Chapter 25
"Wow. Massacre in a church? I never thought you were so deranged to commit such acts in a holy place. Not that I care for religion or anything, it's just amusing." Izumi chuckled looking at Akita.
"You're no better." she smirked back at her.
"Your moral boundaries are almost non existent Clown." Blaise chuckled at her as she just shrugged.
"They were never properly intact from the beginning." she smirked.
Izumi's right ear twitched and she looked to the door curiously.
"What's up?" Kidd asked noticing her focus shifting from the vice leader and leader of the anarchy.
Without a word, she stood up and tip-toed over to the door. She pulled it open and stared the girl crouched before it in the eyes.
"What are you doing?" Izumi asked tilting her head to the right. The girl was short and thin with short black hair and big brown eyes. She was in all black and there was a Tone Dial in her hands.
The commanders noticed Izumi and the new girl. Noticing what she was holding, they all stood up and she ran for it, disappearing into the crowd. They all moved outside of the meeting room and calmly looked at the people gathered.
"Clown." Beast called as she stepped up. Summoning a sniper, she pointed it into the crowd with a smirk on her face and took aim. With a single shot, she hit her target and some of the people screamed in surprise. They moved aside so the girl could be seen and everyone was dead quiet, looking at the commanders. The girl was on the floor face down with her head bleeding a growing puddle under her. Head shot. Instant death.
Clown calmly rested the sniper on her shoulder and walked up to the dead body. She picked up the Tone Dial and lobbed it back to Beast. He played a small portion of it and as they thought, it was of their meeting. With a deep frown he stepped up and faced the crowd.
"Don't fuck with me!" he suddenly yelled making everyone shrink back or jump from the sudden shout.
"Betrayal will not be tolerated here! We've been working towards this goal for 10 years now! We are two weeks away from landing the final blow and finishing everything off! Understand the importance of our plans and secrecy this organisation upholds! Don't let this happen again!" he yelled angrily as some people took a couple of steps back in fear. He was a pretty intimidating guy if he wanted to be.
Clown walked up to him casually and rested her left hand on his shoulder.
"In two weeks time there will be a wedding. The whole of the royal family will be gathered in one place and we will use that precious opportunity to strike." she said looking over at them all.
"The commanders will be the ones to take care of them. The Kidd Pirates joined us and they will be the ones to take out the Marines on the outskirts and the base. We want every one of you in the capital by noon. After they kill everyone, the walls will be raised and the nobles will be trapped. We have the files of every single citizen in Vioris. Handing out the files, you will be the ones to take care of your individual targets. Kill all of them and leave the rest." she explained as Koala brought out the files on a trolley. They handed the files out as everyone smirked at their targets.
"You are here to kill. We expect you to do everything in your power to accomplish your missions successfully. We will bring down the monarchy!" Beast yelled and everyone cheered.
"Clean the mess up then go home. In the two weeks we have left, get ready for the final showdown." Clown said making her sniper disappear.
"Dismissed!" Beast yelled and walked back into the meeting room with the rest of the commanders and Kidd Pirates.
"Well that was interesting." Izumi commented amused.
"Sure was." Kidd agreed.
"We will see you around. Do not mention anything about this outside of this room and lay low. Stick to the plan and do not fail." Beast warned.
"Don't threaten me." Kidd growled.
"Hey, hey. We got it. Let's go Kidd." Izumi said pulling at his arm, trying to keep him calm.
He nodded eventually and they left. Killer managed to get them back to town and from behind a building, Akita walked out with a lazy smile and waved at them. She was in her normal clothes, no traces of the clown costume she was wearing at the meeting.
"Kita. Hey. You changed pretty quickly." Izumi said smiling at her.
"Changed? What are you talking about?" she asked smiling innocently.
"Never mind." Izumi waved it off, remembering that the commanders' identities are a secret.
"So, you're heading back to your ship? It is quite late now." Akita said walking with them.
"Nice outfits by the way." she chuckled with an amused gleam in her eyes.
"Shut it bitch. You made us wear it." Kidd frowned crossing his arms.
"Haha. You should wear it more often. The blood would stand out more that way." she said grinning.
"You were awesome with that guitar Akita." Killer said smiling at her under his mask. He was pretty impressed by the commanders' performance.
"Thank you. I've been playing for a long time." she smiled at the blond.
"You're good at it." he said.
"Thanks." she grinned as they walked onto deck.
"I need to get out of these clothes. It's too pure of a colour, I can't stand it." Izumi mumbled as Kidd followed her below deck.
Killer didn't mind it so he just sat down against the railing with Akita for a chat.
"How long have you been playing?" Killer asked curiously.
"Since I was about 10 or 12. Blaise taught me after we became friends." Akita smiled, leaning back against the railing.
"How did you two meet then?" he asked.
"You ask a lot. Curious?" she smirked and winked at him.
"Maybe." Killer chuckled.
"Haha, fine. We actually met in a fight." she laughed and started to tell.
"I was exploring when this group of thugs attacked me. They thought I was a guy and tried to play big. I fought back but I was outnumbered and I was never that good at close combat. Blaise saw and he jumped in. He helped me out and even treated my wounds. He said it was on impulse and since then we've been best friends." she explained.
"I see. So you've been trouble since you were young huh?" he chuckled.
"Yup. Been following me through life like a shadow." she chuckled.
"Not much different than any of us on this ship. Kidd and Zum had been getting into nothing but trouble since they met." Killer said amused.
"Haha. She's been trouble since before I met her. She was always like that. Challenging things that can easily kill her. It's in her nature." Akita laughed.
Just then Kidd and Izumi walked back onto deck and joined the two.
"What'cha talking about?" Izumi asked grinning.
"You and how much trouble you are." Akita chuckled.
"Hey, I'm not that bad." Izumi pouted.
"You're in denial." Kidd laughed patting her head.
"Am not." she glared up at him as he only looked back amused.
"You guys have two weeks until the log pose sets. I hope you enjoy it here despite everything that's going on." Akita said smiling at them.
"I'm sure we will." Izumi smiled.
As the other three chatted happily, Izumi ached a little inside as she remembered Sid. It still hurt when she thought of him and she missed him so much. Looking up at the night sky, she hummed in thought.
"You alright?" Akita asked looking at the tigress.
"Yup." she smiled at her.
"So whereabouts do you live anyway?" Killer asked.
"What's up big boy? Fallen for me already?" Akita asked smirking at Killer.
"No, that's not it. I'm simply curious. You may be hot but you need some work on your attitude." he replied smirking under his mask.
"If you can't handle me don't even try buddy." she chuckled as Izumi and Kidd watched the two interact amused.
"Is that a challenge?" he asked smirking under his mask.
"Take it as you will." she said and winked at him.
"I wonder what could happen in the two weeks we're here." Izumi whispered to Kidd amused.
"We'll see." he whispered back with a grin.
"Anyway. I'll leave you guys to it. I need sleep and I can already hear my bed calling." Akita said as she stood up stretching her arms above her head.
"See you around." Izumi smiled at her.
"Of course." she smiled back and jumped onto the docks.
"She's an interesting one isn't she?" Kidd asked nudging Killer.
"If you say so." he replied and walked off below deck, making him laugh.
"I think he likes her." Izumi smiled.
"Maybe. Killer likes the sarcastic sassy ones." Kidd grinned and pulled her into a warm hug.
"I would have never guessed." she chuckled enjoying his warmth.
He only hummed and broke the hug so he could lean down and press his lips against Izumi's, making her blush but kiss back.
. . .
The next day, Akita appeared at the Kidd Pirate's ship around noon.
"Izzy." she greeted her happily and pulled her into a hug as the crew was chilling on deck. Most of them were on cleaning duty again.
"Hiya. You sound like you just woke up." Izumi chuckled as she let her go.
"I just did. I came straight here after I changed." she grinned.
"Maybe you shouldn't pull all nighters then you'd wake up earlier." Izumi smirked.
"Don't get smart with me. Anyway I'm here to help you with training as I promised." Akita smiled.
"Thank you." Izumi grinned as Kidd, Killer, Heat and Wire walked up to them curiously.
"Alright. Show me what you got." she smiled and Izumi got in a fighting stance, her eyes burning with excitement.
"Not with me you idiot. With Killer or something. Go." Akita frowned and stepped away.
"Make up your mind." Izumi frowned and Killer stepped up to her.
"Usual sparring match?" he asked.
"Guess so." Izumi grinned and launched straight into an attack.
Crossing her arms and leaning against the railing, Akita watched every movement and every twitch of Izumi's muscles.
"Okay. I've seen enough." she suddenly called walking up to the two and shoved Killer out of the way, earning an annoyed grunt.
"You're holding back." she said.
"What? No, I'm not. I always fight with my full potential." Izumi said panting a little.
"That's what you think. Taking a guess; you've grown us suppressed. Not allowed to show what you are. Not allowed to use your powers. Not allowed to loose control. Not allowed to fight. Do I have to go on?" she listed with a sigh as Izumi just looked at the deck frowning.
"You unconsciously hold back because you're used to living that way. You weren't raised right so you cant use your full potential. I may be able to teach you how to do that." Akita said smiling at the young feline.
"You would." Izumi looked up at her with hope in her eyes.
"Yes. Now, first of all forget everything you know about fighting. Clear your mind. I want you to attack with pure instinct. It's in you. You know what to do, you just have to ignite the flame that's only a little flicker right now." she explained as Izumi nodded.
"Go again." Akita called and Killer walked back.
They went at it a couple of times as Akita made comments on it and helped her. It was a little slow as a lifetime of holding back is hard to just change but she was doing quite well. They were doing the same thing every day for the next week. Akita usually appeared at noon and then they started.
. . .
After breakfast, Kidd caught Izumi before she could run off somewhere and pulled her to her room.
"What the hell Kidd? What do you want?" she asked unamused, glaring up at him. He sent a glare back but sat down on her bed.
"I promised you I'd let you tattoo me. I'm here." he simply said.
"Finally." Izumi grinned and moved to get her equipment ready.
"So what do you want done? Do you have an idea of the design?" she asked glancing over at him.
"Yup. I want the simplified version if our Jolly Roger. You know the one that Wire has on his chest. Yeah, that and with some circuit lines coming from it and some cogs around it." Kidd explained smiling.
"Alright. Sounds good. I'll draw up a design for you. Where do you want it?" she asked happily.
"That's up to you. I don't really mind." he said with a shrug.
"Somewhere where you can show it off. You're the type of person that likes it flashy and standing out. So I suggest the chest. Right in the middle maybe, under your collarbones?" she suggested looking him over.
"Sounds good." he grinned.
"Awesome. I'll draw it up and we can start." she grinned and sat down to do just that.
Kidd waited patiently on her bed and it didn't take long for her to turn around with a piece of paper, grinning.
"Take a look." she smirked and handed the paper to him.
"Looks awesome. Just how I imagined it." he grinned.
"Good. Let's get started." she grinned back and traced the design.
She put it on his chest and sent him to the mirror to look at it before she started.
"It's gonna be awesome." he grinned and laid down on the bed as she pulled a pair of black gloves on.
"Yup. So just all black or do you want colours in it?" she asked.
"Keep the Jolly Roger black but anything else do with a dark red." he said.
"Got it." she smirked and got on with it.
All throughout her work, Izumi could feel her heart hammering and the warmth of Kidd's chest through her gloves. She didn't look up at him but could feel him watching her work, it made her blush but thankfully didn't effect her work.
"All done. Go look." Izumi ginned as she washed the excess ink off Kidd's chest and he sat up smiling.
"Thanks." he grinned and walked up to the mirror.
"Oh wow. It looks awesome." he said looking at his new tattoo in awe.
"Good. I'll clean up here then take a nap." Izumi said with a yawn and Kidd left happily in search of Killer to show him the new tattoo.
. . .
Akita was a little late to show up then usual. When she did arrive, the corner of her mouth was bruised and her left hand knuckles were bleeding.
"You got into a fight?" Izumi asked looking up from laying on deck in her tiger form.
"Yup. I'm here now though. Let's get started." she grinned.
"Heat." Izumi called nonchalantly and said doctor walked up to Akita.
"What do you want?" she asked glaring at him.
"Let me have a look at those." he said gesturing to her injuries.
"No." she glared back.
"It wasn't an option." he rolled his eyes and dragged her down to his infirmary.
"Why are you people so pushy?" Akita asked frowning.
"Can't deal with it, don't come here looking like that." he chuckled.
"It's not even that bad." she rolled her eyes this time.
"Let me see." he asked reaching for her hand and with a sigh, she let him treat her.
"Do you treat Izzy this gently too?" she asked watching him work.
"Of course I do. She's like a little sister I never had." Heat said smiling warmly.
"You guys really look at her as part of your family don't you?" Akita asked smiling at him.
"Everyone on the crew does." he replied with a grin.
"We had a little tragedy recently. One of our nakama was killed. Sid was Zumi's brother. He was a golden lion tamarin. He was a great friend to us all. Everyone misses the little guy." Heat said remembering him with a sad smile.
"How did she take his death?" she asked as Heat sat down beside her.
"Not too well at the start but then she opened up again." he replied and told her everything that happened.
"I see. Her Tama instincts aren't completely dead." Akita mumbled to herself, earning a questioning look from Heat.
"Nothing. Let's go back up." she smirked and got up.
Akita got Izumi training as soon as they got up and made sure she was making progress.
Heat was watching her from the side as he had a weird feeling about her, like she was hiding something very important to do with Izumi.
"You alright?" Kidd asked noticing Heat's distraction.
"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Nice tattoo." Heat grinned changing the subject quickly.
"Iz is amazing at this." he grinned proudly.
"So what got you watching the sassy bitch like a hawk?" he asked.
"Nothing passes your attention does it?" Heat chuckled but shut up as he received a hard look from Kidd.
"She's hiding something. I can feel it, I just don't know what." he explained.
"I got that feeling too. Why is it that all the people that are connected to Iz are weird and troublesome?" Kidd asked with a sigh.
"She's trouble herself." Heat chuckled.
"That's true." Kidd agreed.
"But this one is different. I can feel that she really cares about Zumi but there's something that's holding her back from reaching out to her completely." Heat said in though as he watched Akita lighting a cigarette.
"You think so?" Kidd asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Just a hunch though." Heat added with a sigh.