DISCLAIMER

The following is a fan-based

FICTION

Tokyo Ghoul, Tokyo Ghoul Root A and Tokyo Ghoul:re and other products related to the TG Series are all owned by Sui Ishida, Shin Towada and Shueisha.

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Case 8: Green Obsession (4)

Taking the day of guarding Kaneki as a mean to think up a way to approach Juuzou, I ended up concluding that a direct but careful path was the best route to get a proper answer out of the good friend of mine.

While Juuzou's behavior had me stumped since it was the first time I actually saw him be this angry at his own work, I still felt certain that this was the proper rule of engagement to avoid any deflection or attempts to turn any possible conversation elsewhere. I knew him for a long time, years that saw us bond and understand each other to a close level, and yet I couldn't help but worry that he was going to put up more resistance about it than he would usually do when he is lying.

Maybe it's because Juuzou hardly lied to me when it came to big things. Sure, I didn't know everything about him since I never saw a reason to put him through that kind of pressure, especially when his background was never important for our friendship or our current work, yet the current reaction he was having at the mission he was facing at the moment had me fairly perplexed and urged me into giving a proper look at what was going on with him. And it really left me further confused when I realized how he hadn't asked for my help to write down reports about this specific case.

While he made some big progress in becoming self-sufficient in that regard, it was just a massive and unexpected step of his for him to stop asking for my assistance about this matter, and so I was incredibly determined to understand what was going on with him. As the 'calmer day' came to a smooth end, with dinner proceeding smoothly and mostly everyone going to sleep, I managed to convince Juuzou to stay behind by the dining table as I needed his help with a mission of mine. He was surprised by the request, but it wasn't unusual for the two of us to take some time to request second opinions on some absurd circumstances. In this case, I was going to use what I learned about Sen Takatsuki from Rize, the fact the writer was actually a Ghoul and that after some intense research I found a lot more about her that made her much more dangerous than planned, to start a serious conversation and slowly start to chip at his current explanation of what was going on at work with him.

"I don't think you should give her too much leeway. Sure, she isn't being vicious, but that means she is playing with you and trying to get something out of it," The young man said with a serious look. "Be careful tomorrow, I know you're good with keeping away from that kind of trouble-"

"But extra precaution is never bad in these kinds of issues," I concluded for him, smiling as I enjoyed the little time together since it's been so long since we were in that current situation. We were sitting one beside the other by the sofa, the TV was off, and it was mostly silent within the living room as I planned out how to begin poking at his possible defenses.

"Juuzou-kun," I started to say with a calm voice, using the honorific to gain more of his attention on me. The effect of that choice was immediate, with his red eyes swiftly turning back at me with an intrigued look.

"Yes, Ryo-kun?"

I sighed. "You know that I care a lot about you. Like a real lot."

He frowned, his surprise turning in confusion. "What?"

"We've been through a lot, you and I. We've been sticking around since the first day of the Academy and… I don't want to make it sound like I want to push you to do something, but I believe I can tell without any hesitation when you're having some legitimate trouble at the CCG, about the case you're currently working on."

Juuzou tensed up, his stare darting away from me and it was suddenly aimed at the floor. A clear sign that he knew that there was something going on and that I needed to know what was up with him in that regard.

"Everything's fine."

…

"Juuzou-kun-"

"I'm not lying," He blurted out. "I know it's weird, and that I shouldn't have gone to that pub and got drunk, but I don't have any issue about it. Things are just intense, nothing to worry about."

He said that, but I could only grow more concerned by how much he was trying to cover up for that entire ordeal. I knew it was big, but he was already growing antsy at this early point and… yep, this wasn't a fun situation to be in. I wasn't in a good position to really argue about keeping secrets… but then again, I would still tell him when I was sure he would take those well. And those secrets could have potentially hurt him, which is why I had to keep them for so long. But now? I was quite sure he didn't have that reason to lie to me and others.

"Juuzou-kun, I can tell it's hurting you. I know you're trying to keep it from me, but you're really not going to pass it under me," I remarked seriously. "I really don't want to put the pressure on you-"

"But you are right now and-"

"But it's my duty as someone that cares for you and I know how you tend to try to take on painful approaches on your own that I have to involve myself in," I interrupted with a sigh. "I know it's the case you're working on, but Shinohara-san was tight-lipped about it, so I can only assume it has to do with you somehow."

…

"Maybe."

I could tell without hesitation that this 'maybe' was leaning more into 'yes, I need help but I can tell exactly how much I need it'. I've lived too long around Juuzou to know when that was actually a thing, and I was surprised that I had to rely so much on what I knew about him to get him to spill the truth.

"Juuzou-kun-"

"I promise it's not something that bad. Just… really big. And I got stressed because of it."

"Do you need more people to work on it? You know you can just ask for more investigators," I pointed out with a frown. "If the mission is beyond what you and your current team can do then-"

"It's… It's not the problem, but… maybe that could actually do something to solve it," The young man admitted, still sounding as nervous as the beginning of this awkward conversation. "I guess the paperwork is also part of the problem."

"You could do that," I curtly added, unsure how to press him for that detail he mentioned about, one of the 'main problems' he couldn't tell me.

"The director said that… It's my responsibility, for the CCG. And… it's really personal."

And I thought we were close enough to talk about it.

I was annoyed by this response, and I could tell by Juuzou's growing frustration that he too was aware of this and he couldn't help but blame himself about it. I was put before a choice that left me incredibly angry but also worried of what I might do if I conceded to the 'rightful route' to take in this circumstance. Would my anger be legitimate? Yes, but I also had to take into account that he really seemed unable to give out information about it. It was so much important in his eyes that he was doing his best to withhold this from me.

It was painful to just stomach without a fight, but I had to accept the fact that it was either lashing out and get nothing out of it or go for nothing and hope for things to turn good for the two of us.

I had to make that tough choice and… I might come to regret this if I was truly wrong about it. Juuzou tensed up as I leaned towards him and pulled him into a hug. He was surprised, clearly caught off-guard by this reaction as he was perhaps waiting for me to explode at the cryptic tone he was using to deflect the topic.

"I will… not put you under any duress. I understand you are doing what you can but, please, if the situation is that troublesome, you have to ask for help. I want to help you, Juuzou-kun."

…

He nuzzled onto my chest. "I'm sorry," He apologized and then he didn't say anything else. At that very moment, I felt the most frustrated possible. But very far from what I was going to feel the next day as something big was planned to come out of what I had in mind to do with Takatsuki-san. Hairu has already been alerted of this, and I told her to not be too close to her when we were done about it and…

I couldn't help but still feel we were going to face a real monster the moment the truth came out for good.

The next morning started incredibly calm. I took my time preparing breakfast, I said goodbye to the occupants of the flat that were still there since Juuzou left earlier than I did and I decided to pass by the CCG to retrieve Preacher and Aus before reaching the writer's house.

I had established a point of meeting with Hairu and I found the pinkette waiting just around the corner that gave to the street where Sen's apartment was. She took her briefcase off my hold and she gave me a nervous look.

"Are you sure she will not… lash out?"

"Yes," I replied calmly. "I can tell she will try to escalate things, but it's best to not be the one to ring the first shot. She knows that we can't arrest her without major proof and we're not taking any chance in giving her a reason to fight us back."

It was one of those few occasions we really needed to have Arima around just to handle the tense scene that was about to come. But no, we had to endure the fact he was also the boss of the spec-ocs unit at the CCG and he was busy with a serious mission. I really didn't like the current luck we were in but, to be fair, it could have been much worse than this. The walk upstairs to reach the floor where our destination was turned out to be fairly quiet and unpleasantly relaxing. I held a degree of tension just to be ready to jump in action if my expectations ended up being wrong. Knowing how unpredictable this individual was, I didn't want to give up any advantage we might use to get out of that case alive and well.

We were not greeted by anyone at the door, with Shiono having provided us with a copy of the keys that were to be used to not 'disturb the author' or in case of emergencies. There was activity by the living room, and we proceeded with careful steps into where the young woman was currently working by.

Humming happily, Sen was blissfully unaware of what I had in mind to do for this occasion, nor how much screwed she didn't behave properly before this matter. She gave a bright smile as soon as she stepped inside the living room, right in the same spot she had been the last time we saw her.

"Ryouga-san, Hairu-chan!"

"Takatsuki-san," I calmly greeted, while Hairu didn't say anything about it. She was just too tense and unsure of the effectiveness of the plan if she gave out what we were planning due to her nervous voice and so I was the one doing most of the talk.

"So, I guess we can start now with a simple coffee. I managed to get you your macchiato and all of that."

I nodded, actually surprised by that development. "That's pleasant to hear, but I believe that will not be necessary."

…

"What?" The writer asked with a surprised look. "You don't need the coffee after the burdens I went through? The immense struggle I had to endure so you could receive this legendary taste?"

Isn't there a convenience store just on the other side of the street? Actually no, this isn't needed.

"It's a little more than just that, Takatsuki-san," I replied still calmly, unwilling to let out anything unpleasant just now as I dropped the bomb. "Let's just say that, due to some conversation between Hairu and I, we decided to send a shared letter to the director to see this case brought to an early end, mostly because we have confirmed that the threat you have reported doesn't exist."

…

"What?"

"We've studied your case thoroughly and we've come to the conclusion that the threat from Aogiri Tree doesn't linger as of now," I answered with a nod, but that didn't seem to soothe her confusion, far from it.

The author frowned. "So soon? It's not even been two-three days since you started guarding me."

I could already see some dread settling on her face right behind her confusion, but I knew that we had to keep on holding this pressure on her in a way that she shouldn't have a genuine motivation to lash out at us. I had to play my cards safely so we could leave this place as peacefully as possible.

"As I've just said, the investigation brought up hints that the threat no longer is present for us to be here to guard you."

She stood up from her seat, her eyes narrowing at me. "And how did you deduce this was indeed the case?"

"We've studied the letters themselves and it's clear that whoever sent you this threat was someone that wanted to play a trick on you. We received similar letters a few months ago and they were literally matching," I commented with a frown and that's where a little trap was created for our 'ward'.

"That's not possible, I..."

She paused, her eyes narrowing even more at me as she seemed to think about it. A tiny smile appeared on her face as she realized what was going on.

"Oh, I see. I guess this little game is going down like this."

"Supposedly so," I admitted with a flat look, I saw Hairu grasping tightly at her briefcase and I gestured to her to wait. "Which is why I don't have to say that you have two options, one better than the other."

"There are plenty of options, Kaizo-kun, but the thing is that… well, I want to hear your options first. Maybe I'm imagining too naughty, hehe~"

"You will not file any other request for a false case, and you will stop fishing on our medical charts. I've already taken steps to ensure that you will be called to return all copies of what you retrieved from there or you will face an inquiry. At that point, I will already notify the CCG of your real nature and make sure you're eliminated. We will not take chances with you, Takatsuki-san."

Her smile widened. "Or?"

"Or you die here and we take our chances in finding some guards from Aogiri Tree being around to actually protect you, Takatsuki-san."

…

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" The green-haired woman started to laugh, and I could tell that it wasn't the nice kind of laugh. Not by a fair shot. "Kaizo-kun, you lovely joker, and here I thought you would have been an easy mind to crack on. To think that I got so careless and… I mean, this does feel as if I was caught with my pants down."

"But?"

"But I have to concede that you raised some good points. I admit I wasn't very smart about covering it since nobody really had the reason to dig on me. Still, I have to ask now, how did you know I'm tied to the Aogiri Tree?"

"I had to make several controls before coming to this conclusion. First I confirmed that your real name isn't Sen Takatsuki. You lack a medical chart and you've been registered in the census in 2005, when you were just sixteen."

"And?"

"And then I had to further check on the extent of the bribery you have gone through for the sake of covering your tracks. Your contract with Shoeisha was revised after some of the managers were 'convinced' of some issues with it that needed some fixing, and after checking on the original one, I could see why you wanted to change it."

Her smile faltered a little. "Truly?"

"Yes," I replied with a guarded posture. "But don't worry, Takatsuki-san, I will not report you with your real name just yet."

"And why not?"

"Because I can tell you will try to do something against us once more. Even if I tell you to stop, you will try again and, you know the saying, keep your friends close, but your enemy closer."

A giggle left Eto's mouth. "What about possible lovers?"

"They get restraining orders if they try to ruin your life," I answered as smoothly as humanly possible. Her jaws dropped, but she was giggling again. At this point, we left the flat without further adding to the conversation. Hairu finally sighed in relief as we stepped back on the streets.

"Senpai?"

I blinked, "Yes, Kohai?"

"Can we… pass by some bar? I actually didn't get the chance for breakfast and-" Her stomach rumbled, showing how hungry she really was. A pretty blush appeared on her face and I smiled at her. It took me a moment for my serious look to break in a relieved one.

"Sure, why not?"

It was a good day now that we literally ended a case much earlier than planned and… I really needed to get my head off from serious things. Now that this situation with 'Eto' was over, it was about time for me to further dig on what was going on with Juuzou.

AN

Poor Kaizo, he sure doesn't know that his current leverage isn't as strong as he thinks it is. And that is going to be the window of opportunity for Eto to talk and 'talk'.

Also, quick reminder: Kaizo doesn't exactly know the name of Anteiku's manager, so yeah, he doesn't know him and Eto are father and daughter respectively.

Lastly, little plot hole I highlighted about Tokyo Ghoul: Technically speaking, considering how Japan is usually strict about medical charts and census due to taxes, I wouldn't be surprised that Canon's Eto had to burn a lot of money to make sure her backstory was well covered from any fanatic fan of her trying to get more about their favorite authors.