Author's Note: Because I've been inspired by recently published GinTae fics, I've decided to write one of my own. So please do enjoy!

Why can't I tell him?

Tae pounded her fists on her forehead as she questioned herself for the umpteenth time.

Why is it that I can only talk to him when Shin-chan is around?

Tae paced around, searching for answers to eradicate her predicament, but to no avail. She has been thinking about him a lot more recently. Her heart skips a beat every time she daydreams about Gintoki and his broad shoulders, his eyes, despite appearing drowsy, so full of life, joy and pain. She thought of his smile, a mix of an arrogant, lazy, good-for-nothing man with callous disregard for his actions. It was something that only she could fall in love with.

Tae halted her furious pacing. She stopped at a grocery store; fruits of various kinds, from all over the universe were on full display. Half price here, twenty percent off there; she didn't really pay much attention. Her face turned tomato red as the strawberries she was looking at as she recounted the moments of Gintoki saving her from the abduction of Kyubei. Not only did he save her, but he resolved the entire conflict and helped Kyubei look to be more feminine.

Still gazing at the strawberries, she thought,

Maybe I can make him a strawberry cake and parfait? I could spend more time with him this way.

She bit her lip as she clenched her fist in determination. Her brown eyes widened as she became more and sure of herself and her goal. Her face became chili pepper red as she got a basket of strawberries and hurried to the checkout.

Tae did not pay heed to her surroundings as she and another person accidentally collided. The basket of strawberries she picked out for Gintoki all fell onto the floor.

Tae became frustrated.

"Watch where you're going!" She yelled in fury. Her bright blushing face now mixed with the red fury of anger.

The man that she ran into did not seem fazed by Tae's anger.

"Ma'am, I am incredibly sorry for my action. I had no intention of knocking your fruits over."

The man wore a smile. He wore a dark dress shirt and pants. He was very lanky person, his arms and legs looked like branches of a willowing tree. He had bowl-cut, cardboard brown hair. His glasses could not conceal the pale white eyes that he had.

Tae fumed. She bit her lip as she glanced at the ruined strawberries. She was gonna have to go pick new ones all over again to bake that cake.

"I will pay for your new strawberries and compensate for any other damage that I may have done to you. Here is my business card, have the grocery store bill any expenses directly to this address."

Tae did not speak to him. She took the card from his fingertips and turned around and walked away.

Brown hair, pink kimono, pleasant woman, could she be the one? The man thought to himself. He smiled as he pulled out his phone. It was shiny, rectangular and fit into the palm of his hand, brand new Amanto technology. Typing a few messages, his smile widened as he recounted the previous incident in his mind.

Peeking through the aisles, he caught a glimpse of Tae leaving the store.

His phone let out a ring. It was message.

The man instantly checked the message. He smiled as he read the contents.

"Sir, the woman you requested: Brown hair, pink kimono. Upon extensive research, this is our conclusion."

Another message beeped onto his phone. The man made no hesitation to read it, a picture message.

It showed a snapshot of Tae's face.

"Name: Shimura Tae

Age: Approximately 18 or older

Occupation: Lead Hostess at Snack Smile

Home: Koudoukan Dojo"

The man grinned as he put his phone back into his pocket.

Meanwhile, Tae stormed outside the shop. She was furious about what happened in that store. Her anger made her want to punch the man that knocked over the strawberries for Gin-san but she refrained from doing so, after all, he was very skinny; she'd probably break his bones.

She looked at the business card that she held in her hand.

Nakada Corporations: Nakada Utamara, President. This was followed by an address and a phone number.

A rich man that owes me a favor? I should milk this cash cow for all its worth.

Tae smiled as she thought of a plan.

Maybe I don't have to bake him a cake, maybe I could just invite him, Kagura-chan and Shin-chan to a night out. That might work for us.

Han's Barbeque

"Cheers!" Gintoki exclaimed in joy. His face was bright red from the alcohol he had chugged down.

"Calm down, Gin-san!" Kagura fussed.

"Yeah, Gin-san. If you start acting reckless again, somebody might end up pranking you like last day," Shinpachi hinted at a previous incidence.

Gintoki calmed his exuberant attitude. He stared right at Tae. She was one of the major players in that demeaning game.

Tae looked away. Those few moments, when they acted as a couple, where she was free to express her feelings for him were one of her many favorite moments together.

"Enjoy whatever you guys want, it's all on me!" Tae exclaimed, ignoring Gintoki's death stare.

"Eh, Sister. What's the special occasion? Have you met a man or something?" Shinpachi questioned his sister.

"Yes! Big sis, if you have, be sure to introduce him to us!" Kagura nodded in agreement. She was too busy hording down bowls upon bowls of rice.

If only you all knew…

Tae looked at Gintoki, who has immersed himself into his next snack. Gintoki looked up from his meal, "You finally dating that Gorilla?" he joked.

Tae shook her head as she denied the claims.

If only you knew, Gintoki.

Nakada Corporation, President's Office.

Utamara sat lazily in his chair. He counted the revolutions of the times he's twirled his pen.

A knock on his door.

"Come in."

His secretary came in, holding a piece of paper in her hand.

"What is it?" he vented at her.

"Nakada-san…" the secretary quivered in fear as she tried to talk to her boss.

"Spit it out. Every second of mine you waste from this point on, I'll deduct from your annual salary and bonuses."

The secretary froze in fear.

"A Barbeque restaurant sent a bill to you, sir. It has your business card, sir." She handed a bill to Utamara.

Utamara snatched the bill from her hands then shooed her away.

Han's Barbeque? He thought to himself as he looked over the contents. He analyzed the business card: It was the one he gave to the pretty lady the previous day. Does this mean she accepts him? Utamara convinced himself she did.

"Total: 451,247 Yen." Utamara smiled, she must've had a good time.

"Customers: 4" Utamara stroked his chin. He pulled out his cellphone. He typed a message on it and then sent it.

"Find out who the other three are that went to Han's Barbeque are aside from Tae, reply to me ASAP."

Utamara continued to twirl his pen around his fingers. He wondered to himself, does this Tae have a family? Surely not, she appears way too young.

His phone vibrated three times on his desk. This signified three messages. Utamara checked over the contents.

"Name: Shimura Shinpachi

Occupation: Freelancer

Home: Koudoukan Dojo"

This message also showed a shot of Shinpachi's face. His glasses wearing a person body shot was also shown.

Her younger sibling? Utamara thought to himself. He pondered if the next two were the parents as he opened the next message.

"Name: Kagura

Occupation: Freelancer

Home: Yorozuya Gin-chan. Located above Snack Otose

Other information: She is an Amanto"

Utamara raised an eyebrow as he saw a snapshot of Kagura. Her ever familiar buns that she wore around her head and her pleasant smile. And finally, he opened the last message. Probably just an acquaintance, he dismissed.

"Name: Sakata Gintoki

Occupation: Freelancer

Home: Yorozuya Gin-chan. Located above Snack Otose

Other information: Former Joui patriot."

Utamara frowned as he saw the picture of Gintoki. A silver haired man with a dead fish eyes. What is this man's relationship with Tae? Former Joui patriot? This man isn't someone that he should let his guard down around.

He smiled as a plan formulated inside his mind.

First, I will 'observe' Tae. I will track her movements, the places she goes, and the people she meets and to see if that silver-haired bastard is really of any importance to her, Utamara thought to himself.

Koudoukan Dojo: Shimura Residence

The crickets chirped away in the night. A slight breeze rustled the collar on Utamara's neck. Drips of sweat fell from his forehead as he observed Tae.

Tae was eating her dinner, leaning on her left hand while picking out food with a pair of chopsticks on her right. Tae seemed distracted, not paying heed to the food displayed in front of her.

Tae sighed. "Come out from there. I know you're hiding from me."

Utamara froze as he immediately hid himself. How could I be caught so quickly?

"Otae-san, how do you always know?" a voice popped up from one of the cabinets. It was a man with a deep voice, Utamara observed.

"You gorilla freak," Tae shook her head. "When will you ever give up? I'm just not interested in you."

Utamara peeked to see who she was talking to. He saw a tall, tan, human-looking like gorilla.

"Otae-san! I know you do not see your love for me now but I believe that one day you will come to your senses!" Kondo proudly declared.

"Kondo-san. Your persistence is admirable but I'd ask that you leave me alone. I currently have a lot in my mind right now."

"I, Isao Kondo, am the Commander of the Shinsengumi! I will not stop until I have won your love!" Kondo said boldly.

Utamara felt a shiver down his neck as he realized who Kondo was. Commander of the almighty Shinsengumi? He was dealing with some pretty tough competition. Former Joui patriot? Commander of the Shinsengumi?

A shift in Utamara's personality. Tae really is an interesting person, he thought.

And with that, he left.

Utamara's Home: 5 Days Later

Utamara was scheming. His obsession with Tae grew as each second passed. He soon became infatuated with her, keeping track of everything she does, wherever she goes, like a beast tracking and hunting its prey before going in for the final kill.

During this time period, Utamara has done some research. He has come to the conclusion that there are four competitors for Tae's love.

One was Utamara himself, obviously.

Second was Yagyuu Kyubei, a famous childhood friend, female cross-dresser who acts like a male. Utamara has come to the conclusion that despite Kyubei's affection towards Tae, that it is only reciprocated under the terms of friendship. Unrequited love.

Third was Isao Kondo, the Commander of the famous Shinsengumi. Kondo continuously stalks Tae on a routine basis, always getting caught by her. Utamara has come to the conclusion that Tae does not harbor any feelings for this man. Her persistence and rejection of his love is crucial to this conclusion. More unrequited love.

Finally, fourth and foremost, Sakata Gintoki. This man was the most peculiar. He is essentially a jobless bum that cannot even afford the rent for his home/business. Yet, this man, despite his putrid habits, picking his nose in the public, skipping on bills and being a cheapskate buffoon, seems to win Tae's attention every single time. Despite being around him with her brother and a young girl, she seems to focus the most attention to him. What is he to her?

Utamara bit his lip hard at the thought of one of the possible outcomes to this scenario. He tasted blood on the tip of the tongue as he calculated another solution to this problem.

Following Tae around also has helped him gain insightful information to all his potential rivals. He was gonna use all this information to his advantage.

Utamara was a rich man. This was a characteristic that he could utilize to his advantage to eliminate his competition.

He sat alone in his room. The curtains were closed, creating a dark atmosphere. He had to get rid of the potential threats, one by one, until he was the only logical option for Tae.

Organize, Prioritize, Initialize.

He had to follow those steps to win over Tae.

Organize: Three threats, each must be handled accordingly and differently. Each threat must be handled differently. One simultaneous blow to eliminate all three will be too much for Tae, and logically impossible given the power and skill of most of the threats. He must take them down one by one.

Each three are skilled with the sword. Considering one is from the famed Yagyuu Clan, the other a captain of the Shinsengumi, and the last a soldier from a war.

A light bulb went off in Utamara's head.

Observing that despicable Gintoki had made him realize something, the man carried around a wooden sword. If memory serves correctly, there is a sword ban for civilians and rogue samurai. Considering that the Yagyuu are affiliated with the Government and the Shinsengumi are allowed to bear arms, Kyubei and Kondo can be excluded from this part of the plan.

Gintoki, however, was not. He is a civilian at best. Him carrying around a wooden sword, even in broad daylight, was clear defiance of the law.

Getting him arrested and thrown into jail would be no problem for Utamara. Small fry like him can be disposed with ease.

As for Kyubei and Kondo, those two have to be removed from Tae separately.

I can form a joint relationship with the Yagyuu Clan and my company. With this, I can strengthen the newly formed relationship by having Kyubei accompany one of my associates to a foreign country to seal a business deal. I'll be sure to extend this process as long as I can, thought Utamara as he formed new ripples to the plan.

As for Kondo, I could send him to the coastal city of Chiba and have him and his fellow police officers look for a pet I somehow "lost" while enjoying the seaside view. Paying the Shinsengumi a very large deposit should get them mobilizing at once.

Utamara smiled. He had now organized the plan to eliminate the suitors of Tae. The next step was to prioritize them: which one will cause him to expend the most resources and energy?

Get an arrest warrant for Gintoki and come up with a sob story to get the Shinsengumi going and offer them a ton of money, this was all something he could get his assistants to do.

Dealing with the Yagyuu would require his efforts personally.

Utamara sighed a breath of relief. He had Organized and Prioritized the upcoming tasks ahead. Now all he had to do was the final step of the plan.

Initialize.

Author's Note: This concludes Chapter 1! Will Utamara succeed? Will Kabukichou ever be the same? Am I shamelessly promoting the fic more through the use of the Author's Notes? I am... Hope you enjoyed it so far.