Gunshots echoed through the building like thunder.
Kazuki stood in the hallway, breathing hard, the pistol still in his hand, Three bodies lay behind him two outside the room and one inside, The silence had shattered, Now the whole building would know he was loose.
Damn, Kazuki muttered, wiping blood from his cheek, he looked around, eyes scanning fast, no more sneaking, they were coming.
Heavy footsteps slammed against the concrete floor from the far end of the hall.
He moved fast, turning a corner and heading down another hallway, Pipes ran along the ceiling, dripping water from somewhere above. It was dark, dirty, an old building that looked like a maze of old rooms and creaky doors. The hideout was bigger than it looked more like a broken down factory turned into a base.
Voices shouted. He eacaped! Kazuki escaped!
More footsteps approached as they split across the building in search of him
Kazuki kept moving fast, passing doors and stairwells, searching for an exit, but every hallway felt the same narrow, rusted, with blinking lights and trash scattered across the floor, he was trapped in their den now.
Then
Bang!
A shot flew past him, hitting the wall just beside his head.
He dropped low, rolled into a side room, and crouched behind an old table
Three guys came in behind him, shouting
There! Inside!
Kazuki didn't wait.
He kicked the table forward, making it crash against their legs. One stumbled, and Kazuki dashed out his gun raised, Bang! Bang!
Two fell.
The third raised his weapon too slow, Kazuki was already on him he grabbed the man's arm, twisted it, and slammed his elbow into the guy's jaw, the man dropped like a ragdoll.
But there wasn't time to rest.
More were coming, shouts from the hallway boots stomping as they came towards him
He picked up another weapon a machine pistol from one of the fallen men, checked the clip and ran as fast as he could
As he turned another corner, he froze.
A group of about ten were already waiting.
They didn't speak, just raised their guns all at once.
Kazuki moved without thinking.
He shot at the light above them sparks exploded, and the hallway went dark.
Shouting and flashlights flicked on, Bullets sprayed everywhere as they shot carelessly
Kazuki slid across the floor and dove through an open door. Inside was another storage room with dusty crates, tools, and broken furniture everywhere, He ducked behind a shelf as bullets tore through the wooden walls.
He peeked out, fired back, one guy dropped, then another.
Too many, Way too many.
He couldn't take them all head on.
Not like this.
He picked up a metal pipe and tossed it across the room the clang distracted them for a moment enough for Kazuki to slide to the next room, His body was sore, bleeding again from earlier, but he pushed through.
Then he heard it a different voice.
They said he is heading toward Section B!
Another group, bigger, they were closing in.
Kazuki ran up a metal stairway, footsteps echoing behind him, From the upper floor, he could see it now dozens of them, all armed, all sweeping the building like they were hunting a ghost.
But he was no ghost now.
He was just trying to survive.
He opened a side door and crept into another room, It looked like an office old desks, cabinets, torn blueprints on the walls. He found some wire, wrapped it around the handles, and used it to trap the door shut behind him. It wouldn't stop them for long, but it gave him a minute to breathe.
He checked his ammo.
Low
He grabbed a screwdriver from the desk and slipped it into his pocket, Then he spotted a broken glass panel in the corner probably used to pass tools between rooms, he crouched, squeezed through it, and entered another hallway.
And that's when he saw him.
Reigi.
At the far end of the hallway.
White hair, White suit and a calm face.
He was standing there with two bodyguards both in suits
The hallway was long, quiet, and lit by a red emergency light, Kazuki froze in place, his breath caught after all this chaos… there he was standing calmly
Reigi didn't look surprised.
He just smiled.
"So," he said, his voice echoing faintly. "You made it this far."
Kazuki said nothing. He tightened his grip on the pistol.
Reigi stepped forward a little.
"Did you really think escaping would be that easy?" he asked. This place has over fifty men… all trained all armed. And yet…
He raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
Behind Kazuki, more footsteps rushed in. Shouting like escaped prisoners
He was cornered.
Kazuki turned slowly, gun raised, five men behind, three to the left, Reigi in front.
No escape now.
His heart pounded.
But his mind was quiet.
Kazuki looked straight at Reigi and said, You're not going to kill me here.
Reigi raised an eyebrow.
"No?"
Kazuki smirked slightly. No. You want to do it yourself."
Reigi smiled coldly. No I don't want to kill you but offer you a deal, if you win a fight against me I will let you go but if I win you surrender.
Ok, I guess that sounds nice with me kazuki said
He turned to his men, Fall back, I will deal with him.
The bodyguards hesitated but nodded, The others pulled back, leaving Kazuki and Reigi alone in the hallway.
Kazuki took a deep breath.
His hands were sore, his body bruised, but he still stood straight.
This wasn't over.
This was just the start.