Silver Moon – Book 3 Chapter 3

Later that night…

"We have safely arrived on Earth, Takasugi-san."

Takasugi simply smiled as he crossed his arms. "Did anyone happen to notice us land?"

"No sir, it looks like we're in the clear."

"Excellent."

Takasugi currently stood in the control room of his ship. Several men who were responsible for piloting and monitoring the ship surrounded him. They had just succeeded in landing their spacecraft in a small forest clearing. A short distance away from their ship sat the city of Edo. By landing out in the forest, they were hoping to avoid detection from anyone in the city. They wanted to make their movements secretly, after all…

"Tell everyone to stay on the ship for now," Takasugi ordered the man next to him, "just in case anyone did happen to spot us."

"Yes sir," he replied. "I'll report it overhead."

Takasugi continued smiling and kept his arms folded as he turned around. He then exited the control room. He casually maneuvered through the ship for a while, until he eventually arrived back at the meeting room that he had occupied earlier. To his delight, he found all of his comrades still waiting there for him.

"Oh, you're back, Shinsuke-sama," said Matako, who was the first to notice. The others immediately turned to look at him

"That's right," he said as he approached the table. Once he was there, he glanced over to his talented strategist. "Takechi, has your scout reported back to you yet?"

"Yes," said Takechi with a nod, "he sent a message a little while ago. He claims that he has found a target."

"Great," said Takasugi, his grin growing wider. "Well then, in that case, I think I should finally inform you all about our plan for taking out Gintoki. I have already discussed this plan with Takechi beforehand, but now it's time to fill all of you in on it too."

"It's about time!" said Kamui rudely as he slammed his hands on the table. "I've been waiting to hear about this all day. If we're not going to fight him directly, then how are we going to deal with him?"

Takasugi's smile did not falter. He didn't seem to mind Kamui's comments. "We'll do it indirectly, obviously."

Takasugi paused to glance at the puzzled looks on his comrades' faces. "Allow me to explain," he continued. "Recently, Takechi and his men have been working on developing a new weapon for us."

"You mean like a sword?" asked Kamui excitedly.

"Not exactly, no. You see, when I say weapon, I mean it in the literal sense. This weapon will work indirectly, remember?"

The others nodded to show that they understood.

"What is this weapon, then?" asked Abuto politely.

"It's actually a powerful drug," said Takasugi with a happy glare. "Takechi, why don't you explain how it works?"

"If you insist," said Takechi with a slight bow. "As Shinsuke-dono has already said, my men and I have managed to create a new destructive drug. Ever since the completion of its development, we have started calling the drug, 'Dragon Rage'."

Kamui quickly leaned over towards Abuto. "Dragon Rage?" he whispered. "Isn't that a Pokemon move?"

"Yes," replied Abuto seriously, "it's a dragon type move and it always inflicts 40 HP worth of damage on the opponent."

Kamui simply crossed his arms as he pouted. "That doesn't sound like an indirect attack to me."

"It's not," said Abuto. "Honestly, if they were going for power, they should have just went with Dragon Pulse instead."

"Or Dragon Rush," suggested Kamui.

"How about Draco Meteor?"

"Don't forget-"

"Would you two shut up about Pokemon already!?" Matako shouted at the two Yato. Kamui and Abuto silently looked up to find the whole room staring back at them. Apparently the others had been listening to their conversation.

"Oh, sorry about that," said Kamui with a goofy smile.

"You should be," said Takasugi with a grin. "You forgot to mention Outrage."

Everyone looked at him out of surprise. Kamui looked ecstatic.

"S-Shinsuke-sama!" shouted a flustered Matako. "Can't you take this a little more seriously!?"

"Anyways," said Takechi loudly in an effort to regain their attention, "the term 'Dragon Rage' is only a name for our product. It only slightly resembles the basic aspects of the drug itself."

"What exactly does it do?" inquired Bansai.

"Allow me to explain," said Takechi patiently. "The drug's primary duty is to send the user into a state of uncontrollable rage, a complete and utter frenzy. Their temper will rise, and they will become much more violent then they were before. Basically, they will go completely mad with fury, and they will express it all in a single outburst…"

"It sounds crazy…" mumbled Kamui with an excited look in his eyes.

"However," continued Takechi, "the drug itself can only be activated in certain situations."

"Like what?" asked Abuto, showing signs of interest in his tone.

"Well, Dragon Rage is really only suitable for when the user finds themselves in a tense situation. It can happen whenever they are feeling uneasy, stressed, or above all, angry."

"So you can only use the drug when you're upset?" asked Matako curiously.

"That's right," confirmed Takechi. "The drug basically takes your sudden feelings of resentment and anger and amplifies them to the extreme. You then become a destructive force to everyone around you."

"I see," said Bansai quietly. "So that's why you call it Dragon Rage. Like a dragon, this drug coils up inside of you and lays dormant until it eventually breathes to life the destructive flame of rage from within."

Takechi gave the man a look of pleasant surprise. "That's remarkable, Bansai-dono. You're exactly right."

Takasugi suddenly grinned from his place at the head of the table. "The name is rather poetic. You'd have to be of a simple mind to not realize its symbolic namesake."

"Oh, so it's really not a Pokemon move," said Kamui ignorantly to Abuto.

The other Yato just rolled his eyes as a sweat drop slid down his forehead. Uh…I didn't realize that…

"So," said Bansai suddenly, "you said that this drug was going to be the key to taking down the Shiroyasha, right? Can you explain how this is all going to work?"

"Are we going to be taking the drug ourselves?" asked Kamui with almost too much eagerness in his tone.

"No," said Takasugi sternly. "The drug itself is too dangerous. Like Takechi said, the user becomes a destructive force to everyone around them, both friend and foe alike. It would just end up doing more harm than good if we took it ourselves."

"So then, who is it for?" asked Matako. "You're planning to use it on someone else right? Is it for the Shiroyasha?"

"Once again, no," replied Takasugi. "Even though I would like to watch Gintoki destroy everything precious to him with his own hands, it won't really get us anywhere. I wanted this drug developed so that we could strike against Gintoki."

"So you'll actually be using it on someone who's close to him," said Abuto as if it all made sense now.

"Correct," said Takasugi with a smile. "We'll give it to someone who will strike at Gintoki when the time is right. We want somebody who is constantly upset with the man. And now, Takechi, you claimed that you have a target for us. Please, reveal who it is."

Takechi hesitated for a second before he revealed the answer. "My scout found that the young Yato girl that lives with the Shiroyasha would be the best target. Her name is Kagura."

Upon, hearing this, Kamui raised his eyebrows. "Really?" he asked.

Matako, on the other hand, looked at Takechi with disgust. "You've chosen that girl? Didn't you have a weird thing for her before? You freaking disgusting lolicon!"

"I'm not a lolicon, I'm a feminist," Takechi explained in defense.

"Oh whatever, you freak! You probably just chose her because you have a weird attraction to her!"

"No, I actually chose her because she is the perfect one for the job," he said patiently. "My scout reported that she has recently been looking upset with her group of friends, especially when it comes to the Shiroyasha. He must currently be doing something to make her unhappy. Now, if you take this into account, along with the fact that she is of Yato lineage, I think we can all agree that it will only be a matter of time until she gets a little angry."

"That's more than a guarantee," said Abuto with certainty.

"It's true," said Kamui with a smile, "that weakling has quite the temper."

"The fact that she is a Yato would also mean that she will go on quite the rampage if you give her the drug," Abuto continued. "The destruction alone will be catastrophic."

"Excellent," said Takasugi gleefully. "We'll be sure to go with her then. After all, she sounds like the perfect tool to use for striking at Gintoki."

"She is," said Takechi with confidence.

"Well, that sounds great and all, but how do we even know that she will strike the Shiroyasha?" asked Matako skeptically. "I mean, won't she just lose all control of herself? She could end up attacking anybody."

"It doesn't really matter," said Takasugi with a grin. "Just so long as she attacks somebody, the plan will work out. After all, this plan does have more layers than just the first step."

The room went silent after that, until Bansai eventually spoke up. "Let me just make sure I have this straight," he said. "We're going to inject the Yato girl with Dragon Rage in the hopes that she will get angry and attack somebody of relative importance?"

"That's the gist of it," said Takasugi as he flashed an insane grin. "Everything has already been put into motion. Now we just have to wait for an opportunity…"

Meanwhile, a lone samurai wandered through the streets of Edo. It had been a long day for him, and he was currently feeling a little nervous about something. At this time, all he wanted to do was just go and enjoy a meal at this favorite ramen shop. Upon arriving at the place, he quietly entered.

The lady that ran the shop immediately yelled out to him. "The shop is closed," she said bluntly from behind the counter.

The samurai gave a gentle smile. "Perhaps you can stay open a little bit longer…for me?"

The owner turned around for a second. "Oh, it's just you, Katsura."

Upon hearing this, Katsura looked quite taken aback. "It's just me?" he repeated. "You don't have to be so hurtful, Ikumatsu-dono."

Ikumatsu just ignored him as she turned back around. "What do you want, Katsura?"

"Well, I was hoping I could relax a little bit and maybe get something to eat…"

"Sorry, the shop is closed," she replied quickly.

"Oh come on," Katsura begged as he brought his hands together. "Please…"

Ikumatsu glanced at him out of the corner of her eye before sighing. "Very well, take a seat and I'll get you something."

"Thank you, Ikumatsu-dono," said Katsura with a bow and a grin. He happily marched up to the counter and took a seat across from her.

Ikumatsu just remained silent as she started preparing a small meal for her friend. She didn't really want to do it, but she had always held an unusual soft spot for the idiot behind her. Maybe it was because they had always felt so attached to one another…

After about a minute, Ikumatsu realized that Katsura was being unusually quiet for some reason. Normally the problem was trying to get him to shut up. Tonight, however, it seemed like he was holding his tongue.

Ikumatsu decided to try and strike up some conversation. "So tell me, Katsura, what's on your mind?"

Katsura was silent at first, before he eventually gave a sigh. "Oh, nothing really," he said innocently. "I've mostly just been thinking about Gintoki's upcoming wedding…have you heard about it, by chance?"

Ikumatsu glanced at him curiously. "Yes, I did hear something about that. Gin-san is going to be marrying that sweet girl from Yoshiwara, right? What was her name again?"

"It's Tsukuyo," supplied Katsura.

"Oh, that's right," said Ikumatsu with a small smile. "Well, I'm glad to hear it. It sounds like those two really did end up finding happiness together."

"Yeah, and it wasn't exactly easy either…"

Ikumatsu turned around and gave Katsura a weird look. "What do you mean by that?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing really," said Katsura quickly. He never really had informed Ikumatsu on the details of the incident that took place in Yoshiwara a few months ago. He just didn't want her to worry about him…

Ikumatsu just decided to ignore Katsura and went back to preparing his meal. Once she was done, she gently set it in front of him. "Here you are," she told him.

"Ah, thank you very much," said the samurai with a small smile. It was not long before he began shoveling the ramen into his open mouth.

Ikumatsu just gave a light smile as she watched him eat. "So, I'm guessing you've been invited to Gin-san's wedding?"

Katsura quickly finished swallowing. "That is correct."

"And I'm also guessing that's why you've been thinking about it so much recently?"

Katsura just looked off to the side. "Yeah…" he mumbled.

"Well, that sounds exciting," she told him. "Are you looking forward to it?"

"Yes, I suppose," he replied. "I'm happy for Gintoki, and it will be nice to be there for him on his big day."

"It's funny," said Ikumatsu with a tiny laugh, "I figured Gin-san might actually want to keep you away from his wedding. It was actually rather generous of him to allow you to come at all."

Katsura lowered his eyebrows. "What do you mean by that?"

Ikumatsu gently smiled as she stared at the man. "Well, you know…you can just be a lot to deal with sometimes, especially for somebody like Gin-san."

Katsura looked astonished. "What are you talking about? Gintoki loves me! We're basically best friends!"

Ikumatsu secretly rolled her eyes. "Mmhmm…"

The room went silent after that. Katsura quietly looked off to the side as his cheeks actually started to blush a little bit. "Anyways," he said, "I was kind of thinking to myself that maybe, well…I would actually like to bring someone with me to the wedding…"

Ikumatsu gave him a look of surprise. "Oh really?" she asked.

"Y-Yeah," stuttered Katsura. "I was actually kind of hoping I could find someone to be my…my date…"

Ikumatsu just started grinning as she leaned against the counter. She slowly folded one arm inward as she lifted the other in order to rest her hand against her cheek. "I have an idea," she said. "Why don't you just take that companion of yours that's always following you around? You know, Elizabeth?"

Upon hearing this, Katsura's face reddened worse than ever before. Whether it was due to anger or embarrassment, Ikumatsu did not know. All she did know was that she found it funny, and she had to try hard to stop herself from completely laughing out loud.

"I am not talking about Elizabeth!" Katsura shouted angrily. "He's the last person I would want as my date! How…how could you even suggest such a thing!?"

"Oh come on," said Ikumatsu with a grin, "you two are so close to each other. You could just go as friends."

"Absolutely not!" Katsura yelled.

Ikumatsu just continued smiling as she rolled her eyes again. "Well then, who else is there to take?" she asked somewhat sarcastically.

"Isn't it obvious!?" he shouted as he pointed at her. "You! I want to take you as my date!"

"…Really?" she asked with a smug smile.

"Of course! I'd rather take you than anyone else! Don't you understand-"

"Sure Katsura, I'll go with you," she said suddenly.

"I-" Katsura paused. "You…you will?"

Ikumatsu gave him a wink. "Of course."

Upon hearing her answer, Katsura suddenly looked like he was caught off guard. "Oh…well then, I, uh…I guess that's settled..."

"I guess so," she agreed.

Katsura gave a tiny smile as he looked off to the side. "It's a date then…"

Ikumatsu just continued to smile to herself as she straightened back up. "You know, Katsura, you should have just manned up and asked me that in the first place instead of dancing around the question like a little girl."

Katsura's face quickly reddened again. "Grrr…that's exactly what I was trying to do! But then you had to interfere and twist it all around and-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," said Ikumatsu with a small laugh. "I was just messing with you a little bit. That's all."

Katsura glared at her for a second before he calmed down. He quietly went back to eating his meal. "Whatever," he mumbled. "How about the next time that you know I'm going to ask you something, you just give me a straightforward answer?"

Ikumatsu glanced at him curiously. "How odd of you to say that…will there be a next time?"

Katsura started blushing again. How was she able to make him do that so easily? "Er…well, I…"

Ikumatsu couldn't help it any longer. She quietly started laughing to herself. Messing with Katsura was just too funny.

When she finally stopped, she gave him a gentle smile before she started walking away. "Maybe we should just focus on the first one for now," she suggested without looking back.

Katsura simply watched her leave. He then furrowed his brow as he went back to his meal again. That stubborn woman he thought. Why does she have to make everything so difficult? Was it really that much fun messing with me? Honestly, this woman is more trouble than she's worth…

Katsura then took a bite of his food before he continued thinking. Then again, she did say yes…so maybe it was worth it, after all…

Katsura couldn't help but grin to himself. He had a date!

Well, another shorter chapter. Um…don't worry, I'm sure we'll get a longer one eventually XD

Anyways, it seems like we took a break from the usual Gintsu storyline this chapter in order to focus on the other characters for a bit. And you know what? I honestly don't see anything wrong with that, because I liked it. I hope you did too. I actually had a lot of fun writing this chapter :)

By the way, if you were confused about any of those "Dragon things" (Dragon Rage, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Rush, Draco Meteor, and Outrage) that Kamui and Abuto and Takasugi were discussing, I'll briefly explain the reference. Those are all just moves/attacks from the Pokemon video game series, and they're all dragon type too. Because…why not? XD (Who would've thought they played those games anyway?)

As for the next chapter, it will be featuring a lot of familiar Gintama characters, so it should be interesting. Expect some introductions…and maybe if we're lucky, some decent plot progression? I'll put that on the to-do list XD

As for now, please do me a favor and leave a review! Please? I think I'd like that. Until next time!