Jigen and Lupin arrived at the hideout long after Goemon, who had started to worry. The state Jigen was in did nothing to ease his concerns. Goemon retrieved the first-aid kit, his brows furrowed, and forcefully sat Jigen down. He began by removing the blood-soaked bandages wrapped around Jigen's wound, tossing them aside without a word.

Goemon was much more upset than the situation warranted. Lupin shrugged incredulously, choosing to avoid the confrontation—what a coward—and slinked off to a corner of the room. Jigen found himself alone with an irritated Goemon.

"Uh… ouch. Everything okay, Goemon?"

Jigen got no response, and for a moment, he thought Goemon wouldn't answer at all. But, in the middle of disinfecting a needle, the swordsman finally spoke.

"You told us you were fine. You are obviously not."

He pressed a little too hard as he stitched the wound, earning a wince and a groan from Jigen.

"I do not appreciate being lied to," Goemon continued.

Jigen didn't know how to read the swordsman as well as Lupin, but there was something in his voice, subtle yet different from his usual monotone, that told Jigen he'd messed up somewhere.

"Sorry, Goemon," Jigen muttered.

Goemon lowered his hands, now avoiding Jigen's gaze. "I would have expected that from Lupin." Lupin perked up at the mention of his name, looking slightly offended. "But you—you're the most level-headed one in the group. You're always the first to tell us to postpone a mission if someone is hurt. So… why don't you follow your own advice?"

Goemon resumed his work. His hands were quick and efficient despite the tense atmosphere. He applied fresh compresses and carefully wrapped new bandages. Jigen couldn't help but wince, partly because Goemon's touch was a little rough and partly because the swordsman was rarely angry—but when he was, they were in for a ride. Jigen turned his gaze away to avoid meeting his eyes. Even Lupin didn't dare crack a joke.

Jigen muttered an apology, "I know it doesn't excuse anything, but… I didn't want to let you go without me."

"Why? Do you not trust us?" Goemon tightened the bandages a little too firmly. "Do you think yourself stronger than us?"

"No! That's not it. It's just that…" Jigen gritted his teeth.

He couldn't tell them. How could he explain in a few words something he barely understood himself? It had driven him crazy knowing he'd be stuck, immobilized, completely useless, while Lupin and Goemon went off without him.

With the mafia, it had always been every man for himself, and there was no mercy for the wounded. How many times had he been left behind, bleeding out, watching the tailcoats of his 'colleagues' vanish into the night?

Too many times.

He couldn't even trust Lupin completely, even though he knew deep inside him that the thief was solid when it came to this sort of thing. Lupin would never leave him behind. Even if Jigen lost both hands, Lupin would find a way to include him in their capers. Yet, Jigen had still hidden the severity of his injury, like an old battered dog that couldn't stop himself from snapping.

Guess he was more fucked up than he thought he was.

"You're used to people leaving you behind, huh?" Lupin said casually.

He smiled with complete innocence, legs swinging over the edge of his chair, both hands resting on the cushion as if he hadn't just read Jigen's mind.

"Uh…" Jigen was at a loss for words.

"Jigen…" Lupin scooted closer, pressing his cheek against Jigen's before latching onto him like an octopus. "My dear little Jigen-chan!"

"Ugh, Lupin!"

Jigen squirmed, which only made his wound throb painfully. Goemon politely stepped aside, giving them space.

"Jigen-chaaan! Those days are over!" Lupin eased up a little, careful not to aggravate the injury further, but he continued teasing him regardless. "You don't work for scumbags anymore! You work for me!You should've told me you weren't fit to go on a mission!"

Their playful tussle knocked over a bottle of disinfectant. Goemon quickly stepped in to salvage what he could.

"Stop that!"

"It's a bad habit, Jiggy! A bad habit!" Lupin had tipped Jigen's chair backward, sending them both crashing to the floor.

Jigen groaned, then realized the attack was over. He opened his eyes to find Lupin clinging to him tightly, showing no sign of letting go. Unsure of how to react—and with his side throbbing—Jigen gave in. He gave him a few awkward pats on the back.

"You're not alone anymore," Lupin murmured.

Old habits were a stubborn vice, and it was comforting to hear Lupin speak so earnestly. It felt almost too good to be true. Jigen didn't know if he believed them yet, but he wanted to. Jigen slid a hand through Lupin's short hair. The thief didn't budge, his head buried deep in Jigen's jacket.

Jigen had grown used to facing challenges alone, but Lupin had proven time and time again that things didn't work that way here. Still, Jigen tended to forget.

"Sorry, boss…"

Lupin mumbled something, but his face was pressed into Jigen's chest, so all that came out was a garbled nonsense.

They lay there for a while, Jigen gently stroking Lupin's hair. When the warm, fuzzy feeling finally started to fade, the pain in Jigen's side flared back up, a dull reminder that he had fallen on the floor with a weight on him.

"Lupin, you're hurting me."

Lupin quickly got up, then helped Jigen to sit upright. Of course, the wound had reopened, and Goemon had to play doctor again.

The samurai held a grudge against Lupin for the rest of the evening.

.

The evening took on a calmer tone. After the intensity of recent days, they had decided to sit down for a hearty meal at the safehouse. It truly felt like forced relaxation. Lupin was chatting loudly and spitting bits of food everywhere, as usual. Goemon kept quiet but always managed to nab the best pieces. And Jigen was perfectly at ease amid the chaos.

The pain in his side had subsided, though the other two refused to believe him. He had to admit, he enjoyed these rare moments of peace.

But peace never lasted long in their world.

In the middle of their meal, Goemon froze at the same time as Jigen. They had heard something outside.

In a flash, Goemon drew his sword, deflecting an attack that had quite literally come out of nowhere. At the same time, Jigen fired his Magnum, as Black Dawn goons poured in from all sides. Goemon was a whirlwind of movement, dispatching the attackers with an almost effortless precision.

"Shit!"

"Looks like we've got uninvited dinner guests!" Lupin leapt from his chair. He darted across the room, grabbing a few gadgets that were lying around.

The Black Dawn goons were rapidly swarming the safehouse, held back only by Goemon's katana and Jigen's Magnum. Laughing, Lupin tossed a small smoke bomb into the room. The thick cloud of smoke quickly filled the space, giving them the chance to slip away.

They exited through a window. The acrobatics jolted Jigen's injured side, sending a sharp pang of pain as a reminder of his condition. But Lupin and Goemon flanked him almost immediately, wordlessly closing ranks to support him.

They ran, their footsteps echoing lightly on the tiles as they left the smoke and the shouting of the goons behind. By the time their pursuers realized they were gone, it was too late.

Clearly annoyed, Goemon grumbled reluctantly, "Humph… They must have followed me. My apologies, Lupin, Jigen."

"Don't worry about it, Go-Go. We've shaken them off," Lupin reassured him.

They slowed down. Jigen gritted his teeth, his strength waning from the strain of his injury. Finally, they found a brief moment of respite on a raised rooftop out of sight.

Panting, Jigen sat down on a chimney, clutching his side. Lupin made a half-grimace, to which Jigen responded with a thumbs-up. I'm fine. Lupin raised an eyebrow, clearly dissatisfied with the response, but Jigen growled, and the thief let it slide.

Goemon remained obvious to it aall, too busy as he was staring at the horizon. "We should move quickly."

"Hmm... Yes," Lupin agreed. "If they're as good as people say, they're already on our heels."

Jigen's gut tightened in warning. A glint of metal, far off on a rooftop—a sniper. Too far for his Magnum, but that wasn't a problem. Without hesitation, he fired at a chimney next to the sniper, which collapsed with a deep rumble, burying their enemy beneath the rubble.

Lupin and Goemon jumped at the sound. Goemon had already drawn Zantetsuken but sheathed it when he saw the threat was neutralized.

"Sniper," Jigen explained.

"As much as I love your way of thinking, Jigen-chan, this little rescue might've blown our cover,"

In the distance, a few of the thugs appeared, running in their direction, clearly drawn by the gunshot.

"We're going to have to split up," Lupin decided quickly. "Goemon and I will draw the troops away. Jigen, meet us at safehouse 38B in thirty minutes max."

He turned to Goemon, who gave a silent nod. Jigen couldn't shake the feeling that this was a test—a way for them to see if he'd object to the plan. But there was no need to worry; Jigen had learned his lesson.

"Alright."

He let the other two move on. Lupin vanished nimbly into the night, while Goemon slipped away in the opposite direction, both of them still making sure that the goons could still see them. Jigen took a moment to ensure his injury wouldn't slow him down before he disappeared into the shadows of Milan.

But no sooner had he climbed down from the rooftop than he realized Lupin and Goemon hadn't shaken all their pursuers. Several thugs were chasing him.

He darted into Milan's dark alleys, his breathing labored. His fatigue was slowing him. Unfortunately, either he was in worse shape than he thought, or their pursuers were better than expected, because as he rounded a corner, he came face-to-face with a smile he had hoped never to see again, the one he had already met on thenight after their caper at the Louvre. The kind of smile who had just obtained what he wanted.

A sharp blow struck the back of his head, and Jigen crumpled to the ground.

His last regret was failing Lupin yet again.