Chapter Text
“What’s that…?” Taiga blinked at Kouchi who came into the room holding a dress in one hand and a black box on the other, wearing a teasing grin on his face.
“Your undercover outfit, of course.” The older replied, hanging the dress on a rack and now Taiga could see clearly what it is; a reddish long chinese dress with an unbelievably long slit. His eyes widened at the supposed undercover outfit because this is not what he had in mind when he volunteered for the mission. Before he could even react in distaste, Kouchi had pulled him into a chair facing a box full of colorful things and brushes that he had no idea of. It turns out, the black box Kouchi brought in was actually a makeup box. “I was in a theater group before I joined.” , Kouchi mentioned in between applying the make-up on Taiga’s face. Soon after, he was transformed into a girl, complete with the wig on. Everyone in the team was astonished when Kouchi brought Taiga out, their colleagues whistling and complimenting him that he looked so beautiful they would even date him if he was a woman. Everything went by so fast by him that after a quick meeting with the superiors, he soon found himself in the car and dropped at the location.
“Blend in. Remain anonymous. Okay? Good luck, Taiga.” Kouchi said from inside the car before he took off and the fading sound of the car was soon drowned by the loud overlapping music in his surroundings and it was all Taiga could hear. In his most comical way, he blinked a few times followed by a string of curses. Once he was done getting annoyed, only one thing was on his mind. Gather intel. Blend in. Remain anonymous. Come out. As much as he wants to be out of the tight fitting and incredibly uncomfortable dress, he is also as determined to have his first mission a success. After all, he volunteered for this on his own volition. Get him to recognize me. That is his first goal ever since he joined the force.
“You’ll get the hang of it.” The voice from the transceiver repeated what the pretty woman told Taiga just now, only in a more teasing tone. Taiga wanted so badly to smack Kouchi right then and there but he had to focus on his job and how to move without ripping the dress. He got inside through the employee's entrance with the fake identification Shintaro made for him. Nagasawa Kyoko. That can’t be as feminine as it can be. At least his undercover alias was a homage to his goddess, the beautiful and badass actress Nagasawa Masami. He was planted as a newbie employee, a server girl inside the establishment. According to the brief, it is a drinking establishment popular for its high class and legal services and most patrons that frequents the place are of a high status in the society. A month earlier, they received intel from a mysterious source that behind closed doors, there were illegal transactions involving drugs and firearms that occur regularly there. A server is the perfect disguise to gather intel among conversations, though Taiga’s idea was at least to be a male server, but he did not know the place only had female servers.
“Table 6, Kyoko-chan. Make sure to be friendly and smile if they recognize your presence. If they don’t, you can just go and leave quietly. Though that’s unlikely because you’re pretty cute.” Michopa, the nice pretty woman that showed him the ropes of the job earlier, said to him as a tray with expensive bottles of alcohol was given to him by another staff member. The interior of the establishment definitely screams high class, with the high ceilings decorated with lavish chandeliers, couches so fancy that it almost sparkled, huge floor area that even with around twenty fancy couches, there was still a huge amount of space for people to walk around. The music being played that night was some jazz from the band in the center of the room, unusually located if he’s gonna be honest. Taiga observed the other servers, who were in the same outfit as he is, while he made his way to his designated table.
“Try to get as close as possible.” Taiga heard Kouchi say from the transceiver as he got closer. The table was surrounded with big burly guys in black suits and black shades that he could only guess are bodyguards and definitely douchebags. Who wears dark shades inside a building and at night? Definitely douchebags. There were a few girls, probably the establishment’s hostesses, seated on the couch beside a few men in fancy suits. These men looked every bit high class with high social status air around them. Taiga placed the bottles of alcohol on the table, trying to be as discreet as possible, prolonging his time a little to listen in to their conversation. Luckily, the bottles were already loosely opened so it was easy for him to pour them on the glasses.
“Turn a bit to your one o’clock.” Kouchi instructed him through the transceiver and he did, making sure the hidden camera from his pin could catch the person of interest into the frame.
“That’s Kikuchi Fuma. He’s the owner of the Sekuraba group of companies. He’s high on the list for the suspicion of dealing with drug imports in Tokyo. Move to that side and try to listen in for some intel.” Shintaro, their intelligence and tech guy said over the transceiver. Taiga poured the drinks on the glass where he currently is before he made his way to the other side where Kikuchi Fuma is.
“Who are you?” A man, sitting across from his target, suddenly spoke and grabbed Taiga’s wrist before he could even place the glass on the table. Taiga panicked just a little bit inside. Shit. Rule one is going to be broken just like this? It’s not even thirty minutes since I came here! Who the fuck is this guy anyway?! Don’t get in my way, jerk! Taiga’s inner monologue started as he tried to think of something. “Calm down, Taiga.” Kouchi said through the transceiver.
“Hm? Your type? Ah. She’s pretty cute. You really have a good taste, Juri.” Kikuchi Fuma said as he took the alcohol filled glass from Taiga’s hand. “What’s your name, sweetie?” Fuma said while he sat back, crossed leg as he sipped from his glass. Before Taiga could even answer, the jerk on his right, who seemed to be called Juri, spoke. “I was just asking since I haven’t seen her before. Gomen.” Juri removed his hand from Taiga’s wrist and resumed a comfortable position on his seat. Taiga was a little taken aback with the weird nice behavior. After that, his shift ended with no intel gathered at all.
“It’s that goddamned jerk’s fault!” Taiga said, throwing off his wig into the couch in the apartment that was setup for his undercover. Well, not exactly. The apartment he is in now is where Kouchi and Shintaro will stay, with all the computers and necessary things they need for the mission. Taiga’s actual room is beside it.
“Ish ackwally a goo thing though.” Shintaro, who was eating ramen by the table managed to say in the middle of it.
“And how is that a good thing? And don’t speak when your mouth is full!” Taiga scolded the younger, while Kouchi worked on removing his makeup.
“How did you even manage to decipher what he said?” Kouchi asked with a shrug from Taiga. “But Shin’s right. That guy could be our way to get more intel. Based on Shin’s research, the guy is called Tanaka Juri. He’s a partner of the Sekuraba group, Kikuchi’s childhood friend and he’s the next leader of the Tanaka yakuza group in Chiba.” Kouchi finished both his statement and taking off Taiga’s makeup, now helping him out of his tight dress.
“You missed the most important thing that will help Kyomochan get close to him, Kouchi.” Shintaro chimed in with the last slurp of his ramen. Taiga looked at them inquisitively.
“He’s a playboy. And he doesn’t care about his partners’ identity. It’s perfect right? You wouldn’t have to disclose anything to him. Just flirt with him and get intel. Mission accomplished!” The bright smile the youngest showed them was so pure that they almost felt bad at thinking how stupid he is.
“Shin’s partly correct.” Kouchi said sitting on the couch after Taiga’s out of the dress, now only on his boxers. “He is indeed a playboy and he’s a frequent visitor of where you are working now. More so, than his childhood friend. He’s been coming at least thrice a week, meeting with a woman called Michopa. He’s also close with the owner, Matsumura Hokuto. There are rumors that Tanaka Juri goes both ways, that’s how much of a player heis. It seems he does not have a sexual relationship with the hostess though, so this is where your mission will be altered. The chief ordered for you to replace the hostess and entertain Tanaka Juri, get his trust, and get intel from him. Forget rule number one. Well, not entirely.”
Once Taiga was in his own designated apartment after having dinner with the others and going over some info and updates of the mission, he found himself in a room that was not his. It was plain and too clean to be his room yet he found solace in it. Turning off the lights and lying on the bed tiredly, he let out a tired sigh as he stared at the ceiling then the paper in his hand.
“Tanaka Juri. I can’t believe I’ll have to deal with this.. jerk.” Taiga said, though the last part was in reluctance, as the soft voice of apology from earlier flashed back in his memory. “Ugh. Whatever. Get this over with and show him I can do it.” He said, putting down the file on the bed side table and soon, picking up a small notebook and pen.
Rules Checklist
Rule # 1 : Blend in. Maintain anonymity. Almost!!