Chapter 7: You Hardly Ever Get All That You Wish For.
Putxi: Thank you so much for your kind review! I'm really happy that you find this story interesting! And yup, you are totally right, it's Kamui himself. I really hope this chapter was worth the wait, enjoy reading!
Akely: Thank you so much for the review and the best wishes! Don't worry, it's never a burden updating for me, partly because of all your supportive reviews! And, needless to say, you guessed right; it's Kamui. I agree the guy is really more like a slum's serial killer than a prince. We'll be seeing his motives only in the next chapter, though. And I too am twenty thousand leagues away from being a pro in writing; your encouragement means a lot to me. I hope this chapter meets your expectations!
Guest: You're truly welcome and thank you so much for reading this story! I'm very pleased to hear that you love it, and I hope this chapter makes you happy too! Please have fun reading!
And now, moving on to the story….
The next morning, Sougo was awakened as usual by the Shinsengumi members making an insane amount of noise outside his door or wherever. But what was unusual was that he didn't attempt to kill or blast away any of them. One look at their pale, haggard faces told Sougo that something was seriously wrong, and that he had to deal with it soon, whether he liked it or not.
A few minutes later, everyone was assembled at the Shinsengumi headquarters and Hijikata issued strict orders that no one else be allowed inside, the penalty being seppuku. Sougo watched restlessly as Yamazaki fiddled around with a few pictures, wondering what the hell had got everyone so shocked and grim. He soon understood when he saw the pictures.
It was not that Sougo had never seen blood and gore. In fact, it was just as familiar to him as skipping paperwork was. But even he involuntarily took in a sharp breath at the sight captured hazily on paper. Human bodies lay, horribly severed and bloody, the walls of the alleyway splashed with huge, dark stains. Pushing the picture away, he looked up and asked in an expressionless voice, "Who the hell did this?"
It was Hijikata who answered, apparently forgetful of his unlit cigarette, "No clues on that yet. It's just been discovered this morning. The victims are all quite distinguished officials. They've all fought in wars previously, so that means whoever could do this to them must be a skilled fighter in the least."
"Not to mention that there have been almost no signs of an even battle. I fear we're dealing with a crazed, bloodthirsty killer here, this guy's no ordinary criminal."
Sougo simply nodded as he listened to Matsudaira explain, before issuing a short order, "Do whatever it takes to find him before he kills again. On no account will you get yourselves killed and I'll be taking a rather active part in this."
Everyone saluted, their eyes resolved. Sougo lazily waved his hand to dismiss them before letting a devilish smirk creep over his face. Ah, it's been so long since I've truly taken a mission… And it seems pretty exciting as well. Mr. Psycho Criminal, you just signed your death warrant, at the hands of the prince of the planet of sadists.
The morning was as cheerful as ever for Kagura, who ate and fooled around as much as she always did. The only indication that something was slightly different was that the Sadist got up pretty early and marched off the Shinsengumi HQ without a word and that Mayora had ordered that no one else leave the palace. Not that Kagura was too bothered to listen to it. She had no intention of staying cooped up inside the palace on a warm, perfect day, and she could take care of herself if a need to do so arose. This was why she secretly covered herself in a dark cloak and slipped outside through a tiny door leading to the gardens, which no one ever used. She chose not to take her umbrella, for the sun no longer bothered her as much as before and was rather mild today. Pleased at her successful escape, Kagura skipped happily through the surprisingly empty streets, not bothering to keep her face covered. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a huge crowd collecting near an alleyway, with Shinsengumi officers cordoning them off. Quickly pulling the hood over her face so that she would not be recognized, Kagura moved closer till she could see what everyone was so worked up about. The sight almost caused her to faint with horror. Her hands clenched into tight fists, trembling in rage and disgust. Looking at the bodies of the dead, covered in white sheets that couldn't mask the mutilation inflicted on them, Kagura felt colder than she had ever felt before. Not wanting to stay there a single second more, she fled straight back to the palace and slipped inside by the same way she had exited through.
Hugging her knees to control herself, even as the dreadful visions flashed over her eyes, she thought. That's was so horrible, so beastly, who could do something like that? Aren't those people my subjects in a way? What sort of a princess am I, if I can let something like this happen in Edo? It was already sad enough in Rakuyou, why is something as terrible as this being seen in Edo?! Who could have done something so bad, yes? Tears ran down her cheeks as she tried to forget what she had just seen. Suddenly, she stiffened as she heard people walking past the cupboard she was sitting in, talking in hushed voices. Nevertheless, Kagura could hear them when they raised their voices, certain that no one was eavesdropping.
"Kondou san, there's something else about those murders that Zaki told me. It would be better if Sougo didn't know anything about it, so I hid it, but you have to know…"
Oh, it's just Mayora. They must be talking about that horrible incident, uh huh. Looks like he's speaking to that gorilla… I wonder if I should listen… It's most un-princess-like, but since when did I bother about all that? Besides, the Sadist won't tell me anything…. Wait, what was that?
"As I was saying, Kondou san, Zaki found these at the murder scene."
"Hair? But they are the same color as that of the princess… What are you trying to say, Toshi?!"
"Simply that there's a chance that the China princess may have something to do with this. This might as well be her hair, or it could be a relative's. Either way, we need to investigate her."
"Toshi, how can you say that?! There's no way someone like China san would be involved in such a terrible deed! Even if she's a good fighter…"
"You're far too naïve, Kondou san. You even believed Itou when he came, damn it! What proof do we have that she's innocent? I don't want to believe it myself, and it's quite likely she has no knowledge of it, but we need to hunt up every last clue over here. There's no way I'll let this murderer get away."
Kondou protested again, but Kagura could no longer hear him. They slowly walked away, but she barely noticed the fact, her mind throbbing with what she had just heard.
They found my hair there? But I only went there in the morning, long after those idiots did their investigation, yes! But how… wait, what was it that Mayora said? A relative… But that can only mean Baka niichan! Wait, it makes too much sense now; only he would do something as cruel as that and we do look similar! Then Mayora really is right, this is my entire fault; if only I hadn't been so weak, if only I could have stopped that jerk from leaving and becoming a killer… I'm so sorry, Mami, everyone…
A few hours later, it was lunchtime and everyone gathered in the huge hall. Sougo came as bored as ever, half expecting all the food to have already been eaten by Kagura. Instead, he saw her sitting quietly at the table, a full plate still in front of her, looking even paler than she usually was. She ate her food absentmindedly and refused a second helping from Tama, saying that she was not hungry. Sougo promptly decided that apocalypse was not as far away as most predicted.
Looking at her more carefully, he noticed that she had been crying. Her blue eyes were slightly red shot and puffy, though it would be unnoticeable to most. Just as he could ask what was wrong, Hijikata and Kondou entered, seeming tensed and ….suspicious. Kagura looked up as they came, before bowing her head and poking at her food again. She looked quite upset, and Sougo felt an urgent need to find out why.
Huh? China seems to be getting more upset when Hijikata san looks at her. Kondou san looks guilty too…. Does the reason why she's so weird today have anything to do with them? I'll decide how to kill Hijikata san after I find out what he's done… it better not be anything perverted. Speaking of weird, I haven't heard her laugh at all today… I wonder if she knows of what has happened. If she does, that's probably the reason, but how could she? Hell, this is one messed up day…
Kagura meanwhile, was far too absorbed in her own thoughts to realize that Hijikata and Kondou were getting more suspicious of her as the moments passed by. She hadn't even considered if her behavior would make the people around her around her all jump to different conclusions, but she was truly feeling so shocked and guilty at the moment that she couldn't have behaved like her usual self even if she had known. After the meal was over, she immediately ran off to the palace gardens, not even bothering to reply to the Sadist's half hearted insult. Sougo then turned to look at Hijikata, an extremely innocent expression on his face.
"Hijikata san, do you happen to know why China is so upset today? I may not kill you if you tell me, you know."
"How the hell should I know, Sougo? She's probably upset over something trivial."
"I don't really think so, Hijikata san. Something 'trivial' would never cause a glutton like China to skip a whole meal and refuse a second helping of sukonbu topped ice-cream. Does she happen to know about the murders?"
"There's no way she can, because all the members of the Shinsengumi have been forbidden to tell her or the maids of this. Now go laze around as usual, Sougo and let us continue with our investigation." There was a steely coldness in Hijikata's voice, which no one in earshot missed. Sougo merely stared back, as deadpan as ever, before calmly getting up to walk out into the gardens.
"So you finally give me a chance to laze around, Hijibaka san. How nice of you. But it really won't be very nice if you don't allow me to take part in this. And if anyone other than me makes my wife/ rival cry, they can prepare for death."
Looking at his retreating back, Matsudaira sighed and glanced at Hijikata. "I see why you were so against telling him. But I feel that the princess' behavior warrants suspicion. "
"None of us want to believe that, Totsuan! It just can't be the China princess, she can never hurt someone like that; it's just not possible…"
"Kondou, you're far too trusting. She's a princess from a particularly bloodthirsty land and her people have the reputation of being the fiercest fighters in the continent. We know almost nothing about her history, to make it worse. I want this investigation to be a fair and ruthless one. If Sougo can't do that, then he doesn't need to do it at all. When you weigh the lives of countless countrymen and the life of one foreign queen, it is obvious which side of the scale sinks."
Kagura's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a sarcastic, yet slightly worried voice, "Oi, China, what the hell are you doing out here? Don't you have any more insane ideas to undertake?"
"Sadist? What are you doing here? Go and discuss police work with Mayora and Gorilla, and stop bothering me, uh huh."
"Ain't gonna listen to you, so forget it. What happened to your black hole of a stomach today?"
"It's not a black hole! I just wasn't hungry today… did you come here just to insult me, yes?"
"Up for a spar, China? Or are you too scared of facing me? I say, you aren't depressed because you just realized my absolute superiority, are you?"
"JUST WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! Who said I was scared of you? I swear I'll knock the stuffing out of you and smash that intolerable face of yours!" I really will, Sadist. This may just be our last fight, so I'll make sure I beat you for once and for all. It's been real fun, after all, Sadist. Trust Baka niichan to ruin it though…
Sougo grinned, almost maniacally, as they both charged at each other, pulling out their respective weapons. It relieved him beyond measure to see his China grin as usual and fight with him; at least she wasn't making that sad, half broken face that hurt him so much. It was a really weird way of consoling a girl and cheering her up, but it was indeed the best way for both of them. And he decided that he did love her a 'little' for that.
The fight seemed to go on for hours, only to end in a draw. Sougo shrugged, looking quite annoyed at not being able to beat his wife yet. Kagura cursed loudly, why couldn't God grant her wish and let her beat the Sadist for once? She might never see his face again, at least she could be granted the pleasure of seeing him kneel before her one last time. They soon began arguing again, stopping only when Tama firmly ordered Sadaharu to drag both of them inside for dinner.
The next morning, the castle doors swung open as the queen walked outside, dressed in a red cheongsam and armed with her beloved umbrella. No one knew of her departure, though they soon would. As Kagura sadly took a long look at her home, she realized all of a sudden that perhaps it was as well that their 'last' fight had ended in a draw.
Draw, huh? Don't worry sadist, I'll be back to kick your ass, real soon. This isn't goodbye; it's just a short mission till I return to all of you, yes? As Tama knows to feed you, I don't have to worry about you, Sadaharu. And idiot Sadist, you had better not do anything stupid while I'm gone, uh huh. It's bad enough having to deal with an idiot psycho older brother, without having to deal with you too.
The red haired man looked up from the enormous amount of food piled in front of him to see someone standing, glaring furiously at him. His trademark grin widened, as he called out, "Sister dear? It's such a surprise to see you here! My, my, whatever are you doing, pointing such a dangerous weapon at your elder brother like that? Is that how you greet me after so many years?"
"Baka niichan, you can stop that nonsense now. In the first place, I'm hardly here to greet you and I really had no intention of even seeing you, uh huh. I know that you were behind those bloody murders and you plan to commit more, yes?"
"So you're here to stop me, Sister dear? But I never even knew you lived here, why do you care so much about what happens to a few unknown, useless people? But what about Rakuyou?"
"What do you care, Kamui?! You didn't even come for Mami's funeral! And you wanted know why I care, yes? Because I have a home in Edo now, and you're not laying a finger on it."
"Really, sister dear, when will you learn that we Yato do not have 'homes'? The battlefield is our only place to go back to. Well, I wasn't really planning on killing a weakling like you, but at least it will be more interesting than chopping up aged lapdogs."
In less than a few minutes, everything within a five meter radius was reduced to rubble as the Yato siblings charged at each other, the brother grinning like a homicidal madman,( which he truly was ), and the sister's eyes burning with fury, resentment and also the slightest trace of sadness.
A/N: So there ends the seventh chapter! I hope you enjoyed reading it; I loved writing it too. I'll be updating soon enough, because writing really helps me relax while studying for exams. Weird, I guess. Thanks a lot for reading this story! Please do take the time to leave a review; your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!