This one came out fast, and just as a warning, this chapter has a decent amount of graphic detail, as this is the chapter that you get to see how Haise and Juuzou actually act when they're not trying to put on a more delightful persona.
Author's notes are at the bottom, please enjoy!
The skies were clear as day, and the red mist that hung above the surface of the wasteland appeared mild compared to how thick it usually was. The helicopter ride that early morning to secure 'Outpost Tango-Foxtrot 37' in Saitama allowed for Arima, Haise and Juuzou to catch the rising sun as dawn broke over the horizon; its orange-vibrant lights reflecting off of the red mist almost made the war-torn skyscrapers and metropolitan area look beautiful.
Upon reaching the rendezvous point at the one of the well fortified four-story 'Railway Museum', a large auditorium-like building that housed inoperative trains from the past along with other memorabilia, their helicopter pilot landed on top of the roof. Dressed in riot-armor made from dragon bone and hide that they wore under their dragon-hide leather dusters, each reaper made sure that their thermal-combat masks and helmets were secured before stepping off of the helicopter and inside of the building from the roof-access stairs.
Once inside, the three of them could feel the stares of all the other peacekeepers and mercenaries who had been assigned to Division II's mission to secure the military outpost from the Raider gang, the Clowns, who reports suggested had taken residency there and turned the fortress into the new headquarters of their slave-trade operation.
The morning briefing was urgent and to the point, and the Division II Commander, Itsuki Marude, explained to the room of his subordinates that he had ordered mortars to provide disruptive cover fire ten minutes ago, after the drones he had sent out to survey the Clowns' territory showed signs that they were under attack. Not wanting to waste an opportunity, Marude ordered his peacekeeper squad leaders and mercenary companies to advance into the fray of the battle, while the auxiliary support of their mortars and snipers from the proximity of the Railroad Museum would provide cover fire.
And while TSC would lead a full on battle with the Clowns with the mission being to exterminate them once and for all, the three reapers were told specifically to infiltrate their way into Outpost Tango-Foxtrot 37, and to eliminate the executives of the Clown gang, with their leader being the number one priority, 'The Dodgy Mother'. With the case files of each high-ranking member downloaded onto their portable commlink computers, 'The Pipboy Readius', Arima was appointed the squad leader for Haise and Juuzou, and each were told to travel an alternate route away from where the frontal assault would take place.
Once they were dispatched, the three reapers were given all-terrain motorcycles and rode together through the ruins of Saitama, riding beneath the covers of shadow provided by what remained of the ruined skyscrapers above. Once they were parked by the outskirts of where the Clowns' territory was, all three of them made their way into the large grey-painted corporate building that read 'Vault Tec: Saitama Branch' in yellow neon lights above the front doors of its lobby entrance.
Locking their motorcycles after rigging them to explode if tampered with, Haise made sure that his quinque, Yukimura , was holstered on his belt before proceeding to do a weapons check while Juuzou and Arima kept watch. "Isn't it ominous to hear all that gunfire and explosions taking place from here? Something about the way sound bounces off of these buildings when it's supposed to be silent really sort of gives you the heebie-jeebies, huh Arima?" Haise mused casually in order to make small talk, as he loaded one of the ten-round magazines of .50 caliber q-bullets from his large belt-pouch into his modified Anti-Material rifle.
Always static, Arima eyed Haise's nearly thirty-inch scoped rifle and raised a brow at it before replying back, "Yes… It's quite impressive to hear how far the sounds of battle carry within these hallowed grounds. It's almost as impressive as just how much you're overcompensating with that rifle of yours," Arima teased with an amused smile behind his tactical gas-mask.
Scoffing with a chuckle, Haise shook his head at the taller reaper while lowering his massive firearm down. "Hey, go easy on me, Arima! It's been a while since I've been out on the field, and you can't really use these sorts of weapons within the walls of Tokyo… Besides, what's wrong with having a gun that was originally made to shoot down aircraft on your side?
"Other than the fact that we'll be mostly indoors for this mission, and that gun of yours was meant for outdoor use? I suppose if one were to look at it that way, then there wouldn't be any problems," Arima pointed out, as he gestured to his usual load out he used to carry out his missions, his two quinques: his black lance, IXA, and his silver sword that was equipped with the ability to shoot out RC-cell created lightning bolts, Narukami. "You really should invest in better quinques, Sasaki; maybe then you'll see why investigators back then used them over firearms."
"Maybe, maybe… But then, I already have a kagune, which does an amazing job on its own. Plus, hehe… Look what I'll also be using today, guys," Haise said with a cocky attitude, as he reached into his side holster to pull out a large black-steel six-shooter that he spun around in his hand like the show off that he used to be. "How's this for indoor use, Arima? I've got a 'Big-Iron' that's just dying to meet the Dodgy Mother herself."
Snickering like a school boy after finding what Haise said to be funny, Juuzou earned himself the attention of the two other reapers as he showcased what he brought for the mission. "Sorry, sorry, that was immature of me…! Here, check out what I brought," Juuzou said, as he pulled off the suitcase quinque he had strapped over his torso. Opening it up to unravel a three-meter large-blades scythe inside, Juuzou spun it around like a kid playing with a broom, before pointing his hand up toward the shiny-iridescent and crooked-blade on top.
"I brought 'Jason XIII' with me! Remember? That ghoul who used to lead the white suits? The one who wore that Jason Vorhes mask?" Juuzou asked excitedly, as he still recalled the day of his first mission, where he and Haise had been assigned to exterminate the sadistic ghoul and his gang. "It was my first 'SS-rated' ghoul that I slayed… Ah, oh to be fourteen again…" Juuzou said with a nostalgic look on his face, as he smiled dreamily into the blade of his favorite quinque.
"You sound like an old man trying to reminisce about the good ol' days, Juuzou," Haise chuckled teasingly, before finding himself recalling how excited and thrilled he was during that operation seven years ago. "Although… I have to admit, that mission was pretty special, wasn't it? That's… That's when we were all part of Squad Zero, right Arima? The one you were in charge of?"
Letting out a half-chuckle, Arima couldn't help but to think back to when he was in charge of Haise, Juuzou, Ihei, Furuta, and his three younger siblings: Yusa Arima, Shio Ihei, and Rikai Souza. "Ah, yes… It was very comforting to have all of you around me. It… It made me feel like I was the father of a large family. I liked it a lot," Arima said in his usual stoic voice, which Haise and Juuzou were able to look right through in order to see how lonely Arima sounded compared to how he usually talked. "But… I suppose you all had to leave the 'nest' sometime, after all. The life of a 'peacekeeper' isn't suited for everyone."
Looking down at the ground while still holding onto the black pole of his quinque, Juuzou frowned behind his mask as he let out a sigh. "Now you're just making me feel bad, Arima…" The femboy muttered while sulking in his highly-fortified riot armor, as he gave a small kick to the side of his quinque case and watched as it flopped on the cracked sidewalk.
"My apologies to both of you; it wasn't my intention to guilt trip either of you," Arima apologized as he raised IXA up to motion for Haise and Juuzou to breach through the front door with their weapons hot. "Although, it would be nice of you two to visit more often," Arima said with a bit of sass in his voice, as he advanced into the building while stabbing IXA into the floor to create a barrier for the three of them, before they began slaughtering all thirty Clowns who had been waiting inside the lobby to ambush them.
Caught in the midst of a two-front fight for their lives, with reports of Ken Kaneki and a traitor leading their captured prisoners through the bowels of the dragon-orphan infested corridors of Vault 079, and the TSC with their hired mercenaries decimating their soldiers on their own home front, the executive members of the Clowns sat at the emergency meeting deep within the heart of buried outpost, and were seated at an expensive oval table, with a large monitor mounted on the wall over seeing all of them.
Using his phone to face time with those who he saw as incompetent, Tatara's disappointed and intimidating expression being displayed on the screen made even the most nihilistic of the Clowns feel small beneath his televised gaze. "… You pathetic pieces of shit have the gall to ask the King to send his men to Saitama, just so they can save a group of low lives such as yourself, who have proven to be more trouble than your all worth keeping?" Tatara paraphrased after having listened to their pleads for assistance.
Sitting at the end of the table, dressed in her dainty clown outfit and goofy chipmunk half mask, Roma Hoito, the 'Dodgy Mother' herself, smiled nervously behind her cartoony mask as she replied back with a meek, "If, uh, hehehe… If you could do that for all of us, I'd say that we'd be deeply indebted to the King, wouldn't you say, H-Handsome?" She stuttered, after realizing that Tarata wasn't at all impressed with the way she had tried sweet talking him.
"No… No, I don't think that'll be happening," Tartara stated with conviction in his voice, as he couldn't help but narrow his eyes at his phone's selfie camera; the thought of those who he saw as actual clowns dying made him smile behind his metallic-red half mask. "Even if the King himself wanted to aid you in your time of need, it would be impossible for us to reach you within less than six hours. The way I see it, all of you have about an hour or less until your annihilation; it's best for us to let nature take its course."
Although none of them at the oval table were openly acting out against Tatara, Itori was amongst one of the few of them who wasn't keen on allowing herself to be slain if she could help it. "I… I understand that you aren't going to bail any of us out of this one; that much is certain," the voluptuous ghoul said, as she adjusted her noseless carnival-clown mask that covered her hidden beautiful face. "What about the kid? If he's as important as you say he is, why aren't you making it a priority to at least come for him?"
Letting out an amused and deep chuckle, Tatara shook his head at the peach-haired woman. "That won't be necessary, it seems as though he's fully capable of saving himself. Besides, if what I've dug about his past is correct, then there's no need to force him into doing anything he wouldn't otherwise do on his own," Tatara said in an ominous voice, before adding, "Ken Kaneki will come to us, willingly. We'll reach out to him ourselves when he's ready to meet the King…"
"… Which reminds me. Since you've made Ken Kaneki your enemy by inflicting harm upon him and sending your soldiers to hunt him down, you have also antagonized the King, and declared yourself an enemy of 'Aogiri Tree'," Tatara said with a hint of joy in his voice, as he watched through the cameras of the outpost's war room as all of the Clowns sitting down recoiled at the news. "Look at this way: If TSC or Kaneki doesn't end your lives today, I'll personally make sure that every single one of you is crucified on the cross; left to rot as the dragon orphans of the wasteland devour you underneath the light of day."
While the thought of being left to die a slow and painful death wasn't exactly what most of them had in mind for their futures, the sadomasochistic of the Clowns, Nico, giggled suggestively at the thought of being lashed to a cross. "Don't threaten us with a good time, Sweetheart!" Nico shouted, as he cat-called the very unamused ghoul on the television monitor. "If today must be the day we say farewell to this cruel and unforgiving life, then I want to go out in style…" Nico said with an eager grin behind his retro-styled clown mask, before standing up from his seat with the extravagant determination of a man on a mission.
Looking over his fellow Clowns who he actually didn't give two shits about, Nico raised his arms up in the air before shouting, "The world's a stage, isn't it?! If this is to be our last performance, then I say let's give them one hell of a show! Who will join m-"
Before Nico could rally up the morale of the oval room in order to convince the other Clowns to throw themselves at their enemies while he could make a break for it, his upper body exploded into a cloud of gore as a fifty-caliber bullet tore through him like he was made of wet paper. The other surviving Clowns watched as the lower half of Nico's body flew across the room and bumped into the wall on the complete other side of where the only way in-and-out of the room was.
Amazed at how quickly the legendary reapers were able to travel down their supposed secret entrance and past all their guards, Roma let out a dry chuckle as she kept her brown eyes focused on what was left of Nico's body. "… Aw shit, what was that? Like, ten minutes? If that?" Roma asked aloud to no one in particular, as she slowly looked back around to stare at the three armored reapers standing with their weapons drawn and at the ready. "… I was sort of hoping that this would have been a lot more drawn out and less one-sided, but you boys caught us with our pants down, didn't ya? Could you, uh… Could you come back in like, an hour?"
Standing in front of Haise and Juuzou, Arima shook his head at Roma's ridiculous request as he raised Nakimurams blade up toward the oldest looking Clown at the oval table, Donato Porpora. "Does this answer your question?" Arima asked in a flat voice, as he fired a lightning bolt straight at Donato's head, causing the Russian ghoul's head to catch flames before exploding into a cloud of ashes.
Leaping out of her seat as all of them watched as Donato's headless body flopped forward onto the table, Itori immediately raised her arms up over her head and got down on her knees. "F-Fuck this…! Hey, you guys! I-I surrender! I'll tell you whatever you want to know, I swear to God! Just let me off the hook, alright?!" Itori demanded with annoyed tone, as she quickly made it obvious to the rest of her fellow Clowns that she had no intentions of dying that day.
Considering his options and what he was sent there to do, Arima thought about Itori's voluntary surrender before finally deciding to spare her. "Sasaki… Go get her, and bring her here," Arima ordered as he and Juuzou kept their eyes on the remaining two living members of the Clowns, as Tatara watched curiously with his hand over his camera, as to give the impression that the television mounted high on the wall was off.
Walking past Uta, who still had on his mask, Haise kept his hunting revolver aimed at Itori as he walked behind her to grab her underneath her exposed armpit to lift her up to her feet. "C-Come on, no funny business, 'Clown'," Haise accidentally said with a stutter, after catching himself ogling at all of Itori's curves and the way her peace-shaped ass fit snugly in the black lace dress she was wearing; something that the older woman was immediately able to pick up as he pressed the tip of his revolver against her exposed upper back.
"I'll do whatever you say… I promise you that much," Itori said with a submissive voice that she tried to make sound seductive, as she made sure to keep her backside pressed up against him as far as the barrel of Haise's revolver would allow her to. Feeling relieved now that she knew that she could manipulate at least one of the reapers into possibly protecting her from being imprisoned within Cochlea, Itori smiled behind her mask as she kept close to Haise as he escorted her back to his group.
Feeling betrayed yet amused that Itori had given herself up and turned their backs to them when they were about to meet their ends, Uta crossed his arms over his athletic build chest and sighed. "Should I even bother putting up a fight, or are you three going to rip me to kill me the moment I try to get up? I'm only asking because I don't want to waste my time, or yours… What about giving up? Can I give up too?" Uta asked with a serious and gentle tone, as he wasn't opposed to dying any more than he was opposed to living.
"One prisoner of war is enough already. Why should we allow you to live?" Arima asked as he raised IXA up, with the intention of plunging it deep into the Earth so that he could make its tip rip through Uta's body from beneath where he was sitting.
Thinking about why he should be spared more than what he could do to convince them to spare him, Uta thought long and hard about what he was going to say, before finally finding the words he wanted to say. "Well, uh… I've got a lot of money and supplies stashed away; they're all yours if you let me go, and uh… Well, other than that… Oh, I could show you where Souta's keeping that one girl… Rize? Rize Kamishiro, I think is her name? She's important, right?" Uta asked with a shrug, as turned his head over to Roma.
"Yes, her name is Rize Kamishiro, you lousy traitor. Did you need help remembering where Souta stored her too? Or did you somehow remember that, and are just willing to spout bullshit out in order to save your own sorry ass?" Roma asked with a wide smile hidden behind her mask's goofy plastic grin, as she did her best to show the three reapers that she was indifferent to the rumors that she'd heard of them.
Walking toward Uta since Haise was already busy keeping an eye on Itori, in more ways than one, Juuzou leaned forward and stared at the black-haired ghoul's unique looking mask. "… You're telling me that you can take us to Kamishiro? And more importantly, is she alive?" Juuzou asked in a serious tone, to which Uta shrugged in response.
"I don't know, probably? It's only been a couple weeks at most, and Souta's been having some kid named Rio take care of her," Uta said with an unsure voice, as himself didn't really know for certain whether or not Rize was still alive, or just a corpse that Souta was screwing. "Only way to find out, isn't there? That is, if you're going to keep me alive long enough to show you where Souta's keeping her."
Scowling behind his mask's glowing red eye lenses, Arima took a step forward as he silently gestured for Juuzou to shove Uta off of his seat and down onto the ground. With the edge of Juuzou's scythe pressed up against his throat while the femboy stood on top of his back, Uta was forced to look up at Arima due to Juuzou pulling his head up by his long black hair. Kneeling down with the tip of IXA's lance pressing into through the eyehole of the ghoul's left eye, Arima penetrated Uta's eye slowly until he was sitting up on one knee.
Twisting and pulling out Uta's eye, Arima gave the nod to Juuzou, who didn't hesitate to behead Uta before kicking his decapitated head like a football across the room. "Too brave for his own good, huh Arima~?" Juuzou asked with an amused tone in his voice, as he wiped his blade against Uta's shirt before he and Arima turned their attention toward the last remaining Clown that they needed to deal with: The Dodgy Mother.
"… I think you know what's going to happen next, don't you?" Arima asked in an intimidating voice, as he slowly began walking over toward the usually fearless woman, who couldn't help but to shrink in her seat as the White Reaper himself approached her with murderous intention. "Don't bother trying to barter your way of this. You're going to die by my hand."
"Wait, wait, wait…! W-What about Kamishiro?! D-Don't you guys wanna know where she is?!" Hora asked with an uneasy and wide smile spread across her childish features, as she felt her heart pounding and her body beginning to sweat as Arima got within arms reach of her. Whimpering and beginning to hyperventilate as she watched Arima raise IXA up and press its bloodied tip against her throat, the bravado and nihilism that Hora had been hiding behind quickly faded away, and all that was left was a terrified woman who realized how much she didn't want to actually die.
"F-Fuck, fuck, fuck…! C-Come on, d-don't…! T-There n-n-no n-need— OH GOD, OH FUCK!!!" Hora screamed with tears welling up behind her childish mask, as she felt IXA's tip digging into her throat. "PLEASE, D-DON'T DO IT!!! I-I'M SORRY, I'M FUCKING S-SORRY!!! I-I'LL DO WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU WANT, J-JUST DON'T FUCKING HURT ME, OKAY?! AW SHIT, OH FUCK—!!!"
Had it not been for the air filter cartilage within Arima's sophisticated combat mask, he would have smelt a sour odor in the air as he looked down past IXA's blade to see Hora actually pissing herself from just how afraid she was of him. 'She's afraid… Good, we can use that,' Arima thought to himself with a smile behind his mask, as he silently was glad that he didn't have to brutally kill her like how he had Uta executed.
In one quick movement, Arima heard Roma screaming out with a terrified cry as he psyched her out when he pulled IXA away from her bleeding throat. Watching Hora slowly opening her eyes before reaching up to protect her throat where his quinque had pierced, Arima took a step back and stared pitifully at the woman as she collapsed onto the floor with her hands raised over her head and her face against the ground to show total submission to the White Reaper.
Lowering his arm down, Arima towered over Roma as she laid beneath him, huddled into herself as the thought of being killed at any second by someone who showed no remorse like the White Reaper made the Dodgy Mother cower in perpetual fear. Having shown his dominance and capturing the leader of the Clowns, Arima was beginning to see no further use for someone like Itori, who Arima knew held far less value and importance. "… Sasaki, we have who we need. Execute the other Clown; we don't need her anymore."
Outraged that the people she was trying to manipulate into freeing her had suddenly turned on her, Itori opened her mouth to object, but was quickly silenced after Haise obeyed Arima's command, and emptied all five shots into the cunning woman's head and kakuhou; leaving her as nothing more than a managed ghoul that fell face-first into a pool of her blood. "What a shame," Haise chuckled with a sadistic grin behind his mask, as he raised his foot above the twitching ghoul's mutilated head, before stomping down hard on what was left of Itori's head; creating a sickening pop that caused Roma to flinch to and whine upon hearing it.
Being no stranger to taking enjoyment out of dominating their opponents, especially when they were purposefully trying to break their spirit, Juuzou let out a maniacal cackle like the true psychopath he was, and skipped over to Roma to kneel down beside her. "Look what we did to your little silly entourage, you washed-up old hag! Look, look, loo— I SAID FUCKING LOOK!!!" Juuzou suddenly screamed as loud as he could into the terrified ghoul's ear, as he grabbed her by the back of her short head to lift her off of the ground with one hand.
Feeling one of Juuzou's finger tips pressing hard into her left eye and through her mask's eyehole, Roma immediately did as she was told as gazed at what had become of her strongest ghouls; ghouls who she admittedly didn't care for, but just seeing how easily they were taken out before they even had the chance to fight back made their gruesome ends made her realize that she herself could easily end up like the rest of them.
"Not so tough now, are you?! What's wrong, can't take what you dish out?!" Juuzou jeered at the trembling older woman, before suddenly piercing the back of her body with his hand. Making sure to take his time to tear and twist her innards out as she became paralyzed the moment he severed her spine with his fingers, Juuzou ensured that he was causing her as much pain as he could. Knowing how much pain and internal damage a ghoul could take before succumbing to their wounds, Juuzou timed his prompt-to torture session long enough to keep Roma alive before ending it by ripping her kakuhou sacs out of her body.
Dropping the handful of bloodied organs onto the concrete below, Juuzou released his grip from Roma and giggled as she collapsed onto the ground like a sack of potatoes. As Roma sobbed violently while her body seized up and convulsed, Juuzou knelt down and whistled a catchy tune while wiping his arm clean using the ghoul's soiled skirt and outfit. "We sure did take her down a peg, didn't we Haise?" Juuzou asked cheerfully, as he stood back up and waited for his best friend to make his way over to the barely-living ghoul to pick her up.
"That's one way to put it, huh?" Haise replied back rhetorically, as he slung Roma's bloodied body over his shoulder while making sure that her shaking arms wouldn't cause him to accidentally drop his anti-material rifle that he had slung over his other shoulder. "Another job well done, huh Arima? Did you want to do the honors of radioing Marude, or did you want Juuzou or I to do it?" Haise asked casually, as he felt anxious to have Roma lead him to where Rize was being kept.
Nodding at Haise, Arima casually placed his quinques down on the oval table as he retrieved his sleek-black 'Pipboy Readius' from within one of the pouches he had around his belt. "As your Commanding Officer, it's my duty to radio the Division Commander, remember? Even if you two aren't peacekeepers anymore, the chain of command is still important to follow," Arima explained, as he nonchalantly kicked Donta's headless body off of the seat he wanted before making himself comfortable. "Why don't you two do some exploring, see what goodies you can get before TSC comes to stake their claim? Besides, you two should head out before TSC gets here; I doubt they'll be cool with the fact that we're letting the Dodgy Mother live, if they find out that is."
Nodding and agreeing with what Arima was saying, Haise thought about what he and Juuzou should do next, and that's when he had an idea. "Arima, can you do us a favor, and wait about ten minutes before you call this in? That should give me enough time to interrogate the Dodgy Mother, and let Juuzou snoop around for anything valuable we could take with us?" Haise requested respectfully, while Juuzou hopped up and down with excitement at the news that he wouldn't have to stick around their prisoner.
"YES!!! I was SO not looking forward to having to help you extract information out of her; they always cry too much and it gets on my nerves…!" Juuzou whined with an irritated tone to his feminine voice, before immediately skipping out of the war room and down into the small network of corridors to begin his favorite pastime of going out on missions: looting.
Under the assumption that he was alone with Arima for the most part, Haise walked over to his mentor and stared at him through the glowing red lenses of his gas mask. Although their faces were hidden behind advanced gas-masks, the two had known each other long enough to know what the other was feeling without actually needing to see one another's face; and Arima could tell that something was bothering Haise.
"… Why don't you put her down on the table; she won't be responsive for the next five minutes at least," Arima said, before inviting Haise to take a seat next to him by patting the back cushion of the swivel chair beside him.
"Oh… Yes, of course," Haise said with a slightly distracted voice, as he carefully laid Roma's still convulsing body down beside Arima's bloodied quinques, before taking a seat beside the older man.
Sitting tall in his seat, Arima gave Haise a few moments to relax before deciding to pry into what was going on in his head. "Something's on your mind, I can tell. What's troubling you, Sasaki?"
Although Haise's first instinct was to deny there being a problem, he knew better than to try and fool someone like Arima, who had a natural gift at seeing right through others. Taking in a deep breath while moving his arms up to rest his elbows against the table top, Haise let out an elongated exhaled breath. "… Same ol' same, I guess… I'm frustrated with myself."
"I'm assuming you're referring to your own moral dilemma, correct? That question that you keep asking yourself whenever you take enjoyment out of ending the lives of those who you see as inferior; that satisfaction you get when dishing out your own justice upon those who you've seen as deserving of your wrath," Arima mused with an empathetic tone behind his usually monotone voice. "It's that question you keep asking yourself, isn't it? 'Am I evil?'"
Closing his eyelids while taking in a deep breath, Haise slowly nodded at Arima before letting out a melancholy sigh. "Yeah… Yeah, it's that question again. And… And those aren't the only reasons why I'm leaning towards 'yes' every time I do one of these missions," Haise admitted with a dry chuckle, as he used his finger tips to brush his white fluffy bangs that were resting on his forehead. "I… I think I enjoy hurting others more than I have any right to. And I get it, I get it: it's that half-ghoul tendency of being prone to hyper aggression; it's what Juuzou has wrong with him too."
"Then you understand that it's not your fault that you're the way you are?" Arima questioned, before following his rhetoric up with, "You are a product of your environment and your biology, Sasaki. You were bred to kill, trained to be good at it, and you were psychologically taught to find enjoyment from it. If you truly have to blame anyone for the way you are, don't blame yourself; blame those who made you for their own nefarious agendas."
"I could blame them for all they've done to me and the rest of us all I want, but that still doesn't change the fact that I'm still allowing myself to be like that," Haise retorted with a frustrated tone in his voice. "Maybe I have myself to blame for merely trying to be something I was never meant to be. I suppose it's unfair to blame an animal for behaving like one, right? But even so… I hate myself, and I hate that I can't be the person I want to be, no matter how hard I keep trying, I… I just keep coming back for more. And when I'm hurting others, I always mess up and end up screwing someone who thinks I actually have feelings for them, just because... Because s-sex is the only other way that I can get that thrill that my body needs."
Being one of the few people who knew of Haise's struggles of trying to keep his high libido in check, especially when he knew how charming his protege could be those who saw the side of him he wanted them to see, Arima nodded his head respectfully to acknowledge his pseudo-son's nymphomaniac tendencies. "Despite falling into temptation again and again, Haise… Don't let your shortcomings blind you from all the good you've done for those who turned to you in their darkest hour. Evil people don't go out of their way to selflessly help those who seek them out."
"I appreciate you saying that, Arima, but… At the end of day, an evil man with a conscience they can't follow who does good deeds to make up for his shortcomings is still evil deep down inside, and no matter how many times I try to make up for all the wrong I've done, it just… It just isn't ever enough to allow me to forgive myself. Not all of the people who I've been sent to kill deserved what I did to them, nor do all their loved ones that I make them leave behind..."
Not having anything to say to change Haise's mind at the moment, all Arima could do was nod while hoping that his presence and care would be enough to at least comfort the young man beside him. Seeing how there wasn't much else to say, Arima looked over to Roma, and it was then that he thought of something to say. "… Except her; she deserved every second of it."
Snorting at how nonchalantly Arima had said that, and how out of the blue it was, Haise cracked a smile behind his mask as he snickered at his mentor's dry sense of humor. "Oh yeah, totally; she'll get what's coming to her, trust me," Haise said with a sudden rush of euphoria washing away his self-loathing thoughts, as the mere thought of avenging those who died thanks to Roma's gang was more than enough to temporarily make Haise forget about his internal struggles, and allowed him to instead turn his attention toward the ghoul who appeared to be regaining consciousness.
"Well… I think she and I are going to be busy; I'll see you around, Arima! Maybe you and I can go out for dinner later tonight?" Haise asked as a way to invite his mentor for an outing later, as he immediately stood up to his feet before scoping Roma off of the table and over his shoulder.
Wanting to move on from the serious discussion just as much as Haise did, Arima nodded his head and replied back, "We'll talk more about later, but if I'm free you can count me in."
And with that said, the two of them parted ways. With Arima keeping a close eye on the clock while Juuzou was off stuffing duffel bags full of valuable loot, Haise took Roma over to an isolated area to begin interrogating her for the whereabouts of Rize. Like always, Haise fell back to the only way he knew how to cure his internal struggles, that was to distract himself with the destructive lifestyle that he loved to live in moment with, but hated himself afterward, only after he was finished and left alone with his after thoughts.
All of this was happening while Tatara took note of everything he had heard and witnessed through the security system built into the old outpost, and made sure to circle 'Haise Sasaki' several times on his notepad while none of them were the wiser.
I'm glad you guys enjoyed the last chapter, and I'll try to answer some reviews as quickly as I can; I got places to be during the time of writing this.
It'll be revealed as to why Tatara wants Rize's kagune later on, and it's not so much that he wants it, it's that his 'boss' wants it. And I agree with your rant about how poorly Eto was treated in the manga.
Probably won't have perks, but Kaneki will eventually learn how to use VATS. I'll probably post this on A03 after I update Root H on that site, lol. That, or when I actually add Naruto into the story later on lol, and Eren.
Wildlife has mutated due to the dragon mutation, IE the red mist that hangs around the ground. So technically they're still animals, but have transformed into a variant of dragon and dragon orphans. Kaneki probably won't have the skills to modify his own weapons, but one of his friends surely will, so he's got that covered. Just not now, because it's still sort of early.
And don't worry, I'm going to conclude this arc with the next chapter, so we can get back to Tokyo and have Kaneki and Hikari have a 'work out session' gone sexual. Yoga pants and a latex sports bra, while she shows Kaneki how to 'help her'.
I apologize if Haise seems out of character in this chapter, it's supposed to show his darker side and how he acts when he's not trying to put on a face for the public. Juuzou's still just as sadistic and mentally not all there as canon, and doesn't think what he's doing is all that bad, but compared to Haise, who is extremely self-aware of the consequences of his own actions, Juuzou is still usually always his happy-go-lucky self.
Arima is in the same boat as the rest of the reapers, he knows what he is and what he's good at, and accepts his actions while being able to maintain a level-headed attitude when it comes to maintaining a healthy, for the most part, lifestyle. Haise wants to, but can't unless he's forcing himself to, and even then he usually just does something else that's wrong for different reasons, just to try and satisfy himself. To put it simply, Haise is addicted to sex and mercilessly killing those who he thinks deserve it, but doesn't want to be that kind of person who does those things.
Okay that about does it for now, thank you for reading and have a fine damn good day! Also please give me lemon ideas for Haise and Kaneki that aren't the ones we've mentioned so far, if you could do that lol. I love variety and options. Thank you again, see you next time.