Disclaimer: I do not own the Higurashi franchise but good things come to those who wait…
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Chapter 8: Passing on the Torch
"So he's staying at Shishibone hotel huh?" Oishi asked gruffly through the cigarette clenched in between his teeth.
"Yeah. I followed him home last night. He's in the penthouse," answered Eric.
The two men were standing outside Hinamizawa's only school, discussing the progress they had made so far in the case.
"So why did you drag me out here Oishi?" asked the young man.
"Two reasons," said the aged detective, "One: I need you to observe a student here, Ryuu Maebarra. He's most likely our killer. Two: I need you to keep a watchful eye on Miss Sonozaki Mion. I promised her mother and her grandmother we'd keep her out of harm's way."
"What?" Eric sounded outraged, "I thought I was going to follow Jack!"
"We're trading assignments," informed Oishi, "The best place to observe Ryuu is in school and since no one in this village knows your face then you'd make the perfect undercover agent."
"What does that mean?"
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The familiar chime of Keiichi's alarm clock aroused him as it did every morning. He rolled himself out from his futon, rolling over the bat he had fallen asleep with. Last night was a restless one for Keiichi. He couldn't help but suddenly feel uneasy about sleeping in the same house as Ryuu after hearing Mion's warning last night. She just sounded so urgent on the phone… was she serious?
He tossed the bat away, still half-asleep, and slammed his palm down on the "snooze" button groggily.
Ding dong!
Keiichi snorted when he heard the door bell. Who the hell was trying to see him this early? Tired and irritable, Keiichi stood up and stomped down the stairs, glaring at the door through half-lidded eyes.
He opened it. Keiichi would have normally exploded with a flurry of angry comments and threats, furiously demanding the cause for such an early disturbance, but any thought, threat, or insult was stifled immediately as he was knocked to the ground by some unknown force that he soon identified as Mion.
Both of them were on the floor, Mion on top of him with her arms wrapped around his waist and her head on his chest like she was listening for a heart-beat. It took him a minute to realize she had been crying.
"Kei-chan!" she weeped hysterically, her hold on him tightening dangerously.
"Mi…Mion?!" he gasped, unable to breath with his gut being squished like this.
Mion sat up and pulled Keiichi into a tight hug. "What the f%$#k is wrong with this girl?!" he exclaimed mentally.
Her head was resting on his left shoulder, her face buried into his neck as she sobbed. Keiichi's anger and confusion was replaced with worry… and still more confusion. "Mion-chan? What are you doing here?"
"I thought you were dead!" she exclaimed, her voice trembling, "I thought I'd never see you again!"
Her back shook with every sob and teary gasp and Keiichi placed a comforting hand on the back of her head, stroking her soft green hair gently. "I told you I wasn't going to die Mion…" he whispered.
"Hey Keiichi… do you have a razo—OH MY SWEET DEAR CHRIST!!" Ryuu dropped the box of cereal he was holding as he stepped into the foyer where Mion and Keiichi were still embracing each other tightly.
But just the way they were sitting… to Ryuu it looked like something else.
"I am so sorry!" he said, covering his eyes and turning around, "I'm leaving! I'm leaving!"
Keiichi blinked and looked down upon himself. He just remembered he hadn't put on any clothes this morning… the only garments on him were his boxer shorts.
"No! Ryuu! It's not like that I swear!" said Keiichi, nearly throwing Mion off him.
"Then where are your clothes Keiichi!? Where did they go?! People don't just hug people bare naked!"
Ryuu was still shielding his eyes while shying away to the kitchen. Keiichi followed him, leaving Mion alone and confused.
She could hear the two cousins from behind the door.
"No Keiichi don't touch me with those filthy hands! God knows where they've been!"
"Just listen a second okay! We were just hugging! A friendly hug between friends!"
"Again I ask you… where the hell are your clothes?!"
"I just woke up."
"So you answered the door naked?"
"I have boxers on!" protested Keiichi.
Ryuu stormed out of the kitchen, still shielding his eyes from his cousin's indecency. "Well that doesn't count—" he trailed off when he saw the green haired girl sitting in the foyer. She scooted back a few feet, giving him a loathing look.
"So she really does remember…" he thought sadly, "What do I do?!"
Ryuu's hands twitched as his eyes fell upon her neck. He could see her jugular vein from here… the blood rushing through it… he couldn't help but think about how easy it would be to kill her right now and to stop her from telling Keiichi about him…
"NO! I won't give in… I promised… I promised…." Ryuu tore his eyes from her; instead he gave his attention to his feet as if they had become the most interesting thing in the world.
"Mion…" Keiichi said from behind him, his voice was soft and comforting even for him. He walked past Ryuu and crouched by the girl who still refused to tear her gaze from the pale boy in front of her until Keiichi placed a soft hand on her cheek and guided her gaze towards him. "I'm still here… if Ryuu was really a killer then do you think I would have lived through the night?"
Mion's turquoise eyes met with Keiichi's caring purple ones. She soon got lost in his compassionate gaze, her worries melting around her until she felt nothing but Keiichi next to her.
Ryuu suddenly felt warmth rush over him. Keiichi… was sticking up for him… someone actually cared for him after all he had done. Even though Ryuu knew his cousin had no idea of the horrors he had committed it still filled him with joy to know someone was looking out for him again.
But that didn't stop him from tormenting his cousin. "Put on some clothes dude."
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The weather was much nicer today. The rainy day yesterday had brought a nice, warm, sunny, and just all around beautiful day. The three of them ventured off into this gorgeous weather after Keiichi changed and had breakfast with his cousin. Mion had already eaten so she just waited in the kitchen, constantly glancing in Ryuu's direction like she was worried he would explode any minute.
On the way to school Keiichi nudged his cousin in the ribs. "So… are you gonna ask Rena today?"
Ryuu blushed and readjusted his school bag. "About what?" he asked, knowing perfectly well what Keiichi was talking about.
"Are you gonna ask her to the Kakou-Saishi?"
Ryuu's face began heating up with embarrassment and fury. He said nothing.
"Well you better hurry…" said Keiichi smugly, "Rena's pretty cute and all. The whole class will be climbing over each other to get to her."
"What?! Me and you are the only ones her age!"
Keiichi grimaced, "Rena likes all things cute. All things."
"You don't think…" Ryuu trailed off as he imagined Rena accepting an invitation from a particularly adorable looking eight year old boy. "Hauu~ I'm going to take you home after the festival!"
Ryuu gave his cousin a distressed look. "What do I do?!" he pleaded, grabbing a fistful of Keiichi's shirt and shaking him madly, "What do I do!?"
"I shan't tell you," said Keiichi with a confident grin, "A man must undertake some quests alone."
Ryuu was about to throat punch his cousin in aggravation when Rena came into view. Ryuu quickly released him and quickly tried to collect himself, slicking down his hair and straightening his shirt.
"Hey guys!" she waved at them fondly, "You're pretty early today Keiich-kun. Huh? Why is Mii-chan with you guys?" She gave Mion a sideways stare, "Doesn't Mii-chan usually come that way? Did you sleep with Keiich-kun last night Mii-chan? Did you?"
Keiichi and Mion both erupted with protests and objections, shaking their red faces.
"Oh yeah," said Ryuu with an evil grin, "I couldn't get any sleep with these two upstairs. Mion's shouting kept me up all night. Heh heh heh."
"Shut the hell up!" spat Keiichi and Mion simultaneously.
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Eric was sitting in the principal's office with Oishi sitting next to him.
"Undercover eh?" said the burly man thoughtfully as he reclined in his chair, "What for? Has one of my students broken the law?"
"I'm sorry sir but I'm not allowed to share that with you at this time," Oishi stated mechanically, sounding very bored, "I hope you understand."
The principal sighed heavily and rubbed his temples, attempting to banish the head ache that had shown up along with these two men. "I don't suppose I have a choice?" he asked with a small grimace.
"No sir. I'm sorry but this is being handled as a matter of national security," Eric answered, "I just need to work here as a student-teacher for a month or two. I won't get in the way with Miss Chie's classes I promise you."
"That's not what concerns me…" he said, "I just want to know if my students will be safe. From you and from whatever threat we may be facing."
"I'm here for two reasons sir," said Eric, "To do some undercover work and to protect your students from harm. I promise you that I will do all in my power and more to protect the students and the staff."
"Mr. Stride, don't go making promises you can't keep," cautioned the principal, "I'm holding you to your word."
"You can count on me," Eric assured.
The large grandfather clock in the corner of the room began chiming, signaling the start of the day. "Classes will begin shortly," the principal said, "I trust you can navigate yourself around these halls?"
"He'll manage," said Oishi, "Come on."
The two detectives left the dimly lit office and stepped into the hallways of the school.
Oishi turned to his friend and placed an old hand on his shoulder. "Eric. Before you go out there I want to tell you something…"
Eric looked to his mentor attentively. "Relax Oishi," he chuckled, "They're just kids. I'll be fine."
Oishi cracked a smile. "I know you will," he acknowledged, "I just wanted to tell you that… I'm real proud of you Eric."
Eric looked into the old man's tired looking eyes, suddenly feeling concerned. "Sir?"
"When Daichi… when Jack shot my son… I-I wanted to kill him. I almost did too," Oishi suddenly tore his gaze away from his partner, removing his hand and turning his back to him.
"What is this about Kuraudo?" Eric asked fearfully. As a detective and a former soldier he had heard people talk like this before… he usually never saw them again.
Oishi's jaw tightened and he balled his fists. "I had a gun to his head and I nearly killed that bastard for what he did to my family… but… I didn't… I refused to sink to his level even after he shot my son in cold blood!" He was shouting now and for the first time in Eric's life he heard fear in the old man's voice. For some reason he always found Oishi to be invincible, someone he would always be safe around like the way a child feels around their parents. To see the old man this afraid terrified Eric.
"What I'm trying to say is…" he turned and faced his partner, "Ever since Daiichi died and Ayano killed herself I never imagined I'd have another son. I know it had to be hard for you to see your best friend killed in front of you too. You were strong for my daughter-in-law and for me; you kept us sane amidst all that madness."
"Oishi…"
"You became like a son to me Eric. And I need you to promise me something…"
Eric didn't know what to say. Oishi wasn't one to get all emotional like this… it was so out of his character. "Anything," he said.
Oishi took Eric's hand and placed something in it. It looked like a miniature T.V screen. "What's this?" he asked.
"It's PDTM, stands for Pixel Data Transfer Module. It can take pictures and transfer the data to its twin, which I have in my pocket. You need to keep that with you at all costs and don't let anybody see it. Also today in class do not announce yourself as Eric Stride, as of today Eric Stride died in a car crash. You are now Akira Oishi, my adopted son. Do you understand?"
Eric nodded, trying to soak all of this in without forgetting any of it.
"And…" Oishi bit his lower lip and gulped. He looked so old and tired now… like his inner self was now truly reflecting his outward appearance, "Just promise me one thing Eric… If something were to happen to me I need you to be strong okay. Don't do anything stupid or get yourself killed. Promise me."
Eric's heart stopped momentarily as he realized what Oishi was trying to tell him. Daiichi made him take this same promise only an hour before Jack shot him.
"What are you talking about?" Eric asked in an urgent whisper, "What are you going to do? Is someone trying to kill you?"
"Just promise!" barked Oishi suddenly, "Tell me you won't do anything stupid if I die! Promise me!" His fist was wrapped around Eric's collar and his eyes shimmered behind a liquid veil of tears. Eric shook his head. Oishi had become a father to him… it was hard enough to resist the urge to kill Jack after he shot his best friend but how could he do the same if Oishi was murdered!? He couldn't… he wouldn't…
"Eric!"
"I promise!" he said.
The two friends stared at each other for a long time, mutual worry evident in their eyes.
"Keep that camera with you…" was the last thing he said before giving Eric one final handshake and walking slowly down the hall. As he walked his eyes lingered upon the walls he passed and the little pictures held into the wall with thumb-tacks. He stepped through the doors and gave the school one final goodbye.
(A/N: Regarding Eric's alias, I'll be referring to him as both Eric and Akira now so try not to get confused)
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"This… isn't… funny…" seethed Keiichi from behind one of the classroom lockers, "I… can't… breath… Satoko…"
"Meh. Excuses, excuses," she said with a shrug, "Man up Keiichi."
"The biological need for air doesn't make me any less of a man you brat!" he retorted, rattling furiously from inside the small confines of the locker, "Open the door!"
"Don't you think she's going a bit too far?" whispered Ryuu to Rena from his desk, "That really could be dangerous."
"Keiich-kun will be fine," she assured with a cute smile, "She'll let him out before Chie-sensei gets here."
And so she did. The very second the blue haired teacher stepped into the room Satoko frowned and opened the locker door, sending Keiichi spilling onto the floor.
"You… brat…" he gasped, "I could've died!"
"Maebarra-kun! Stop fooling around!" snapped Miss Chie, "Everyone, stand!"
There was a loud shuffling of feet and scraping of chairs as the class stood to attention.
"Bow," she ordered impatiently, sounding very put off this morning.
The class followed her orders before sitting down and quietly waiting for class to begin.
"Class, we have a guest today," she said, her irritation becoming all the more evident, "Please welcome Mr. Oishi."
The class exploded with chatter when they heard mention of the old detective. Some looked fearful, afraid Oishi had come to do some drug test or arrest someone. The minority who knew the old man well grinned at one another with excitement. But no one expected this young, handsome man to step into the room. This man didn't even look Japanese which immediately ruled out the possibility of him being his son. He had brown hair that was combed back except for a single strand of hair that hung stubbornly down on his brow. He was wearing a black vest and a white button up undershirt, making him look even more foreign. On his head he wore a pair of round glasses over his blue eyes.
"Hello class!" he said cheerfully, "My name is-"
Miss Chie coughed loudly, cutting off this young man. He faced her and shrunk back when he saw her fierce looking face.
"Hello class? They're still my class bub," she said menacingly.
"O-okay…" he stammered, trying to regain his composure, "I'm sorry?"
"Better be…" she snarled.
The stranger wasn't the only one who looked lost. Miss Chie wasn't usually this murderous looking.
"She's probably afraid of competition," Shion whispered to Keiichi.
"Competition?" he inquired.
"My name is Mr. Akira Oishi," he greeted with a bow, "Some of you probably know my foster father Detective Oishi. I'll be here as a student-teacher for the next few months and I'll be teaching English and World History. Other than that your Chie-sensei will teach you as she normally would."
The smaller kids in the front of the class opened their mouths to greet Akira in chorus but Miss Chie shot them a cold and silencing look.
"And since English is first today I'll be starting the class-"
Miss Chie stood up and stomped out of the room, mumbling treacherously under her breath.
"Anyway… I'll be starting class today. But before we get begin I'd like to get to know all of you a bit, your names anyway. We'll start with you – yes you – over there in the corner."
He was pointing to Ryuu. "Uh… well…"
"Could you stand up please?" he asked pleasantly.
Ryuu stood up, feeling nervous with all these eyes staring at him. "I'm Ryuu Maebarra…" he trailed off, trying to think of what else there was to say about him, "and I'm a-"
"Could you hold on a second?" Akira said while opening his bag and taking out a large notebook, flipping open to the first clean page he could find and scribbling something down.
"What's that?" asked Ryuu, "Are you writing my name down?"
"Just making a seating chart so I know where everyone is…" he answered. However the amount of time he spent writing would suggest otherwise.
"Please go on…" he said, not taking his eyes from the paper.
"Uhh… I'm sixteen," he concluded.
"What year are you?" asked Akira, adjusting his glasses with his free hand.
"I'm sorry?"
"Year. How many years have you been in school?"
Ryuu had to think about that. He really didn't know. The four years he lost at that God-forsaken asylum robbed him of any education. Technically he was a sixth grader but he couldn't say that.
"Interesting…" mumbled Akira, jotting down more notes.
"What is?"
"That you can't remember what year you are. Are you new here?" he asked.
"He's my cousin," answered Keiichi, "He used to live here four years ago and he just came back two days ago."
Akira seemed very pleased by this bit of information as he continued to scribble his pen furiously on the notebook. "Good," he said happily as he deposited the notebook back in the bag, "Alright let's begin."
Everyone exchanged confused glances.
"What about everyone else?" inquired Rika.
"What?" Akira asked obliviously.
"You don't know our names yet, you only got Ryuu's," chimed Hanyuu, "That's not very nice."
Akira looked frustrated and stammered a few times before speaking. "Make it quick, Ryuu-kun took up so much of our time with his stammering so we'll have to zip through this."
Everyone got a turn to introduce themselves to this new student-teacher. But Akira didn't write a single one of their names down as he did for Ryuu.
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"Lunch time!" chimed Miss Chie after she had finished teaching her mathematics lesson.
Everyone grabbed their lunches and located their friends. The club met as they usually did but this time with Ryuu.
Mion had been oddly quiet today and it remained that way all through lunch. Shion was glancing anxiously at her sister.
"You haven't eaten anything Onee-chan," she pointed out, snatching up a wad of steamed rice with her chopsticks, "Say 'ahhhh'!"
Mion however did not say "ahhh" she just continued watching Ryuu intently who was doing his best to ignore her cold glares.
Satoko followed Mion's gaze and connected it with Ryuu.
"Did Ryuu do something bad?" Satoko whispered to Rika who was also having a hard time eating.
"No, no, no," answered Ryuu quickly, "Mion's just pissed off about a little joke I made this morning. Poor Mii-san is so sensitive."
Ryuu was surprised when she made no objection.
Suddenly a small, sweet looking boy appeared by Ryuu and poked him on the shoulder.
"Hey," he said shyly, "Are you Rena's friend?"
Ryuu looked to Rena sitting on the far end of the table intently debating the cuteness of coffee-makers with Shion and he smiled proudly. "Yes… yes I am," he said happily.
"Could you ask her something for me?" he asked sweetly, his hands behind his back as he twisted his waist side to side bashfully.
"Sure thing kid."
"Could you ask her if she'll go to the festival with me?"
Ryuu's pleasant and friendly composure shattered, leaving a devastatingly murderous look in its place.
He remembered Keiichi's words: "Rena likes all things cute. All things." This boy could most definitely be filed under the category of "cute". He was an obstacle on the road to Rena's heart… he must be eliminated.
"Say it again…" he requested.
"Could you ask Rena-chan if she'll go to the festival with-"
Ryuu stood up and glowered down at the kid. "That is disgusting…" he said, shaking his head at the boy, "I don't know how you sleep at night."
"What?" the kid squeaked.
"That is… phew… that is just atrocious. You… your type sicken me…"
"What did I do?"
"You know very well what you did!" he sputtered, "You basically just confessed it to me…"
Ryuu had the attention of the entire class now; even Mion had stopped glowering at him long enough to watch the spectacle.
"But I don't!" he whimpered, "I don't know!"
"Oh ho ho! Don't play dumb with me! I don't know who you think you are but I know who I am! I know who I am! And I also know who I'm not and I am not the kind of guy who sells drugs to eight year olds so don't go asking me for any."
"WHAT!?" the boy cried, "I didn't ask you for drugs! Drugs are bad!"
"Don't you give me that load of crap mister!" he snapped, "Not only are you a drugee but you're also a liar! A LIAR!"
"But I'm not lying!" sobbed the boy.
No one knew who to believe.
"You lied again. You're going to hell in a hand basket," Ryuu said with a grimace, "Run straight into Satan's waiting arms."
"What?"
Miss Chie barged into the classroom looking perplexed, "What is going on here?"
Ryuu and the boy pointed accusing fingers at one another instantly. Whatever the boy tried to say Ryuu drowned out, "He asked me for drugs Chie-sensei!"
Miss Chie gave the boy an astonished look, "Is this true?"
The boy tried to speak but Ryuu stomped on his toe in a way no one would see it. "Oh please do not ask the boy to speak Chie-sensei," he crouched down so he was at level with the boy and put his arm around him, "You see, not only is he a drug addict but he is a liar as well. He will not speak the truth."
"He's the liar," accused the boy.
"No do not listen to him!" cautioned Ryuu melodramatically, "He tells nothing but lies. Get him out of here before he contaminates the pure minds of the other children with his filthy habits. Take him away!" He held the child out for Miss Chie to take. The boy wasn't crying anymore, he just looked completely and entirely lost.
"All right you're coming with me young man, wait until your parents hear about this!" said Miss Chie as she led him out of the room.
The boy left, looking totally confused and leaving Ryuu as the victor, allowing him to fight another day for Rena's heart.
He didn't know if what Keiichi said about Rena accepting invitations from anyone even remotely cute was true… but he wasn't taking any chances.
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It was now the last class of the day and it was Akira's turn to teach World History. And to start off his first class he decided to give them all a pop quiz containing some of the hardest questions Keiichi had ever seen.
1: In Ancient Rome, what color was the stripe running down a senator's toga?
2: What was the name of the Pope who launched the crusades?
3. Which U.S President was in power during WWII?
4. What is the difference between a Prime Minister and a President?
5. Who wrote The Odyssey?
6. Who killed Julius Caesar?
7. Who was Tiberius Gracchi? What were his beliefs? How did he die?
It just went on and on to a grand total of one-hundred questions just like this. This would take them the entire class! How did he expect the little kids to answer these questions?
"Don't worry it's not for a grade," assured Akira as he went down the aisle of desks while handing tests to each student, "I don't expect anyone to get an A, I just want to see what you guys know and where I should begin."
Keiichi racked his brain and tried to remember previous World History lessons. They had only covered 1/10th of this stuff. He looked to his friends and saw they were all having an equally difficult time. Mion looked the most distraught; Keiichi actually thought she was going to have a breakdown in the middle of the test. Shion wasn't even trying and Rena was doodling something on her paper. And Ryuu… Ryuu was actually writing down answers.
"Done," he chimed, leaning back in his chair victoriously.
There was the hollow clatter of pencils falling to the floor all across the rooms as his classmates turned to him in shock with loose jaws. Akira however didn't look impressed at all.
"Did you try?" he asked as he moved to pick up the paper.
"I don't try Oishi-sensei, I just do," he responded proudly.
Akira rolled his eyes and snatched up the paper, his eyes running through the answers and getting wider with each scan.
"These are all right…" he said, sounding flabbergasted.
"It hasn't even been twenty minutes!" Keiichi thought to himself.
"Oh good," sighed Ryuu, "I was a bit worried on the one about Genghis Khan, that was a tricky question."
Akira quickly snatched his bag and removed his notebook for the second time today, scribbling down another note.
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Ding… ding… ding, went the elevator every time Oishi passed a floor. He was currently in the Shishibone hotel, another establishment owned by the Sonozaki family. "At this rate they'll own the whole damn city," Oishi chuckled gruffly. Finally, the elevator reached its destination: the penthouse.
The elevator made one final ding as the doors slid open, revealing the glamorous penthouse Jack had made his lair in. It looked very western which was odd indeed for a place owned by the Sonozaki family; one of the most stubborn old-fashioned families Oishi had ever had the pleasure of meeting.
According to Eric, Jack was currently at a very important business meeting with some Russian guy so he shouldn't have to worry about him. He still did a quick sweep of the penthouse, looking for any kind of security system or security guard. Luckily, he found no one.
He stared out the enormous glass window that stretched from the ceiling and right down to the floor. Night had fallen and Shishibone was bustling with the night life. He could hear cars zoom down sixteen floors below him from the top of the hotel. He towered over everything here… "Figures, Jack always has to have dominance doesn't he?"
He tore himself away from the window and located the little brown briefcase Oishi had come here to find. It was the same one Jack had brought to their meeting yesterday. He slammed it down on the desk that sat just in front of the window and broke the lock by smashing it with his pistol. It flung open instantly, revealing its contents.
"Let's see what we got here," he said as he began flipping through the files and sheets of paper. Finally his eyes fell upon something of interest. It was a transaction form, one that was written in Russian.
Oishi didn't understand a word of it; the odd foreign characters were a complete mystery to him. But he still found it odd Jack would be carrying around something like this. He removed his PDTM and snapped a few photos of the form before sliding it back in and continued to rummage for more interesting articles and documents. "Hmm… what's this?" He pulled out a thick sketchbook, one Oishi often saw Jack carrying back when Daiichi was working for him… when he was still alive.
He had always been curious about what Jack was doodling in here. He flipped the book open and flicked through the pages. These sketches certainly were… interesting.
The drawings looked like monsters. Demonic looking horned monsters with sharp teeth and pointed fingers. The earlier sketches made the monsters look like some creature you'd see in some fantasy, medieval movie with dragons and wizards. But as he continued to flick through the pages they became somehow more believable and familiar. Like Oishi had seen these things before…
Their pointed fingers grew longer with the later sketches until they almost touched the ground. For every two pages there was a sketch of a male creature and a female one. The horns on the male were more upright and curvy while the female's pointed downward and were nearly straight. The monsters had sharp teeth and skinny arms and legs however, none of the later sketches showed these beasts with feet. Their legs started to remind Oishi of an overgrown spider; they were very long, skinny, and sharp at the end. Little side notes were scribbled on the columns of the pages sloppily, making them barely legible. Oishi closed the sketch book once more and on the cover he read the words: "Primoris Humanus."
The sketchbook was very well organized and professional; Oishi began wondering if Jack had actually believed in these things.
He took pictures of every page with his PDTM, taking two snapshots of each page to ensure Eric would be able to read them perfectly.
He was just about to press his thumb against the "send all data" button when he heard the cock of shotgun behind him.
"Did you actually think I'd go anywhere without that briefcase?" chuckled Jack sinisterly, "I was in the bathroom when you stepped in and when I saw you sitting at my desk I thought I'd sit back and see what you'd do."
Oishi quickly hid the PDTM before pulling out his own pistol and pointing it at Jack. There was a gunshot and the pistol flew out of his hands with a bullet hole through it. Behind Jack stood two men, both of them had long, sleek black hair and bushy beards. Their eyebrows were thick and their brows were heavy. It was very clear that these men were not Japanese.
Jack pointed his pistol at Oishi with his one remaining hand while the other two pumped their shotguns and aimed.
"Должны мы убить его?" asked one of the foreign men.
"Почему я хотел бы вас 2 иметь всю потеху?" Jack said with a sneer, causing the foreigners to chuckle ominously.
"Ahhh…" Oishi said with a smirk, "so these are your Russian friends I've been hearing so much about. I wonder what you could be up to Jack old boy…"
Oishi slid his hand into his pocket and clicked the record button on his PDTM. The man on Jack's left saw this motion and quickly aimed his gun for Oishi's chest. "Hand of pocket!" he said in broken Japanese.
"Relax, relax…" soothed Jack, "Я имею ситуацию под управлением." The man lowered his gun slowly while Jack raised his at Oishi's head. "Hands in the air," he ordered, cocking his pistol, "Or I'll shoot them off."
Oishi did as he was told, glaring at Jack with the utmost loathing.
"Empty your pockets…" he instructed.
Oishi did, emptying his left pocket first. He pulled out his precious cigarettes, followed by some chewing tobacco, a wad of gum, a couple hundred yen… a switch blade.
No one saw the blade before it was too late. He flicked it open and maneuvered himself behind one of the Russians with amazing speed, pressing the cold steel of the blade to his throat. "Drop your weapons!" bellowed Oishi, "Or he dies."
The other foreigner quickly cast his shotgun aside and looked at Oishi with a pleading look. Jack however simply stood there smirking as he raised his gun at Oishi and his terrified hostage. "If you think I'm above ripping through him to kill you then you have another thing coming old man," he said sinisterly. The Russian who wasn't being held captive by Oishi looked at Jack and his gun. "Please do not!" he begged in poor Japanese, "He is my best friend!"
A few seconds ago, Oishi thought Jack could sink no lower… he was wrong. He turned to the terrified foreigners and sneered. "Tough," was all he said.
He shot the foreigner Oishi was holding captive right in the chest, giving Oishi enough time to leap out of the way before the bullet tore through his own heart as well. The only remaining Russian screamed in terror as he watched his friend fall to the floor. He moved to pick up his gun again, this time aiming for Jack, but Jack didn't hesitate to blow off his head with a smile and then turn on Oishi.
He sent a bullet right through Oishi's leg, crippling him severely. He shouted in pain as he felt his bone crack and blood gush from his wound.
"Now empty the other pocket," he instructed with his finger still on the trigger.
"You heartless little shit!" spat Oishi in fury, "You kill two of your men and all you can think about is what I have in my pocket?!"
"You're hardly in a position to be lecturing me on how I do business Oishi. Now empty your other pocket before I do it for you."
Oishi reluctantly removed the PDTM from his pocket and he held it so Jack could see it. "Happy now? It's just a camera!"
"Do you think I'm an idiot?!" Jack roared, "I know what that is! It's that little photo transfer module thing that sends pictures to other people. Who the hell were you planning on sending those photos to?!"
"Go to hell!" spat Oishi defiantly, slowly rising from crippled position and stumbling over to the desk with his wounded leg.
"Do you think I won't shoot you just because you're an old man? I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty you old piece of shit! Give it to me now!"
Oishi had his thumb poised over the "send all data" button. He was on the verge of collapsing… he was losing so much blood… but he couldn't die yet… not yet.
"I see…" Jack said as Oishi struggled to stay standing, "Now I know where your son got it."
Oishi's head snapped up and his eyes bore furiously into Jack's.
"He was defiant until the end too… stupid son of a bitch. Speaking of stupid bitches though," Jack's evil little smile grew, "I think that before I kill you there's something you should know about that wife of yours."
If it weren't for his leg Jack would have been beaten into a pool of blood by now.
"Ayano right? You found her hanging in your bedroom? Just like I left her…"
Oishi clenched his fists as his leg twitched violently in frustration. He would sell his soul right now to get his legs moving again just so he could have the satisfaction of ripping Jack apart with his own hands.
"Y-you killed my wife?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"I strangled the bitch with my own hands," he answered proudly.
Oishi felt pure hatred well up inside him, a fiery burning feeling that was eating at his insides, making him suffer for every second Jack was still breathing. He wanted more than anything to see that son of a bitch dead… and he was willing to do anything to bring that about.
"But Oishi my old friend, I'm feeling unusually generous today," scorned Jack, "You don't have to suffer the same fate as your withered excuse for a son and your whore of a wife. Just put down that little gadget of yours and I'll let you go. I'll even call a paramedic for that leg of yours."
Oishi glared at Jack with his ancient and intense eyes. He summoned the last bit of strength in him and stood up; cringing as he felt his broken bones grind together under his weight.
"Jack…" he wheezed, "I've known you for fourteen years and for fourteen years I stood by and watched you tear apart countless lives and manipulate even more with your threats and your god damn bodyguards. The only reason those people ever listened to you was because you were threatening to take something away from them. But me… you've already taken everything. My son… my wife… those were the only things that mattered. So are you going to kill me? If you do that means I've won Jack! That means I've won and I'll be able to die knowing that! You have nothing else to use against me this time!
"I have a gun to your head. Is that not enough to convince you?" Jack asked incredulously.
"There are worse fates than death…"
Click.
Oishi's thumb finally pressed down on the "send all data" button, and the screen lit up with the words "now sending" in big letters. Jack's arrogant face faded and was replaced with confusion and rage. He simply couldn't comprehend why Oishi would choose life over death.
Oishi's mouth curved into a triumphant smile as he straightened his back, the PDTM still held tightly in his grasp.
He heard the gun fire and felt the bullets tear through his flesh and shatter his bones painfully, sending his blood splattering across the window behind him. The force of the bullets sent him stumbling backwards, finally crashing against the window and shattering the glass. The wind howled as he stumbled backward, casting him down to the pavement below with the PDTM still in his hands. Jack jumped over the desk and made one final grab for the PDTM before it could finish the data transfer. But he was too late; Oishi was already plummeting to his death.
Oishi held the small gadget close to him, determined even now to ensure Eric would be able to see those photos."Eric… my son… you were all I had left… the village is yours to protect now." The last thing he heard was a small chime from the PDTM, indicating a successful data transfer. His job was finished… now he would finally retire.
Splat!
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A/N: Aww… sad chapter. Oishi was one of my favorite characters too… I found this chapter to be so sad that I was forced to add in that little scene with Ryuu and the little boy to try and lighten the mood. Wow this was a long chapter but a fun one. I'm sorry that I killed off Oishi guys. I don't hate him or anything he's actually my favorite character. I just really wanted to vilify Jack more… I hope it worked. Leave a comment on what you thought about this one!
