Chapter 76 — Operation: The Apocalypse
Daichi Kazuma rose from his seat and adjusted the sleeves of his shirt.
"Then we shouldn't waste any more time," he said. "Your companions are waiting for us."
Tokita stood, followed by Kaito and Natsuki. After everything Daichi had told them about the sanctuary, none of them could look at the situation as a simple conflict between a group of soldiers and a former leader. There were people trapped inside that complex, people who had trusted Daichi to protect them. Whatever had happened between him and Captain Jin, the residents were the ones paying the price.
Still, one question remained.
"How are we supposed to leave this place without attracting attention?" Tokita asked. "Jin has soldiers watching the prisoners. If three people suddenly disappear, he'll notice."
Daichi gave a small nod, as though he had expected the question.
"Not every soldier here is loyal to Jin. Some have remained on my side, although they've had to keep their allegiance secret. They'll help us move through the complex without raising suspicion."
"And if we run into someone who isn't on your side?" Kaito asked.
"Then we avoid giving them a reason to become suspicious."
Natsuki folded his arms. "That sounds reassuring."
"It's not supposed to be reassuring," Daichi replied. "It's supposed to get us out of here."
He led them toward the far end of the room. Behind a set of storage shelves, concealed by stacked boxes and maintenance equipment, was a narrow service door. Daichi moved the boxes aside and pulled it open, revealing a dim corridor that ran behind the main rooms.
"This passage was built for maintenance workers," he explained. "Most of the soldiers don't use it. One of my people is waiting at the other end."
Tokita glanced into the darkness.
"You've been planning this for a while."
"I've had plenty of time to think."
Daichi stepped inside first.
"Stay close. And whatever you hear, don't react unless I tell you to."
They followed him into the passage. The door closed behind them, shutting out the room where Daichi had recounted the destruction of his sanctuary and the betrayal that had taken it from him.
For now, they had to keep moving.
Aoi Kanzaki sat near the wall with Nezuko beside her.
Neither had spoken much in the past several minutes.
They had been told to wait, but waiting had become its own kind of punishment. Every sound beyond the door drew their attention. Every passing footstep made Nezuko lift her head, only for the silence that followed to leave her more anxious than before.
She clasped her hands together.
"Do you think they're all right?"
Aoi looked toward the closed door.
"They're probably fine."
"You sound like you're trying to convince yourself."
Aoi gave her a sideways glance. "Maybe I am."
Nezuko lowered her eyes.
It had not been that long since they had been separated, but the circumstances made it feel much longer. They had been thrown into unfamiliar situations, surrounded by people they could not fully trust, with no clear idea of what had happened to the others. Nezuko had tried to remain hopeful, but the uncertainty had followed her everywhere.
Aoi understood. She had spent most of her time trying to assess their situation, looking for weaknesses in the security around them and thinking through possible ways out. Staying occupied had been easier than admitting how worried she was.
Then came the sound of a door opening.
Both girls looked up.
A figure appeared in the doorway.
For one brief moment, Nezuko expected to see Natsuki.
Instead, a familiar girl stepped into the room.
"Mira?"
Mira barely had time to answer before Nezuko rushed toward her.
"Mira!"
The two collided in a tight embrace. Nezuko wrapped her arms around Mira, pressing her face against her shoulder as the relief she had been holding back finally broke through. Mira hugged her just as tightly, her own eyes filling with tears.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Mira whispered.
Nezuko tried to answer, but her voice caught in her throat.
Aoi had risen from her seat. She stood a short distance away, watching them with a tightness in her chest that she could no longer ignore. Her eyes glistened, and she quickly looked aside before either girl could notice.
Mira reached out and pulled her into the embrace.
For a moment, Aoi resisted out of habit. Then she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around them both.
"I'm glad you're safe," she said quietly.
Her voice was steady, but her eyes betrayed her.
Mira drew back just enough to look at her.
"You too."
Aoi nodded. She had too much to ask and too much to explain, but for the moment, she was content simply to see Mira standing in front of her.
Nezuko wiped her face with the back of her hand.
"We have so much to talk about."
"We do," Mira agreed. "And I want to hear everything. But first, tell me—where are the others?"
Before either girl could answer, footsteps sounded in the corridor.
This time, the door opened wider.
Tokita entered behind Daichi.
The moment Nezuko saw him, she pulled away from Mira. Aoi turned, and whatever composure she had managed to recover disappeared from her expression.
"Tokita!"
All three girls moved toward him at once.
Tokita barely had time to react before they surrounded him. Nezuko grabbed his arm, Mira held his other shoulder, and Aoi stepped close enough to check his face for injuries.
"Wait—" Tokita began.
Nezuko looked him over. "Are you hurt?"
"Did they do anything to you?" Mira asked.
Aoi's gaze moved over his face, his neck, and his arms, searching for anything that might have escaped his notice.
"Tokita, answer us."
He blinked at them.
"I'm fine. Seriously."
That did little to reassure them.
Nezuko continued inspecting him, while Mira checked his arms as if she expected to find a hidden wound. Aoi remained close, her hand still resting against his sleeve.
Tokita looked from one to the other, increasingly bewildered.
"Whoa, guys. We were only separated for a little while. Was it really that long?"
"Don't joke about it," Nezuko muttered.
"I'm not joking."
"You look like you're joking," Aoi said.
"That's just my face."
Mira let out a small, unsteady laugh. Nezuko's expression softened, and even Aoi seemed to relax a little.
Then two voices came from behind Tokita.
"Unbelievable."
Natsuki stood in the doorway, arms folded, while Kaito looked at the scene with a tired expression.
"So the three of you get a reunion like that," Natsuki said, "but we get nothing?"
Kaito sighed. "I suppose surviving everything we went through wasn't enough to earn a hug."
Tokita glanced over his shoulder. "You two are alive, aren't you?"
"That's your response?" Natsuki demanded.
Nezuko immediately stepped away from Tokita and embraced her twin brother.
Natsuki froze for half a second before returning the hug. His usual irritation faded, and he rested one hand briefly against the back of her head.
"You're okay," he murmured.
"Of course I am," Nezuko replied, although her voice was still thick with emotion.
"Yeah. Well, you could've made that easier to believe."
Mira approached Kaito next and hugged him. He seemed surprised, but he returned the gesture with a small smile.
"I'm glad you're safe, Kaito," she said.
"Likewise."
Aoi, however, had not moved away from Tokita.
She was still holding his sleeve, her eyes searching his face.
"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked more quietly.
Tokita's expression softened.
"I'm sure."
He gently touched her cheek, then brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face. His gaze shifted to Nezuko, and he briefly checked her face as well, making sure neither of them was hiding an injury.
Only then did he notice the redness around Aoi's eyes.
He paused.
"Were you crying?"
Aoi immediately straightened.
"Crying? I wasn't crying for anyone."
Tokita looked at her for a moment.
"Right."
He could have teased her. Under different circumstances, he probably would have. But he could see how hard she had been trying to keep herself together, and he decided to leave it alone.
Instead, he gave her a small, reassuring smile.
Aoi looked away, but she did not release his sleeve.
For the first time since their separation, the group was together again.
And for a few precious moments, the dangers waiting outside the room seemed distant.
Daichi allowed them a little time before drawing their attention back to the situation.
"We should sit down," he said. "There's still a great deal we need to discuss."
They gathered around a table. Someone had left a few chairs nearby, and Daichi pulled another one from the corner. The atmosphere was calmer now, but the relief of the reunion had given way to a growing awareness that they were still inside a hostile compound.
There were questions to answer, information to exchange, and decisions that could not be delayed for long.
They began by filling one another in on what had happened since the group was separated.
Aoi and Nezuko explained how they had been brought into the sanctuary and how quickly they had realized that something was wrong. Their account made it clear that the complex was not simply under strict military supervision. Its residents were living under a system built around fear, and the soldiers had become increasingly comfortable exercising control over people who had nowhere else to go.
Kaito and Natsuki shared what they had learned from their own experiences. Their descriptions of the soldiers' behavior, the restrictions placed on the residents, and the tension surrounding Jin helped the others understand how thoroughly the sanctuary had changed under the new leadership.
Tokita listened without interrupting. When he spoke about what had happened on his side, he kept his account focused on what mattered to the group: Daichi's history, the coup, the deaths of the people who had opposed Jin, and the reason Daichi was now asking for their help.
They did not need to recount every conversation or every step they had taken. The important parts gradually came together, allowing each person to understand what the others had endured and what they had discovered.
Mira, who had spent much of her time treating the injured, added her own account. The emergency ward had been overwhelmed, and she had done everything she could to help the wounded residents. Several people had begun calling her a goddess after she saved lives that they had thought were already lost.
She looked embarrassed when the others reacted.
"I'm not a goddess," she insisted. "I was just doing what I could."
"That's exactly what someone who deserves the title would say," Nezuko replied.
Mira covered her face with one hand.
"Please don't start."
For a brief moment, the table filled with quiet laughter. It was not enough to erase what had happened, but it reminded them that they were still themselves beneath the fear and exhaustion.
Eventually, Nezuko's attention returned to Daichi.
"So you're really Hiori's husband?"
Daichi nodded.
"My name is Daichi Kazuma. Hiori and I founded this sanctuary together."
Nezuko glanced at Aoi, then back at him. "She never told us much about her life before all this."
"There are things she prefers to keep private," Daichi said. His expression softened slightly at the mention of his wife. "But she has always cared about people. This place was supposed to give them a chance to survive."
"And Jin took it from you," Kaito said.
"He took control of it," Daichi corrected. "But the sanctuary still belongs to the people who live here. That's why I intend to reclaim it."
The words settled over the table.
Aoi folded her hands and looked directly at Daichi.
"Then we need to decide what we're going to do."
Daichi met her gaze.
"I was hoping you would say that."
"Are you asking us to help you fight Jin?" she asked.
"Yes."
Aoi looked around the table.
"I'll help."
Nezuko nodded almost immediately. "Me too."
Kaito leaned back in his chair, his expression serious. "I already made my decision."
Natsuki's jaw tightened.
"I'm in."
Daichi looked at Tokita last.
Tokita had remained quiet throughout the discussion. His eyes moved from Daichi to the others, taking in their determination. He understood why they wanted to help. Jin had taken innocent people hostage, forced residents to live under his control, and turned a place of refuge into something they feared.
But understanding their reasons did not mean he agreed with their decision.
"No," Tokita said.
The room fell silent.
Natsuki's head snapped toward him.
"What do you mean, no?"
"I mean I'm not joining the fight against Jin and his soldiers."
"You've got to be kidding me," Natsuki said. "After everything we've heard?"
Tokita did not rise to the provocation.
"We have our own mission. It's important, and every day we spend here is another day we're not making progress."
"And what about the people trapped here?" Aoi asked.
"I'm not abandoning them."
"Then what are you saying?" Nezuko asked.
Tokita rested his forearms on the table.
"I'll help protect the residents and get them out of danger. If we need to evacuate people, I'll handle that. If someone is about to be killed and I can stop it, I'll stop it. But I'm not going to take over the fight for you."
Natsuki stared at him.
"So you're just going to stand aside and watch us get beaten?"
"No. I'm going to watch you fight."
"That sounds like the same thing with extra words." Natsuki replied
"Then listen more carefully."Tokita answered.
Natsuki's fingers twitched against the table. A faint spark flickered between them before disappearing.
Tokita continued, his voice calm.
"You all want to become stronger. You want to be able to protect people without waiting for me to do it. But every time we face an opponent who is stronger than you, you look to me to handle the situation."
"That isn't always true," Kaito said.
"No. It isn't. But it's happened often enough that we need to talk about it."
Tokita glanced around the table, meeting each of their eyes in turn.
"Think about Ragna."
The name alone was enough to change the atmosphere.
No one interrupted him.
They all remembered the battle. The heat, the destruction, the feeling of facing an opponent whose power could overwhelm the battlefield in seconds. Ragna had not merely been difficult to fight. His ability had threatened to devastate an enormous area, nearly leveling a region—possibly even a city.
And he had been ranked seventh.
"Seventh," Tokita repeated. "We fought someone ranked seventh, and that battle was already terrifying enough. Now think about what that means for the people ranked above him."
Nezuko lowered her eyes, remembering the scale of Ragna's power.
Kaito's expression grew thoughtful. Even Natsuki, who had been ready to argue a moment earlier, remained silent.
Tokita did not pretend to know what the strongest ability users were capable of. He had never fought them. He did not know what abilities they possessed, how they used them, or how much stronger they might be than Ragna.
That uncertainty was precisely the problem.
"We don't know what the future is going to bring," he said. "We don't know who we'll meet, what they'll be able to do, or how strong they'll be. For all we know, there may come a day when I face another ability user and lose."
Mira looked at him sharply.
"Tokita…"
"I'm not saying it's going to happen tomorrow. I'm saying I can't promise I'll win every fight. None of us can." Tokita replied.
He leaned back slightly.
"If I keep stepping in every time things get difficult, what happens when I'm not there? What happens if I'm injured, separated from you, or facing someone I can't defeat? What will you do then?"
No one answered immediately.
It was not a pleasant question. They had seen what Tokita could do, and there was comfort in knowing that he was with them. When things went wrong, he was often the one who stood between them and disaster.
But that comfort could become a weakness if they depended on it too much.
"I want you to grow stronger," Tokita said. "Not because I expect you to defeat every enemy on your own, but because I don't want your survival to depend on whether I happen to be standing beside you."
His gaze settled on Natsuki.
"You too."
Natsuki's expression tightened, but he did not look away.
Tokita turned to the others.
"We don't know how many threats are still out there. Ragna isn't the only person with an ability. There's Eclipse Vanguard, and Nezuko's situation could draw more people toward us. We don't even know for certain what happened to Ragna and Hoshina after our last encounter."
Nezuko's fingers curled against her knees.
The uncertainty around her immunity had followed her for weeks. She had no desire to become the reason her friends were dragged into more dangerous fights, but she knew she could not simply disappear and expect the problem to go away.
Tokita noticed her expression.
"That's another reason we need to be prepared. We can't decide what the future will bring, but we can decide whether we're ready to face it."
Aoi looked down at the table, considering his words.
"So you want us to handle Jin ourselves."
"I want you to take responsibility for the fight you're choosing to enter. Jin has soldiers, resources, and control of the sanctuary. You need to figure out how to deal with those things. You need to work together, adapt, and make decisions under pressure."
"And you get to watch?" Natsuki asked.
"I'll be close enough to observe what's happening. My priority will be the residents. I'm not going to leave innocent people in danger just to prove a point, but I'm also not going to rescue you from every mistake you make."
Natsuki clicked his tongue.
"You make it sound like training."
"It isn't training. The consequences are real. That's why you need to take it seriously." Tokita replied
The room grew quiet again.
Tokita's decision was not a refusal to help. It was a refusal to become the answer to every problem they faced. He would protect the people who could not protect themselves, but the others would have to prove that they could confront danger without relying on him to end the fight.
Kaito was the first to speak.
"I understand what you're saying."
Natsuki turned to him. "Of course you do."
"Don't start." Kaito gave him a brief look before returning his attention to Tokita. "He's right about one thing. We can't keep expecting him to carry everything. But that doesn't mean we should rush into this without a plan."
Aoi nodded.
"Then we make a plan."
Daichi had been listening without interrupting. Now he leaned forward, resting his hands on the table.
"Jin knows this complex better than any of you. He has soldiers guarding the main routes, and he has spent weeks making the residents dependent on his authority. Even if you defeat the men protecting him, that doesn't mean the sanctuary will immediately be safe." Daichi replied.
"Which is why we need to know how the complex is being controlled," Aoi replied. "We need information before we make our move."
"And we need to keep the residents out of the crossfire," Mira added. "I can treat injuries, but I can't protect everyone if a battle spreads through the entire building."
Tokita nodded.
"That's where Mira and I come in."
He turned slightly toward her.
"Mira, you'll focus on the injured and help organize the evacuation. You'll be more useful there than trying to fight soldiers."
Mira did not take offense. She knew her limitations. Her ability could save lives, but she was not trained to fight like Aoi, Nezuko, Kaito, or Natsuki. Putting her in the middle of a battle would risk losing the very person who could keep the wounded alive.
"I agree," she said. "I'll help anyone who needs medical attention, and I'll make sure we have a way to move the injured residents safely."
Tokita looked back at the others.
"I'll stay with the evacuation and defense team. I'll watch the fighting and keep the civilians safe. If the situation becomes dangerous enough that someone is about to die, I'll intervene. Otherwise, you'll have to handle your opponents yourselves."
"And the offensive team?"Nezuko asked.
"You, Aoi, Kaito, and Natsuki." Tokita replied.
The four exchanged looks.
Aoi was already thinking through possible routes and contingencies. Nezuko looked nervous, but her resolve was clear. Kaito's attention had shifted to the practical problem of confronting Jin's forces. Natsuki wore his usual defiant expression, though the tension in his shoulders suggested that he understood the weight of what they were agreeing to.
"Our job is to confront Jin's control of this place," daichi said. "Find out what defenses he's set up, deal with the soldiers standing in our way, and create an opening for the residents to escape. But don't assume you can win by charging straight at him. We need information, coordination, and a way to keep the residents from becoming hostages again."
Aoi nodded slowly.
"I can help you with the layout and identify the soldiers still loyal to me. But we must be careful. Jin won't give up the sanctuary without a fight."Daichi replied
"Then we'll make sure we're ready for one," Aoi said.
She looked at Nezuko, Kaito,Mira, Tokita and Natsuki.
"We'll work together. No rushing ahead alone, no ignoring information, and no putting the residents at unnecessary risk."Aoi replied.
Natsuki raised an eyebrow. "You're looking at me when you say that?"
"Do you have a reason to feel singled out?"Aoi asked
"Not a good one."Natsuki answered.
Kaito sighed. "Can we focus?"
A faint smile passed over Nezuko's face, but it disappeared as she looked around the table. They were no longer simply discussing whether they should help Daichi. They were deciding how to do it, knowing that a mistake could cost lives.
Aoi pushed her chair back and stood.
"Then that's settled. Myself, Nezuko, Kaito, and Natsuki will handle the offensive. Mira and Tokita will focus on defense, protecting the residents, and getting them out safely. Daichi will help us understand the complex and identify the people we can trust." Aoi replied
Tokita paused, looking at each of them.
"Don't mistake my decision for a lack of concern. I want you all to survive this. But I also need to know that you can face what comes next."
No one spoke for a moment.
Then Aoi replied.
"We'll do it."
Nezuko stood beside her. Kaito followed, and Natsuki pushed his chair away from the table with a scrape.
"We'll take back the sanctuary," Natsuki said.
Daichi looked at the six of them. For the first time since he had begun recounting what happened to his home, a little of the weight in his expression eased.
"Thank you," he said. "I won't forget this."
"Don't thank us yet," Kaito replied. "We still have to succeed."
Tokita moved toward the door, already thinking about the evacuation routes and the people who would need protection once the fighting began. The others had chosen their side, and he would stand by them—but he would not carry the entire battle on his shoulders.
They would have to face the pressure, make their own decisions, and discover how far they could go.
Because somewhere beyond the sanctuary, the world was still falling apart. And none of them knew what kind of enemy they might face next.
For now, there was only one thing they could do.
They had to get ready.
End of Chapter 76 — Operation: The Apocalypse