Akame Ga Kill: Kill the Second Chance.
This chapter will be about Night Raid's new recruits, Sheele and Tatsumi naming their adoptive daughter, Seryu thinking of a way to get out of the Capital, and Tatsumi talking to Najenda about Esdeath switching sides.
Quick Note- last chapter I've revealed the four spirits for Akame, Lubbock, Mine and Bulat. And here are the next four spirits:
Najenda's spirit will be a wolf. The spirit's ability can give her spiritual powers to summon spiritual animals that lives in the forest, meaning that she can summon a tiger, lion, wolf and bulls. If the ability is used during the day, the spiritual animals are stronger and hard to kill. Night, then still strong, but vulnerable if they up against a strong opponent. The downside is, the more Najenda summons animals, the quicker the necklace powers drains, and she would have to wait a day to use it again.
Spear's spirit will be a sabretooth tiger. The spirit's ability can increase her speed and agility to make it impossible to find her, while also increasing her attack powers. The downside is, the necklace can only be use during the day. Sabretooth tigers don't like the night, and they need to rest to regain their strength and speed.
Sheele's spirit will be a panda. The spirit's ability can make her summon barriers to protect her friends from any kind of explosives, snowstorms, sword strikes, and rain of bullets and arrows. The downside is, the barrier can only hold up for an hour and a half, and it drains Sheele's necklace power fast if she uses it on five people.
Chelsea's spirit will be a fox. The spirit's ability can give her new choices for her Gaea Foundation, while giving her quick thinking and fast decisions to change into an animal or person if an enemy is coming. The downside is, Chelsea can only use the fast decisions and quick thinking five times, and she needs to use it carefully when she is in a dangerous place, like the palace.
That's all the spirits for this chapter. If any of you guys have ideas for any of the following people, let me know. One thing, Wave and Kurome will have necklaces, but the design will be different, and I'll reveal Wave's spirit in the next chapter. What should Kurome's spirit be?
One last thing, the child's name will be Lilac. I don't know why, but I like the name.
Now, let's enjoy the chapter!
Chapter Twenty-One: New Recruits.
(The Next Morning; In the Skies; Heading to the Southeast.)
"Hey…" Chelsea said, sitting next to Akame and Sayo. "Is he okay?" The two women turned their head to see that Chelsea was gesturing to Tatsumi. The Starblaze user was sitting on the other side on the Air Manta, away from everyone, except Sheele, who was sitting next to him and still holding the sleeping child close to her chest. The child still had Sheele's purple jacket around her. Tatsumi had a solemn look on his face as he stared at the sky ahead of him. "He had that sad look on his face for a while, and from what I heard from Najenda back at HQ, he's strong, mature and innocent, with a total badass side that makes the ladies blush. This…isn't what I expected to see."
"He's not like that when he was in Night Raid…" Akame said, sending a worried look towards her lover.
"Except he was sad when I was in a coma, Akame." Sayo pointed out, also sending a worried look towards her childhood friend and boyfriend. "Also, he hasn't spoken for a while…he must be thinking about something."
"There's something I don't get about him." Chelsea said, huffing a bit before crossing her arms and turned to look at Tatsumi. "Tatsumi has been really quiet when we left your base. When I hold my hand out to shake his hand, he got this look on his face…like he saw something he wanted to forget. Do you think he knows something?"
"I don't know, Chelsea." Akame said, turning to look at the auburn-hair girl. "Let me go talk to him." Being careful to keep her balance on the Air Manta, Akame got up and walked over to the brown-hair assassin. When she reached his side and sat down, Tatsumi hasn't noticed her presence as he continued to stare ahead of him, though he did jump slightly when he heard Akame's voice. "Hey…are you alright?"
When Tatsumi turned to look at Akame, she was shocked to see a few tears in his eyes. This was the first time she had seen him crying, and it shocked her. "No, I'm not." Tatsumi replied, his voice was so low that Akame and Sheele had to strain their ears to hear them. "I have remembered something that I wanted to forget, a memory of someone being killed."
"Was it an old friend, or someone you knew?" Sheele asked, sitting next to Tatsumi, so their conversation won't be heard by the others.
Tatsumi was silent for a moment, thinking he had waited long enough, and he should tell them part-truths about him being from the future. "Before I answer that, let me ask you two something that I want you both to answer honestly." Tatsumi said, losing the tears and becoming deadly serious, something that surprised Akame and Sheele. "What would you do if you went back in time?"
Akame and Sheele looked at each other, wondering why Tatsumi would ask that. They don't believe in time travel because people only have one chance to live. So, why was Tatsumi asking that?
"If I went back in time, I would try to change my friend's future from their deaths, including the squad I was on when I was working for the Empire, and make Kurome learn the truth about the Empire." Akame replied, answering Tatsumi's question while looking at him suspiciously. 'Why would he ask that question? It's like he's from the future. But that's impossible, there is no Teigu to travel back in time. But then again, Bulat said that Starblaze was made from Tyrant, and the only way to get it was to evolve Incursio. Could it be…that Tatsumi gotten Incursio before? What are you hiding, Tatsumi?'
"I would probably do the same thing what Akame said, but make sure I don't lose Spear as a friend." Sheele said, also looking at Tatsumi suspiciously. "Why would you ask that, Tatsumi? Are you saying that you're a time-traveler that came from the future?"
Tatsumi sighed, knowing that Night Raid won't believe what he said. "Yes, I am." Tatsumi replied, and he turned to gaze at the sky ahead of him, waiting for the laughing that's about to start. After a moment, he didn't hear laughing and he turned to look at Akame and Sheele, who were staring at him with disbelief looks on their faces. "You two are not going to laugh at me, thinking that I made this up?"
Akame and Sheele shook their heads, but still looked doubtful. "Tatsumi, I don't really believe in things, like time travel, but are you sure you're from the future?" Akame asked, looking at her lover. "I mean, if you are from the future, then…do you know what Kurome's condition is?"
Sheele looked at Akame with a raised eyebrow. What condition was Akame talking about, and what does it have to do with her little sister?
"If I answer that correctly, will this prove that I did came from the future?" Tatsumi asked, making Akame nodded. Tatsumi sighed, thinking that this will take a while. "When you were working for the Empire, did your sister got sent somewhere else, like to a lab to be tested?"
Akame nodded, answering Tatsumi's question. "Yes, when me and Kurome were kids, we had to take a survival exam that was in a forest, filled with Danger-Beasts with a lot of sold children. When me and her arrived at the camp, the guards separate us, I went to the mountains to train, while Kurome got sent somewhere underground to be tested with..."
"Drugs that makes her body powerful but making her mind unstable, while also decreasing her lifespan." Tatsumi finished, making Akame widened her eyes. "When Kurome was taking the drugs, she was heavily brainwashed, thinking that she was doing good for the Empire." He then sighed heavily. "You tried to make Kurome see reason about the Empire, but she didn't listen and stayed there, officially making you, Akame, her enemy to kill. I also know that she was eating candies that are filled with drugs."
Akame was staring at Tatsumi with wide eyes. She had never told Night Raid about what she did when she was working for the Empire, including her Boss. What Tatsumi said was all true, her little sister was heavily brainwashed and drugged, making her lifespan decrease and her mind unstable. The last part definitely told her that Tatsumi was from the future. Kurome is still taking the drugs, but she put them in a bag of candies.
Sheele had a look of horror on her face as she listened to Akame and Tatsumi. She was glad that the child in her arms was still sleeping. She knew that Akame worked for the Empire, but she didn't know about the drugs the Empire made to put in children when they are sold. Experimenting on people is one thing, but drugging children?
'I never knew about that.' Sheele thought, looking at Akame with sad eyes. 'No wonder why Akame doesn't like to talk about her past.'
"Is that enough to convince you that I'm from the future, Akame, Sheele?" Tatsumi asked, reaching out towards Akame's hand and gently squeezed it. "Do you need me to explain more?" He didn't want to explain more painful memories, but he will do what he must in order to make Night Raid see the truth about him.
Akame shook her head. "No. No, you don't." She didn't want to say anything more, but there was one thing she wanted to know. "But can I ask you something, Tatsumi?"
Tatsumi nodded. "Sure, Akame. What is your question?"
Akame took a breath before gazing him at the eyes. "Did you use Incursio before in your old timeline?"
Tatsumi stiffen a bit, making Akame confirmed her question. Tatsumi did had Incursio before, and that means that Tatsumi had evolved the armor to get Starblaze.
"I did. I did use Incursio before." Tatsumi replied, looking towards the sky again. "In the old timeline I was in, I use Incursio as my main Teigu. Bulat gave it to me, and I've been using it to honor his pride." He then smiled, but it wasn't a happy smile. It was a grim smile that was filled with sadness and anger. "If only he didn't die…"
Akame and Sheele smiled as they knew the relationship between Bulat and Tatsumi, it was more like brotherly love. However, their smiles completely vanished when they heard the last part.
"Tatsumi…what did you mean by that last part?" Sheele breathed out quietly, not noticing the child in her arms was squirming slightly. "If only he didn't die. Did something happen to Bulat?"She was stiff as a statue, including Akame. They had a particularly good idea what happened, but they wanted to confirm it with Tatsumi.
Tatsumi froze when Sheele ask that. 'Shit! What should I do?!' Tatsumi thought, panicking inwardly. 'If I tell them, they'll start getting images of their deaths! What should I do?!'
"Tatsumi? What happened to Bulat in the old timeline?" Akame demanded quietly, not wanting the others, especially Bulat, to hear what Tatsumi was about to say.
Tatsumi shadowed his eyes with his hair and said, "He got killed by his old general." Akame and Sheele was horrified to hear that, and turn to look at the large, muscular man, who was sitting next to Najenda.
'Bulat…died in the old timeline that Tatsumi was in?' Akame and Sheele both thought, staring at Bulat with shock eyes. It was then they realized something that made them both scared beyond belief. 'Wait…if he died…then did we…die, too?'
"Bulat wasn't the only one who died." Tatsumi's voice broke Akame and Sheele's thoughts, as they turned to look at him, who had sadness in his eyes.
"What…what do you mean?" Akame asked, a huge sick feeling filling inside her. She didn't want to hear what Tatsumi was about to say, but she still wanted to know. Sheele also wanted to know, but she was feeling very nauseous and sick.
A tear fell down Tatsumi's face as he replied, "All you guys died in my old timeline, making me the only survivor of Night Raid."
A pin dropped can be heard from where Tatsumi, Akame and Sheele were sitting, but the other members of Night Raid didn't notice as they were enjoying riding on the Air Manta. Akame and Sheele gazed at each other in pure horror and disbelief. They couldn't believe what they just heard from Tatsumi. They couldn't breathe, or even speak as they continued to gaze at each other with same looks on their faces.
'W-w-w-w-w-we d-d-d-died?' Akame and Sheele both thought, the sick feelings in their bodies were up to its maximum level, and they both feel the need to vomit, but they managed to hold it in.
Before Akame and Sheele can ask more questions, they let out a small pain noise. Their heads, which was filled with so much information from Tatsumi, had a sharp pain in it. It was like something was forcing into their minds. They gritted their teeth when the pain increased, making them grabbed their heads.
Tatsumi noticed that Akame and Sheele had placed a hand on their heads and knew why they were doing that. 'I was afraid of this…' Tatsumi thought, grimacing inwardly. 'They're starting to get their memories of their deaths…'
"This is crazy and mind-blowing shit to take in..." Sheele said very quietly, still having one hand on her head, as she struggling to process all the information she just heard from Tatsumi and Akame. Her face was pale as a ghost. "Our boyfriend is from the future, and he knows about our deaths…" She then started to shake in fear, and her breath has started to quicken. She was starting to hyperventilate. "I can't believe this…"
Tatsumi then sat up and walked over to the busty purple-hair woman. She was still shaking so badly that she didn't noticed that Tatsumi had sat down next to her, and gently touched her shoulder, making her jump a bit. She turned to look at the brown-hair assassin, who had sadness and guilt in his eyes.
"Tatsumi…why was our heads hurting?" Sheele asked, leaning her head on Tatsumi's shoulder. She was awfully glad to do that because the sharp pain in her head went away, though she had a slight headache, much to her slight annoyance. Akame also has a slight headache, and she leaned her head on Tatsumi's shoulder, but on the left side.
"Because you both are getting memories of your deaths." Tatsumi replied, making Akame and Sheele widened their eyes. "The process of getting these memories is both painful and terrifying, and that's why your heads were starting to hurt. Hurts like a bitch, doesn't it?"
Akame and Sheele nodded slightly, not wanting to make their headaches more painful.
"Will the same happen to the others?" Akame asked, gesturing towards the other members of Night Raid.
Tatsumi nodded. "Yes, the same thing will happen to the others, though I'm not sure about Susanoo." He said, putting a hand on his chin. "We can talk about this later. Right now, we need to-"
He was cut-off when he, Akame and Sheele heard a small yawn and looked down to see the child in Sheele's arms moving around for a bit before opening her eyes. Instead of green eyes that were dark and sinister, they were purple that were bright like Sheele's and filled with innocence and happiness.
Tatsumi, Akame and Sheele watched with bated breath as the child got out of Sheele's arms and walked a bit away, making Akame sat up from her seat in case that the child was about to walk off the Danger-Beast. The small child looked around with excitement in her eyes before turning around to look at Tatsumi and Sheele. She then grinned happily and rushed at them while calling out.
"Mama! Papa!"
As soon as the child said that, all the members of Night Raid swiftly turned around to look at Tatsumi and Sheele, who were being engulfed in a hug by the energetic child, which the latter had tears in her eyes while the former had a shock look on his face. It was then they realized that the child has woken up, and a few members were starting to panic a bit, except Sayo, Najenda, Chelsea, Spear, Leone, and Susanoo.
"D-did she just said, 'M-M-Mama and P-P-Papa?'" Spear stuttered, staring at the pair with wide disbelieving eyes.
"That's so cute!" Spear, Sayo and Leone squealed out, their eyes had hearts in them, along with a small blush on their face. They were cooing at the scene in front of them, and it has taken all their will power from standing up and rushing over to the couple to grab the child and hugged it closed to their bodies.
"M-M-M-Mama?" Sheele stuttered, her eyes not leaving the child, who was still hugging the busty purple-hair woman, along with Tatsumi.
"P-Papa?" Tatsumi stuttered, his heart soaring with happiness and joy. Without knowing it, he wrapped his arms around Sheele and the child, which the latter let out a squeal of happiness.
"Mama! Papa!" The child yelled out happily, snuggling deeper into her 'Parents' chests.
"Hey, how come you get to hug the child?!" Akame demanded, storming over to her lovers, wanting to hug the child, too. The child was so cute! But she completely froze when the child turned to look at her.
"Mama!" The child yelled, shocking Night Raid completely, including Sheele and Tatsumi. She stopped hugging the two and ran towards the raven-hair girl, who was still frozen before letting out a grunt when the child crashed into her, almost making the tall woman losing her balance.
"W-w-what?" Akame stammered, her face filled with shock and disbelief. Did the adoptive child of Tatsumi and Sheele…called her Mama? "Why did she call me Mama?"
"Tatsumi did say that the child will not remember anything, Akame." Sayo pointed out, her eyes were wide from what the child said a moment ago. Akame turned to look at the dark-hair assassin, who had her hand on her chin. "So, I'm guessing that when the child woke up and looked at Tatsumi, Sheele and you, she must've assumed that your also her Mother, too."
Akame stared at the small child for a moment before slowly wrapping her arms around the young girl. A small smile spread across her face, and she pulled the child closer to her, earning a squeal from the young girl.
"Let me hug the child too, Akame!" Leone exclaimed, appearing from Akame's left side, almost making the raven-hair girl jumped in surprised and fright.
"No way!" Akame exclaimed, moving her body to the right, and the child giggled happily, thinking that she was swinging sideways.
"What do you mean, no?!" Leone demanded, placing her hands on her hips and glared at Akame. "You, Tatsumi and Sheele had your turns of hugging the girl, and I want to have a turn!"
"You can have your turn when we land on the ground!" Akame retorted, while also glaring at Leone. Neither noticed that the child in Akame's arms began to whimper a bit from the shouting and had tears in her eyes. She turns towards Tatsumi and Sheele to show them how uncomfortable she was and beg them to save her.
Tatsumi and Sheele saw the look on their daughter's face, making them angry at Akame and Leone. Sheele got up and silently walked up to Akame to grab the child. Once she got the child in her arms, she backed up to sit next to Tatsumi, and began stroking her daughter's hair to calm her down. The child wrapped her small arms around Sheele's neck and laid her head on her shoulder.
"Why on the ground?!" Leone screamed, raising her hands in the air, while surrounding herself with a yellow aura.
"Because we are in the air, and she doesn't even know about it!" Akame screamed, while also surrounding herself in a red aura.
"I'll be in the middle of the Danger-Beast!" Leone exclaimed, pointing towards the empty spot. "Just let me have the child!"
"Both of you! Enough!" Tatsumi yelled, standing up and walking towards his two lovers. Akame and Leone were about to yell at him to stay out of their fight, but they stopped when they saw the look of anger on his face. "It was amusing to listen to this argument, but it was also making someone upset." He then pointed to Sheele's direction. "Look how upset she is."
Akame and Leone turn towards Sheele and sadness filled them when they saw the look on the child's face. Instead of being happy, it was filled with sadness, and they could see a few tears in those bright purple eyes.
"Sorry, Tatsumi." Akame and Leone both said in a sad tone, their heads looked down in shame.
"It's fine, guys." Tatsumi said, giving Akame and Leone a kiss on the cheek, making them feel better. "Just try not to have any arguments when you're holding her."
"What are you going to name her?" Sayo asked, sitting next to Sheele and began playing with the child's hair.
"Hmmm," Tatsumi mused, putting a hand on his chin as he thought of a name for his daughter. A moment later, Tatsumi punched his palm as a lightbulb appeared above his head. "I got it! How about Lilac?"
"Lilac?" Sheele asked, raising a brow. "Why that name?"
"Because of her hair." Tatsumi explained, walking towards Sheele and gently grabbed the child. He then looked at the child, who stared back at him, her eyes were a bit red from having tears. "What do you think? Should your name be Lilac?"
"Lilac…" 'Lilac' muttered quietly before gaining a huge grin. "Yes! I like that name, Papa! Can my name be Lilac?" Akame and Leone smiled a bit, happy that the child was no longer upset.
Tatsumi smiled and patted Lilac's head, making her giggled. "Then that settles it. The child's name will be Lilac." He said, handing the child back to Sheele and stood up with a bright smile on his face. "And why is the atmosphere a bit gloomy? We're standing on top of a Danger-Beast that is flying in the sky, and we're not even enjoying it!" He then let out a loud cheer. "This is AWESOME! The wind against my face is relaxing and fun!"
Night Raid couldn't help but chuckled from what Tatsumi said.
"Oh, I got it!" Tatsumi exclaimed, engulfing himself in a red light, and he was now in his Starblaze armor. "I'll use Starblaze to fly beside the Danger-Beast!" He then jumped off the Air Manta, much to Night Raid's surprised and Lilac's shock, and disappeared into the clouds below.
"PAPA!" Lilac screamed, getting out of her Mama's grasp and rushed towards the edge of the Danger-Beast to check, ignoring the cries of everyone behind her. Sheele quickly got up, made sure that her balance was perfect, and rushed towards her daughter, who was at the edge of the Danger-Beast.
"Lilac, don't do that!" Sheele scolded, grabbing her daughter and hugging her closed to her chest, while trying to calm down her frantic beating heart.
"But Papa…" Lilac was about to say, only to be interrupted when Tatsumi suddenly shot up in the air from where he jumped off.
"WOO-HOO!" Tatsumi exclaimed, spinning around in circles for a moment before flying alongside the Air Manta. "This is the greatest thing in my whole life! I'm flying beside a Danger-Beast!"
"Now, that's the Tatsumi Najenda told me about." Chelsea said with a smirk, rolling her lollipop in her mouth, though she was incredibly surprised and shocked to see Tatsumi's Teigu. She then sensed someone walking towards her, and she turn to her left to see Sheele sitting next to her. "Whatever Akame said to him a few moments ago, it seemed to work. He's now acting like an innocent kid." She then giggled a bit. "What an interesting person."
"It's better when he's smiling instead of being sad." Sheele said, leaning back on her seat, with her hands behind her. She had just given Lilac to Leone, and was a bit hesitate to do so. Leone assured her that she'll take great care of Lilac. "He has a power to lift people's spirits from being sad to happy, and a fire that shines brightly in him, making him a leader."
"Yeah!" Leone cheered, holding Lilac closed to her body, who was staring at her Papa in awe. "Being on top of this thing is fun!" She then looked down in her lap to see Lilac leaning her head backwards. "What do you think, Lilac? Do you think this is fun?"
"Yeah! This is fun!" Lilac exclaimed, closing her eyes to let the wind fly against her face. "But can I be with Papa when he's flying in the air like that?"
"Um," Leone said, extremely uncertain if she should let Sheele's daughter be in the air with Tatsumi. Lilac doesn't have that much knowledge, and she was planning on asking Tatsumi to go to the Capital to pick up some books. "Maybe some other time."
"This isn't fun at all!" Mine exclaimed; her face was pale as she clung onto Lubbock in fear. Both assassins were trembling from head to toe. "I hate heights!"
(Southeast of the Capital; Marg High-lands.)
"Alright, guys! We're getting off here!" Najenda called out, hopping off the Air Manta as it landed in a large clearing. The rest of Night Raid gathered their belongings and hopped off the Air Manta, though Sheele had to use the Danger-Beast's wings to get off since she was carrying Lilac. Lilac's hair was completely messed up, giving it a puffed-up look. "This place is packed with sheer plateaus and has incredibly unique ecosystems. And not to mention, the Danger-Beasts that live in this area are a high level, which is making them dangerous. This whole territory is unexplored, and it's not fit for human inhabitants."
A smirk suddenly spread across Najenda's face. "But because of that, this would be an excellent place for a temporary base. There is a fitting place for us to stay near the Capital is being scouted by the Revolutionary Army. Until they finish scouting and building it, we will spend the next couple weeks here to train."
Lilac suddenly screamed in shock, making everyone jumped a bit before turning around to see what the problem was. The Air Manta, that had carried them to the large clearing, suddenly lifted off the ground and started to fly off.
"Is it okay for that Danger-Beast to fly off, Boss?" Mine asked, watching the Danger-Beast disappeared into the distance, while trying to calm her heart down from that sudden scream.
"I'm going to miss that big guy." Tatsumi said, pretending to wipe a tear away from his eye. "And just when we were starting to become flying buddies."
"Bye, flying thing." Lilac said, waving towards the direction where the Air Manta flew off.
"It's going back to its nest at HQ." Chelsea said, taking her lollipop out of her mouth. "It's efficient way to get things delivered, and a friendly Danger-Beast." A teasing smirk appeared on her face before snickering in amusement. "Wow, Mine. I can't believe that you didn't know that."
Lilac giggled at the fuming Mine with Chelsea, who gave her a proud grin before handing her a lollipop, which she gladly took.
'Bitch!' Mine thought, tightly balling her fist. 'She's pissing me the hell off! What's her damn problem?!'
"I like the new recruit already." Tatsumi said, earning surprised looks from everyone and a raised eyebrow from Chelsea. "She's exactly what we need for Night Raid, a person to tease Mine all the time, and I can help her with that."
'NOOOOOOOO!' Mine thought, grabbing her hair as dread filled inside her. 'Now, there'll be two of them! And it's bad enough that I have to deal with one! Why would you say that, Tatsumi!?'
"Really?" Chelsea asked, still having that teasing smirk on her face, which Tatsumi loved. "Then we'll need to spend time together to make plans." She then looked at Lilac, who was sucking on her lollipop. "Maybe we can invite her to help us sometime."
"I think that will be a good idea." Tatsumi said, smirking at the thought of him, Chelsea and Lilac teasing Mine endlessly.
"Alright, enough playing around." Najenda ordered, though she did a smirk of amusement of her face. "I think it's time that I introduce Night Raid's newest recruits. The first person is…" She then turned to look to where Chelsea is standing but was surprised to see that the auburn-hair assassin wasn't there no more. "What the?"
"Wow, Akame. Your hair is so long and pretty." Chelsea said, stroking Akame's long, black hair with a small blush on her face. She then leaned upwards to whispered into Akame's ear. "And you're so beautiful and sexy up close."
"That…came out of nowhere…" Akame said, slightly uncomfortable from what Chelsea said. "Can you-"
"We already met, but if you guys forgot, my name is Chelsea. I hope we can get along as teammates." Chelsea said with a bright smile before rummaging through her pockets. Akame's eyes lit up instantly when she saw Chelsea pulled out three lollipops. "Here, Akame. One's for you."
"You're cool with me." Akame muttered, appearing next to Chelsea and snatched the piece of candy from her hand.
'Just like last time.' Tatsumi thought with a fond smile on his face. 'The only way to win Akame's heart is food.'
"Who's the other two lollipops for?" Spear asked, noticing that Chelsea pulled out two lollipops.
"One's for Tatsumi." Chelsea replied, tossing the piece of candy to Tatsumi, who caught it with a surprised look. "And here's one for you, Mine." The pink-hair assassin widened her eyes slightly when Chelsea tossed the other piece of candy towards her, and she caught it.
"Oh…thank you…" Mine said, staring at the lollipop in her hand. A small smile spread across her face as she unwrapped the lollipop wrapper and put the lollipop in her mouth. 'Maybe she's not that bad.' However, Mine's smile vanished when her lips began to pucker. "Gah! This is sour!"
'Well, it is sour apple." Chelsea said with a smirk, shaking her head as she snickered. "I'm going to be nice this once, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to stop messing with you."
"Can I help you messing with Mine?" Lilac asked, looking at Chelsea with pleading eyes.
"Sure, you can." Chelsea replied, crouching on the ground and pinching Lilac's cheeks.
"Tch, you're lucky I like sour apple." Mine said, biting down her lollipop, causing it to break into pieces. "But I'm keeping my eye on you and Lilac, no way you two won't get the best of me with your attacks."
"We'll see about that." Chelsea said, her smirk widened. "I like a good challenge."
"Boss, about Chelsea…" Spear said quietly, walking up to Najenda, with Sayo behind her. "She doesn't seem the type of being an assassin."
"Yeah, are you sure she's cut out for this?" Sayo asked in a skeptical tone.
"Don't let looks fool you, Spear, Sayo." Najenda said, crossing her arms below her chest. "She may be cheerful and fun, but she's a master assassin who has completed as many assassinations as Akame."
"Are you serious?" Spear and Sayo asked in a shocked tone, as they both stared at the auburn-hair girl in awe. The two beautiful women of Night had a hard time picturing Chelsea as a killer, let alone taking on as many assassinations as Akame. "That's insane."
"I don't know Chelsea that much, but I did heard reports about her when me and Boss were at HQ." Bulat said, crossing his arms, as he leaned against a tree. "Like Boss said, she's really a master assassin."
"Then who's that guy, Boss?" Sheele asked, pointing towards the second recruit of Night Raid.
"This guy here is the new Teigu I was given by the Revolutionary Army." Najenda replied, walking towards Susanoo. "Speed of Lightning: Susanoo." With a grin, Najenda patted the large man on the shoulder. "He's a Biological Teigu who can move autonomously, so he won't be a burden. Even if I'm injured, I can still use him."
"He's so tall…" Lilac said, walking towards the Human Teigu with wide eyes. She stopped right in front of him and reached her hand out. "Hi! I'm Lilac!" Susanoo looked down at the child and widened his eyes, making her looked surprised. In a spilt second, he kneeled on the ground and reached towards Lilac's hair, which was still puffed up and messy. In a few seconds, Lilac's hair was now combed, with two pigtails on the sides of her head like Mine's but had a black ribbon that was tied like a butterfly.
"There!" Susanoo exclaimed, a look of relief on his face.
Lilac only blinked owlishly, not sure what happened.
"If he does that again to my daughter, I'll kick his ass." Sheele said, glaring at Susanoo, while making sure not to let Lilac hear the last word.
"So, Boss…" Leone said, sitting on a huge tree branch that was on the ground. "What are Susanoo's skills? Does it involved combat efficiency or something?"
"Heh, I'll just have to show you." Najenda said, clenching her mechanical fist with her left arm. "I suggest that you all prepare yourselves."
"I'll take Lilac." Tatsumi said, seeing the look on Sheele's face and crouched on the ground to pick up his daughter. Lilac let out a squeal as Tatsumi spin her around before letting her sit on his shoulders.
"Do your thing, Susanoo!" Najenda exclaimed, pointing towards the clearing that was empty.
"Understood." Susanoo replied, dashing off in a blue blur. Night Raid watched in a mixture of awe and confusion as they saw Susanoo raced around the clearing, preforming a series of chores. He first started washing clothes and cooking food, (He put a red apron on him while he was cooking) before building a large cottage for Night Raid to live in. He even made a small playground for Lilac, much to Tatsumi's and Sheele's relief. The Human Teigu's movements were so fast and precise, that normal people would have trouble seeing the person.
"Uh, this is really impressive…" Lubbock said, rubbing the back of his in confusion. "But what is he doing?"
"He looks like a houseman." Sayo pointed out, watching Susanoo putting the finishing touches on lunch.
"That's because he is!" Najenda exclaimed, startling Night Raid completely. It was exceedingly rare to see Najenda happy. "Susanoo was originally created to protect royalty's and other status. While he may be on guard to battle possible threats, he's equipped with household skills to take care his master's every need!"
'The Boss is way too excited.' Night Raid thought with sweat-drops, though Tatsumi was laughing inwardly.
"Cooking, cleaning, laundry, medical…" Najenda listed off with a huge grin. "He does it all! And the best part is, he can create 1,000 different dishes!"
"Perfect!" Akame and Leone cheered, their eyes lit up as they drooled at the thought of eating Susanoo's cooking. "Welcome to the team, Susanoo!"
"That's great in all, Boss, but none of the things you listed didn't have anything to do with fighting." Mine said in an annoyed tone.
"Susanoo's skills are very useful, Mine." Najenda said, still having that grin on her face. "And he also has a trump card if things get a bit heated."
'Things are going well so far.' Tatsumi thought, staring at everyone with a smile. 'I'm glad that all the original Night Raid members are untied. It's a miracle.' He then chuckled in amusement when he saw Chelsea and Lilac teasing Mine, enraging the pink-hair assassin, and Lubbock taunting Susanoo. 'Yep, just like last time.'
(Same Time; At the Jaeger's Meeting room.)
"(Sigh) That idiot doctor…" Esdeath muttered to herself, tapping her finger on the table, while staring at the window. The blue-hair beauty of the Capital was waiting for Run and Bols to finish searching through Stylish's room. The doctor had been missing for almost an entire day and seem to vanish without a trace. While the rest of the Jaegers are hoping to find a clue in Stylish's room, Esdeath had a fairly good idea what happened to the man.
'Stupid man. Should've told us where he was going.' Esdeath thought, annoyance filled inside her as she kept staring at the window.
"Captain, we completed our search in Stylish's quarters." Run reported, walking into the meeting room with Bols behind him. "But…" The feather blonde man released a sigh. "We couldn't find any clues to where he went, or what he was planning. All his materials and tools were still in his lab though…so he didn't try to flee. The most likely conclusion is that he was either captured or killed."
"And judging by the absence of his soldiers…" Bols said, shaking his head. "I'm assuming that he took all of them into a battle."
"I had a feeling about that…" Esdeath said, releasing a sigh and stood up from the table. "That means that Seryu has a person to avenge…where is she?"
"I believe she's in the courtyard." Run replied, a thoughtful look on his face. "She didn't show any emotions when I last saw her."
"She must be hiding her emotions and began bottling it up." Esdeath said, making her way out of the meeting room. "I'll go and comfort her. It's not healthy to keep emotions locked inside you."
(Two Minutes Later; With Seryu.)
In the Capital's courtyard, Seryo was sitting on the ground, petting Koro while cleaning her weapons and armor. The auburn-hair girl was not only cleaning her weapons, but she was also in deep thought.
'I guess Stylish is really gone…' Seryu thought, continued cleaning her weapons and armor. 'That's good, because there won't be any twisted experiments no more, but innocent people will still be tortured and killed.' A sad look appeared on her face. 'The Empire really is cruel, and I was a fool to believe that I was making it happy. All I've done was making more innocent people go to jail, just to be killed in the end. I'm glad that Tatsumi made me read Ogre's diary.' Seryu smiled when she thought of Tatsumi, how he was kind and caring towards his teammates, and how handsome he was.
Seryu blinked a couple times before blushing brightly when she thought the last part about Tatsumi and remembering her first kiss. 'Seryu, no! No time to think about your crush! You can think about him when you are sleeping!'
She then managed to suppress her blush before she stopped cleaning her stuff. She put down the rag and picked up Koro to hug him. "How are we going to leave the Capital, Koro, if we have to do our duties as a Jaeger?" She asked Koro very quietly, who gave her a lick to the face.
"With Stylish gone, will you be able to keep using the weapons he gave you?" A voice asked, making Seryu froze for a moment before turning her head around, and she was surprised to see Esdeath leaning against a column.
'Shit! Did she hear what I said?!' Seryu thought, as panic and fear filledinside her. She was afraid that if Esdeath heard what she said, she might get dragged off to a torture room. Not wanting to be suspicious, Seryu put a fake smile on her face and said, "I'll be fine, Captain! I won't be able to make any upgrades to my weapons, but I'll maintain them."
"I see…" Esdeath said quietly, watching Seryu for a moment before sighing. "Are you upset that he's gone?"
Seryu nodded, a bit sad that her teammate is gone. "I do, Captain." Seryu replied, her tone filled with sadness, as tears build up in her eyes. "I lost many people I care about. My parents, my master who trained me, and the man who was kind enough to give me his powerful weapons." Tears then stream down Seryu's cheeks as she began to cry. "Everyone that's precious to me always die to the hands of villains! I want to find Night Raid and end them! I want to erase them from the face of the Earth!"
Seryu then continued to weep, making Esdeath looked at her with soft eyes. Though underneath the soft eyes, they were narrowed that she can see that the auburn-hair girl wasn't really crying at all, more like fake crying.
'So, it seems that she's working for the Revolutionary Army, or maybe…Night Raid…' Esdeath thought, her eyes turned sadistic for a bit at the last part before vanishing it. She then stopped leaning against the column and headed towards Seryu.
'I think Esdeath knows my fake crying act.' Seryu thought, dreading filling inside her as she heard footsteps coming towards her. She was then surprised to feel a pair of comforting arms wrapped around her, making her look up to see Esdeath holding her.
"As long as you're with me…" Esdeath said, her voice was soft and caring, something that shocked Seryu completely. "I'll do my best to make that dream come true.
"Captain…" Seryu breathed out, staring at Esdeath with red puffy eyes before burying her head into her Captain's chest. "Thank you…"
'I know that I should take Seryu to the torture room,' Esdeath thought, putting one hand on Seryu's head and began patting it. 'But she's one of my men, and I care about them. The only thing I can do is keep a close eye on her and see what her opinion is about the Empire.' She then looked at sky, which was now turning orange. 'I'm really looking forward to see Tatsumi again and see what he says.'
(Hours Later Night Time; At Night Raid's Temporary base.)
Everyone in Night Raid was sitting at the table, with food and drinks in front of them. Lilac, who had gotten enough to eat, was now sleeping on Tatsumi's lap, and he had one arm wrapped around her to keep her from falling from his lap.
Chelsea was teasing Mine again, much to the pink-hair assassin's irritation.
"Do you think things are going alright in Capital?" Spear asked, staring at her drink that was filled with beer. "We won't be able to leave this place until we get a new base." A sigh then escaped her lips as she took a sip of her beer. 'I wonder how Father is doing.'
"Before Stylish attacked us, the reports we received said that the Jaegers were doing a great job of curbing criminals from inside the Capital and outside." Akame said, sitting next to Tatsumi and gently took Lilac from him.
"And I'm guessing that after the death of Stylish, the Jaegers are going to lay low like us?" Sheele asked, turning to look at Akame.
"Yeah, until they get more accustomed to it." Akame replied, stroking Lilac's hair, making the child let out a small yawn that was cute.
"Then we'll use this extra time to train before we accept missions again." Najenda said, clenching her fist on the table. "Susanoo and Chelsea are Night Raid's final backup because the Revolutionary Army are unable to give us any more reinforcements. Let's all complete our mission and survive to greet the day of Revolution!" Najenda's declaration caused a resounding cheer from Night Raid, except Susanoo, who nodded in agreement, though they immediately became quiet when they heard Lilac whimpered in discomfort.
Najenda then stand up from her seat and walked towards Tatsumi, who was petting Lilac's hair to calm her down. She put her left hand on his shoulder, earning his attention. "It's time we discussed about Esdeath, Tatsumi. Follow me."
"Where are they going?" Lubbock asked, watching his beloved leaving the room with Tatsumi. From the corner of his eye, Lubbock spotted Sayo and Leone and a sudden thought jumped into his mind, making him stand up. "Tatsumi's not making a move on Najenda, right?! I'll kill him if he does!"
"Calm down, Lubbock." Bulat said, leaning back on his chair. "Tatsumi and the Boss are going to discuss on how he's going to deal with Esdeath."
"How do you two know that?" Mine asked, crossing her arms over her chest and sending a suspicious look towards Bulat and Chelsea.
"Because me and Bulat heard the conversation between Tatsumi and Najenda." Chelsea replied, shrugging her shoulders as she rolled her lollipop in her mouth. "I don't know how the hell Tatsumi plans to do that."
"I want to believe Tatsumi…" Lubbock said, staring at his lap. "But I just don't see that woman switching to our side." It was true, he just doesn't seem to believe that Esdeath won't join their side. That woman was sadistic, and she was the reason why Najenda lost her eye and her right arm, something that pissed Lubbock off.
"I know Tatsumi can do it." Akame said, resting her hands on the table. "If anyone can pull this miracle off, it's Tatsumi, and him alone." She then closed her eyes. "Tatsumi is carrying a huge burden than we realized, and I want to support him, while helping him getting rid of the burden." She then stood up, adjusting Lilac and began walking towards the bedroom. "I'm going to put Lilac to bed and then I'm going outside to train."
"I believe in him, too." Sheele said, standing up and grabbing Night's Reach. "I know that Tatsumi can bring Esdeath towards our side, even I don't like the idea of working with her." She then began making her way towards the door. "I'm going outside to train before I go to bed."
"Akame and Sheele are right, I may not like the idea of working with that bitch, but if Tatsumi says she's got good inside her, then I'll give it a try." Leone said, slipping out of her seat and began following Sheele. "I better go and keep an eye on Akame and Sheele."
"What do you think, Sayo, Spear?" Mine asked, turning to face the black and blonde-hair girls, who were staying silent the whole time. "Do you think that Tatsumi can get Esdeath to join our side? And Sayo, you known Tatsumi the longest since you were growing up with him."
"To be honest, I'm not sure." Sayo replied, surprising everyone in the room.
'Is she doubting Tatsumi?' Night Raid thought, as they stared at the black-hair girl, whose hair was shadowing her eyes.
"I'm not saying I'm doubting Tatsumi." Sayo said, as if she was reading their thoughts. "I'm just saying that Tatsumi can pretty much pull off the impossible possible."
"What do you mean?" Bulat asked, frowning at the Darken Sky user.
"I was near death by that blonde bitch who put poison in me." Sayo replied, moving her head up to let everyone see her eyes, and they were shocked to see a tint of red in them. "I thought that was the end of my life, but Tatsumi came in, killed that bitch and saved me." A small smile spread across her face. "If it wasn't for him, I would be dead. So, I believe in him that he can bring Esdeath towards our side."
Spear was silent as she thought about Tatsumi getting Esdeath on their side. She may not know much about the Capital at first, but after spending time with Night Raid, she learned the truth about it. She was disgusted to learn that Honest was controlling the Emperor like a puppet, just to get everything he wants.
"I agree with Sayo." Spear said, looking at her drink. "Without Tatsumi, I would be dead by that freaky boy who tried to skin my face off, and my Father would also be dead." A smile appeared on her face. "I owe him that much for saving me and Father, so the least I can do is to support him."
"Well, that settles it." Mine said with a smirk, nodding towards the girls. "Tatsumi will get the job done, and if he does get Esdeath to join us, it's a damn miracle."
Bulat laughed softly and shook his head before standing up. 'Yeah, a miracle alright.' Bulat then headed outside to train.
Chelsea was listening to the exchange with great interest. She was surprised to see all of Night Raid would put their faith into one person. The auburn-hair girl rested her head on her palm and stared at the door where Najenda and Tatsumi excited through.
'I don't get it.' Chelsea thought, frowning suddenly. 'Tatsumi didn't look that special when I met him, except that armor of his, so why are they putting that much faith in him?' As she rolled her tongue around the lollipop in her mouth, Chelsea had a grin spread across her face. 'Whatever it is, I just need to keep an eye on him.'
(Same Time; With Najenda and Tatsumi.)
"Alright, Tatsumi." Najenda said, closing the door before slumping into a seat. She then took out a cigarette and light it before taking a puff. "Start talking. You said you have a way to convince Esdeath to join the Revolutionary Army. I have my doubts at first, but I am extremely interested on hearing what you have to say. It would a huge advantage to have Esdeath on our side, and it can guarantee our victory."
"When I was captured by Esdeath, she told me why she stayed with the Empire." Tatsumi explained, causing Najenda to quirk a brow in intrigued. "How much do you know her when you were still working for the Empire?"
"Well, when I met her, I know she was dead set on the idea of the fittest. It was pounded into her head when she was a child." Najenda replied, taking a puff of her cigarette. "She works for the Empire because she believes that they're stronger than the Revolutionary Army."
"That's not true." Tatsumi said, locking eyes with Najenda. "While I was still held captive, I believe I was able to make Esdeath doubt the Empire's strength, and I saw it. A flicker of doubt in those eyes before it disappeared. I then continued to question her, making her see the Minister's motives and dirty tactics, and I believe…that her views of the Empire are growing worse and worse."
"Then why is she still working with the Empire?" Najenda asked, leaning forward a bit. "Esdeath is a woman that believes the values of strength and doesn't like working with people who are weak. She even told me about it when we were drinking one night."
"The reason why Esdeath continues to work for the Empire is because of liberties she was given." Tatsumi replied, becoming serious.
"What kind of liberties?" Najenda asked, her one eye narrowing. She had a very good feeling what liberties Esdeath likes but wanted Tatsumi to confirm it.
Tatsumi took a deep breath before replying, "The Empire gives Esdeath free reign as long as she follows orders, and gets the job done. She's even allowed to kill and torture people."
Najenda released a deep sigh, not surprised to learn that. "Tatsumi, I really hope that you don't expect the Revolutionary Army allow Esdeath to do those liberties when she joins us." Najenda said, shaking her head. "We can't have the Revolutionary Army looked like bloodthirsty murderers." If there's one thing that Najenda doesn't want, she doesn't want Esdeath make the Revolutionary bloodthirsty killers.
"I know, and I'm not suggesting we let Esdeath do what she wants." Tatsumi said, sitting down in front of Najenda. "Esdeath has a powerful bloodlust that needs to be controlled. If we can't, then nothing will please her, and she'll go back to the Empire. That's something we can't afford."
"Right." Najenda agreed, nodding her head. "So, any ideas on how to satisfy Esdeath?"
"I have one, and I think it might work. I'm thinking that if we give her any prisoners we captured…"
"We can restrain her desire to torture people, and she can give us information." Najenda finished, looking thoughtful. "That's not a bad idea, Tatsumi. But what's stopping her from killing the prisoners?"
"We'll have to monitor her, so she won't kill them." Tatsumi replied, leaning back on his chair. "But if things go too far, I'll step in to stop her."
"Alright, I supposed that might deal with Esdeath's need to torture people, but it won't be enough." Najenda said, giving Tatsumi a piercing look. "Even if we let Esdeath gather information from the prisoners, she's still wants to kill something. Torturing prisoners won't be enough to satisfy her."
"I know..." Tatsumi said, sighing heavily. There was silence in the room as Tatsumi tried to come up with a plan to satisfy Esdeath's desire to kill. But so far, he hasn't gotten any. He was about to call the meeting off when a sudden thought came into in his mind. "I got it! I figure out a way to satisfy Esdeath's need to kill!"
"Then what is your plan?" Najenda asked, taking a puff of her cigarette. She was interested what Tatsumi's plan was.
"We can make Esdeath our secret weapon." Tatsumi explained, making Najenda to raise a brow. "Think about it, we keep Esdeath away from killing people, letting her desire to kill grow until it reaches maximum level."
"Ok, that can work." Najenda said, not sure where Tatsumi was going with this.
"And then, once the Revolution Day comes, we keep the main army back, and allow Esdeath to fight a huge majority of the Empire's forces by herself. The rest of the army can jump in to assist her if needed. Letting Esdeath taking on the Empire's forces by herself will satisfy her desire to kill."
"Y-y-you're right…" Najenda said, standing up and began pacing back and forth. "That's a brilliant fucking idea, Tatsumi. A brilliant idea. Esdeath is strong enough to handle normal troops be herself, even there are hundreds, or thousands, of them. With her leading the attack, victory will be among us, and we can finally end the war." Najenda then stopped pacing and turned to look at Tatsumi. "But…there's one thing that bothers me."
"What is it?" Tatsumi asked, a confused look on his face.
"What's going to happen once the fighting is over?" Najenda asked, taking one last puff of her cigarette before putting it out. "Esdeath is going have to pay for all her crimes, even she helped us defeat the Empire."
"I don't know." Tatsumi said, locking eyes with Najenda again. "I don't want to kill or imprisoned Esdeath, but I think we can figure it out after the battle."
"Tatsumi, a lot of people would be glad to see Esdeath dead, instead of being alive." Najenda said, crossing her arms over her chest. "And why do you even want to save her? She's a cold-blooded killer."
"Because there's a side of her that she rarely shows. A side of caring and comfort." Tatsumi replied, making Najenda widened her eyes. "Despite what people say about her, she showed me a side that surprised the hell out of me. There is good inside Esdeath, it's just engulfed in darkness. If I try hard enough, I can make her see the light instead of the dark."
Najenda stared wide-eyed at her best assassin in Night Raid. She knew that Tatsumi was determined to get Esdeath on their side, but she would never believe that he would be this desperate. A small smile spread across her face as she remembered all the times Tatsumi has done to change the Empire. Not only he had killed a lot of targets, but he had also gotten a couple new recurits, saved the Former Minister, and found a way to change experimented people back to normal.
"It seems you have a tough job ahead of you, Tatsumi." Najenda said,
"Thanks, Boss." Tatsumi said with a smile.
"Heh, you really are an odd kid." Najenda said with a smirk, grabbing another cigarette. "And I have a feeling about something, Tatsumi."
"What is it?" Tatsumi asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Are you keeping a secret that has something to do with us?" Najenda asked, lighting her cigarette and took a quick puff. Tatsumi was caught off guard from her sudden question. "Including Starblaze? You may not realize, I gotten suspicious when I first saw that armor. After reading a bit, I realized that the armor was made from Tyrant, but it was an evolution from Incursio. So that brings me this: Did you had Incursio before?
Tatsumi freeze when Najenda asked that. He knew that Night Raid would have suspicions, but he never thought it would be this high. He then cursed himself for showing his armor, he should never use it.
"Of all questions you had to ask…" Tatsumi muttered, earning a glare from Najenda. He then sighed heavily before turning to look at her. "Yeah, I did have it before."
"But how?" Najenda asked, surprised to hear Tatsumi's reply. "Bulat never gave Incursio to anyone."
"Oh, he did give me Incursio. He just gave me it in the old timeline I was in." Tatsumi said, losing the smile and a sad look appeared on his face.
"Wait, old timeline?" Najenda repeated, wondering if her ears were working. "What do you mean?"
Tatsumi sighed heavily before walking towards the door. "Let's just say that a person lost all his friends because he was weak but was given a second chance to change his and his friend's future. Goodnight, Boss." He then left the room, leaving a confused Najenda.
'What the fuck did he mean that?' Najenda thought, trying to figure out what Tatsumi just said. 'I don't know what he means, but there are a couple solutions I can think of, and one of them is that Tatsumi could be a time-traveler. But there is no Teigu to travel back in time…' Najenda shook her head, but the words Tatsumi said about having Incursio before came back. 'But then again, Tatsumi did say that he had Incursio before in the timeline he was in, so he had to be from the future.' Najenda then narrowed her one eye at the door. 'Tatsumi, what exactly are you hiding?'
Tatsumi is starting to reveal his secret! And things are starting to get interesting! Night Raid's recruits are revealed, and everyone in Night Raid likes them, except Mine! Seryu's plans to leave the Empire is a bit expose, but Esdeath isn't taking her to the torture room! It seems Tatsumi's words are starting to affect Esdeath! What will she do?
If you readers want to know, stay tuned in the next future chapters!
Whew! What a long chapter! Sorry for not updating this, I have been busy with other stuff and writing this chapters are starting to become harder. So, chapters might take two to three weeks to finish.
Write a review if you like this story and enjoy the chapter!
Next Chapter: Tatsumi and Mine and Spear.