Chapter 4 - Help from friends?
Masamune gulped and took the paper shakily and looked at the paper as he read it silently. 'Victim report: Ieyasu Tokugawa: was found with a missing tongue, and is assumed to have died due to blood loss, or choking on his own blood. It is unknown where the missing tongue is, but there is a suspicion that one of the cooks may know, seeing as the head chef in particular seems to have changed behavior following the death of Master Ieyasu.' He read silently, with Ieyasu still looking as cheerful as ever as he read.
"Get… tongue… back…." Ieyasu tried to say, putting the key in Masamune's hand.
Masamune nodded "of course"
"I… give.. key… to … exit…"Ieyasu gave a little clap at his own ability to talk, and smiled as Masamune agreed to get his tongue back. "Exit… have… 3 ... keys… Chika… and… yuki… have other…. two…"
"Thanks" Masamune said with a smile "I'll get your tongue back i promise Ieyasu" Masamune said with determination. Ieyasu's face lit up in excitement, and the ghost did a bit of a happy dance. Well, more like he started floating a bit as he clapped happily. "Friend's forever, and friend help eachother out" Masamune said saying the phrase that Ieyasu had said that morning. Ieyasu's face lit up in excitement at the words, and he looked like he had something he wanted to say, but his lack of a tongue wouldn't allow him to say it.
"Masamune… brother.. to… me…" Ieyasu said cheerfully. "Masamune… will… help… living.. me.. escape?"
"Ieyasu is like a brother to me as well" Masamune said happily "Of course we'll all get out together I promise I will do everything I can" Masamune said with a nodded.
"Ghost… Ieyasu… been here… so… long. Want… release…" Ieyasu looked sadly at Masamune.
"Don't worry i'll do everything I can to help out my brother" Masamune said happily and with determination
Ieyasu grinned and went into his room, sitting down quietly on the bed as he watched Kojuro still looking around for evidence.
"Kojuro don't freak out but I did find the key, ugh thanks to ….. Um Ieyasu's ghost." Masamune said trying to figure out how to say it.
"Very funny Masa-" Kojuro turned around,and nearly looked like he was going to pass out as he saw ghost Ieyasu sitting on the bed cheerfully.
"Hi!" Ieyasu grinned, waving at Kojuro. Kojuro stared back, unable to form words for the situation, and Ieyasu started to look a bit uncomfortable as he started to become a bit more transparent out of embarrassment.
"Kojuro please don't flip it's still the same ieyasu we know, But he said that he's still alive!" Masamune said happily.
"Living you is still alive? How is he-er, you?" Kojuro asked, still looking at the ghost warily as he waited for the ghost to suddenly turn evil any minute.
"Alive! Mit… su..nari… and… me… still… unconscious…" Ieyasu smiled, adjusting so he was crosslegged.
"Are you too safe where you are?" Masamune asked worriedly.
"Don't… know…" Ieyasu shrugged. "Nothing… attack… though…"
"We need to hurry kojuro, Ieyasu said the other two keys are in Yuki's and Chika's rooms" Masamune said hurriedly putting the key Ieyasu gave him in his pocket "Remember Hikari said some spirits are good, Ieyasu here must be! Also….." Masamune started out really determined then went kinda sad looking at the victim report.
"Hikari… nice.. girl.. She ...not… run.. away… like rest. She… Not.. scared." Ieyasu smiled at the memory of meeting Hikari. "But.. She.. dead now. Bad… spirit… kill… her.." Ieyasu's blue glow started to turn red in anger. "Bad… spirit… unfair… unjust…"
Masamune shuttered from the memory still in his head "Hikari, i'm sorry" Masamune said sadly clenching his fist and shook his head "I can't let anyone get hurt like that" Masamune whimpered sadly.
"Free… ghosts… bad… spirit.. have...no … power. Kill… bad.. spirit." Ieyasu growled, his blue aura now a violent burning red.
"We feel the same Ieyasu, but how do we kill an evil spirit?" Masamune growled
"Free…. ghosts. We… fight.. bad… spirit. You...kill it."Ieyasu pointed at himself, turning his aura back to blue.
"With our sword? Or something else?" Masamune asked worriedly
"You… kill.. it. With.. sword." Ieyasu nodded, giving a comforting smile.
Masamune nodded "Understood, so first, Find key's in Yuki and Chika's rooms, then get to next version on castle. Which version is your tongue though that's the thing" Masamune said trying to make a list of what to do.
"This… one. Find… our… body parts… and we give …. you… keys." Ieyasu said, walking up to Kojuro and looking around in his pockets.
"What he means, shortie, is that when you find our missing parts, we'll give you the keys to the exit." Masamune felt a familiar cold pressure on top of his head.
"Chika, im guessing" Masamune said happily
"Who else would it be?" Motochika chuckled, turning his head to look down at Masamune, showing his good eye was missing.
Masamune looked saddened looking at Motochikas good eye missing "Ieyasu's tongue, your other eye, So Yuki's also missing a part then" Masamune said sadly.
"Yup. Refuses to come out of his room to see anyone, though. Just a warning, he got the worst of the three of us." Motochikas face turned to one of pity.
"What is he missing that we have to find?" masamune asked preparing for the worst.
"Well for starters he got a haircut, which he sadly has to keep in the afterlife. And he's… uh… missing an arm." Motochika rubbed his own arm at the thought of losing a whole arm.
"So his arm. so that hair was his?" Masamune asked a little worried
"Don't… forget… his… heart…" Ieyasu added.
"Oh yeah… I'm trying to forget that part, Ieyasu." Motochika growled.
"Just… helping…" Ieyasu gave a gurgle that sounded like he was trying to laugh.
"The organs one might be Yuki's heart then!" Masamune said looking over at kojuro.
"I don't care about the arm. I'd like my hair and heart back though, if you don't mind." Yukimura came through the wall behind Kojuro, sitting calmly next to Ieyasu. His hair was cut extremely short, with very little left except for the top of his head, and his usual jacket flopped uselessly where his arm would be. But his chest had a huge gaping hole, where you could see where the heart was supposed to go.
"Don't worry Yuki I think I know where they are, well have to look for Chika and Ieyasu's well have to really look for sadly" Masamune said with a nod as he looked at kojuro.
"We… come.. along…" Ieyasu offered, standing from the bed.
"Eh, sure. Why not. I haven't gone wandering in a while. Being blind kind of makes it hard being a ghost who can go through walls." Motochika shrugged.
"Well to the school room right kojuro that's where the organs and hair were. You can keep a hand on my shoulder or head for guidance Chika" Masamune said happily
"How sweet of ya." Motochika chuckled, putting a hand on Masamune's head.
"You two are leaving me here?" Yukimura whined.
"Well then come along, if you're so lonely." Motochika laughed.
"Oh alright." Yukimura grumbled, getting up, putting a hand to where his hair was messed up and looking very disgruntled with the hairstyle. Ieyasu gave a little clap as Yukimura joined them.
"Okay I feel alot better with you guys around, come one kojuro i'm not leaving you anywhere like we agreed no one leave anyone alone" Masamune said towards kojuro.
Kojuro joined them and walked uncomfortably as Ieyasu stepped next to him, smiling happily to have all of his friends back.
"Off… we… go!" Ieyasu called, grinning as he pointed forward.
"You said it!" Motochika grinned, ruffling Masamune's hair.
Masamune laughed a little happy to be with all his friend again even if they were spirits but he knew they were alive.
"So.. Motochika, Yukimura. Do you two know the state of your living selves?" Kojuro asked.
"I'm stuck with Mori. Ugh. We're getting nowhere." Motochika reported, his voice disgusted at the idea of being stuck with Mori.
"I'm alive, though unconscious, at the moment." Yukimura replied, looking a bit worried for his living self.
"It's okay we'll be there as soon as we can for both of you Ieyasu and Yuki, Chika you can survive being with mori till we get there" Masamune said worriedly.
"I would, if he'd stop being such a snob and work with me." Motochika complained.
"That's just how he is, so Ieyasu is with mitsunari, Chika is with mori, So yuki I hope your with Sasuke and not on your own" Masamune said worriedly.
"I wouldn't count on it. I haven't even woken up yet, so i don't know if i'm on my own or not" Yukimura said.
"I hope you're not alone everyone else has someone" Masamune said looking a tad bit down as they walked to the schoolroom.
"I can handle myself, Masamune. I'm not that helpless." Yukimura reminded him, walking a bit ahead of the rest of them. "Besides, i'm in my own house, in my version. I'll be fine!"
"And i'm in mine yet it's changed and new rooms. I just worry for my friend safety. so wait if Yuki's in his then what about you two?" Masamune asked looking at Motochika & Ieyasu.
"My boat, of course." Motochika said proudly.
"My … house." Ieyasu nodded in agreement.
"So see. We're all fine." Yukimura said.
"I hope so" Masamune sighed "So were all in familiar grounds but they are probably different in a way. Hm.. so diffrent versions are also different areas huh?" Masamune said trying to figure out something.
"So different versions, yet all of them are home to each of us." Motochika said, tapping his fingers on Masamune's head as he tried to put together the connection.
"Maybe it's about trying to break each of us by showing us familiar stuff." Yukimura offered. "and then twisting it so that it's a darker and creepier version of something we once were familiar with."
Masamune nodded "of what i've seen i can't go against that logic" Masamune shrugged.
"But why make something so complex just to scare us? Why not just show us our worst fears, and be done with it? Why make this complex world?" Yukimura grumbled.
"It… likes… seeing… suffering.." Ieyasu replied, putting a comforting hand on Yukimura's shoulder. Yukimura seemed to calm down under Ieyasu's touch, and returned to a cheerful blue color. Kojuro and Ieyasu climbed up the stairs to the school room, and Yukimura glowed a bit brighter in excitement, lighting up the stairway in a soft blue light.
Masamune followed after them smiling as Yukimura seemed happy.
"Finally, i won't be stuck with this humiliating haircut!" Yukimura cheered, his ghostly voice echoing a bit off the walls.
"That's what you're worried about? Not your heart, but your hair?" Motochika looked at Yukimura disapprovingly. "Talk about vanity!"
"You're saying that because you can't see it, Chika. Trust me. It's pretty bad." Yukimura growled. Ieyasu put his hand on Yukimura's shoulder again, calming him, and glaring at Motochika.
"No… arguments.. in… front… of… friends." Ieyasu warned, narrowing his eyes at both of them. Yukimura cowered a bit at Ieyasu's glare, and Motochika went silent. As they got closer to the schoolroom, Yukimura waked a bit ahead of the rest of the group, kneeling at the pile of his hair. picking up the pile in his arms, the pile turned transparent, and disappeared, reappearing as the familiar ponytail on his head. Masamune smiled seeing that his friend now looked a little more like himself. "Now to see if any of these organ is your heart, who knows we might find Ieyasu's tongue!" Masamune said happily
"Or my eye." Motochika chuckled. Yukimura walked around the room, opening jars one by one and looking into them, looking disgusted as he found a few other organs. Finally, he stopped at one jar, and opened it up, pulling out a fleshy, still bleeding heart.
"Right!" Masamune said joining Yukimura in looking through the jars hoping to find the other missing parts.
"Hey, your heart isn't burning." Motochika chuckled, poking yukimura's heart.
"Ha ha. very funny." Yukimura rolled his eyes and held the heart, sighing in relief as the wound in his chest healed, only leaving behind a scar in his chest.
"You.. should… smile.. more… Yuki. Frowning… Doesn't.. suit… you." Ieyasu laughed. Yukimura's face turned a darker blue, like he was blushing.
"Guys! Not in front of Masamune." Yukimura grumbled, making both Ieyasu & Motochika laugh more.
"Well he's not wrong" Masamune said blushing a little bit still looking throught the jars.
"Masamune! Not you too!" Yukimura started to become more transparent, like he was trying to hide.
