Chapter 3

When you leave something behind,

it might come back and bite you.

Do note: slight gore? Kind of?

Two years passes. She is now five years old. She has been living in hell and she found out from the adults that they were being trained to fight in a war.

What war, she isn't sure.

Why is there even a war in the first place?

She also finds out that they were adopted and then raised by various people to become child soldiers. Her caretaker was paid to do so, before she was sent here.

She's just glad that she didn't get sold off to a brothel or red light district. She shudders just thinking about it.

But this way and that way are both just as bad as the other.

She also find out that the other kids are like her, no names either.

During the past two years, she has learnt where to hit to cause pain, where will cause more blood, where to knock people unconscious effectively, amongst other things.

Basically, it's gruesome and just wrong to be learning all these.

The night she made her first kill, as well as her second and third and many more, she woke up in The Plain, only to find out that it got duller. The grass wasn't as green and the sky wasn't as blue.

Do you get it? Everything was just… Duller.

It was her first mission outside, after months of physical and mental torture, and most of the children did not survive. Only the strongest survived. It was kill or be killed. Her hair was cut short too, as well as vomiting her innards out due to the smell and- oh look a flying limb.

Though she found it strange that other than humans, there were aliens too. But she didn't think much of it due to more important matters, like staying alive.

She also has been communicating, finally, with the boy on the other side because she taught him English and Japanese. He, however, doesn't know anything either. But his silver hair and red eyes looks familiar…

He can apparently communicate with her when she is in not in The Plain. He has saved her life many times too, by shouting out where a sword or spear was going to hit her.

"..." Silence covered them like a wet blanket.

And then it rains on her side.

Just to note:

Hello. (Either thoughts, flashback or it is the boy speaking in her mind)

Hello. (Our MC (main character) talking in her mind)

Now she is an emotionless soldier who is going to be sent out on her final mission before a promotion, a test to see if they are worthy of a brand. With a voice in her head.

She is crazy now, isn't she?

She vaguely recognises the symbol and words like yatagarasu and naraku all are so familiar but she can't place her finger on it.

On the night before her final mission, she is in The Plain again. She looks into the water of the lake and she can see some changes.

Her black hair is turning silver and her eyes are turning red, looking more like what she is in this current life.

It's as though she is accepting this reality.

Ha. More like hell.

She can also stay on the other side for longer periods of time. But he can't come to her side of the barrier, strangely.

It's weird because she only knows one character with silver hair and red eyes and that is Sakata Gintoki from Gintama, but the boy on the other side still does not know anything, and he had to strike a resemblance to when Gintoki was young.

But then again, there is still not enough evidence.

During her final mission, she is sent out to... eliminate anyone else she sees this time.

She slashes with a sword that is too long and dances with the enemies, blood and limbs flying. Her nimble and small form is something enemies cannot hit.

She is… Getting used to this.

The smell of blood and smoke, flying limbs with the occasional head, the fact that she was taking someone's life, who could have a family elsewhere, dodging swords and knives and daggers and spears and the sound of metal clanging, as well as sparks and grey skies.

That was until, she saw an adult, with similar clothing to the others at the base, take out a child like her.

She recognises the child, as the energetic one on the first day, as well as one of those who has reached out to her in this hell.

Is that what happens when someone fails?

She doesn't want this anymore.

She can't take it anymore.

With an animalistic howl, she lets the demon in her out and it's a flood of blood.

When she was done, all that was left was a mountain of corpses and amongst them were the adults who were supposed to judge them on their mission.

Now they won't be able to report her and she will be able to escape from hell.

And so, she runs from the battlefield.

She finds herself living in the wild, but it seems that the battlefield won't be leaving her soon. So she scavenges for food there.

It won't be leaving her so soon, she bets.

It is surprising to find what people bring to a battlefield.

Luckily, spring has just arrived so winter is at the back of her mind.

Sometimes, she needs to go to a nearby village to find clothes or food and she would hear rumors.

At first, it was "a child among the dead" which was accurate.

But then it became "a child eating the dead" and quickly degraded to "a corpse-eating demon".

But rumors are rumors and they don't mind her.

They might even be good and help to deter people away.

(OST the meeting with Shouyou-sensei, recommended to listen to while reading) (rehash, kind of)

She was eating a rice ball she had found from a body when, a hand touches her head and she flinches, because she couldn't sense his presence at all.

Maybe you were too hungry? The boy teases, with a worried undertone because he didn't feel it either.

Shut up.

She turns to look at the stranger. He has long grey hair, a similar grey yukata, green eyes and a sword at his side.

All the while, looking familiar.

"I came after hearing of a corpse-eating demon, would that be you? A rather cute demon." He comments offhandedly.

She flicks his hand away and jumps away from him, throwing the half-eaten rice ball away and is cautious, looking for the moment he reaches for his sword.

She pulls a too-long-sword she had found from the corpses, a better one than her last, out from its sheath.

"Did you also take that from a corpse?"

She doesn't reply, but rather licks a lone rice from the rice ball stuck near her mouth.

"A single child stripping corpses to protect herself, is it? That's very impressive."

She has pulled the sword out from its sheath. But she has noticed that he does know her gender.

"However, you no longer need that sword."

She is slightly weirded out by the one-sided conversation but continues to eye his every movement.

"A sword that's swung in self-defense, while fearing others, should be thrown away."

He reaches for his sword and she braces herself for impact, only to catch his sword, sheath and blade, nearly falling over and let out a panicked gasp.

"I will give you my sword. If you wish to learn how to properly use it, then come with me."

And she is stunned, as he walks away and she decided then that she will follow him, partly because she has nowhere to go and is lost in the path called life.

… I have no disagreements in following him. The boy says after some time.

She hums in reply and walks after him.

However, it seems that adrenaline was keeping her up and once it was over, she stumbles and almost fall over, due to the weight of the new sword she is given, the other one left behind.

The rice ball was part of her non-existent brunch. Stubbornness kept her up.

In an instant, he appeared by her side and helped to support her.

When did he-?

"Looks like I interrupted your meal. As an apology, would you like me to carry you?" She nods back weakly, her stomach grumbling, making her flush.

"Ah and I guess it's rude of me that I've not introduced myself but I'm Yoshida Shouyou. What is your name?" He asks gently, once she is on his back.

"I… Don't have one." She replies, but it's soft and her throat is parched. All the bravado has been drained out of her as she deflates in exhaustion.

She feels a sense of security and lets her guard down. Probably because she is half-conscious and very, very delirious, she's sure.

Because nope that's not Shouyou-sensei.

Nope.

"Then what about... Sakata Gintoki? Sakata because of the rice ball and Gintoki because your hair is silver."

Why is he giving her a Shounen Jump protagonist's name?

And she recalls and finally, realises.

She is in Gintama.

She has just re-enacted a famous scene, word for word, no less.

And she is Sakata Gintoki, with his maybe-infamous silver hair and red fish eyes.

...

But wasn't Gintoki a guy?

I'm gonna deal with that later.

But first...

Is she ready to be Sakata Gintoki?

The pervert, prideful, sweet tooth, lazy ass, Shiro Yaksha, leader of the Yorozuya, Saviour of Yoshiwara, Takasugi Shinsuke's rival, Sakata Gintoki?

Also, let's not forget, one different move

And

Bye bye plot. Was fun knowing you.

Is she prepared?

Hell no.

...

Would've been her answer 5 years ago.

How time flies.

But you see, she has been through hell.

And…

She wants to live longer.

And maybe even go out with a bang.

She had 5 years to adjust and adapt.

Life always has it's ups and downs anyways.

She'll cross those bridges, flaming, broken and filled-with-holes bridges, when she comes to them.

"Okay."

And she welcomes darkness.

Too tired for all these.

~Omake~

What are you doing? The boy asks.

I'm using the toilet, obviously. Close your eyes.

Why?

I'm a girl and you're a guy. Just close them.

Hai hai. He replies sarcastically.

I'm telling you, you better close your eyes or I'll close mine and we'll slip on a puddle and die together.

I GET IT! I'LL CLOSE THEM! DON'T DIE!

A/N Time!

Yu: Finally! Canon! Yay! And the above omake is attempted humour. See? It's longer, isn't it? Not much to say so I'll just leave it like this.

Continued disclaimer: I own plot and my OC(s) only. Because I just realised the amount of things this fanfiction is going to parody…