A/N: Rewritten version of Steel swords
So I decided that I could do so much better with this story. I started this in the summer, thinking "Wow what a great story I made!" and then when September rolled around, I was like "Nope, gotta rewrite this, gotta fix all of this." xD
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GINTAMA IT BELONGS TO SORACHI HIDEAKI
So I have tweaked it here and there, adding new details & more descriptions, but all in all, the plotline will be the same unless I somehow decide 2 change it xD
Critiques r greatly appreciated
Enjoy~
Steel Swords
Ch. 1: The Beginning
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It was hot. Standing in front of large double doors was a woman no older than the age of twenty-three. Casually sucking on a lollipop from the pocket of her black trench coat, she waited as two, muscular, buff men strode over to her in an orderly fashion. Holding up a gold, intricate letter, she handed it to the two men for inspection as they squinted their eyes to see through their dark shades. Reading the contents of the letter slowly, the woman paced around in a bored fashion, interested in the letters inscribed on the top of the large building, spelling out "Heisuke Corporation." Hearing the rustling of paper being folded, and the whispers of the two men behind her back as they stared at her with wide, ghastly eyes, she realized that they were finally going to let her in.
Feeling the wonderful burst of air conditioning brush against her body, she happily walked behind the two men, her boots clicking away on the marble floor. Closing her eyes for a brief moment, she began to hum a tune from a parental figure that originated from her childhood.
Too bad that he was already gone though.
Left, right, left, left, right. Her blue orbs were in the process of memorizing the details of the hallways and they unique twists and turns until they stopping in front of an elevator. Walking inside, she immediately noticed the hundreds of cameras built into the walls and lazily yawned as one of the men pressed a button all the way in the corner of the top column.
The next few moments were spent in an akward silence. The two men standing in front of the woman had their arms crossed, backs straight and mouths pressed into a thin line, while the woman was the exact opposite. Slouching ever so slightly, the woman tapped her feet; sucking noises could be heard from the inside of her mouth.
Hearing a 'ding,' the elevator doors slid open, revealing another dreadfully long hallway, much to her despair. After another minute or so of walking, the two men leading her came to an abrupt stop, now face-to-face with two large doors. Unimpressed, she traced the golden dragon designs lining the doors with her eyes, a crunch was heard from the inside her mouth. Her dazed expression was replaced with another smile as the two men hovered over her on each respective side.
"The boss is waiting for you in there, miss."
Taking out the lollipop stick from her mouth, she groped the insides of her pockets for an extra, using her free hand to lazily wave at the two men. "Thanks." Offering a lazy smile to them, she rummaged through her pockets a second time to pull out a blue-colored lollipop and extended them to the two men awkwardly standing in front of her. "Want a lollipop?"
They declined her offer.
"Ah well, that's too bad." Unwrapping one of the lollipops and carefully placing the other in her left pocket, the woman inserted the other into her mouth, feeling the sweet flavor spread across her tongue.
Sweat-dropping at her actions, the two men contemplated whether or not she was the real thing. Never in their life did they think that the most renowned assassin would be this….strange. Their boss had hired assassins before, and most were usually serious to the core, with the exception of the shinobi woman who continuously fawned over a picture of "Gin-san," as she guarded her client from another assassin that had been stupid enough to appear right at the front gates of the building.
Pushing their thoughts aside, they proceeded to push open the two doors. The weight of the doors was not something surprising to them, but sure gave them one hell of a shock the first time they struggled to push it open, given the tremendous weight of the thing.
And yet, she was doing it so easily.
Hearing the door creak open, the men stared at the woman in awe as she smiled at them, responding to their shock.
"It's just a matter of weight manipulation and where you put your hands."
Disappearing behind the door, the two men were left to contemplate the nature of the woman behind the closed doors. And with that, they realized something as simple as something anyone could spot, but would always forget, consider it unimportant.
She was smiling the whole time.
Closing the doors behind her, the woman was greeted by even more luxuries. Expensive, leather couches on each side of the office-designed room; two, heavy-weight bookshelves carrying what she suspected was important documents, gold chandeliers, and a clear, glass table filled with Japanese snacks and teacups made out of delicate china. Unsurprised by the priceless vases sitting in the corner, stacked up to be shown off, she turned her attention to her client.
Shigemori Heisuke.
He smiled at her, obviously trying to get on her good side.
Disgusting.
"Welcome, Reira-san. Or would you prefer Shinigami-san?"
Oh well, this was her last job. She might as well get this one over and done with.
Sprouting a toothy grin, she flopped down onto one of the couches, ignoring the look of annoyance on the man's face. "Just Reira is fine, Ossan."
Shinigami. Even she didn't know how they picked such a dark and intricate name for her.
'The most powerful assassin.'
'Silently killing her victims, leaving them to drown in their own pool of blood.'
'Eyes cold as ice. The only things that could be seen are a pair of cold blue eyes, and long, silky black hair like a spider's web.'
'Black covers her whole entire body, leaving nothing.'
'People say she is quite the beauty.'
Oh well, she thought. Those were only rumors anyways. Although the killing part was true….along with mostly everything else. The only thing that was different was that her eyes were different shades of blue.
Letting an unseen chuckle drift out of her lips, she watched in amusement as the old man struggled to contain the millions of veins daring to pop on his forehead, obviously angry at her previous comment.
Waiting for a few more minutes for the ossan to cool down, she helped herself to the tea set out in front of her.
Shigemori let out another deep breath, and straightened his black tie out.
"Let's get down to business."
Setting down her teacup, Reira smirked and waved her hand at him, already munching on another lollipop. "So, what's the job?"
Rummaging through a drawer filled to the brim with files, he pinched a thin, yellow folder containing the words 'CLASSIFIED,' printed in big, red letters. "Have you heard of a man called Takasugi Shinsuke?"
She sighed, racking the insides of her brain for any information she might have held of this 'Takasugi Shinsuke.' His name seemed extremely familiar to her. And yet, sadly, she was left clueless. "Um, he is….wasn't he the dude who….nonono I already chopped his head off. Umm…."
A few moments of silence hung between them. Shigemori furrowed his eyebrows as he watched Reira dig through her memories.
"….."
"Um..."
Shigemori furrowed his bushy eyebrows again.
"Who is Takasugi Shinsaku?"
Falling off of his black, leather chair, Shigemori failed to contain his already resurfacing anger.
"IT'S TAKASUGI SHINSUKE!"
Exhausted from yelling at the young woman, the old man hoisted himself back onto his seat, deciding to explain the identity of Takasugi Shinsuke to her himself. Taking another deep breath, he threw the file to her, which she easily caught and casually opened, revealing a photo of dark purple hair, and a bandage in the place of where used to be an eye. She scanned the papers, picking out important pieces of information.
Shigemori coughed to get her attention. "He is the leader of the Kiheitai, a dangerous joi extremist organization that targets bakufu officials, and was revived sometime after the joi war—"
"Save the information for later, ossan. Basically, you're saying that you want my protection. Better yet, kill this Takasugi Shinsaku guy in the process in order to save you the trouble from cowering in fear under your bed. So, when's the big day?" She had done these types of jobs before; defending powerful bakufu officials from other assassins. This job was merely the same as the others, except with stronger opponents.
And she wanted a good fight before she retires. In order to never forget the things that she experienced on the battlefield. Nor the things she had to do.
"By what my men have investigated, they are going to infiltrate my party and attempt to kill me. The party is going to be held tomorrow night, and I want you to protect me alongside my other bodyguards."
Reira smiled lazily, "Ya know, Ossan, he could just be extending a friendly invite to you."
Fuming, the old man slammed his desk, obviously unable to handle a joke. "This is Takasugi Shinsuke! I just know he will come and kill me!"
Drama Queen. She raised her eyebrows in a bored fashion. "Whatever you say, Ossan." She sat up, her black trench coat flying everywhere in the process. Shigemori watched as she whipped out a calculator, hearing the clicks and taps of the buttons.
A click resounded through the air. Reira shot her hand out in the old man's direction, showing the incredulous amount of numbers on the calculator. "Your total is 500 million yen. No checks. In cash. Better pay up soon." Obviously, this man didn't hire her for nothing. She was the most powerful assassin for Christ's sake! Not to mention that Shigemori Heisuke is one of the most influential bakufu officials in the government. Although he usually resorted to dirty methods in order to keep his position, which was known all around the underworld, he worked alongside the now deceased Sada Sada and cooperated in the Kansei Purge.
The Kansei Purge. It was an unnecessary move made by the government in her opinion. Needless killing everywhere, not to mention a waste of many great and experienced men.
Oh well, it had nothing to do with her.
Scribbling on a piece of paper she miraculously found sitting in her picket, Reira folded it into a paper airplane and let it fly in the direction of Shigemori's bald head, landing with a small tap. "Send me the money and a dress to that address later today."
Shigemori sputtered. "But that's impossible! I will not pay you 500 million until you do your jo—" Shigemori's words were cut off as he felt the cold, black blade of a katana being pressed against the skin of his throat. Her cheerful demeanor was gone. And in exchange, he felt her whisper seductively into his ear.
"Don't underestimate me, the Shinigami. Unlike your pathetic snipers that I took out on the roof, you should know that I would be your best case of protection. So don't be acting like a sissy just because you can't let go of some money. That can cost you your life just from a swipe from here—" Her katana lightly grazed his skin, barely leaving a mark—, "To here." –and made its way to the end of his neck. Sheathing her sword in a swift motion, she watched as the old man crumple to the ground, desperately trying to calm his shaky breath.
"G-get out." He rasped weakly, definitely not leaving a good impression.
The boots of the Shinigami clicked away in the direction of the large, double doors. Stopping for a moment, she whipped her body around. Long, black hair flying everywhere as she turned to the old man, who was still paralyzed on the ground. Humiliated. Embarrassed.
She looked at him.
And she smiled.
"Don't expect me to kind to you. I take you as my client for the money. As long as you pay, I'll do my job until it's finished."
Shigemori shuddered as her voice turned a tone deeper.
"And if you ever decide to backstab, betray, or sell me off to the shinsengumi—"
Was it his imagination or did the room just go down several degrees?
"Expect your head to fly, Kay?"
With that, she swiftly left the room, her hair being the last thing that he saw disappearing through the door. Hot humiliation burned through his veins. It was then he truly understood something.
If he made one wrong move against her, his death would be imminent.
A/N: soooo how was it? Good? Bad? Leave a review about ur thoughts if u want
Not really much 2 say…I guess xD
So how's school with everyone? I feel so stressed out from it….we got a new schedule and everything!
Til next time~