Chapter 236: The True Top 5

"The Yang of the Yang Family? Could it be one of the Five Great Families of Orb?" The four of them exclaimed in shock. Although they weren't particularly familiar with Orb's politics and upper echelons, every citizen of Orb undoubtedly knew about the Five Great Families at the pinnacle of power.

All of Yang Hui's previous actions had indicated that he was no ordinary person. Moreover, Yang Hui had specifically emphasized that his "Yang" was the Yang of the Yang Family. Therefore, the only conclusion they could draw was that he belonged to one of the Five Great Families.

"Mm," Yang Hui nodded.

"But... why... aren't you..."

"This involves the future direction of Orb. Are you sure you want to know?" Yang Hui asked without even glancing at them. His gaze remained fixed on the battlefield, where the movements of the Strike Gundam had undergone a dramatic transformation.

"Did they switch pilots?" From a stumbling infant earlier, it was now fighting smoothly. "Not only did they switch pilots, but they also adjusted the OS? As expected of Kira. In such a short time, he completely overhauled the OS I wrote."

Yang Hui couldn't help but marvel at Kira's prowess. Kira reprogramming the OS while fighting was already a legendary scene. While this undoubtedly showcased Kira's status as the [Ultimate Coordinator], the OS originally written by Professor Kato couldn't have been too advanced, or else Kira wouldn't have cursed it so vehemently.

Yang Hui's OS was undoubtedly more advanced than the one written by Professor Kato, and every line of code was logically rigorous. However, it was too advanced for ordinary people to use, and Yang Hui was certain that even Kira couldn't fully master it at this point.

Yet, the Strike Gundam's movements were now fluid and seamless, without the slightest hint of lag. This could only mean that the OS had been completely rewritten.

All he could say was... as expected of the [Ultimate Coordinator].

"It's over. Brace yourselves."

Yang Hui had already seen the Strike Gundam plunge the [Armor Breaker] dagger into the GINN's body. Knowing the battle was over, there was no need to continue watching.

"Huh?"

The four of them hadn't caught what Yang Hui had just said, nor did they know that the Strike Gundam's pilot had been switched to Kira. All they saw was the Strike Gundam suddenly unleash astonishing combat power and take down ZAFT's GINN.

As for Yang Hui's question about whether they still wanted to know the answer... of course not!

The answer had escalated to the level of national policy. As ordinary citizens, how could they possibly want to know? They were more concerned about whether they would be dragged into a massive whirlpool.

"Will we be okay?" Miriallia asked worriedly.

"Probably not, considering it's the military's top secret," Yang Hui replied.

"Then what should we do?" The four of them panicked.

"Leave now, find a shelter, and hide. Don't mention anything you've heard or seen today to anyone, not even your parents."

"...Are you sure it's okay? You won't report us, right?" Katz, the most timid of the group, asked Yang Hui.

"What would I gain from reporting you?" Yang Hui tilted his head slightly, glancing at Katz.

"Didn't you say it was the top secret?"

"What does the Earth Alliance's top secret have to do with me?"

"Uh..."

Everyone suddenly remembered that Yang Hui wasn't part of the Earth Alliance. He was one of the top figures in Orb and had no direct ties to the Earth Alliance... or did he? What about his assistance in developing MS for the Earth Alliance?

"Kira! That's right, where's Kira?" Tolle suddenly recalled that Kira had gone off to chase Yang Hui's "sister" earlier, and he had no idea if Kira was safe now.

"Kira's in the Strike."

"What!?"

"I saw it with my own eyes."

"But... Kira... how could he... board an Earth Alliance MS?"

"It happened too suddenly. The situation was too urgent, and that was the only option."

"Will the Earth Alliance let him go?"

"Definitely not."

Let Kira go? That was impossible. Kira had already touched upon the Earth Alliance's highest-level secrets, and based on the abilities he displayed during the brief battle, Murrue would never let him go unless she was silenced.

"Then... what should we do? Aren't you friends? Can't you help him?" Tolle pleaded with Yang Hui to assist Kira.

"I can't help." Yang Hui shook his head. He couldn't help Kira, nor would he. Kira was the [Ultimate Coordinator], one of his most important targets. He certainly wouldn't personally snuff him out in the cradle.

"...I'll go with you."

"Tolle!" Miriallia exclaimed in shock. They should have listened to Yang Hui's advice, pretended none of this had happened, and taken shelter in the refuge. Why was Tolle still jumping into this willingly?

"I can't just abandon Kira!" Tolle shouted, suppressing his fear. Of course, he was scared too, but Kira was his close friend. He couldn't stand by and watch his friend fall into danger without doing anything.

"...I'll go too!" Sai hesitated for a second or two before making the same decision as Tolle.

"Sai!"

"Tolle's right. We can't just leave Kira alone."

"Then... I'll go too!" Miriallia clung tightly to Tolle's arm, her face clearly showing her fear, but she didn't back down. Or perhaps... she couldn't back down.

"Then I... I..." Katz was timid. Seeing all his friends preparing to go after Kira, he wanted to join them, but he couldn't muster the courage to say the word "go."

"Katz, if you're scared, you should take shelter. There's a refuge nearby," Sai advised. They wouldn't use friendship as an excuse to force Katz. Everyone had their own choices, and they wouldn't look down on him for his fear.

"I... I... I won't take shelter!"

His friends' advice felt like the sharpest knife stabbing into his heart, and their comforting eyes seemed utterly mocking. He knew that if he took shelter, Kira and the others wouldn't look down on him, but... their friendship would be effectively over.

"Katz..."

"Have you made your decision? The nearest refuge is just ahead. After this, there's no turning back," Yang Hui asked the four of them without looking back.

"We've decided!"

"Take us with you."

"We can't let Kira face this alone."

"Then let's go."

Yang Hui's lips curled into a slight smile as he silently admired their friendship. Knowing the immense danger, they still stood up for their friend. Such a bond was truly precious.

However... when Yang Hui thought about a certain messy situation that would happen in the future, he couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. But that wasn't something he needed to worry about. All he had to do was guide Kira onto the path he desired and then reap the results in the end.

...

Driving back to the Strike Gundam, Kira opened the cockpit and immediately called for help when he saw Yang Hui and the others.

"Quick, come help! Someone's injured!"

Tolle, Sai, and Katz carefully carried the unconscious Murrue to the ground. Miriallia, who had somehow found a first aid kit, quickly bandaged Murrue's wound. Marie should be thankful it was a through-and-through injury. If the bullet had remained lodged inside for too long, her arm would have been in serious danger.

"Yang Hui..."

"It seems like you have a lot of questions for me?" Yang Hui didn't look at Kira but instead stood to the side, admiring the Strike Gundam.

"That girl... she said you're a traitor."

"I have never betrayed anyone. Everything I've done has been for Orb. She's just been misled by flashy slogans."

"What about this MS..."

"It's the Earth Alliance's latest cutting-edge MS, the GAT-X105 Strike, one of the Five Gs. It was jointly developed by major companies and research institutes of the Earth Alliance, with my assistance in writing the OS..."

"You wrote that OS?" Kira exclaimed in shock.

"Yes."

"But... that kind of OS... can it really be used by a person? Aren't you a Natural?"

"Who told you that Naturals have to be inferior to Coordinators?" Yang Hui tilted his head, giving Kira a half-smile.

"Well..."

"Instead of worrying about that, you should think about what you're going to do in the future."

"Huh?"

"This is the Earth Alliance's top-secret project. Do you think you can just walk away unscathed after piloting the Strike?"

"But... I'm just a student, and I'm from Orb, not a soldier of the Earth Alliance..."

"Do you think that excuse will work?" Yang Hui shook his head and explained to Kira, "And right now, there's a ZAFT Forces warship stationed outside Heliopolis. Whether we can safely leave Heliopolis depends on your help."

"Me!? How could I possibly..."

"Do you think I don't know that you rewrote the OS I wrote on the spot and took down ZAFT's GINN?"

"Well..."

"There's actually another way."

"What is it?"

"Kill her." Yang Hui pointed at Murrue lying on the ground. "She's the only Earth Forces soldier who knows you piloted the Strike Gundam. Kill her, and if you don't talk, I don't talk, and they don't talk, no one will know about this. You can still return to Orb as a student..."

"How could I possibly do something like that!" Kira roared. He couldn't bring himself to kill someone.

"Then there's no other way."

"What about you, Yang Hui? Since you wrote the OS... a logically rigorous and tightly structured OS... you must be able to use it. In that case..."

"I absolutely cannot get involved in the war between the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, at least not now." Yang Hui knew that Kira hoped he would take his place in battle, to pilot the Strike Gundam. From the OS settings, it was evident that Yang Hui likely possessed exceptional MS piloting skills.

"Why!?" Kira didn't understand, as he was unaware of Yang Hui's true identity.

"My name is in the top five on both the Earth Alliance and PLANT's Pull in or Kill List. If I get involved in the war, Orb will no longer remain neutral, and Orb isn't ready for that yet."

"Po...K? What's that?"

"Pull in or Kill..."

"How could... What exactly..."

"I'm one of Orb's Top 5."

The so-called Top 5 referred to the five most powerful figures in Orb in practical terms. Yang Hui wasn't joking; he was indeed one of them. On the surface, his father, Yang Hongyu, held the position, but both Yang Hongyu and Uzumi knew that Yang Hongyu could maintain his current status only because of Yang Hui's support behind the scenes. Thus, they tacitly acknowledged that the true Top 5 member was Yang Hui, not Yang Hongyu.

Of course, this was a secret known only to the higher-ups and Yang Hui, with no more than a handful of people fully aware of it. However, most people had already guessed the truth.

"How could..."

"Shh~" Yang Hui placed a finger to his lips, signaling Kira to keep quiet. "Don't tell anyone."

"Uh... I won't. But why are you telling me this...?"

"Because I trust you," Yang Hui said with a smile.

Kira was stunned. He could sense that Yang Hui wasn't deceiving him; he genuinely trusted him. Yet, he also felt that Yang Hui's trust went beyond just believing he would keep the secret—there was a deeper meaning to it, though he couldn't quite grasp what it was.

However, he didn't have time to ponder further, as Murrue had woken up.

"Yang Hui! Kira! Come quickly, she's awake!"

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