The bus halted next to a parking lot of a run-down building. Satsuro breathed in the city air as he stepped out of the vehicle. A maladorant smell accompanied the transport's departure.
Retsuja started walking down the gloomy street, contemplating his next actions when a horrific scene, taking place across the street, blew the meditative silence from his mind like a cyclone would a fisherboat.
A young woman was being held up against a wall by two horny juveniles, probably not even as old as 16. The first one held her head tightly in his arms and squeezed her jaw with his fingers, so she would not scream. The other tentatively lifted up her skirt, wetting his index finger in his mouth while gripping a knife in the other.
"'Fuck me.'" The lecherous dope with the knife said. "Say it. Pino, let her say it. 'Fuck me'"
"How fucking so, man? I've got her jaw squeezed like a melon over here, how the fuck is she supposed to –".
"Hey, fuck you! I said let her say it!"
"You're a dumb-fucking jerk, Kino!" Pino said, gritting his teeth.
"Let her fucking say it -"
Satsuro's heel cracked Kino's nose like a hazel-nut. For a beat he watched the adolescent rapist cover his face, screaming. Retsuja's hand then quickly picked Kino's knife up from the ground and tossed it right into Pino's foot as the latter fell to the ground, biting through the flesh of his lip as his eyes filled up with tears from the staggering pain.
The woman also collapsed onto her knees, unbearably weak.
Without his face betraying an emotion, Retsuja shut out Kino's lights for good as his fist hammered straight through the teen's adam's apple. Then, without hesitation, he walked over to Pino, pulled the knife out of his bleeding foot and shoved it into his mouth as the blade went out the back of his neck. The sheer and bitter horror of Pino's pain could now only be guessed from his eyes.
He had never in his life expected to be so completely satisfied after killing a much weaker opponent than himself. Although others in his position would have considered this act pathetic, Satsuro actually enjoyed and savoured the two fools' complete inability to withstand him. He enjoyed it, in fact, even more than he enjoyed rescuing the helpless young woman that now stared at him with both dread and gratefulness in her eyes.
The once naïve and romantic assassin that had been tortured by his weakness and atimy, left the crime scene as a completely new person. A completely new character. One that had no friends waiting for him or girl to long for. No honor to protect or ideals to serve. One that would kill for the pleasure of it and die without penance for his deeds.
One that his friends and opponents would know nothing about of.
Vivienne purred, waking up from a delicious dream. Her luscious body curved up as the French girl's eyes revealed the one that woke her up: It was her lover, Gogo.
Gogo had her gun stuck right between Vivienne's eyes as she sat on the chair by the bed. She was wearing her school-uniform, for the first time in a very long time.
"Hey." She whispered gently. "I must've woken you."
Vivienne's laugh wailed through the room. She then smiled at Gogo's motionless face.
"I should remember this when I ask myself why in the hell I'm sleeping with you. You're, without a doubt, the craziest fruitcake bitch in the world."
"You're a cheap, piece-of-shit slut, Vivienne."
"That's just what I'd put in my CV."
"Do you think I care about you?"
"You mean me as a person or me as a fuck-matress?"
Gogo smashed the butt of her gun into pretty Vivienne's face, stood up and pressed the gun barrel against the blonde's temple.
"Do you really think I do?"
Vivienne glanced up at Yubari. She couldn't even force herself to start and believe what was going on.
"Do you?" Gogo screamed as she rammed the gun against the French girl's ear.
Yubari sat on top of Vivienne. Her clothes rubbed against Vivienne's naked flesh as the gun made its way over her lips.
"You know I was watching your ass in the mirror earlier this night. It looked so beautiful, covered with sweat. Like I just hadn't eaten you out."
The gun moved over Vivienne's breasts as she gasped for breath, trembling with pain.
"You know, you're not my first one. I just wanted to tell you. O-Ren and Sofi, they just lo-oved watching me perform in front of them. I liked it too. They didn't touch me and I was completelycontent with showing my body to them as they smiled at me. But then, one day, O-Ren asked me to perform for her. Alone. I went. But instead of watching me, she told me to sit down next to her. I did. She lifted my hand and kissed it. She then told me to touch her breasts. I did. She asked me if I liked doing so. I said yes. Then she asked me to pinch her nipples. Hard, so it would hurt her. I did. She spoke my name very fast, as if she were chanting." Gogo moved her mouth to Vivienne's ear as the gun fronted her throat. "And then I slid my hand under her kimono and between her legs. She told me to fuck her. Then she moaned. And then she came." Gogo smiled. "And then she told me to get the fuck out."
Yubari looked back at the thunderstruck French..
"That's how much a fruitcake I am, sexy." She threw the gun into the corner of the room. "Sorry about your face."
She stood up and left the room, slamming the door behind her with a loud thump.
Vivienne relaxed back in her bed and covered her face as she broke out in crying.
Lorelei lit up a cigarette, rolling out of Romeo's embrace. The hotel room was cheap but in a homely sort of way.
"You know," She said after quite a long pause. "We should do this more often."
Romeo didn't say anything. He felt really weird. 'This', as Lorelei called it, didn't happen to him all that often.
"What's the matter? Guilty conscience?" Lorelei asked in a playful voice as she turned to look at Romeo's concerned face. "Don't worry, all you did was all I asked."
"Stop, please."
"What? If something's bothering you, then tell me."
"What do you mean 'something's bothering me'? You know fucking well what's bothering me. The fact that you and me are probably gonna get killed tomorrow." Romeo's voice rang with anger.
"Oh," Lorelei turned on her back. "That."
"Cut it out with that shit, will you?"
"Well, what the fuck appears to be the problem, dear?" Lorelei asked, stressed. "Is this the first time in your life that you're in danger? Jesus, I thought you were the guy that all Tokyo wanted 'chopped-up and trown to the vultures'!"
Lorelei looked at him. "Or weren't you?"
Romeo sighed. "Fuck it. Forget it." He stood up from the bed and started putting on his clothes.
"Pull yourself together, honey, you're kinda scaring me." Lorelei said cautiously.
Romeo smiled. "Of course. This…all this was just…regular for you, right? Like going to the gym in the morning or getting your hair done or whatever the fuck it is you do all day."
He put on his shoes and approached the door. Lorelei leapt up from the bed and fronted him. A genuine smile marked her face.
"So you thought this was special?"
Romeo didn't answer, but didn't move an inch.
"Oh my god. I'm sorry. I just thought you wanted to get your mind off tomorrow, you know, chill out or something like that."
"Can I leave now?"
He shoved her aside, never awaiting her answer.
"Usual place, tomorrow at noon. I expect to see you there."
With that he left the room, leaving Lorelei completely flabbergasted by the door.
As she closed the door and climbed back into her bed, she amazed herself at the thought of how rich just one single night can be.
Then she fell asleep.