KS: Hello there. Back with more SIN-surrection. This chapter is much shorter than my earlier ones, but I wanted to make this a prologue for some Anna-centric chapters in the future. Yep, our little snowflake is going through more changes. Let's see what they entail, shall we?
Hachiman sat at a computer desk, typing away at his keyboard. He looked at multiple screens in front of them, which showed various parts of the city. So far, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Everyone seen through the cameras was living their lives as best as they can, what with the public moral laws controlling them to certain extents.
"I've been sitting here for two hours," he sighed as he laid back in his chair. "Nothing out of the ordinary has happened. It seems like the action only happens when I'm near or I hear about it through Izaya's mouth. Ayame seems to be doing more, now that she's got Otome on board with her outlandish plan."
He looked at a screen that overlooked the freeway.
"Now that I think about it, I wonder how Anna's holding up. After that incident the other day, I imagine that she's pretty shook up. Of course, knowing her, she'll bounce back at some point.
Little did Hachiman know, Anna would be bouncing back much sooner than expected, and in a way he couldn't imagine.
Anna was silent as she sat in the passenger seat of Izumi's car. She looked at the scenery as it passed by her. One day after the affair, she sought out Izumi, accepting her offer. The woman was surprised by this, but was happy she made her decision.
"For what it's worth, Anna, I believe you made the right choice here," Izumi said.
"I know I did," Anna replied in a neutral tone. "I just wish I did it sooner."
Izumi let out a sigh. "Look, I get it. Being stalked is a serious matter. I was stalked when I was around your age by some random guy who had a grudge against my family for some reason. It was taken care of in no time at all."
"It's not the only reason why I accepted this offer," Anna said.
"Hmm? What's the other reason?" Izumi asked.
"This experience has shown me I've become complacent in my duty in combating indecent behavior," Anna continued. "Even as the student council president, I have been ineffecient in every way possible. Blue Snow was bad enough on her own, but now this 'Kumo' has appeared and made things worse. It wouldn't surprise me if the two were working together." She released a heavy sigh. "Then there was the situation with the stalker… well, stalkers. I firmly believe that what I am doing will help me properly prepare for what lies ahead."
Silence filled the inside of the car for a few seconds before Izumi spoke out.
"Anna, you don't have to worry. This will give you all the skills you will need to properly deal with any and all indecent infactions," she said.
"I hope so," Anna replied.
Izumi glanced at Anna. "Also…"
Anna turned towards Izumi, who immediately flicked her forehead.
"Ow!"
"You really shouldn't put yourself down like that," she added. "Men find it unattractive."
Anna pouted. "And you know this how?"
"There are certain traits that man would rather not see in a woman," Izumi said bitterly. "Beating them at arm wrestling is one of them."
Anna didn't know how to respond that. All she gathered was that Izumi had a rather… complicated history with relationships.
They eventually reached a large building in the middle of the city. Izumi got out of the car and Anna followed suit.
"Is this where the meeting will be held?" Anna asked.
"Yes," Izumi answered plainly.
They walked into the building and up a few flights of stairs. On the way, they were greeted by many Decency Squad personnel. Anna greeted them in return and followed Izumi down the hallway.
"There are a lot of people here," she commented.
"It just goes to show how important this meeting is," Izumi replied.
The two of them reached a door, and Izumi knocked on it.
"Come in," a stern voice said.
Izumi opened the door, and she and Anna walked in. The room was medium in size and had a long table with several chairs. Standing in front of the window with his back turned towards the two women was a well-dressed man.
"Shimomura," the man said. "I see you've brought our guest along."
"Well, she took our offer, so I had to bring her along," Izumi said.
Anna walked forward and gave a slight bow. "My name is Anna Nishikinomiya. It is a pleasure to meet you."
The man turned around to face her. Anna was initially taken aback by his sharp, gray eyes, but didn't let her composure slip.
"Good to meet you as well, Ms. Nishikinomiya," the man said. "My name is Kyosuke Munakata."
"Oh, my mother mentioned a while back," Anna replied. "I heard you were developing changes for the Decency Squad."
"Changes that will surely improve them in the future," Munakata replied. "With more terrorist groups rising up, the Decency Squad will need go through major re-adjustments in order to match up to future threats."
"Well, I'd be happy to see these changes for myself," Anna said.
"Will the rest be arriving?" Izumi asked.
"They should be," Munakata replied, looking at his watch. "Although, I wonder what's taking them-"
The faint sounds of two people aruging cut off Munakata, which soon grew louder.
"Oh, dear," Izumi sighed. "Don't tell me they're at it again."
"It would appear so," Munakata replied.
Soon enough, two people walked into the room, quarreling with each other. One was a pale, slender woman with brown eyes and gray hair tied in a ponytail, and another was a swarthy, muscular man with magenta eyes and greenish-gray hair.
"We should be out there, crushing those terrorists with everything we have," the man argued. "We don't have any time to waste sitting on our hands like this."
"And I'm telling you that intel is most important," the woman argued back. "There's no sense in flying blind into enemy operations without a proper understanding of the situation."
Munakata cleared his throat, getting their attention.
"If you two are quite done with your debate, I'd like to get down to business." He then gestured to Anna. "Also, we have an esteemed guest here, so kindly introduce yourselves."
The two looked at one another and let out a sigh, reluctantly putting whatever debate they had on hold.
"My name is Sae Niijima," the woman introduced herself. "A pleasure to meet you."
"I'm Juzo Sakakura," the man introduced herself. "What she said."
"I am Anna Nishikinomiya," Anna introduced herself. "A pleasure to meet you both."
Everyone present took their seats at the table.
"Now that we are all gathered here, we should bring Ms. Nishikinomiya up to speed on what our current plans are," Munakata said.
"Actually, Munakata," Sae interjected. "I believe we should hear out Anna about her recent experiences at school. Specifically, the ones involving the terrorist known as Blue Snow."
Sakakura let out a derisive huff. "It always comes back to her. The DS have their hands full with the other groups. They really don't need another one to deal with."
"I'm afraid that the situation with Blue Snow has been escalating," Anna admitted.
Everyone turned towards Anna.
"What do you mean?" Munakata asked.
Anna had a serious expression on her face as she spoke. "Blue Snow now has a partner to aid her in her disruptive goals. A masked individual going by the name of Kumo."
Everyone's eyes widened at the mention of the name.
"Kumo?" Sakakura repeated in a questioning tone. "As in, Chiba 99 Kumo?"
"The very same," Anna replied in confirmation. "He was with Blue Snow during that incident during the school phyicals, and I have reason to believe he assisted her with disrupting the school assembly a while back."
Sae sighed and crossed her arms. "A terrorist who distributes illict material and spews out obscene humor, as well as a hacker with no regard for public decency… sounds like a match made in Hell, in my opinion."
"I agree," Izumi said. "We need to stop them before they continue, or God forbid, form their own terrorist group."
"We will get to that issue on a later date," Munakata interjected in a firm tone. "For now, I would like to get Ms. Nishiknomiya up to speed on our current projects."
"Sounds like a plan," Sae said. "What should we start with?"
"The training of Decency Squad recruits," Munakata replied. "With more terrorist groups getting their hands on weapons, it's best we do the same. Also, if possible, I would like Anna to join in on these exercises."
"Wow, putting her to work immediately," Sakakura commented. "You really did have an eye for potential, don't you?"
"I'm told it's one of my most valued traits," Munakata said. "Shimomura, I would like to take Ms. Nishikinomiya to Yokohama. Explain the situation to her on the way."
"Of course," Izumi said, standing up. "I'll give her all of the details."
She left the room and Anna quickly followed after her.
"Is this really a good idea?" Sae asked. "Putting Anna in the line of fire?"
"She made the decision to join us," Munakata said matter-of-factly. "All we can do is respect that."
He stood up from his chair and looked at the city through the window.
"Her mother gave the green light in advance, but I admit I have my own reversations about her enlisting." He let out a sigh, then steeled his gaze. "Regardless, I intend to go through with this. After all… the hardest choices require the strongest wills."
KS: Yeah, I'm closing this short chapter with a quote from the Mad Titan himself. What of it? Anyway, there will be more of Anna in the next few chapters. How many, I'm not sure. That aside, you know the drill if you want to see more. Until then, I'll see you when I see you. Peace.