Uchiha Byakuya, Yoshimura Eto, and Arima Kishou all shared nearly the same ideal; They all wanted to change this world.
And just like that, a tacit understanding was reached.
Hearing Byakuya and Arima's exchange, Eto furrowed her brows in confusion and slowly opened her eyes.
"What… are you two talking about…?"
"I'll explain everything to you once we're back. For now, focus on settling your organization's affairs."
Byakuya didn't explain immediately.
If they delayed any longer, V might send people to monitor the situation.
Beforehand, he had carefully scanned the surroundings, confirming that no operatives from V were nearby.
He had absolute confidence in his Mangekyō Sharingan's perception.
That meant they had to move quickly, ensuring Eto and the members of Aogiri Tree escaped before V caught wind of this.
Eto was momentarily stunned. The more she tried to figure out this deceitful, perverted lolicon investigator, the more unpredictable he seemed.
A moment later, she smirked and spread her arms out toward Byakuya.
"…What are you doing?"
Byakuya hesitated for a second, not immediately understanding Eto's intention.
"Isn't it obvious? Carry me out of here, I'm too weak to move."
Eto said this with a straight face.
"..."
Byakuya instantly saw through her.
Eto still had plenty of strength left, he and Arima had only disabled her kakuja arms; they hadn't actually injured her real body at all.
Even so, he didn't reject her request. He reached out, wrapping his arms around Eto, and lifted her out of the remains of her kakuja shell.
As he picked her up, Eto leaned in close to his ear, her voice carrying a teasing lilt.
"You may be a liar, but you're still a lolicon after all, aren't you~?"
"…How am I a liar?"
Byakuya retorted immediately.
Eto didn't bother justifying it. "A liar is a liar."
Arima Kishou, who had been standing silently nearby, continued watching them with an expressionless face, saying nothing.
Byakuya soon set Eto down.
She landed lightly on her feet, retracting the remains of her kakuja form back into her body, ensuring that no trace was left behind at the scene.
[Ding! The host has defeated the SSS-rated ghoul "One-Eyed Owl."]
[Reward: 200 Attribute Points.]
Byakuya instantly gained a substantial number of attribute points. He also noted that Eto's current rating was still SSS, not SSS+.
It was only by the time of the original story's events that she had grown to an SSS+ level.
As for Furuta Nimura in the later stages of the original timeline, he had already surpassed even the SSS+ classification.
Byakuya and Arima prepared to leave, placing their Quinques back into their cases.
"See you tonight."
Before leaving, Byakuya casually said to Eto.
"Mm…"
Eto absentmindedly responded as she watched Byakuya's figure disappear into the distance, momentarily lost in thought.
Even now, Eto still had no idea how many secrets this deceitful, perverted lolicon investigator was hiding.
Somehow… he didn't seem like an ordinary human, nor did he feel like a typical ghoul investigator.
And then there was that blue-haired guy who showed up today, his presence only deepened her suspicions.
He seemed to be Byakuya's partner, and the strength of both of them far exceeded that of any CCG Special Class Investigator; That definitely wasn't normal.
Eto suspected that these two were likely half-humans… maybe even members of the V Organization.
Based on her parents' experiences and the notes her mother left behind, she had deduced that nearly every member of V had at least Special Class-level combat ability.
If Byakuya and the blue-haired guy were among V's elites, then everything would make sense.
But thinking about this now wouldn't change anything. She would just have to wait until tonight and see what that deceitful, perverted lolicon had to say.
The Sunlit Garden.
In a quiet courtyard, Kaiko looked at the two young men before him.
"Byakuya, Kishou, how did it go?"
Byakuya shook his head slightly. "We were a step too late. By the time we arrived, the 'One-Eyed Owl' and the organization under its command had already relocated."
"Is that so? What a pity."
Kaiko glanced at Arima but saw that he neither denied nor confirmed the statement.
Kaiko had always trusted Kishou. Even if Byakuya was unreliable, Kishou wouldn't be as well, right?
"Let's put this matter aside for now. Once we determine their new location, we'll deal with them then."
Kaiko continued, "I'll notify you both when your next mission comes up."
Byakuya and Arima both nodded slightly before taking their leave.
On the way back to the 2nd Ward, Byakuya and Arima spoke.
Arima was the first to break the silence. "Byakuya, what do you plan to do?"
Naturally, he was asking how they would go about achieving what the One-Eyed Owl had spoken of-changing this world.
"First, we must overthrow the Washuu Clan. Only then can we proceed with the rest of the plan."
Byakuya's tone was calm and resolute.
The Washuu Clan, the very ones who created the CCG to combat ghouls, were in truth ghouls themselves. This was a secret known only to a select few.
For centuries, they had maintained a delicate balance, keeping humans from becoming too weak while ensuring ghouls never became too powerful.
Whenever an overly strong ghoul appeared, V would "cleanse" them.
That was the very purpose behind V's creation-to uphold the Washuu Clan's rule.
To the Washuu Clan, ordinary ghouls weren't even worth considering.
The reason this world was, as Eto put it, "completely screwed up," was because of the Washuu Clan.
Overthrowing them was a necessity.
For example, there had long been a way to develop a ghoul-friendly substitute for human flesh.
In the original story, such research was entirely possible but the Washuu Clan constantly obstructed it, ensuring that no progress was ever made.
If peace between humans and ghouls were achieved, the CCG would lose its purpose, and the Washuu Clan's control over Japan would be greatly diminished.
That was the last thing they wanted.
This was why, in the original story, once the Washuu Clan was wiped out, a substitute for human flesh was quickly developed.
"But that won't be easy, especially considering how short our lifespans as half-humans are…"
Arima wasn't particularly optimistic.
Before even thinking about overthrowing the Washuu Clan, they first had to deal with V, which was no small feat.
In contrast, Byakuya remained calm and confident.
"Don't worry. We will win."
...
(Original Author's note: At least in the earlier, more structured part of the original story, Kuzen and Eto were the most representative examples of SSS and SSS+ ghouls. The later stages of the story descended into chaos, making it difficult to evaluate power levels. Somehow, the sense of overwhelming threat wasn't as strong as it had been during the era of the "Non-Killing Owl.")