Six months have passed, since their victory over Utsuro and the Tendoshu.

Some things were lost, but some things were found as well. The world around them was constantly changing, but somethings stayed the same or returned to normal.

So was the sight of a girl with an umbrella on a sunny and hot day.

She felt like shit. It came slowly. Sneaking up on her over weeks. She finally was back in Edo, doing jobs with her substitute brothers, also why was she feeling like she threw herself in front of a train? It must be the current heat wave which had Edo in an iron grip for about a month. She was in space for two years, she has to get used to the earth sun again, she thought. She sighed as she seemed shelter in the shade of a oak tree near a park in the center of Edo. What did she think going on a walk on such a hot day? Her head felt like it was wrapped in cotton.

"Hey, are you damaging public property again?", an annoying voice appeared. In front of her emerged none other than Okita Sougo, Captain of the first Shinsengumi Squad.

"How often must I tell you, the lamppost fell on its own, yes!", she groaned

"Leave me alone, don't you have some traffic to manage?".

"I'm on lunch break. And I saw your annoying face and felt like kicking your bum."

Even with the age of sixteen it was unknown to Kagura why she was immediately on the edge when it comes to him. She got in fighting stance. Still so me what feeling unwell. When suddenly a coughing fit shook her body.

She looked at her hand. Blood. What the hell? Her stomach was feeling like she drank some acid. What is this? Her vision went blurry... No! No!

"Oi China Girl! Are you giving up before we even started? You're looking paler than usual. Have you eaten something of the ground again?", she heard steps on the concrete coming closer.

"Sadist... I'm..."

"Is that blood? I didn't even touched you yet.", sudde nly he was right next to her looking at her palm.

"Are you Yoroyuya so poor that you have to eat old cans?", he deadpanned and dodged her fist.

Suddenly her vision became clear again.

"You damn sadist, before I eat old cans I will eat your fucking eyeballs!", she grabbed her umbrella and lunged at him. Her body still felt like her insides were on fire but she could not show weakness in front of him, he will forever tease her if she does. But something was different. Normally Okita would look at her with his disgusting sadistic smile while waiting to counter her strike, but he stood with his sword still in his sheath, looking ... worried? She stopped her attack. It was no fun attacking someone when they were not fighting back. Kagura grimaced at him:

"Sadist, you picked up a fight and now your just standing there? Be gentleman and at least draw your sword, yes.", even she heard that she sounded a little hoarse.

He sighed and walked closer to her. Still looking somewhat strange for her.

"China, you just coughed up blood and almost fainted. Even I'm not enough of an asshole to attack a wounded pig.", he said while looking at her bloody palm.

How irritating! Kagura thought. She does not need his pity!

"Who are you calling a pig?! I have the face of my beautiful Mami and-", she stopped.

She remembered. Her father once told her that the illness of her mother began shortly after giving birth to her. And one of the early symptoms was coughing blood... no that was not possible...

"Are you already done with your babbling?", he looked at her.

She was so small, almost one head smaller than him and so thin, thinner than usual. He noticed right away that something was not right with her, provoking a fight was just his way of checking. Her coughing blood was not part of his calculation, he hoped for some period cramps or constipation, something he could mock her with but that... It felt familiar. He sighed again. And turned around while putting his hands in the pocket of his pants.

"Come on, China.", he said and went ahead.

Kagura looked dumbfounded.

"What do you mean? Are you trying to spirit me away, yes?", she wiped her mouth.

"Shut up, I'm walking you home. Maybe Danna got some alien vaccine on top when he bought you from the slave trader. Be grateful, but don't faint on me, I will leave you in the streets to rot before carrying you.", he scoffed slightly annoyed.

Kagura rose an eyebrow. Since when was the sadist so caring? She always thought should she ever drop dead he would be the first to spit on her body and parade her mangled corpse trough the streets of Edo, just for fun. But he had a point. She should talk to Gin-chan, she tried to hide her situation from him for quite a while, should it get even worse he would scold her like an old woman when he found out. She scowled, she would rather avoid this. So she followed the Shinsengumi captain with some distance.

They did not talk on the way to the Yorozuya office. He took the lead and she followed, mostly because she does not want to walk next to him. She was kind of embarrassed, had it to be him to see her in this state? Sure, they were not as often at each other's throat than in the past and they could even be called friends, but she does not want to look weak in front of him. What surprised her was that since they were on the move he didn't say a mocking word. He now and then turned around and check if she was still there and even waiting when she was greeting and chatting with someone. He was almost polite.

"How come you finally treating me like the proper lady I am, yes? Have you fallen for my charming face?", she teased, no longer able to bear the awkward silence.

"I'm not retarded or had a stroke to fall for your ugly visage, thank you very much.", he deadpanned and turned around.

He scanned her head to toe. She looked better, still paler than usual und the hue of dark circles under her eyes but better. He noticed a stain of darker red on her cheongsam, she obviously wiped her bloodstained hand there.

"It's just... I once had someone dear to me showing similar symptoms... they died and I was unable to do anything.", Kagura noticed the lonely look in his eyes. So he also knew how it felt to lost a loved one?

"And I don't want to organize another funeral for you, one is enough. Next time you die I will just dump your body in the sewer."

"Wow, and here I thought you had some emotional character development, yes.", she looked at him.

"You know, about three years ago my Mami died and I was left alone. Papi was goofing around in space and my stupid brother was doing ...pirate stuff. So I know well how it is to mourn alone, yes.", she closed the distance to him and swatted him on the back.

"But don't worry. My voice actor is too popular to get fired, I won't die, yes!", she winked at him.

He grinned and brushed her hand off.

"So your mother died? Was it alien hemorrhoids or something, if yes don't touch me you may have them too!", she suddenly kicked him but he easily dodged.

"Shut it! My Mami was a goddess if someone has hemorrhoids it's you!", she sighed and turned her back to him while shouldering her umbrella.

"You might have heard, but my Mami was an Altana mutant. My Papi found her on Kouan, the destroyed home planet of the Yato tribe. Like Utsuro she was kind of immortal as long as she stayed on that planet. But she chose to go with Papi and start a family. She withered away in order to stay with us."

Okita stayed silent so she continued:

"It started after my birth, she suddenly grew weak and coughed blood...", she suddenly turned back to him weakly smiling.

"But that's another story, I'm mortal and no mutant, maybe it's just something bad I ate."

"China...", his eyes grew soft as he looked at her.

"You are definitely a mutant.", Kagura punched him in the face.

After another 10 minutes of walking and Okita asking if space aids was a thing they arrived at the Yorozuya. Kagura opened the door while barking some insults at Okita. They were greeted by Sadaharu and Shinpachi.

"Okita-san, what did she do this time? Kagura-Chan we can not afford to replace another lamppost!", the boy with the glasses was folding towels while nagging with the young Yato.

Gin emerged from the bathroom in lighting speed.

"Okita-kun ~ please turn a blind eye to this. She may look like a grownup now but she is only a brat on the inside. I will help you when you need help to dispose the body of your vice chief.", the silver haired samurai looked at Kagura and Okita like his life was on the line.

"As tempting as this offer is, Danna, I'm not here to arrest China. I walked her home because she spat blood and almost fainted from nothing. I just don't want to do the paperwork to send her body to her crazy pirate brother."

Gin stood still. Kagura looked dumbfounded at him. Was he drunk? She looked at the clock on the wall. 11 o'clock in the morning. Possible. Suddenly he grabbed her by the head.

"Listen here, if you again fake an illness I dare you not, this was a humiliation I will never forget!", he shrieked thinking about the beating he got back then.

"Shut up! Why in the hell should I-", she felt her legs give in but she caught herself.

"I need to contact Papi. He gave me a communicator for emergencies. Maybe he knows what is wrong with me.", she stumbled to the closet where her personal belongings were.

Okita and the rest of the Yorozuya sat on the sofa and watched as she presented them a small device with a display and few buttons. She turned on the the device, making a peeping sound and sat next to Gintoki. She pressed a few buttons and the display showed the text Sound only.

"Maybe he has bad reception or he is embarrassed because of his hair.", she mumbled.

"Aaah~ sister dear, missing your big brother already?", she hung up immediately.

Gin and Shinpachi looked at her as she threw the communication device across the room against the wall. She couldn't handle this idiot right now! Okita looked at the device ,which now stuck in the wall, with annoyance, he knew that voice. Only by the sound of it he felt an aneurysm forming in his head.

"Oi oi don't threw your big brother at a wall. Do that again and I will rip your arm off.", Kamui's voice came out of the device.

Kagura stomped to the wall and ripped the device out of the wall.

"I don't want to talk to you right now, you psycho. Where is Papi? I'm sure I dialed the right communicator, yes! I need to talk to him!", she yelled at the device.

She could not deny the fact that she was pissed at her older brother. About one and a half year ago, after she left the Yorozuya she met him on a deserted planet. She was more than surprised that this idiot of a big brother asked her to tag along with her and search together for a cure for Sadaharu. Kagura found it suspicious back then, but she also hoped to somehow bond with him again. Sure, they threw fist at each other every chance they got, but this was just how their family was. And then one day he just vanished. He left her without a word.

"Ah, the baldy turned off his communicator about a month ago~ Some kind of solar interference. And all his calls will be forwarded to me.", Kamui chuckled, "Should I deliver a message?".

"What are you? His secretary? I need to talk to him, yes! There is something urge-", she felt the coughing fit coming and cupped her mouth. She felt her legs gave up and slumped forward. The communicator fell out of her hand and fell to the ground. The world went black for a second.

Shinpachi run to her side and grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Kagura-chan!"

It dammed Gintoki. This was no joke. He run towards the two.

"Kagura! Get a hold of yourself. Kamui, we need to speak to Umibozu right now!", the samurai took the communicator and shouted at the cracked screen. He looked like he was ready to stab the brother of the girl trough the device.

Okita couldn't move. His eyes went wide as he saw the blood drip from Kaguras chin. The face of his sister flashed before his eyes. He shook his head. There was no way another girl was dying on his watch. He walked to Gintoki and took the device out of his hands.

"Hey, Space Criminal, it seems your sister is biting the dust over here. Coughing up blood and fainting, the whole program. Maybe some kind of alien hemorrhoids. Got any idea how to contact your father?", his voice was calm almost cold. He looked to the red haired girl. Her brows were furrowed and her eyes closed, Shinpachi still hold her, Gintoki stood next to her feeling her forehead looking helpless while the giant dog whined behind the trio. He couldn't describe it but it somehow pissed him off to see her so weak.

The screen of the device suddenly flashed and on the cracked screen the smiling face of the ex-Harusame pirate appeared.

"You look like shit.", noted Okita.

He really looked not to well. His pale skin was somehow paler, his eyes had dark rings around them and his cheekbones were showing more then Okita could remember. Even though he smiled, blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

"It seems... my dear sister and me are sitting in the same boat.", he said while wiping the blood from his mouth.