Tokyo, Japan

Somewhere, in a remote suburban site just on the outskirt of one of the once prosperous metropolises of the world - Tokyo. There was a large mansion built in traditional Japanese-style lying solely on a blasted land, which surprisingly, was once a lustrous forest before they were utterly reduced to ashes for who knows how long ago and sadly is still yet to recover. But on the contrary of the rather sorrowful scenery to behold, the weather is surprisingly nice. The sky was blue, the white clouds drifting by, the sun shining serenely. It sure gives people hope on their continuous journey of recovering from which that had teared their lands apart.

"Oji-san, oji-san." A young boy with hair as white as snow hastily ran through the hall with an excited expression on his face of the mansion towards the backyard, while calling for his uncle, who was sitting under the sakura tree, reading a book and drinking some green tea calmly, as if there is no care in the world.

"Hatake-kun, what is it?" Mikiya shifted his gaze from the book he was reading to his nephew, who had just arrived at the entrance to the backyard. His smile seemingly never fades from his lips.

"I finally manage to read someone today. Oji-san's tips work really well! Obaa-san is really pleased with me that she hadn't knocked me on the head for the whole morning!" Hatake enthusiastically approached his uncle and happily reported his little feat that he had just barely accomplished earlier.

"Is that so? Congratulations, and I'm so glad that my cute nephew is so good already." Mikiya smiled brightly and ruffled Hatake's hair, "Can you show me how you did it then? Go ahead and tell oji-san how he is feeling."

Hatake nodded with an innocent grin before closing his eyes and holding Mikiya's hand tightly, exhaling a deep breath of air while concentrated his mind on trying to read his uncle's feelings. Apparently, it took a great deal of effort out of the young boy whose ability was unlocked not so long ago, and is still pretty much hasn't been honed at all. But Hatake managed to get the results, eventually. "Hmm, oji-san is feeling really contented and happy right now. Am I correct, oji-san?"

"You couldn't be more right, Hatake-kun." Mikiya smiled and complimented his nephew, "You are super good. I couldn't manage to read anyone yet when I was your age. But don't slack off because of that and keep training hard everyday, okay? Don't let obaa-san knock on your head." He winked.

"Even though you probably won't be returning home any time soon with this mission, you're still surprisingly optimistic. Sometimes I wonder if you have extraordinary courage, or just foolhardy, nii." A tall, thin woman with short white hair entered the backyard, as she exhaled a breath from her cigarette, "This isn't going be like any other missions we've been sent to, y'know."

"Kaa-san, you're back!" Hatake happily chimed and skidded to his mother, at which she cuddled him with her hand. It seemed that she too had just returned from an assignment from the government.

"Aoko, welcome back." Mikiya stood up from where he sat and smiled with his sister, "So, you've just heard too, huh?"

"Of course, you forgot that I'm the most updated one in this family?" Aoko sneered, but her expression quickly tensed up, "Are you sure it is going to be fine? I won't even be thinking about your welfare if it is just our everyday tasks, but I've got a hunch something sinister is going on here, nii."

"Overprotective as ever, Aoko." Mikiya smiled and caressed his sister's chin, which seemingly eased her up, "Let's just think of this as our everyday tasks, okay? The elders are confident in my ability, and if they feel that only I can accomplish this, then I won't let anyone down."

Just last night, the elders of the Kaneshiro family received a strange "distressed call" all the way from Berlin, Germany. The atmosphere tensed up greatly within just hours, because there was never a call like this before. They only knew about it directly from the two members of their clan that survived the cataclysm a hundred year ago. But one thing for sure, to receive a distress call like this could only mean that nothing good is about to happen. Something huge that will not only affect the genetically modified community in Japan, but throughout the world as well.

An emergency meeting is held and they have ultimately decided that they will answer the call, and the one most suitable for this assignment is none other than the heir, and the most prominent member of the clan - Mikiya. And he had accepted it without a second thought.

Mikiya has finished prepared everything he needed for the upcoming trip. Because it's going to be a long one, so it ended up a lot more than he had anticipated. But not that it mattered much. He can always find a way to make it through the airport terminal without too much hassling. He looked into the mirror and add the final touches to his disguise and testing his voice modifier. This time, Mikiya is going to be a young businesswoman named Fujihara Makiko. For a trip abroad, this sure looks like a lot of works, but as one of the top secret agents of Japan, obviously he cannot afford to carelessly show his true identity.

Before entering the car that take him to the airport, Mikiya hugged and said goodbye to each of his family - his mother, sister and nephew. Coincidentally, his brother-in-law Satsuki is currently on a trip to Berlin so there is high chance that they will meet. With a promise that he will return before they know it, Mikiya departed with a silent prayer that everything is going to be fine. His family is all the he ever got, and he doesn't know what he will even do if harm comes to them.

Berlin, Germany

The trip from Tokyo to Germany was thankfully uneventful. As usual, none of the staffs in both airports question his identity. They are just making it too easy for him, as this was not any different than the missions he was sent to before. Well, he did have some problems with his luggage as they are admittedly catching attention, and it was a bit too much for Mikiya to handle himself. But nothing is going out of his hand, yet.

Normally, he would stop by a public toilet or something to dispose of his disguise already. But a part of his mind tempted him otherwise, so he just went on to search for the hospital he was supposed to head to under the disguise of Makiko by his phone. Berlin is nowhere a small city, so it did take a while, but eventually he made it there.

Walking in through the entrance of the hospital, Mikiya was immediately greeted by the receptionist, "Hello, miss. Do you have an appointment?"

"Yes, I was told that I was to find someone named Schreiber here." He went straight to the point, it seemed that she doesn't know that he is disguising, in the least. The receptionist nodded in acknowledgement, and only a moment later, another woman whom Mikiya assumed to be Dr. Schreiber arrived. "May I help you?"

"I am from the Kaneshiro family, and I have arrived on behalf of my family." Mikiya spoke in a rather convincing tone, and keep smiling as usual.

Dr. Schreiber narrowed her eyes in question of his statement, "Are you sure you are? I thought the one sent by the Kaneshiro is supposed to be male-"

"Is this enough of a proof?" Mikiya showed Dr. Schreiber a piece of paper with an insignia of the clan, which can only be acquired through the elders. Glancing through the paper, though still seemingly doubtful, the woman just nodded, "Follow me, miss Kaneshiro." She said as she led him through a long, winding hall, to a sanctuary of sorts locked by a hand-scanner. And inside the room, he was greeted with all sorts of out-of-the-world gadgets. Normal people would be surprised that these kinds of technology really exist, but not for Mikiya, as he had seen them more than once before.

Looking around, Mikiya saw two girls and two boys have already arrived before him. They all look considerably younger than him, and he can notices that a boy among them is also a Japanese. "Please wait here until further notice. There is still one more left to arrive, and that one should be here soon." Dr. Schreiber said to him, and he nodded. He carried with him all of his luggage to an empty chair nearby and set them aside, comfortably making himself at home - all while keeping his disguise as Mikako.

Even without using his ability, Mikiya can tell that the atmosphere is rather somber, and none of the four are actually interested in introducing themselves or getting to know each other right now, so he has no reason to force them to either. But secretly, he found this to be exceptionally interesting, and held much anticipation of how will the events will play out from now.

It wouldn't be wrong to say that this kind of meeting is gradually turning into one of those countless summons Mikiya was called to attend in the past. The somber atmosphere, the bickering, the questions, all of them are but something that he had been all too used to. He wouldn't show it outwardly, but if that was really going to be the case, he would have been bored to death. He would straight up order them to just tell whose necks to slit, depart onto his mission, and be done with it.

But it was really different here this time. Other times, he was surrounded with individuals of high magnitudes. Those with minds sharper than a sword and powers to enact at their disposals. Those that even for a seasoned empath like himself cannot even grasp at the very first glance. Now, excluded himself, the two so-called professors over there are in all honesty the only ones knowing what exactly is going on. The other five's feelings and insecurities are very true and pure under Mikiya's observation. No covers, no lies. It was almost refreshing for him, he must admit.

After all, for these teenagers, they are like infants, about to make a step into a world that bears almost no semblance of how their normal lives are. A world where deception and plotting are your only weapons, and also what will one day turn against you. A world where you can be either a fish that devours or be devoured. That fact is what Mikiya can tell for sure even if he is yet to know their backstories.

And in a brief moment, Mikiya almost felt pity for them for being dragged into this. He is not too sure what to expect in the future, but it definitely won't be too different from how Mikiya has lived his whole life - to have your own life hanging on the line while countless people depend on it. They should have been allowed to choose their own paths, live how they wanted to be, and here they sit, waiting for the responsibilities that are to be passed onto them. Will these five be able to make it? For the moment, Mikiya pretty much doubts it. He wishes that watching their development will prove him wrong.

Looks like I got a lot of works to do. Mikiya muses to himself.

Before long, the people who summoned them here began to introduce themselves. The man is named Ivo and the woman next to him is Rosamunda, his sister. Later on, another woman named Caoilfhionn (he is unsure if he heard it right, German is such a complex language that he decided not to take on it) walked in and apparently she's also quite a linguist. And the three of them are all Germans, which he aren't too familiar in working with. He did travel to Germany for a couple of times before, but didn't have a chance to learn more about its' culture and people. But not like it would matter much for now.

Ivo then began to deliberate about the reasons for their summoning. This didn't come off as surprising for Mikiya. The Kaneshiro family has built a large network of connections with other prominent lines of Sixty-Nines worldwide, and thus through them holds extensive information about the nature of the so-called 'evolved humans' like them. When Mikiya heard his family name to be the first one to be called out among the six, he had already prepared for all questions directed at him, the very moment he felt the slightest sting of doubts from them.

This is actually quite what he had hoped, really. Most of them seemed to have sharper sense of perception than he originally thought. If they cannot at least afford to be this observant, Mikiya's work will just pile up even more and obviously he doesn't want it to be the case. When the girl, Yeong-ji, directed her questions over his gender, Mikiya, under the pretense of Makiko, smiled at the girl, "For the records all members of my family have been quite taller than Japanese's standard, you could say that there will always a few odd ones among the many common. Just because you have never seen it before, doesn't mean it can never happen, does it?" He replied in the most polite tone possible, before the professor continues with his talk.

Coming right after the introduction of Mikiya's family is the information of the other five's families. The two other Japaneses, Satoshi and Ito, aren't from families that are neither prominent nor well-known, but he did meet people with their abilities before. They seemed like your everyday schoolboys having their lives messed up because they were involved in some unthinkable matters. A motif too common in fictions now. They seemed normal on the outside, but Mikiya can felt that they are hiding some problems that he cannot pick up just yet. He will figure it out and see how to fix them in case they get in the way.

The other three foreigners youngsters are, quite unexpectedly, all came from families that the Kaneshiro had taken notice of more specifically. First is the girl came from the Laurent family known as Jeanne. They made quite a mark among the supernatural community and built up the notoriety of the volatile and unpredictable nature of their powers. This girl seems to has quite a tongue and her attitude matches up with that of her flames. An interesting individual, indeed. In a way, she reminds him of his sister Aoko when she was during her adolescence years.

Next up is Sven Gunderson. The boy's power isn't too significant, but the fact that he reveals almost all information about himself having supernatural power to the world potentially make him into a target to be manipulated, both politically and other matters. Hence why the Kaneshiro has been secretly keeping track of him and his family on regular intervals. It seemed that he doesn't seem like the outgoing type that would freely talk about anything he hears, so for now there's no need for Mikiya to take special care of him.

And last, but definitely not least, the descendant of the most prominent family ever of the Sixty-Nines, Yeong-ji of the Kühn family. Her clan's ability has always been intriguing in their nature and, as much as the Kaneshiro wanted to obtain for information about it, the sources are extremely limited and most of them are highly classified. It is also difficult to keep track of the members of this family. Mikiya will definitely keep an eye on Yeong-ji, to see how her ability will manifest at its' fullest and to prevent any chances of her becoming a potential political subject of manipulation. Mikiya doesn't know if the girl is aware, but just walking around bearing her family name is enough to make her a prey in many's eyes.

After the deliberation is finished, Ivo informed that they are going to depart to somewhere else again, and they will go after all questions are answered. Mikiya took off his sunglasses, and directed his gaze over to Ivo, "I'm assuming that you is aware of what us - the Kaneshiro, are, correct? The elders of my family seem to trust you, which is why they gave you the rights to give me orders in their stead. Of course, I have absolutely no problems with that. Our conversation up until now have also confirmed me that this wasn't some political schemes that could potentially threaten my family and my nation. So I have no questions. Instead, as a fair warning, I sincerely hope you will not betray our trust and give out our information to those who offer a price for it. For if that really is the case, I will do what I have to and things may become much more complicated than it already is."

"For the records all members of my family have been quite taller than Japanese's standard, you could say that there will always a few odd ones among the many common," the tall Japanese person responded in a rather civil manner towards Yeong-ji's claim. "Just because you have never seen it before, doesn't mean it can never happen, does it?"

Yeong-ji stayed silent for a few moments, contemplating the woman's (?) words, and how she got them across. She's okay, Yeong-ji grudgingly approved of the Japanese in her mind. She shrugged nonchalantly in response. "I'm sure it is possible - after all, the tallest woman ever was Chinese and over eight feet tall - all I am saying is that it is not the norm." Yeong-ji smiled her typical sardonic smile, not fully aware of it. "However, you could be -" Yeong-ji paused, trying to think up the term she couldn't quite recall at the moment "- biologically male and choose to identify as female - in any case, I will use any pronouns you want. I could not care less about what gender people go by."

The conversation continued on. However, the thump of the Japanese American collapsing to the ground certainly caught people's attention. The golden-eyed teen woke up abruptly, gasping, blood seeping through the bandages on his hands. The main doctor's sister - Rosamunda, Yeong-ji reminded herself - immediately rushed to the boy's side, saying things like, "was that a vision of yours?" and "would you like to explain what you saw?", along with "oh my, let's get your hands fixed up."

Meanwhile, the tall Japanese person took off her glasses. "I'm assuming that you is aware of what us - the Kaneshiro, are, correct? The elders of my family seem to trust you, which is why they gave you the rights to give me orders in their stead. Of course, I have absolutely no problems with that. Our conversation up until now have also confirmed me that this wasn't some political schemes that could potentially threaten my family and my nation. So I have no questions. Instead, as a fair warning, I sincerely hope you will not betray our trust and give out our information to those who offer a price for it. For if that really is the case, I will do what I have to and things may become much more complicated than it already is."

Ivo took those words very seriously, nodding somberly. "Of course," he said, a heavy tone in his voice.

The Frenchwoman decided to speak up. "You have all this . . . talk about enemies and allies. But who are we to trust you?" How do we know that you're the real good guys in this? Surely you can't expect us to come here, listen to your story and think everything is all fine, non? What if you aren't as good as you're claimin' to be and that these . . . Schmitzes are the ones we should actually be trusting?"

She has a point, Yeong-ji admitted grudgingly to herself. I mean, all I have to go on is my dad's word . . . and he kinda left me when I was eight to commit suicide in Seoul. There is no actual reason to trust this dude . . . besides, even if he is telling the truth, who give a fuck if I'm killed by those machine things? Didn't practically everyone in my family commit suicide before they could hit twenty-one? It's probably hereditary . . . I'm already fifteen, it's not like I have any time left to make good use out of my life.

"Your suspicion," Ivo began in a tone that made him seem like he was waiting for the Frenchwoman's question, "is completely understandable. In fact, I'd be sincerely surprised if any of you didn't doubt me. However," the images on the screen rippled to show what Yeong-ji saw while she was playing piano in the morning - the ripples of the German flag - "this is the universal distress signal amongst the Sixty-Nine and its descendants. Back when some from the clinical trials were leaving to lead their own lives, we showed this signal to them, telling them it would only be used in the most dire of situations. I understand that this secret may not have been passed down in your ancestors' attempt to give their children normal lives. In that case, there is certainly a reason for any of you to doubt us. However, there is a degree of trust that goes into every risk one takes in life. Without these risks, no one would be able to advance."

Ivo seemed to grow taller and he spoke. "We cannot force you to believe us. If you do, you are putting your faith in us to defend you from your extinction. If you don't, you are choosing to blindly shut the door in the face of the destiny your ancestors and your powers have engraved for you. There is a risk in either choice you make; despite our efforts, you may not survive if you choose to believe us. But there's a strong chance you will. However, if you choose not to believe us, the chance of you surviving will be significantly lower. This choice is yours to make, so select a decision you may regret the least."

There was a short pause of silence as the listeners contemplated the doctor's words. Finally, Ivo broke the silence he himself had caused, calling over to his sister in German so that most of the others wouldn't understand. "How is his condition? What did he see, and does it have any impact on our plans?"