Maki got up from the cupboard shelves. Her body was sore from getting thrown into the cupboard. She needed to find a way to take down that stab-proof vest man. She saw that there was a silencer in the back pocket of his trousers. Just as she was planning to sneak up on him, he turned towards her and cracked his knuckles.

He grinned as he walked towards her, ready to beat her up again. Maki knew that she cannot use brute force or strength to take him down as she was physically weaker. As he swung his arms at her, she ducked and rolled to the other side of the room. He ran to her and essayed continuously to strike her with his fists. She kept evading his attacks until she reached the desk.

As he was about to whack her, she kicked the apron of the table forward. It sped towards the man and hit him at a high speed. He tried to hold back the table, but his back eventually hit the cupboard, with the table slamming onto his stomach. She jumped onto the table top and kicked his face. He retaliated by pushing the table away from him. She leaped off the table and did a flying punch on his face.

He roared in anger and carried her before throwing her to the wall. She groaned in pain and rubbed her back while he marched towards her. As he was about to stomp her with his left boot, she managed to hold it, just meters away from her face. She had to quickly think of a way to counterattack the man. Once she thought of something, she looked around her surroundings and behind her.

As the man applied more pressure to his left leg, Maki pressed her legs against the wall. She then used that to push her out and landed behind the man, letting his leg stomp the floor instead. She stood up and snatched the silencer from his back pocket. Before he could even turn around and react, she shot him on the legs and arms. He fell down onto the floor, screaming in anguish.

Maki picked up two knives and slowly walked to him. She squatted down and stabbed the knife through his left palm and into the ground. He cried in pain. She did the same to his other palm and his reaction was no different.

"Don't keep throwing me around, you bastard." She muttered.

Outside the room, Zi Yang shot daggers at Umi.

"I can't believe it." He talked with a tone of disbelief, "You're one of those who interrupted our investigations and conducted law under your own hands. No wonder you disappeared for a good few days. You even made Kotori emotionally unstable. Umi Sonoda, what have you become? Where's your code of conduct as a police officer? Why did you go against the law and the police force?"

"Sir, you don't understand. It is not what you think it is..." Umi tried to explain the situation to him but he interrupted her.

"Say no more." He growled, "I damn well know everything. I've seen it with my own eyes. Today, I'll stop all your nonsense and arrest you and your accomplices! I will not allow you to get away, especially when you broke the law."

"Please, Sir, let's not do this." She begged him, "I promise I'll tell you everything one day. I have my reasons."

"Protocols, Umi." Zi Yang replied, "Protocols." He then did a spinning hook kick on her face. Umi stumbled back before she regained her composure. She didn't really want to engage in a fight with him as she still had to help Maki, but she had to so that she wouldn't get arrested.

She clenched her fists and tried to punch him on the stomach, but his fast reflexes allowed him to block the incoming attack. Nevertheless, he was pushed back by the impact of her fists. They stared at each other for a while before they continued fighting.

Zi Yang threw more fists at Umi, but she was able to shield herself with her two wrists covering her face. She waited for a time where he was open before she ducked down and swept his legs off the ground. With that, he fell down onto the floor on his back with a loud thud.

Umi was able to deal a few punches to Zi Yang before he kicked her on the chin and then the stomach, making her fall back. He got up in a flash and stretched his arms before charging towards her. He jumped in the air and tried to kick her chest, but she rolled away and chopped his neck with the side of her left hand. He took out his gun and aimed at Umi's chest, but she managed to crouch and lifted up both of his legs. Once again, he fell down onto the floor.

She then stepped on Zi Yang's wrist with the heel tip of her heels. He screamed in pain as he let go of the gun. After she slapped the gun away from his palms, he kicked the back of her head, causing her to stumble back. He got up swiftly and did another spinning hook kick on her chest. She flew a few meters backwards before hitting her back on the wall and dropping onto the ground. She groaned in agony as she rubbed her back.

"You're one tough nut to take down, Umi Sonoda." Zi Yang took out a pair of handcuffs, "However, by hook or by crook, I'm gonna arrest you today." As he walked towards her, she saw his gun lying just a few meters away from her. Using this opportunity to stop him, she quickly crawled to the gun and snatched it. She reloaded it and shot Zi Yang's legs. He immediately toppled to the ground.

"I'm sorry, Sir." Umi bowed down, "I had to do this. I don't have a choice since you adamantly won't listen to me." She then heard Maki call for her. She quickly ran into the room as he grabbed his legs and yelled in pain. He tried to move but the stinging pain that he felt on his legs were excruciating to a point he can't even move.

"That bitch ran away." He gritted his teeth in anger, "That bitch ran away! I dare her to appear in front of me next time so I could teach her a lesson!"

Umi and Maki went to the window and saw Jeff pointing at a mattress on the grass patch under them. The two women jumped out of the window and landed on the bed. As soon as they got into the pickup truck, Jeff drove out through the back gate.

In the middle room, Esther and Venus were still fighting each other. Esther turned his sword around and hit her chest with the handle, pushing her backwards. She attempted to slice him before kicking him on the abdomen, but he dodged her sword and grabbed her leg. He flipped her and slammed her onto the ground.

She instantly got up and punched him on the face. She kicked him on the side of his face multiple times, then wrapped her hands around his stomach and tried to lift him up. He used his weight to pull them down to the ground. He proceeded to elbow her nose a few times, which made her let go. Both of them got into a fighting stance, and then lunged towards each other.

Their swords clanged each time the blades clashed. After doing so for a few seconds, they decided to go for each other's throats. As the blades of their swords were about to touch one another's throats, police sirens could be heard. The two of them looked at each other for a while before Venus kept her katana back into the scabbard.

"Remember, our fight has not ended yet." She growled, "I still have not defeated you yet. We'll meet again, if we're lucky to bump into each other again." She then ran out of the room. Esther looked out of the windows and saw numerous police vehicles and ambulances parking outside the main entrance.

Several police officers and paramedics entered the ballroom. While the paramedics were placing Zi Yang, Kanan, and Regis's men on stretchers, the policemen were checking every part of the place to see if any bad guy was hiding. They barged into the middle room on the second floor, and it was empty.

In the hospital, Kanan went to visit her partner in his ward. When she walked in, she saw him sitting upright, clenching the blanket. He looked very furious and exasperated, and she could probably guess why, but she still wanted to ask. She took a chair and sat down beside his bed.

"Why the angry face?" She asked, "You've been having this expression ever since you were brought out of the ballroom."

"Umi Sonoda! That devious traitor!" He pounded the bed with his fists, "She is one of the criminals all along working with that damn scoundrel! She betrayed the police force! How dare she do such a thing! She even had the audacity to shoot me, her own superior!" Kanan knew it.

"Maybe she really didn't mean to shoot you. She probably didn't have a choice." She replied, "After all, she and the others helped us with catching some of the people working for the crime syndicate. Moreover, they also helped us stop the robberies from happening."

"Are you siding with a criminal, Kanan?" He glared at her, "As police inspectors, we DON'T side with criminals. She might be looking like a hero and stuff, but she's still going against the law, and that is punishable by law. Besides, she was one of us, yet she betrayed us. She actually went against us. I'm not gonna let this slide any longer. We're gonna bring this bitch and her friends down."

Kanan shook her head and sighed. She knew Kotori would not be happy to hear this, and it would also put her in a difficult situation, but there was no other way. She only hoped Kotori could accept the truth.

In Jeff's basement, Eli was treating her own injuries while Umi and Maki were sitting on the sofa. They were worn out and exhausted from fighting so many people, and they really needed this break. Jeff came into the room with water bottles and passed it to the trio.

"Make sure to drink up." He told them, "I don't want you women to die out of dehydration."

"Me and Umi were really having it tough out there." Maki commented, "We had to fight so many men. There was even a muscular one wearing a stab-proof vest throwing around like we're his toys. It makes me wonder how many people Regis had hired to keep this crime syndicate going."

"I'm sorry for letting Regis go." Eli sighed, "We could've gotten him, but I got so distracted by his actions that I let him get away."

"Don't beat yourself up too hard." Jeff responded, "We all didn't expect it. He's a cunning scheming man. He won't let you defeat him so easily."

"At least now we know who Regis Yazuka truly is." Umi said, "Since our plan to take him down directly failed, we should aim for the ones under him now."

"That's right, but we're taking a short break for now, so relax and get some rest." He replied, "We'll have some barbeque tonight to restore our strength."

"Jeff, I'm pretty curious about something." Eli voiced out, "Earlier, while I was fighting Venus, Esther actually came in to help me."

"Esther? The one giving us the locations and helping us behind our backs?" Maki questioned.

"Yeah. She was calling Esther a betrayer. I was just curious as to why she said that to him."

"Esther used to be in the crime syndicate because they killed his best friend, and he wanted to take them down." Jeff explained, "He worked there for fifteen years before he attacked them and destroyed one of their biggest bases. Thus, Regis is sending his men and Venus to hunt him down."

"That man's pretty loyal, if you ask me." Umi remarked.

"By the way, you said you fought Venus." Maki uttered, "How was it? Was it exhilarating and thrilling?"

"Exhilarating? Thrilling? More like suffering." Eli answered, "She's strong and swift. We definitely need to use a different approach when attacking her."

Jeff kept quiet for a while before looking at the trio, "I feel that I need to tell you something. The police are definitely after us now. From this point onwards, whatever we do, there will be no turning back, and there will be no point of return. We will move forward, and see this through the end."

Eli, Maki, and Umi nodded their heads. They knew they were in an unfavorable situation with the law, but after all, this was what they wanted to do. They wanted to seek justice for the victims and their families, as well as take down the crime syndicate. It has never changed. As a matter of fact, they were more motivated now.

In Kotori's home, she quietly ate her dinner on the dining table. It had been days since she was excused from work, and she felt guilty for being excused from work due to her emotional well being. She wondered if she was needed back at the station.

She was still worried about Umi and how she was doing. She hoped the ocean-haired woman was safe and sound. It had been days since the two of them had quarreled at the park, but not one moment passed without Kotori thinking about her crush. However, she decided that she would be returning to work tomorrow, and she couldn't let anything or anyone distract her, including Umi.

To ease her mind, she decided to watch some television as she knew that a comedy show would be airing right now. Instead, what she saw was two news reporters on the screen. That was when she got the shock of her life.

"Just in: A few minutes ago, fights broke out in a party that Mr Sylvester Willis, the DeGeneda CEO, had organized." One of the reporters stated, "There was also an attempt to assassinate Mr Willis. Several people have been injured, including two police officers. These are the criminals wanted for their involvement in the assasination attempt and fights." The pictures of Jeff, Eli, Umi, and a silhouette of a woman then appeared on the television screens.

"They are Jeff Connor, Eli Ayase, Umi Sonoda, and another woman working with them." The second reporter said, "If anyone has any info on them, they are strongly advised to call the police hotline immediately. In other news…"

Kotori dropped the remote control in shock. She was devastated. Her nightmare unfortunately became a reality. Umi was now officially a fugitive. She couldn't believe it. She could never pluck the courage to arrest the person she loves. She buried her head in her hands and started sobbing.