Genji,

By the time you read this, you will be well settled in the countryside in Ireland. Why Ireland? It has to do with the clan not doing business there, something about an understanding between Grandfather and a bounty hunter from there. I know you have questions, but what it comes down to is that the clan wants you dead. Or at least Mariko does and with Father gone, there is nothing to hold her back. Even I cannot hold her back, and she heeds me in almost everything. She thinks you are a hinderance, that your very existence is a danger to me, to us. Too many in the clan agree with her, and you will not step up to fulfill your duties to prove them wrong about you. I gave you an assignment to neutralize a threat to our clan, and instead you take off for some sort of holiday! I was angry when I confronted you in the shrine, furious! But I did not want you dead, I swear on our father.

No doubt you will be reading this in a hospital room, or if things go well, far away from Hanamura, from Japan. You are no longer safe in what was once your home, Genji. Sooner or later, your carefree attitude is going to get you killed, if it has not already. I know I hurt you, and you are feeling sick right now, but I had to do something! Even the elders would not look for the dead, and you need to disappear. There will be no money for the luxuries you are used to-you will have to learn to survive on your own, using whatever skills you have to your advantage. For years, everything has been handed to you on a silver platter; now you must live in the real world, and earn your keep, just like any normal person. I can only imagine how scared you must be, unsure of yourself, but I know you will be able to survive outside the clan. You have inherited Grandfather's instincts regarding people, and we know those were legendary-they say he could look at a person and be able to tell if they were friend or foe.

As for myself, I will do what I was born to do and lead the clan-alone. I can not survive outside the clan as you can. It is all I am, all I was and all I will be. I will endure, as I must. In case you feel some sort of guilt towards what happened, then you will, from this moment on, consider yourself banished. I can not have someone who will put his own needs before the clan's, nor can I bring myself to execute you for your negligence. I know this strips you of protections-if they know you are alive, they will hunt you down and only the gods know what tortures they will inflict on you. This is the best way, ototō. The only way. As long as they think you dead, you are safe...you are free.

For your own sake, I hope you are capable of living with the circumstances you have brought upon yourself. Whatever else happens, exile or no, you will always remain my brother. Do what you do best, Genji, and take care of yourself.

Hanzo

Genji kept staring at the letter, again and again. He lost count how many times he read it, he still couldn't process it. Hanzo was trying to fake his death that night, to make him disappear in order to save him from the clan? He thought to the night Overwatch found him, a hospital outside of Hanamura. He had no idea how he even got there, and he couldn't have gotten there on his own, not in the condition he was in at the time. If any of the clan had come across him, they would have made sure he was dead...or worse. Any civilians in Hanamura would have alerted the clan, which meant someone had to have taken him from the shrine, undetected, and gotten him to someplace his family can't reach. Someone who was there that night, and to his knowledge, he and Hanzo were alone. Which meant Hanzo had been the one to take him, and if anyone had saw them, they would've assumed the master had done what their father would not, and was leaving to dispose of the body. A rush would have been seen as being expedient, nothing more.

"Genji?" Solas asked. "Are ye okay? Ye've been starin' at that fer almost an hour now."

"What?" Genji said. "Oh, I..."

"Is it from Hanzo?"

"Yes. I think he meant to leave this with me that night, but didn't for some reason."

"Whatever the reason fer it, tryin' ta block or hide from pain costs us. Odds are he doesn't even remember, since it was buried in his robes an' all."

"Perhaps. He did not intend for me to die that night. He...he was the one who saved me, or got me to where I could be saved. Even after what I had done, he still protected me in the only way he knew how."

"Except he thought ye dead from his actions."

"He was going to fake my death. When Dr. Ziegler treated me, she had found two alien substances in me which cancelled each other out. I would need to see my records for that night, but I believe Hanzo wanted to be sure the elders had no reason to look for me."

"Then ye fought each other an' he injured ye to the point he thought he killed ye fer real."

"Yes."

"The more I hear about the bloody Shimada, the more I wonder if it's a clan yer talkin' about or a bloody cult."

"We were pretty isolated, even by Yakuza standards. We were homeschooled to avoid any influence from the outside world touching us, even though we have to interact with it for our business; university was beneath us, so we never went. The only times we reached out to other clans was for business purposes, or when Father was trying to arrange a match for Hanzo. Needless to say, none of his efforts there panned out. Hanzo would say or do something to offend the girl and her family and the whole thing would fall through."

"Example...?"

"Norishi had other granddaughters, some closer to Hanzo's age. Father arranged for him to meet one of the ones closest to him in age not yet married and when Hanzo spoke to her, she kneed him in the balls; she would have cut them off if her parents had not intervened."

"Dare I ask what he said?"

"He told her how he looked forward to their upcoming match, as though the marriage was a guarantee. She was taken by surprise-they had just met after all, and the meeting was to see how they would get along, not a signing of a betrothal contract. Then Hanzo proceeded to tell her what was expected of a lady of the Shimada-according to him, she was to sleep with him and only him, as was proper for a wife, until such time that she produced an heir. If she wanted to have affairs, they would have to wait until a proper heir was produced and even then, she had best practice the utmost discretion and birth control. In the event such affairs can not wait for a proper heir, there was to be no penetration."

"Ye have got to be feckin' kidding me." Solas stared in shock. "I don't know what stuns me more, that he thinks that at all or that he actually voiced it out loud."

"It gets better-she thought that he was joking, but he was dead serious. He said it would have been unrealistic to expect full fidelity from her if he were not to practice it himself. After all, wives were for producing heirs, and if she refused...contact...outside of that, that was what others were for-mistresses, concubines, girlfriends, courtesans even."

"So...to him, marriage is for the purposes of procreation, but it takes goin' outside of that to get his jollies should the need arise?"

"That is about the gist of it, yes. He didn't understand her reaction; to him, it was the way of things, what he was told was the way of things. There were women in a man's life for every purpose-a wife to breed, at least one other woman for more base needs, one to comfort him, one to listen to his troubles, one for more...inventive play if one were so inclined..."

"And that was when she hit him in the nuts?"

"No, that came after he told her what he thought was a compromise on his part, regarding children-all the daughters would belong to the Norishi clan, since there were already secured heirs. But the Shimada would claim all the sons."

"I'm afraid ta ask, but I will anyway-what did Norishi himself say when he heard all of this?"

"He told our father that he will not approve the match and that none of his family would approve any match to them if ours had such outrageous ideas about women and marriage; in that same breath, he told Hanzo to come back when he had thoughts of his own instead of repeating what the elders taught him."

"Oh, those bastards sound like they fecked him over good."

"They have. Hanzo was confused though, he didn't understand that what he said was wrong. On the way back to Hanamura, he asked our father why the girl was so offended at what her expectations were, why Norishi was so offended."

"What was the answer?"

"Father told us that most people required full fidelity from both parties in a marriage. He also said that while the 'arrangement' was suitable for most in the clan, that sometimes a man is fortunate to find a woman who is all things to him-friend, lover, confidant, protector, nurturer, playmate...even the mother of his child. Such things were a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I had to admit he had a point. His marriage to our mother had them devoted to each other until she died and he never even looked at another woman, not even after she passed."

"How many times did this happen, his mucking up the attempts to match him?"

"This happened a couple of times before with other clans, Norishi was our father's last attempt before he died; after our father died, Hanzo poured himself into the business, claiming he had no time to search for a proper wife. That and he couldn't conceive any woman wanting him. To him, any interest towards him had to have something to do with the clan. The elders presented candidates to him, but he rejected them for one reason or another, and that's when he's not making them angry to the point they leave."

"Aesun help us all..." Genji wanted to ask more when they both heard gunshots. Solas took out his staff, his visor activated and his clothes glowing silver and Genji had his sword drawn. All of a sudden, Talon soldiers stormed the base and started firing on everyone. Genji and Solas managed to deflect what bullets were fired back towards their source, taking out at least five of the attackers. The rest scattered, the shots missing them by not much.

"Kuso!" Genji cried, he and Solas heading for where Katsu was kept. When they got there, the cell was empty. He sensed someone behind them, but Solas reacted first, swinging his staff to hit a person that was cloaked. Genji noticed it was a woman with half her head shaved, the other half having dark brown hair with some purple highlights. Even her augmentations had a purple glow. Solas pinned her to the wall with his staff, she grinned.

"Solas, right?" She asked. "Wow, you're more handsome than I imagined."

"And ye'd be Sombra, I presume." Solas answered. "Where's Katsu?"

"Dunno. He clocked me one the minute I let him out, I didn't see where he went except out."

"You do not look as though you were hit." Genji said.

"I don't bruise easy. You wouldn't believe what I've learned about you...Sparrow."

"I am at peace with who I was; your threats do not concern me."

"Sure about that? As for Solas...Talon ain't happy with you, chico, or your sister."

"I believe that falls under the heading of 'their problem', lass." Solas replied. "They can always do themselves a favor and dismantle."

"Or give you Reaper's head on a platter, neither of which is happening by the way. He's why you two are hunting Talon, isn't he? Because he killed your father?" Solas pushed his staff into her.

"Best to mind yer own business."

"Wow, sensitive much? Just stating facts. Such as the fact that microchips in the brain are rather...vulnerable." Genji noticed too late Sombra's fingers moving, holographic hexacons appearing beneath them. He could feel her system-could feel her-work his way into him and he screamed in agony. He felt her override him, his systems, trying to turn him into her puppet. A drone that can be programmed at will. But then her presence was stopped, blocked by a force of some kind. He could feel something inside him aid his dragon, his soul, repel the invasive force that is Sombra. For a moment, he saw a glimpse of silver and heard a growl...a wolf's growl. The patch Solas had placed in him was helping to protect him. He looked up and saw Sombra had been kicked out of his system, but Solas lowered his guard for a moment. It was long enough for Sombra to disappear. Solas let loose a curse.

"Are ye all right?" He asked Genji. Genji shook his head to clear it, then looked up.

"I'm fine." Genji answered. "Your patch kept her out."

"Nah, ye kept her out, I only provided a bit of help." It was then Mercy had raced in, looking worried. "Angie? What is it?"

"We have a problem." She said. "Talon broke in. Pharah and her team held them off, but no one's seen Hanzo or the officers."

"We'll find them. Sombra was just in here, the cow had broken Katsu out. Aesun knows where we'll find the bastard."

"Verdammt!"

Meanwhile, Hanzo and the Interpol officers found themselves pinned by enemy gunfire. Talon soldiers had stormed the halls and began firing. The officers at least had guns, hand guns which were nothing compared to the high powered rifles but they were better than nothing.

"Shimada!" The second officer cried. "Tell me you know how to use a gun!"

"My family's business was in weapons and drugs." Hanzo answered. "It is safe to say I know the basics of using a gun."

"Clutch piece on my ankle, get it!" Hanzo nodded and grabbed the clutch piece. He fired, hitting some of the soldiers. It took a few tries before he was able to hit a vital spot, he had to get accustomed to the recoil of even a small gun. They seemed to be holding their own, until the first officer was shot.

"Roberetti!" The second officer shouted, rushing to his partner.

"Damn." Roberetti grunted. "I'm all right, Kalinawa, bullet only hit meat."

"Screw the bravado. Shimada, if you have any tricks up your sleeve, now's the time!"

"Kuso..." The bullet had hit Roberetti in the shin, but if the rain of bullets kept up, they were dead. So he aimed the gun down the hallway, getting in front of the officers and summoned his chi to form the shape of the dragons.

"Ryū ga waga teki wo kurau!" His chi took the form of two dragons, and headed down the hallway where it struck the soldiers, killing them. Kalinawa and Roberetti looked at the group of corpses.

"Wow, that is some trick." Roberetti said.

"It is a trait of the Shimada line." Kalinawa said. "Every member of the family is capable of this."

"Including Katsu?"

"Unfortunately." Hanzo said, swaying. Channeling the dragons from a gun had weakened him, no different than when he used his arrows to channel his chi. "Let us pray he has not broken out..." That was when they heard more gun fire, and Hanzo felt other chi at work, but this chi was unbalanced and full of rage. He rushed down the hall, gun in hand, and when he came to the main hangar he found Katsu taking on who was in a new mech. He saw Katsu summon his own chi, which was yellow. It was a sick sort of yellow, not the clear blue of Hanzo's own chi, or the bright green of Genji's.

"ドラゴンは下腹を征服する!" The dragon conquers the inferior. Katsu cried as he unleashed his dragon. Katsu threw a punch, from which his dragon flowed and went towards the mech. It hit the mech, causing it to be wrecked. Hanzo rushed in time to see eject from the wreck and start shooting at the soldiers with Katsu. That gave Katsu an opportunity to move behind her and knock her out. Before Hanzo could respond, a large hover van crashed into the wall. More Talon soldiers were on it. Katsu surprised them by throwing the unconscious on there before climbing on.

"If you want the gook bleeder, cousin." Katsu called out. "Meet us at the docks within an hour. I can not guarantee her condition if you are late." The hover van took off, Hanzo firing at it with the gun until he ran out of bullets. He cursed as Genji and Solas joined him along with Pharah.

"What happened?!" Solas said.

"Katsu escaped." Hanzo said. "He has one of the Korean pilots. She is only a girl..."

"Hanzo." Genji said. "We will save her. Katsu can not hurt her as he has hurt others."

"That is not a chance I am willing to take. He may no longer be able to take sexual gratification, but he can still enjoy pain."

"What did I miss?" Ash asked as she came down, daggers drawn. "I take a wee rest an' I see chaos incarnate's hit." Hanzo explained Katsu's escape and 's abduction. Ash cursed at hearing what happened, especially when he got to Roberetti's being injured.

"Tell me yer not going to meet him." Ash told Hanzo. "If you think for one second he'll keep his word about tradin' the girl fer ye-"

"I know he will not. But Katsu has gotten himself involved with...certain activities, which under normal circumstances the clan would not have allowed."

"Sex traffickin', ye mean. I've seen his rap sheet, remember? One of the rings he's associated wit' is in the process of bein' dismantled, thanks in no small part to him. Apparently the git couldn't keep his mouth shut and started advertisin' "free girls" to whoever was in hearin' distance. That's why Interpol got involved-the ring's international, an' it's not just women trapped in it either."

"The case number Ash gave me is the trial fer that ring's head." Solas said. "Some of his key men escaped, but the law's got him. My other line gave me the basics, says that while they have the ring leader and shut down the ring itself, rescuin' several men, women an' children from sexual slavery, his second and a pair of muscle is still on the loose."

"And Katsu decided to have Talon look into the case to see if he could get this ringleader out." Hanzo said. "Ash-san, will you be strong enough to handle this fight? I know our last encounter took much strength from you."

"Yes, well, my gifts aren't a free-for-all, it takes energy to use them." Ash said. "I don't use them unless I have no choice, especially shadow walkin'."

"That takes the most energy from you."

"Aye. The longer the distance, the more people who come with me an' the quicker I make the shadow walk, the more energy I use. It took much out of me ta get the three of us a few blocks within a minute, an' that was after I shielded us from that explosion. I could get us halfway across the world in about three hours, but it'd do ye no good if I'm worn to the bone after."

"It is no different when I summon the dragons-summon my chi for the dragons to attack. It takes energy, and you needed time to regain your strength."

"Exactly. So, what's the plan?"

"We head for the docks. We take out whatever sentries they have, get and get out."

"That sounds rather basic an' straightforward."

"We have little time to refine it. We have less than an hour."

"In that case, yer going to need this." She took off the quiver and bow she had looped over her shoulders and gave them back to Hanzo. It felt good to have Stormbow returned to him.

"Pharah-san, I know this is not ideal, but your rockets will aid in this."

"Someone has to stay here to provide defense." Pharah said. "It will be up to you four to pull this off."

"Understood. Solas-san?"

"I'm in." Solas said. "I can get the blueprints fer the docks, unless Sombra decides ta play with them."

"Ash-san?"

"As though ye need ta ask." Ash said. "I can sneak around usin' mundane tactics."

"Genji.."

"I am with you, brother." Genji said.

"Then let us move."