"Welcome to the Commission of Counter Ghoul. How may I help you today?" The receptionist in the lobby of the Berlin Office was an exasperated looking woman who was trying to appear civil. Probably had one drink too many last night… Urie returns an equally false smile. "Good morning miss. We're from the Central Office". Still smiling, he takes his CCG Identification from his breast pocket. The woman's' lips move as she silently reads out his credentials. "Sir! I'll get the Commander down right away if you'll just wait in the lobby please". She scurries off into the office, grabbing a telephone and speaking frantically to someone on the other end of the line. The Quinx Squad, along with Shinohara and Nishio recline on the lounges set facing the massive windows overlooking downtown Berlin. As they wait, several employees and investigators whisper amongst themselves as news of investigators from the Central Headquarters spreads like wildfire. "Excuse me Sirs, the Commander is on his way down now". The receptionist hurries back to her desk as an elevator opens and a young, well-dressed man steps out and makes his way towards the group. Urie stands to greet him. "Ah guests! Welcome to Berlin my friends. I am Commander Bertholt of the German CCG. To whom do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" Urie shakes the Commanders outstretched hand. "Sir, I am Associate Special Class Urie Kike. My companions here are First Class Mitsugi, First Class Saiko, and of course Special Class Shinohara". Bertholts' eyes widen a fraction as he realises he has quite the famous company. "I don't think there is anyone here who haven't heard of either the Quinx Squad or the famous Special Class Shinohara. I thought you had been honourably discharged Mr Shinohara…" Shinohara grins and also shakes the Commanders hand. "This old man isn't ready to quit just yet". The Commander ushers them back into their seats and takes a lounge chair opposite the group. "I'm sorry if things seem a little… disorganised at the moment, but our founder has just arrived and established himself here in Berlin. I'm sure you've already met him". Urie nods. "Well, Commander. I don't know if you are aware of this, but the Central branch of the CCG has enforced a ceasefire between it and the ghoul organisation Aogiri Tree". Bertholt's expression darkens momentarily. "Yes… Though I can't imagine why. Surely they had Aogiri on the ropes not long ago?" Urie shrugs. "What the higher ups decide is none of my concern. However, you may also be unaware of the existence of the manipulative ghoul organisation 'V', and its subsequent connection to the CCG and the Washuu Clan"… The German Commander raises an eyebrow. "What is this conspiracy you've delivered to my ears? The CCG involved with a ghoul organisation? Whatever for?" Shinohara intervenes. "What the Associate Special Class is trying to say is that the founder of the CCG who has just arrived here in Germany is working hand in hand with the enemy, has been since the beginning. That is why he was exiled from Japan". Bertholt leans back in his chair, hand on his chin. "This news is… concerning to say the least. If what you say is true, then that might indicate that Lord Washuu is retreating. Returning to V". Nishio claps his hands. "That's the stuff. You pieced together a puzzle that took most people years to decipher. No wonder you reached the rank of Commander". Bertholt frowns at Urie and Shinohara, as if to ask who this man was. Urie smiles. "This is Nishiki Nishio. He's travelling with us on the orders of Special Class Kaneki. Oh yeah, and he's a ghoul". The Commander's eyes widen as he looks Nishio up and down, the ghoul letting his Kakugan show clearly while grinning at the man. "A pleasure to meet you sir". "A Ghoul… Why on earth did you let a ghoul in here?" Nishio tuts. "Cool it man. I'm not going to eat you for god's sake". He goes to sit in the chair next to the distraught man who cringes slightly. Urie leans forward, ready to placate affairs. "Don't worry Commander. Nishio here is a…. Informant for the CCG. Commander Washuu allowed him to accompany us on this trip". He folds his arms. "You see, the CCG has a vastly reorganised system in dealing with ghouls since the ceasefire. We still eliminate ghouls as usual. But only if they possess malicious intent or are a threat to the public". Bertholt nods slowly, becoming accustomed to the idea. "Ok… Anyway, what exactly do you plan to do while you're here?" Urie shrugs. "Snoop around, ask a few questions here and there while trying to make connections into any ghoul organisations here in Berlin". The Commander blusters in his face suddenly. "But how will you manage to do that? From the sounds of recent events in Tokyo, the ghouls here are going to be just as violent towards investigators as they used to be in Japan". Urie grins wickedly. "Is that all you're worried about? Simple. You forget that we of the Quinx aren't ordinary investigators". As he says this, both his team and the Associate Special Class show their single Kakugan eyes. "We are human investigators who have allowed ourselves to undergo surgery that had the kakahou of ghouls implanted within us and coated in Quinque Steel to let us keep our humanity while having the Kagune and other abilities of a ghoul"…
Noro wiped the sweat from his brow as he gets up from the padded training mat to face Kaneki again. "Shit… I can't even scratch him yet he hasn't even broken a sweat. It's not human"… He smiles at his own unintended pun. I guess I'm still too human to match him yet. The rest of the second generation of Quinx watches from the sidelines, their own sparring matches already complete. Though they were all superior to the original Quinx on paper, the Special Class has explained to them that there was a vast gap in their level of experience. For the last four weeks since their surgery, the 'Zenith Quinx' as they had been codenamed, had undergone intense physical training. This included; Expert Quinque Instruction, Undercover Operations, Sparring Matches and One on One talks with Kaneki. Noro and Kaneki had been sparring for at least 20 minutes and both combatants were still fighting strong. Eren Hakari, another Zenith Quinx, cheered Noro on as he got back to his feet after a particularly brutal blow to the shoulder from Kaneki's kick. As he spits out blood, Kaneki looks at him disapprovingly. "What a waste… Don't you know how Ghouls rejuvenate themselves?" Noro looks at his superior quizzically until it dawns on him. "Damn… I'm a fool". He laughs, spitting more blood into his palm and licking it all up. Swallowing in disgust, he's surprised at how good it tastes in his mouth. Noro flexes his arm, feeling strength surge back into his body. He launches a series of sharp jabs and kicks towards Kaneki who dodges all but one, Noro's last kick landing hard on his arm that had been thrown up to deflect the blow. As Noro pants, Kaneki nods in approval now. "Very good, all of you. I think it's time that you show me your skill with a Kagune". The Zenith Quinx murmur amongst themselves. They hadn't yet had the opportunity to release their Kagune, and now the prospect unnerved them. "Go on, I won't bite". Taisha is the first to growl, unleashing her Kagune with miraculous ease. Her thick, purple Bikkaku tail contrasts with her jet black uniform. "Don't go easy on me sir". She whispers as she launches herself through the air. Kaneki lashes out with his two Quinque, the look of surprise on Taisha's face betraying her uncertainty. But she doesn't stop to take the blow directly. Instead she darts to the side of Kaneki, using her own Kagune to slide along the length of the room until she stands directly in front of the Special Class, grinning as she thrusts her Kagune forward to hit him in the chest. Kaneki moves with impossibly fast reflexes, twirling around the young woman while using his outstretched arm limb to crush her body until she goes limp. As he releases her, Taisha rubs her ribs painfully. Kaneki turns to the rest of the squad. "Rank 2 Taisha here did very well. She didn't hesitate to alter the battlefield to her advantage. Her only mistake was overconfidence once she stood before me. Never try to second guess your opponent. Anticipate their movements instead". He folds his arms, speaking casually as the rest of the young investigators lash out at him with their respective Kagune. "Now I know you all have been doing your own low level assignments…" Noro, who stood back as the others continuously tried to find an opening, raised an eyebrow. "And how did you know that sir? We all thought we were being quite discreet". Kaneki smiles knowingly. "Because I orchestrated it. I intentionally set you all up for operations. As some of you may or may not know, Promotion season is coming up, and I want as many Rank 1 Investigators in this squad as possible. You will surpass the efforts of even Kishou Arima in your rise among the ranks". He suddenly lashes out with Yoshimura and sends the rest of the Zenith Quinx members sprawling. "On that note, I have some good news for you all. I'm sending you all on your first real operation". This brings a hearty round of people clapping each other on the back. Someone attempts to do the same to Noro but he brushes it off. I know how Special Class Kaneki thinks… This isn't going to be glorious is it? Kaneki looks at his and nods imperceptibly. You've certainly been inside my head Noro. But this is necessary. They need to learn that being an investigator is not just medals and glory… Noro's eyes widen. "Did you just... Talk to me without words?" Kaneki smiles and shrugs. "You juniors will be accompanying me and Special Class Suzuya on a reconnaissance mission in a suspected outpost that V uses for its communication with their agents above ground. Under no circumstances are you to use what I'm about to give you unless either Juuzou or I permit it". He walks over to a locked chest in the corner of the sparring room. He pulls out 6 Quinque briefcases in all. One for each of the Zenith Quinx. "These Quinque are all made from the same Kakahou sample, donated by myself…." As the young investigators gasp in surprise, Kaneki starts chucking a briefcase to each Quinx. "Go on. They're my gift to all of you". Noro and a few others open the cases, a long blade springs into his hand. The sword was a Rinkakku type Quinque that could be used as an extremely effective blade at close range and could transform into a series of super-fast tentacle like blades that could change direction and shape. Kaneki continues the instruction. "Being Quinque made from my own Kakahou, it is a SSS Rinkakku type sword that has another stage of release. This second stage, however, is of no concern to any of you right now. I suggest you learn how to use them. These are the only other SSS rated Quinque besides my own Reiyuza and Yoshimura, and they aren't easy to use". The Special Class Investigator promptly turns on his heel, exiting the training centre. "Get some rest tonight people. I want you all in the Quinx Lobby 5 am sharp". Noro and Taisha stand together as everyone else begins to pack their gear and head off towards their dormitories. "He really is something else isn't he?" Taisha sighs, shaking her head. Noro raises an eyebrow. "What's on your mind?" The Rank 2 Investigator smiles faintly. "Mr... Special Class Kaneki… He had his eyes trained on me the entire time I thought I had the jump on him. He let me get that close in order to make a point". Noro nods in sympathetic understanding. "The Special Class is so far above us in prestige, experience, knowledge and rank but still devotes his time to the Zenith Quinx, a bunch of kids who never even graduated the Academy. I've been inside his head. I know what happened to him in the past and I think that made him stronger and wiser… I'd pay attention to the advice he gives if I were you"… Taisha says her farewells and Noro is left standing in the Training Centre alone…