"What's the situation? Did the Evol officers make it there?"
Hinata's voice cut through the air, taut with frustration and something colder beneath fear, maybe. She gripped the steering wheel like it owed her answers, her knuckles pale against the leather. The engine growled as she weaved through traffic, every swerve sharp, every second dragging like chains behind her.
The phone sat on the dashboard, speaker on, but silent. Her eyes flicked to it, teeth gritted.
Finally, a voice crackled through the static.
"Miss Hinata, they're en route. Estimated arrival: thirty minutes. There's… not a single Evol in Tokyo right now, so it'll take time."
The man sounded tense, every word chosen like stepping through glass. In the background, voices murmured, tech beeped a command center, maybe, scrambling behind the scenes.
"Thirty minutes?!" she snapped. "Are you fucking kidding me?"
As if on cue, the car jerked violently.
The dashboard lights flared.
Hinata's eyes widened.
"No…" she hissed.
The needle sat dead on empty.
"You've got to be kidding me."
She slammed the steering wheel, the echo punching through the silence. With a curse, she snatched her phone, shoved open the door, and stepped out. Cold night air rushed over her, biting against her skin as she slammed the door shut.
She stood still for a beat, eyes on the road stretching ahead Tokyo was still 20 kilometers out.
Waiting for another ride? Not an option.
She didn't have time.
She wore a sleek black high-neck top lined with thin vertical pinstripes, subtle and sharp. The long sleeves fluttered slightly with each step, softening the edge of her movements. High-waisted black trousers hugged her frame, cinched at the waist by a slim belt tailored elegance made for speed.
"Haru, just tell those Evols to get there as fast as they can. I'll handle it myself if I have to."
She ended the call before he could reply. Her thumb lifted from the screen — and in that instant, she vanished.
A rush of air exploded in her place. The asphalt beneath her cracked with a thunderous snap, splintering in a perfect circle. Dust shot outward, debris scattered, and the echo of splitting concrete rolled through the quiet street. The tremor faded, but the scar on the road remained a silent witness to her velocity.
---
A few minutes later, she arrived.
Her home stood in ruins.
Sweat drenched her, hair plastered to her skin, her breath ragged and heavy. Twenty kilometers in minutes even for her, it was near her limit.
But exhaustion meant nothing now.
Flames devoured one side of the house, lighting the wreckage in dancing orange. Black smoke clawed at the sky. The scent of ash was thick… but beneath it was something heavier.
Blood.
Her gaze whipped across the destruction, wild, desperate. Searching for life. For him.
Then she saw it — and froze.
In the heart of the chaos, a man stood quietly.
He wore a plain white T-shirt and soft grey pants, a black apron tied neatly around his waist. Blood stained the front dark, wet, fresh.
But it wasn't his.
Three bodies lay crumpled on the shattered floor, blood pooling beneath them, seeping into what remained of the wooden panels.
The man looked up, eyes meeting hers. For a breath, his face was unreadable.
Then, he smiled.
Soft. Gentle. Like nothing had happened at all.
"You're back, Hina," he said, voice warm.
Despite the carnage, despite the blood on his clothes he looked just as he always did.
Handsome. Harmless. Hers.
Without a second thought, Hinata ran to him the blood, the bodies, the smoke none of it mattered.
She threw her arms around him, clutching him tightly, burying her face against his chest as if to prove he was still there, still breathing. The steady rhythm of his breath against her ear melted her knees. Relief surged through her like a wave breaking a dam.
"Hina," he murmured, voice low. "I'm covered in blood. You'll get yourself dirty."
But his arms didn't move. He didn't push her away. He stood there steady, warm, safe.
She looked up, her breath still catching in her throat, sweat clinging to her skin.
"Dirty?" she whispered, a soft smile breaking through the storm in her eyes.
"Nah... to me, you're as clean as always, my sweet husband."
---
The silence shattered.
Engines roared as a convoy of black cars flooded the street, headlights slicing through smoke. Two helicopters thundered overhead, wind whipping ash into the air. Car doors slammed open, and a man sprinted toward them short, sweating, clearly overwhelmed.
"Miss Hinata! You're already here!" he called out, nearly stumbling over his own feet.
His eyes swept to the bloodied bodies, then to the man in the apron. He raised a hand in a quick signal. Some vehicles turned and drove off. Others stopped doors swinging open as teams poured out with practiced efficiency.
One group moved to restrain the unconscious men, loading them into waiting vans. The rest began containing the flames still chewing through what remained of the house.
"I already sent the Evols back," the man said, his tone softer now, gaze drifting back to Jin. "No need for them anymore."
He hesitated.
"Mr. Jin… did you really take down these men? I thought… I mean, I thought you were just a normal person."
Hinata turned slowly, her eyes cutting straight through him like glass.
The man Haru tensed under the weight of her stare. He raised his hands halfway, as if shielding himself from the storm building behind her silence.
"I-I didn't mean it like that, Miss Hinata!" he stammered. "I was just curious, that's all!"
Jin let out a soft chuckle and reached up to pat Hinata's head.
"Don't be so hard on him, Hina. Curiosity's natural."
He turned his eyes to Haru, voice as calm as a breeze.
"I'll tell you everything." He glanced down at the blood clinging to his clothes. "But as you can see, I need to clean up first."
"Of course, Mr. Jin." Haru gave a quick nod and motioned to two nearby agents. They stepped forward silently, ready to escort him.
Hinata stepped in close, her gaze lingering on Jin unreadable, but soft at the edges.
"You go first," she said gently. "I'll handle the rest here."
Without another word, she pulled him into one last embrace brief but fierce. Her hand gripped the back of his shirt like she didn't want to let go. Jin smiled faintly, patting her back in return. Then he stepped away and followed the agents to the car waiting nearby. It pulled off quickly, vanishing down the smoky street.
---
As soon as he disappeared, the warmth in Hinata's face drained.
She slid into the backseat of Haru's car. He took the wheel, already knowing where this was headed.
"Who were they?" she asked coldly. "And why go after my husband instead of me?"
Haru's hands tightened on the wheel. His voice, though cautious, stayed clear.
"The Evolver group we took down last time. Turns out we missed someone. They put a bounty on Mr. Jin 100 million USD." He hesitated, then added, "Placing a bounty on you would be suicide. So they went after him instead… hoping to break you."
Hinata didn't respond right away. The silence stretched.
Haru glanced at her in the rearview mirror, then spoke again, quieter this time.
"Still… I didn't expect this. I mean, I thought Mr. Jin was just a normal civilian. Even if he's an Evolver, taking down three A-ranks? That's not normal."
Hinata's eyes stayed locked on the window, unreadable.
"You're not the only one who was surprised, Haru." Her voice was calm, but distant. "I was too. But it's fine. If Jin didn't tell me… it wasn't because he was hiding something. He just didn't think it mattered."
She leaned back, eyes narrowing slightly.
"And if he hadn't been that strong, he'd be dead. That's all that matters now."
A sharpness crept back into her voice.
"What happened to the three Evolvers?"
"Alive. I sent them to Level 4 prison," Haru replied, eyes on the road.
Hinata exhaled through her nose, slow and deep. Her tone dropped, all softness stripped away.
"Take me to headquarters first."
[Chapter 1 End]