However.. when Nana's progress was not to her liking (specifically, her own), the results became quite complicated.
Shiratori Nana was completely ignorant when it came to using firearms; her aim could miss the bullseye by a distance as vast as a single somersault of some miraculous Monkey King, her accuracy and rate of fire were simply breathtaking to Gin.
After all, considering this genius's own experience, it must be difficult for him to understand how anyone could use a gun so poorly.
With your finger-to-leg shooting style, you're certainly good at catching people off guard.
After teaching her for a few days, the Silver-haired youth gave a scathing critique.
Shiratori Nana: "QAQ"
Since this path was a dead end—and Gin also lacked the patience for it—she decided to teach her some combat self-defense techniques instead.
Gin did not intend to teach Nana too much; on one hand, he lacked the time and patience, on the other, he did not particularly want to involve her in this.
It was enough to be able to deal with thugs and such; there was no need to teach her much more.
Moreover, it would be bad to attract unnecessary attention.
Even so, Gin was still very dissatisfied with Nana's progress.
Of course, Nana's talent in combat was not as atrocious as her marksmanship.
To be fair, although Nana's combat talent is not as exceptional as Shiratori Midori's, it can still be considered above average.
However, in Gin's eyes, this was certainly far from enough.
Of course, without exaggeration, he knew it wasn't that Nana was lacking, but rather that Shiratori was too outstanding; it was just—
He couldn't help but wonder, "How can you be so different from your Sister?"
The mistreated little girl was depressed, but she still admitted this.
She said dejectedly, "How would I know.. It's Sister who is very strange.. My Parents are just Ordinary people.. Is it strange that I am an Ordinary person?"
Gin blinked, not taking the bait.
Although the silver-haired youth is not so busy that he is overwhelmed, he is not exactly idle either. Due to the special nature of her profession, he has always been the one to initiate contact with the little girl, even then, it is not frequent, usually only once or twice a month.
Although Nana did not know much about Gin's profession, she had her own guesses, so she had always been very obedient.
Moreover, perhaps because she had lost all her family, or perhaps because Midori's previous words had made her feel a sense of goodwill toward Gin, the little girl was exceptionally close to Gin.
Thinking of this, the Silver-haired youth found it somewhat amusing.
Nana blinked, looking cautiously at the silver-haired youth—Gin's expression, fearing that if she displeased her, she would be forced into extra training again.
Gin looked at the girl's expression, which was as if she were facing a formidable enemy, said speechlessly, "Take a half-hour break, then go cook."
Nana's green eyes lit up, she curled her lips into a smile, nodding vigorously, "Mm-hmm!"
He recalled the two times he had encountered Shiratori Nana before Shiratori Midori's Tombstone five years ago; that stubborn little girl seemed to have vanished.
Back then, he had killed innocent people to forge Nana's corpse. Shiratori Nana had gone into hiding for a year, staying in a sublet Apartment (changing apartments several times in the process), only ended that life of isolation once the heat had died down.
'Shiratori Nana' was already dead. Gin had used her connections to obtain a fake ID for her without alerting the Black Organization, had also used her influence to find a hacker to add information for several new identities.
As long as it isn't investigated thoroughly, there are basically no problems.
Lately, there hasn't been much going on. Gin was flipping through a magazine placed to the side while lost in thought; Nana, sitting on the sofa opposite her, did not disturb her. She drank a glass of salt water to replenish her strength, after resting, she began cooking.
Until—
Food's ready!
The black-haired girl walked out from the kitchen.
Gin was still dazing out, only turning her head to look at her when she heard the girl's voice.
Nana blinked her eyes. "Zhenjun, what are you thinking about?"
Nothing," Gin said perfunctorily. Looking at the Black-haired girl's curious gaze, she felt a sudden urge to tease her: "But what about you? I heard someone has been pursuing you lately?
".." She certainly was well-informed.
If it were anyone else, they might have felt annoyed by this somewhat surveillance-like attention, but Nana had no complaints about it.
—Her protests were ignored, after several times, she had grown used to it.
—What a sorrowful fact.
"She didn't chase after me.." Nana muttered.
What is it?
Her neighbor had some trouble at home before.. I helped investigate it," Nana explained. "She came to find me a few days after the matter was resolved, probably wanting to ask me to look into something for her.
Although Nana had not unlocked any skills in terms of combat prowess, she had her own strengths.
I am not referring to her studies—this girl's grades are not that great either—but rather her analytical skills.
In Gin's view, Shiratori Nana's analytical ability was a rare highlight of hers, which had already been evident during their two meetings five years ago.
In addition, although their meetings were infrequent, they had maintained intermittent contact over the past five years—Gin might not have gone out of her way to teach her anything specific, but she would occasionally reveal some "common sense."
These two points caused Nana to begin gradually experimenting to see if she could become a detective.
That's right, a detective.
Shiratori Nana is dead; the one who survived is Hashimoto Nana.
However, a new identity does not necessarily represent a new life.
After all, before everything old has come to an end, even if one wishes for a brand new life, it is not easy.
She was naturally not as formidable as the future Kudo Hattori, but she was also working hard to figure things out bit by bit. Fortunately, those two points gave her a certain advantage; as for the final outcome, it would ultimately depend on herself.
Gin was actually.. also uncertain about this.
She didn't want to involve Nana, but the one who lost her family was Nana, the one suffering in pain and despair was Nana, the one who still could not openly speak her true name to this day was also Nana.
That stubborn little girl from back then seemed to have disappeared, but it was only a "seemed."
Besides, although they didn't see each other often, she knew a thing or two about the Black-haired girl's efforts, so Gin didn't truly stop her.
Of course, he did not approve either.
As a result, after acting as a half-baked detective for a period of time, she had gradually begun to look the part.
Indeed, she had completed the last commission, it looked as though he would bring her a new one.
The silver-haired youth offered no comment on this. After a moment of silence, he commented on another aspect of the matter: "You are already nineteen; if you find someone decent, you could go on a date."
Dating?
You haven't had any dating experience before, have you? I don't object to it.
The black-haired girl complained silently to herself. *You make it sound so easy. I finally managed to find someone who makes my heart flutter, but then the training volume you reserved for those months surged, I was practically worked to death..*
Dan Nani Akashi didn't say it out loud; instead, her eyes gleamed as she asked, "What about you?"
“What?”
"When you were my age, um.. I mean, how far had you progressed?" Nana tried her best to ask as tactfully as possible.
She also tried her best to ensure her curiosity didn't show too obviously.
Gin didn't care at all, saying nonchalantly, "I've done everything that needed to be done."
Caught off guard!
Zhenjun, can't you be a bit more tactful in front of a girl who is a minor—no, a girl who has just reached adulthood and has no dating experience?
Well, perhaps it was already subtle, it's just that the truth is simply like that..
"The target.. is my Sister?" Nana suddenly thought of this.
"No." Gin dazed for a moment before speaking indifferently.
Then, who is the target?
“..”
Seeing that Gin had no intention of answering, Nana was about to give up, but a thought suddenly popped into her head.
She asked cautiously, "Male or female?"
“..”
Gin reached out with her left hand, approaching under Nana's curious gaze, tapped the Black-haired girl's forehead with her index finger, revealing a smile.
Do you still want to know?
Nana's expression instantly shifted from curiosity to terror. In an instant, she shuddered, her will to survive overcoming her curiosity.
The Black-haired girl shook her head repeatedly, as quiet as a mouse.
Gin curled the corners of her mouth and lowered her voice, her tone deep, raspy, tender, possessing a magnetism that made one's heart itch:
Good girl—
She stood up and walked toward the dining table.
The Black-haired girl stood there dazed, only coming to her senses after a long while, blinking her eyes in confusion.
Oh.. she thought blankly, I'm still alive..
Composing herself, Nana turned to look at Gin's back, her eyes filled with curiosity.
Is she.. a man or a woman?
..
Gin refused to answer this question.
In their line of work, blood and danger coexist with violence and passion; as adrenaline surges, "sex" is also no uncommon term.
Emotions are too shallow, true sincerity is a rare existence; but.. what does that matter?
Talking about love and talking about "love" and "affection" are actually two different things.
The higher one's status, the harder the heart seems to become, the colder the blood seems to run.
However—Gin sneered, thinking that sometimes, emotions could also serve as a fine bargaining chip.
Especially when encountering an object that can serve as a breakthrough.
The Silver-haired youth lit a cigarette with a lighter, her eyes darkening.