save him if I do that? Can you promise that?" she asked quietly.

"I promise, dear. Once you have completed the task, we will let Takyua recover - or whatever fate decides - and look into the matter of who poisoned him, if that is true," the waka gashira said with a nod.

She looked down at the hairdresser with a focused gaze, waiting for her confirmation. After a while, the woman cleared her voice.

"Fine. I will do it."

"Excellent. You can choose whatever method you prefer. We can lend you a knife or a gun, anything you wish, but - " Mika said, but a soft knock on the door interrupted her.

A young man stepped in, cautiously peering into the room.

"Ane-san, the Baron is here."

Ayumi and Shoji's gazes locked when their eyes met. The two didn't speak, but their surprised looks were all the communication they needed to recognize each other.

"Arata, please escort Miss Ito to the suite and help her with her task," Mika stated as she leaned back in her chair.

Shoji grabbed Ayumi's hand and was about to exit himself, before awkwardly returning and bowing to his leader. He motioned for the woman to follow him and shoved her to the nearest storage room, pushing her in and closing the door.

"What are you doing here?!" Shoji growled in a trembling voice.

"That bitch is making me kill some Baron in exchange for Jiya's life," Ayumi explained in disgust.

"W-What? No way! You can't do that!"

"Do I have a choice?! If you had guarded those drinks in the first place, then - "

The young yakuza's lips quivered when she said that. He had rushed to the penthouse to apologize over and over after he heard the news about his clansman, clearly horrified. His guilt and shame had consumed him for several hours before he regained his composure again.

"I'm so sorry, I would do anything if - "

"Just show me where to go so I can get this over with. Also, give me a gun and show me how to use it," the woman sighed.

"You... don't understand. You need to... kill the Baron."

"Well, who the fuck is he? Some shady businessman?"

Shoji's face lost its color as if he were about to faint. His hands began to tremble as he tried to stammer out a response.

"He... he is an international... criminal. Brother Takuya was ordered to kill him because... the Baron keeps killing our... workers... the girls..."

His brown eyes seemed to fill with fear as he spoke. Ayumi listened to him in stunned silence, processing what he had said.

The two were startled when the tall woman opened the storage door. Her maroon-brown eyes burned with sinister malice and her lips curled into an amused smirk.

"My, my, look at you two hiding in here. Miss Ito, it is time to fulfill your end of the bargain. Mister Baron is already waiting for you."