Disclaimer: I do not own Oregairu or any brands mentioned.
Previously on Match Point: Hikigaya defeats two more assassins, but sustains a serious injury to his arm, whilst in the present he and Rorona capture the man following around Hiratsuka, and tell him to get in contact with his boss.
Friday Night - Yukino's Apartment – 20:09
The young girl unlocks her bathroom door and walks out into the living room. Currently she has towel wrapped around her wet hair and is wearing a turquoise bath robe with matching slippers. Yukinoshita sits down on her sofa and picks the television remote up off the coffee table.
BLINK
The click of a button causes the TV screen to light up, revealing a rerun of Bakemonogatari to be playing. She clicks a different button on the remote and switches to the news. As a woman in a red dress reads the weather report, Yukino hears her phone beep. She grabs the device and unlocks it. The notification reads: "Wat up."
Yukinoshita frowns and opens up the chat to reply.
"Dear Yui, I told you not to message me after 19:30. P.S. Please refrain from using improper grammar. Regards, Yukino Yukinoshita."
Satisfied with the text, the dark-haired girl hits send and places her phone down.
A few moments later it beeps again and Yukino frowns harder.
"Lol. Lame."
She shakes her head at the response.
"Dear Yui, my message was not humorous. Just because we are now friends, does not mean you are exempt from basic texting etiquette. I will only make exceptions during emergencies, so unless your life is in endanger please reread the PDF document with the list of texting rules I sent you on Thursday. Regards, Yukino Yukinoshita."
"K. So wat up."
The wealthy-girl clenches her fist, clearly upset that Yuigahama isn't following the rules for their friendship.
"Dear Yui, I have just finished taking a shower and am now watching the news to fill my daily television consumption quota, and you? Regards, Yukino Yukinoshita."
"About 2 fall asleep watching a movie."
"Dear Yui, using your phone in bed before going to sleep is unhealthy. Regards, Yukino Yukinoshita."
"Dont wrry, I am not using my phone in bed im using it on the couch so its fine."
"Dear Yui, that's not how that works. Regards, Yukino Yukinoshita."
"K. Im tired. Gudnite uwu."
Yukino reads the last message and concludes the conversation is now over. She locks her phone and places it on the coffee table before getting up and walking to the kitchen. While letting the news continue to play in the background, Yukinoshita flicks a switch on her kettle and opens one of the drawers to get a cup. As the water gets hotter and hotter she stares out the window waiting for it to reach boiling point. Her apartment is high up and the view is beautiful.
CLICK
The kettle makes a small noise indicating the water is done. She walks over to the counter and puts a teabag in her cup. As she reaches out to grab the kettle handle, Yukino hears two knocks at her door. She jumps slightly before letting out a sigh and walking over to the entrance to her apartment and looking through the peephole. An all too familiar face greets her and Yukino promptly unlocks and opens the door.
"Good evening Haruno."
The older of the two is currently wearing a dark-red turtle neck over a black dress that goes to below her knees. In each of her hands she holds a large black duffle bag.
"Hello, Yukino." She responds, smiling widely.
2 Months Earlier
The assassin makes his way over the roof to the front of the train. His previous two fights have left him cut up and in pain but he powers through. As he reaches the front carriage, he grabs onto a small hatch and pulls it.
'Locked. Damn it.'
Hikigaya expected no less. This hatch leads into the employees only room and is the safest route to get to the train driver. It's possible one of the other men hired to collect the handbag Hachiman has on him will kill the driver in order to stop the train. Hikigaya has to make sure this doesn't happen and that the train arrives on schedule.
After pulling the handle on the hatch a few more times, he remembers the keys he found in his blazer pocket. He takes them out and finds the one that fits in the lock on the hatch. A few moments later he unlocks it and pulls on it again, this time successfully opening it. He then uses a small ladder to climb from the roof back into the train.
It takes a moment for Hachiman to readjust himself to the lack of pressure hitting him. He feels slightly nauseous and leans against the ladder. Once he recollects himself, he looks around. The room he is in is small and has a bunch of crates. Most of the boxes are shut, but a few have the tops open revealing bottles of wine inside. The only light in the room is coming from a door which is opened slightly. He pushes the door forward and walks out into the lit up room. There are several wooden chairs and lockers placed about.
'The two carriages up front are reserved for employees. This must be a break room, which means the driver would be in the one right up ahead.'
Hikigaya looks to the side at the entrance to the front carriage, before something catches his attention. He looks down and sees the female train attendant he met earlier. She is lying on the floor unconscious, holding the bottle of wine he put the knockout liquid into.
'She must've taken a sip for herself.'
He walks over to her and picks the woman up, then drags her body over to one of the chairs and sits her down on it. While considering what to do next he slowly backs away from the lady before feeling a needle press against his neck and a hand grab onto his shoulder. Hachiman's movement comes to a halt, and he sighs in defeat.
"Sodium thiopental, pancuronium bromide and potassium chloride."
The man behind Hikigaya lists the contents of the syringe as if it's a homemade soup.
"Do you know what that is?" He asks, speaking with a British accent.
"Lethal injection." Hikigaya answers diligently.
"Correct. I assume you were hired to collect the handbag as well?"
"Yes."
"I see. My apologies then, sir. It appears I'm going to have to kill you."
Hachiman rolls his eyes and realises the man was probably hiding behind one of the crates, waiting for him.
"I've met British assassins before, you guys always love to speak. If you're going to kill someone then just get it done."
The man chuckles.
"You're right. It's probably the most inexplicable thing about us. Regarding the injection: I suggest not fighting back. If you hold still, it'll be quick and painless."
"Lucky you." Hikigaya responds quietly.
The operative leans in closer, not properly hearing the response.
"Excuse m-"
Hikigaya throws his head back, hitting the British man in the nose. He quickly turns around as the man reaches for his pistol. The assassin grabs his arm and pushes the syringe into the side of the mans neck and injects him with the poison. There is a short struggle before the man drops to ground with his gun barely half-way out the holster. Hachiman looks at the weapon for a moment before kneeling down and picking it up.
'Silenced. Perfect.'
Present Day – Yukino's Apartment – 20:23
"Three sugars, almond milk. Just how you like it."
Yukinoshita extends her arm and hands a warm cup of tea to her older sister.
"You're too kind Yukino." She responds in her usual half-sarcastic tone of voice.
The younger of the two sits down across from Haruno.
"So, you're probably wondering why I'm here again?"
"Yes." Yukino answers apprehensively.
"Well I have good news and more good news. I'm a bona fide Santa Claus don't you think?"
The dark-haired girl stays silent.
"Ugh… You're always so serious. You need to lighten up Yukino. Do you have a boyfriend yet? I really feel like yo-"
"Will you please just tell me why you're here…"
Her older sister chuckles and takes a sip of the tea.
"We found him. Father and I found the assassin who killed Uncle." Haruno says candidly.
Yukinoshita's blood runs cold and her stomach drops.
"R-Really?"
"Yep. Father was adamant he do it himself, but he wasn't going to get anything done without me."
"Where is he?!"
"Father? He's probably out at dinner right now."
"I meant where is the assassin!" She says with an annoyed tone, knowing her sister is teasing her.
"Don't jump the gun Yukino. You're not curious to know how I found him?
"Fine. How did you find him?"
Haruno smiles.
"I'm so glad you asked! It was quite a process, so I'll keep it short. It all comes down to a woman named Shizuka Hiratsuka."
Yukinoshita's eyes widen.
"I believe that the assassin who killed Uncle has been hired to protect this Shizuka Hiratsuka person."
"Why do you think that?" Yukino asks anxiously, having the mention of her teachers name throw her off.
"The first thing I did when trying to find this elusive assassin was look for jobs with his modus operandi." Haruno continues to speak, not directly answering the question. "It was difficult but eventually I found a few that I was certain he was involved in. A job in South Africa from a few years ago, our uncle's assassination, an incident in Russia and a few more. I looked for individual elements from these jobs and then cross referenced them with police reports. It was a long shot but eventually I got a hit. Shizuka Hiratsuka -your language teacher- was involved in a failed robbery a few weeks ago."
'Hiratsuka was robbed?' Yukino asks herself. 'She never said anything to me about this.'
"The three boys who tried to rob her ran away, so I tracked one of their phones to a warehouse that was currently not being used. On her statement to the police Hiratsuka said she fought off the boys, but it seemed fishy to me so I kept an eye on her. At this point I was looking into several leads so I only put a little bit of my attention on the teacher. If this assassin really did intervene in the robbery then he'd likely go after the robbers to finish the job. As predicted he came after them and I quickly hired two men to go capture him but that didn't exactly work out. He easily eliminated one of them and then got the other one working for him."
Haruno leans back and sighs as her sister processes the information.
"I did get to speak to him though, through one of the boys' phones. It was only for a moment as he ended the call pretty fast. So I came up with a new plan, and you might not like this part."
Yukino looks at her sister with a worried expression.
"I made an anonymous tip to a news station and then to the police, telling them that the person who helped Hiratsuka was actually this high profile assassin and that she clearly lied on her statement. This information put your teacher in a very negative light and could get her in a lot of trouble. Like proper jail-time trouble. The police have also been trying to get this guy, so they took the tip very seriously."
The young girls worried look is soon replaced with one of anger.
"How could you do such a thing?! You've put Hiratsuka's life in danger and you don't even care!"
"Calm down Yukino. It's all part of the plan. I knew the assassin wouldn't let the woman he is protecting just get arrested and that he'd try and get in contact with me sooner or later. Well, once again I was right, and the man I had follow Hiratsuka around gave me a call thirty minutes ago. He said he is with the assassin right now and that he wants to meet, tonight. Obviously I accepted, and we agreed that I get the police off Hiratsuka's back if he gives me the name of the man who hired him to kill Uncle."
"And if he doesn't give you the name?"
"I'm confident he will. You don't need to worry, I won't let anything happen to your precious teacher."
Yukino calms down.
"You said the assassin wants to meet tonight. Are you going to send a team in?"
"No. That hasn't worked out very well so far. I'm going to meet him myself."
"Take me with you." Yukinoshita says with determination. "I want to see the man who killed Uncle."
Her older sister smiles.
"Are you sure you can handle it? This stuff clearly makes you very emotional."
"I can handle it."
Haruno slowly nods and stands up then grabs one of the duffle bags she brought.
"I thought you might want to join me, so I came prepared."
She throws her sister the bag. Yukino promptly unzips it and finds a ski-mask along with combat boots, baggy grey pants, a black jacket and a bulletproof vest.
"Let's get changed. When we're done we'll go to the meetup."
The young girl takes a deep breath and mentally prepares herself for the rest of the night.
2 Months Earlier
Hachiman finds some duct tape in a draw and uses it as a makeshift bandage for his forearm. It's a crude solution but it does the job. He then sits down on one of the wooden chairs and clicks the small button on his earpiece.
"You there?" He asks into the microphone whilst feeling a wave of exhaustion hit him.
"Yes. Is everything going okay?"
He looks at the dead operative lying awkwardly on the ground with a needle in his neck.
"All things considered? Yeah, it's going great. I've got the handbag, and I've dealt with a couple of the men sent to retrieve it. The train is still moving and the civilians don't know what's going on. I did have to lock down first-class though."
"You're everything your file says you are then. Once the train gets to the next stop, we'll have someone escort you to an evac vehicle. Just try and survive until then."
"Will do."
"Signing out."
He taps the button on the earpiece once again and then takes the handbag out of his jacket.
'Let's see what all the fuss is about…'
After unclipping the top, he reaches inside and feels around a few items. Hikigaya then begins pulling them out one by one.
'Perfume, a doctors note and a train ticket.'
They all seem rather normal to him, so he goes deeper. He scratches at the bottom of the bag before noticing a loose flap. Hachiman tugs on the flap slightly and finds a USB hidden under it. The assassin looks around, hoping to get lucky and see a laptop. Hikigaya's employer probably wouldn't be very happy if he went through the contents of the memory stick however he's a bit less trusting since his last mission, and feels the sense of curiosity getting the best of him. Regardless there is no laptop or computer, so whatever is so valuable remains a mystery.
After returning the USB to the handbag, he stands up and walks over to the entrance to the next carriage.
'There could still be… Multiple assassins on this train. I should stay closer... To the driver...'
He clutches onto the silenced pistol as his mind starts to go blank.
'Shit. Blood loss… Making me tired…'
Struggling to stay awake, Hachiman drops to his knees.
THUMP
A moment later his unconscious body hits the floor.
Authors Notes: Looks like Yukino is finally going to meet the man who killed her beloved uncle. Chapter 21 will be up next week!
