Apologies for the longish time between updates, I've been rather lazy as of late. :( Anyway, thanks to Shichan (yes, paperclip goooood... :) ) and Sparda (who wonderfully inspired Tori-chan to do a ton of work on her pic). Enjoy this next part!
Kazoku
by ReySolo and Tori Sakana
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Chapter 11 (In which Sifir gets really pissed)
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Hidden behind some bushes, Heero watched the doors carefully, waiting for any indication that they might be opening soon. Though most of his attention was on the doors, he also peripherally kept an eye on Juuni, and listened for signs of other people nearby.
Juuni, for her part, sat quietly beside her tousan. She watched him more than anything else, wondering how he could be so calm during all this. Dad, Sifir, and now Ven were in danger! She wanted to race in there, find her father and brothers, and come out shooting. But Tousan just sat there calmly waiting.
Despite his outwardly relaxed appearance, Heero was anything but calm. He'd been trying hard to slip into his perfect soldier mode, but found himself unable to do so. Perhaps it was his lack of necessity for such emotionally detached concentration in the past several years, but whatever the reason, it was bothering him. His worry for his family couldn't get in the way of their rescue.
Finally, the doors opened.
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The blond man stared at the young man before him. "You understand what you are to do, Hanaoka?"
"Yes, Sir." The Japanese man stood at full attention, not looking at all worried about his mission. His last mission.
"I hate to lose you, you've been very loyal, but this mission requires that loyalty. I would have preferred Wong to fulfill it, but we've been unable to locate him since he reported Maxwell's execution."
"If you don't mind me saying, Sir," Hanaoka offered, "Wong hardly seems willing to die for our cause. He probably ran once he realized what you had planned."
The blond nodded. "If he has deserted, I'm sure he realizes he will die once he's caught."
The Japanese man looked as if he wanted to comment, but remained silent.
"I'll put out an alert for everyone to be on the lookout for Wong. You are dismissed to carry out your orders. Your name will be respected by everyone working for our cause for this."
"Thank you, Sir." Hanaoka bowed and left the office.
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Heero led the way stealthily into the building, eyes and ears alert to anyone approaching, while also making sure Juuni and Ven followed closely and quietly behind him. The kids were armed with their taser and dart gun, while he held his own weapon. He hated bringing the kids in with him, but felt they were safer with him, even in enemy territory, than out in the car where anyone could find them.
Upon entering the building, he had finally felt himself slip into the calm of his soldier mode. Hearing footsteps and voices around the corner, he gestured for the kids to duck into a nearby closet. Stepping in behind them and closing the door, he listened to the approaching voices.
"I can't believe the Commander has half this base out looking for one guy."
"Didn't you hear? It's not just him."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, they think there are two others with him. Orders are shoot on sight."
"We're supposed to kill them all? I can't believe…"
The voices faded out and Heero could no longer hear them.
He closed his eyes and swore inwardly. Kuso. How the hell did they realize they were in here so soon? We're just lucky they're apparently not doing a very thorough sweep, or they'd have checked this closet for sure. The one thing that doesn't compute is the orders to kill on sight. I was certain they would appreciate the opportunity for more hostages.
Once he was certain it was safe, he opened the door and stepped out. Ven and Juuni did not follow. He looked back in at them.
"We have to get moving," he commanded harshly. Since he was in soldier mode, not father mode, the petrified looks on their faces barely registered.
"Are—are they gonna kill us, Tousan?" Ven asked, arms wrapped tightly around his sister. Juuni was likewise squeezing her older brother, eyes wide in fear.
The panicky tone pleaded for attention from Heero's parental side, but Heero refused to give in. This is neither the time nor the place for consoling frightened children, he told himself.
But having your kids too terrified to move isn't going to help the rescue any, either, his father voice countered.
Heero compromised, mostly to stop the irritating internal dialogue. "No. I will protect you," he said in a slightly less severe tone. "But we have to protect your father and brother, too, so we really have to get moving. And I can't risk leaving you two here alone, since they are searching for us. So are you two going be able to handle this?"
Ven took a deep breath, then nodded confidently. Juuni gave a hesitant nod of her own, then the two released the hug and stepped out of the closet.
The three continued on more cautiously, searching for their missing family members.
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Dr. White turned when she heard the door open, and a Japanese man stepped in.
Damn, Hanaoka, she thought. This guy's so loyal he's not only going to be willing to die like this, he's gonna enjoy it, too. She felt Sifir's eyes on her, but refused to look at him, knowing there was no way she'd be able to comfort the boy anyway.
"Hello, Sifir," Hanaoka greeted. He motioned for the four guards to leave, so the only people in the room were himself, Dr. White, and Sifir.
The boy looked up defiantly. "You think you're gonna make me kill someone, don't you? Well, I won't. You can't make me."
The man shrugged. "I suppose I can't. But if I were in your position, I would fully appreciate the opportunity to get revenge."
Sifir looked confused. "Revenge?"
Hanaoka continued as if uninterrupted. "I mean, I was quite upset when my own father was murdered in front of me…" he stated casually.
Sifir's face paled, and he drew in a shaky breath. "No…"
Still ignoring the boy, the Japanese man continued. "I would have given anything for the chance to pay back the man who killed him. You have that chance."
Dr. White felt nothing but compassion and pity for the boy as he jerkily shook his head. "No…" he repeated.
"No?" Hanaoka asked, finally acknowledging the boy's response. "No, you're not going to kill me, even though I killed your father?"
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Duo ducked behind a corner, hearing voices approaching.
"So how come we're looking for this doctor guy anyway?"
He searched for a good hiding place, but couldn't find any. Finally finding a small table to duck behind, he listened in curiosity to the conversation.
"Apparently he disappeared after killing Maxwell." Chuckling. "Too chicken to face the kid, I guess…"
As the voices faded, Duo thought about what he'd overheard. Guess Wong lied about killing me; now he's gotta hide in case they find out I'm not as dead as they thought. And chances are they'll realize that once I get Sifir out of here.
He felt his stomach flip-flop as he realized something. Sifir. Shit. Since they do think I'm dead, they're gonna follow through with his training… I have to find him ASAP. God, I hope he's okay…
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"NO!!" Sifir cried. His hands tightened around the gun, barrel moving up toward the man, but Dr. White had a feeling the boy wasn't conscious of his movements. "No, he's not dead, he can't be dead…"
Dr. White was starting to get annoyed with the other man's shrug. Still, she was under orders to merely observe this confrontation, no matter what happened.
"Believe what you want," Hanaoka stated cheerfully. "If it helps, he said he loved you before I blew his brains out."
Suddenly, a fire ignited in Sifir's eyes. While the ice cold he'd shown a few times earlier had bothered her, the look of intense hatred he held now was so fierce that, for the first time she could remember, Dr. White truly feared for her life.
And the look—and gun—weren't even trained on her. Hanaoka's expression displayed merely a look of satisfaction—and anticipation.
Dr. White concluded that the man was most definitely certifiably insane.
"You killed my father." In sharp contrast the childlike whimpering of just moments before, Sifir's voice was now dripping with venom, promising a long, horrible, painful death. "Omae o korosu."
Dr. White shivered as Hanaoka merely smiled. "Good."
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TBC
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Coauthor Rant: My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father! Prepare to die!
Ahem. Sorry. Couldn't resist. :)
Anyway, news on the Tori front: I broke my foot. Owie. Okay, not really, it's just sprained, but it still hurts. See, I was being an idiot and sparring with someone from another style of martial arts without warming up or stretching or anything, so naturally I fell. I was being stupid, but now we know what'll happen if I ever get mugged...I'm toast.
Enough whining. Time for some updates! Thanks to Sparda's encouragement (thanks bud!) I got to work on the next pic. It is now completely colored and awaiting shading. So nearly finished! Yay! Though it took me forever to make Sifir stop looking like a leprechaun...Anyway, thanks a bunch Sparda! Other news: Nexus update coming up soon (shameless plug). Whee!
In case you were wondering, let's have that quote one more time, in Japanese: Ore no na wa Yuy Sifir. Tousan o koroshita. Kakugo shiro.
^_^