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Kujou Sara frowns in sympathy at the looks on her brothers’ faces. The revelations that Lady Kamisato had brought forward today have left her badly shaken, too — and no matter what Naganohara Yoimiya said, she does feel responsible for having failed to realize she hadn’t actually been able to put a stop to the Fire Brigade’s corruption.
“What a mess,” Kamaji moans, cradling his head in his hands. “Father, why…?”
Masahito sighs heavily as he pats Kamaji’s shoulder.
“We knew what kind of man he was,” he murmurs. “I have no doubt we’ll learn worse soon.”
“The audit,” Kamaji groans. “Right.”
“…I think Lady Kamisato was correct about the audit,” Kujou Sara says quietly. “The auditors answered only to Father. The odds that they haven’t been covering things up for him for a long time are slim.”
“…The system wasn’t designed to deal with a corrupt Commissioner,” Kamaji admits. “But what can we do?”
“Let me perform my own audit,” Kujou Sara declares, hands balling into fists. “We can’t trust the results of this one.”
“…I can’t really lend anyone to you for something like that,” Kamaji says, spreading his hands helplessly. “We’re so busy… and who could we even trust? But it’s too big a job for you alone, even if you were trained for it, and you’re not. You’re an excellent soldier and a capable general, sister, but you’re not an investigator. I can’t imagine you would find much success alone, but that very lack of success would give the auditors an excuse to claim legitimacy — that a second investigation backed up their findings.”
“Give me Shikanoin,” Kujou Sara says, holding in her desire to grimace.
Shikanoin Heizou is one of the most difficult to handle people that she knows, but…
“The Doushin?” Kamaji asks, raising an eyebrow. “I thought you weren’t fond of him.”
“I’m not,” Kujou Sara admits freely. “But Shikanoin is thoroughly impossible to corrupt, hates our father and dared to outright defy his orders during the war, and is the best detective we’ve got. Give me Shikanoin and let me bring in Shinobu as an outside contractor, and I swear to you I will find every last bit of corruption left within the Tenryou Commission. Remember, it was Shikanoin that I asked to start work on building the case against our father, and that’s been proceeding smoothly. Through that work, we already have a great deal of evidence gathered that the auditors will never get the chance to interfere with.”
Kamaji pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs.
“I don’t think I have much choice, do I?” he mumbles. “Fine. Do as you wish, sister. I hope it works out, for all of our sakes — I’ll authorize this quietly, so the auditors don’t know about it. I hope you can prevent them from destroying all of whatever evidence remains…”
“Sister,” Masahito cuts in, frowning softly. “I believe in your ability to do this… but you do understand, don’t you? You can’t do this as a Kujou. The rot runs deep in our clan, and there’s no telling who you may need to implicate in our Father’s actions. If you’re going to do this… you need to do it not as Kujou Sara, but as just ‘Sara.’ Clan feelings have no place here. Can you handle that?”
Sara looks Masahito in the eyes and smiles, cold and confident.
Sara moves as quickly as she can in getting everything ready, but Shikanoin is apparently away at the moment investigating a case in Ritou, and there’s nothing she can do until he returns but wait impatiently.
…Well, almost nothing. She does, much to her own surprise, find herself with a girlfriend near the start of the second week of waiting.
And that’s pretty nice, she has to admit. Hugs are…
Well, now she can understand why everyone always seems so happy to get them.
But now, near the end of the second week…
“Shikanoin,” Sara calls, drawing the Doushin’s attention. “I need to speak with you in my office immediately.”
“I’ll be right there, Madam Kujou,” Shikanoin agrees easily, turning to face her and smiling brightly. “I’ve just gotta file this first.”
Sara scans Shikanoin’s face (male today, she notes) and nods sharply, then spins around and strides back to her office.
Shikanoin doesn’t keep her waiting long, and she greets him with a tight smile as he settles down into the chair across from her.
“What’s up?” Shikanoin asks, expression more serious than Sara is used to seeing. “You wouldn’t ask for me if this weren’t a big deal.”
“It is,” Sara admits. “You just got back. Have you heard about the Fire Brigade scandal yet?”
Shikanoin grimaces and nods.
“Nasty business,” he mutters. “Something like the Fire Brigade should be helping the people.”
“Exactly,” Sara sighs. “The ongoing Tenryou Commission audit had not yet turned up the Fire Brigade’s corruption, despite how brazen it seems they’ve been. To me, that suggests…”
“That the auditors can’t be trusted,” Shikanoin finishes for her. “Right. They are the former Tenryou Commissioner’s, may he rot in a cell for the rest of his life, hand-picked goons, after all. Anything that was in his personal files is safe, since you already had me go through those and I copied everything important, but any evidence that may be in the rest of the Commission’s files, especially related to corruption that he may have been letting slide rather than personally directing…”
Sara nods reluctantly. She lets the shot at her father slide — the man deserves it. Unfortunately.
“I’m going to be performing a secret, parallel investigation,” she explains. “The potential corruption of the auditors will be a major focus, but I’ll be digging into the rest of the Commission too. I would like you to join me.”
“I’m in,” Shikanoin agrees without hesitation.
The next day, Sara and Shinobu meet at the large sakura tree that sits in the center of Hanamizaka.
“Thank you again for agreeing to help,” Sara says, bowing her head.
“None of that,” Shinobu chides gently, resting her hand on Sara’s shoulder. “This is important, to Inazuma and to you. There’s no place I’d rather be right now.”
Sara smiles weakly, heart fluttering at how supportive her girlfriend always is.
“You said Shikanoin Heizou will also be joining us, right?” Shinobu asks. “We’ve worked together a few times in the past, but it’s mostly just been me selling information that would be useful in cases and getting help bailing Itto and the boys out of their idiocy in exchange. I can’t say we’re overly familiar with one another.”
“Correct,” Sara agrees, nodding sharply. “Shikanoin is an utter headache of a detective, but by far the most capable that the Tenryou Commission possesses… and also the only one I trust to be incorruptible.”
“Aww, Madam Kujou! You say such nice things about me when I’m not around,” a familiar voice teases, causing Sara’s shoulders to tense. “Maybe I should come back later? Give you a little more time to talk me up before we get this show on the road?”
“Shikanoin,” Sara sighs, turning to eye the detective. “How kind of you to finally join us.”
Shikanoin grins cheekily at her, not a single sign of repentance visible.
“Happy to be here!” Shikanoin chirps. “Hey Shinobu! Good to see you again. You as ready for this as I am?”
Shinobu sighs, but Sara is familiar enough with her girlfriend to recognize the amused edge it holds.
“I suppose I am,” Shinobu agrees.
“Ignore…” Sara begins, then takes a moment to scan Shikanoin’s face again. “…her unless she’s saying things relevant to the job, please. She’ll take attention as encouragement.”
“Aw, man… You got it right again,” Shikanoin pouts. “How do you do it? You and Sango are the only ones who can tell on sight, and she just laughs in my face whenever I bug her about it.”
“If I tell you, you’ll change up your routine so that I can’t,” Sara says stiffly. “I do not wish to be subjected to the confusion your fluidity causes in others, no matter how much it may amuse you. I would imagine Sango feels the same way.”
“And if I were to pinky-promise I won’t?” Shikanoin wheedles, holding out her hand with her little finger extended.
Her face abruptly shifts from teasing to serious.
“I just want to know because sometimes it seems like you know me better than I do,” she admits quietly. “There have been days that I’ve been feeling ambiguous and then you’ll use a pronoun for me and I’ll realize you’re right.”
Sara examines the detective’s face for any signs of deception, but as far as she can tell Shikanoin is being genuine.
She sighs and reaches out, hooking her pinky around Shikanoin’s.
“It’s the makeup,” she replies softly. “I noticed that on days you present male you use light eyeshadows that match your skin, while on days you present female you don’t wear any at all. Further, you only use mascara on days you present male, while on days you present female you use a light lip gloss and a hint of blush. When you’re wearing all of them at once, or none of them, it indicates you currently feel some variety of both or neither.”
Shikanoin’s mouth drops open, but she remains silent. Sara shifts uncomfortably.
“What?” she mumbles. “You asked.”
“No, no,” Shikanoin says, waving her hands. “I was just wondering which of us was really the detective, that’s all! Man, can you believe I hadn’t even noticed I do that? Like, I choose my look based on my mood, obviously, but I hadn’t realized… Yet here you are, more of an expert on my makeup routine than I am! I didn’t even think you knew how to use makeup!”
“I’ve never seen you wear any,” Shinobu agrees, laughing softly.
Sara huffs and turns away, doing her best to ignore the the slight reddening of her cheeks.
“I know what makeup is,” she protests weakly. “It’s just… unnecessary for me. That’s all.”
Shikanoin laughs and pats her on the back.
“Don’t worry about it, Madam Kujou,” she reassures her. “It’s not for everyone. The fact that you still know enough to be able to catch all that just goes to show how cool you are. I’m so gonna rub this in Sango’s face though… Some girlfriend she is, keeping this a secret.”
“Given I doubt you’d have given her the same promise you gave me, I think she’s a wise girlfriend,” Sara replies dryly. “…Actually, when did you two get back together?”
She can feel the future headache that coupling will be causing her already, but she had thought the impetus for Shikanoin joining the Tenryou Commission in the first place had been her breakup with Sango.
“Lumine’s fault,” Shikanoin explains cheerfully, shrugging. “She helped us reconcile, then invited the two of us out to a celebratory dinner and never turned up. We got to talking over the meal, one thing led to another, and… we’re giving it another shot.”
“…I hope it works out for you this time,” Sara says.
She means it. While they’re no doubt going to be an enormous pain, she wants them to find happiness.
“Thanks!” Shikanoin says, giving her a lopsided grin. “So, what’s the plan?”
“I was hoping that, as the experienced investigator, you might be able to give us something of a rundown of how to handle this,” Sara admits.
Shikanoin’s smile vanishes and she nods thoughtfully as she flops to the ground, taking a seat on one of the tree’s large roots.
“Sure,” she agrees. “Come on, gather round.”
She waits until Sara and Shinobu have made themselves comfortable to continue.
“The first thing you need to understand,” Shikanoin begins, “is that you’ll need to be very patient with this. An investigation of this sort usually takes months, and that’s under ideal circumstances — we don’t have ideal circumstances. We’re coming into the game late, and the auditors have had plenty of time to conceal or destroy evidence. We can’t rush things, we can’t get frustrated — we play it long and slow.”
“What do we do if the evidence no longer exists, though?” Sara asks, grimacing.
“I think that’s highly unlikely,” Shikanoin says, a cold smile playing on her lips. “I know the type of crook these auditors are. They’re out for their own gain, and they’ll be as corrupt as they can get away with — but they almost always keep records for themselves, especially of the dirty dealings of the ones they work with. The fact that they’ve got blackmail on each other is the only thing that keeps them together. If they destroy evidence, it will only be evidence in the Tenryou Commission’s files, not their own.”
“So you’re saying we may need to get our hands on files the auditors have kept themselves,” Shinobu summarizes. “Is that it?”
“That’s right,” Shikanoin agrees. “And that’s where you and I come in. Madam Kujou isn’t exactly the sneaky sort, but us? We excel at that.”
“What would I be doing to assist, then?” Sara asks.
“You’re the best distraction we could possibly ask for short of the Shogun herself,” Shikanoin says. “Everyone knows you’re blunt, honest, and direct, and your interest in cleaning up the Tenryou Commission is also widely known. It wouldn’t be at all strange for you to call on the auditors regularly to get updates on the situation, especially with how far along they would be if they were performing a real audit. Your assistance will ensure that we have windows of opportunity where we know they can’t be at home, letting us sneak in and look around.”
Sara nods hestitantly. It’s… dirtier… than she’d like to play, but under the circumstances she can accept the necessity. When the auditors are already engaged in corrupt and underhanded behavior, the need for similarly underhanded actions to counter it is hardly a strange concept.
“Very well,” she murmurs. “I’ll do what I can, if it comes to that, but I’d prefer we look for another method before we resort to… robbery. If we can find reason to charge them with something else, we can find their records with an official search.”
“You also know the situation better than I do,” Shikanoin says, shrugging helplessly. “Especially within the Kujou Clan. I can take the lead on the actual investigative side of this, but it’s your leadership on the mission as a whole that’s going to make or break us.”
“I can handle it,” Sara promises.
She hopes it’s true.
“Of course you can,” Shinobu says, squeezing her shoulder gently. “And we’ll be helping you every step of the way. Right, Heizou?”
“Of course,” Shikanoin agrees immediately. “I’m making it sound scary, but you’re not on your own.”
Sara smiles at them gratefully.
“…The best place to start may actually be the Kanjou Commission,” Sara suggests. “My father and the former Kanjou Commissioner were… close, and I’m given to understand that the internal chaos the Kanjou Commission is still undergoing is preventing any sort of effective audit from being held yet. It’s very possible that there’s evidence of corrupt collaboration between the two Commissions in their records.”
“Which would bypass the issue of the auditors having had so much time to go through the Tenryou Commission’s records and let us help start the investigation into the Kanjou Commission at the same time,” Shikanoin muses. “I like it, it might even let us avoid that ‘robbery’ you’re so concerned about. Three birds with one stone…”
Sara narrows her eyes at her, but Shikanoin just grins unrepentantly.
“Is the Kanjou Comission even organized enough to help us with something like that?” Shinobu asks doubtfully.
“Probably not,” Sara admits. “But if they give us access to their files, we can do the rest. If Kamaji asks Lady Hiiragi, she’ll probably say yes.”
Sara is, admittedly, not entirely certain what Lady Hiiragi sees in her middle brother. Kamaji is nice enough, but…
Well, she supposes it doesn’t matter as long as it gives them an in.
“Perfect,” Shikanoin says, nodding. “You can fly faster than we can run, so… How about Shinobu and I start heading to Ritou and you go and get a letter from the Commissioner? You could still beat us there.”
Sara thinks about it for a moment, then nods. The trip to Ritou takes several weeks for ordinary travelers, but the superhuman athleticism that martially-trained Vision-holders like Shinobu and Shikanoin have cuts it down to a matter of a week or so (albeit not without thoroughly exhausting the runners — it's not the kind of thing that's safe to do regularly, and best avoided outside of emergency situations like this). Sara’s flight, on the other hand, is swift enough to make it in around two days. Given they want to waste as little time as possible…
“That makes sense,” Sara says. “Would you like me to try to find you on the road, or should I fly ahead and get things prepared in advance?”
“The latter,” Shinobu suggests. “It should make the most efficient use of our time, and if you’ve already had time to start going through files when we arrive you may have found some material for us to work with.”
“What she said,” Shikanoin agrees, bobbing her head. “This isn’t the part of the investigation where our skillsets will trump yours.”
“Right,” Sara says. “I’ll get started immediately.”
“Wait,” Shikanoin says. “There’s one other thing we should do first.”
“What’s that?” Sara asks.
“Follow me!” Shikanoin chirps, leaping to her feet and strolling off deeper into Hanamizaka.
As they follow the twisting paths of the city’s outermost district, Sara gets the feeling that she may know where they’re going — and Shikanoin’s right, they likely will get a lot of benefit from this detour.
And soon enough…
“Honey, I’m home!” Shikanoin calls as she throws open the door to the Bantan Sango Detective Agency.
“Can you not be?” Sango’s familiar voice calls back. “I just had pest control by a few hours ago, I don’t want to have to send for them again already.”
Shikanoin gasps and staggers, hand over her heart, a dramatically wounded expression on her face.
“If you insist, I suppose I have no choice,” she mourns. “We’ll just have to go find someone else to invite to help tear out the rotted roots of the Tenryou Commission…”
There’s an immediate crash of something — or several somethings — falling over, a sound very much like a head thumping against a wall, and quite a bit of muffled cursing, but Sango manages to escape from her back office in time to grab Shikanoin’s collar before the detective has been able to do much more than turn around to leave.
Sara is impressed.
“You should have led with that part, Heizou,” Sango scolds, dragging the Doushin over to the front desk and shoving her down onto it. “Spill!”
It is at this point that Sango finally seems to take notice of Sara and Shinobu, and a mildly embarrassed expression passes over her face.
“Madam Kujou, Miss Kuki,” Sango says, bowing shallowly. “It’s a pleasure to see you.”
“It’s a pleasure to see you as well,” Sara returns.
Shinobu responds only with a cool nod.
“We’re working to investigate the extent of the Tenryou Commission’s corruption,” Sara says. “We’ll be heading to Ritou to see if there’s any evidence in the possession of the Kanjou Commission that will be of use to us. If my guess is right, Shikanoin is hoping you’ll be able to do some digging for us back here while we’re away.”
“Got it in one, Madam Kujou!” Shikanoin confirms. “Sango, to be specific, I was thinking that Madam Kujou could have the Commissioner make a show of sending her and I to Ritou for a case. That should make the Tenryou Commission’s auditors let down their guards a little — I doubt there’s anyone they fear as much as they do the two of us, but if we’re confirmed to be away…”
“You want me to track their movements during your absence,” Sango concludes. “An easy enough job. If they’ve got some kind of hideout, I’ll find it, and if they let anything else slip…”
The wicked smirk on Sango’s lips reminds Sara exactly why this woman and Shikanoin are such a perfect match.
“There may not even be a Tenryou Commission by the time you get back,” Sango finishes dramatically.
“We can only hope!” Shikanoin laughs. “So you’re in?”
“Of course I am, idiot,” Sango scoffs, simultaneously slapping the back of Shikanoin’s head and pressing a kiss to her cheek. “You lot be careful with the Hiiragi — that clan’s a bunch of snakes, and their retainers are no better.” She eyes Sara, then smirks. “’course, I’m not telling you anything you don’t know, am I?”
Sara bows her head as she suppresses a grimace.
Sango isn’t… wrong. The Kujou Clan’s internal politics are very similar, and the recent coup attempt by a couple of Kujou retainer clans underscores just what kind of situation they’re likely walking into. With any luck, though, Lady Hiiragi will be able to shield them from it and allow them to focus on their investigation.
“We’ll be careful,” Shikanoin promises gently, brushing her lips against Sango’s. “You stay safe too, okay? There’s no telling what that type of scum will do to protect their secrets.”
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” Sango demands, but Sara doesn’t miss the way she squeezes Shikanoin’s hand. “Now get out of here and do your thing. I’ve got my job, you’ve got yours… Let’s make this country a better place for once.”
“Bringing in Sango was a good idea,” Shinobu voices as they step back outside. “Before we leave, I’ll ask the boys to keep an eye out too. They’re anything but subtle, but with their reputations nobody will be expecting them to be cooperating with a Tenryou Commission investigation either. Odds are they can get away with a lot that Sango can’t.”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” Shikanoin muses. “You’re definitely right, though. Tell them to cooperate with her, I’m sure she can handle keeping them busy productively.”
“I will,” Shinobu promises. “I’ll go do that now — meet me back at the tree in half an hour and we can head out.”
“I’ll nip back inside and let Sango know that she’ll have the Arataki Gang at her disposal, then head right there,” Shikanoin agrees. “Madam Kujou, when you have the Commissioner send you out, can you make a bit of a show about not wanting to work with me? Nothing over the top, it’s just…”
“It would be a little suspicious if I didn’t, given our tension isn’t a secret,” Sara accepts. “Of course. I’ll see the both of you in a few days in Ritou.”
Sara wastes no time in spreading her wings and shooting off towards the Tenryou Commission’s headquarters. Everything seems to be coming together, but none of that will matter if they lose focus.
Thankfully, Kamaji had been more than happy to write a letter to his girlfriend and publicly order Sara to locate Shikanoin and go with her to Ritou to investigate a supposed increase in local bandit activity. It had been a surprisingly plausible excuse, given he’d played up that he felt she was running herself ragged jumping at shadows and needed a chance to unwind with something as simple as investigating and capturing bandits.
Which brings her to where she is now, two days later, sitting in the private office of Lady Hiiragi Chisato as the woman reads through Kamaji’s letter with what Sara feels is an inappropriately sappy smile on her face.
…It suggests that the letter likely contains rather more than just a request to allow Sara and her companions to investigate the Kanjou Commission’s records.
“I see no problem with opening our records to you,” Lady Hiiragi finally says, looking back up at Sara. “Quite the opposite, really. I had been wondering who I could trust to go through them for us, given just what kind of mess the Kanjou Commission has turned out to be… but I trust you, and Doushin Shikanoin has an impressive reputation. Nobody could possibly object to allowing you access. I’ll ensure rooms are prepared for you here at the Hiiragi Estate for the duration of your stay — you said that Doushin Shikanoin and Miss Kuki will be here in a few days?”
“As long as nothing waylays them, then yes,” Sara confirms. “Both are impressive warriors, so I see no reason for concern.”
“Three rooms, then,” Lady Hiiragi muses. “…Or perhaps two? Kamaji mentioned in his letter that you and Miss Kuki are involved.”
“Three, please,” Sara chokes out, trying to force down the reddening of her cheeks. “We… It’s a recent development.”
“Three it is,” Lady Hiiragi says, but the mischievous smile on her face gives Sara no comfort.
“Would it be possible for me to begin my investigation immediately?” Sara asks uncomfortably. “I’d rather not waste any time.”
“Certainly,” Lady Hiiragi agrees, her brush dancing over a paper with quick, sure strokes. She finishes it off with a stamp, then offers the paper to Sara. “Just show this to the guards at the records room over at the Kanjou Commission headquarters and you should be granted full access and complete privacy with which to do your work.”
Sara accepts the note with a thankful nod, then rises to her feet and bows.
“Thank you for your assistance, Lady Hiiragi,” she says.
“Please, just call me ‘Chisato,’” the woman laughs. “We may be family in the near future, after all. Perhaps not quite as soon as I’d thought, given what a mess our near-wedding was, but…”
“Chisato, then,” Sara accepts, suppressing a shudder at the memory of what a mess Kamaji had made of things after proposing to Chisato.
It makes her wonder again what this woman sees in her brother. If it were Masahito then at least Chisato would be pursuing an intelligent and thoughtful man, but as far as Sara is aware Masahito has no interest in any form of romance whatsoever. Kamaji…
Well. He’s nice at least, Sara supposes, but… she would have thought someone as beautiful as Chisato could do better than just ‘nice.’
The flight to the Kanjou Commission headquarters is a thankfully short one, and the guards give her no trouble at all after reading Chisato’s missive.
…What does give her trouble, though, is the sheer size of the archive she’s ushered into. The Tenryou Commission’s is similarly large, but Sara’s been working with it for many years and knows how to navigate it by heart. The Kanjou Commission’s records room, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to her.
Just as she’s pondering where to start, a timid voice calls out to her.
“Madam Kujou?” it asks.
Sara turns and finds herself looking at a young girl with a passing resemblance to Chisato.
“May I help you, Miss?” Sara asks.
“Um, I’m Hiiragi Kaori, Lady Chisato’s cousin,” the girl introduces, bowing. “I’m an archivist in training… Lady Chisato sent me to assist you in your search. She said you can send me away if you don’t need help, but…”
“No, I appreciate the assistance,” Sara says honestly. “I’ll need it.”
There’s no doubt that the girl will be reporting back to Chisato on what exactly Sara looks into, but she has nothing to hide. Anything of note that she finds will be reported to both Chisato and Kamaji anyway, so having an assistant familiar with the archive is a blessing with no downside.
“I-I’m glad to hear it!” Kaori stammers. “Is there anything you were looking for to start with?”
“Any records related to dealings between the Tenryou and Kanjou Commissions,” Sara says. “I’m not sure how much Chisato told you…?”
“She showed me the relevant part of Lord Kujou’s letter,” Kaori says. “You’re kickstarting our corruption investigation as part of your own, right? So that means you’ll want documents involving both Commissions during the time period spanning the leadership of the previous Tenryou Commissioner…”
Sara watches as Kaori closes her eyes in thought. A moment later the girl nods decisively, opens her eyes, and strides purposefully down an aisle.
“Follow me!” she calls. “The most relevant files should be over here.”
They stop after a few more turns, and Kaori indicates a long wall of shelves.
“These should cover the last few decades of direct cooperation with the Tenryou Commission,” she says. “I can think of a few other places that may have useful documents — is it okay if I go try to track those down while you look around here?”
“Please do,” Sara requests, eyeing the shelves with dread.
This promises to require a lot of reading. Of course, if she can identify where to begin…
After a moment of thought, Sara has her answer. She immediately begins to look for files labeled as pertaining to the Sakoku Decree.
While the Kanjou Commission had largely made use of their own forces to ensure that Outlanders were following the Sakoku Decree’s restrictions, Sara knows for a fact that Tenryou Commission troops had been tapped to bolster their numbers.
And what she finds with even an hour’s worth of research is… ugly.
Hideously inflated fines, mandated bribes, policies that clearly speak of intimidation and abuse of power…
She recognizes some of the names of Tenryou Commission officers who, according to these records, would have been benefiting from these schemes alongside the Kanjou Commission.
One of them even numbers among her fellow generals.
If this is what she’s finding on her first day of investigation, what horrors will she have discovered by the end? Shikanoin had told her to expect it to take months.
Part of her wonders just why the records are so thorough, but as she continues to read, she notices a pattern.
While Tenryou officials are often implicated in corrupt actions, the names of the Kanjou officials they were conspiring with are noticeably absent. It makes her think of what Shikanoin had said the other day about keeping blackmail.
It’s likely, she thinks, that the records are accurate regarding the actions of the involved Tenryou officials — it would make poor blackmail if they could simply disprove faked allegations. On the other hand, the way the records are written allows the Kanjou Commission to dodge blame for many of their abuses by pointing fingers at the Tenryou Commission.
Sara wonders if the Tenryou Commission’s records of the same events might not be written in the same sort of way, albeit with the positions of the Commissions reversed. She thinks it’s a strong possibility, and that turns her stomach.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Kaori’s voice calls. “I had to cross-reference a few things… but these are the files I was thinking of.”
Sara accepts the stack of folders and scans them. By the labels…
“You believe the Tenryou Commission was involved in the Kanjou Commission’s recent treatment of Watatsumi Island…?” Sara asks slowly.
Kaori nods, a serious look on her face.
“I remembered seeing some notes in the proposals, about what they could ultimately lead to,” she says. “Look in the second folder, page 6.”
Sara does as instructed, and sucks in a breath. Staring at her, in plain text, is the suggestion that if Watatsumi Island faced enough economic pressure they might ultimately be willing to abandon their current political independence and fall under the rule of the Commissions, which would require the disbanding of their military and accepting the Tenryou Commission into their lands.
The very thing Sara had been asked by her fellow generals to push for in the preliminary negotiations, before the revelation of the collusion between the Fatui and some Tenryou Commission traitors.
“I see what you mean,” she says, voice as level as she can manage. “It seems unlikely to me that the Kanjou Commission would be aiming for this on their own.”
Kaori nods again.
“There should be more details in there about who was consulted when drawing up the plans,” she offers. “I didn’t go through it all thoroughly, I was more focused on finding all of the relevant material for you.”
“No, this was already a great help,” Sara says. “Thank you.”
There’s no doubt that her father was one of the ones consulted. He had always viewed Watatsumi Island’s independence as a slap in the face, frustrated that the Almighty Shogun had chosen to allow them to govern themselves all but completely.
But Sara doubts he was the only one. How many of her fellow generals’ names might she find in these folders? When she had been given a list of the Tenryou Commission’s priorities for the preliminary negotiations, how many had been put on the list by corrupt officials seeking more power?
As much as Sara wants to know, she forces herself to put the folders in the bag she’d brought to collect useful files, alongside the documents she’d already found regarding the Sakoku Decree. What’s most important right now is that she has the evidence, not that she knows its full content — that can come later. For now, she needs to focus on gathering as much as she can.
When Shinobu and Shikanoin arrive a few days later, Sara and Kaori have already worked their way almost halfway through the Kanjou Commission’s records that cover her father’s tenure.
“You’ve been busy, Madam Kujou,” Shikanoin (male today) whistles, flipping through one of the folders Sara’s been keeping in her room. “How about today you and I spend some time going through these while little Miss Hiiragi takes Shinobu to continue searching the archive? You deserve a bit of a break from looking for the new stuff, and I think Shinobu would be better than me at picking up where you left off.”
“I can do that,” Shinobu agrees easily. “I’ve got certification as an archivist.”
“Figured,” Shikanoin snickers.
“Very well,” Sara accepts. “That works for me.”
The notion of working alongside Shikanoin without Shinobu as a buffer is a somewhat concerning one, but Sara supposes she has to get used to him at some point.
Perhaps he’ll be more bearable when he’s focused directly on work? She certainly hopes so.
“So, tell me what we’re working with here,” Shikanoin requests as he settles himself down in a seat across from Sara.
“…A lot,” Sara admits, sighing heavily. “And this is just what’s covered under collusion between the Commissions. I can’t even begin to imagine how bad things must be within the Tenryou Commission. Is there even anything left worth saving…?”
Shikanoin frowns, a hesitant look on his face.
“Madam Kujou…” he begins. “I’ve always believed you to be the most principled person in the Tenryou Commission… or maybe even across all of the Commissions. It’s one of your greatest strengths. But you’re not the only member of the Tenryou Commission with principles. I’ve got my own, even if they sometimes clash with yours, and we’ve both got plenty of admirers doing their best to follow in our footsteps. It’s possible that the administrative portion of the Commission may be impossible to salvage, and no doubt we’ll find traitors at every level… but there are lots of normal people who are just trying to make you proud, too. Don’t forget about them, okay?”
“…Thank you, Heizou,” Sara murmurs. “You’re right. Even if the Tenryou Commission has become rotten, we can still save enough of it to grow it anew.”
It’s the first time she’s called him by his first name, she thinks, and the surprise blossoming on his face is enough to make her crack a thin smile.
As annoying as Shikanoin Heizou can be… he’s right that he has strong principles. It’s something Sara has always admired about him, it’s the reason she had been willing to trust him to aid with something as important as this…
And it’s about time she stopped letting her frustration with his unusual methods and irreverent personality prevent her from working closely with the member of the Tenryou Commission she respects most (now that the truth about her father has come out and she’s learned just how unworthy of her regard he had been, at least).
“Are you ready to get started, then, Madam Kujou?” he asks, smiling back.
“Just call me Sara,” Sara says. “Now, as for this file…”
They end up spending another three weeks in Ritou. They’d exhausted the shelves specifically pertaining to the Tenryou Commission by the end of the first, but had taken the time to scour the rest of the archives as well just to be safe.
Even then, they likely would have left a week earlier had Heizou not received a messenger bird from Sango ordering them to stay put for another week because she was ‘on to something’ and she didn’t want word of their impending return to spook the targets.
With the travel time back to Inazuma City included, and with heavy rains slowing their progress, they are in the end away for nearly a month and a half.
Not knowing what may be happening has Sara anxious, but she has to trust that Sango and the Arataki Gang have actually managed to turn up a useful lead.
…It’s a little pathetic that she’s reduced to hoping that Shinobu’s idiot brothers have pulled off something this important, but Shinobu trusts them, so Sara will choose to do so as well.
…Itto owed her a favor after losing that onikabuto match, anyway. If he’s managed to be a key figure in uncovering the remainder of the Tenryou Commission’s corruption… she may be willing to call it paid.
When they do finally arrive back in Inazuma City, they head straight to the Bantan Sango Detective Agency.
When they step inside, Sango wrinkles her nose and glares at them.
“You’re all soaked,” she complains. “Do you have any idea how long it’s going to take me to get the floor dry?”
“A while?” Heizou offers, shrugging her shoulders idly. “Not much we can do about it, though. It’s still pouring outside.”
Sango sighs and nods. She disappears into a side room and returns with a set of remarkably fluffy towels.
“Sit on these,” she orders gruffly. “And let’s get started.”
Once everyone is settled on the floor, Sango directs her gaze to Shinobu.
“Thanks for lending me those idiots of yours,” she says. “Ryuuji and I couldn’t have done this without them.”
“Oh?” Shinobu asks, her surprise obvious even through her mask. “What did they do?”
“You may be aware that I have some familiarity with Onmyoudou,” Sango says. “Your boys were able to cause enough of a ruckus that I had time to work a little bit of magic on those so-called auditors.”
She brings out a map on which she’s marked a number of locations.
“I won’t bore you with the details, but in short: the spell I used resonates with prepared tokens in order to allow triangulation of the location of the subject,” Sango explains. “Ryuuji and I spent as much time as we could tracking where they went and how long they spent in each location, and we recorded anywhere unusual or where they spent a great deal of time here.”
A key on the side of the map indicates which color marking applies to each of the seven auditors, Sara notes. Her eyes narrow as she scans the map.
“It’s not perfect,” Sango cautions. “Locations aren’t exact, just… reasonably close. But…”
“But this is still unusual,” Sara murmurs, tapping a location some distance outside of the city with her finger. “Why would all seven have gone here…?”
“At the same time, too,” Sango says. “I had Ryuuji give it a look while they were away, and while he wasn’t able to get inside, he did find evidence of some kind of hideout.”
Sara trades glances with Shinobu and Heizou. She sees the same determination that she’s feeling reflected in their eyes, and she smiles.
“Thank you, Sango,” she says. “This is extremely helpful. Would you be able to notify us the next time they’re meeting there?”
“Sure,” Sango agrees easily. “You’ll need to stay nearby or something, though. They never go for more than a few hours, and it only happened twice during my observation period.”
“Sara can stay with me,” Shinobu volunteers. “I live just a few streets over, I’m sure Heizou knows the place.”
“I do,” Heizou confirms. “I’ll stay with Sango and run to get you as soon as she detects anything.”
“Who said you could do that,” Sango sighs, rolling her eyes — but the way her lips twitch into a smile suggests she’s probably not actually all that opposed to the idea, Sara thinks.
“How long do you think we’ll be waiting?” Sara asks.
“Dunno,” Sango replies, shrugging. “Could be a few days, could be a few weeks, might even be a month. Depends on what exactly they’re doing there.”
“I have an idea,” Heizou says slowly. “Sara, what if you and I were to… go missing?”
“Missing?” Sara asks. “What exactly do you mean?”
“Not for real, of course,” Heizou assures her. “Sango could let the Commissioner know what’s going on. Whatever they’re doing there, though, it’s almost certainly illicit, right? The news that we were on our way back to the city probably means they’ll be playing it safe for a little while. If we went missing, though, it would result in one of two things: either they’ll play it extra safe, in case we’ve caught wind of them and are lurking, or they’ll feel like they’ve caught a lucky break and will let their guards down even further.”
“The sense I’ve got from these guys is that it will be the former,” Sango offers. “Which may not be a bad thing. The more time you have to prepare, the better.”
“Do you really think a group of out-of-shape old bureaucrats can threaten the three of us?” Heizou asks incredulously.
“Heizou,” Sango says seriously, taking her girlfriend’s hands into hers. “Please listen to me, and think. Ryuuji couldn’t get into their hideout.”
A variety of emotions filter through Heizou’s eyes, finally settling on shock.
“Oh,” she breathes. “That’s… concerning.”
“I’m sorry, but… what makes it concerning?” Sara asks.
“Ryuuji is my apprentice,” Sango says, half-glancing at Sara without taking her focus off of Heizou. “He’s no master of Onmyoudou, but he’s more than capable. Something is sealing that place that he can’t get through. Who knows what kind of traps they’ve got in place? Or…”
“…Delusions,” Sara whispers.
“…I’m sorry?” Sango replies, the confusion in her tone obvious.
“They’re… something that Her Excellency Sangonomiya mentioned to me, when I asked for more details regarding the encounters that Watatsumi Island has had with the Fatui during the preliminary negotiations,” Sara says softly. “Fake Visions, claimed to be more powerful than the real thing but at the cost of the user’s life force. If the Tenryou Commission was colluding with the Fatui, it’s possible that my father’s closest associates may have had access to such things… or to other Fatui inventions.”
“It’s plausible that this could even be a Fatui base,” Shinobu muses. “In which case we would need to be very careful. It’s not anything we can’t handle, I think, but in close-quarters within what I presume is an underground structure… one mistake is all it would take for things to go badly.”
“Exactly,” Sango confirms. “You understand now why I don’t want you all rushing this, right? You’ll have my support when the time comes… but I’m no Vision-holder. I may have a bit of skill with Kamuna Onmyoudou, but I can’t do the kinds of things you can.”
“Don’t listen to her,” Heizou scoffs, rolling her eyes. “I haven’t forgotten that trick you’ve got up your sleeve, Sango.”
Sango clicks her tongue and shakes her head.
“That’s a last resort, Heizou,” she says seriously. “I only told you about it so you’d be prepared if I ever had to use it.”
“…I’m sorry, but what are you talking about?” Sara asks.
“‘The utmost achievement of Onmyoudou,’” Heizou says, sounding as if she’s quoting something. “Sorry, Sara, but anything more than that is Sango’s to tell.”
“And I’m not telling,” Sango grumbles. “I won’t be using it anyway. I do have some tricks I can use, if it comes down to it, but not that one.”
“Very well,” Sara accepts.
She’s extremely curious, but she sees no reason to attempt to breach Sango’s privacy over a technique that the woman claims will see no use.
“Shinobu and I won’t take up any more of your time for now,” she continues. “Heizou, if you could join us at Shinobu’s residence tomorrow so that we can go over plans for if it’s a Fatui hideout…?”
“Of course,” Heizou agrees. “I’ll come in disguise, since we’re disappearing and all. You should probably disguise yourself, too.”
“I can help her with that,” Shinobu volunteers.
“Thank you,” Sara accepts.
Truthfully, she wouldn’t have the first clue how to disguise herself on her own, so… having Shinobu’s assistance is much appreciated.
The first thing they do after reaching Shinobu’s home, though, is change and dry off.
“The rains have been coming down hard,” Shinobu murmurs, leaning into Sara’s side as they sit on the couch and enjoy some tea. “Do you think the Shogun’s upset about something?”
“I hope not,” Sara murmurs back, taking a sip of her tea. “But I can’t say, of course.”
“Of course,” Shinobu agrees, laughing softly. “…How are you holding up? The things we’ve already found…”
“…It’s ugly,” Sara admits. “Very ugly. But… I’d rather confront the ugly truth, no matter how heartbreaking, than allow the corruption to go unfought.”
“That’s not what I asked, Sara,” Shinobu whispers.
Sara swallows and stares down silently into her tea for a few minutes. She’s grateful that Shinobu doesn’t rush her.
“…I have you,” she finally says. “And… strange as it is to say, Heizou as well. With the support the two of you have given me…”
She raises her head to gaze into Shinobu’s eyes as she smiles.
“I’m doing just fine,” Sara concludes. “I’m frustrated, I’m angry, I’m hurt — but I can handle it. It’s not overwhelming me. And that’s because I’ve had the two of you to lean on.”
“I’m glad,” Shinobu murmurs, brushing her lips against Sara’s neck. “You work so hard for everyone else’s sake. You deserve to have people at your back, too.”
“There’s no one I would rather have behind me than you,” Sara says, nuzzling her head against Shinobu’s.
“Not even the Almighty Shogun?” Shinobu teases.
“…Maybe the Almighty Shogun,” Sara says thoughtfully, nodding. “But only in battle. Not here. Not like this. This position is one that belongs to you alone.”
The incredulous half-laugh that Shinobu lets out has Sara turning to her in confusion, and she finds herself pulled into a soft kiss.
“You’re too sweet, bird,” Shinobu mumbles against her lips. “You know that?”
Sara’s attempt to respond is cut off with another kiss, and another…
When Heizou arrives the next morning, dressed as a shrine maiden of all things, she looks almost as tired as Sara feels.
“Long night?” Heizou asks, eyes fixed on Sara’s neck.
“Did Sango have you wearing that yesterday?” Sara returns, her own gaze focused on the slight marks on Heizou’s wrists.
Their eyes meet, and they silently agree to drop the subject.
“What’s taking you so long? Get inside already!” Shinobu calls.
Sara steps aside so Heizou can enter, then closes the door and follows her to the living room where she retakes her seat by Shinobu’s side. Heizou settles into a plush chair and looks around the room.
“Nice place,” Heizou comments. “I like it.”
“…Why are you dressed like that?” Shinobu asks flatly.
“That’s not important,” Sara cuts in, returning Heizou’s grateful look with a slight nod. “If the disguise works, it works. We should focus on our next steps.”
“Right,” Heizou agrees. “From what Sango was telling me, our ‘disappearances’ will probably have them laying low for a few weeks. That should give us plenty of time to come up with a plan. Anyone have any ideas?”
“…Naganohara Yoimiya,” Sara murmurs. “If we had her with us, I would feel much more confident in storming a potential enemy stronghold. Her archery outmatches mine.”
“And if we bring her in, we can probably get Lady Kamisato to help us too,” Heizou muses. “I’ve seen them sparring a few times, and I would not want to be the enemy of either of them.”
“I’m not sure someone as prominent as Lady Kamisato could move so easily, or I would have suggested her as well,” Sara objects.
“Nah, she’s a regular here in Hanamizaka,” Shinobu dismisses, shrugging. “She and Yoimiya are always disappearing off into the woods together. Shouldn’t be a problem.”
“That brings us to five fighters and one support,” Heizou says thoughtfully. “Honestly, I think that Yoimiya and Lady Kamisato could probably handle it on their own, so… that’s enough, right?”
“…No,” Sara disagrees quietly. “If they’ve trapped the place, we need someone who can handle that.”
“I don’t have any friends around who’d be able to do that,” Heizou admits. “Kazuha could do the job, I think, but he’s off sailing around the world with the Crux Fleet.”
“I’m trap-certified, but I don’t want to bet our lives on that,” Shinobu murmurs.
There’s a heavy silence.
“…I’ll just say what we’re all thinking,” Heizou finally says. “We need to talk to the blue bitch.”
Sara can’t help the incredulous burst of laughter that escapes her lips, and she can feel Shinobu’s shoulders shaking against her as her girlfriend suppresses her own.
“I… was thinking of Lord Kamisato, yes,” Sara admits, voice still shaking with mirth. “A member of the Shuumatsuban would likely have the requisite expertise, and he’s the only one who can fully command them. I would have put it less crudely, though.”
“Look,” Heizou defends. “I’m dressed as a shrine maiden, you know? And that’s what they call him up at the Grand Narukami Shrine when nobody from the Yashiro Commission is around. My cousin told me Lady Yae encourages it.”
Sara shakes her head in resigned amusement.
“I’ll pen a letter to Lord Kamisato—” “—the ugly little blue boy—” “—requesting that he send us a capable operative,” she says, rolling her eyes at Heizou’s interruption.
“If you’re so dedicated to being a shrine maiden right now,” Shinobu drawls, eyeing Heizou carefully. “Can you do a little kagura for us?”
“I’m afraid I left my, uh, bells at home,” Heizou says, raising her hands defensively. “Can’t dance without those, nope.”
Shinobu snorts and shakes her head.
“Go write your letter, Sara,” she says. “I’ll get some food started. I think we could all use it.”
Four days later they receive a messenger bird from Lord Kamisato promising that he’s directed one of his most capable assets to meet them at Shinobu’s house within the week.
“Sayu, he says,” Sara murmurs. “I’ve met her before. She did good work, though she’s a bit… young.”
“That’s the Shuumatsuban for you,” Heizou sighs, popping a piece of konpeitou into his mouth. “Poor kids.”
Today he seems to be dressed as some kind of noble, and is exhibiting the lazy attitude to match. Sara narrows her eyes and yanks the bowl of candy away from him, drawing a disappointed moan.
“I’m back,” Shinobu announces, stepping into the room. “Yoimiya agreed, and said she’d get in touch with Lady Kamisato. She thinks she can convince Lady Kamisato to take a long vacation and stay with her so that she’ll be ready to go at any time.”
“It’s just a waiting game now, then,” Sara murmurs. “Heizou, has Sango noticed any unusual activity lately?”
“Nothing that we can use, but yes,” Heizou says. “They’re sticking to rigid schedules and not going anywhere that could be perceived as out of line. Doing exactly as she predicted, in other words.”
“The waiting is… frustrating,” Sara admits. “Part of me just wants to storm the hideout now, even if they’re not there, but…”
“Depending on what’s inside, it may be difficult to prove they have a connection to it,” Heizou finishes. “It’s not worth the risk. We still don’t have anything that nails them specifically.”
“Exactly,” Sara sighs.
“Cheer up,” Shinobu says, patting Sara’s shoulder. “Just think, if they’re acting like this, they probably do think there’s a chance you could be hiding inside of any shadow to leap out and devour them. As frustrated as we are, they must be terrified.”
Sara chuckles softly, shaking her head. The thought does make her feel a little better, oddly. She’s not usually a fan of fear tactics, but for these men who helped her father abuse his power and hurt the people of Inazuma…
Well, she certainly won’t be losing any sleep over them having a bad time.
“Treat it like a vacation,” Heizou suggests. “Just enjoy your time with Shinobu without any work to do. We’ll be plenty busy once we actually catch them, so you should get your relaxation time in now.”
“You have a point,” Sara acknowledges.
A vacation, is it… she’s never really taken one of those before.
Perhaps it’s time she learned how.
Three weeks later, Heizou finally brings word that Sango’s spell has detected the men converging on their hideout.
Sara surveys her forces grimly as they prepare to breach the location. Their strongest fighters are without a doubt Naganohara Yoimiya and Lady Kamisato, but it’s Sayu who’s most likely to be able to detect traps and stop them from bumbling into those, so she’s reluctantly asked the young ninja to take point. Sango will be bringing up the rear, given she’s the only one without a Vision. And speaking of Sango…
“Can you get it open?” Sara asks anxiously.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” Sango scoffs. “Watch and learn, Kujou.”
The detective’s hands move in some strange pattern as she chants under her breath. Eventually, the ground shudders and opens.
“Whew,” Sango sighs, slumping. “I don’t know what kind of magic that was, honestly, but it really didn’t want to open. I don’t think I set off any alarms, though.”
“None that I can detect,” Sayu says seriously, peering into the tunnel. “Stay at least ten steps behind me at all times, okay? And don’t touch the walls or ceiling under any circumstances.”
They proceed slowly through the tunnel, Sayu occasionally calling a halt while she deals with… things. Sara is no trap expert, she has no idea what the little Shuumatsuban member is up to.
Eventually, the sound of distant raised voices filters into their hearing.
“That’s a Snezhnayan accent,” Sango whispers. “Definitely Fatui.”
They creep closer until they can hear what’s being said.
“—don’t care if some general went missing!” the Snezhnayan voice declares forcefully. “Your overcaution has cost us weeks! At this rate, we’re never going to get our revenge for Lady Signora.”
Despite her anger at hearing that name, Sara feels a sense of satisfaction coiling in her gut. The Fatui had clearly been far more frustrated by the wait than Sara had.
“You don’t understand,” a voice that Sara recognizes as belonging to one of the auditors protests. “Someone as strong as General Kujou doesn’t just ‘go missing…’ and with Doushin Shikanoin too? They must be up to something!”
“And yet they’re not here, are they?” demands the Fatuus.
Heizou must be rubbing off on her, Sara, thinks distantly, because the man has barely finished his sentence before she’s thrown open the door and given the startled occupants of the surprisingly large hideout her most helpless shrug.
“About that,” she drawls, channeling as much of Heizou as she possibly can. “Sorry?”
She hears Heizou cackling as he sweeps past her and punches the shocked Fatuus leader in the face.
“Didn’t know you had that in you, Sara!” he laughs.
“Neither did I,” Sara admits as she ducks under a swing from another of the Fatui, elbowing the man in the gut and smashing him into a wall with a kick as he doubles over in pain. “You’re a terrible influence.”
“I like you better like this,” Lady Kamisato calls, and Sara spares a glance to see that the noblewoman already has a pile of unconscious, frozen Fatui at her feet.
“Destroy the records, you fools!” the Fatuus leader yells as he desperately attempts to ward off Heizou’s merciless blows. “We can’t let them—”
His words trail off into a whimper as he falls over, Heizou’s foot having landed squarely in his groin.
“Stop them from doing anything to the records!” Sara orders.
The next few minutes are absolute chaos, but in the end they have all of the Fatui and traitorous auditors bound in the center of the room, and no visible damage has been done to the various cabinets scattered around the walls.
“You’re not gonna believe this,” Sango says, staring into a folder she’s pulled from a drawer.
“What is that?” Sara asks.
Sango looks up, a twisted smirk on her face.
“I think those idiots were just bringing the files incriminating them here,” Sango explains. “Which means they’ve done all the work of collecting the evidence of lingering corruption for you.”
Sara can’t help it — she doubles over with laughter, only Shinobu’s grip on her shoulder preventing her from falling to the ground.
“Let’s get them all out of here,” she wheezes. “Miss Naganohara, Lady Kamisato… Might I trouble you to guard this place until I can return with a few more trustworthy soldiers to clear it out?”
“We would be happy to,” Naganohara replies, smiling at her gently.
“Of course,” Lady Kamisato agrees. “We won’t leave the job half-done.”
“Thank you,” Sara murmurs, bowing. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
The following weeks are an absolute whirlwind. Between going through the gigantic treasure trove of evidence and preparing a staggering number of charges against both active and retired members of the Tenryou Commission, using the information they’ve gained on remaining Fatui camps to clear out the lingering infestation, raiding the homes of the auditors to locate any private files they may have kept, and the Almighty Shogun apparently deciding that she wanted Sara to join her and Lady Yae for meals and meet their new baby…
Sara is exhausted, but satisfied. Still, she’s hoping for things to slow down again soon.
Which is, of course, why Kamaji chooses now to drop this in her lap.
“Could you say that again?” Sara asks weakly.
“I’ve asked the Almighty Shogun to give the position of Tenryou Commissioner to you, and she agreed,” Kamaji repeats.
“I was afraid that was what you said,” Sara mumbles. “Why?”
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately,” Kamaji says, leaning back in his chair. “It wasn’t me who stepped up to fight the mess we had, that was all you. I’m a better administrator than you are, but when it comes to the most important parts of the job… well, there’s really no contest. Masahito agreed with me when I asked him about it, and I knew the Almighty Shogun had only seen me as a temporary holder of the job, so…”
“I see,” Sara says.
Her head feels like it’s spinning. Her? The Tenryou Commissioner?
It’s not like she has a choice, if the Almighty Shogun has agreed to it, but…
“Don’t worry,” Kamaji reassures her. “I’ll be around to help teach you the administrative side.”
“All right,” Sara sighs. “So be it.”
“There will be a ceremony next week to make it official,” Kamaji says. “It will double as an awards ceremony for your work on the investigation, so make sure Doushin Shikanoin and Miss Kuki are there too, will you? For now, go get some rest. You’ve earned it.”
Sara leaves, massaging her forehead in a vain attempt to drive away her growing headache.
“Damn it, Kamaji,” she groans.
“Sara? Is something wrong?” Heizou’s voice asks.
“…Heizou,” Sara says, turning to face the Doushin with the widest smile she can muster. “Congratulations on your promotion to chief detective.”
“Bwah?” Heizou replies eloquently, flailing her arms as she half-falls backwards in apparent surprise.
“My dear brother Kamaji has convinced the Almighty Shogun to promote me to Tenryou Commissioner,” Sara explains. “And since you’re here, I thought I would share the fun.”
“Oh you suck,” Heizou whines, pouting.
Sara just smirks and turns, gesturing for the detective to fall in behind her.
“I need people I can trust in high positions,” Sara says calmly. “I know I won’t be able to convince Shinobu to join the Tenryou Commission, and there’s no way I can get you to accept a position that doesn’t let you keep doing your work… so this is the best I can do.”
“…Yeah, that makes sense,” Heizou sighs. “Fine, fine… but only because we’re friends, you got that?”
“Of course,” Sara agrees, not bothering to fight the warmth in her chest. “Of course.”
“—and all of that is why I’m stepping down,” Kamaji drones. “I’m sure everyone here already knows her, but I’m pleased to be the first to have the chance to introduce my sister, Sara, as your new Tenryou Commissioner!”
The amount of applause that fills the air as Sara steps forward into the light stuns her. Ei is standing in the front row, beaming at her brightly, clapping and cheering more than hard enough to make up for the fact that Miko beside her has her arms full with little Makoto. The kitsune catches Sara’s eye and smiles warmly, mouthing a congratulations.
Naganohara Yoimiya and Lady Kamisato are present as well. The firework-maker is cheering as loudly as Ei, and her demure partner is clapping much more politely at her side.
Behind and around them, the ordinary people of the Tenryou Commission clap and cheer wildly. Sara can only look around, struck speechless by the popularity she apparently enjoys.
Near the back of the room Sara can see Sango and Ryuuji. Ryuuji’s clapping is enthusiastic, while Sango looks like she’d rather be anywhere else… until she catches Sara’s eye, at which point she gives her a grin and a thumbs-up.
“Told ya there were plenty of people that admired you,” Heizou says smugly, sauntering up onto the stage to stand at her shoulder.
It’s hideously against protocol for the Doushin to interrupt like this, but the show of support makes Sara feel a little less overwhelmed.
“You’re gonna do great, bird,” Shinobu whispers as she too steps up to stand at Sara’s other shoulder, hand coming up to give it a squeeze.
Sara blinks back tears, then folds her arms and smiles confidently.
The two she has at her back are the best support she could have asked for, she’s sure of it, and the friends she’s made out in the audience are a further balm to her heart that she never could have imagined finding.
“Thank you, everyone,” Sara says, voice ringing out into the hall. “From today on, I am Kujou Sara, Tenryou Commissioner.”
And I will never be alone again.