"So, there's a carnivore in your school who ate an herbivore, huh? Another sign that this world is going nuts but damn, that happened in your drama club? You are just the epitome of unlucky," Gouhin remarked as he was lifting weights with one hand while I sat across from him after I stitched up my head injury and bandaged it, which surprised Gouhin as he had commented that I was full of surprises.
"Well, luck is what kept me alive so far, along with skill but there's no doubt that the asshole who damn near killed me was the killer...he was also stupidly strong and that's why it's too dangerous for him to still be loose in public where he could kill again," I stated grimly and Gouhin arched a brow.
"And?" Gouhin asked while I knew that it was time for me to tell him the real reason why I went to find him in the first place.
"And I'm going to need a place to train so that I can sharpen my skills again since the only reason why he busted my head open is that he took me off guard by throwing dirt into my face and I have gotten a little rusty, though you could give me a few pointers and teach me a few things on how to quickly take down a carnivore because you're more experienced in something like this than anyone else in the city," I explained and wasn't surprised when he shook his head.
"No," Gouhin said bluntly and I chuckled.
"Yeah, I expected you to say that but humor me anyway and tell me why," I said and Gouhin sighed while he placed the barbell on the ground and sent me a stern look.
"I don't trust that you'll be able to keep up with my training routine and you've probably forgotten already, but I'm the psychiatrist of the black market so if I were to keep around a walking time-bomb like you, then I wouldn't be able to do my job," Gouhin pointed out and I grimaced as I recalled brutally killing those muggers and several members of the Shishigumi.
"I see your point since the day we stormed the Shishigumi's place was a very dark moment in my life, but I'm not proud of it and I was in a bad place during that time so I want to assure you that it won't happen again," I reassured with a bitter frown and Gouhin scowled at me.
"Stupid kid, it's been many months since you took out the leader of the Shishigumi and some of their members but ever since then, they've been gaining more influence in the black market so you'll have to come in and out of the market if you go through my training routine.
You slaughtered their friends and almost crippled their organization, not to mention that yakuza groups like them always hold a grudge against something like that so they're bound to find you and when they do, they won't give you the mercy of just shooting you in the face so it's your choice if you want them to skin you alive and cook you for dinner, but I'll be damned if I let myself get into any more trouble. Now, drink your bamboo tea and go back to school," Gouhin told me as he stood up from his chair and went over to his desk.
"There's a slight problem with going back to school...Tem's killer is still there and going back is a guaranteed death sentence since he will kill me or go after those I care about just to get to me so I can't take that risk, not that I'm saying that being here won't have its risks but I need to do this if I want to stop the killer and I'm perfectly capable of defending myself as you already saw back when we raided the Shishigumi's place," I stated and Gouhin groaned in annoyance.
"Okay, so how do you propose to sneak in here with that large build of yours? You're ten years too early for that ninja shit," Gouhin pointed out and I sent him an unamused expression.
"For your information, smartass, I could easily get in here before you even realize I'm coming but if it that much of a problem for you, then I'll live here and work for you," I said and Gouhin turned around to stare at me.
"What about school?" Gouhin questioned and I sighed as I rubbed the back of my neck.
"I'll figure it out but for now, I'll have to take a break from it until I find a way to juggle school and training so that way I'll keep training while not neglecting my education," I stated and Gouhin grumbled as he couldn't find a way to counter that.
"Shit, I've said this before but you're a real piece of work, though I still don't like this," Gouhin admitted and I started glaring at him.
"So what, am I supposed to just sit back and let Tem's killer just get away with what he's done while I have a target on my back for the rest of my life? No, I've been running from my problems for far too long because I didn't want to have more blood on my hands, but I realize now that sometimes you aren't given a choice and need to own up to your mistakes, so bringing Tem's killer to justice is my way of atoning for my past mistakes.
Look, I'm so tired from a lot of shit that went on in my life and I don't want to run away from that anymore, so the only reason I'm going to school is to protect those I care about...I am asking, no, begging for you to help me because I can't do this on my own," I pleaded with a hollow expression that made me look much older than I already am as I stood up from my chair, then Gouhin sent me a sympathetic expression since he no doubt knew that I was seriously tormented by whatever happened in my life, just before he started grinning.
"Geez, you have such low self-esteem but I can understand why you need to do this, so go ahead and take a seat because I just came up with a brilliant idea," Gouhin said and I perked up with a thankful smile before I sat back down.
"Thank you, so what's this brilliant idea of yours?" I asked and my question was answered when metallic clamps shot out of the chair I was sitting on while restraining my wrists, neck, torso, and ankles as I let out a startled yelp and started struggling.
"W-What the fuck?!" I exclaimed in alarm as Gouhin put down a remote with a big red button on it and he chuckled amusingly.
"You're sitting in the berserk patient chair and not even a polar bear could break out of that," Gouhin remarked while I was breathing heavily with my eyes bugged out.
"What the hell are you doing?!" I demanded and my face turned blue when I saw Gouhin pick up a sickle from his desk and started approaching me.
"If you're serious about going through my training routine, then show me your resolve since that's how we do things here...now, don't move and don't worry because this is like a ceremony in a way," Gouhin told me before he planted one foot on my chest and tilted the chair back until he raised the sickle and I screamed as he swung it down.
"Alright, now the Shishigumi won't be able to recognize you and I certainly did a good job, so you can come here and train without any worries so it's a good thing that you don't look as manly as you used to be," Gouhin said proudly while I was staring at my reflection in a hand-held mirror with a horrified look, seeing that my beautiful fur had been sliced off and a wolf with very short white fur and in boxers stared back until I started twitching and sent a seething glare back at Gouhin as a tick-mark formed on my head.
"Good thing?! You nearly shaved me bald and now I look like a sickly fox of some kind that should be put out of its fucking misery!" I shouted vehemently while I looked like I wanted to strangle Gouhin as he chuckled.
"Don't be so dramatic and you look fine, so listen up because this will be your schedule from now on. Go to school from morning to evening, train at my place from night to sunrise, and obviously you're going to run to my place instead of going through training," Gouhin instructed and I blinked at that while I placed the mirror down and got dressed.
"So, how do you suggest I get some sleep then?" I questioned dryly and Gouhin sent me a look for the attitude.
"Just sleep in class," Gouhin answered like it was the simplest thing in the world and I glowered at him until I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck tiredly.
"You know what, I'm not going to get into it with you since I still feel like shit from getting the crap kicked out of me, so fuck it," I groaned and Gouhin nodded before he had me get started with my new training regiment.
After that, he wanted to see what I was capable of in terms of close-quarters combat so he had me practice to sharpen my skills against a training dummy and was impressed when he saw how skilled I was with different kinds of martial arts, then he tested my experience in firearms and had me shoot different kinds of guns in a location that was soundproof until he saw that I was really good to the point of being a sharpshooter before my training continued throughout the night and he had me jog back to Cherryton academy.
Pretty soon, it was morning and I was tired while I had noticed that Legosi was in the same state I was with short white fur and I asked him about it, only he had replied that his appearance just changed into that after nearly all of my fur was shaved off and I theorized that our connection was getting stronger to where anything that happens to me, happens to Legosi as well and it got me wondering how strong our connection will get after a certain point as I had finally arrived back at the academy and spoke to the staff about my supposed absence until I went back to room 701 and opened the door before Jack and the others quickly turned and their eyes widened at the sight of me.
"Hey, I'm back and I'm sorry that I was gone for a while because some things happened," I greeted and Durham shook his head to snap out of it.
"L-Legosi, what the fuck happened to you?! Are you okay, man?!" Durham cried out in shock and I didn't blame him since I probably looked like quite a sight to him and the others.
"Yeah, I'm good and I'm going to go take a shower but the bathhouse isn't open at 7:00 AM so I'll use the washroom instead," I stated before I turned around and panted slightly because it was really warm in the dorm room as I went into the bathroom and took off my clothes before taking a shower to cool myself down.
Pretty soon, I was done and got dressed in a new uniform while I headed to class and made sure to write down my answers in class before promptly laying my head down on my desk and fell asleep, then I spent most of the day doing that until it was time for drama club and I had explained to Sanou my concocted story to draw off suspicion until I noticed that he was eye-balling me and didn't appear to be paying attention while the other club members were openly gawking at me as I cleared my throat and felt very uncomfortable by all the staring.
"Chief, did you hear me?" I questioned and Sanou snapped out of it before he started looking embarrassed.
"Oh, sorry about that and I'm listening Legosi...it's just that you look so different that I didn't recognize you there for a second and it's pretty distracting," Sanou told me sheepishly and I rubbed the back of my head.
"Yeah, some things happened and I had to cut a lot of my fur off but it's kinda rough because it's cold outside," I explained and Sanou sweatdropped at that.
"I bet and that's one hell of a fur cut so if I didn't know better, I would've thought you were a sickly fox of some kind. So, let me get this straight, you're going to be busy every night because you have to take care of your sick grandfather?" Sanou asked and I nodded.
"That's right, I need to take some time off from school so I'll try to be as involved as I possibly can in club activities but I won't have time to help you guys clean up for a while, which is why I want to apologize for bothering you," I said as I bowed my head humbly and Sanou held up his hands reassuringly.
"No, it's fine since it's not like you have much of a choice, right?" Sanou assured as he looked at the others, who were still staring at me.
"Y-Yeah," Bill agreed as Els smiled.
"It's okay, Legosi-kun, raise your head!" Els encouraged and I looked up with a slight smile of gratitude.
"Thanks, guys...so, since I can't help you guys clean up, I'll do my best in our activities together and I'll be looking forward to it," I stated and Sanou turned his attention towards the others as I grabbed my bag.
"Okay, that ends tonight's meeting and you're all free to leave, so see you all tomorrow," Sanou announced and everyone started chatting with each other as I slung my bag across my shoulders and pretty soon, I was dressed in a tracksuit and jogging through the city during my journey to Gouhin's place.
'Well, I don't have time to relax since I'm going to be pretty busy for a while,' I thought as I kept moving in the direction of where the black market is located.
Later on, Gouhin and I were staring out a window and watched carnivores going on with their lives in the black market while I was frowning thoughtfully and Gouhin looked at me.
"Legosi, you're a carnivore and you want to get stronger physically even if you're well trained so you know what that means?" Gouhin asked and I nodded since I knew what he was implying.
"Yeah, I would have to eat meat from the black market," I answered stoically.
"Exactly, a carnivore needs meat to build up a body that's suited for combat and it's just natural," Gouhin told me and I showed him an emotionless look.
"I know, but if I were to eat herbivore meat for the purpose of getting stronger to protect the herbivores, then wouldn't that be hypocritical of me?" I questioned and Gouhin sent me a look.
"For you maybe, but all the carnivore athletes and soldiers are doing it behind closed doors," Gouhin pointed out and I frowned as I recalled my herbivore friends and started grimacing.
"I'm sorry, but I can't bring myself to do that since it would be like eating my friends in a way," I admitted uncomfortably and Gouhin huffed.
"I knew you were going to say that...well, your body needs to experience just how unreasonably egotistic your standards are so your training is going to be much harder now," Gouhin stated and I narrowed my eyes at that.
"Very well, I need to prepare myself for whatever you're planning next for my training regiment and I can't afford to quit since Tem's killer needs to be brought to justice," I said in determination and Gouhin gave me a grin that told me that I would hate him for what he would put me through next.
I was proven right when I was sent into a room and a huge slab of meat was hung up in front of me before Gouhin gave me a white gi and told me that I was to sit in front of it and explained that in order to overcome my desire to eat meat, I would have to rewire my body instincts so that I wouldn't be able to crave meat so now I had spent the past three days coming to Gouhin's place and was locked up in the room with the meat inside before I had to do the fun part of sitting in front of the meat and trembled stressfully while Dark Legosi was snarling at me to give in, but I ignored him as it was getting unbearable to the point where I started feeling nauseous.
"Hey, Legosi, you haven't given in to the pressure, have you? Hey, you better not have fallen asleep! Hey, are you even awake?!" Gouhin shouted just outside the door while I was gritting my teeth and sitting with my legs crossed and my hands cupped together in the middle before I shot a withering glare at the exit.
"I'm awake and I'm trying to concentrate on ignoring the giant slab of fucking meat in front of me, now let me focus!" I retorted irritably and Gouhin laughed amusingly in response while I started breathing heavily with a queasy expression.
"This is your third day and you're still withstanding it, which is impressive but it's still not enough, now accumulate more stress and let it burn through you," Gouhin instructed before he walked away and I grumbled while Legosi was grimacing at the state of me.
"Connor, I'm surprised that you're resisting something like that for so long because I'm not sure I would've been able to do that," Legosi told me and I sent him a look.
"It's still not enough so once I resist a little longer, burden myself a little more, then I'll move on to the next step...ugh, it's like I'm going to go insane at this rate and I'm so nauseous that I feel like I'm going to fucking puke," I groaned quietly and Legosi cringed at the mental image that he was no doubt picturing in his mind.
"Well, just hang in there for a little while longer," Legosi encouraged and I sent him a slight nod of acknowledgment before my training continued for three more hours until Gouhin knocked on the door and unlocked it.
"Time's up," Gouhin informed me and I let out a quiet sigh of pure relief as I stood up and left the room.
"So, what kind of meat is that?" I asked as I took off my gi and was in my boxers before I started getting dressed in my school uniform.
"It's cheap meat I bought from the black market and it came from a Bactrian camel who died from an illness," Gouhin explained and I grimaced while I was putting my pants on.
"I see..." I trailed off with my face looking slightly green from nausea and Gouhin laughed at my misery.
"Geez, you look like shit and I don't think you can go to school looking like that so are you going to quit training?" Gouhin inquired and I sent him a weak glare that promised payback for the mocking while I put on my shirt and started buttoning it up.
"Hell no, I'll come back tomorrow so I'm going to go," I said as I was finished getting dressed and grabbed my bag before leaving the building and heading back to Cherryton.
"Senpai, you're looking ugly as hell so is there something wrong with you?" Pina asked while the two of us were in the storage room and I looked at him in surprise by what he called me.
"You know that I'm your senpai, Pina-san? That's surprising," I commented and Pina beamed happily.
"Yeah, well, the chief told me and it's why I've decided to call you senpai. Seriously though, are you okay? You cut your fur and you look like crap, so does that mean you have heart disease or something?" Pina wondered and I sweated a little since I was nervous about him finding out what I was really doing lately.
"You don't need to worry about me since, today, I'm just the guy who's showing you around the stage crew's storage room and I think it would be interesting if you wanted to be a part of the stage crew," I admitted and Pina hummed thoughtfully.
"Nah, I'm not interested," Pina said and I looked at him in surprise.
"Really?" I questioned and Pina nodded.
"Yeah, so sorry about that," Pina told me and I shrugged.
"Don't worry about it, now this box is full of the costumes we've used till now and that one over there has a bunch of materials inside," I said as I continued the tour with Pina until I picked up a distinct scent from him and paused as I recognized it.
'The hell...is that the scent of a girl on him?' I thought in confusion while Pina noticed that I stopped moving and looked at me.
"Hey, can I go now?" Pina asked as I made eye-contact with him and noticed that one of his cheeks was red like something had hit him with an appropriate amount of force.
"Your cheek is red so are you okay?" I questioned and Pina blinked at that before he felt the injury with his hand.
"Oh, this? I'm fine and it's kinda embarrassing, but there was this girl who slapped me...yeah, we were getting passionate like crazy and I accidentally called her by some other girl's name so talk about a stupid mistake on my part," Pina explained and started laughing while I sent him a deadpan look.
"You don't say...sounds complicated," I muttered dryly with a sweatdrop as I looked away from him and wondered why I have to deal with crap like this every day.
"Legosi-senpai, do you have a girlfriend?" Pina asked suddenly and I froze at that since it was a bad time for that kind of topic.
"Nope," I lied and Pina chuckled.
"Okay, but do you like someone?" Pina pressed and I started fuming while I glared at nothing in particular.
"No, now stop asking me because this conversation is over," I suggested irritably as I started walking away quickly and felt like groaning as I heard Pina chasing after me.
"But why and where are you going?" Pina inquired and I let out a sigh of frustration as he grabbed my right arm to stop me.
"Look, just quit being nosy because it's rude and it's annoying the hell out of me so just drop it," I retorted with a glare and Pina chuckled amusingly.
"Senpai, you're really pure, aren't you? You're attached to a single girl and it's impressive...very dog-like, you know? I'd like to know what it's like to love a girl in such a pure way so why do people get angry when someone isn't dedicated to one single lover?" Pina inquired as he let go of me and I frowned at him.
"Because it's insincere and it makes you look like an ass," I answered while I was wondering where he was going with this.
"But sincerity is subjective, right? To me, sincerity means enjoying life while being true to yourself and you know, morals don't really do us much good," Pina told me as he leaned forward and moved my lips back to show my sharp teeth while I stiffened up from what he was doing.
"If you were to eat me right now, I wouldn't hate you for it," Pina muttered while I was mortified by what he was doing.
'Jesus Christ, the hell is it with herbivores doing this crap to me?! First Louis, then Haru, and now Pina and it's like getting eaten is some kind of fetish!' I thought in disbelief as Pina let go of my mouth and walked over to the window before shutting the curtains.
"Here, I'll shut the curtains and what's interesting is that when I'm alone with a girl in a dimly-lit classroom, I feel an uncontrollable urge to kiss her so do you feel like eating me right now, senpai? You've got a sheep ready to be eaten right in front of you," Pina told me as he took my hand and I was trembling with a nasty scowl and gritted teeth while my eyes were comically white with my veins throbbing and I was struggling hard not to strangle him.
"I don't eat meat and I don't have a girlfriend because I'm just a good-for-nothing wolf so enough is enough because you're pissing me off," I growled menacingly and Pina simply smiled at me.
"Really? Well, if you say so," Pina said before I made him let go of my hand and turned around to get away from this asshole.
"You know what, I'm hungry so I'm heading to the cafeteria!" I exclaimed with a tick-mark and left the building while I was seething and Legosi looked just as irritated as I was.
"God, that guy was an asshole," Legosi stated and I nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I just want to strangle that fucking kid because he's just as much of a dick as Colin Moriarty was and that's saying something," I snarled under my breath and managed to calm down as I continued with my day.
A few days later, I was in the black market and had purchased a bag of meat before I headed back to Gouhin's place and walked through the market until I was taken aback when I spotted a kid wandering around all by himself as he was trying hard not to cry.
'What the hell is a kid doing in the black market all by himself?' I thought in concern as the kid passed me, then I walked in front of him before kneeling down.
"Hey, are you okay and where are your parents?" I asked calmly with a kind smile, then the kid suddenly started bawling and I frowned as I gently shushed him to calm him down.
"It's alright, you don't have to be afraid so why don't I help you find your parents, okay?" I offered and the kid managed to calm down before he nodded, then I paused when I heard people cheering and hearing a few people say the name Shishigumi made me tense up as footsteps started approaching me from behind and came to a stop a few feet away.
"Hey, get out of the way! Did you hear me, boy!" a male voice demanded and I mentally swore up a storm since the Shishigumi was the last thing I needed to deal with at the moment.
"Legosi?" Louis muttered in disbelief and my eyes widened in shock since I wasn't expecting to hear him of all people in this place until members of the Madaragumi came into my line of sight while they looked less-than-happy, just before I grabbed the kid and held him close so that he wouldn't get knocked over.
Seeing that this was going to get ugly since I heard about the vicious rivalry between the Shishigumi and the Madaragumi, I stood up while holding the kid and inched away from the nasty street brawl that would no doubt happen soon before I spotted someone that held a resemblance to the kid and headed over to the woman who was looking for someone or something until she saw me with the kid and perked up.
"You found my son, thank you!" the mother cried in relief as I handed the kid over to her.
"Here's your son and please make sure to keep an eye on him this time so that he doesn't wander off again," I said and the mother smiled as she bowed in gratitude.
"Still, thank you for finding him and bringing him to me," the mother told me and I waved my free hand at her assuringly.
"No problem, just wanted to help a lost child find his mother so have a nice day," I reassured before I went to dart into an alley that led to a shortcut back to Gouhin's place and before I entered the alley, I saw Louis among the members of the Shishigumi while he was wearing a dark suit and holding a look of shock as he gazed at me before I went through the alley.
Seeing Louis with the Shishigumi and hearing one of the lions calling him their new boss, it all made sense now as to why he was missing for two months and why he quit school because he was now in charge of a criminal organization and I was so disappointed in him for getting into such a dark life but why the remaining members of the Shishigumi didn't kill him and decided to put him in charge was puzzling and I might never know the answer as I arrived back at Gouhin's place.
Soon after that, I was continuing my meat meditation and wasn't even flinching anymore since I had gotten used to an extended exposure of meat for an entire week of training as I sat in my usual spot with my eyes closed while my breathing was calm and even before I heard a knock on the door that led out into the hallway.
"Legosi, I'm coming in," Gouhin announced as I heard him unlocking the door, but I didn't respond as I stood up and reached over before simply touching the slab of meat with my hands as Gouhin entered the room and I could hear him pause as he was no doubt surprised by what I was doing.
"Gouhin-san, I know I'm in the middle of training but I want to ask you something," I said as I opened my eyes and looked at Gouhin, who was gaping at me until he shook it off and cleared his throat.
"S-Sure, so what is it?" Gouhin inquired and was apparently taken aback when I removed the slab of meat from its hook and held it in my arms as I gazed at him with an unreadable expression.
"The bodies you switch on a daily basis for my training, could you get them out of the fridge and help me put them in a bag?" I asked and Gouhin wasn't expecting that as he sent me a strange look.
"Why?" Gouhin questioned in confusion.
"Just trust me," I replied cryptically and Gouhin was about to argue while I had gotten dressed in casual clothes, but he let it go and did what I asked him to as we placed the slabs of meat into a large sack and left the building as it got dark.
We walked through the city and I led Gouhin to the beach while being lost in thought about the former lives that I was carrying and if there was one thing I learned over the years is that all life is sacred and everyone is equal after death since things like religion, politics, race, and gender didn't matter anymore once we pass on from this life so I remained silent as we arrived at the beach, then I placed the bag down and proceeded to dig seven holes for each slab of meat until I placed them in the holes one at a time while covering them up, just before I finished by sticking rocks in front of the makeshift graves and carving in the names of the former people I had buried.
"Wait, why the hell do you know all seven of their names?" Gouhin asked dubiously and I looked back at him before standing up.
"Well, you told me that I should buy my own meat so whenever I did, I would ask the shop for information on the animals while they were still alive but if there were shops that couldn't tell me anything, then I would go to hospitals and funeral homes for info so it's the reason why I've been late getting to your place for training," I explained before I gazed back at the graves solemnly.
"Joel-san was single and a popular customer in a bar that he went to on weekends, Linda-san worked part-time at a convenience store and still saved up enough yen to give her daughter allowance...these people had friends and families while living completely normal lives but since their bodies wound up in the black market, they probably weren't completely happy with their lives but-" I continued and was cut off when I felt danger and spun around to block a strike from Gouhin with one hand before he grinned at me.
"Congratulations, you've made it past the first step," Gouhin complimented and I smirked back at him as I knew that things were going to get more interesting from now on.
A/N So, Connor passed his first test and is now going to go through the next step of his training, but his jaw strength won't get weak like in canon because he sees his teeth as another advantage in a fight so he'll be also focusing on his jaw and body strength during training since he'll need every advantage he can get in the upcoming fight against Tem's killer and his experience as a wasteland survivor taught him that he'll wind up dead if he doesn't adapt to lethal situations so I hope you're liking what I have in mind right now.
As for Legosi spirit having the same short white-furred appearance after his body's fur was shaved off and Connor's theory about their connection getting stronger, the answer to that will be revealed later so I can't wait to hear your theories on what's going on between Connor and Legosi so let me know what you think is happening to them once you're done with this chapter.
Well, let me know what you think of this chapter and stay tuned for more.
