"The time for lurking is over. No matter who the opponent is, as long as they dare to find trouble with me, they will have to pay the corresponding price."
Tatsuma got up and moved, turning his head to look at Toichiro. "Do you know the location of Shahryar and his subordinates?"
Toichiro said, "Most of the time he is at MAR Headquarters. As for whether he is there now, I'm not sure."
"Then let's go to MAR Headquarters first."
Tatsuma made the decision.
However, just then, the office door was pushed open, and Sho walked in from outside.
"Leader, someone wants to see you."
"Who?"
"White Dragon Emperor Vali."
"Oh, speaking of which, I almost forgot about him."
Tatsuma raised an eyebrow, remembering the negotiation with Sirzechs yesterday.
"No need to have him come see me, you take him to gather people, we're going out to fight later."
Sho: ?
What happened?
Looking at the densely packed crowd of espers in the hall before him, Vali's head felt a bit muddled.
After being defeated by Tatsuma yesterday, he lost consciousness on the spot and only woke up not long ago.
Regarding his disposition, Vali had already heard from Azazel.
Because he was defeated head-on, plus he had the chance to fight Tatsuma again, he had no opinion on this result.
After eating breakfast and filling his stomach, he ran excitedly to the Akatsuki Headquarters to check in according to the address on the business card.
However, unlike the expected passionate scene of meeting his nemesis and declaring that he wouldn't give up just like that, not long after he entered the Akatsuki Headquarters, he was brought to this hall by Sho.
After that, more and more espers pushed the door open and kept gathering.
Scanning the surroundings, Vali walked towards an esper who looked quite strong. "Excuse me, do you know what's going on right now?"
Ryo was startled. "You look a bit unfamiliar, a newcomer who joined recently?"
Vali nodded. "I came this morning."
Ryo understood. "No wonder you don't recognize me, that's normal then."
Vali asked, "Are you very famous?"
"Not famous, but I have some status within Akatsuki."
Ryo took out a business card and said, "I was one of the Ultimate 5 of Claw before."
"After Claw was incorporated, I currently serve as the Captain of the Third Brigade within Akatsuki."
"You are a newcomer who just came this morning, so you probably haven't been assigned to a team yet, right? You can hang out with me."
"I'll consider it."
Vali took the business card and glanced at it, then asked the previous question again, "Do you know what's going on right now? Why are so many people gathered? It looks like they are going to fight."
Ryo shrugged, "It's not like, we are going to fight."
Vali: ?
Really going to fight?
Vali's eyes lit up, feeling motivated.
Although he didn't know what had happened, he was good at fighting. His body felt a bit rusty after lying down for a day, a fight would help him recover.
"Who is the enemy?"
"Not clear yet, but you don't need to be nervous. With so many of us going, we're likely going to be the atmosphere team to maintain order."
"...What do you mean?"
"Cough! Actually, this is a secret known to everyone in Akatsuki, don't spread it around after you know."
Glancing left and right, confirming that Tatsuma and the others were not around, Ryo leaned closer to Vali and whispered, "The boss likes to kill people. And unlike ordinary killers, when he kills people, he doesn't look at strength, only status."
"Evil spirits, Cursed Spirits, terrorists... as long as they can be killed legally, he doesn't refuse anyone."
"And the most important point, the boss doesn't like others stealing his kills."
"You need to pay attention to this later, you can injure the enemy, but unless necessary, absolutely don't kill them."
"Remember to leave the kills for the boss. Maybe if he's happy, he'll give you an awakening slot as a reward."
Vali: ...
Likes to kill people?
Vali remembered the fight yesterday.
At that time, Tatsuma seemed to be like this. Suppressing his strength, pretending to be evenly matched with Katerea and others, the purpose was just to kill more enemies.
After the matter was exposed, he even changed his attack and counter-located the branch of the Khaos Brigade, dragging in the rogue Magic users and the Devils of the Old Satan Faction to kill.
Originally, Vali thought Tatsuma did this to eliminate the roots and leave no future trouble. But now, after listening to Ryo's words, he suddenly realized that the situation was a bit different from what he had thought.
Vali asked, "Do you know why Tatsuma likes to kill people? He doesn't seem to have mental problems, there should be a reason, right?"
Ryo shook his head. "I don't know, and I'm not interested in knowing. Instead of seeking death to explore boss's secrets, it's better to do more missions to exchange for an awakening slot."
Vali frowned. "You've been talking about awakening since just now, what exactly does this awakening refer to?"
Ryo was startled. "You don't know about awakening? Then why did you join Akatsuki?"
"Because I..."
"Cough! Quiet down."
Just as Vali was about to reply, a flat voice suddenly sounded from above.
In just an instant, the hall, which had been buzzing with discussion, became completely silent.
Vali also stopped talking and looked up at the familiar figure above.
"I don't like wasting time, so I'll keep it short."
Exchanging glances with Vali, Tatsuma's gaze swept over the others below.
"Today's target is the MAR Headquarters located in Los Angeles, next I will announce the battle plan."
"First, I will teleport you to the destination and give you ten minutes to set up a barrier to drive away unrelated passersby."
"After that, I will launch an attack to take down the MAR Department. Your task at this stage is to surround the battlefield and wait for me to come back and kill the enemies."
"Because it is a large-scale operation, everyone will receive at least 20 contribution points for this mission, and those who perform well and capture enemies alive will receive extra rewards."
"Alright, that's about all there is to say, if you have anything you don't understand, you can ask now."
Vali raised his hand and asked, "What is the reason for attacking MAR?"
As soon as the words fell, the Akatsuki members present were instantly shocked.
Even Ryo, who was standing next to Vali, couldn't help but take two steps back to distance himself.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Vali looked around in confusion.
Didn't Tatsuma say to ask? Why do they all have the expression of looking at a brave warrior?
"You don't need to mind their reaction."
Just then, Tatsuma's voice sounded.
"The reason for attacking MAR is very simple, the MAR President is the Deva leader."
"So that's it."
Vali's face showed an expression of understanding.
As one of the parties involved yesterday, he naturally knew that Deva had also participated in the attack. It seems that Tatsuma received intel and is preparing to launch a retaliatory action.
However...
"MAR is a world-class conglomerate. If we attack rashly, we will be wanted as terrorists by various forces, right?"
Tatsuma said, "They wouldn't dare."
"Okay, I have no more questions."
Vali nodded thoughtfully and stopped asking.
Seeing this, the surrounding Akatsuki members visibly breathed a sigh of relief.
This newcomer is too bold, daring to ask any question. He wasn't afraid at all, but those watching and listening were afraid.
"Does anyone else have any questions?"
Tatsuma's voice rang out again.
Seeing that the rest of the Akatsuki members remained silent, he raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
Demonic power surged, and a huge magic formation appeared in the hall, emitting powerful spatial fluctuations.
A few seconds later, the surrounding scenery began to twist.
When everything stabilized again, the Akatsuki members appeared in front of a commercial building.
"Those from the First Squad, follow me to the east."
"The Second Squad goes to the west. I'll block the electronic devices nearby."
"The Third Squad gathers on the north side. I'll search for passersby in the corners."
Voices rang out, and the members of the Akatsuki acted with great coordination.
In the blink of an eye, only Tatsuma and Vali remained standing where they were.
Tatsuma turned to look at him. "That's not how you slack off. I recruited you into Akatsuki not for you to stand around in a daze. Go set up the barrier."
Vali shook his head. "Haven't learned how."
Tatsuma said, "Then go be a power bank. Later, recharge the barrier so it doesn't break."
"...Okay."
Vali looked at Tatsuma for two seconds, wanting to say something but holding back, ultimately choosing to obey the command and walk towards the southeast corner.
That was the location of Toichiro, and also the core of the barrier being set up. Later, to replenish the energy of the barrier, only that location was more suitable.
Watching Vali leave, Tatsuma withdrew his gaze and looked back at the commercial building in front of him.
Just then, a figure with steel wings on its back flew down from the very top of the commercial building.
"Red Dragon Emperor! Stop right there!"
Magnus landed in an open space tens of meters away, his expression angry as he rebuked, "Do you know what you're doing! You are declaring war on the United States!"
"Then let's declare war."
"You lunatic! I will complain to the Underworld! Complain to your Satans about your actions!"
"Please begin your performance."
Tatsuma chuckled lightly, raised his hand, and pointed at the barrier being constructed above.
"You have nine minutes left."