.
(A Deal with the Devil)
Kazuya hurriedly walked out of the office slamming the door behind him. He heard his blood pounding in his ears and felt throbbing in his head, it was happening at a different rhythm and was making his surroundings seem blurry.
Perhaps informing security that she is banned from the premises is in order, she does seem to have trouble understanding boundaries. Devil advised.
That won't be necessary, Lee will be back in a few days, I'll have him deal with Jun Kazama and her agency before I get rid of him. His thoughts were suddenly on Lee again and anger once again overtook the bit of calm that he had gained walking from the door to the elevator. Sayuri loves him? He asked Devil. Is that what she was trying to say? He pushed the button for the parking garage and took a steadying breath as the elevator doors closed.
It seems so. Devil said indifferently.
Why? How can she?
Devil sighed. Do not tell me that you have feelings for that woman or I swear...
No. She can drop dead at this very moment for all I care. It was the truth, it wasn't something that he was wishing for, but if it happened the worst outcome would be that he would need to hire a new secretary.
Then what is the problem? Devil seemed to be growing impatient. Why does that anger you? Why do you care?
I just want to know why.
It's really not surprising, he's always been easy to love, easier than you obviously. Everyone loves him, women, employees, service workers...your father did too, didn't he? Otherwise, he would have made you his heir.
But he doesn't deserve it, he doesn't deserve love or sacrifice from anyone, even someone like Sayuri.
Oh, but he does, he needs it. He needs it because love is for the weak, for those who need reassurance and someone to build them up. You don't need that.
I know that. I never said that I did.
The elevator chimed and the doors slid open. When he stepped out he was surprised to see Bruce standing a few feet away watching him with a serious expression on his face.
"I'm glad I caught you." Bruce regarded him carefully.
Kazuya felt the need to breathe fresh air as he stepped into the artificially-lit parking garage in the basement. The fluorescent lights gave the concrete walls and support beams a harsh glow that made the entire space seem surreal. The colors of the parked vehicles seemed eerie and distorted, focusing on them made his headache worsen, he narrowed his eyes squinting slightly to ease the pain.
Kazuya feared the worst and was immediately angry. "Caught me? You look like you were waiting for me, what the hell happened in Moscow?" He shook his head, not only had it been his mistake for making Bruce stay in Tokyo, it also meant that Bruce had been right in wanting to go.
"Nothing," Bruce said eyeing him casually, "no need to worry about that, everything is going as planned."
"Then what?" The relief he felt did little to ease his anger.
Bruce crossed his arms. "Sayuri called me, she said that you don't look like you should be behind the wheel of a vehicle. I see that she's right, you look worse than you did half an hour ago."
"I thank you for your concern," he made sure that the sarcasm in his voice was unmistakable, "but I'm not drunk, it's just a headache."
"I am concerned," Bruce said letting a small smile appear on his lips, "I like my job, I like the perks. If you get yourself killed your brother will be in charge and I'll more than likely be out of the job, or maybe I'll just leave because the thought of having him as my boss makes me want to hang myself." He turned to the left and gestured for Kazuya to follow him. "I have the driver waiting."
Kazuya sighed heavily and followed him, he hated to admit it but Bruce was right, he was not fit to drive anywhere. He wouldn't put it past Devil to take over when he was on the road, it had happened before and it had resulted in his favorite BMW resting at the bottom of a lake. He had been fortunate that it had happened at night and when no one else was on the road to witness the incident.
"I just came upon some information that you might find interesting, if you don't already know," Bruce spoke as they advanced down the pedestrian walkway. "That cute wildlife officer quit her job this morning."
"What?" Kazuya stopped suddenly. "How do you know?"
"I got eyes and ears everywhere?" Bruce said turning to look at him.
"Why were you investigating her?" There was a sudden feeling that he couldn't explain, it was almost protective, he wanted to be angry with Bruce for prying into her life, his by extension."
"Because she's law enforcement, it's what I do." Bruce shrugged. "I'm doing my job."
"Law enforcement? She's just a wildlife officer. What did she do? Why are you suspicious of her?"
"I'm not," Bruce sighed impatiently, "I check every person that is in any type of law enforcement, they can be parking enforcement or police detectives, it doesn't matter, if they come into this building I have to watch them until they stop being a threat." He shook his head. "You really, really, need to go home and get some sleep."
Not before you let me frolic in the garden. Devil said in a sing-song voice.
"Goddammit," Kazuya muttered under his breath as he continued to walk.
"But you know the upside of the whole thing," Bruce said as he walked toward a black Mercedes Benz with tinted windows, "if you want to pursue something with her you can now."
Mark this as the day I was forced to put Bruce Irvin on my shit-list. Devil said angrily.
He eyed Bruce suspiciously, "Why would you say that? What makes you think that I would want to pursue anything with her? And even if I did it's none of your goddamned business." He finished harshly.
"I saw the way you were looking at each other," he explained, "I observe, it's my job, stop being so damn surprised that I'm doing it."
Kazuya stood motionless trying to make sense of the new information, he began to wonder if that was why she had called him, if she had done it for him.
Don't flatter yourself, why would she do that? She doesn't even know you. It's more than likely a ruse to cause you to let your guard down.
"Are you getting in the car or not?" He heard Bruce ask impatiently and noticed that he was holding the door to the back seat open for him. "I'm not your fucking chauffeur," he pointed to the driver waiting inside the car, "which is what you should be doing, you lazy asshole." The man looked frightened and attempted to exit the vehicle. "It's too late now," Bruce rolled his eyes, "just make sure you get him home in one piece."
"Y-yes, sir." The man said nervously as he stuck his head out of the open window to address Bruce. "My apologies, sir."
Kazuya stepped inside the car and reclined on the seat.
Bruce shook his head. "You see what I have to put up with? You have no right to complain about me. I'll call tonight. If there's a development before then I'll call you as soon as I know." He said before closing the door.
Kazuya closed his eyes and sleep took him immediately; he woke when he felt the car stop.
The driver opened the door and Kazuya stepped onto the stone-paved driveway. It was very large and circled an ivy-covered fountain that had been dry since he could remember. He hated the gaudiness of it, the outrageous size, it was completely unnecessary and he had thought about having it torn down more times than he could count but something more important always came up before he could talk to the maintenance staff. The mansion itself was Western-style mixed with traditional Japanese architecture. A white, stone and wood, three level behemoth that was reminiscent of a European government building, though the very traditional brown, pagoda roof, as well as the combination of light and dark colors, made it look somewhat delicate.
As a child, his favorite place to play had been the gardens with their cherry and apricot trees and countless shrubs and flower plants. He had loved running through the many stone paths among the vegetation and watching the fish in the coy ponds. He would spend half his day hiding among the plants and grasses laying down on his belly and throwing tiny pebbles at the water lilies trying to see how many they could carry before they sank. Things had been so simple then, until his innocence had been brutally ripped from him. After that, he had forsaken the beautiful gardens and spent most of his time at the dojo, preparing for the day when he would face off against his father.
He walked to the front door and the housekeeper, a woman in her sixties whose name he couldn't even remember opened it for him and asked if he was hungry. He simply shook his head and made his way up the dark, wooden staircase to the second level toward his bedroom. The inside of the mansion looked the same as it always had since he was a child. Dark and light wood contrasting beautifully, staircases and doorframes showing evidence of having been created by an expert craftsman. Invaluable paintings and tapestries hung on the walls and ancient vases adorned intricate wooden shelves; together with the expensive hand-made furniture and rugs, it gave the entire space a museum feel.
There was no evidence that a family had ever set foot in that house, none. No evidence that two boys had lived anywhere near its vicinity. Kazuya and Lee had never been allowed to do anything other than walk, without touching anything of course, in any area of the mansion that was not their bedrooms, the kitchen or the library. Outside they had been able to do as they pleased, as long as they stayed away from Heihachi's precious zen garden; he thought about cementing over it just to spite the old man, but like the fountain, there was always something more important that came up.
He passed a few doors in the second level hallway before reaching his bedroom. It was much more modern than the rest of the mansion, but the bamboo floors and crown molding around the walls gave it a somewhat traditional feel. The four-poster bed and the furniture were more Western-inspired than anything else in the first level of the mansion and the room itself was larger than most Tokyo apartments.
Kazuya undressed as he walked to the bathroom leaving a trail of clothing behind him, it was not something that he would normally do, but he was desperate for a hot shower. He stayed under the steaming water much longer than usual, Devil was finally quiet and his mind was surprisingly blank. Little by little he felt his muscles relax and his headache ebb away. When he was finished he dried himself off and went back into the bedroom. He dressed in a white, sleeveless Gi and made his way out through back exit and down a stone path through the garden and into the dojo, it had been three days since his last training session, entirely too long.
The inside of the dojo was sufficiently lit by the sunlight streaming through the large windows that took up most of the walls. It was all dark bamboo, everything from the support beams to the floors; the walls were devoid of any paintings or tapestries. A punching bag could be seen hanging from the ceiling near one of the corners and a wooden training dummy next to other training equipment that he had seldom used. There had been a mural of a tiger once, but he had charged someone with painting over it on the same day that he moved back into the estate after defeating Heihachi at the first tournament. It brought too many unpleasant memories and he had wanted the dojo to be a place where he could feel a modicum of peace.
Kazuya stood still in the middle of the dojo, he took a few relaxing breaths and began to practice his Mishima-Ryu katas. He was proud of his heritage, proud that the Mishimas had their own style of karate that was not practiced anywhere else in the world. He started slowly, every movement precise and deliberate, perfect; he inhaled and exhaled as he picked up speed.
Selfish.
"Goddammit," Kazuya said through clenched teeth as Devil broke his concentration.
You said you would let me stretch my wings. Devil said reproachfully.
"No," Kazuya said moving briskly toward the punching bag, "you said that, I never agreed to anything."
Are you saying that you want to do this the hard way?
"Are you threatening me?" He asked as he began to throw a few practice punches at the bag.
Yes.
"You're always assuming that I'm going to let you do whatever you want." He was suddenly striking the bag with more force than he would normally use for a regular training session, he began to feel agitated.
That is because we usually want the same things. Devil said slowly. Power, respect, control...
He said nothing but continued to hit the bag with unrelenting strikes, switching from punches to kicks then back again. He was feeling his heartbeat accelerate and he knew that it was from more than the physical exertion.
Aww, the creature mocked, are you angry with me? Don't tell me you are still thinking about that woman.
Kazuya suddenly stopped, he angrily wiped the sweat off his brow with the back of his hand and made his way to the wall with the training equipment. "If I am what difference would that make?" He asked as he picked up a pair of sparring gloves from the rack.
She could be our undoing and will certainly distract you from our goals.
"She will not be, she's no longer employed by that agency, therefore no longer a threat and you never said that about Sayuri."
No, because she is not and will never be a threat.
"You're wrong," Kazuya countered, "She's the one who's a liar-"
Hence why she is useful! Her morals are low, she is just a pretty thing that can be used and discarded. He chuckled maliciously. Of course, if that's all you want with the other one...
"No!" He felt his anger rise as his voice echoed through the dojo. It was offensive, the very thought that Devil would suggest he use her like she was nothing...
That isn't what you want? Are you going to stand there and tell me that you don't want her? That the thought has never crossed your mind? Do not lie to me, you know that you can't, it only makes you look pathetic.
He stood looking at the dark wooden floor with his gloves in his hand trying to make sense of his thoughts. He did want her, he couldn't lie to himself and he couldn't lie to Devil, but there was more, it was difficult to explain, to put into words.
"I want...time." He finally said. "Maybe if spend more time with her I'll realize that I want nothing more than a night with her...maybe I'll spend one minute with her and decide that I want nothing to do with her...but I have to know." He finished thoughtfully.
Well... Devil sighed. That is where the problem lies. Do you see what she's doing already? This entire workday has been wasted because of her, you left your responsibilities and came home to talk about your feelings-
"No." Kazuya cut him off. "It was you, you interfered yesterday, muddled my thoughts, gave me no rest and almost made me look like a fool in front of my employees. I was barely able to function and was forced to come home because of you!"
Go ahead, Devil challenged, get angry, it only makes things easier for me. I can practically feel the wind under my wings.
Kazuya began to take slow deep breaths and gradually calmed down. "What we have is a partnership," he reminded Devil, "a give and take relationship. I want more time with her and you want to fly free more often..."
Hmm... Devil began thoughtfully, The fact that you are attempting to negotiate with me worries me, but at the same time, the thought of flying unhindered is painfully enticing. He sighed. Very well, I accept...under my terms of course.
"I really didn't expect that," Kazuya said sarcastically. "What terms?"
That you let me fly every night.
Kazuya sighed. "For an hour."
Two hours.
"I have work I need to do." He protested.
Two. Hours. Devil insisted.
"Fine." He conceded. "What else."
This time with her is by no means permanent.
"I'm not stupid, I know that."
And the instant she interferes with anything, any of our goals or any of our methods, I will personally put a stop to it, you've not yet seen me at my most determined. Devil warned.
"Fine."
Very well, Devil said in a gleeful voice, we start now.
"It's broad daylight."
You owe me. And you know I'm not going to fly to the middle of downtown Tokyo at this hour. Don't be difficult. He finished in a haughty tone.
Kazuya walked out of the dojo and into the garden area knowing that arguing would only prolong the inevitable. He chose a place beneath two beautiful, green maple trees that would obscure the view from the mansion, the last thing he wanted was the staff witnessing his transformation. He stood with his arms at his sides and took several deep breaths until he felt his muscles relax; he closed his eyes and continued to inhale then exhale slowly.
Willingly giving Devil control of his body felt as if he were falling down a dark abyss, as if someone were pulling him away from the light, dragging him to a darkened space that seemed less unpleasant with each visit. He knew what was happening, each time he willingly gave in to Devil he was losing just a little bit more of himself. But it didn't matter, in the end, they would become one regardless, they shared the same body, the same goals... That was why it was crucial for him to merge the Zaibatsu with G-Corporation, maybe through science, he would be able to find a way to become the dominant force, to stop the battle for control but keep all the strength, endurance and power that Devil provided. Devil had said that it was impossible, that he would win in the end, but of course he would say that. He would say anything to dissuade him.
He felt his body falling for what seemed to be minutes until he gradually slowed and landed softly on his feet; he was immediately enveloped by complete darkness. There he would usually train or replay moments from his past; sometimes he would simply sleep. If he felt inclined he would try to pry into what Devil was doing, sometimes he was able to see and sometimes he wasn't, it all depended on what type of mood Devil was in and how determined Kazuya was to look.
It was less pleasant when he took over by force, when Kazuya lost control, which happened when he became too angry, too physically exhausted or when his body was too damaged. In those instances, the transformation would begin with a headache that would intensify until he could not bear the pain anymore, then blurred vision would follow. Devil would then take over and instead of being slowly dragged into the darkness he would be thrown into it, fragments of unpleasant memories would flash all around him until he was able to get his anger under control. It was an extremely difficult task as every image served to anger him further. After it was over he would wake up exhausted, feeling as if he had not slept for days and his body would feel inexplicably sore.
On this day he chose to continue training. He was suddenly pulled upward; he didn't know how much time had passed as time seemed to progress differently there, sometimes he was there for what seemed like minutes to find that hours had passed and vice versa. He felt his body continue upward until he began to see blurry light and knew that he was in control of himself again. He slowly opened his eyes and let them adjust to the brightness of the sun, he realized that he was behind the dojo now, not under the trees as he had been when he transformed. He instinctively looked around to see if he was alone, realizing that he was, he let his muscles relax and took in the sunshine. His mind felt clear and it was quiet, but his body felt tired, particularly his shoulders and shoulder blades.
"Damn it." He muttered as he realized that the top of his Gi was nothing but shreds. He made a mental note to remove his shirt next time. Judging by the position of the sun it was around noon. He stood up and walked back to the mansion to take a nap in his room.
He woke up at two-thirty in the afternoon feeling rested, after taking a shower he dressed and ordered his meal to be taken up to his office. He went to the third level and entered the room, it was nothing fancy, it contained only the essentials, a telephone and a Macintosh computer at his desk as well as a fax machine and a filing cabinet on the wall opposite to the desk. There was a large window on one side that enabled him to look at the garden and gave him a spectacular view of Mount Fuji. He sat in his chair and called Bruce at the Mishima Building to check on the status of the Moscow mission and was told that everything was going as planned.
Feeling at ease for the first time in days his mind began to wander and he found himself thinking about Jun. He had wanted to see her or at least speak with her but now that he was thinking about it more thoroughly he suddenly felt doubt. What would he say to her if he called? Maybe Devil was right and he was acting like a teenager, calling the pretty girl to ask her out on a date; it was ridiculous. He didn't even have her home phone number and since she was no longer employed by the WWWC he had no way to reach her. He slowly shook his head as he realized what a mistake it had been to make that deal with Devil, to give him control so willingly. He took a few slow, calming breaths, the last thing he wanted was for Devil to surface.
He decided to focus on tournament matters, he wondered if Heihachi had registered yet, there were only a few days left before the deadline. He knew that he would enter the tournament, there was no doubt about it, but every day he looked at the roster expecting to find his father's name and every time he didn't see it a tiny grain of doubt invaded his thoughts. What if he didn't enter? What if he had planned something drastic to get rid of him instead? Blowing up the stadium at the height of the event, for instance. He shook his head at his own thoughts, that wasn't the old man's style he would face him in the arena.
He picked up the phone and dialed Sayuri's number at the Zaibatsu.
"Yes, sir?" She answered promptly, there was a separate line for phone calls from his home office.
"Did you take care of all the appointments?"
"Yes, I rescheduled two and canceled the rest."
"Did any new participants sign up for the tournament?"
There was a slight pause. "...Yes, two."
"Fine, fax me the new list immediately." He wanted to ask if Heihachi was one of them but didn't want to reveal his curiosity to anyone.
"Yes, sir..." Sayuri seemed to hesitate slightly. "...Miss Kazama wanted me to give you a message."
"What is it?" He asked calmly, but for reasons unknown to him his heart began to beat faster.
"She gave me her home phone number, she wanted me to tell you, and I quote, 'he will want to call me'."
"Is that it?" He felt irritated, if that was indeed the entire message she was assuming too much thinking that he would call her simply because she willed it.
"Yes, sir, it is, I'll fax you her number along with the new roster. I'm going home in a few minutes, is there anything else you need before I leave?"
"No." He hung up without waiting for her response.
A few minutes later the familiar high-pitched static from the fax machine filled the office, Kazuya stood up and walked to the counter to retrieve the list. He scanned most of it as he had seen it before: Armor King, King, Ganryu, Bruce, Yoshimitsu, Kunimitsu, Lee, Paul Phoenix, Marshall Law and Wang Jinrei. One of the new names was Baek Doo San, someone he had never heard of, he had to read the last name on the list twice to make sure his eyes were not deceiving him.
Jun Kazama.
"...What the hell?" He wondered out loud.
He stood staring at the list trying to make sense of what he was seeing, he attempted to piece together a scenario that would explain what Jun's name was doing on the roster but was not able to come up with anything logical. He saw the sheet of paper with her phone number and quickly took it to the desk and dialed it.
"Hello?" Jun answered at the second ring.
"What the hell are you thinking entering the tournament?" He asked gruffly.
"Your phone etiquette needs work," Jun said calmly.
"Answer my question." He demanded.
"Is this how you treat every participant? You welcome them with a threatening phone call?" She asked sounding annoyed.
"I am not threatening you in any way."
"Your tone is threatening, I don't appreciate it."
Kazuya breathed in deeply. "Why are you entering the tournament?"
"You said you didn't want to speak to me," Jun began, "I thought that you were going to either avoid me or maybe even ban me from the building and I came to the conclusion that this would probably be the only way that I'd be able to talk to you again."
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You signed up just to talk to me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I..." There was obvious hesitation in her voice. "I don't want to talk over the phone? Can we meet in person? I'm free tonight." She finished somewhat shyly.
"Tonight won't work..." He was suddenly looking forward to the prospect of seeing her again but the Moscow mission came before anything. "How does tomorrow night sound?" By his calculations, Dr. Bosconovitch would be delivered to them Mishima Zaibatsu by six in the afternoon at the latest. That would give him enough time to welcome the doctor and meet Jun by eight in the evening.
"Yes, that will work."
"Where do you want to meet?"
"I think you'd better choose this time."
"There's a proper restaurant across the street from the Zaibatsu, how does eight o'clock sound?"
"Good... Is it fancy?" She asked hesitantly. "I mean, do I have to dress up?"
"You can wear whatever you want, no one will dare say anything."
"Umm...That's..." There was a short pause. "...I'll see you tomorrow then."
"Very well." He said before hanging up.
After speaking with her, hearing how insecure she was about something as inconsequential as what to wear to a restaurant he could not imagine her fighting in the tournament. However she had passed all the tests required to qualify, they were difficult and included several sparring matches against world renowned martial arts masters. He still couldn't understand how she had done it but was determined to find out. If she truly had earned putting her name on the roster... Well, that was one more thing to admire about her.
It was shortly before sunset, as he looked out the large window he could see the colors in the sky changing turning the white snow cap on the mountain to a soft orange; he turned his back on the picture perfect view and made his way to his bedroom. He was somewhat tired and needed to be up much earlier than usual. The mission wasn't set to begin until seven in the morning, one in the morning in Moscow, but he wanted to be available while it was being set up and certainly as it was being executed.
As he readied for bed he thought of Jun and what her possible motives for entering the tournament could be, but again he was not able to come up with anything that made sense. He thought of her as his eyes grew heavy and for a fleeting moment wondered what she would wear to the restaurant. He realized what a preposterous thought that was, Devil was right, she was making him behave like a teenager, he needed to figure things out quickly before she had any more negative effects on him. But at the same time, her insecurity made her endearing somehow... With that thought, he fell asleep.
Kazuya woke up at three-thirty in the morning and after dressing in a pair of white training pants he quickly made his way to the office and called Bruce for a status update. Everything was going according to plan, the men were set to drive to the location, a private airport, and begin setting up in two hours. Feeling confident, albeit anxious to have the doctor in his lab working on various projects, he went into the dojo and began training. He practiced for nearly an hour when he heard a voice over the intercom that was installed throughout the entire mansion and its surrounding structures.
"Sir? Mr. Mishima?" Came the anxious voice of the housekeeper.
"What is it?" He asked stopping immediately and walking to the wall to push the button next to a small speaker that was built into the wall.
"Mr. Irvin just called, he wants you to call him right away, he says it's urgent."
"...Fuck." He muttered under his breath, it was too early, Bruce had no reason to call him unless something was wrong.
He ran to the office and dialed the number to Bruce's office at the Mishima Building. "What happened?" He asked as soon as he heard him pick up.
"We have a big fucking problem," Bruce said in a calm but serious voice. "The doctor is on a plane to Tokyo as we speak."
"What do you mean?"
"Someone must have tipped them off," Bruce began sounding angry now, "he's not on a private plane, he's using a commercial airline, flying coach, making sure he's seen by as many people as possible and set to land at Narita International Airport at ten-fifteen this morning."
"Who's responsible?" Kazuya began to breathe heavily. "It was one of your men, wasn't it?" He accused.
"Priorities!" Bruce said raising his voice. "We have bigger problems at the moment."
Kazuya knew he was right, there was no time to reprimand him for his outburst. "I'll be there as soon as I can. I'll be driving out of here in twenty minutes, you can reach me on the car phone."
He hung up and called the housekeeper to make sure a driver was ready to leave in twenty minutes. He ran to his bedroom and showered quickly then dressed in a pair of black slacks and a purples dress shirt. He was in the car and exiting the driveway fifteen minutes later. Being so early in the day traffic was light and he arrived at the Mishima Building much more quickly than usual. Once in the parking garage he hurried to the elevator and inserted the key in the panel gaining access to the sub-basement where the security office was located.
When he left the elevator he hurried down the hallway. It looked much the same as the higher floors, the same gray carpet and taupe painted walls but the lack of windows gave many a claustrophobic feeling. The doors in the hall lead to clandestine laboratory departments and holding cells instead of offices and conference rooms. Bruce's workspace, or what he liked to call 'strategy room' was located at the end of the very long hallway. There were a few armed guards wearing short-sleeved, dark uniforms patrolling the halls, they stepped out of the way and bowed deeply whenever they saw him; as always Kazuya ignored them completely.
He entered the strategy room and saw several men standing around Bruce's desk talking and pointing to something. The room was very large in comparison to any other office in the building. There were two desks on opposite sides of the room, one for Bruce and the other for Ganryu. There were two spare desks against one of the walls each holding a Macintosh computer and a printer, other office equipment such as fax and copy machines were seen throughout the room set up in a semi-organized manner. Maps of Tokyo and Japan, as well as various blueprints, hung on the walls.
"Leave," Kazuya said as he entered the room, the men obeyed quickly and soon he and Bruce were the only ones left. He walked up to the desk and looked Bruce in the eye. "Do not ever raise your voice at me again."
Most would have flinched or looked away, but Bruce held his gaze. "Obviously tension was high and we both needed to calm down." He shrugged his shoulders. "It won't happen again, boss."
Kazuya was satisfied and his mind quickly shifted to the matter at hand. "What the hell happened?"
"What I already told you," Bruce sighed, "the boys were setting up when they realized there were no airplanes being readied. They looked into it and found out that there weren't even going to be any flights leaving until six in the morning, that the two a.m. flight had been canceled. They interrogated one of the workers and he told them that the doc was on a plane to Tokyo. They checked it out and sure enough, it was true, he used his real name on the ticket and everything."
"Who tipped them off?" Kazuya felt his anger surge, he knew that he had to get it under control but it was difficult.
"As I said before, boss...priorities." Bruce stood up and put his hands in the pockets of his green sweatshirt. "We know who's helping him... It's Horizon Labs."
Horizon Laboratories was an up-and-coming genetics research company. They marketed themselves as the top private research company in Japan with the highest success rate of treating immune system disorders through the use of corrective gene therapy. They had a good public relations department, he had to give them that, but they were not well established enough to be of any threat to him. Though at the moment they had managed to thwart his plans in a way that not many had before.
"Fine," Kazuya suddenly felt better about the situation, "let them take him, it won't be difficult for us to send a team to their facility and retrieve him from there."
Bruce shook his head. "That would work except Horizon is in bed with the Russians and they're going to be dropping him off at the Russian Embassy."
"What?" He felt a headache coming on.
"But it's not as bad as it could be," Bruce said quickly. "Ganryu just called and he says he's got someone who can help."
Kazuya looked down at the desk and saw what the men had been looking at, blueprints for Narita Airport. Carrying out the mission in Russia, though costly, would have been infinitely simpler. Bosconovitch was well guarded when he was anywhere in the city and certainly in his laboratory, but he was scheduled to fly to Germany to meet with a company that was no doubt trying to acquire his services. He was set to fly on a private jet out of a small private airport with low security, Kazuya's men had planned to swoop in and grab him overwhelming security through sheer numbers and firepower. But now someone had betrayed him and had left him in this less-than-ideal situation that he could only describe as a clusterfuck.
Shortly after six in the morning, Ganryu appeared at the door, his hefty sumo wrestler form barely fitting through the frame. He looked odd dressed in a suit as opposed to his normal, more casual style.
"Sorry about the bad news, boss," he said as he absently rubbed the scar on his forehead, "but I have someone that I'm sure you'll find useful."
He motioned for them to follow and Kazuya and Bruce walked behind him to one of the holding cells. His gait was surprisingly light for someone his size. They stood on the outside looking through a window into the gray-tiled room. A Japanese woman who looked to be in her early thirties sat on a metal chair behind a rectangular metal table. There was nothing remarkable about her, everything from her looks to her size was average. She was rubbing her arms over her brown cardigan, she looked frightened and had tear streaks on her cheeks.
"Who the hell is that?" Kazuya demanded.
"That's Dr. Hayashi, she's one of the head researchers for Horizon Labs," Ganryu explained, "Bennett Industries has a guy working at Horizon as their spy, he's the one who told us who to grab. She was on her way to work."
Bennett Industries specialized in rare laboratory equipment, he was expecting a delivery from them, the necessary components for the cryosleep machines that Dr. Bosconovitch had invented. The American company had proved to be a valuable ally and had obviously betrayed the doctor's trust in favor of the Mishima Zaibatsu. A wise choice on their behalf, they would be rewarded while Horizon was burned to the ground.
Oh, yes...I do love a fire.
Kazuya balled his hands into fists as he heard Devil's voice. "What does she know?" He asked.
"Hopefully everything, boss," Ganryu said as he opened the door, all three men stepped inside. The woman let out a small yelp when she saw them, they were quite the intimidating trio.
"What's your name?" Kazuya asked her as he heard the door close.
"...Y-yori Hayashi." She stammered.
"What do you know about Dr. Bosconovitch's arrival?" Kazuya questioned.
"N-nothing," Yori said as she began to wring her hands.
"Well, we're off to a bad start, aren't we?" Kazuya pulled the second chair from the front of the table and sat down. "Are you married? Do you have children?" He asked casually almost as if he were attempting to start a friendly conversation.
"N-no, I-I'm single."
"She's married, no kids." He heard Ganryu say behind him. "Her husband's name is Koji, he works for an accounting firm a few blocks from here." Yori let out a shaky sigh as she looked at Ganryu obviously surprised that he had that information.
Kazuya crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in the chair. "You're lying to me, that is a terrible idea. Do you know what happens to those who try to do that to me?" He asked straightening in his chair, the frightened woman looked away. "I'd have some testimonials about what became of them but no one is available as they're all either buried in a cemetery or scattered somewhere, and I don't mean their ashes." He leaned forward and clasped his hands on the tabletop, Yori gripped the sides of her chair and began to tremble. "You see, they were not smart; but you must have a few science and medical degrees so I'm sure you're familiar with the term self-preservation. I'm no scientist but I've heard that it's inherent to all organisms, even the ones that have no brain, so I'm sure someone like you, who is smarter than all three of us put together, can figure out how to awaken that instinct and save not only yourself but your husband in the process. Otherwise here's what's going to happen, Koji will be keeping you company in this room and I will make you watch as I put my hands around his throat and squeeze until the light fades from his eyes. After that, I will let one of my men put a bullet through your skull and have them deliver both of your corpses to your boss's doorstep." Yori began to sob. "Now, stop crying and let me ask you again, what do you know about Dr. Bosconovitch's arrival?"
That was a beautiful speech.
Shut up and let me think.
Don't be ungrateful, I'm helping you think.
Her sobs gradually subsided. "...Dr. Bosconovitch will arrive at the airport at ten-fifteen." Yori said after a short pause.
"We already know that," Kazuya said impatiently, "who is he with? Who's taking him to the embassy?" She again looked at him startled as if she didn't expect him to know the doctor's destination.
"He has two bodyguards with him..." She stopped and covered her face with her hands and began to sob again. "P-please don't hurt my husband."
"Who the hell is picking him up?" He asked slamming his hand on the table, the action surprised Yori nearly causing her to fall out of her chair.
"I'm sorry!" She said quickly. "Someone from public relations and a security entourage will be picking him up. His flight is number 866 he'll be coming out of gate 58."
Bruce looked deep in thought for a moment then quickly exited the room.
"He only has two bodyguards?" Kazuya asked.
"Yes," Yori answered, "since our team is picking him up we saw no need for additional security."
"Who exactly will be picking him up? I want names." He demanded.
"Reiko Akiyama, she's the head of public relations in Tokyo and the rest, they will be five men, I don't know their names, they've all been hired by the head of security, Hachiro Sasaki." Yori wiped tears with the back of her sleeve.
Bruce opened the door. "I need to tell you both something."
Kazuya and Ganryu exited quickly leaving Dr. Hayashi forgotten.
"I think I know how we can do this," Bruce said, there was a glint of excitement in his eyes, "we do it right at the airport." He motioned for them to follow him, all three men entered the room and he guided them to his desk. "Gate 58 is the last gate, it's at the very back of the terminal," he explained as he pointed to the blueprints on his desk, "a second terminal is under construction as we speak." He traced the blueprints with his finger guiding their gaze as he spoke. "The construction zone is right next to the back of the terminal, very close to gate 58, they're constructing rails for a tram that will connect the two terminals. The gate is almost a straight shot to the escalator leading to the second level where construction is taking place," he stood straight and looked at Kazuya, "all we have to do is lure him into the construction zone and we can grab him easily."
"All we have to do?" Kazuya asked annoyed. "How in the hell are we supposed to convince him to go through a construction zone? That might be a bit suspicious."
Ganryu spoke up. "If he thinks we're the security detail from Horizon he'll probably follow us anywhere."
"Hmm." Kazuya was thoughtful for a moment, Ganryu didn't look very intelligent and in fact, he wasn't, but he did have his moments once in a while. "That might work."
"We don't have to get him into the construction zone, we just have to get him as close as possible," Bruce began, "as long as we're out of the sight of security and other passengers we can force him through the barriers, I had my guys check it out, it's just a roped off area with a temporary partition wall. We can pay some of the construction guys to let us through without problems."
"Hayashi said he only has two bodyguards," Kazuya said, "they'll be unarmed having just left the airplane, they shouldn't be difficult to put down."
"Two bodyguards?" Bruce laughed. "Fucking amateurs."
At first, it had seemed that a busy airport, with security and police roaming throughout the entire structure, was the riskiest place to seize the doctor. However, as he discussed it with Bruce, Ganryu and a few select men it seemed that it could be done using surprisingly little force. The real problem was preventing Horizon from arriving on time and doing it without raising suspicions that anything was wrong at the airport, specifically to ensure that the Russian Embassy didn't get involved.
They arranged for a bomb threat to be called into Horizon Labs from a group claiming to be opposed to gene manipulation. Kazuya wished he could set off a real bomb, but there was no time and even if there was it would only alert the entire city and may cause the Embassy to be involved and to pick up the doctor themselves. Perhaps he would do it after the tournament, he thought, make them pay for thinking they could challenge him and come out the winners. Bruce had also arranged for road construction crews to be set up on the two most likely routes that the security entourage was set to take, that would slow them down considerably. All in all, Kazuya felt confident in their plan, he would have the doctor in his building much earlier than six in the afternoon and would be able to meet with Jun by eight.
"What about the woman?" Ganryu asked.
"Hayashi?" Kazuya gave him a quizzical look.
"No," the sumo shook his head, "the woman from public relations that will be picking him up, we don't have a woman."
"Fucking unbelievable." Bruce sat on his chair. "Maybe it's too risky, maybe we can arrange to grab him on his way to or from the lab once we learn his schedule."
"No," Kazuya said firmly, he needed Bosconovitch as soon as possible, before the tournament started, his plans were behind enough as it was.
He hurriedly walked back to Dr. Hayashi's holding cell, she gasped and her eyes went wide when she saw him enter.
"Is Dr. Bosconovitch expecting the woman from public relations to pick him up from the airport?"
"Y-yes."
"He's expecting her specifically?"
"Yes."
"Does he know her? Has he seen her?"
"No, but he's spoken to her on the phone, she arranged his flight and accommodations."
"How old is she?"
"I don't know, about my age, maybe a bit younger."
Didn't I tell you she would be useful? Devil asked lazily.
Kazuya exited the room and walked back to Bruce's office, he hated to admit it, but Devil was right. "I have someone." He told Bruce as he entered, he looked at the clock above the door, it was nearly seven-thirty in the morning. "Ganryu," he said turning to the large man, "call security at the entrance and have them send Sayuri down here before she goes up to the office, hurry up, she's always early." Ganryu quickly went to do as he was told.
Bruce sat up straight in his chair. "Your secretary? Are you serious?"
Kazuya shrugged. "She owes me."
"This isn't about who owes you," Bruce said sounding exasperated, "this is about finding someone who won't fuck things up."
"Watch your tone," Kazuya warned. "It sounds like you're doubting me, and if you have someone better now is the time to speak."
Bruce sighed. "You're right, my apologies, you obviously know her better than I do."
"All she has to do is smile and get three men to follow her, it will all take less than three minutes. It shouldn't be hard."
"Sometimes things that shouldn't be hard turn out to be damn near impossible to achieve, but...you're the boss," Bruce said sounding unconvinced.
Ten minutes later Sayuri walked through the door escorted by one of the guards. She looked calm and confident but Kazuya noticed that she stole a quick glance at the gun that the guard had holstered at his hip, she tightened her grip on the straps of her purse but her expression remained the same.
"Good morning, sir," she said in a pleasant tone as she gave each Bruce and Ganryu a polite smile, "you wanted to see me?"
"Why the hell are you dressed like you're going to a funeral," Kazuya asked noticing her long-sleeved, black dress; it was by far the least enticing thing he had ever seen her wear.
"I'm sorry?" She asked looking instantly bewildered.
"The one day I need you to look distracting and you come in here wearing your grandmother's dress." He said harshly.
"Distracting?" There was anger in her eyes, but the way she clutched her purse protectively in front of her said that she was self-conscious.
"Leave us." He said, Bruce, Ganryu and the guard obeyed immediately.
"This is not my grandmother's dress," Sayuri said defensively once the door had closed, "this is from the Gucci fall collection, it's not even available-"
"I don't care if it was woven by the angels themselves." He said cutting her off.
"Why am I down here?" She demanded.
"Because today is the day when you show me what you are truly willing to do to save your boyfriend."
She seemed nervous all of the sudden. "Why do I need to look distracting?"
"You're going to help us kidnap a scientist from an airport." He felt that the direct approach was best.
She gaped at him for a moment then her face went pale. "...I can't." She slowly shook her head. "...I can't."
"You said you were willing to commit a murder."
"No," she snapped, "I said that I might and I didn't think-"
"You didn't think I was serious?" He asked raising his voice. "What did you think I would have you do? Pick up my dry-cleaning?"
"No...I just-"
"You said you would do it if I reconsidered pressing charges against Lee." He reminded her hoping that it would help persuade her.
"I-I know I just..." She began to breathe rapidly, she inhaled then exhaled slowly as she looked at him. "If I agree to this I need a guarantee, I need to know that you won't go public and that you won't press charges against him."
"Fine." He said as he sighed in frustration. "Do we have a deal?"
"...I don't know."
"Think of it this way," his voice was suddenly low and even as he spoke, she was close to agreeing, he could feel it, all she needed was one more little push, "it's an old man's freedom in exchange for a young man's future, that's a fair trade."
Her shoulders fell as she looked down at her red, high-heeled shoes. "...What do I have to do?"
"You just smile and engage a few men in small talk, get them to follow you and your security detail for literally two minutes. It's just like when you give clients a guided tour of the building."
She nodded absently and was silent for a short while. "...What if I can't do it? What if I make a mistake?" Her voice was barely audible.
She seemed to be wondering out loud rather than asking him, but he answered regardless. "Then you'd better pray that Lee has a really good hiding place away from Japan and that he can find you before I can." She looked up at him, her face expressionless, her breathing was even once more. "By the way, where did you say Lee is again?" It had become a habit by now, asking her when he knew the exact answer that she would give.
"I don't know." She said in a steady tone.
Didn't I tell you she had potential? Devil said admiringly.
He nodded in approval. "You're going to do just fine." For the first time, that morning Kazuya was fully confident in his plan.
A/N: Well, here is the Kazuya only POV chapter that I never planned to write, it just sort of happened, I hope it was enjoyable to read, it seemed slow to me, but this is a drama and maybe it's because I've had to read it like thirty times. I wanted to show a little bit of him just being himself at home and having a difficult day at the office, I hope I did him justice. At this point I have no idea how long this fic is going to be, my original version was eighty pages long but I'm already up to ninety pages with the end of this chapter. If you are taking the time to review thank you incredibly much, I super appreciate it! If you're not reviewing but are reading this in its entirety, thank you also.
