---
"Is that so?"
Eto Yoshimura closed her book, her expression flickering slightly.
Aogiri Tree had already begun infiltrating this region.
Unlike the 11th Ward, the hidden forces within the 20th Ward were far more numerous.
Their priority wasn't fighting—it was rooting out those hiding in the shadows.
If Aogiri Tree tried to eliminate them one by one, it would take far too much time and effort.
Those hidden forces had concealed themselves extremely well.
To drag them out into the open, the waters first had to be muddied.
Only then would all those little creatures hiding beneath the surface reveal themselves.
"Anyway, once the book launch is over, you should return to the 11th Ward."
Minato Namikaze looked at her seriously.
"I'm not joking."
"And you? Are you staying here?"
Eto sat on the edge of the bed, gently swinging her legs.
Minato shook his head.
"I'll head back after I finish what I need to do. After all..."
"After all?"
Eto looked up curiously.
"Our home is in the 11th Ward, isn't it?"
Minato crouched down in front of her and smiled warmly.
"Right?"
The corners of Eto's lips curled upward.
She suddenly jumped forward.
Minato caught her naturally.
"Right. Our home is in the 11th Ward."
The 20th Ward was merely a temporary stop for both of them.
Everything they truly had was in the 11th Ward.
---
Anteiku
"Manager, Touka is back."
After finishing cleaning the cups, Koma Enji saw Kuzen Yoshimura and Kirishima Touka enter the café.
"We may need to prepare to leave."
Kuzen Yoshimura's first words immediately stunned everyone.
"What?"
The atmosphere in the café instantly became tense.
"Our identities may have been exposed."
Touka's tone was frustrated and irritated.
"Manager, what exactly happened?"
Kaya Irimi asked with a frown.
"That young man, Minato Namikaze, probably knows our identities."
Kuzen Yoshimura didn't hide anything.
He stated it directly.
Koma Enji frowned.
"Minato Namikaze? Eto's editor? The guy who wouldn't let us get close to her?"
"Yes. Him."
Touka scratched her head irritably.
"No wonder he kept watching the café before. He'd already been suspicious of us."
"If I'd known earlier, I would've dragged him into the shop and never let him leave."
"It shouldn't be a major issue. After all, your daughter is a Ghoul too."
Kaya Irimi remained calm.
Kuzen Yoshimura shook his head.
"He doesn't know Eto's identity as a Ghoul."
That made things troublesome.
Kaya Irimi lightly tapped the table, her expression becoming serious.
---
Later
"He's here again."
Touka pointed outside the window.
Everyone in the café narrowed their eyes and looked across the street.
Sure enough, Minato Namikaze was sitting there eating.
"What is wrong with this guy?!"
Touka was getting increasingly annoyed.
She ripped off her apron and prepared to storm outside.
Kaya Irimi quickly grabbed her.
"Don't."
"Tsk!"
Touka naturally knew she couldn't really confront Minato.
She was simply frustrated.
Were they truly going to abandon this place?
For the second time, Touka felt the helplessness of being a Ghoul.
But what could they do?
They could only accept it.
Such was the life of a Ghoul.
---
Just as the gloomy atmosphere settled over the café, customers arrived.
It was Kaneki Ken and his friend, Hideyoshi Nagachika.
"Welcome."
Touka immediately put on her usual mask.
To survive among humans, a Ghoul had to be capable of acting.
Not long afterward, another important figure entered.
Rize Kamishiro walked into Anteiku carrying a copy of The Black Goat's Egg.
Elegant.
Intellectual.
Her disguise was flawless.
The moment Kaneki Ken saw her, he blushed.
Hide immediately saw through him and began teasing him quietly.
Meanwhile, Rize naturally noticed Kaneki's gaze.
A faint red glimmer appeared in her eyes.
Tonight's meal had already arrived.
---
"If nothing unexpected happens, today should be the day."
Minato lightly tapped the table as he watched everything unfold across the street.
All three key figures had appeared.
After so much buildup, today was almost certainly the beginning.
Kaneki Ken's life as an ordinary human was likely about to end.
Looking at the oblivious young man, Minato shook his head.
If Kaneki had listened to him from the beginning and stopped coming to this café, perhaps things would have turned out differently.
But he kept coming.
In seeking out trouble, Kaneki had also dragged Minato into it.
Of course, this wasn't Kaneki's fault.
Even if Minato had warned him seriously instead of casually mentioning it, would a young man stop visiting the place where the girl he liked spent her time?
Most people couldn't.
---
While Minato continued waiting patiently, his phone rang.
It was Eto.
"Mr. Minato, where are you?"
Her voice sounded dangerous.
When she woke up that morning, Minato had already disappeared.
The Ghouls assigned to watch over him had no idea where he had gone.
That wasn't unusual.
For some mysterious reason, they frequently lost track of him.
It wasn't because he noticed them.
He simply vanished.
Today had been no different.
The moment he left the hotel, he disappeared from everyone's sight.
It was almost supernatural.
Perhaps this was the mysterious realm martial artists reached.
Terrifying.
---
"Why does that sound like a wife catching her husband cheating?"
Minato calmly took a sip of tea.
Compared to coffee, he still preferred tea and other drinks.
Eto had gradually adopted many of his habits as well.
Sometimes he influenced her.
Sometimes she influenced him.
The two of them had become remarkably similar.
At times, they practically resembled a married couple.
---
"Is that not allowed?"
Eto narrowed her eyes.
She had already gotten dressed and was preparing to head out.
Minato was always strangely secretive whenever he came to the 20th Ward.
It definitely wasn't just because of Rize Kamishiro.
If that were the only reason, he would have reported her to the CCG immediately.
Back in the 11th Ward, Minato had done exactly that many times.
Before Aogiri Tree gained control, numerous hidden Ghouls had been exposed through Minato's reports and subsequently eliminated by the CCG.
That was why she found the situation so strange.
Minato clearly knew about Rize.
He clearly knew about Anteiku.
Yet he wasn't reporting them.
Why?
What exactly was he waiting for?