Kaito ran along the crowded road.
Cars moved in steady lines, engines humming. People walked along the sidewalks, talking, checking their phones, carrying bags. It was an ordinary evening—except for him.
He wasn't running at a normal speed. He was moving like lightning.
No ordinary eye could follow him. To the world, he was nothing but a blur—if even that. As he passed, a powerful wave of wind followed in his wake. It struck pedestrians and rattled loose papers, tugged at clothes and hair as if a sudden storm had brushed against them and vanished just as quickly.
People stopped.
They looked around in confusion.
"What was that?"
"There's no wind…"
But there was nothing to see. The street returned to normal within seconds.
Kaito kept running.
In a flash, he reached his building. Without slowing down, he dashed inside and raced up the stairwell, taking the steps two at a time until he reached the rooftop. As soon as he stepped out, he scanned the area.
No one.
In the next instant, he was gone again—rushing down to the ground floor.
The gate guard was napping in his chair.
Kaito approached quietly and gently pushed the guard's shoulder. The man stirred, humming groggily as his eyes opened. He looked up at Kaito, still half-asleep.
"Did you see any police coming?" Kaito asked.
The guard frowned slightly, thinking.
"Yes… I saw a few of them rushing inside," he said slowly. "But when they were going out, I noticed they had terrifying faces. And they handcuffed someone."
He paused.
"But I've never seen that guy in the building. He might be a thief."
Kaito nodded. "Okay."
And instantly, he ran.
To the guard's eyes, Kaito simply vanished.
The man blinked and stared at the empty space in front of him.
"Maybe I'm seeing things," he muttered. "I need some sleep.
His legs moved in a quick, steady rhythm. His shoes struck the pavement so rapidly that the sound blended into a single whisper. Each step carried him farther, faster. The wind rushed past his ears, tugging at his shirt and whipping his hair back.
To ordinary people, he was invisible.
They didn't see a boy sprinting past them. They only felt a sudden gust of wind that lifted loose papers and stirred the trees. A few pedestrians glanced around in confusion, wondering where the breeze had come from.
But Kaito was already gone.
As he ran, a thought formed in his mind.
Nagato might be at the police station.
Without slowing down, he pulled his phone from his pocket and checked the date.
"It had only been two days since he had been kidnapped".
Soon, the police station came into view. It was a small, two-storey building with faded paint and a single police truck parked just outside the gate. The place looked quiet — too quiet.
Kaito slowed slightly and noticed a few officers walking out of the station.
He immediately moved out of sight, slipping behind the parked truck. Keeping low, he carefully peeked from the side, watching their movements.
As they passed near the truck, their voices drifted toward him.
"Did you hear? The team went to catch the culprit. They picked up a suspect and claimed some guys arrived in a helicopter and took the real culprit."
One officer snorted. "And apparently they had supernatural abilities. Like they appear knocked them then took the culprit"
The other laughed. "Yeah, sure. Sounds like someone's trying to slack off ."
Their laughter faded as they walked away.
Kaito leaned slightly to watch them disappear down the street.
"So I was right… Nagato is here".
He checked his phone again.
7:16 PM.
"I should wait until midnight. Then I'll rescue him".
His eyes scanned the surroundings and settled on a nearby four-storey building facing the station.
After making sure no one was watching, Kaito bent his knees and jumped with full strength.
He landed briefly on the second-floor ledge, steadying himself for only a split second before launching upward again. His fingers caught the rooftop edge, and with a swift pull, he lifted himself onto the top.
He straightened and looked around.
The street below remained quiet.
"Perfect," he murmured under his breath. "No one saw me. If they did, they'd probably panic."
He moved toward the edge of the rooftop and settled into the shadows, eyes fixed on the police station as he prepared to wait.
few hours had passed.
It was two in the morning.
The city had sunk into that strange, breathless silence that only existed after midnight. Streetlights hummed faintly, casting pale halos over the empty road. The police station stood still and square beneath them, its windows dim, its entrance washed in tired yellow light.
From the rooftop of a nearby building, Kaito watched.
The parking was nearly empty. No patrol cars coming in. No officers stepping out for a smoke. At the front gate, a lone guard sat slumped in his chair, chin resting against his chest. From this distance, he looked asleep.
Kaito exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing.
"Perfect… it's the perfect time."
He stepped back, preparing to jump—
A hand suddenly grabbed his collar.
Firm. Unyielding.
Before he could turn, a calm voice brushed against his ear.
"Wait. You'll get caught if you go in right now."
Kaito stiffened. He twisted around, ready to strike—then stopped.
His eyes widened slightly.
"You're the guy from the lab."
Suspicion sharpened his tone.
"Are you following me?"
The man's expression remained steady, almost unreadable.
"It's Hatsume. Dr. Raizen told me to keep an eye on you. Just to make sure you don't get caught by the Phantom Unit."
He looked back toward the station .
"No need to worry. I'll be fine by myself."
Hatsume's gaze hardened, though his voice remained controlled.
"No need to worry? If you get caught and they extract your powers… do you know what might happen?"
Something inside Kaito snapped.
He turned sharply, anger flashing across his face.
"What are you even saying, huh?! Don't you know this stupid thing happened because of your mistake? If you people hadn't made that mistake, I'd still be living a normal life! None of this would have happened—"
His voice faltered for half a second, then forced its way out.
"—and my cat… she wouldn't have died."
The words shot out like bullets.
The wind moved between them, cold and hollow. For a moment, neither of them spoke. The city felt distant, as if it had stepped back from the rooftop.
Hatsume stood still. Cold as if the words didn't make any damage.
He didn't reply.
He simply walked past Kaito and stopped at the edge of the rooftop, looking down at the station below.
"You've been here since evening," he said calmly. "If I'm not wrong, you were about to infiltrate and take someone out of that holding cell."
Kaito said nothing.
The anger drained, leaving behind something heavier. Regret. Shame.
He stepped forward and stood beside Hatsume.
"…I'm sorry for that."
Hatsume kept his eyes on the building.
"It happens," he said quietly. "When humans reach the peak of their rage, they spill the deepest truths they've been holding inside."
Kaito glanced at him but didn't reply.
After a moment, Hatsume continued.
"Anyway, if I hadn't stopped you, you would've been caught."
Kaito straightened slightly, stubbornness creeping back into his voice.
"The guard is asleep. I'd just sneak in and get my friend out of the holding cell."
Hatsume finally looked at him.
"That's a reckless plan. How were you planning to get the keys?"
He tilted his head slightly.
"Break the lock with your hands and expect no one to notice?"
Kaito frowned.
"No. I was going to take the keys from one of the officers inside. They're probably sleeping."
"And you're sure of that?"
Hatsume's voice was calm—but precise.
"They could be doing paperwork. Monitoring reports. Watching the cameras. The moment you stepped inside, you'd be on CCTV."
Kaito's confidence wavered.
"And I assume," Hatsume continued, "you don't know how many officers are inside."
Silence.
Kaito looked down.
Hatsume went on, his tone matter-of-fact.
"On an average night shift, there are eight to fifteen officers on duty. Four or five usually go out on patrol. That leaves anywhere between four and nine inside the station at any given time."
Kaito's eyes lifted slightly, surprise flickering across his face.
The level of detail unsettled him.
Hatsume didn't elaborate.
"I have a plan," he said instead. "Just follow me."
Without hesitation, he stepped off the rooftop.
Kaito moved to the edge instinctively—but he didn't panic. He already knew what would happen.
Hatsume's descent was smooth, controlled. The air seemed to bend around him, slowing his fall. His coat fluttered gently as he landed soundlessly on the ground below.
Kaito stared for a brief second.
Then he jumped after him.
Hatsume's gaze drifted upward toward the CCTV camera fixed in the top corner of the station gate. Its black lens stared blindly over the entrance—but not at the exact spot where he and Kaito stood. They were positioned perfectly in its blind angle. A faint smirk touched Hatsume's lips.
He slowly raised his hand and flicked his fingers toward the camera. The air shifted. At first it was subtle—a ripple, like heat bending light. Then a compressed burst of wind struck the camera's metal casing. It trembled, screws whining under pressure, and rotated slightly off its original axis.
Kaito blinked. Before he could fully process what had happened, Hatsume's eyes sharpened again. Across the yard, another camera perched on the right corner of the building. Hatsume tilted his head slightly, calculating. Another precise flick. A second surge of invisible wind twisted the device.
One by one, four cameras focused on the main gate shifted away, their angles skewed just enough to leave a perfect corridor of darkness. Kaito stared at Hatsume's back, stunned. How is his precision this accurate? There was no wasted movement—just minimal motion and complete control.
Outside the station, Hatsume stood beside the window, his eyes quietly studying the interior.
Through the glass he could see an officer sitting at a desk near the window, lazily scratching his pen across a pile of paperwork. Behind the officer, a thin black cable ran down the wall.
Hatsume's gaze lingered on the wire.
He thought
"This must be the CCTV ".
He couldn't actually see the camera from his angle—but the cable told him enough. If the wire ran upward like that, the camera was probably mounted somewhere above the desk.
Probably.
That was all he needed.
Hatsume slowly flicked his fingers.
A focused pulse of wind suddenly formed inside the room, striking the upper corner of the wall where the camera should have been. The air twisted sharply, forcing whatever was there to rotate toward the ceiling.
Hatsume didn't know if the camera had actually moved.
He couldn't even see it.
But he didn't stop.
Another compression of air formed behind the officer's neck.
The invisible force slammed forward with brutal precision. The officer's body jerked violently before collapsing face-first onto the desk, papers scattering across the surface.
Then he quietly slipped through the entrance and stepped inside the station.
His eyes lifted toward the top corner of the room.
There it was.
The camera.
Rotated upward toward the ceiling.
Hatsume stared at it for a moment before a faint smirk crossed his face.
"Well," he murmured to himself,
"I guess you could call that… predicting the prediction."
Hatsume stepped deeper inside, scanning everything—bookshelves lining one wall, a metal cabinet, chairs, firearms secured in a rack in the corner. Every detail registered in his mind.
Then voices. Faint at first. From another room down the hallway. "I'm going for a walk. You coming?" "Yeah, sure. ?" Their footsteps approached.
Before the door could fully open, two violent bursts of compressed wind slammed into their backs. The impact was sharp and unforgiving. Both officers dropped instantly, unconscious before they hit the floor.
Hatsume's gaze shifted upward again. In the top corner of the corridor wall was the NVR box where all the camera feeds converged. He extended one finger. The air tightened into a thin slicing current and struck the power cable. The wire snapped loose from its socket. The faint electronic hum died immediately. All cameras stopped recording.
Kaito followed silently, barely daring to say anything.
They moved down the hallway. Another voice echoed from farther ahead. "im felling sleepy. ?" "maybe you haven't slept enough .
In the next instant, Hatsume vanished.
Kaito froze. He hadn't blinked—but Hatsume suddenly disappeared. A second later, a heavy thud echoed from the left-side room. Kaito rushed toward it, footsteps slamming against the floor.
A figure stepped out calmly. Hatsume. In his hand, a ring of keys jingled softly. He lifted them with a small grin. "Found the keys."
They moved quickly toward the holding area at the back of the station. The last room was larger, with sparse chairs and cold concrete walls. Inside a metal cell, a figure lay slumped against the bars. It was Nagato.
Bruises darkened his face. Scratches marked his arms. His clothes were torn in places.
Kaito didn't wait. He snatched the keys from Hatsume and rushed forward. The metal lock clicked open with shaking hands. He dropped to his knees beside Nagato. "Nagato… Nagato, wake up!" His voice trembled.
Nagato let out a strange snorting sound.
Kaito froze. "What…?"
Nagato's eyes slowly opened. His vision blurred at first—just a blue shape hovering above him. Then it cleared. "Kaito?" he muttered. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to go," Hatsume's calm voice cut in. "Before anyone notices."
Kaito pulled Nagato to his feet. Nagato blinked in confusion. "What's going on? Who is that guy?"
"No need to worry," Kaito said quickly. "He's with us."
Hatsume walked slowly through the station corridor, scanning every corner with sharp, alert eyes. Kaito followed close behind, supporting Nagato, who was still weak and confused.
Nagato frowned. "Don't tell me you broke in here just to take me out."
"We'll talk later," Kaito replied calmly, not breaking his stride. "Just focus on walking."
They stepped out of the station entrance and into the night air.
The street was quiet.
Too quiet.
As they moved past the outer gate, Nagato's foot accidentally tapped against an empty plastic bottle lying near the wall.
Clink.
The sharp sound echoed in the silence.
Outside, the guard who had been dozing in his chair stirred. His head lifted slightly, eyes beginning to open.
Before the man could fully wake—
Hatsume turned.
His expression didn't change, but the air around him shifted.
In a sudden gust of compressed wind, his figure vanished. A split second later, he reappeared directly in front of the guard.
The officer barely had time to widen his eyes.
Hayate drove the edge of his palm into the back of the man's neck with controlled precision. The guard slumped forward, fell in the ground ,unconscious before he could make a sound.
The wind settled.
Hatsume glanced back at them. "Watch where you step."
Nagato stared, stunned by the speed of it all. He opened his mouth slightly but said nothing.
They moved toward the open parking area beside the station. The lot was empty, dimly lit by a single flickering streetlamp.
Hatsume stopped and turned to Kaito. His eyes were sharp now.
"What's your plan?"
Kaito exhaled slowly. "First… thanks. If you hadn't helped, I might have messed everything up."
A faint smile crossed his face.
Hatsume didn't return it. "That's not what I asked."
Kaito looked toward the road. "I'll go home. Rest for a while. Then i will think what to do "
Hatsume gaze hardened immediately.
"That would be a mistake."
Kaito looked at him.
"It's safer if you stay with us," Hatsume continued. "You think they won't find you if you were in the house?"
Nagato stiffened slightly at that.
"They already know your capability" Hatsume added. "If they realize you are not with us , they'll definitely hunt you down. And when they do… your house is the first place they'll search."
Hatsume's words hit Kaito like bullets.
He hadn't thought that far ahead.
Finally, he nodded. "Alright. For now… I'll stay at your lab."
Hatsume, who had been quietly observing the exchange, allowed a faint smile to form on his lips.
"Good," he said softly. "Come closer."
Nagato looked between them nervously. "Wait—what do you mean come clo—"
Before he could finish, Kaito stepped toward Hatsume pulling nagato with him.
The air shifted.
At first it was only a breeze circling around their feet. Then the wind tightened, spiraling faster and faster. Dust lifted from the asphalt. Loose gravel rattled violently across the ground.
Nagato's eyes widened. "What is happening?!"
"Chill out," Kaito muttered, though even he braced himself.
The wind roared upward, forming a towering vortex that swallowed them whole. Streetlights flickered as the tornado twisted higher, wrapping them in a column of violent air.
Then the tornado appeared again on the rooftop of the building.
It lasted only for a moment.
The wind twisted into a narrow spiral, scattering dust and loose debris across the roof. the vortex collapsed into nothing, leaving the rooftop completely still again.
Nagato stood frozen.
For a few seconds he couldn't process what had just happened. His eyes remained fixed on the empty rooftop where the tornado had been.
Hatsume calmly turned his head toward Kaito.
"I have some business to attend," he said in a quiet, steady voice. "You should take him to the underground lab and let him rest for a while."
Before Nagato could ask anything, Hatsume bent his knees slightly and jumped.
But he didn't fall back down.
His body rose into the air as if gravity had suddenly lost its hold on him. He moved upward slowly, maintaining balance in midair, then began drifting away from the building.
Within moments he became smaller in the distance until he completely disappeared beyond the skyline.
Silence returned.
Nagato slowly turned his head and looked at Kaito.
His expression had changed. The confusion from earlier had settled into a sharp, serious stare.
"Now you have to tell me what is going on," Nagato said.
"First that helicopter kidnapping… and now this."
His eyes stayed fixed on Kaito.
"What exactly is happening?"
Kaito looked at him and smiled calmly.
"Chill out," he said. "I'll tell you later. Come and rest for now."
Nagato's expression immediately hardened.
"You have to tell me everything right now," he said firmly. "Or else I'm not going with you."
For a moment Kaito stayed silent, studying Nagato's face. Then he gave a small sigh.
"Okay… fine," Kaito said. "I'm telling you."
He began explaining everything from the beginning.
He told Nagato how the serum had been exchanged, how it eventually reached him, and what happened after it entered his body. He explained the changes he experienced, the abilities that started appearing, and how those powers were connected to the Phantom Unit.
Nagato listened without interrupting.
As Kaito continued, Nagato tried to process every detail. Each explanation answered some questions, but at the same time it created new ones.
The idea of a serum capable of giving someone abilities like that sounded impossible. Yet after everything Nagato had already witnessed—the tornado appearing and disappearing, Hatsume flying away into the sky—it was difficult to dismiss Kaito's words completely.
Even so, believing it was another matter.
Nagato remained silent, slowly trying to organize everything he had just heard. The information felt overwhelming, and accepting something like that was not easy.
Let me ask you one thing," Nagato said.
He looked directly at Kaito.
"About the Phantom Unit group… what is their purpose?"
There was a brief pause before he continued.
"Why are they doing all of this?"
Kaito remained silent for a moment after Nagato's question.
His expression changed slightly, and when he finally spoke, his voice was lower than before.
"Actually… I don't know yet," Kaito said.
Nagato frowned slightly.
Kaito continued, "Dr. Raizen told me to join them."
He paused briefly before adding, "But I refused."
Nagato kept watching him carefully.
"He still told me to think about it," Kaito said. "So I didn't ask anything more about their purpose."
Kaito looked away for a moment.
"Actually I don't want to involve myself in this mess."