"Promising," Auren mutters. "Maybe this time we'll find someone important. Someone higher up the chain who actually knows more. I'll try to spare at least one of them."
Suddenly, Auren's phone rings. He answers without hesitation.
"This is Machi," comes the voice on the other end. "That guy just got a call. He tried to act natural, but I don't think they bought it. He knows nothing—just a small-time henchman. He's not even a Nen user."
"Anything else?" Auren asks. "We're flying toward a warehouse outside Swardani City."
"He doesn't know much," Machi says, "but he confirmed there are at least ten armed guards stationed there. None of them use Nen, from what he knows. They report to a small group of people. The only point of contact they have is the guard captain, who coordinates them, so they don't actually know their employers. We're cleaning up the mess and will follow in a car. Send me the address."
Auren relays the location the pilot provided, ends the call, and then closes his eyes, trying to focus.
I need to get serious.
"How long until we arrive?" he asks.
"Five minutes," the pilot responds. "But we won't land right at the warehouse. We touch down at a small abandoned airport nearby. That way, if the authorities get involved, they won't find the real location immediately."
"How long from the airport until the warehouse in question?" Auren asks, continuing his questioning.
"Just ten minutes," the pilot replies flatly.
"So in reality, we can make it in just two or three," Auren mutters, and Shalnark nods along in agreement.
Auren's phone rings again. He answers quickly. "Yes?"
Machi's voice comes through the line. "They know something's wrong. They phoned the dead guy's number, and obviously nobody answered. We shut it off immediately, but that alone will make them suspicious."
"You heard that?" Auren asks, glancing at Shalnark.
"Yes," Shalnark replies, his lips curling into a bright smile. "I suppose it's time for a little change of plan. Dear Pilot, please fly directly to the warehouse. When we arrive, crash this helicopter straight into its main entrance."
"Understood," the pilot responds, his tone calm and automatic.
"I don't expect the landing will go smoothly," Auren mutters under his breath.
"No, I don't think so either," Shalnark admits, still smiling. "But I'll give this pilot one small chance. I'll pull out the antenna before the crash. If he somehow survives… I'll let him walk away."
"I guess I'd better get ready then," Auren says, lowering himself to the floor and suppressing his presence completely with Zetsu, recovering his Aura.
Minutes pass. Then Shalnark's voice cuts through the noise of the helicopter blades: "We're here. Get ready to jump."
"Before you slam into the main entrance, drop me onto the roof," Auren instructs. "Once I'm up there, I'll use En to locate our enemies. You focus on blocking any escape routes and slowly press forward."
The helicopter shifts, hovering above the warehouse. Auren leans out, staring down into the darkness. Not a single light is on inside the building below.
As the aircraft lowers, he jumps, landing silently once the height becomes manageable.
Immediately, he activates En, the sphere of Aura stretching outward until it blankets almost the entire warehouse complex. In an instant, he senses them:
Several men posted at the main entrance.
A few more stationed at the loading docks behind the building.
A cluster of figures gathered in one of the second-floor offices, 10 people in total.
Finally, with a flash of concern, he spots two guards positioned right on the stairs that lead directly up to the roof, hiding behind the door, guns drawn.
They must have noticed me already… time for action.
Auren draws Eternity and charges toward the rooftop door—just as a massive explosion rocks the air behind him. The helicopter slams into the front of the warehouse, a fiery crash lighting up the night sky.
Auren reaches the rooftop door and does not hesitate. With one powerful kick, the door bursts inward. But instead of charging straight in, he immediately steps to the side, keeping himself out of view of the enemies inside. He suppresses his presence with Zetsu and activates Shadow Step, his movements completely silent, like a phantom slipping into the darkness. As he steps inside, the Soldiers don't notice him immediately.
Once through the door, he wastes no time waiting for them to spot him. He abruptly cancels Zetsu and fires two Nen bullets from his mouth, conjured from Limitless Waters. The watery projectiles slam directly into the skulls of the two men, guarding the roof. Both collapse instantly, their heads bursting open under the impact.
Without Nen… these heads break as easily as melons.
He walks down the stairs and enters the upper floor of the warehouse.
I should aim directly for the "heads" gathered on the second floor. Thankfully, I don't need to storm the main entrance. Shalnark should be fine on his own.
With the memory of his earlier En still guiding him, Auren darts forward, rushing up through the upper level of the warehouse. Despite his immense speed, Auren's training allows him to move silently, not drawing any unwanted attention towards himself.
He halts briefly, activating En again. The cloud-like bubble appears, covering a large part of the warehouse, confirming the targets' locations: six armed guards posted within the office area, and, seated in a separate room, four people calmly sitting around a conference table.
A large conference room, huh? So I'll need to deal with the soldiers first.
From deeper inside the building, he hears bursts of gunfire echoing down the hall. But he doesn't let it distract him.
Shalnark can handle himself. He's a master Nen user, even if direct combat isn't his specialty.
I need to focus on the real targets. If possible, I'll capture a few. The rest… I don't need them!
Auren stops in front of the office door.
I can't avoid a direct confrontation, but charging in recklessly would be a mistake. I'll step aside for now… let's see, time for this hatsu!
He exhales and activates Hiding in Mist, conjuring a dense, thick fog from Aura created with Limitless Waters. The fog seeps through every gap in the door, creeping inside without resistance. Muffled shouts rise from within as confusion spreads.
"What is this?!"
"Fog?!"
"We can't fight this! This is not a human!"
"DIE MONSTER!!!"
One of the soldiers panics and sprays bullets through the door, more and more holes appearing. To the soldiers' utter despair, all he accomplishes is creating more entry points for the fog, worsening their situation even more. Auren, standing safely to the side of the door, remains completely untouched.
Auren grips Eternity tightly, suppresses his presence once more with Zetsu, and kicks the door wide open.
Despite his own limited vision inside the fog, his hatsu allows him to sense inside the fog, as if he's using En, as long as Zetsu is activated.
The soldiers scream in desperation as Auren advances through the fog toward them.
When he stands directly before one of them, his Aura surges. In the span of just two-tenths of a second, he shifts from Zetsu to Ren, his power exploding outward. Eternity flashes, and the soldier is cleaved cleanly in half. Before the others can even react, Auren vanishes back into the mist, suppressing himself with Zetsu once again.
The chaos escalates. In less than five seconds, four of the soldiers lie dead, their bodies cut apart before they even realize what happened. The two survivors panic, their fear boiling over, and they unleash their rifles wildly into the office, spraying bullets without aim.
Auren smiles in the darkness. He tracks every frantic movement with perfect clarity, slipping easily around their blind fire. He ducks, sidesteps, and shifts his weight calmly, avoiding their random shots with almost casual precision.
This isn't even a challenge… I can sense all their movements.
Then, finally, after countless gunshots, a new sound echoes through the office. It's a clicking sound, repeating itself a couple of times.
The soldiers freeze, their weapons now useless. Auren walks toward them as if the fight were already decided. With two swift motions, Eternity cuts through both men, ending them in a single slice each.
The office falls into an eerie silence.
Now… the real game will start, time to get serious.
Auren now stands before the door leading into the conference room.
With a swift wave of his hand, the fog slowly creeps into the room.
He drives Eternity straight through the door, piercing a hole to let the mist pour inside even faster, then retreats a few steps back into the fog.
"Stop, please!" one of the voices inside screams.
"Can you hear me? I want to surrender! Please answer me! Can you hear me??!!" another shouts desperately.
These people… they must be the thieves, the ones responsible for the license thefts, but why do they act like this? Don't they have at least some Nen users among them?
Could this be a trap? I can't risk answering. There's only one way this ends…
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