:re Chapter 9

Akira Mado and Haise Sasaki call on Shimoguchi in the hospital, where Akira consoles him over the underlings he lost and presses him about the raid at Torso's house. She then briefs Haise on the SS-rated Black Rabbit of Aogiri Tree, a young ghoul who has grown far more dangerous across three years and slaughtered investigators in the 20th ward along with associate special class officers in the 7th. Akira suspects that this ghoul, alongside Hinami, killed her father Kureo Mado, and she notes that mysterious data went missing from Torso's home. She adds that Aogiri recruits ghouls to carry out its work and absorbs those pushed to society's margins, expanding its reach through new branches. Haise is caught off guard by the grief she shows for Shimoguchi.

At CCG Headquarters, Urie seeks out Shiba to make his kagune stronger. Shiba lays out the science of the Quinx, explaining that the procedure grew from Akihiro Kanou's kakuhou transplant on Haise and resembles quinque manufacturing: an extracted kakuhou is sheathed in quinque steel and set into a human body. A five-level frame caps each kakuhou, and every Quinx currently sits at the F2 setting, roughly forty percent, though raising the frame would unlock a fiercer kagune. Shiba urges Urie not to push past his limit, advice Urie brushes aside.

When Rank 2 investigator Takeomi Kuroiwa asks after Sasaki's condition, Urie bristles with envy, since Takeomi once restrained Haise during an uncontrollable episode. His inner thoughts drift to mourning at his father's coffin and to his conviction that Takeomi's father Iwao abandoned his own father to die, refusing to fight beside him. Urie cannot forgive this, insisting Iwao should have perished against the One-Eyed Owl instead of merely losing an arm, because Takeomi has never known the loss of a parent.

Back at Torso's residence, Ayato cautions the man that walking away from Aogiri is impossible once he signs on, and he asks whether a Quinx named Sasaki is among their number. Meanwhile Haise, Shirazu, and Mutsuki review a new quarry called Nutcracker, a woman who mutilates men, and Haise notes that Suzuya is handling the case from the 13th ward, recalling that Suzuya once handed him money at their first meeting. On the way home Haise proposes a coffee stop, and the group pauses before a sign reading ":re," puzzling over its pronunciation before stepping inside. There Touka scolds Yomo for neglecting their guests and freezes in shock at the sight of a bewildered Haise.

Akira educates Haise on the Black Rabbit and Aogiri Tree's structure while revealing stolen data from Torso's home and her belief about her father's death. Shiba explains the origin and mechanics of Quinx surgery, including the F2 frame limit, and warns Urie against exceeding it. Urie's grudge against Takeomi and Iwao Kuroiwa is laid bare. Ayato probes Torso about a Quinx called Sasaki, and Haise unknowingly wanders into the :re cafe, coming face to face with Touka.

Released in issue 2015-02 on December 11, 2014, this chapter opens the first volume of Tokyo Ghoul:re. Its Japanese title is Keijō, with the English rendering Recreation. The installment delivers key exposition on the Quinx system and Aogiri while staging the emotionally loaded reunion between Touka and the amnesiac Haise Sasaki.