Author's note: here is the next chapter! It's a bit shorter than the other ones but it's probably the second- or third-last chapter so thank you again to Sparda4 for everything, and thanks to everyone reading this.

Austin's POV

"He wants to kill John?" I ask, appalled. "But why? Just because he left Japan for America?"

We're back in Sonic Boom and it's getting dark outside, but so is this whole situation. Dark, I mean.

"I don't know," Ally replies, "Hiro says that John's part of the enemy and he can't be trusted. In any case, Kenji's in charge of it all."

"We've got to fire him!" I exclaim.

"Yeah, it's getting too dangerous." Trish agrees.

"No!" Dez exclaims. "We have to continue investigating! If we fire Kenji, that's tipping him off! We can't do that! Hiro would get really mad."

"So we keep putting ourselves, John, and everyone who works for Jimmy in danger?" I counter. "We can't do that!"

"Guys, what if Kenji says no? What if he doesn't even try to kill John?" Ally interrupts. "What if he doesn't want to go around killing people for Hiro?"

"Ally, I know he told you he wouldn't kill anyone, but he was definitely lying." I tell her. "He just didn't want to scare you away."

Trish rolls her eyes, muttering something about jealousy. "I think we should turn Hiro into the police." she says.

"That's a great idea!" I say.

"So how would we do that?" Dez asks. "Sure, Hiro's wanted in 66 countries, but that doesn't mean the police will believe us when we say he's in the country. They'll think we're lying! We have to get evidence first!"

"Evidence of what?" I ask.

"Evidence that he's trying to kill John! And that he's actually himself! So we can turn him in!" he replies.

"Okay, how are we going to do that?" I ask.

"We're going on a spy mission."

Twenty minutes later, Ally leads us to Kenji's house. It's a pretty big house for one person, but his job also obviously pays well. Not his job as my bodyguard, his job as Hiro's sidekick. But also his job as my bodyguard.

"Why did we come here again?" I whisper.

"Because Hiro is probably staying here for the night and the next few days." Dez whispers back. "If we can hear them talking, then we can record it."

"Shhh..." Ally hisses. "They're talking."

We creep into the bushes, trying to hear, and Dez starts to record their conversation through his advanced audio recorder. It's a lot better at picking up sound than a regular phone or something.

"Kenji, you know this is my last job for you." Hiro says. "I still haven't told anyone you want to stay in America. No doubt they will be upset, but at least you're not exactly everyone's favorite."

Kenji nods. "Sorry again, boss. I'll make sure to visit often, and my home will always be in Japan. But you know that I can't afford to live there. It's too dangerous."

"I support your decision fully." Hiro reassures him. "But you know this is a hard mission, but it must be done. Kong is too dangerous, and he knows too much about us. He could reveal all of us to the authorities, then we're all in trouble. I hope you can do this. Can I trust you?"

"Of course you can," Kenji replies. "You saved my life, multiple times, and this is the least I can do to repay you."

"Thank you, Kenji." Hiro says.

"But you'll be in town for a few more days to help me plan for this, right?" Kenji asks. "I don't really know how to carry this all out."

He sighs. "I'm sorry, Kenji, but I'm leaving in a few minutes. I had to come talk to you in person, but my plane leaves for Japan in an hour. I can't afford to tip anyone off, so I have to leave immediately."

"Oh," Kenji says, looking a little sad. "Then I will fly over to see you as soon as John- sorry, Kong, is dead."

"Thank you, Kenji, for doing this." Hiro says. "I know you are simply repaying me, but I understand that this is big for you. You've never been in charge of a mission like this, but I know you can do it without hesitation."

"Boss?" Kenji says hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"I know this seems silly...but you know how everyone says it's wrong to kill people? I know that Kong is dangerous and could potentially be a threat to all of us, but is it wrong to kill him?" he asks.

Instead of laughing or something, Hiro replies very seriously. "It's simple, Kenji. It is wrong to take a life without any motive or reason. But the world should always be in balance and nature must be respected. I saved your life. Without me, you would be dead. But now there is an extra life in the world. You are in charge of getting rid of that extra life and maintaining balance in our world. Death is a natural part of life, and everyone will eventually die. Kong will simply die earlier than expected."

Then he says one more thing. It's in Japanese, and he says it straight to Kenji. Then he walks out the door.

To: Austin Moon

From: Sergei Nikolayevich Bolkonsky

We have alerted all international police. Hiro will not be leaving America tonight. Please send your recordings to the Miami police. Hiro Takoyaki will finally be caught.

Author's note: thanks for reading! Only one or two more chapters to go, sorry if it takes a while to update.