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Chapter 1

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She was Sora. Officially, Detective Sora Takenouchi of the 4th Precinct of Odaiba. She may have looked like a sweet woman with her large scarlet eyes and her pretty cherry hair, but Detective Takenouchi was a force to be reckoned with, especially when anger stood by her side.

And right now, she was mad as hell.

"What do you mean they've managed to get out?" the young full-fledged detective roared into the communicator. "I specifically demanded for all the exits to be blocked! How could you let them slip away??"

"Uh…well," came the apologetic reply of one of the less accomplished officers on the other end of the com. "It turns out that there was another hidden way out of the building that we didn't have intelligence on."

"Damn right!" she yelled, clenching the handle of her gun and gesticulating furiously. "What kind of a perimeter sweep do you people do? Have they got a getaway car? You'd better have an idea on where they went."

"Y-yes Detective Takenouchi," the subordinate replied, probably wondering where the cheerful woman he had met at work today had gone. "The crooks are in a white Sedan, heading toward the highway."

"Thank you," she said curtly and snapped the com off. She climbed into her nondescript Audi. The only other way out of the bank was through the front gate. She revved up the engine and nodded to the other police officers stationed by the scene. "Clean things up here. Make sure that all those bankers get suitably questioned and give HQ an exact account of things. I'm going after them."

"Won't you need some backup?" Officer Ayame asked her.

Sora nodded. "We'll be at the end of highway D-12, most likely heading north. Tell them to look for a white Sedan."

Ayame's eyes narrowed. "Detective, do you think that this car could be the stolen Sedan of that funny bald man last week?"

Sora shrugged. "It'll be something to look out for. Take care here. The fun isn't over yet."

The younger woman looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Well," the detective drawled, "Sedans can't fit fourteen bank robbers, no matter how thin they all may be."

And with that, she peeled off, directing her car toward the highway. She soon caught sight of the Sedan. It was, after al, the only other car on the road. Highway D-12 was scarcely traversed, especially at night, because it led to the ancient warehouses by the pier.

Sora immediately slowed her velocity when she caught sight of her prey's potentially stolen transportation. She was certain that they knew they were being followed, but they couldn't be certain that her car was a police car.

After all, her car didn't have those telltale sirens and flashing lights.

They moved quickly, surpassing the regular speed limit by more than a dozen kilometers per hour and Sora more or less kept up with them. She supposed they decided to ignore her, since no gunshots came whizzing into her car's windshield. She felt no need to engage with them either, for at the moment, she just wanted to see where they were heading with the money. There were plenty signs that these bank robbers were part of the Sayonara gang., a notorious criminal organization skilled in drug dealing, money laundering, and all other sorts of illegal practices.

Besides, car chases were always so messy and burned gas too quickly. Oil prices were rising and Sora's allowance didn't agree with wanton spending.

Sora turned on her communicator. "This is Takenouchi to HQ. I'm tailing the crooks on D-12, heading toward the dock graveyard. There's a possibility that these lackeys may be Sayonara."

"No car chase, boss?" came the laughing voice of her younger colleague, the Chief of the Juvenile Departments, Hikari Kamiya.

"Not tonight, Kari," Sora replied. "My gas expenses have been going through the roof."

"It's always something, isn't it?" Kari remarked good-naturedly. "Either your car just got repainted or the road is too rough and bumpy for your wheels…you love that car of yours too much, Sora."

"It's my best friend in these situations."

"Aside from your gun, of course," she pointed out.

"Oh, yes, definitely."

"Will you cut out with all the chatter?" another voice came out on the speaker. It was Hikari's brother, Taichi, or, as he preferred to be called, Tai. "Girls," he muttered. "Always so talkative."

"Keep in mind that I can still hear you, Kamiya." Sora reminded him. "I'm a girl, too."

"You don't act like one," he retorted. "I've seen the way you guzzle your beer—"

"Excuse me, brother!" Kari exclaimed. "Sora is currently on the tail of a couple of bank robbers and potential Sayonara gang members!"

"Don't forget car nappers," Sora put in. "The plate number of their white Sedan matches the plate number of the bald man's stolen car exactly. He'll be glad to know what a special role his car played in wasting my gasoline."

"Is that all you care about, Sora?" Tai grumbled. "That car of yours?"

"And my gun," she interjected.

"And your gun."

Kari went on. "So Sora's on the trail of a couple of bank robbers who are also car nappers and possible members of the Sayonara gang. Shouldn't we get back to business now?"

"Sure," Tai answered, but in a lower voice, he muttered, "Hypocrite."

Kari shot back, "Look who's talking!"

Sora rolled her eyes. Chief Taichi and Hikari Kamiya were experts on the field, but there were too many times when they resembled two whiny little brats arguing over the last cookie in the jar.

…

They still did that, only with donuts during lunch breaks.

She then heard another voice in the background. "Give me that…Hello, Detective Takenouchi? This is me, Ken."

"Thank God I'm talking to you, Inspector," Sora declared. "Finally. Someone with sense!"

"The Kamiyas are a little…enthusiastic at times, aren't they?"  the younger detective said mildly. Inspector Ken Ichijouji was in the same field as Sora was, although he was her superior, in a way. Ken was a military genius and extremely intellectual, so he was the perfect inspector.

Ken laughed then got back down to business. "Sora, I've sent some squads out for you. They'll get there later than you will, though, so I suggest that you lay low once you see where their destination is."

Sora, instead of agreeing, said, "You got their descriptions from the scene a while ago from the scene, Ken. Have you pinned their ID's?"

"Well," Ken replied slowly, noting her silence on his request. "We managed to pinpoint most of their identities—"

"The one with black hair seemed to be their leader on this operation," she added.

"I am very well aware of that fact, Sora," he answered, sounding slightly irritated. "But thank you for confirming it. He appears to be the only one who shows leadership backbone. They indeed are all part of the Sayonara gang."

"The 'Good-bye Gang'," she quipped, steering her car a little to the left. "How poetic."

"If we are lucky, you'll be heading straight into their headquarters," the normally stoic Inspector's voice seemed unnaturally excited.

Sora cocked her head. "I don't know how that could be lucky, but it sure will be pretty interesting."

"How so?"

Sora grinned. "I've never taken out an entire warehouse of gang members before."

He chuckled. "Would it be pointless to try to talk you into waiting until your backup arrives at the docks?"

"Go ahead and ask, anyway, if it makes you feel better," she said lightly. "Just don't expect anything in return."

"You're in a good mood tonight," he observed.

Sora laughed happily. "I love a good ambush. Plus, I got the chance to bite off an incompetent's head back there when they let the criminals slip past us, so you can say that I'm perfectly jolly tonight. I may even consider having joining Tai in his silly belching contests later, if you'd believe me."

"I'll be there to watch our city's air pollution deteriorate even more with you," Ken promised. He then paused. "Have you arrived at the docks yet?"

Sora squinted through the windshield. It was dark outside but she could make out the dim figures of the structures in the distance. She saw a glimmer of light far away, too. The water of the pier, perhaps? "I'll be there soon. That backup had better be here or else they won't get to have any fun." She stopped. "I won't be too cross if you let me hog all of it, though," she said hopefully.

Ken laughed. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, Sora, but they've already set out to take your fun."

"Spoilsport."

"Life's like that," he said easily. "You win some, you lose some. Hopefully, you win more."

"Gotcha." She grinned. "I guess I'm not too mad, Ken. I don't have enough pairs of handcuffs on me to cover an entire warehouse. I guess those reinforcements will be good for something, for once."

"Be careful, Detective," Ken told her more seriously. "The Sayonara gang is pretty infamous throughout Odaiba. Most of the members are just muscle but there are also the masterminds of their operations. There aren't many of them, but they are reputed to be skilled fighters and tacticians."

"Really?" Sora smiled slightly. "That's good, I suppose. I won't be too bored, then. I have a reputation of my own, don't you remember? We'll just have to see whose is more authentic."

Detective Sora Takenouchi was indeed quite acknowledged in many law departments as a highly efficient detective. She never lost a case and always seemed to see directly into the truth that it seemed uncanny. Her intelligence and analytical senses were highly advanced and she was quite prized as an agent to be working on a case with.

"This is no game, Detective Takenouchi," Ken said sternly. "But in any case, you'd better win. Good luck, Sora."

"Thanks." Sora grinned, feeling for her gun. She had arrived at the warehouses.

She felt a grim smile on her lips. "Detective Takenouchi, over and out."

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