Hello people, and welcome back to Highschool of the Dead: Resurrection. I'm a bit disappointed that so few people are giving this a favorite or following this story, and the reviews are non-existent, at least at the time I posted this chapter, but nevertheless, I was asked to do this, so the show must and will go on. Besides, I'm just getting started, and I've got a whole mess of carnage and developments, with your names on it...
Rei snapped her eyes open just before dawn, and looked out the window to see the blackness that was tainted by the barely-risen sun. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was...off. Something outside was giving her bad vibes, like something was coming, and it wasn't new either. Whatever it was, it didn't just worry her...it made her angry.
However...when she looked down, and saw a shirtless Takashi, her anger steadily faded. Just last night, the two patched up at least a major part of the animosity between them, and without Saeko there to intrude, intentionally, or unintentionally. The entire circumstance made her smile; her closest friend gave her quite a gift by encouraging her to patch things up with her true boyfriend.
She then got back under the covers, and snuggled into Takashi, pressing her large, bra-covered breasts into his bare chest. She then took a moment to admire his body: she could see the lines in his arms, torso, and even his neck created by his defined muscles. The apocalypse did his body wonders, despite how little food they had before now. She was always drawn to his looks, but seeing him half-naked was beginning to...physically effect her.
Takashi eventually started to stir, and Rei's smiling face was the first thing he saw in the dim light.
"Good morning." Rei said softly.
"Good morning..." Takashi whispered before Rei embraced him.
"Sleep well?" She asked.
"Next to you? Of course I did." Takashi said and Rei purred.
"You're sweet..." She breathed out.
"I have some making up to do." Takashi said.
"I thought we were past that." Rei said.
"We are...but it's the truth." Takashi said.
"Still...don't scare me like that." Rei said.
"Sorry." Takashi said.
"It's alright...I love you." Rei said.
"I love you too." Takashi said before kissing Rei's forehead then simply laying there snuggling with her. She then shifted against him and sighed dreamily.
"This is nice." Rei breathed out.
"Yeah...it is. Although, we'll have to get up soon." Takashi said.
"It's not even sunrise yet. Let's just enjoy this please." Rei said.
"Alright... I was just saying." Takashi said.
"So am I." Rei said.
"This is especially nice since...well, we don't have to deal with...him yet." Takashi said and Rei sighed.
"Oh...him..." She groaned.
"Eh, fuck him. We're not staying here longer than we have to anyway." Takashi said.
"Damn straight we aren't." Rei said seriously.
"Although...he did give us a hand, or two." Takashi said.
"Takashi, we've been over this. We can't trust him. Yes he's better than Shido, but that's not saying enough." Rei said.
"Still, credit where it's due." Takashi said and Rei sighed.
"Right. I hate to admit it, but you're right. But come morning, I'm not going to be the one who breaks the news. Let Saeko deal with his sorry ass." She said.
"But for now, let's just get some more sleep." Takashi said.
"Good idea...I have to calm down..." Rei said and Takashi pulled her closer, which made her settle down right away. The hours went by, and all the two could think about was the feeling of each other's bare skin, and the few scraps of clothing they were to cover their most intimate parts. It was somewhat stranger to feel how warm and silky each other's skin was, and have it be interrupted by the feeling of their underwear...but it was far too soon to be completely naked, despite the fact Takashi saw Rei naked quite a few times in the earliest day of the apocalypse. It was even more too soon to consider sex; they had neither protection nor birth control, even if they had the emotional grounds for such intimacy.
Eventually, the sun became bright enough to signal that it was time to wake up, and Takashi sat up and nudged Rei awake.
"Rei...?" Takashi breathed out.
"I'm awake." Rei said before stretching herself out...and noticed Takashi staring at her breasts. and he snapped his head away.
"Sorry. I couldn't help it..." He said.
"It's alright...we're both practically naked afterall." Rei said.
"Although...for what it's worth..." Takashi trailed off.
"Yes?" Rei asked.
"Well...you have really nice tits." Takashi said and Rei smirked.
"Why thank you very much, and you have really nice muscles." She said and Takashi returned the smirk, before Rei sat up with him and kissed him. Takashi then held Rei close while their mouths continued shifting and pressing against each other. Rei then moaned quietly as she pressed her chest into Takashi's, and he pulled her closer as the same time...before breaking the kiss.
"Rei...wait..." Takashi said.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"Nothing, it's just...should we...you know...slow down?" Takashi asked.
"What do you mean? Am I doing something you don't like?" Rei asked.
"Oh no! I just- I mean, I do like kissing you...I love it actually, it's just...I don't want to push it." Takashi said.
"I see. Well, we are sleeping together almost naked, I guess that is taking things a bit too far. But can't we just...I don't know, grow into it?" Rei asked.
"Yeah...maybe." Takashi said.
"Alright. Glad we settled that." Rei said with a smile before getting up and fetching her clothes.
"Me too. Jeez this romance subplot has serious issues..." Takashi said.
"What?" Rei asked while putting her shirt on.
"Nothing..." Takashi said.
Saeko meanwhile, entered Itachi's bedroom...and came in just in time to see him stretching as he got out of bed...in his underwear. As much as she disliked his behavior, she couldn't deny he was strikingly handsome, and seeing him half-naked wasn't helping. Itachi was roughly twice as muscular as Takashi, and nowadays, he was a pretty athletic man; it was no wonder Itachi could handle a bow or climb on things with such ease with a body like his. Even the parts of his body concealed by his grey underwear: his buttocks and genitalia, were...pretty well-developed.
Eventually...Itachi caught her looking him over, and raised his eyebrows.
"Seen enough?" He teased.
"I want to talk to you." Saeko said seriously and Itachi snickered.
"Yeah, I can see that..." He said as casually as ever as he walked over to a mirror and started flexing and stretching.
"I mean it." Saeko said.
"Well, shoot." Itachi said.
"Why exactly are you helping us?" Saeko asked.
"I already told you: I simply wanted to restore balance." Itachi said as he continued flexing, ending with a stretch to the ceiling.
"Or you want something from us." Saeko said.
"Like what? What could I possibly gain from wanting to help all of you, when I specifically asked for nothing in return, not even your services?" Itachi asked as he put a hand on his hip and raised both eyebrows at her.
"Glory." Saeko said, and Itachi scoffed.
"You can't be serious. What good will that do me nowadays?" Itachi asked.
"I know your type. People like you do anything to feel like a hero." Saeko said and Itachi stared at her.
"There are no people like me." He said.
"There have always been and always will be people like you." Saeko said.
"If you say so..." Itachi breathed out as he went over to a table to sit down.
"I've met countless people who believed themselves special, or at least more special than others before you." Saeko said.
"You mean you supposedly met other people like me?" He asked.
"Yes. You do things for people, ask for no reward, but he truth is...you're simply using us to help you feel better about yourself." Saeko said and Itachi laughed.
"Good one." He said.
"If I'm wrong, let me know how." Saeko said seriously.
"Saeko...seriously. Have you ever heard of the phrase, don't look the gift horse in the mouth? Your friend said so yesterday." Itachi said.
"You didn't answer my question." Saeko said.
"A question I am amazed that you think is necessary to ask in the first place." Itachi said.
"On second thought...nevermind, you emphasized that you had an audience quite well when we met." Saeko said.
"I enjoy people seeing my work. Is that a crime?" Itachi asked.
"You know what? It really isn't...I'm sorry for accusing you." Saeko said.
"Now that's more like it. Anything serious you want to ask about?" Itachi asked as he began to tie his hair.
"Yes. Do you know why I'm the one who came in here?" Saeko asked.
"Enlighten me." Itachi said.
"Because your attitude towards how casually you abandoned your own family doesn't sit right with the others. I cannot say I agree with you either, but I've noticed my patience eclipses that of the others, and not without good reason." Saeko said.
"So you mustered your supposedly god-like patience, drummed up the nerve to walk into this lion's den to warn said lion of impending doom. You're a real saint..." Itachi said.
"I didn't have to come in here! I could just leave you to your own devices, like you've been doing for who-knows-how-long, and let the consequences tear into you like a pack of wolves. But instead, I came in here, despite the animosity you yourself are responsible for, and gave you a chance to at least prepare." Saeko said.
"And you accuse me of wanting glory..." Itachi said.
"You said yourself glory doesn't do much good nowadays, and on that one thing, we agree." Saeko said.
"What's your point?" Itachi asked.
"My point is that whether you accept it or not, there is a very real possibility that you might need us." Saeko said and Itachi snickered.
"I don't need anyone." He said.
"Maybe not now, but what about later?" Saeko asked.
"Well, I've been doing no worse than great so far." Itachi said.
"For how much longer?" Saeko asked.
"As long as I need..." Itachi said.
"And that is?" Saeko asked.
"Oh for fuck's-! Why do you even care? What does anything in my life mean to you aside from what I gave you? And don't give me any bullshit about how my problems can become someone else's, I've heard that Buddha-level wisdom too many times as it is." Itachi said.
"You already gave us something without asking, why is it a crime if it's done for you?" Saeko asked seriously, and Itachi looked right at her.
"Even if it was a crime, what I did for you is far simpler than...whatever this is. Less painful too." He said.
"Why does there even have to be pain in the first place?" Saeko asked.
"Gee, I wonder..." Itachi said, and Saeko sighed and shook her head.
"Well...this definitely confirms something: you cannot help someone who doesn't want to be helped. But my goal coming in here was to let you know that it serves nothing to make enemies out of people, even though you gave us a hand, which on behalf of everyone else, I'm thankful for." She said.
"Even though I abandoned my parents?" Itachi asked seriously.
"Even though you abandoned your parents. I still don't approve anymore than the others...but I doubt you did so without your reasons." Saeko said.
"You have no idea..." Itachi said, and then jet engines were heard outside, and the two went to the window, to see a cargo plane drop a crate of supplies via parachute.
"I'll be damned...they really are dropping supplies." Saeko said.
"Which means it's hunting time." Itachi said with a smile.
With that, Saeko left Itachi to get himself together, and joined the others with their breakfast, which consisted of various snacks, and even some soup. Granted they couldn't warm it, but it was still enough to sustain them. Unsurprisingly, nobody went to Itachi's room to give him any food, but based on how quickly, vigorously, and assuredly he came out of his room, with his bow slung over his shoulder, and his quiver on his waist and everything, food was no issue.
"Um, where are you going?" Shizuka asked.
"Especially in such a hurry." Rei said and Itachi opened the door before turning to the group.
"Didn't you hear that plane fly by? It dropped off some supplies for us. I'm going out there to make sure no one unsavory gets it first." He said.
"Well at least that's something..." Rei said and Itachi scoffed.
"Still gnawing on that bone even though there's no meat on it?" He asked.
"Well, put some meat back on the bone and let us know why your parents are so shitty." Takashi said, and Itachi sighed.
"Look, I'd love to stand here and play 20 questions with all of you, but right now I have to take a page out of your dog's book and go fetch some stuff..." He said before walking out the door, leaving Saeko to shares glances with her teammates.
"You should probably go with him." Takashi said, and Saeko nodded before leaving.
Itachi was several meters down the road already by the time Saeko left the house, and Itachi stopped and looked back at her the moment he hard the door close.
"Why are you following me?" He asked.
"Takashi thinks it's best I come with you, and I agree." Saeko said.
"Wow...so you're a samurai, a psychologist, and a babysitter. And I thought I was a multi-tasker..." Itachi said.
"You could also use a hand with the supplies." Saeko said.
"Isn't that what that humvee's for?" Itachi asked.
"I meant getting to them. Of course the others are coming after us; we discussed that before you even came out of your room." Saeko said.
"Sure you did..." Itachi said.
"We absolutely did. That's what teammates do." Saeko said.
"Well...what do you want? A medal? I'm not part of your team from the look of things, and I'm pretty sure Kakashi knows that better than I do." Itachi said.
"His name's Takashi." Saeko said.
"Whatever..." Itachi said, before walking away...and Saeko simply stared at him, sighed and followed him. The two then walked down the road in total silence, eyeballing the dead zombies and the ones in the distance who were of no concern to them. Saeko then noticed that Itachi was holding some arrows in his left hand,the same hand in which he he held his bow. It was obvious they were there to make the time it took to retrieve another arrow shorter, which of course meant a faster rate of fire. Was there any trick he didn't know?
"How much further?" Saeko asked.
"They don't usually drop the supplies much further than this, but I've seen cases where it's literally a mile off." Itachi said.
"I see." Saeko said.
"Also...am I correct in assuming you also came with me to make sure I don't run off with the supplies?" Itachi asked.
"No you're not. I'm here to help you, as well as observe you." Saeko said.
"Let me guess: they still don't trust me?" Itachi asked.
"Of course not." Saeko said, and Itachi sighed.
"What skeptical times we live in..." He groaned.
"You haven't done much to inspire confidence, let alone keep it stable." Saeko said.
"And they can't overlook something they know little about despite what I've done for them..." Itachi said.
"Until you put some meat on the bone like you yourself brought up...I can't say they would." Saeko said.
"And that bullshitery is precisely why I left that colony my braindead parents are holed up in." Itachi said.
"Think about it: if you're willing to leave your own parents behind, whether they're qualified to be parents or not, what's to stop other people from thinking you'd stab them in the back the first chance you get, especially when you have a chance to make a case for yourself, and then blow it off? At the very least, that's going to make you look quite suspect." Saeko said.
"Alright, I can take a fucking hint..." Itachi breathed out.
"You also have yet to tell me why it doesn't matter if others take it the wrong way." Saeko said.
"Let's just get the damn groceries." Itachi said, and the two continued their trek down the road...until they saw a group of zombies roaming the streets. Then Itachi notched an arrow, and loosed it right through the side of a zombie's head. He then repeated the process several more times with the smirk on his face never once fading.
"That takes care of them." Saeko said before Itachi loosed three more arrows into the heads of three more zombies that came from the side.
"And that takes care of them." He said.
"No it doesn't, there's another group behind them." Saeko said, and Itachi looked behind them...and she was right.
"Great, more gnats to swat." Itachi said before loosing another arrow into the crowd, then repeated the process until only two zombies were left...then he loosed his second-to-last arrow, pulled the string back further than before, then his arrow zoomed past both zombies, tearing through the side of one's head, and pierced the other one's nose, making Itachi let off a chilling laugh. Saeko then noticed he only had one arrow left.
"Good thing that was the last zombie." Saeko said seriously.
"Eh, it wouldn't have mattered." Itachi said as he approached the dead zombies.
"I don't see any other weapons on you. What if one of them got close?" Saeko asked.
"I still have one arrow; I could just jam it into their heads., and...did you not see that last shot?" Itachi said.
"Of course I did. I've never seen someone shoot like that." Saeko said seriously.
"And you never fucking will." Itachi said.
"But what if you had run out of arrows?" Saeko asked.
"Then I'll just go get them...like so." Itachi said before removing an arrow from a zombie's head.
"If an arrow breaks?" Saeko asked.
"I have more arrows than I know what to do with in the closet in my room; I'm actually saving some carbon fiber arrows for when my wooden arrows are gone." Itachi said, and then spotted more zombies down the alleyway, and then starting loosing arrows at them as well, with Saeko covering another alleyway waiting for them to get close. She then whipped out her sword and started splitting heads once they got close enough. She then looked back to see Itachi loosing arrows...and then elbowing one in the face as it tried to grab him from behind, then he pinned it with his foot, and loosed an arrow into it's face.
"You're more on-the-ball than I thought." Saeko said before Itachi recovered his arrow.
"They're not exactly stealthy." He said before shooting more zombies.
After the battle was over, they approached a four-way intersection, with two men and a woman looking at the crates the plane dropped, and Itachi crouched behind a wrecked car.
"You know them?" Saeko asked.
"Yeah. They're some of the few good people in this area.." Itachi said.
"Here's hoping no zombies show up." Saeko said.
"Come on...don't jinx them." Itachi said.
"That doesn't even work. See? They're already leaving." Saeko said...and she was right; everyone took no more than a handful of boxes of food with them, and ran off.
"Alright, the rest is for us." Itachi said before walking towards the crate with Saeko behind him.
"We could leave the stuff for them. They may have a group." She said.
"Thick chance. Even if they do, they'll just make themselves a target for outlaws." Itachi said as he approached and looked over the supplies.
"And you aren't?" Saeko asked.
"My house is a hotspot for zombies, and before you ask, I'm a master at keeping noise down, so if I don't want any zombies coming my way, they're not coming my way. Everyone who tried getting near my place either drew their attention and had to fight them and lose, or retreated." Itachi said.
"So no one robbed you?" Saeko asked
"Nope. Not even once." Itachi said, then approached the supplies.
"And these supplies, how did you get them by yourself?" Saeko asked.
"Well, sometimes I had to fight for them, either zombies or outlaws." Itachi said...and Saeko went dead silent as the rogue archer in front of her kept searching the supplies.
"You...killed people?" Saeko asked.
"Yep." Itachi said.
"I see..." Saeko breathed before looking down.
"Just last week I caught two outlaws bragging about how they raped and killed a woman...in detail. So I made them each take an arrow to the heart, if they had any, and I've been shedding crocodile tears ever since." Itachi said while smiling...and Saeko sucked in a breath. She recalled the time she was attacked at night in her mid-teens, then beat her attacker senseless, while enjoying herself. Ever since, she's struggled against her bloodlust, except for when she had to kill zombies, but even then, her enjoyment was debatably justified. Itachi's pride was worse than she thought; he never struggled against his bloodlust, he actively embraced it. This man's dark side made her own look tame...!
Next thing, she knew, a small horde of zombies were approaching, then she worked up the nerve to touch Itachi's shoulder, ignoring the dark vibe she got from him, and shaking him.
"We've got company!" She said, and Itachi just looked to the side, and smirked.
"Two dozen dead zombies coming up." He said as he pulled his bow, notched an arrow, and once again...his arrows pierced the side of one zombie's head, and then hit the center of another zombie's face. Saeko just stood there and watched her arrogant, yet ultimately trustworthy companion put what few arrows he had to good use. The smile on his face showed just how much he looked forward to moments like this; whether it was common was anyone's guess, but his archery skills were making it undeniable that the world wasn't big enough for him and the zombies that were currently getting arrows lodged in their heads.
He then went to go get his arrows after calming down, and then turned to hear, and then see Saeko severing heads left and right. The whole time, his head tilted and his eyebrows raised with interest as Saeko danced around the walking corpses trying to literally feast on her, only to get their skulls split open, their heads removed entirely, sometimes, more than one at a time, or their faces impaled, sometimes after Saeko kicks them to the ground. One time, Saeko jumped on one's chest, flipped off of it as it stumbled into several others behind it, then snapped around to sever another one's head, then snapped back around to impale one, then kick it back down.
"I could use a hand!" Saeko yelled before rapidly severing more heads with a series of rapid slashes, and Itachi sighed; as could be predicted, more zombies came out in the distance.
"So much for keeping it quiet..." Itachi groaned, before shrugging and then got right to putting arrows through their heads. He couldn't always kill multiple with one arrow, but that wasn't surprising; the number of zombies was in the dozens, and lining up the shot was something even he couldn't do under these conditions. Nevertheless, there was no way they were going to get the best of Itachi Fujinaga.
Together, the two took care of the small zombie horde, with Saeko slaughtering zombies that got too close, and Itachi keeping them at bay with his arrows. Eventually, Itachi ran out, and had to swallow his pride as Saeko mopped up the rest. With a final swing of her blade that severed the heads of the last few, the battle was over, and they looked around to see the result of their victory.
"That takes care of them." Saeko said as Itachi went to get his arrows.
"How many did you get?" He asked.
"This wasn't a contest." Saeko said seriously.
"Alright, be that way..." Itachi groaned before he started pulling his arrows out of the zombies' heads.
"The others should be on their way here by now." Saeko said.
"Right...the lady who cried humvee." Itachi said.
"You never told me how you retrieved the supplies you have all by yourself." Saeko said.
"Well, for starters, most supply drops weren't this big, and also, I had to sometimes push them there. Good thing I had plenty of food to keep me in shape. Speaking of which..." Itachi said before removing his gloves, grabbing a box, opening it, then stuffing his face. Saeko watched the entire time, and Itachi noticed. "What? I'm hungry..."
"I can see that, but it would have been more fitting if you had eaten with us." Saeko said.
"First off, you're beating a dead horse with a hammer. Secondly, like I said, I'm not part of your little gang, nor do I plan to be." Itachi said.
"For reasons that continue to elude me." Saeko said, and then they heard an engine humming as it approached.
"So...your imaginary humvee approach wasn't imaginary afterall." Itachi said.
"Of course it wasn't." Saeko said, and then the humvee stopped as Itachi finished eating. He then put his gloves back on as the rest of the group got out of the vehicle.
"You two sure know how to make a mess." Saya said as she looked over the dozens of dead zombies.
"They left us little choice." Saeko said.
"I take it he gave you a hand?" Rei asked.
"Of course he did. He may be venomous, but he's not dishonest, like we've been saying." Saeko said.
"I'm right here..." Itachi deadpanned.
"And you said right to my face that you're responsible for killing some outlaws." Saeko said.
"Don't tell me you feel sorry for them." Itachi said.
"Of course not, but it's not supposed to be fun." Saeko said.
"Like killing zombies isn't..." Itachi said.
"Of course it isn't. That's not what normal people do!" Rei snapped.
"Most normal people nowadays become zombies. I'm a bit surprised none of you did yet." Itachi said.
"Unlike you, we don't let this get to us." Rei said.
"Oh get off your high horse, it only makes you look smaller." Itachi said.
"Enough! Let's just grab the supplies a go." Takashi said.
"Where's Alice and Zeke?" Saeko asked.
"We left them with Kohta and Ms. Marikawa at the house." Saya said.
"You mean my house." Itachi said.
"No, I was right the first time." Saya said dryly.
"Whatever..." Itachi whispered.
"Well, the good news is that even though he took some admitted-earned food for himself, he didn't turn on me when he could've. Nevertheless, I'm still going to keep an eye on him." Saeko said.
"And all this time I thought you just liked what you saw..." Itachi breathed out.
Talk about tying yourself into a knot; when people give you a chance to clear animosity, you take it, otherwise, like Saeko said, you make yourself look pretty suspect. Yes, I know this is a pretty extreme case, but the logic is not unrealistic for lesser scenarios. Anyway, one development down, who-knows-how-many to go. So be sure to Rate, Review, and Share while you wait for this plot to keep getting thicker...and it will, so stay tuned.