I NEED TO DO MY HOMEWORK GOSH DANG IT.
But anyway, this chapter is a little more fun. It was difficult because I suck at dialogue and Gin's dialogue is just freaking hard to write. WHO KNOWS WHAT WILL COME OUT OF THEIR MOUTHS?! I was really tempted just to have Shinpachi say "DONDAKEEEEEEEE!" the entire time. But no. This is a story.
SO. A little change in pace for y'all - less serious, more random conversation. Kind of a filler thing.
AND different points of view, just for fun.
Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama or any of its characters. I especially do not own the Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon. (c) Sorachi-sensei.
Eyes of Wolves
- 4 -
.: APRIL, PRESENT :.
"Gin-chan, who was that?"
"Dunno."
"He ran away real fast, yes?"
"Guess so."
"Gin-chan!"
"What."
"There are still creeps under our house."
"You mean Catherine? Yeah, I know."
.: Wednesday, TWO WEEKS AGO :.
The rain had long since stopped. The sun on this planet tended to scorch the earth when it decided to present itself fully, rays extended to every corner of every nook and cranny. Merciless, because the sun's enemies were the same.
"If you need directions," said the man beside Zenshi, "I can give them to you."
Zenshi cast the other person an emotionless glance. The man seemed resentful, but not of Zenshi.
"I'm fine, thanks."
"All right." The man, whose shaggy brown hair obscured a majority of his face, rubbed his bearded chin with an exasperated sigh. "It's too hot for this month."
"Is it?" Zenshi replied. He felt no obligation to converse with this man, but there was nothing better to do, seeing as they were both sitting outside a lonely train station. Zenshi, in all honesty, had no clue where he was going. The city called Edo was massive, and because it wasn't a monotonous system of rainy gutters and apartment buildings, it was immensely foreign.
Then again, traveling the world with the Harusame was just the same.
"It's the middle of April. It should be sunny, but not like this," complained the man. "With spring flowers and bunnies and stuff. You know, the like."
"I suppose," Zenshi offered. Nevertheless, he preferred the sun to the rain, despite the uncomfortable prickliness of its rays on his skin.
"That way," said the man — now that Zenshi briefly observed him, he appeared to be a ninja of some sort — "is the police station. Don't go there, they're idiots. And that way, you'll find some nice restaurants. Over there is Kabukichou, where you'll find idiots, more idiots, and a nice cabaret club if you'd like."
He was rambling now, to pass the time.
"Do you like dango? There's a nice dango shop over there."
"I've never tried."
"It's good, in Kabukichou. Just don't go to the Odd Jobs place, they're crazy." The man burst into soft chuckles, amused. "Well, I guess they're all right in the end."
"Odd Jobs?" echoed Zenshi, curious.
"Yep. Run by a good-for-nothing samurai named Sakata Gintoki," explained the ninja. "Hard to miss. Has curly, silver hair. Looks lazy."
"Sounds familiar," Zenshi replied.
"Probably. He's got two employees, but they're more like siblings. A glasses wearing a human, real boring kid, and a crazy alien girl who can eat ten pounds of rice a day and break steel with her little fingers." The ninja laughed again. "Fun bunch."
"Sounds like it," murmured Zenshi, looking away. His interest, however, did not fade even when the train whistled its arrival, and the two parted ways.
.: OCTOBER, SIX MONTHS AGO :.
Between Kamui's complaints that the latest assignment had been the most boring thing he'd ever done and Abuto's quiet ramblings about how no one ever cleaned the ship, Zenshi watched. They'd completed their last task easily; it had taken them till the end of this month, when the Earthlings put on funny guises and handed out candy, and the Yato dug out their stale, leftover moon cakes from a month ago to nibble on.
"Danchou," Abuto called flatly, "we've got another assignment. Next month."
While Kamui lamented the wait, the crew members breathed a sigh of relief. They had, at most, two weeks to loosen up. Zenshi felt tight as a cord, his shoulders eternally sore and his fists unconsciously balled up till his nails bit into his palms.
"Where are we headed?" came the call. It was one of the petty officers, hanging at the threshold of the cabin door.
"Earth," announced Abuto, gesturing lightly for the man beside him to relay a command to the bridge. "Our blue and green firefly in this dank and dark universe."
"I heard it's sunny there," a crewmember called. There was a round of terse laughter, and a clap on the back.
"Sun equals fun," Kamui said, hopping down from his bizarre post atop a dresser. "You know, that old man lives there."
"And we probably would want to cause that old man trouble, right?" Abuto added.
"Oh, you're missing all the fun," sang Kamui. He flipped his red braid over his shoulder and exited the cabin, heading for what appeared to be the starboard side of the ship.
"Where's he going?" muttered Abuto under his breath. Zenshi looked up.
"To see his last moments in darkness."
At this, Abuto smiled.
Zenshi didn't smile back.
.: APRIL, PRESENT :.
It was not unlike a Yato to sniff out another. He had not slipped but five blocks when a series of familiar, jarring voices entered his range of hearing. Forcing himself into a casual walk, Zenshi melded with the noontime crowd, bustling about the shopping district. He was a tall man, and thus mostly stood out from the people. Grateful for the few, out-of-place Amanto that towered over the humans, he dodged behind them.
"Gin-chan, buy me that."
"We don't have money, you idiot."
"You know, somehow I feel like it's because we never get paid. Just an idea, though." The bespectacled boy folded his arms tersely and jabbed his companion in the ribs. The girl followed suit, except she hit the samurai so hard that he doubled over in pain.
"Gin-chan, what's wrong?" she asked bluntly.
"Kagura-chan, I think that was a bit too much," sighed the dark-haired boy.
"Kagura, Patsuan, I leave the family inheritance to you," croaked the silver-haired samurai, passing out on the ground. At this, the two children made mock cries of indignation, and the pair started to kick the poor man on the ground.
"All right!" cried the samurai at last, curling up in a ball to defend himself. "I'll buy it, okay?! Just stop kicking me!"
"Who was kicking, yes?" sneered the girl, propping her umbrella on her shoulder. She very intently turned to stare into the crowd, eyes seeking Zenshi's. "Hey, you! Come here and help a girl in need! She needs to carry her old man to the dango shop!"
"Kagura-chan, that's a bit much, too," grumbled the boy.
Zenshi froze, staring right back at his fellow Yato. When she repeated her request in the same, plaintively flat voice, he complied. Had it been anyone else, he would've ducked back into the crowd.
"Most girls don't talk to strangers on the street," he said, approaching. The boy looked wary, but the girl had a serious face.
"I looked for any guy who looked strong enough to carry this fat robber," she explained, kicking the samurai in the shin. He howled in pain and then pulled himself to his feet grumpily.
"Um, sorry, but who are you?" asked the glasses-wearing human.
"Oh, it's you," said the samurai.
"Oh, it's you," echoed the redheaded girl, just to irk their third companion, who was on the verge of popping a vein. Desperately, it seemed he wanted to be included, but could never do so.
"Don't copy me," said the tallest member of the trio. He shoved the girl, who shoved him back. "I am Yorozuya Gin-san, pleasure to meet you. Who are you again?"
"Didn't you just say, 'Oh, it's you'?!" spat the boy with glasses.
"This is Shinpachi," continued Gin, jerking a thumb at the boy and ignoring him at the same time, "and this is Sadaharu."
He then pointed to a gigantic white dog that for some reason, Zenshi had failed to notice prior to this engagement.
"Can I introduce myself?" muttered Shinpachi, looking completely accustomed to being overwhelmed by these antics.
"No," declared the other two simultaneously.
"And this is—"
"I'm Kagura, yes?"
"Kagura, I told you not to talk to strangers, yet here we are!" Gin threw his hands up. "Who are you, again?"
Zenshi was unsure of whether to be amused or to be downright offended; he decided that no reaction would serve him best.
"He's Zen-chan. Wow, you're slow today," Kagura snorted, scuffing dust onto her friends' shoes with her own.
"Did he introduce himself?" asked Gin. "I think not. Don't just make up names for people."
"No," cut in Zenshi, growing tired of their meaningless exchanges. "She's not wrong."
"Kagura's a mind reader?!" shouted Gin into the sky, turning quite a few heads in the process.
"No, Zen-chan's my neighbor."
It was then that Zenshi understood the true scrutiny of human beings — intense, aggressive, and unbelievably useless.
"I like your haircut, Zen-chan," said Kagura.
Zenshi, for what he could muster, smiled.
.: Wednesday, TWO WEEKS AGO :.
Kamui eyed the torn umbrella with half distaste and half disappointment. The smell of rain and dirt permeated the air, even though the sun bore down on him with hellish vengeance. Twirling his own parasol above his head, he ambled down the relatively vacant street without aim. The dull plodding of Abuto behind him was less comforting and more irritating than anything.
"Abuto," he said, curtly.
"Yes, Danchou?"
"Get rid of that umbrella for me."
"You got it."
There was a clunk, a clatter, and a crash — Kamui didn't look back.
I was struggling with Zen so I threw a bunch of miscellaneous character PoVs your way.
Zenshi has been on standby since chapter 3.
WAIT NO thAT'S Z URA.
