The erased data has been reconstructed!
There it is!
Shokuho...!
A DNA computer that generates abilities?
Does that mean this Shokuho person is involved in that research?
I couldn't tell you that much, but it is likely
that Shokuho didn't want it known that she was at this place.
Which also means that it's highly likely that it's her hideout.
And I'm sure she's there, too.
Kuroko...
...can you tell from the building on the screen where this is?
Huh? I mean, why do you keep using my name so casually? This building here?
It looks a lot like the Judgment branch in School District 2.
School District 2, you say? I'll go have a look.
I hate to ask, but when my mama wakes up...
Yes, I will explain to her that she collapsed from heat exhaustion
and keep her here under the excuse that we need to reissue her entrance pass.
I know how to handle this.
Thanks. Miss Saten, thanks for the information, too.
Oh, sure...
U-Um, Miss Misaka?
Have our memories really been manipulated?
And that's why we don't know you?
Don't worry. Once this is all over, I'll grab Shokuho by the scruff of her neck
and bring her back here. So just sit tight for a bit.
"A Certain Scientific Railgun T"
This is really turning into a hassle.
"September 19th"
What is this all about, now?
It looks like she fell victim to a military nanodevice.
I'm not sure that vaccine software alone will be able to treat her,
since her electrical abilities might interfere with it.
However, I think we should still take her in.
One might say this situation provides us with an opportunity.
One way or another, we have the initiative.
If her life is at risk, I'll raise the white flag to Miss Misaka.
Are you sure?
It would be an annoyance, but by then, there's nothing more we can do.
For now, could you call her an ambulance?
I'll mind control them and have them take us part of the way.
Sure.
Does the cat belong to her?
Uh-oh.
It didn't have a collar. Could just be a stray.
We don't have time to bother with that now. Leave it be.
I guess you're right.
Hello?
Well?
What's happening with Auribus oculi fideliores sunt?
Oh, that urban legends site?
For crying out loud,
I had our security turned all the way up
so I couldn't be followed or detected, too.
Then to be captured from a distance by a psychic photography esper
who can use a drop of water as a lens...
How does the administrator of an urban legend leisure site
have that kind of power? Espers really are the worst, huh?
Look who's talking.
Did you say something?
Look, don't worry about that.
I have a program running that is automatically generating dummy sites.
That site will never see the light of day again.
"September 20th"
Well, well, what have we here?
It looks like we have someone analyzing the dummy data generator,
trying to trace down the original site.
Listen, you! Didn't you say there was nothing to worry about?!
H-Hold on a second, please.
I set up the means to do a trace if we had an intruder, just in case.
There they are.
Judgment Branch 177?
Learning that the Judgment girl I found when I got there
was a friend of yours was probably the point
when my expectations starting going astray.
But then, at the time, there wasn't anything else I could have done.
Perhaps this situation was simply unavoidable.
Right, Miss Misaka?
Well, fancy meeting you here.
Pretty audacious of you to blatantly show yourself off like that
to every security camera in sight.
Where is she?
As I'm sure you're aware, she's in the building on the website.
That's the most reliable hiding place I have.
She's safe, then?
Torturing people isn't my thing, no matter how much they look like you.
There, are you happy now?
Not at all. I have a whole ton of questions I want to ask you.
Well, we can't have that, can we?
But you see, I'm pressed for time, too, so if you want to talk, come with me.
I wonder if there's anything I could be doing, too.
She said herself to wait here for her,
so I do not think you need to stress about it.
Honestly, I am only 50% sure that my memories were manipulated.
But what if it is true? Having your friends forget you would be miserable.
So you'd be cool if Uiharu and I forgot about you
and treated you like a perfect stranger?
Well, I...
I would hate it.
What is that you've been looking at?
A Bank list.
The person who took Uiharu hostage earlier--
I only saw her face, and do not even know in which school she is enrolled,
but I can surmise what her ability must be.
Her ability allowed her to remotely control a liquid metal,
and create a likeness of herself out of it.
Also, if she is either a Level 3 or a Level 4,
that should narrow it down considerably.
Oh, yeah. That could prove helpful to Misaka.
I am only acting as a member of Judgment
pursuing a criminal wanted for attempted murder.
Cavalierly telling a civilian about investigative information
is not something that I would do.
Oh?
However!
If I determine the situation to be urgent,
or if sharing the information would be beneficial,
that may not necessarily be true.
Huh?! Why are you looking at me like that?!
All right! I'll help you dig through that material!
Hey! Would you please not ignore me?!
We seem to be moving away from the place in the photo.
I told you, I'm pressed for time. If you want to talk, then don't complain.
Besides, I don't want anyone going near that place.
You don't have to worry. Once this is over, I'll give her back to you.
It looks like she got injected with a nanodevice,
so I'm a little concerned about her immune system,
but her life is in no danger.
The people who injected this "nanodevice" thing
are the ones who are looking for the Sisters, right?
What's the story with them?
I thought they were operating under your orders at first,
but they've kept on looking, even after her disappearance
and they're poking around, asking about things you wouldn't have to.
In fact, I'm guessing you two are on opposite sides.
Yep. And right now, we're headed to where their boss is.
It started when I heard about Project Level 6 Shift,
the experiment that I know you're quite familiar with.
Some of the researchers at the facility I was with were whispering about it.
Apparently, the project was at a standstill,
--and its data had leaked into the underworld community. --Did you hear about the Level 6 Shift project?
I want you...
...to tell me all about it.
Word is that they were trying to elevate the first-ranked, Accelerator,
to Level 6 using mass-produced clones of the third-ranked, Misaka Mikoto.
But the project seems to have stalled midway through.
So what happened to the clones they've made?
I don't know.
I'm guessing they were disposed of?
So, have you found out what's become of the post-experiment Sisters?
I'm sorry, not yet.
What gives? You were involved in the experiment, right?
That's part of the reason why I hired you.
I was merely in charge of stepping up security.
And after the project was suspended,
the Sisters were taken in by some other institution. But,
I will check with my contacts and see what I can find.
I would appreciate it if you did so quickly.
There is one thing that's bothering me, though.
There's another organization that is also trying to track down the Sisters.
There is? Then do a concurrent investigation of them, too.
And what turned up from that...
...were these other guys.
The one you came in contact with was just a hired hand.
It looks as though their directive was to get rid of you
and to search for the Sisters.
Get rid of me?
You have your record of throwing a monkey wrench into the Sisters project,
so you're on their radar.
And now she's paying the price instead of me...
I'm wondering why they only tried to immobilize you with a nanodevice.
You can guess the reason why they want the Sisters, can't you?
Their objective is almost certainly...
...the Misaka Network.
Yep. The network formed by the Sisters' brainwave link.
If the extent of that processing power were to be misused,
bad things could happen.
That's why I've taken steps to prevent individual Sisters
from infecting others with electrical viruses by collapsing those pathways.
Using my powers of ingenuity.
Now, even if one of the other Sisters were to fall into their hands,
they won't be able to meddle with the Misaka Network.
That's what you meant by having the initiative.
What are they planning to use the Misaka Network for?
All I can say for sure is that it won't be anything good.
After all, we're dealing with the advocate for Project Level 6 Shift,
"#8 Railgun ✕ Mental Out"
Kihara Gensei.
Kihara Gensei...
I've never met him directly, but I've heard his name a number of times.
I didn't know he was the advocate for that project.
And not just that project, either.
The man will stop at nothing in his quest for the truth.
He's the granddaddy of Academy City's field of study into SYSTEM
and has brought down many a researcher and research institution.
He wouldn't propose something as small-minded as restarting the project,
so I'm sure there's something up his sleeve.
All that being said,
we're currently on our way to where Kihara Gensei is.
Is he that easy to reach?
Of course not. The old man appears and disappears like a ghost,
so it took a lot of work to track him down.
Word is that he's secretly coming
to the International Ability Researchers Conference
about to be held in School District 9.
I read the mind of one of his insiders, so there's no doubt about it.
I'm planning to use this once-in-a-lifetime chance
to settle everything in one shot.
You didn't happen to manipulate Kuroko and the others' memories
so that they wouldn't be exposed to any danger
as your own weird way of being considerate, did you?
Well, if those girls didn't know what they were getting into with that old man,
they would meet an untimely death.
And even if it didn't come to that,
the irregularity of their actions might mess up my own plan.
Things would have turned out unfortunately for all involved.
Then why...
...didn't you tell me about this from the start?
Why did you even erase Kuroko and the others' memories to hide it?
You remember me saying earlier that they're wary about you?
If we'd teamed up, they would know all about me, too.
Still, there were any number of ways you could have gone about this!
Miss Kongo is...!
I guess I was the one who got her involved,
and if she did come into contact with them by accident,
then blaming you for it might be misdirected. But still,
if you and I had teamed up from the start,
Miss Kongo wouldn't have had to go through what she did!
I do feel bad about what happened to her.
But you know what?
She ended up taking down a piece of trash that I don't get along with,
and I appreciated the help.
And I'm telling you, you should have let me handle him!
Why...?
What if you had set off their alarms, and Kihara Gensei didn't show up?
What if you had sold me out, and served me up to them?
--I'd never do something like that-- --Cooperation?
Trust? How can you believe in such unreliable things?
The end result of you readily taking people at their word
was Project Radio Noise
and Project Level 6 Shift, wasn't it?
I make certain to peek around inside the head of anyone working with me.
What their motives and standards of behavior are.
And in some cases, I manipulate their emotions and actions.
I don't know what you're thinking, so partnering with you was something...
...I was never interested in.
The reason we're together now
is out of respect for your commitment to your friends,
and so that we can settle this quickly,
before they find out we're together.
Sure enough, you and I are never going to get along.
Can I ask you something?
Why does someone as inhuman as you are care about the Sisters?
Good question. But I'm under no obligation to tell you.
Besides,
it looks like we're almost there.
Ms. Misuzu?
This is the nap room at the 177th Branch office...
If your supposition is correct,
it would mean that Uiharu has been controlled since yesterday.
Mm-hmm...
They went to such pains to hide the site,
so they would probably try to investigate Uiharu when she found it.
I think they altered her memories to suit them while she was being read.
Was that the reason why she made that patrol route mistake, too?
Hmm... Either way, we don't tell Uiharu about this, okay?
She has the tendency to feel guilty about these things.
U-Uihar--?
Um, would you mind telling me exactly what you're talking about?
Well, um...
As you wish.
Huh?!
However, before I do, would you please make us some tea?
I hate to ask after you just got up, but...
Oh, sure.
Sh-Shirai!
Your thoughtfulness in not wishing to hurt one of your friends is wonderful,
but Uiharu is not so fragile a girl
that something like this would break her.
Mind control...?
You don't say.
So I've been gumming up the works without even knowing it.
Okay, now that we have taken a moment,
it is time to restart the investigation.
Uiharu, please pick out any suspicious individuals from the Bank.
Huh? Are you sure?
I may still be under whatever mind control is obstructing us.
We do not have time for you to undergo a thorough exam.
Right now, Uiharu, we need your abilities.
If you are concerned, you can do your work in front of us.
Or do you still need more sleep?
N-No! I'll get the ball rolling right now!
That was impressive.
But to be fair, we were also affected by her mind control.
I'm not saying a word.
Okay then,
you're free to go back to your usual business.
The conference is being held up ahead.
The security on the way there has been neutralized.
That's where Kihara Gensei is, right?
As long as you don't do anything to interfere with me,
you can stay here and watch if you'd like.
Are you kidding? Against folks who can't do anything without victimizing others?
I'm pulling the plug on them!
Ah, wait just a second!
Level 6...
A domain that can't conceivably be reached by existing abilities alone...
Something even Accelerator would have to sacrifice 20,000 clones to achieve...
Whatever Kihara Gensei might be planning,
it will likely carry a cost even higher than before.
If he can find that great a price acceptable, then...
A godly brain...
The nature of this city in pursuing that really is...
Come on, now.
How can I be preoccupied with my own thoughts
when I'm about to charge into enemy territory?
Shokuho...?
She's not there. The way here was a straight shot.
There's no way we could get separated.
She set me up!
Maybe she thought she could rope me in with all that slick talk,
but if she wants to tangle...!
H-Hey... I told you... to wait up... okay...?
Don't you have... any attentiveness...?
Don't go off... getting charged up... without me...
I'm the one who brought you here... so it's only right...
...that we stick together...
Don't go dashing off at full speed...
Actually, I think that was more like jogging.
W-Well, I am heavier in certain areas than you are,
so you have less wind resistance.
You can understand how hard it is for me, right?
Actually,
you're just lousy at sports, aren't you?
Huh?! Huh?! Who's lousy at--
Come to think of it, I don't remember ever seeing you take a gym class.
So what, people who are athletic are better? What are you, in grade school?!
Ah, that must be why you have the figure of a little girl!
M-My figure has nothing to do with this!
What about you? What's with those sparkles in your eyes? Shojo manga?
I was born this way!
Didn't anyone ever teach you not to make fun of others' appearances?!
Oh, yeah?! Look who's talking!
Now that I think back on it, bringing you here was an irregularity.
I always planned to take care of things here by myself.
There's no need for us to charge in hand in hand, is there?
Yeah. I feel uneasy trying to partner with you, myself.
--Let's do this independently. --Let's do this independently.
Don't do anything to slow me down, okay?
Right back at you!
Let's see, I'd better report what I found.
As far as the person who stole the data from our villas, it wasn't Misaka Mikoto;
it looks like it was the fifth-ranked, Shokuho Misaki.
She must have set her up to be the fall guy
to mask whatever traces she couldn't hide with memory manipulation.
It looks like she also knew about the do-not-kill bulletin on Misaka Mikoto
that got sent out to MEMBER.
Did you finally figure it out, Kozaku Mitori?
Huh? Hold on, you mean you knew? Then you could have told me.
Letting you know would not have changed your jobs, right?
Kozaku, you just get things ready on your end. Understood?
Yeah...
But are you sure about this?
Shokuho Misaki's objective in getting the data from the villas was definitely...
It's all right. No need to worry. All green. In fact...
I'm almost afraid that things are going too smoothly.
"Next episode preview"
Okay, let's charge in there! You immobilize any security guards,
and I'll blast my way through any walls using my railgun!
My Mental Out doesn't work on Miss Misaka.
I wonder if that isn't because of her EM barrier
but because her brains are made of muscle.