Kaito took steady footsteps towards a tall modernized building, with bright and neon-colored lights that shone through the glass windows. The music was extremely thunderous, almost able to deafen his ears. He was surprised that he could hear the music from outside. In the past, the clubs weren't as noisy, but Osaka changed a bit while he was away.

Osaka was truly a city for those who roamed during the night. The smell of fried street food and bright lights and lanterns that hovered around brought a sense of nostalgia to Kaito's senses.

Briefly, he took it all in before making his way into the building. All Kaito had to do was show the bouncer his lighter. On it was his signature, XO. Any bouncer working for a business during the night knew who he was.

Without hesitation, he was welcomed inside immediately.

Kaito fixed the collar of his shirt and tucked his hands into his pockets. A few of the women inside, both foreign and Japanese, glanced at him while he strolled past them.

Kaito knew better than to acknowledge them. The women inside were there for one reason, to lure the rich and powerful men away so they could provide their 'services'. He ignored their gazes and strode deep inside the building, towards the VIP section.

The VIP section had fewer people. It was a private lounge down the stairs, blocked off by a door and a bodyguard. It was a criminals hotspot, a place where only the craziest and most cunning men met to discuss their business.

Kaito had often been down there quite a few times. It was nice and quiet, a perfect place to lure a target.

"Anatawa dare?" A firm hand shoved Kaito's shoulder back as he reached for the doorknob. The bodyguard looked Kaito up and down apprehensively. Kaito pulled up his sleeve, revealing a tattoo with XO inked on his wrist, and the bodyguard stepped aside immediately.

Every sane criminal knew that when they saw that symbol, to show fear. Kaito brushed his shoulder off and opened the door. Inside the lounge, it was very dim lighting. He saw Asuka and another man sitting at a nearby table.

"Asuka.." Kaito stepped forward and greeted him nonchalantly.

"Kaito." Asuka grinned in response. "You look different. Has something been stressing you out lately?"

Kaito sat down across from him and slouched back into his seat. It didn't surprise Kaito that Asuka recognized the difference in his expression. Kaito was extremely exhausted, as a result of dealing with a wife and child now. Not only that, he barely had time to recover from the jet lag.

He wasn't going to tell Asuka that though. It would be out of character for Kaito to show weakness. "I'm fine." He reached for a cigarette case and grabbed one before lighting it.

"What brings you back to Japan so early? Weren't we supposed to meet in a few weeks?" Asuka popped open a bottle of sake, and poured it into 2 glasses, one for himself and Kaito.

"You know that my job requires me to always keep busy." Kaito hummed. "I thought to myself, why wait for a simple answer to a simple question?"

"I'm sure you remember that the last time we talked, we never left on good terms." Asuka scoffed. "You're a bold dastard, daring to come here unexpectedly and without anyone to help defend you." Asuka pushed the wine glass over to Kaito's side of the small table.

"Of course, I remember." Kaito nudged the glass away. He knew the contents inside were poisoned. "I don't need anyone to help defend me, only myself. You know very well what I am capable of."

Asuka slid his hand down to his pocket slowly. His fingers slid over the lump of the fabric where his gun was hidden. Kaito blew out a puff of smoke from his cigarette, completely relaxed. He knew what Asuka was doing, but didn't worry because he knew that Asuka had a lousy aim.

If Asuka knew what was good for him and the man sitting nearby, he wouldn't dare threaten Kaito with a weapon. "5 years ago, you ran away from a job I gave to you. Now you are back in Japan to discuss whatever with me."

"Yep." Kaito placed his cigarette in the tray and put it out. He leaned forward and placed his hands together. "I'm looking for someone."

"What?" Asuka blinked at him in surprise. "You caused a bunch of ruckus over the phone simply because you're in search of someone?"

Kaito rolled his eyes.

"You crazy dastard. Do you think I have all the time in the world? If you're looking for someone, you could've easily found them with your connections!" Asuka whipped out his gun and placed it against Kaito's forehead. "I should kill you for wasting my time."

"The person I am looking for has something to do with you." Kaito chuckled. "My brother, Katashi Matsumoto went missing almost 3 years ago. The last contact he made was with you." Kaito pushed himself off the chair, and his tone darkened.

Asuka's eyes widened, and Kaito knew immediately that Asuka had been in contact with Katashi.

"Now if you don't want me to end you and your pals life in the next 5 seconds, I suggest you tell me where he is." Kaito pressed his lips together.

"I don't know where he is," Asuka said a little too quickly. Kaito snatched the gun right out of Asuka's hands and pulled the trigger. In an instant, the man beside Asuka crouched over in pain. He'd been shot in the leg. However, Kaito wasn't satisfied, so he aimed at Asuka's head.

"Maybe I wasn't clear the first time." Kaito snickered.

"Honest! I don't know where he is!" Asuka spat nervously. "You know I am in charge of debt collecting! 3 years ago, Katashi came to me asking for money, and that's it."

"He asked you for money?" Kaito huffed. That sounded like such a lie, Kaito's family had been well off ever since he paid off their debts by working with the Yakuza. Why would Katashi ask Asuka for money? "What did he need the money for?"

"He never said!" Asuka gasped when Kaito shoved the weapon forward. "All I know is, he asked for money, took it, and disappeared! The reason I didn't go after him was because I know not to mess with someone related to you. And besides, I thought you'd pay it back, the money I loaned to him."

"That's sounding like a lot of bull, Asuka." Kaito spat angrily. "I don't like liars."

"You really think I'd waste any more of my time and lie to you?" Asuka snorted. "We both have busy schedules and businesses to run."

If Asuka didn't know where Katashi was, then what was the point of this whole undercover mission?

"I don't know where he is, but I may have an idea as to where to start looking." Asuka groaned. "I heard Inochi has been recruiting recently. He's the only other member from another family to know about your family. You should ask him if he knows about Katashi's disappearance."

Kaito moved the gun away and unloaded it before tossing it aside. Asuka's words were true, after all, Inochi was the one who introduced him to the criminal life. But Inochi was a close friend, so it wouldn't make sense for him to be involved in his younger brother's disappearance.

It looked like he was going to have to get some more information from Haruka and his mother. Why did Katashi borrow money from Asuka? What did he need the money for?

Kaito was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't realize he was still in the vicinity of his enemy. The man who had been shot quietly crawled back up and grabbed a pocket knife that was lying on the lounge table.

He snuck over to Kaito, and jammed the blade into Kaito's torso, earning a loud grunt in response. Kaito whipped his body around and yanked the knife out, before clutching onto his wound. Then he glanced at the man and Asuka with fire in his eyes.

"It's not like you to show mercy, Kaito." Asuka smiled. Kaito reached for his gun and aimed at the man who stabbed him.

"I'll kill... you both." Kaito panted, the pain from his wound was making it hard for him to breathe. It had been a while since he was this injured. He was surprised that he let his guard down.

Kaito pulled the trigger and the bullet went for the man's head. The man's body flew back and landed next to Asuka, lifeless. Asuka nodded in amazement. "That's more like it." He sauntered over to Kaito proudly and punched him across the face.

Kaito wheezed and fell over. "Try and kill me next." Asuka cackled and grabbed Kaito by his hair. "Go on, try it."

Kaito grunted in response and pushed himself off the ground slowly. He is body was already tired, so the wound that was currently bleeding out wasn't helping him at all. His head began to sweat profusely as he crawled for the door.

Haruka was going to have a fit once he found out that he killed another man. But he couldn't worry about that now, he had to get away from Asuka before the detectives outside would come in. They were hiding out, and there was no doubt they heard the gunshots being fired from outside the building.

"You've changed Kaito. It's been 8 years since I last saw you, and never have I once seen you show mercy, or shoot someone where it won't kill them. Until now, that is. And the craziest part is..." Asuka crossed his arms and his smug expression disappeared. "You were planning on sparring me. So now, I'm curious as to find out what exactly is wrong with you, and why you are acting so different now."

Kaito rammed his foot into Asuka's chin, knocking him to the ground. The two broke out in a full-on fist fight, and Kaito appeared to be losing. In the distance, the sound of heavy footsteps coming down the stairs made Kaito's heart race. It wouldn't be long before the Detectives barged their way in.

~

Samantha paced back and forth in front of the door frantically. She didn't know what to do. Her heart raced at the thought of Kaito coming back to end her. She didn't trust him, and she didn't feel safe.

There was no way for her to get help. Kaito took her cellphone, and she didn't know who or what was waiting outside the apartment just in case she left.

She was hungry and exhausted from traveling for so long, and there was no food in the fridge she felt was safe to eat. What if Kaito poisoned everything in his kitchen? Maybe he planned on pinning her death as a suicide if she ate anything.

The crazy thoughts of hers were slowly driving her to madness. She spent the whole day being too afraid to touch or do anything.

Keiji was god knows where, but Samantha wanted nothing more than to take her son into her arms and protect him. Even if she couldn't find a way to get back to Cartersville, she had to at least search for her baby and escape Kaito.

But where could she start?

The sound of the front door clicking startled Samantha. Kaito stumbled inside, with his hand glued to his stomach. The coat he wore was stained, and the fingers pressed to the fabric were covered in a red pigment.

Kaito's appearance was bruised and battered, shocking Samantha out of her seat. One part of her felt bad for him, only because he was still her husband. The other part of her felt that he deserved whatever beating came to him.

Kaito glanced at Samantha and limped over to the living room. Samantha stood in place, wondering if he went on a killing frenzy and was after her next. "Kaito! You—"

"Go into.. my bedroom... and grab the first aid kit," Kaito grunted and fell against the couch.

"What happened!?" Samantha gasped when she saw the wound up close. "D-did you get shot?"

"First-aid kit.." Kaito mumbled and pointed to the bedroom door. Samantha tripped over her own feet but fixed herself before rushing into his bedroom. On the nightstand was a large box with the medical plus on it. Although it was written in Japanese, she knew exactly what it was.

She grabbed it and ran back into the living room, and placed the kit on the table before popping the top part of it open.

Kaito used all the strength he could muster to take off his coat and rip off his shirt. "M-maybe we should call a doctor or ambulance." Samantha frowned.

Kaito ignored her suggestion and pointed to the rag inside the box. "Take that.. and put it here." He huffed and pointed to the wound. Samantha shook her head in disagreement.

"I can't! I can't do this!" Samantha gagged at the sight of blood. She almost fainted when she gave birth to Keiji, blood was the whole reason she dropped out of Nursing school.

Kaito grabbed Samantha by her arm and dragged her close. He knew what would make her suck up her tears and help him. "I'll tell you where Keiji is, but if I die here, you'll never find out."

"No," Samantha whined. "Tell me where he is first, and then I'll help you." Kaito chuckled at her. He couldn't believe she was trying to negotiate with him.

"Grab.. the rag." He grunted.

"Tell me where Keiji is—"

"Listen you wench—" Kaito grabbed her by her hair. "If you refuse and let me die here, then I'll drag you down with me." His eyes gazed at her neck. "You think I won't do it? I'm injured but I still have strength left. I'll kill you first, snap your neck and I'll take my last breath afterward. So if you ever want to see Keiji again, grab that rag and help me." He spat through his clenched jaw. "Do you understand?"