Hello people, and welcome back to Highschool of the Dead: Resurrection. Another chapter for the masses coming your way, one where a few unanswered questions I accidentally left in the last chapter are answered, like where the hell was Itachi?
Review Response: Even if Takashi is better at dealing with people, which to be fair is quite possible, Masato's status as a soldier is not easy to compete with, especially since he's demonstrated how ruthlessly he's willing to pursue his mission to wipe out the undead. It would be a good character moment for Takashi to stop Masato from going too far though...which I may or may not do later on.
What did I do with Itachi other than make him outdo himself with his archery skills and reveal a bit more about his backstory?
As for Takashi, Rei, and Saeko...I said in the start of this chapter that Takashi isn't touching them both, please pay attention. Besides, harems involved ALOT more than two girls, and the concept is criminally overrated if you ask me.
As for Rika and Kiriko...I refuse to give spoilers of any kind, even if I did have any idea what to do with side characters at the present time.
In the next morning, Masato actually looked out at the horde outside...the moment after he woke up. It was just only half as large as it was the previous night, which meant some must have moved on...but wait, one chunk of the street was empty, despite the fact that the opposite side was infested with zombies. He then grabbed Kohta's sniper rifle, and looked through the scope at the house closest to it...and saw a pile of dead zombies, all with arrow wounds in their heads. What mystery was this?
Next thing he knew, Itachi came through the door, and then sat down to catch his breath.
"Where did you go?" Masato asked.
"I was...trapped in a...house...all night." Itachi said between breaths, as Saeko came out.
"And you slept there?" She asked.
"Well I didn't sleep in a baby's crib in the middle of the ocean..." Itachi said.
"Noted..." Saeko deadpanned.
"Did you kill those zombies I saw by the house?" Masato asked.
"Of course I did, and I think you'll like how I did it." Itachi said.
"Inform me." Masato said, before Itachi pulled out a series of wind chimes.
"With these." He said with a smirk, before Masato looked them over.
"I see..." Masato trailed off.
"Yep, just throw them into an area, and every zombie in the area comes to investigate, and since there's not much noise to be heard. Once they're in the place you want them to be...easy pickings." Itachi said.
"Very good." Masato said before looking out the window again.
"I'm fine by the way." Itachi said
"I can see that." Masato said, and Itachi groaned.
"So...what have you been doing while I was away playing ninja in the neighborhood?" He asked.
"The good corporal took Miss Shizuka for a round of zombie-killing, and Saya and myself looked this place over to find supplies, but we got nothing of value." Saeko said.
"Shame, because I found a pair of binoculars, and spotted some good shit out there, including a yacht." Itachi said.
"Does it work?" Masato asked.
"I'm an archer, and a scout, not a teleporter." Itachi said.
"On that note, what can you do?" Masato asked.
"I already told you." Itachi deadpanned.
"Then get your hands on a gun." Masato said, and Itachi laughed.
"I'm not touching one of those glorified pea-shooters with a yard stick, let alone my hands." He said.
"You need to be as well-armed as you can be." Masato said seriously.
"You did hear me explain how I used wind chimes to trap zombies right?" Itachi asked.
"That's not the point-" Itachi cuts Masato off.
"I know your point, but even silenced, there are advantages to using a bow that a gun user can't hope to have, especially since arrows can be reused." Itachi said.
"Guns also have advantages-" Itachi cuts Saeko off.
"You don't have a say in this." He said sharply.
"She's correct; there is a reason guns replaced bows." Masato said and Itachi raised an eyebrow.
"I'm the wrong person to say that to." He said.
"Regardless, if you use both, you'll have more options." Masato said.
"And more limits, which I refuse to take part in. Now, do you have any missions for me, or shall I show everyone the way to what I found when they wake up?" Itachi asked, and Masato stared at him.
"We'll wait for the others. However...take this instead." He said as he handed over a bayonet. Itachi then looked it and Masato over, and thought about how he can save the durability of his arrows by using a military-grade knife instead.
"What the heck..." Itachi said while shrugging then took the bayonet from him.
When everyone woke up about an hour later, the group took the back way out of their house, and went down a smaller road, that happened to be almost clear of zombies, minus the occasional straggler that Saeko, Itachi, Masato, or Takashi used with their sword, arrows, knife, or metal bat respectively. Even Alice got involved every now and then to get some practice in, and even though she waited too long for comfort, she never missed any head shots. Shizuka didn't even considering shooting any zombies since she had her fill the previous night.
Saeko then got through slicing through a small group of zombies, and then Itachi put an arrow through the last one's head just as Saeko turned around.
"You missed one." Itachi said with a smirk.
"Where to now?" Masato asked.
"Around this bend, we should get to the road to the dock, once we get there, we see if this yacht works, go on a cruise of something, come back with whatever we get, and either relocate again, or make a base there. Easy-peasy." Itachi said.
"And you learned all of this from looking at a street with binoculars?" Takashi asked.
"Of course not, I spent about an hour scouting the place from different angles before I was forced to go back to the house I slept at, which by the way has functional showers and lights." Itachi said, and Saya facepalmed.
"The water and lights! We never tried it at our house!" She exclaimed.
"Well...now you know better." Itachi said smugly.
"Don't talk to me like I'm stupid!" Saya snapped, and Itachi raised an eyebrow.
"Don't act stupid for a self-proclaimed genius." He said.
"I am a genius!" Saya exclaimed.
"You could've fooled me..." Itachi said.
"Apparently it's not hard to fool you." Saya said.
"Wow...how hard did you think before spitting that at me?" Itachi asked.
"Harder than you could that's for sure." Saya said.
"Oh that is not possible to believe..." Itachi said.
"Knock it off, both of you." Takashi said seriously.
"He started it!" Saya snapped.
"I don't give a damn, end it." Takashi said, and Saya huffed as Itach smirked.
"I also spotted a surprising lack of zombies in this area, so we should be fine when it comes to noise, at least mostly." He said.
"Good." Masato said, and the group then carried on in silence.
When they finally reached the docks, the group looked over each of the boats there, one by one...which each one being in different condition. Some had parts stripped off of them like metal plating, or batteries, or were just robbed. Others however were in relatively mint condition...including...
"There's the yacht I mentioned." Itachi said as he pointed to it, and the group went to it, and looked it over.
"Well...it's looks o.k." Kohta said.
"Let's check it out." Takashi said before they boarded the boat, and investigated it.
"No zombies, not even a drop of blood." Rei said.
"Not many of the other boats had any either." Saeko said.
"Why would no think to try to escape with them?" Alice asked.
" Maybe they couldn't get to them, or were forbidden." Saeko said.
"Or they tried and failed somehow." Itachi said.
"Either way, this yacht is ours now. Let's see if it works." Masato said before taking the controls, looking them over, and trying them out...and the engine began humming
"I'll be damned..." Itachi said...before Masato drove the boat further out to the water, and everyone clung onto something stable, including Alice clinging onto Zeke with one arm, and Shizuka's leg with the other as the woman in question grabbed a railing, and Rei held onto Takashi with Itachi and Saeko each bracing themselves on the deck, and Saya and Kohta each held onto an opened door. Once they got their footing, they all let go of what they held onto, and enjoyed the ride.
"Wait, what about our supplies, and the humvee?" Shizuka asked.
"We can go back for it later." Takashi said.
"I vote we scout further ahead and maybe kick more ass before getting your stuff." Itachi said.
"I vote the other way around." Saeko said.
"Come on, how are we going to get that big-ass humvee onto a luxury ship?" Itachi asked.
"Nevermind the humvee; its gun is out of ammo anyway. We can use it to transport the goods here instead." Takashi said.
"Yeah, Saeko's right." Kohta said.
"Well...then let's go get your stuff." Itachi said, and Masato must've heard, because he went back to dry land before spearheading the group's charge to get the humvee back.
When they got back to their apartment building, Masato used his unsuppressed Scar to draw the zombies to him, while the rest of the group unloaded with their own suppressed weapons, or Itachi's bow. Saeko also went with Masato to kill the one who get too close to him, or to draw the zombies' attention even more. After the brief, intense, and almost one-sided battle, the group loaded their supplies onto the humvee, and drove off to the yacht.
Once they were out to the water, even Masato took some time to relax; the guns were all accounted for, the ones that needed some preparation were in Kohta's care, and Takashi took over the drive. The rest of the ladies stripped down to their underwear and began to sunbath as the sun reached the highest point of the midday. Alice and Zeke went downstairs to get some rest as well, and Itachi was on the bow of the ship looking at where they were heading, and that left the four ladies alone.
"It's too bad we don't have any sun screen. I could do this for hours." Saya said.
"Me too, but...now's not a good time for too much sun, so let's make this quick." Rei said.
"Right." Saeko said.
"Actually...I think I found some sunscreen in the bathroom of my apartment." Shizuka said.
"What?" Rei asked.
"What's sunscreen doing in a bathroom?" Saya asked.
"Maybe the owner had a sense of humor." Rei said.
"Either way, now we won't have to worry about a sunburn, or God forbid skin cancer." Saeko said before the ladies got to work using sunscreen from Shizuka's bag to cover themselves, and each other. Saya eventually looked into the bag...and something caught her eye.
"What is this?" She asked before removing a small box.
"Oh...that...is...well, they're birth control pills..." Shizuka said.
"Say what now...?" Rei asked.
"Well, I found them in the bathroom as well, and I figured...why not take them too?" Shizuka said.
"Don't tell me you plan on taking them because of Corporal Toriyama." Saya said.
"No! No! Not at all! I mean...sure he's pretty built...but..." Shizuka trailed off.
"Nevermind." Saya said.
"So, what can you tell us about how these things work?" Rei asked.
"Well, they can keep a woman from getting pregnant, if they're used the correct way, and I heard they also increase estrogen levels somehow." Shizuka said.
"In that case, the last thing you need is more estrogen." Saya said.
"Yeah, you're boobs are so big, you can play volleyball with them." Rei said seriously.
"Miss Miyamoto!" Shizuka exclaimed, and Saeko giggled.
"If you do hook up with the good corporal, he's going to have a hell of a time with that tight body of yours." She teased, and the ladies continued laughing at Shizuka's expense as she stood there shaking and groaning in frustration.
About an hour later, the ladies went for a short swim to cool themselves off, and then dried off with some towels and went downstairs to rest. The entire group then stopped in the middle of the water to have their lunch, and of course, sort out their possessions. An hour after that, Itachi took his place on the yacht's deck before sunbathing himself. Saeko then followed Takashi upstairs and as he got the boat moving again, Saeko joined Itachi.
"You ladies had your turn." Itachi said.
"I want to talk to you." Saeko said, and Itachi just stared at her...and ignored the fact she was half-naked.
"About...?" He asked.
"Is there...anyone you left behind? And no I don't mean your parents." Saeko said.
"I take back what I thought about you being a pain in the ass already. But to answer you, no I haven't." Itachi said.
"Interesting..." Saeko trailed off.
"Oh is it?" Itachi asked.
"Yes. Did you have any friends, any other family members...any girlfriend?" Saeko asked, and Itachi smirked.
"No, I do not..." He said.
"I don't know what's more sad, that you're alone, or that you're o.k having no one in your life..." Saeko trailed off.
"Believe it or not, I did have people in my life; two girls at different points in time I wanted to be with. The first was someone who didn't return my feelings, simply because she couldn't grasp them. Can't say I blame her though, we were only kids, and I myself didn't know a damn thing about romance." Itachi said.
"I see...and the other one?" Saeko asked.
"The other one...Miwa Sakarugi her name was. We actually had a good thing going at first, I was even crazy enough to say I'd marry her when we got old enough...but it wasn't meant to be; she changed schools on me before things got too serious." Itachi said before leaning back.
"Do you know where she is now? And what if we run into her?" Saeko asked.
"She might be a zombie for all I know, and I'm no longer interested in finding her." Itachi said, and Saeko looked away disgusted by how casually Itachi was speaking.
"I see..." She said.
"I got to tell you Saeko...I don't know why I even play these games; I got all the company I need...right here." Itachi said while pointing to himself.
"Then I will leave you to whatever you have in mind..." Saeko said before walking away, and Itachi watched her leave before shaking his head.
Takashi meanwhile was still driving the boat, and Saeko joined him.
"Hey." Takashi said.
"Hi." Saeko said.
"Is something wrong?" Takashi asked.
"For now yes...I just asked about Itachi's history, and now I regret doing so." Saeko said.
"Let me guess, he crossed a line?" Takashi asked.
"Yes, but not with me. I just don't understand how he can be so boorish, yet...so benign." Saeko said.
"Benign? That's a strong word." Takashi said.
"He has his moments, questionable as his motives are." Saeko said.
"Right...so what did you ask him about?" Takashi asked.
"His romantic history; he actually has a pretty decent one, although he now disregards their well-being as much as he does that of his parents." Saeko said.
"And yet here he is without a drop of our blood on his hands." Takashi said.
"Well...now that I think about it, that man is probably a walking Yin-Yang symbol." Saeko said.
"Oh?" Takashi asked.
"He's completely insufferable, yet good to have around. He hinders us, yet we need his help. He gives useful insight, and also unbearable headaches. Although...despite all these contradictions, he balances things out somehow. He's quite manly all-things-considered." Saeko said.
"That's twice you said something major about him." Takashi said.
"I said the same thing about Kohta in the anime, saying it about Itachi is no big deal." Saeko said.
"Don't let Kohta catch you saying that." Takashi said.
"He won't." Saeko said before leaning against the wall.
"If you're trying to distract me, you'll have to do better than that." Takashi teased, and Saeko huffed in amusement.
"I would never try to get between you and Rei; you two seem to be getting along quite well." She said.
"Yes...we are. But, you and me..." Takashi trailed off.
"Give it no further thought. I will always be grateful for what you did for me, but your place is with Rei, I came to terms with that ages ago." Saeko said seriously, and Takashi hummed in acknowledgement.
"So...why did you spend as much time with Itachi as you did?" He asked.
"Aside from keeping an eye on him?" Saeko asked.
"Yeah. You two do have a habit of working together well, what with him fighting from a distance, and you up close. You're like two halves of a whole samurai." Takashi said.
"Which sounds alot more romantic than it should, given the circumstances." Saeko said.
"Good point...although..." Takashi trailed off.
"I'm not interested in him." Saeko said seriously.
"Well, he's clearly interested in you; he's just too full of himself to admit it." Takashi said.
"My father once told me that pride has a nasty habit of throwing things out of balance, hence why it's so dangerous." Saeko said.
"Really?" Takashi asked.
"Think about it. How many problems arise because someone was thinking only about themselves?" Saeko asked.
"Oh...that...but what does this have to do with Yin and Yang?" Takashi asked.
"Because pride focuses only on one or the other, when both are needed. Sure you can get by one only one, but...it's an unnecessary limit." Saeko said.
"O...k..." Takashi said.
"This is an extremely basis way of putting it, but it's still the truth." Saeko said.
"Oh, I believe you." Takashi said.
"Ironically, even doing something for others without expecting a reward is veiled selfishness, which is why pride is it's own punishment." Saeko said.
"Me and Rei kept saying how Itachi is going to get his..." Takashi said.
"Yet another thing said about pride: it goes before the fall..." Saeko said seriously, and meanwhile, Itachi walked to the front of the boat, notched an arrow at the lone zombie on the dock ahead, smiled, then loosed the arrow through it's brain.
Well...that last part just says it all doesn't it? Among the Seven Deadly Sins, Itachi's sin is Pride, which is of course the worst of the 7, and it shows in just about every way you can think of. From Itachi winding up committing the other 6 in one way or another, to him using others to puff up his own image, to him being selfishly selfless. Although just for giggles, since Masato is only interested in killing zombies, without being subtle about it, his sin is Wrath, and since Saeko literally gets off on killing zombies, her sin is Lust, although her case is somewhat liberal. Anyway, that's it for the anniversary marathon...if you can even call it that, so be sure to Rate, Review, and Share, and stay tuned.