By this point, it's probably already clear that I know shit about what the inside of a ship (much less a sea-faring ship that are turned into actual flying space ship) work... so try to roll with it as I did. What are technicalities anyway?


Chapter 4: Don't argue with someone who recently got shot in the stomach unless you want to get some blood on you yourself.

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"Did you hear the rumours? The leader of Tendoshuu actually appeared to join the fight! And he's a monster!"

"I heard from the guys in the first squad, that even Captain Okita couldn't match up to him!"

"That Yorozuya was also something else, he actually managed to land some blows to that monster!"

"Are these guys really the fearsome policemen that guarded Edo or a bunch of gossiping housewives?" Katsura wondered furiously before recalling that a lot of the Joui samurai were also like that. He shook his head as he tried to wade through the many injured people lying about in the decks before heading towards the ship's corridors. Because he had a bad feeling... and he wanted to find Gintoki to confirm his thoughts. And he recalled seeing Leader and Shimura Shinpachi heading towards the other part of the ship with Gintoki.

If not because of his injuries, he could have caught up to Gintoki much sooner...

Katsura felt a hand grabbing him from behind as he turned around.

[Where are you going?]

A placard with those very words was shoved towards him as Elizabeth gave him a concerned look. And he kept telling her to talk to him properly, Katsura thought angrily, considering Elizabeth had often done that to other people but she still insisted to communicate with him indirectly like this.

He shrugged. "I just wanted to check on Gintoki, and there's something I wanted to talk about with him."

[You're still injured, I should be accompanying you.]

Katsura just waved the concerns away. "I'm not dead yet. This meagre injury's not enough to kill me. I should be fine by myself. Go check the rest of the Joui members and see to them if you have free time."

Elizabeth hesitated for a moment before nodding and turned away from Katsura. Katsura smiled as he resumed walking towards the corridors...

xxx

When was it that he started to become comfortable, being in her presence? He couldn't remember now.

Gintoki just stared at her hands as Otae held his left arm gently, and started tending to his wounds. He continued his musings.

When was it that he started to not mind her seeing him in a vulnerable state? When was it that he started being able to talk to her casually... about anything? When did he find this boyish, violent woman... someone whose presence was comforting to him?

"...Gintoki,"

A flash of memory appeared inside his mind. An image of a man with long greyish hair. A man with a gentle face. Who, despite that gentle face and voice... had the strength of a monster that he never found out the reason for the man to have it.

Ah... was it because Otae has somehow a similar presence as that man, that he felt comfortable with her?

"—if there's anything that I could do..."

He looked up to see Otae's big eyes staring back at him. This girl who usually put him through a lot of violence—not that he really minded it—and scolded him whenever he seemed to slack off a bit too much, but for moments like this she would act so caring to him. Somehow, he couldn't help feeling grateful...

"You know my sword... don't you?"

"You know... that your sword cannot reach me..."

The memory of the last fight just had to reappear inside his mind again. Alongside another... older memory that wasn't as traumatic.

How could that person... be Shouyou?

"You don't have to pretend to be strong all the time—"

Gintoki blinked, as his heart started to ache really bad. He wanted to scream... yet, he didn't want Otae to have to shoulder this burden for him once she knew about it. This heavy burden inside of his heart.

Yet...

Gintoki reached out towards Otae before crying on her shoulders.

xxx

"You're saying that Yorozuya knew who was that so-called leader of the Tendoshuu?"

Okita stopped in his tracks before turning towards Hijikata. "Hijikata-san? You're lucky that I'm not in the mood for killing you tonight. You weren't there when those two fought each other. You haven't clashed swords with that monster even once."

Hijikata snorted. "Heh, as if you haven't tried to kill me any other day..." he turned his head towards Okita. "Seriously, that guy's so powerful?"

Okita rolled his eyes at him. "His speed was unbelievable, it's like he's inhuman! Wait... he is. The Boss landed a good hit on him after China girl and I manage to immobilize him, and that guy still managed to come back acting as if the attack was nothing. Even when a ship crashed directly onto him that monster somehow was still alive afterwards!"

Hijikata frowned. "That sounded serious. And you're sure that Yorozuya and that Imai-girl were the only ones that knew that guy?"

Okita nodded. "Yes. I barely caught them talking about it later while we were escaping. I couldn't really catch what they're saying but there's no questioning it. No, they definitely knew that guy. Even before that monster appeared, Imai has tried to warn China girl and me to escape and Boss had been able to anticipate that guy's movements almost too accurately to assume that this was the first time they ever encountered each other."

"Then, we might have a new formidable enemy to worry about now. Geez... why do things keep getting more troublesome these days..." Hijikata groaned.

"What... were you two talking about?"

Both of them turned around to find Katsura walking up to them. Katsura cast them a suspicious glance. "What was that you were talking about just now? What new enemy that just appeared?"

Okita just shrugged at him. "That's what we're trying to find out right now. Because of what happened earlier... and the shock of seeing Sasaki Isaburou's death, Imai was now unconscious and being treated for her injuries. We would have just interrogated her if she wasn't but since Yorozuya Boss also seem to know the enemy, we might as well ask him instead."

"You should just go back and recuperate from your injuries yourself, Katsura. This is our business now, you have no need to get involved...", said Hijikata as the two continued on towards their destination.

Katsura frowned before chasing after them as fast as he could. His injuries started to bother him again but he ignored it as he entered the cargo room that the two Shinsengumi officers just walked into.

"Hey, wait for a seco—" Katsura paused as he noticed belatedly that the two just froze in front of him. Puzzled, he tried to see what was it that they were looking at... and then he saw Gintoki with Otae.

"Oh... I've wondered about this before, but I never thought the two were really THAT close," Hijikata started to say.

Okita shrugged. "I've hinted at this before, haven't I? I told you that I'm good at sensing this kinda stuff..."

Hijikata just scoffed at it. "Well, we had a much more important business than to worry about barging into someone's love affair. Let's just fin—" Without warning, someone grabbed his arm and stopping him in his tracks. He turned around to see Katsura giving him a stern look.

"Hijikata-dono... Okita-dono," Katsura started to speak. "Whatever it was that you want to talk about Gintoki right now, I beg you... please do it later."

Hijikata frowned. "Why? If this because he's your friend or any of that Joui honour shit, I have no time to bother—"

Katsura continued keeping a firm grasp of Hijikata and Okita, despite his injuries. "I'm telling you... this is not the best time to do this," he said before casting a long look towards Gintoki.

He sighed to himself before dragging both officers out of the room.

xxx

Hijikata brushed Katsura off him before giving him a furious glare.

"What's the meaning of this, Katsura? Just because we had a brief alliance before, you can't just order—"

Katsura looked up towards them, his features showed them that he was also being serious at the moment.

"I'm asking you to leave Gintoki alone for now," he said before letting out another sigh. "I knew that look from before. And there were only very few times that I've ever seen Gintoki looking like that. Even if you try to approach him right now I doubt that you'd get anything from him regardless. You might as well talk to me."

"But it's not like you have the information that we were looking for..." Okita started to say before Katsura cut him off.

"Try me. I had my suspicions too—you Shinsengumi should've at least keep your members from gossiping too much, I managed to grasp on a few earlier. It's why I'm looking for him too," Katsura paused to gather his thoughts together. "Since it made me think of an unlikely situation."

Katsura glanced up towards them.

"You guys should've at least remember that I'm quite close to Gintoki. Whether the enemy you're talking about was someone that he met during the Joui war... or someone from his past, I should also know them." He paused again as if finding it hard to speak. "If you're talking about the person I'm thinking right now—even if I find it hard to believe it, I would also want to confirm it as much as you do."

Hijikata and Okita glanced towards each other as Katsura continued, "Because if it was that person that you guys met at Kokujou Island, I can't allow Gintoki to face him alone again. I can't let Gintoki carry that burden by himself again."

"Not this time."


A/N: Finally having Katsura into the story like I wanted, cos there's no way I could leave him out. If there's any odd wording, do try to point it out since I might miss them.