"I've decided to change the mission. Instead of killing him, I want his whole family dead. Leave only him alive, crippled, rotting in despair! Would the two of you be willing to take this on?"
Back in his office, Ninagawa slammed a thick stack of documents on the table. His bloodshot eyes locked onto the brothers, brimming with rage, hatred, and the determination to pay any price.
He had waited for this day for a long time.
In Kyoto, he was nothing more than a once-famous entrepreneur. On the surface, his life seemed glorious. But beneath that shine, who truly understood how powerless a businessman was before a jujutsu clan?
"What about the payment?"
Mukuro casually flipped through the files. He couldn't read all the characters yet, but it was clear enough. The documents detailed the dirty dealings and shady business that family had been running behind the scenes.
Whether the information was true or not didn't matter now. He would check later if he needed to. What mattered was that he and his brother weren't here for grudges or personal justice. They wanted money.
"As long as you can do it, I'll give you twenty million yen! No… thirty million… no, even more if you need!" Ninagawa's voice cracked as desperation spilled out. He was nearly frantic, terrified that this long-awaited chance might slip away.
Instinct as a businessman told him to haggle down the price. But when he saw their calm expressions, his hatred flared again, drowning out reason. No price was too high for vengeance.
"Then—"
"Thirty million, plus one cursed tool. Use your money and influence to find us a good one. At least grade 1."
Toji was about to demand an outrageous sum, but Mukuro cut him off, placing a hand in front of him.
He didn't need cursed tools himself, but for his brother, the right weapon could make a huge difference.
As one of the Big Three Families, the Zenin clan certainly had plenty hidden away, but Mukuro knew those old geezers would never willingly hand over a top-tier one. And neither of them wanted to ask. Their feelings toward the clan were bitter, yes, but not yet strong enough to drive them to outright slaughter against their kin.
"Uh…" Ninagawa looked toward Toji. To him, the boy might have some skill, but the true core of the duo was the man standing beside him.
"His words are mine."
"No problem! I'll call in every favor I have, every connection in my reach, to find you one!" Ninagawa agreed instantly, relief and fervor in his voice.
"Then let's settle the deposit. Five million will do. We'll take care of the rest."
Mukuro rubbed his fingers together lightly, the gesture clear.
"I understand how this works. Just… please, the sooner the better!" Ninagawa nodded quickly, pulling out his bulky cellphone. He barked orders to the men waiting outside, telling them to bring the cash immediately.
"Good. You'll be satisfied."
Soon, one of the subordinates carried in a small case packed with money. Toji accepted it, stood up, and waved for his brother to leave.
"We'll contact you when the time comes."
Shiu, who had stayed quiet throughout, also rose as well. He gave a polite farewell, then drove the brothers away.
"Master, shall we—"
"Prepare what they asked for."
The middle-aged butler tried to speak, but Ninagawa interrupted him. His eyes burned with the flames of revenge.
* * *
Meanwhile, in the car moving along the road.
"Smoke?"
Shiu, though still young, was already a heavy smoker. He rolled down the window, lit a cigarette, then held out the pack to Toji.
They had only met today, but from now on, they could be considered colleagues.
"Not interested."
Toji kept his focus on the pile of documents. He understood well: even a lion used its full strength to hunt a rabbit. Besides, if no one dared to take on a mission that originally only targeted a semi-grade 2 sorcerer, there had to be something more hidden behind it.
"I heard, just a rumor, that Ninagawa once had a very sweet granddaughter. But about a year ago, she suddenly died. The official story says it was a traffic accident. But the accident site just happened to be where that man was exorcising a cursed spirit. The bounty went up not long after that."
Shiu saw Toji ignoring him, so he gave a slight smile, put away his cigarettes, and continued with what he had heard.
"Collateral damage?" Mukuro asked without looking up. "For normal people in such a place, that's not unusual."
"No. She wasn't collateral. That bastard used her as bait, without a shred of concern for her safety. She was just a child."
Shiu's voice cut in, laced with a faint anger that was hard to miss. Perhaps it came from being a father or brother himself, or maybe just from the resentment an ordinary man felt toward sorcerers who looked down on everyone else.
"Got it." Mukuro kept turning the pages, memorizing key details as he read.
"Feels like the kid's the real big brother here," Shiu muttered as he pressed hard on the accelerator.
* * *
Over an hour later, the car pulled up in front of the Zenin estate gates.
"Alright, if you need to contact me, use this. Each phone here only has one number stored, for direct communication between us."
Shiu stopped the car and opened the glove compartment, where several identical phones sat neatly lined up. After thinking for a moment, he handed two of them to the brothers.
"See you."
They took the phones, waved casually, and walked straight through the gates without looking back.
"Such a big job, and you won't even let me in for a cup of tea. Heartless bastards…" Shiu grumbled as he drove away.
The brothers stayed silent until they reached their room.
"Don't let Onshin know about this." Toji tossed the box with millions of yen onto the floor and collapsed onto the bed.
He knew what this path meant. Though he wouldn't kill indiscriminately, the jujutsu world would see him no differently than a curse user.
Still, he wanted at least one thing: that when he held Onshin in the future, his hands wouldn't feel filthy.
"Of course I won't tell her. In the eyes of ordinary people, killing is never a noble job. Doesn't matter if you're an assassin or a sorcerer."
Mukuro spread the files across the floor, pulling out the crucial pages and laying them flat.
"So, are you really joining in? Even if it's just me, the job won't fail. I'll split the money with you."
Toji sat up, glancing at his brother's serious face.
"Stop talking nonsense. We're brothers."
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