Bullet XX


Rowan's club was as lively as usual.

Apart from Bao's bar, the strip club was one of the very few neutral areas in Roanapur, as Rowan preferred not to associate with the local mobs and gangs, and it was also a sanctuary for men and women to relax for a moment. Ronnie felt a pang of guilt for having to ruin the tranquility and for causing Rowan trouble, but it was nothing personal, just business.

The man would understand...probably.

He and his men pushed their way through the crowd, sometimes pushing and shoving, but after circling the place several times, they didn't find any subjects matching the vague descriptions Emilio had given. And that was irritating Ronnie, but also worrying him.

He wasn't exactly a patient guy, but Verrocchio was even less so. If he returned to his boss empty-handed, Verrocchio would be pissed at him and kill him. It didn't matter if he was his right hand or not, his boss had already had three right hands before Ronnie got to that position.

So Ronnie decided to change tactics and gave his men new instructions. If they couldn't find those two idiots, Rowan should know where they are. No one entered the club without Rowan knowing about it, so the best and easiest thing to do would be to ask him directly.

But just as he was thinking that finding the club owner in that crowd of people was going to be just as complicated, Ronnie spotted Rowan at the other end of the club.

Ronnie stopped dead in his tracks. But as his men followed them in line, one of them bumped his back and accidentally caused a wave effect on the others... so they all ended up falling sitting down. Seeing this, several people started laughing loudly and whistling at them.

Ronnie turned to look at them. "What the hell are they doing?"

"What the hell are you doing stopping all of a sudden?" -Replied Emilio, who was the first to fall, only to receive a kick. "Ow!"

"Shut up, and all of you stand up.". -Ronnie ordered, returning his attention to where his target was. "Looks like we found our little pigeon."

However, he also noticed that Rowan was accompanied by someone else. A man and a girl he didn't know... and the fucking Revy Two Hands. Ronnie clicked his tongue. Great, the last person he wanted to see in the world was also here.

But that wasn't going to stop Ronnie. "Come on, get off your asses, we've got to catch them before they get away from us."


As instructed, Rowan led the way to the private room where Chaka was located, followed by Revy, Rock and Gretel. So once again, the three of them plunged into the bustling club and made their way in the direction of the private rooms.

"So... a whip expert, huh?" -Said Rock with disinterest.

Revy rolled her eyes. Of course that jerk wouldn't pass up that little detail. However, she refused to look at him, because she knew he was giving her one of those smiles that pissed her off. Instead, she kept her gaze to the front, which unfortunately turned out to be Rowan's back and his hideous suit.

She seriously considered beating the man up for being a loose mouth.

"No goddamn questions about that." -Revy growled.

"I didn't ask any questions." -He replied, innocently. "It was just a comment."

"So, no goddamn comment on that."

"I can draw you little pictures if you want.". -Revy shot him a warning look. "Oh, don't give me that look, you know I'm messing with you because I'm a little nervous...and because it's fun."

" Yeah, very funny.". -Revy said, deadpan. "If you have time to spout bullshit, then tell me what the next step is."

"The next step is quite simple really.". -Said Rock, loosening the knot in his tie. "I just have to repeat to those guys the same thing I told Balalaika, and then pray they don't shoot me."

"Oh, that's going to be fucking hard.". -said Gretel this time, smiling. "You have a sign taped to your chest that says 'SHOOT ME'."

"I thought I told you that sarcastic retorts and smart remarks were my thing, young lady."

"What I said is neither of those two things, it's a fact.". -Suddenly, the girl's smile faded. Her tone of voice became more serious. "So make sure you're careful, okay, Boss?"

"...You know me."

"Yeah, that's why I say be careful!"

"Hey, hey, you're doing it again."

Revy grunted as she agreed with the brat, she wasn't too convinced at Rock's idea either. But at this point, it would be useless to try to stop it. He wasn't going to back down and she wasn't someone skilled enough with words to be able to convince him otherwise. Although there was also the option of knocking him out and locking him in a room until the current shit storm passed.

…Sure she'd get a few funny reactions there.

"In any case..." -Said Revy, to reject the tempting idea. "You're not going to give me that crap about this being another crazy 50/50 bet, right?"

"..."

"Rock."

"Okay, okay. That may be so, but hey, it went well last time."

She rolled her eyes. Of course it was a crazy bet. "You already pushed your luck in Taiwan, several times, and a while ago you did it again with Sis. How much longer do you want to keep pushing your luck?"

"Until I can hear her cry for mercy."

Actually, his situation was anything but funny, but, still, Revy had to laugh. "Asshole.". -She shook her head. "But seriously speaking... Do you think you're going to win, or will this end in a bloodbath?"

"Well, I'd say I have a good chance to win.". -Rock said, shrugging. "I mean, I've never talked business with a Yakuza boss before, but I had success with Balalaika. And I have a hard time imagining another mob boss, other than Chang, who is equally or more difficult to deal with than she is."

"But you forget this is freaking Roanapur, Boss.". -said Gretel. "Isn't anything supposed to happen here without a bloodbath in between?"

"Oh, right." -Said Rock bitterly. "There's that little detail."

Again, Revy agreed with the girl.

She had seen many alliances between criminal bosses end in bloodbath, especially when Balalaika was involved. Her way of acting was too direct, cruel and demanded total obedience. Revy saw nothing wrong with that, because if she were in his place, she would do the same.

However, not many underworld criminals, who rose high enough in the hierarchy to be leaders of their organizations, were willing to accept that. So many times, alliances with Balalaika were broken soon after they were formed... in a very violent way. But Rock didn't need to know that.

Instead, to try to lighten the somber mood a bit, Revy smiled and nudged Rock. "So these scared to go straight into the shitstorm?"

"I have a healthy respect for the challenge ahead of us, yes.". -Said Rock, carefully so as not to take the bait. "But I wouldn't qualify that as being scared."

"Don't worry about it, baby.". -She said, still smiling. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know. You'd miss me if someone killed me."

"No one's going to kill you, Boss, except me.". -Gretel stated firmly. "And maybe Hansel."

"...That doesn't make me feel any safer, you know."

Before Revy could blurt out a sarcastic reply, a new, familiar voice was heard above the din of the music. "Hey, Rowan, stop your ass right there!"


"Oh, shit." -Murmured Revy. "It's fucking Jaws."

Rock felt a knot in his stomach as he watched a group of men in suits quickly approach them, pushing their way through the crowd. And judging by Revy's reaction, he was right to feel a little concern. But only a little.

"Are they friends of yours?" -He asked Revy, nudging him lightly.

"Hell no, they're from the Visconti group."

"Oh right, of course it's them, how could I not have noticed before, when everyone knows them?"

"No need for the fucking sarcasm, all right?". -Revy growled. "The Visconti's are a fucking Italian mafia, and Jaws has a lousy sense of humor, so watch your bullshit, Rock. These guys are as much bastards as the Russians."

"Well, it's a big town...". -Said Gretel, lining up protectively in front of him. She didn't draw her gun, but had brought her hand close to where she kept it holstered. "They might just be here for another deal with the pedophile."

"Like what?" -Rock asked.

"Like buying pedophile movies?"

"Oh... right."

The one leading the other Italians stopped right in front of Rowan. He was a blond man, a little short and slicked back with a few locks sticking out on his forehead. He had a sharp, unfriendly face, yet Rowan didn't seem at all concerned about that. "Oh, it's good old Jaws!". -Rowan exclaimed. "Long time no see, bro!"

"Don't call me that, asshole. Call me Ronald, or Ronnie."

"Oh, stop being such a whiny bitch, you know Jaws is a good nickname.". -Responded Rowan, smiling." So? What do you need from me, buddy? Girls, drugs, porn movies?"

"I'm looking for two Japanese guys who came here, one of them is a blond guy and the other is about six feet tall."

At that moment, Rock and Revy gave the girl a blank stare. "Okay." -said Gretel, her eyes rolling. "Maybe this isn't such a big town after all."

"But what the hell is going on here?". -Said Rowan, scratching his head. "Who did Chaka piss off that everyone is looking for him and his friend?"

Jaws took another step toward Rowan, impatient. "Well, do you know what hole in your club they're stuck in?"

" Yeah, in fact, I was just going to-"

But before the club owner could continue, Revy interrupted him by stepping between the men. She had cut the distance in a couple of strides. Though by doing it so abruptly, she ended up pushing poor Rowan in the process. "Hang on a second there, Jaws."

"Don't call me that, stupid bitch."

She ignored him and pointed her finger at him, leaving him inches from her nose. "We got here first to meet with those raw fish lovers.". -Revy stated, then tapped the man's nose. "So you better get your fucking Italian ass out of here and go make noodles or pizza sauce."

The man now identified as Ronnie slapped Revy's finger away. "I don't give a shit what Lagoon Company business they have with them. Now stop getting in my way and go sell your ass out there, like the good slut you are."

"The only good slut here, is your mother.". -Replied Revy.

"Leave my mother out of this, bitch."

"Actually..." -interjected Rock, seeing how the discussion was going nowhere. Except maybe on Revy murdering those men. "The Lagoon Company has nothing to do with this."

Ronnie gave him a hard look. "And who the fuck are you?"

Oh, right, and how the hell exactly was he supposed to respond to that? "My name is Rock, and let's just say I'm Miss Balalaika's representative in this thorny situation."

"What?" -Ronnie frowned." What's the Russian bitch got to do with anything?"

Revy snorted. "And what do you think, idiot? Balalaika ordered us to meet those guys."

"In fact, she hasn't ordered you to do anything.". -Gretel interjected. "You're only here because you're a busybody."

"Shut up, bitch."

"In any case, what Revy says is true.". -Continued Rock. "Now, if you still want to go after those guys, well go ahead, I don't want to get in trouble with the fucking Italian mafia."

"Smart move." -Said Ronnie. "Well, then we-"

"But..." -Rock interrupted, raising a finger. "If you go ahead, you'll be meddling in Balalaika's business and... do I really need to explain what can happen if you do that?"

Rock noticed Ronnie's frown deepen even more, his face paling slightly. The other men who came with him shifted in their places, uncomfortable. Rock detected the fear in all of them. Not as overtly as in Rowan moments earlier in the dressing room, but the fear was still there. He couldn't help but marvel at the intimidating effect of just naming the woman.

But, now that he thought about it, Rock noticed that the club owner was not on the scene. "Where's Rowan?"

Then, a new, unfamiliar voice suddenly appeared...again. "And who's the son of a bitch looking for me?"


The stupid expressions and the absolute silence of that group of men dressed in expensive suits, the girl who for some reason was there, and that sexy baby, assured Chaka that she couldn't have made a more dramatic entrance. He gave them a moment for them to react, taking the opportunity to fold his arms and smile arrogantly.

However, her smile was erased the instant they all pulled out their guns, including the brat and the sexy baby. The only exception, was that guy wearing a white shirt instead of a suit, who rolled his eyes. "Oh, of course they'd pull out their guns.". -He said.

As if his statement was a signal, club patrons quickly began to move away from the area, but without making a fuss or causing a stampede of panic. The music stopped, the lights came on and the sexy girls stepped off the stage. It almost seemed as if the customers and dancers were following instructions prepared for situations like this.

The whole entertaining and friendly atmosphere came to a halt. A tense atmosphere now prevailed, the kind where a fight broke out because someone sneezed or something. Chaka knew this, because he had been in those same situations more times than he could remember... usually initiated by him, of course.

With probably a stupid expression on his own face, Chaka turned slowly toward Rowan so as not to be the trigger for the shooting. The black man was now quite white with fear. "What the fuck, man?"

"Sorry, dude." -said the club owner, shrugging his shoulders. He, too, had pulled out his own gun. "I wasn't expecting this shit either. I mean, I thought they just wanted to talk to you."

"Yeah, having a bunch of assholes point guns at you is a lovely way to talk.". -Chaka replied.

He thought now would be a good time for Ginji and his magical bullet deflecting sword to spring into action. But the man had disappeared somewhere along the way, as Rowan led them out of the private room and into this death trap. If this was his revenge for slamming the door in his face, Chaka had to admit that the bastard had done well.

If not, the man was simply an untimely idiot.

"Listen well, you slant-eyed moron.". -Said one of the guys in a suit, the one standing next to the sexy babe. "This is what you get for slaughtering our customers!"

Chaka cocked her head in genuine confusion. "I'm sorry, I've slaughtered a lot of people lately, who are you saying I killed?"

"Stop playing dumb. You and your big guy friend spent all day killing those Yakuzas."

Oh, that. Chaka grimaced, annoyed that Rowan was going to interrupt their private dance for that bullshit, and disgusted that they thought Ginji was his friend. "So what, are you some fucking Yakuza syndicate advocate or something?

"I am Ronnie, right-hand man of the Vis-"

"Yeah, I really do not care, son.". -interrupted Chaka, poking his ear with his little finger. "Yes, we killed those sons of bitches, and yes, we'll keep killing those sons of bitches. If that bothers you, go complain to someone who cares, like a cop, a judge, or your fucking mother."

His little bravado statement made the sexy babe let out a laugh. Chaka smiled. Excellent. "You heard the man, Jaws.". -she said. "Now get your Italian ass out of here before I get pissed off and shoot you."

"Fuck you, Two Hands."

"No, you fuck you, bitch."

So, while those two were arguing, and the others were distracted by it, Chaka thought that was a good time to start a silent retreat. But then, just as he had taken three steps back, his back collided with someone. He turned, annoyed to think it was Rowan.

But no, he wasn't the club owner. "Oh, you finally showed up, bastard."

It was Ginji. "What the fuck did you do now, Chaka?"

"...Okay, maybe my history of starting fights and shootouts doesn't speak in my favor, but I didn't start this shit."

His partner raised an eyebrow. "I'm not surprised."

Chaka rolled his eyes. "Whatever, man. Let's just get the hell out of here before this thing turns into a real hellhole."

Ginji looked at him for a few moments, and then returned his gaze to the discussion between the sexy baby and that Jaws. Then, to Chaka's surprise, the man unsheathed his sword, drawing the attention of that group again, and, once again, they all pointed their weapons at them. Ginji didn't care and took a step forward.

"What the hell are you doing!?". -Chaka exclaimed. "I know you're a crazy fucker, but now you've gone stupid too?"

"No, it's just that I was finally able to find a challenger, someone worth killing.". -Ginji said, his eyes fixed on the armed group. Specifically, on the sexy baby. "…Tsū hando."

Chaka didn't understand what his partner was referring to, but before he could blurt out a question, Ginji pounced on the group.


Just as Ginji expected, that woman was the only one of that armed group who reacted fast enough to avoid the cut of his sword.

She ducked and rolled on the ground, avoiding being decapitated like the man in the suit behind her. Blood spurted from the body, splattering the face and clothes of Ginji and the others. That made them react. The men separated, two of them fired their weapons, but Ginji blocked with his sword and returned their shots.

Both fell dead.

He heard some detonations behind him and had to jump to the side to avoid the woman's projectiles, which passed by and hit another of the men in suits. The man was badly shaken by the impacts and then collapsed, his body spurting blood from at least a dozen holes.

The woman didn't stop and Ginji didn't stop either, if he stayed still, he would end up just like that man. The others also began firing at him, adding to the pressure. Ginji was running at full speed, bullets whizzing furiously inches away from him, and impacting the walls and floor. But after a few seconds, their opponents' gunfire suddenly stopped.

They were to reload their weapons, just what he was waiting for.

Ginji took another leap to land right on a table, which broke in two as his full weight hit it, and then he kicked the pieces of the table, sending them straight into the woman. She was able to dodge that easily. But that was nothing more than a feint so he could gain a few extra seconds and be able to take care of the other men who had already reloaded their guns and were firing again.

Ginji swept his sword around to return the shots at them. The two fell, but not having time to properly redirect the bullets, he wasn't sure if they were dead.

However, he paid for those seconds of distraction with blood.

The woman had fired again, and although Ginji had moved quickly to dodge, two projectiles hit his left arm, a third his shoulder. A fourth bullet skimmed past his head and cut a straight line across the back of his neck. He couldn't remember the last time he received so much damage at the hands of an enemy.

The pain felt good. It made him feel alive.

But Ginji knew that, if he continued to prolong the fight, he would eventually lose. Sooner or later she would get a shot in one of his legs and be able to stop him, then he would die. He had to close the distance between them, but for that, he needed those few seconds in which the woman reloaded her weapons.

So in the meantime, Ginji continued to run through the club at all the speed his legs would allow, moving between the chairs and tables that end up shattered when they receive the furious impacts of bullets, shortening the distance between them more and more. But she was too focused on trying to hit him with her bullets to notice this.

And by the wild grin on her face, also enjoying the combat.

For the second time, she stopped his shots. A distance of only about 30 meters separated them.

It was time.

Ginji charged straight at her as he counted the few seconds he would have before she could reload her two pistols. Ginji was advancing toward her with supernatural speed, devouring with each stride the space separating them...but he wasn't fast enough. He was ten meters away when she raised the pistols, took aim and began to pull the triggers as fast as possible. Ginji didn't stop in her tracks.

She began to laugh out loud, never stopping firing. With no time to aim, Ginji's sword was a blurry flash that released sparks as it deflected shots in all directions, walls, ceiling, floor. Then, for the third and final time, she ran out of bullets. Ginji jumped and stood right in front of her. He made a sweep with his sword to cut off her head and end the fight once and for all.

But the woman bent her knees and leaned her body back at the last second. The blade of the sword passed inches from her face and cut a lock of her hair.

Then, everything spun around for Ginji and then he felt the hard impact on his back and head. She had somehow managed to knock him down, but she also ended up on the ground.

Ginji grunted as he rolled to the side, and put all his weight on his legs to take one last leap with his sword high in the air. Falling heavily upon her, Ginji lowered his sword and the woman used her two pistols to barely parry the blade of the sword.

Without his other arm, he was not strong enough to continue to lower his sword, but, on the other hand, she was also unable to free herself even though she was writhing on the ground. Besides, if she moved her pistols, Ginji's sword would cut her head in two.

They were both in a stalemate, and were struggling to get the upper hand.

"Warukunai yo, on'na. Anata wa korosu no ga muzukashīdesu! (Not bad, woman. You're hard to kill!)" -Said Ginji, showing all his teeth in a fierce smile.

She answered him, also smiling, but it was a pity he couldn't understand what she said. "Talk to me in English, bitch."

Then, Ginji saw out of the corner of his eye that someone was standing right next to him. But he couldn't turn his head to see who it was, because immediately afterwards, he received a strong impact to the head that left him stunned. The blow was hard, and again, everything spun around.

The last thing Ginji could see before everything went dark was the stupid expression on the woman's face, as she probably wasn't expecting that surprise attack either.


Oh goddammit, this chapter was especially hard to write for two big reasons.

1): I don't know how to do action scenes. I mean, I had the scene in my head, I could see it in detail, but writing it was a totally different thing. And even though I rewrote it several times, and cut a lot of things, I really don't know if it was right.

2): Ginji and Revy are just too broken. Finding a way for the two of them to fight to the death, but not actually kill each other, almost melted my brain.

But what the hell, it was all fun in the end.

And by the way, thanks a lot for the reviews, seriously.