Hide

"Both of us love you, Hide. I'm not sure what I can do about it. He's in pain while I exist, but if I give in to him, I'll be the one to perish. Please, tell me how I can stop this!"

Haise's words kept running through my head from the night before. I couldn't give him an answer that would make everyone happy. And yet, he still chose to sacrifice himself to allow Kaneki to come back. Over the last two months, I'd grown comfortable around Haise, and even a little affectionate for him. But I never wanted to cross any lines. I didn't want him to feel like he was a replacement for Kaneki. So, when he confessed his feelings to me, I was at a loss. We both knew that my heart belonged to Kaneki, but at that moment we needed each other.

While I didn't regret anything I'd done for him, there was this small sense of guilt in my heart. Seeing his scars and knowing that he'd been violated so cruelly, I shouldn't have pushed for anything sexual, even if he was identifying as Haise. I felt Kaneki tremble as we held each other in bed this morning, and realized that he was nervous about being touched, even though he had no reason to fear me.

Amon broke the silence in the car, "Do you think Mado's daughter can be trusted, Hide?"

Grateful to have something else to consider other than my issues, I thought for a moment. From the brief time I spent working for her at the store, Akira had never given me any reason to believe she could be manipulative or deceiving.

"I'd like to think so, Amon. The risk she took to bring us that information was huge. For now, it's the best option we have. Most of her intel coincided with your findings, so that brought some legitimacy to it." The unmarked CCG car we were in sped through the city streets towards our destination. Amon and I sat on either end of the backseat while Juuzou kept himself occupied between us by reading through Akira's notes.

"She looked sincere. Though it must be a tough position, knowing that her assistance will result in us either arresting her father or killing him. That kind of resolve is admirable," Amon said as he stared out the window. She had apparently made an impression on him.

"I can't tell whether you're thinking of recruiting her or asking her out," I said as I noted his interest in Akira. The somber mood in the car seemed to lighten up as even Juuzou stopped reading the papers to get a look at Amon's surprised expression.

"That was purely a professional statement, nothing more. Although it wouldn't be a bad idea to consider, the recruitment part. Her notes represent a keen sense of rationality and observational skill."

"Whatever you want to call it, man," I nodded and went back to looking out the window. The sun was close to the horizon now, casting an orange-red tone over the buildings and roads. Sunsets had always been an interest of mine. I wished Kaneki and I were sitting on the roof of our building watching this one, like we used to before all this madness began. I silently swore to myself that we'd watch the next one together.

"We're here. Let's go over our plan once more before we move out," said Amon. I'd be sneaking in through the roof since I could scale the outer walls with my kagune. A team would be dropped onto the roof to accompany me. Amon and Juuzou were meeting a team led by someone named Takizawa to begin a floor-by-floor sweep. The building had five floors, with minimal security during this time of day. Other squads were nearby preventing any reinforcements from arriving. Most of the Anteiku members were with those squads, to help identify approaching Ghouls.

Akira predicted that her father would be on the third floor most of the day, so the sweep would be timed to where the rooftop team and ground team would converge on the third floor and check it together. We were all given communication devices to keep the teams informed of any necessary information.

"You'll be okay on your own until you meet with the rooftop team, right Hide?" Amon asked as he leaned his head back and viewed the height of the building I was about to climb.

"Don't make me second-guess myself now, fellas. I'll see you inside. Don't start the party without me!"

I tried my best to keep the confidence in my voice as I walked away. I didn't want to be here, not after finally having Kaneki come back to me. But this was necessary for us to be safe again. I swore I'd protect him and finishing this will ensure that these bastards will never be able to hurt him again. This is the last time he'll have to wait for me. Once I get back to him, we're going to get our lives back to normal again. We can both get back into our college classes, find new part-time jobs if need be, and just enjoy life together. One man stands in the way of that future, and I won't back down until he's no longer a threat.

Using my kagune had become second nature to me after training with Anteiku over the last few months. Climbing the building took little effort, and before I knew it, I had made it to the roof. I walked over to the door into the building and waited for the team. They should have made contact by now, so I paced the area quietly. Then, the small radio crackled to life in my ear.

"Hide, this is Amon. I just got word that the rooftop team has been delayed, so hold your position."

"How long of a delay?"

Amon didn't reply immediately, which got my nerves worked up. It made me wonder if we had walked into a trap. "I haven't been given a time frame yet."

"We only have one shot at this, Amon! If everyone else is in position, we should just move on."

"No, that would leave you on your own to sweep two floors. That's too much for one person to manage themselves!"

My head was telling me that waiting for help was the smart thing to do. But my impatient heart got my feet moving faster than my brain could keep them still.

"I can handle it. I'll see you on the third floor." I pulled the tiny communication piece from my ear and tossed it aside before entering the building. The longer we hesitate, the less our chances of maintaining our element of surprise. Our intel showed little resistance from the top two floors, so there should be no reason to freak out. I followed the stairs down to the fifth floor and began to check rooms. As expected, this floor was unoccupied. Now that I had calmed down, I realized that getting rid of my radio wasn't a smart move. But there was only one floor left to check before I re-joined the rest of the teams.

Now on the fourth floor, I went through the same search pattern as the previous one. There was still no one around, and I hoped that Amon and the others had the same amount of luck. As I reached the end of the main corridor, I went in the direction of the stairs that led to the third floor. Before I could open the door to the stairwell, I heard the engines of the elevator next to me begin to activate. No one on the team would dare to use the elevator, so it had to be someone that was already in the building. I stayed frozen in place, waiting to see on which floor the elevator was going to stop. It ground to a halt on this floor.

If we still had the element of surprise on our side, I decided that the best move was to position myself just outside the elevator doors and ambush whoever had used it. If it was some low-level goon, then the risk would be worth it to reduce the number of hostiles in the building. The doors slowly opened to reveal none other than Mado himself. I sprang into action as I shoulder-checked him against the back of the elevator and pushed the button for the third floor while he was down. Keeping him in a small, enclosed space would be smart now. Getting us back down to the level where the others should be was also a priority.

"Ahh, so it's you, Nagachika," he said as he struggled to catch his breath after I'd knocked the wind out of him. "Did your broken human die? I can't imagine you'd be stupid enough to do this while he was still alive."

"That's none of your concern, Mado. This is going to stop today! You won't be able to hurt anyone ever again!" While he was still incapacitated, I pulled him toward the middle of the elevator and pinned him face down to the ground. My kagune worked as leverage to keep him from moving as I pushed them against the ceiling. We came to a stop on the third floor, and as the doors opened I expected to see the CCG on the other side, but surprisingly no one was there. Mado caught on to my hesitation and scoffed.

"Hah, were you expecting there to be someone here to help you? The fact that you chose this time to try to attack makes it painfully obvious that my daughter has finally had enough of me. That ungrateful child just doesn't see that I'm trying to make this world better for our own kind! I never should have trusted her, and now she's sold me out. Who knows what she's exposed about me to you. Shame on me for holding out false hope that she'd eventually come around."

At that, the doors to the stairwell opened, and the CCG began to file into the corridor. The elevator doors attempted to close, but I slid one of my kagune tendrils out to prevent them from doing so.

"Hide, you damned fool! What were you thinking moving on by yourself?! At least keep your radio with you. This depended on timing, you know!" Amon angrily lectured me as he forced his way to the front of the group. He saw who I had caught and paused his ranting.

"It appears my daughter wanted to make sure that I didn't get out of this scenario alive, too bad she was too much of a coward to face me herself."

His disrespectful words towards Akira angered me. "Your daughter has shown more honor and courage than any one of us here! She wanted peace between humanity and Ghouls, and you refused to consider it as a possibility. Look at us, Mado. There are Ghouls and humans here working together to stop you. Peace is something we can achieve, but not while you're still free to spread your hate and fear."

"Well, I suppose if this is the end for me, I'd better make this last fight count, right?" At that, his kagune burst towards the ceiling of the elevator, its sharp silvery point severed the lines holding the elevator in place. The CCG quickly disappeared as the elevator plummeted down to the ground floor, the impact shattered the walls and caused structural damage to the surrounding area. Considering the stairs ran parallel to the elevator shaft, I was sure they were now blocked with debris, essentially trapping the CCG on the third floor.

Crawling out of the wreckage of the elevator, I pulled myself to my feet and looked around. Dust still hung in the air making it hard to see. My body had taken some damage, but I felt the wounds healing as I limped toward a more secure spot. I hadn't found Mado yet, but I was sure he wasn't caught in the elevator. He was desperate now, knowing that his end was close made him even more dangerous.

"That's better; I'd rather have some privacy for this. Hope you didn't mind, Nagachika. I get a little shy when I bring out the strongest of my collection. I know you aren't a Ghoul by birth, so you probably aren't aware. We can attain more power if we cannibalize our own kind. A kakuja can be our most powerful defense, but if you can't even bring yourself to feed off of humanity, you'd never even consider Ghoul flesh as a possibility. You'll soon realize the mistake you've made in challenging me!"

The kagune that Mado manifested began to surround his arms and upper body, coating him like armor. Sharp spines lined his forearms while several kagune tendrils spread out behind him. His size increased considerably as he completed his transformation. A devilish grin manifested on the reddish-gray mask that now covered his face.

What he didn't know was that I knew of the concept of kakujas and cannibalism. After he'd seen me start to eat Yamori after our fight, Yoshimura explained it to me. Insanity and other side effects prevented many Ghouls from taking part in it. However, during the weeks that I was working undercover with Aogiri, I couldn't get my food through Anteiku. So instead of feeding off humans like the other members did, I would quietly pick off the Ghouls that wouldn't be missed. To me, it was a necessary evil to keep the charade going and increase my strength.

I'd never attempted to form a kakuja from it, but as I saw Mado with his, I realized that it may be the only way I can defeat him. Risking my sanity to put an end to him was a gamble. But I had resolved to finish this through whatever means necessary. So if I had to become a monster, then that's what I'd do. I had someone waiting for me to come home, after all. At least he wouldn't have to see the means by which I reached that end.