Time passed quickly, and the next day arrived.
Yesterday, after meeting with Hachimai Kaguya, Denji and Aki Hayakawa immediately headed to the location where Hachimai Yuzuru was.
With the experience from the first meeting, Aki's speech became more fluid, and Denji's acting improved. Without much effort, they used the same method to convince Yuzuru to open up her heart as well.
In front of Hachimai Kaguya, Denji said his final choice was Yuzuru, but in front of Yuzuru, Denji said his final choice was Kaguya.
With their small deception and intentional guidance, both the Yamai sisters were willing to drop their facades and reveal their true feelings before they disappeared.
Now, all that was left was to wait for the next day to come. The final and most crucial step in their plan would soon take place.
Aki and Denji stayed up all night.
Early the next morning, they arrived at a forest on the outskirts of Tokyo.
This was the meeting place they had agreed upon with the Yamai sisters.
Although Aki's plan had gone smoothly so far, that didn't guarantee the same outcome today.
If something went wrong during the meeting, and the Yamai sisters grew resentful and fought back, at least in this remote location, no ordinary civilians would be harmed.
"Akikun, Denji, are you sure you've convinced them?"
In the clearing of the forest, Makima had also been invited to be present.
As the leader of the Public Safety Bureau's Devil Operations Division, and the one who had initially made the agreement with the Yamai sisters, she naturally had to be there to announce the result.
Denji had simply made his final choice.
It was Makima who would announce the result.
Although Makima would have preferred Denji to quietly eliminate the Yamai sisters, so she could achieve her personal desires and Tokyo would be unaffected, since she had already agreed to give Denji a chance to convince them, she would keep her word.
As long as Denji and Aki could control the situation and make the Yamai sisters harmless, she was willing to accept it.
"We've done everything we could. Although I can't say I'm 100% sure, the success rate should be pretty high," Aki said seriously. "Miss Makima just needs to handle the overall situation, according to the plan I gave you. If something does go wrong, Denji and I will handle it before the Yamai sisters go out of control."
Makima nodded without comment, and then fell silent.
After about 20 minutes, the appointed time arrived.
The Yamai sisters, who had been outside all day yesterday, arrived one by one.
However, unlike yesterday, when they pressured Denji to immediately reveal his final choice, today they simply stood quietly in place, occasionally sneaking glances at each other.
Seeing this, Aki and Denji felt more confident.
"Alright, since the Public Safety Bureau has made its final decision, and you two are here, let the fusion ceremony begin."
As the representative of the Public Safety Bureau, Makima spoke and officially announced the start of the fusion ceremony.
Just as Aki's plan had intended.
Makima paused for a moment, then looked at the slightly nervous Yamai sisters.
"You both must already know who the winner is, right?"
Upon hearing this, the Yamai sisters nodded.
"Then, before we proceed with the fusion ceremony, do either of you have something you'd like to say to each other?"
The Yamai sisters looked at each other, both hesitating as if they wanted to speak but couldn't.
Aki and Denji anxiously watched them, their hearts racing.
This was the critical step that would determine the success or failure of their plan.
At this last moment, if the Yamai sisters could drop their pretenses and acting, and let each other know how important the other was in their hearts, then the fusion ceremony could be fundamentally dismantled.
Time ticked by.
Just as Aki and Denji's palms began to sweat, Hachimai Yuzuru finally broke the silence.
Her words brought a huge sense of relief to Aki and Denji.
"To be honest, since this is the last meeting between Yuzuru and Kaguya, I've thought about it for a long time, and I've decided to say it."
Yuzuru took a deep breath, her eyes locking with her other half.
"I'm sorry for always calling you dumb, slow, and flat-chested, but honestly, that's not how I feel at all."
Hachimai Kaguya seemed to be caught off guard by Yuzuru's unexpected words. She froze for a moment, unsure how to respond.
Yuzuru ignored her reaction and continued.
"At first, I did see you as a competitor, but over time, I unknowingly began to see you as someone important to me." A small smile tugged at the corners of Yuzuru's lips. "Kaguya, you're the first person in this world I could completely trust. Honestly, to me, you are more important than Fuutada Hachimai."
"I... I actually feel the same way," Kaguya said, her voice faltering at first.
After hearing these honest words from Yuzuru, Kaguya froze for a moment, but soon her face brightened with surprise and joy.
It was a joy mixed with a bit of bashfulness.
As Yuzuru opened her heart first, Kaguya, who had hesitated to let go of her own facade, finally made up her mind.
"Though we were competitors at first, that was only at the beginning. I've long stopped wanting to compete with you." Kaguya scratched her head and smiled. "At that time, I only wanted to resurrect Fuutada Hachimai, but after everything we've gone through, what I want to do has changed completely."
"Kaguya, you feel the same way?" Yuzuru asked, her eyes widening in surprise. "I always thought you wanted to become the real Fuutada Hachimai."
"That was only because in front of you, I... I didn't want to lose," Kaguya blushed. "And when we were in that duel, weren't you always nitpicking too? I thought you really wanted to become Fuutada Hachimai."
Listening to their conversation, Aki and Denji exchanged a glance. Both of them could see the joy and relief in each other's eyes.
No effort was wasted.
Thanks to their hard work, what was once a destined sacrifice had now opened up a new ending.
Aki and Denji couldn't help but smile.
A world without anyone being harmed had been achieved.