Sorry that this chapter took a bit; I had to rewrite it a few times before being satisfied with this version! Thank you for the reviews and for reading, like always, I appreciate your interest in this story!

Without further adieu, please enjoy it, and the author's notes will be at the bottom.


"What were you all thinking?! Did you even think!? Did you?! I know you're all capable of using those precious little brains of yours, so explain yourselves!" Eto shouted angrily with Saiko and Shirazu awkwardly following behind her with fear in their eyes. With them only having a single lead on where they'd be able to get knowledge of Haise's whereabouts, Eto had been baretting the two quinxes as they made their way up the snow-covered steps towards 'Helter-Skelter'.

After climbing up about two flights of stairs, Saiko was too winded to speak, so it was up to Shirazu to speak up for themselves. "M-Ms. Yoshimura, we-"

"-Don't you dare interrupt me, child; that was a rhetorical- GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Eto said, before suddenly screaming like a madwoman to the unfortunate ghoul who happened to walk out of the bar at the wrong time. Without waiting for the grown man to even register what she had yelled out at him, Eto grabbed him like he was made of styrofoam before effortlessly throwing him off the balcony.

Taking a peek over the stone-railing, Shirazu couldn't tell whether or not the man survived the fall or not, due to how dark the night sky was. The fact that they were in the midst of a snowstorm didn't help either.

Not caring whether or not the man she threw off survived, Eto ripped the bar's metal door right off of its hinges before tossing it off to the side like it was nothing. "Come on children, get inside. Now." Eto commanded, as she stood to the side of the doorless-entrance to the bar, before pointing her finger inside to indicate her thinning patience.

Without a second thought, Saiko and Shirazu practically tripped over their own feet as each of them rushed into the warmth of the bar. Feeling uncomfortable and unsure what exactly the half-ghoul wanted from them, the two quinxes stood posted at the entrance like two nervous guards as the ex-leader of the Aogiri Tree walked into the bar.

Upon pulling back the magenta hood she wore to reveal her green messy hair along with her single red-eye, many of the would-be brave patrons in the bar immediately lost the nerve to confront her. Everyone who sat at a table that stood in the way of Eto's path immediately vacated their seats to avoid the woman's wrath as she made her way to the annoyed barkeeper who stood behind the counter with a smug look on her face.

"Well, well, well…! If it isn't everyone's favorite novelist!" Itori sarcastically announced to all of her fleeing patrons, who made sure to cover their faces as they made their way past Saiko and Shirazu to scurry away into the night. "I have to hand it to you, Yoshimura; you sure do know how to clear a roo-?!"

Reaching over the counter, Eto grabbed a handful of Itori's peach-colored hair before slamming the ghoul's face through the bar counter. After splitting the entire counter in half, Eto dragged Itori's bloodied face through the mess of splitters and marble-chunks along the wooden-floor before immediately reaching into the ghoul's mouth to rip out her front teeth. Tossing them over her shoulder, Eto ignored Itori's painful groans as she pressed the barkeeper's face against the wooden floor.

Kneeling down without letting the squirming woman go, Eto leaned her lips closer to Itori's exposed ear before whispering, "I'm not here to play games with the likes of you, you gossiping little bitch. You're going to tell me what I want to know, or else I'll start pulling out your molars. Do I make myself clear?"

Fearing for her own self-preservation, Itori frantically nodded as she felt blood seeping into her mouth while doing her best to ignore the agony she was experiencing with her torn-nerve endings hanging loosely from where her gums.

"Good girl… Now I'm letting you go so you can gather your teeth and put them back in that whore mouth of yours. If you try to run, I will catch you, and tear your legs off before violently sodomizing you with both of your broken-femurs. Are we under a mutual understanding?" Eto asked in a voice that lacked any sort of amusement or patience.

Letting out a panicked whimper, Itori could feel herself starting to sweat as she nodded her head repeatedly at her torturer. Satisfied with her non-vocal response, Eto released her grip from Itori's hair before standing still to watch the trembling ghoul crawl over toward where her teeth were laying in a small pool of blood. Placing each tooth against her bleeding gums one-by-one, it took Itori less than a minute before having her smile back in order.

Not that she dared smile at Eto.

"Okay… Okay, what do you want to know?" Itori asked in a quiet voice, as she did her best to avoid looking the half-ghoul in the eye.

"Haise Sasaki, he goes by Ken Kaneki too; I need to know where he's at," Eto stated in a flat voice, as she approached Itori with a menacing look in her grey eyes. "He's a little over a meter-and-a-half tall, has an athletic build, cute face, grey eyes, and he's got really fluffy hair that's white and black. He's easily distinguishable."

"Haise Sasaki… Ah, yes, I know who you're talking about now; Yomo's talked about him being there at :re; I'm happy to hear that he's finally awake," Itori said in an attempt to win Eto's mercy over, as she slowly got back up to her feet. "Unfortunately, um… I-I haven't heard anything about anyone fitting his physical description as of lately, so… I'm afraid I don't have anything for you yet, bu-"

"-Yet?" Eto asked with a slight twitch in her neck, as she clenched her hands into tight fists. "... That's not good enough," Eto declared with a large sadistic smile spreading across her face, as she reached down and grabbed the ghoul by the neck to lift her up. "I told you that I wasn't in the mood to play games… I changed my mind about pulling your molars by the way; I've decided that I'm going to rip your jaw off and slit your-"

"M-Maman…?" Saiko spoke up in a high-pitched and nervous voice, while holding onto her cell phone with her trembling fingers. Teary-eyed and terrified at just how horrifying the quirky and easy-going half-ghoul could be, Saiko reluctantly took a few steps forward before coming to a sudden halt.

Letting out a quiet breath to compose herself, Eto dropped Itori to the ground before turning around to address her surrogate daughter with a sweet smile. "Yes, Saiko? What is it, sweetheart~?" Eto asked in a comforting voice, while Itori crawled away to cower in the corner.

"M-Mutsuki texted me… H-He found Haise, and-"

"-Call him for me, child; I want to speak to him myself, please," Eto ordered Saiko in the nicest way she could muster.

"Y-Yes Maman….!" Saiko squeaked out in a panicked voice, before immediately unlocking her phone to select Mutuski's contact before navigating through the menu options to make an outgoing call to him; a simple process that Eto's dyslexia prevented her from doing herself.


Feeling his phone vibrating, Mutuski took the device out of his pocket before bringing the screen up to his eye level to see who was calling him. Reading the contact listed on the screen, Mutsuki nonchalantly stood beside Haise on the cement dock, while rubbing his upper back as he finished dry heaving into the ocean from behind the safety of the metal railing.

"Hello?" Mutsuki asked in a somewhat uncomfortable tone, while somewhat predicting that Saiko's voice wasn't going to be what he heard on the other line.

"Mutsuki, it's me," Eto quickly announced herself before following her introduction with, "Saiko said that you have Haise with you, is that right?"

"Yes ma'am, we're here by the beach right now; he's perfectly safe," Mutsuki replied back with a small smile on his face, while he glanced over his shoulder to stare longfully at his beloved ex-squad-leader, who was currently empting the remaining contents of his stomach out into the sea.

"Thank God… When do you think you'll be back home? It's going to snow really bad tonight, and I don't want either of you to get sick or worse," Eto explained with a concerned tone in her voice, while Mutsuki quickly conjured up a lie in his head.

"Oh, um… We're not going to be back until tomorrow morning or afternoon, probably. I got a hotel by the beach, we're going to stay there tonight." Mutsuki explained to Eto, who took the news a little difficult.

"O-Oh… Is that so? Well… T-Thank you for doing that, child," Eto said with a saddened tone in her voice, before needing to take a moment to swallow back the disappointment in her voice. "What if… What if we meet you at the hotel? We can have a bit of a slumber party together, watch a movie and talk things out…?"

"... I didn't want to say this to you ma'am, but.. Sensei's really upset about what happened at :re." Mutuski spoke slyly and in a quiet tone so his sickened companion couldn't hear his deceptive lie. "When I found him, he was intoxicated at a bar; I think he mentioned how betrayed he felt, so… I think some time spent apart from the coffee shop will be good for him."

Hurt by what she had just heard, Eto found it hard to formulate an immediate response. With a shaking voice, Eto let out a sorrowful sigh before asking, "Can… Can I talk to him, please? I… I just need to hear his voice right now."

Not wanting to devastate Eto, Mutsuki reluctantly replied with, "Of course, ma'am… Just try to be patient with him, please."

"I will Mutsuki; I promise… Thank you for finding him," Eto said with a tearful voice, before waiting nervously as Mutsuki made his way over to Haise to help him grab a hold of the phone. "H… Hello?"

Groggy and still feeling the effects of the alcohol in his system, Haise had to be held up straight by Mutsuki as he released his grip on the railings to bring the phone up to his ear. "Nngg… H-Hello?" Haise asked in a sickly voice, while trying to keep his staggering feet up straight.

Excited to hear his voice, Eto's mood brightened up almost immediately. "Sasaki…?! It's me, Eto! Are you okay, dear?!"

Considering how awful and out of it he felt, Haise replied to Eto by groaning out a simple, "No… No, I don't feel good…"

"Okay dear, just… Just do whatever Mutsuki says, okay? He's going to take care of you tonight, and he'll bring you home when the storm clears up, okay Sasaki?" Eto reassured in a voice meant to comfort Haise, but ended up coming out like she was trying to reassure herself more than she was trying to reassure him.

"Home…?" Haise asked in a solemn voice, as he stared down at the snow-covered concrete dock underneath his feet.

"That's right Sasaki; you can come home tomorrow…! Touka and Yomo are just going to have to deal with their own feelings in the meantime, but… But you belong here with your family."

"... Family deserves to be home together, right Yoshimura?" Haise asked in a methodical voice, as he felt light-headed.

"Y-Yes? T-That's right, Sasaki… I… I don't know what you're getting at, dear…" Eto said with a dreadful tone in her voice.

"... Hinami is part of my family; I can't go home without her," Haise explained with a saddened yet stern tone in his voice. "I'm sorry Yoshimura, but this is something that I have to do… You should stay at the coffee shop, and try to work on your books; I think there's electronic aids for people with dyslexia."

While her first instinct was to argue with Haise, and to demand for him to return home that very instant, another part of Eto told her that it was just the alcohol talking, not him.

"... Can we discuss this more in the morning, dear? I'd like to talk more about what your plans are before you do anything drastic," Eto requested with a patient voice, while gripping the phone in her hand as she frowned.

"Of course; I'll… I'll call you back tomorrow," Haise replied, before looking over his shoulder to see just past the retractable deck of the dock to stare at the three-story large stark-white yacht that awaited him. "Have a goodnight Yoshimura; take care."

"G… Goodnight Sasaki; you do the same," Eto replied back, after finding it hard to say goodbye to the man that was bringing her comfort. "... I m-miss you." She with a shaking voice, before forcing herself to end the call.

Feeling guilty, Haise found himself slowly handing the phone back to Mutsuki while looking away from the Tsukiyama family's boat and out toward the distant silhouette of the city. While the snowstorm and night sky made it difficult to see the shapes of the skyscrapers over the dark horizon, the bright lights of the city were enough for Haise to see Tokyo's silhouette.

Having had enough of the cold weather outside, Mutsuki slid his phone back into his pocket before reaching down toward Haise's hand to grab onto it. "Come on Sensei, let's get settled inside," Mutsuki said, before leading the drowsy-young man along the retractable deck to get onboard the yacht from its entry way.

Walking onto the lowest wooden deck that housed four longue chairs and a jacuzzi, Mutsuki was holding Haise to prevent him from falling as the two stood by the front glass-entrance where Karren Von Rosewald had been waiting for them to finish making contact with their friends.

"I take it that you two have settled your affairs?" Karren asked in a professional and withdrawn voice, as she glared bitterly at the despondent one-eyed ghoul who kept his eyes glued to the floor.

Needing to be the one to speak on behalf of his mentor, Mutsuki took a step forward before bowing down to show respect. "We've made the phone call, yes; thank you for being patient, ma'am."

Rather than returning the gesture with a bow of her own, the proud ghoul stood still with her arms crossed over her chest as she stared at Mutsuki with an annoyed look on her face. "I'm German; we don't bow down," Karren explained in a short and curt manner.

"Oh… Okay then," Mutsuki muttered under his breath, as he straightened his back before standing back up to watch Karren raise her smartwatch up to her eye level before scrolling through it. After a few seconds of navigating through her watch, Karren tapped a few times on the screen before making the metal-retractable dock slide back into the yacht's built-in compartment.

Having absent-mindedly watched the spectacle of the technologically-advanced boat, Haise found himself interested in what Karren had accomplished. "Wow… That's really fancy…"

"For a lack of better terms, yes Sasaki; I suppose one as simple-minded as yourself would label 'Croissant de Lune's (Crescent Moon's)' basic functions as 'fancy'," Karren replied back sarcastically with an annoyed tone in her voice; something that Haise was able to pick up on in an instant.

"... Far be it from me from starting trouble, but… Do you have a problem with us?" Haise asked in a low and mildly upset voice.

"Absolutely, yes; I have many qualms with you two… I especially despise you, 'Haiße (No-Name)'," Karren spat out hatefully toward Haise, before walking over to the glass door leading into the first-floor of 'The Crescent Moon'. "Fortunately for you, I'll keep my opinions to myself… So long as you don't ask for them, or warrant them."

Not feeling like he needed another enemy or someone else who hated him in his life, Haise nodded softly at Karren's words before trying once more to get through to the proud ghoul. "Look, um… Can we talk later? Just… Just you and I? I'm really trying hard to right the wrongs I've done, and… And if you and I are going to be working together for some sort of common goal or something, I'd at least like it if we were all on the same side."

While her knee jerk reaction was to tell Haise to 'go fuck himself' in her native tongue, Karren withheld her spiteful words and thought about it for a moment. Eyeing the young man up-and-down with her purple eyes, Karren played around with the idea of being able to squeeze an apology out of the man she considered to be a buffoon before reluctantly sighing.

"... Very well. After we have dinner and Master Shuu and the others, I will be the to give you a tour of the boat's interior and exterior. After all is said and done, you will retire to your quarters for the night, and join us for breakfast," Karren continued, before suddenly turning her head over to address Mutsuki with a challenging look in her eye.

"... Your friend will not be able to join us, but after breakfast, I'll lead you into my quarters so that you and I can discuss what it is you'd like to say," Karren said without an ounce of friendliness behind her words, except for the small smile of amusement she had after seeing how visibly bothered Mutsuki was with her terms and conditions. "So… What do you say, 'Haiße'(No-Name)? Do you and I have a date?"

Too nauseous and tired to question anything about Karren's plan, Haise merely nodded at the German ghoul before letting out an exhausted yawn. "Errrrn… Ahh... Yeah… Yeah, that sounds fine." Haise said with a sleepy look on his face, while Mutsuki tightened his grasp on his mentor's hand.

Content with herself, Karren allowed herself to smile further at the two people she hated the most before opening the glass door for them. "'Großartig (Magnificent)'. Now come inside and follow me… Mind your manners, and if you don't have manners, then try to pretend that you do."


Although the journey up the two-flights of stairs to reach the top-deck's dining room wasn't part of the grand tour he was supposed to be receiving after dinner, Haise still couldn't help but marvel at various paintings and European-flags were mounted in the dimly-lit hallways.

While his head was pounding from the lack of water and true sustenance that his body had been denied from during the entire day, Haise still couldn't help but find the 1920's art-deco style that the Crescent Moon's interior had been furnished with to be fascinating.

There were many rooms and designated areas spread around the colossal boat from what Haise could tell, and although he was curious as to see what those far-off rooms were, he knew better than to wander off while already under Karren's tight surveillance.

After finally entering the large dining hall that had been constructed with a large dome-shaped skylight that covered its ceiling and walls, Haise stared up at the massive chandler hung above the enormous ivory-white round table that was equipped to seat around twenty-six people comfortably. The floor was covered in sleek-dull grey panels that emitted a dim-light from each of their crevesus.

Making way further into the impressively modern-equse dining area, Haise looked over at the table where Nishiki and some of Tsukiyama's closest servants sat. Sitting at the end of the table where a large monitor rested behind him for the rest of the table to see, Shuu Tsukiyama stared at Haise with a welcoming smirk on his face.

Unlike his usual flamboyant attire that consisted of bright clothing or designer brands, Tsukiyama wore a black peacoat coat over a white-dress shirt and a simple black tie. On top of his freshly groomed head of lavender hair, the ghoul sported a naval captain's hat that casted a shadow onto his eyes.

"Ah, Kaneki-Kun… Rumor has it that you're still going by 'Haise Sasaki'; is there any truth to that?" Tsukiyama asked with a vexing voice, while extending his sleeved arm up to usher Haise to take a seat by his right side. "Come, come; have a seat; make yourself at home."

"Thank you, Shuu… And yes, I go by that name still," Haise said politely, as he made his way over to Tsukiyama, where he was seated next to Mutsuki and Nishiki. With the modern-styled egg-shaped seat being built into the floor, Haise made sure to carefully seat himself without causing himself to get even more nauseous from motion sickness as he could feel the boat sailing away from the docks.

Eyeing the young man up-and-down with a curious and impressed look on his face, Tsukiyama raised a hand up to signal for one of his new servants to fetch Haise some water. "I have to say, Haise… Considering that you've been awake for only a day after waking up from that coma I've heard so much about, I have to hand it to you… You're still as resourceful and capable as you were years ago."

"Thank you, I… I think that's a compliment, hehe…?" Haise laughed nervously with an endearing smile on his face, as he looked over to his right to see a young woman with black-ponytail dressed in a similar naval-style that Tsukiyama was donning. Even though she was only pouring Haise a glass of water, she along with the rest of the servants were armed with uniformed pistols and service rifles that didn't look similar to the kinds of firearms that CCG had.

Practically being able to read the bewilderment and curiosity within Haise's widened eyes, Tsukiyama smiled proudly at how visibly intrigued and impressed the one-eyed ghoul was. "The uniforms we're wearing are traditional dress-blues from the French Navy; those firearms you're eyeing are of European origin," Tsukiyama explained, while patiently waiting for his female servant to hand Haise a glass of ice-cold water before motioning for her to hand him her firearms.

Taking a hold of the semi-automatic pistol that had a comfortable handle and a blocky slide on top, Tsukiyama released the magazine from below the grip to showcase it to Haise. "This is a 'Glock 17', 'Gen five' to be exact. Its 9mm quinque-bullets are ideal for picking off lightly-armored ghouls, along with being ideal to engage CCG personnel without having to be within range of their quinques."

Sliding the magazine back underneath the pistol's handle, Tsukiyama made sure to double-check to see if the safety was on before exchanging it for the scoped-rifle that his servant was carrying.

"The 'HK416F' is a semi-automatic rifle; we use thirty-count magazines here, and their versatility make them ideal weapons for taking on opponents from any range… Impressive, no?" Tsukiyama asked with a devilish look in his eyes, before quietly thanking his servant for assisting in his demonstration while handing her the rifle back.

Nodding quietly at what he was seeing, although Haise hadn't been directly told what Tsukiyama had wanted from him, the one-eyed ghoul figured that it wasn't for a peaceful reason. "It looks like you're building yourself an army, Tsukiyama…"

Without losing his confident smile, Tsukiyama let out a small throaty chuckle before raising his hand to flick his wrist at Haise's accusations. "Not an army, Sasaki; it's an organization that I'll be using to launch a rescue mission! The weapons are just for our own protection when we reach the shores of Rushima; just imagine it being something akin to the Normandy landings of 'World War II'."

"Sounds… Dangerous," Haise replied back with a bothered look on his face, before following up with, "What sort of rescue mission are you planning, Shuu?"

Satisfied that he was able to successfully intrigue his guest enough to start asking questions about his future plan, Tsukiyama smirked a bit to himself before answering back with, "I'm planning on taking this boat, landing it on Rushima Island, which coincidentally enough, speaking of World War II, is an old Japanese Empire base they built when the Allies were at war with them in the 1940's… Tell me Sasaki, are you familiar with the term 'Island Hopping'?"

With his memories barely coming back to him, Haise couldn't rightfully say that he was familiar with history, so he answered honestly with, "I don't think I know what 'Island Hopping' is, no… Is that a World War II term?"

"It is, actually," Tsukiyama said with a bit of disappointment in his voice, after quickly deducing that Haise probably wouldn't be the most engaging when it came to discussing history; a subject that the French ghoul found to be the most interesting aside from politics.

"Oh," Haise said awkwardly, while Tsukiyama quickly picked up where he had left off.

"So essentially, all you need to know is that Rushima Island has, or rather had, a fully functional military base built in the center of a forest. It's fortified heavily, and was built to withstand aerial bombings and heavy artilery. I said 'or rather had' because I'm not sure how much of it still remains intact; considering that it's been almost a century since it's been constructed… That, and there was a large-scale battle there about two weeks ago..." Tsukiyama explained, while waiting a few moments for Haise to process everything he had just said.

"Large scale battle? Was it between CCG and the Aogiri Tree?" Haise asked after making an assumption based on everything he remembered from Yomo's earlier presentation.

"Now you're catching on, Sasaki! You always were a bright one…" Tsukiyama mused with an impressed look in his purple eyes, before following up with, "From what Mutsuki's told me, you're under the impression that the Aogiri Tree has disappeared, correct?"

Nodding, Haise took a drink from his glass of water before setting it down to reply with, "That's what I've been told, more-or-less… From what I understand, they disappeared around the time Cochlea was raided."

"Around the time…? Ah, you're discussing that one failure of a rescue operation composed by the Kirishima family?" Tsukiyama asked with an unimpressed tone in his voice, before catching his own callused behavior.

"... Forgive me Sasaki, I do apologize if I offended you; it's never quite respectable to speak ill of the dead after all… It's just that I myself never cared for Ayato, and well… Let's be honest with each other, his own headstrong and careless behavior is what led to his downfall… That, and he was always so insufferable and brutish," Tsukiyama said with a cautious tone in his voice, while carefully analyzing the look on Haise's face to tell whether or not the other man disagreed with him or not.

"He… He was Touka's little brother and Yomo's nephew, so… It is unfortunate that those two lost a family member; especially since I don't think I can recall them having any other surviving relatives," Haise said with an uncertain look in his eyes, before reluctantly nodding, "But yes… If we're being honest here, I… I'm not going to miss Ayato."

"They do say 'honesty is the best policy' after all…!" Tsukiyama said jokingly, which managed to crack a smile on Haise's tired face as well. "And there we have it: a smile! I don't understand why everyone's all 'gloom and doom' these days… Anyway, what was I saying…?"

"Erm… You mentioned that you needed guns to protect yourself, and probably the boat itself for when you do land on Rushima… Oh, and I think you were alluding to something involving the Aogiri Tree," Haise reminded, which again impressed Tsukiyama.

"Ah, so you are listening… For the most part, that is," Tsukiyama mused, before once again remembering where he had left off in their conversation, "Anyway, I'm partially wanting to head to Rushima Island to see about rescuing any compliant survivor who's willing to peacefully come aboard to join my little merry band of 'Ne'er-do-wells'... But there's more to it than that."

"I see… So you're creating your own 'Aogiri Tree', is that right?" Haise asked with an upset look in his eyes. "What's your endgame, Shuu? Are you going to kidnap others, torture people, or commit other terrible acts, all for the sake of 'protecting ghouls'?"

Finding the idea of himself picking up where the Aogiri Tree left off to be absurd, Shuu couldn't help but scoff at the idea before letting out an amused chuckle. "'Like the Aogiri Tree'?! That unorganized and underfunded band of lowly peasants and moronic martyrs?!" Tsukiyama asked in a mocking tone, before letting out another burst of laughter.

"Yeah… Why, what's so funny?" Haise asked with a scowl on his face, while Tsukiyama was in the midst of calming himself down after finding his comparison to be hilarious.

"Ah, Sasaki; your ignorance tickles me pink…!" Tsukiyama chortled out while raising his hand up to begin fanning himself off to calm down. "Ah…! You're funny, you know that?!" Tsukiyama asked playfully, as he laid back in his seat with a smug look of confidence and superiority. "No, Sasaki…! Unlike the Aogiri Tree, I don't plan on fighting CCG; I plan on overthrowing them."

Unamused after blatantly being called 'ignorant', Haise glared back in annoyance. "Okay then… If you're not like the Aogiri Tree, then what exactly are your goals?"

Composing himself, Tsukiyama stared back at Haise with a half-cocked smirk on his lips before slowly leaning back up to stare intently into the other man's grey eyes. "My goals, Sasaki? I'll tell you what they are..."

Watching Haise maintaining his glare while reaching up to press the rim of his glass cup against his lips, Tsukiyama waited for the young one-eyed ghoul to finish taking a drink of iced-cold water before explaining himself.

"I plan on building up enough local support to engage CCG head on. I'll take Cochlea, their most fortified stronghold, and then claim the rest of their prisons and laboratories as my own. I'll force Matsuri Washuu to sign my terms of his surrender, and then dismantle the organization and transform it into an agency of science and technology that'll benefit ghouls and humans alike… All while under my family's control, that is." Tsukiyama explained as simply as he could for Haise to understand, without going into any details that might confuse him.

Trying to process everything that Tsukiyama had just said to him once more, Haise muttered what he had just heard under his breath before grasping it all together. "... And what's in it for you? Are you doing this out of the kindness of your heart?"

Rolling his eyes at how cliche and naive Haise was sounding, Tsukiyama once again found himself snickering at the young man's ignorance before settling himself down. "Sasaki, there's no such thing as 'having a kind heart' when it comes to politics! What I'm doing will place Japan's political power back in my family's palm once again, and our innovations and research will be used to enlarge our economic power; we'll be the wealthiest family in the world."

"... So it's just a business venture to you?" Haise asked in a hollowed tone, to which Tsukiyama answered with a shrug.

"It's a business venture that'll benefit ghouls across the world… Well, those who have money or who are willing to put themselves under my 'employment', that is," Tsukiyama said while using his fingers to emphasize the word 'employment'. "Don't look so gloomy, Sasaki; my family's 'manifest destiny' will benefit you and your friends especially."

"How? I don't think money's going to solve any of my problems," Haise said solemnly, while he stared down at the ivory table. "... Shuu, I'm only interested right now in finding Hinami; she was kidnapped by Arima and his goons."

Unphased by what Haise said, Tsukiyama did his best to fake an empathetic look on his face before saying, "My condolences Sasaki; I remember how close you two were… However, if you were to work for me, I'd be able to have the manpower on my side to send scouting parties out and hire detectives to gather intel about her whereabouts."

Intrigued by Tsukiyama's offer, despite the fact that his offer was self-profiting, the possibility of having additional aid in his search for Hinami made Haise further more interested in the ghoul's political plan. "... So what's stopping you from sending some of your people out right now to help me? I thought you and I were friends."

"Friends? If I recall correctly, the last time we saw one another, you were going to murder my cousin and I before I said something. Let's stop pretending that you and I are 'friends', Sasaki," Tsukiyama said callously with his smirk still plastered across his thin lips, all without losing his temper in the least bit. "If anything else, we can still be 'mutual benefactors'."

While it did sadden Haise to realize that he and the other ghoul weren't as close as they once were, Tsukiyama's reasoning was justifiable enough in Haise's mind. "I see… Even so Shuu, what about Hinami? She looked up to you when you were in my group years ago. Hell, she stood up for you against Touka and Nishiki; how does that not mean anything to you now?!"

"Don't get me wrong, Sasaki; I'd like for Hinami to have her freedom. She's a sweet girl who's been respectful and an advocate for peace… Which is why the world I'm envisioning would be perfect for her," Tsukiyama persisted, while trying to make himself seem like the one who was in the right. "All the more reason for you to be wanting to jump on this opportunity I'm presenting to you, Sasaki."

Getting more-and-more upset by the realization that Tsukiyama's indifference with personal relationships had devolved into him seeing old friends as nothing more than pawns, Haise was beginning to lose his patience with him. "What's wrong with you…? How do you expect me to want to help you, when you clearly have no drive to want to help me save Hinami?!"

"And what exactly is your plan, Sasaki? Say hypothetically, I use my currently-limited personnel to assist in your wild-goose hunt, and we do find Hinami. What then? Are you just going to put her in that shanty little coffee shop of Touka's, and pretend that everything in the world is good? Just how long do you plan on living in that fantasy of yours?" Tsukiyama challenged.

As much as Haise wanted to dispute Tsukiyama's argument, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he was in the same boat Ayato was in when he tried to rescue Hinami himself. He had no plan, no after thought for what the future held for them even if he did rescue her.

All Haise had was blind-determination; the same thing that got killed.

Seeing the expression of defeat overshadowing Haise's frustration and anger, Tsukiyama silently felt victorious in their conversation of what he considered to be nothing more than him bartering with a future employee. "Face it, Sasaki: I'm your best bet for finding Hinami and bringing salvation to ghouls everywhere."

Slumping his shoulders and back into the curvature of his chair's backrest, Haise felt himself sliding down in his seat as he stared exhaustingly at the pompous ghoul. "... 'Salvation', huh? That's a pretty big statement to make."

"Damn-straight it is," Tsukiyama replied back with a small laugh. "The truth is Sasaki, getting additional manpower from Rushima is only a secondary concern of mine. They can all be dead for all I care. A matter of fact, that would make things easier for me, now that I think about it, haha, ha…!" Tsukiyama mused in a humorous tone; something that Nishiki didn't find funny in the least bit.

"Hey! Don't forget that we need Kimi alive! Without her, that data will take years to decipher!" Nishiki interrupted, after feeling angered that Tsukiyama casually mentioned how he didn't care about saving anyone on the island.

"It was a joke, Nishiki… Lighten up, will you?" Tsukiyama said with a bit of annoyance in his voice, as he rolled his eyes at the hot-headed ghoul. "Of course I need your girlfriend alive; that's why Sasaki will be bringing Yoshimura with him to make sure the job gets done."

Caught off guard by Tsukiyama's assumption that was more like an expectation of him than anything else, Haise piped up in his seat as he re-focused his attention back on the purple-haired man. "Yoshimura?! What makes you think she's coming?!" Haise asked in a defensive tone, making it clear to Tsukiyama that he wasn't at all a fan of the idea of putting her in danger.

"Because Sasaki, you're going to be there; that's why she'll come," Tsukiyama said in a somewhat aggressive tone, as his smile immediately transformed into an impatient frown. "From what I've heard from Mutsuki, that bitch's taken a real liking to you. If she isn't able to remember the layout of the base, then at least that kakuja of hers will be useful for tearing the damned thing apart."

"Don't talk about her like that," Haise spat out in an angered tone, while furrowing his brows at Tsukiyama.

"She threw me off the roof of my dead-family's skyscraper; I'll call her whatever I damn-well please," Tsukiyama snapped back, after finally losing his patience with Haise. "... Either you work for me and I help you find Hinami, or you don't and she remains your problem; it's as simple as that. The operation will commence as scheduled, with or without you."

Feeling betrayed by the same man who he once thought to have learned from his selfish and cruel behavior, Haise continued to glare at Tsukiyama as the two fell into silence. Softing his expression, a look of hurt replaced the look of anger on Haise's face, and soon he found himself asking, "... What happened to you, Shuu? I… I thought you've changed for the better."

"I did change for the better, Sasaki; it's just that you and I have different definitions of what classifies as 'better'," Tsukiyama replied back in a cold-tone, as he sat up straight in his chair to convey again a look of professionalism.

"... Chie, be a dear and hand Sasaki that folder of applications that I need him and his group to sign," Tsukiyama called for, while motioning with his hand for the short and petite woman to do as he had requested.

"Sure thing," Chie said casually, before bending down while in her seat to reach for her messenger bag that she had kept underneath the table beside her dangling legs. "Hold up... There, got it!" Chie announced happily in her usual expressionless-tone of voice, before hopping out of her chair to run across the round-ivory table to where Haise sat.

"Here you go, Sasaki! Please hand these back to me before Christmas; I don't work on holidays and you're going to want these turned in before we leave on New Years Eve," Chie instructed with a small smile on her face, as she handed the one-eyed ghoul the thick-stack of papers held within the manila folder. "I took the liberty of printing Tsukiyama's orders down for each packet, to avoid there being any confusion."

"Thanks…" Haise said with a forced smile on his face, as he set the folder down on the table before staring down at the series of large black-printed letters that were stamped on the front. "... What's 'United Front?'"

Smirking to himself after hearing the name said aloud, Tsukiyama leaned forward slightly toward Haise to stare him uncomfortably in the eye before stating, "'United Front' is the name of my new organization. Once we've established ourselves in Tokyo and commandeer CCG's assets, we'll begin our campaign to foster the existence of ghouls… Funded by taxes and our future customers, of course."


After having heard Tsukiyama's plan for Tokyo's future that involved seizing power and economic gain for him and his family, with benefits for ghouls only applying if they either subjected themselves to his demands or if they had money, the luxurious dining experience that followed seemed hollow and empty.

While everyone seemed to enjoy the fine wine, grand buffet of practically every cut of human meat and eloquent culinary creation imaginable for his human staff to partake in, Haise had found himself joylessly eating grilled human tri-tip, all for the sake of gaining his strength back.

Even the grand tour of all three floors and the outdoor decks of Tsukiyama's mega-yacht on the open sea seemed to lose its magic for Haise, who had never been a water-vessel before in his life. While Mutuski seemed mystified with everything that Karren showcased on behalf of Tsukiyama, Haise found himself beginning to feel imprisoned once more.

No one was threatening to end his life, but with his only viable option of saving Hinami being to serve Tsukiyama as his mercenary, the line separating the differences between CCG and United Front were beginning to blur in Haise's mind.

When it came time for Karren to show him his new onboard living quarters, not even the impressive art-deco decor and furniture placed inside what was essentially his new luxury apartment seemed to enthuse Haise.

Walking across the waxed-mahogany floorboards, Haise made his way past his fully-furnished kitchen and living room area to head towards his new private bathroom that was parallel from where his king-sized bed was at, just on the other side of where the front-door stood.

Feeling the heated-tile pads underneath him, Haise made his way to the white-porcelin toilet that had a control pad on its right. Seating himself down on the heat-cushioned seat, Haise absent-mindedly kicked his shoes off towards the wall across from him, before removing his buckle and pants.

After stripping himself down to just the boxers that were dangled down around his ankles, Haise sat there and thought about what he'd say to Eto, who he felt as though he was obligated to tell the truth to. Sighing to himself, Haise leaned forward in his seat with his knees on his thighs and his chin resting in his palms, as he answered nature's call.

Having woken up from coma that morning, welcomed by his friends only to be exiled hours later by them, wandering the streets in the dead of winter, getting drunk and vomiting up a cheeseburger before fighting off CCG, and finally meeting up with an old friend who saw him as nothing more as an employee had certainly taken its toll on Haise.

With all of the aforementioned events occurring all in the same day, the exhausted one-eyed ghoul only had enough energy left in him to figure out how to use the bidet-feature on the technologically-advanced toilet before passing out inside the heated bathroom.


Waking up in a pool of his own drool to the sound of knocking coming from his front-door, Haise's eyes fluttered open as he reluctantly picked himself up the warm-spot on the bathroom floor that he'd fallen onto after slipping off from the toilet during his slumber.

Pulling up his boxers, Haise grabbed onto the marble countertop of where the sink was to pick himself up off of the floor. Staggering a bit after forgetting that the Crescent Moon was anchored off the coast of Tokyo, it took Haise a minute to regain his sea legs before stumbling his way out of his bathroom and through his dimly-lit quarters.

'Who could that be at this hour?' Haise wandered to himself with mild frustration, after taking one look at the sleek-digital clock that was hung on the wall of his kitchen that read '02:00' in military time.

Having been either too tired or depressed to notice earlier, it was only then while he was facing the door from the other side of the hallway outside did Haise realize that instead of there being a peephole for him to see who had knocked, there was an interactive monitor that was mounted on the wall beside his doorknob.

Looking straight into the camera that was hung on the top of his door outside in the hallway, Mutsuki stood there with a nervous look in his eye. Looking down at the monitor, Haise was confused as to not only why his underling was there at such a late hour, but why he looked to be carrying a shopping bag that looked to be from a woman's department store.

Still being tired, Haise continuously stared down at the monitor while beginning to feel himself drifting back off into sleep until he heard Mutsuki knocking once again. For a split second, the sight of Hinami's phantom standing where Mutsuki had been seconds ago was what finally jolted Haise awake.

The hallucination was only for less than a second, but even then Haise could vidily see Hinami's phantom staring at him through the monitor with bleeding-black eyes and an unnaturally wide open-smile that was just as abysmally black as her eyes were.

Giving the left-side of his head a few taps with the side of his palm, just like he had done earlier near the 6th Ward's airport, Haise grounded himself back into reality before composing himself enough to avoid looking stressed before opening the door.

"Hey Mutsuki... What's going on?" Haise asked after having given his underling a quick and informal greeting, while making sure to get straight to the point about wanting to know why Mutsuki was there at such a late hour.

"Oh, umm… H-Hello, Sensei…" Mutsuki replied nervously to Haise's greeting, while staring down at the floor to avoid having to make eye contact with the man who was going to be his squad-leader once more. "S-Sorry… Sorry for disturbing you this late at night, umm… I-I hope I'm not inconvicing you too much."

'You sort of are,' Haise thought cynically to himself, but letting out a quiet sigh. "No, Mutsuki, you're okay… Did you want to come in?" Haise offered, after soon realizing how strange his underling was acting, even in his presence.

"Y-Yes, please…" Mutsuki whispered out in a borderline-panicked tone, before forcing himself to make his way into Haise's apartment. "Can… Can I use your restroom?"

Slightly chuckling to himself at the idea of Mutsuki waking him up at two-in-the-morning just to use his restroom amused Haise, but he still did his best to take his underling's request seriously. "Of course, it's just across the way from the foot of the bed over there… I think most of these rooms probably look the same, huh?"

"Yes, yes they do… Thank you, Sensei," Mutsuki said quietly while still staring down at the floor to prevent Haise from getting a good close-up look at his face. Without wasting another second, Mutsuki swiftly walked over to the bathroom before shutting himself inside with the shopping bag he had brought in with him.

Stuck waiting for Mutsuki to finish doing whatever warranted him needing to do within Haise's newly acquired restroom, the one-eyed ghoul decided to take a moment to walk over to his kitchen sink to take a sip from the purified-water faucet. After wiping his mouth clean of excess-water, Haise made his way over to the foot of his bed to take a seat while patiently waiting for Mutsuki to finish up.

After having seen the horrifyingly gruesome image of fourteen year-old Hinami staring into the depths of his soul not too long ago, Haise was more-than-able to fight off the urge of falling back asleep during the time it took for Mutsuki to finally wrap up what he had been doing in the bathroom.

Without hearing the toilet flushing or the faucet running, Haise was about to say something to Mutsuki as the door handle opened, but was suddenly taken aback by what he saw him wearing. "M… Mutuski…? Is that… Is that what I think it is?"

Smiling weakly with his face being an entirely brighter shade than before, Mutsuki stood upright in his light-blue dress that went down to the top of his quaking knees. Thankful that his opened black-blazer still fit him, Mutsuki reached up to adjust the pearl-necklace around the base of his neck as he stared back at the look of shock on Haise's face; silently hoping that he did a good-enough job applying the lipstick and mascara on, and that his mentor wasn't just staring because of that.

"It's the outfit I wore when we were at that party, back when we were investigating that 'Nutcracker' case," Mutsuki said with a nervous look in his eye, before reaching up past his necklace to fix his messy-bun he had tied on the back of his head. "You… You told me that night that I looked cute like this… D-Do you still think that I'm c-cute..?"

Finding himself beginning to feel his heart beating faster and his chest tightening, Haise felt his body beginning to grow cold as anxiety and excitement took hold of him. Now that he had time to recover a bit more from his coma, Haise's wit had returned to him, and now he fully understood what Mutsuki was trying to do.

"I… I think you're cute, yes," Haise whispered out in a nervous tone, while feeling his face becoming flustered as guilt took a hold of him. "Mutsuki, I… I don't think we should be doing this, I mean… I… I sort of always thought of you like my own child."

"T-That doesn't have to change, Sensei," Mutsuki piped up, while beginning to feel a bit more confident now that he could tell Haise was placed in the same vulnerable position he had been moments ago.

"It… It just feels wrong, doesn't it?" Haise tried reasoning, to which Mutsuki brushed off with a shake of his head.

"Not to me it doesn't… Sensei, I… I've always loved you, a-and I-I know that you and Yoshimura had something going on this morning, a-and I love you both too much to break that apart… B-But that doesn't mean you and I can't still be together…!" Mutsuki said hopefully in his timid voice, as he walked over to Haise while doing his best to maneuver in his high-heels that paired well with his silk-white stockings.

Ashamed that he was getting aroused, the fact that he felt sexually pleased when his erected-cock accidentally brushed against Mutsuki's inner thigh as he climbed onto to his lap only made Haise feel even more conflicted about the whole situation. "I… I don't know Mutsuki, this is so sudden...!"

"It's not sudden for me, Sensei; I've had a long time to think about this… I don't mind sharing you if it's with a woman I respect," Mutsuki said in a comforting voice, as he wrapped his arms around Haise's shoulders to begin combing his fingers through his mentor's fluffy head of white-and-black hair. "This world is twisted, Sensei… Life's too short to care what the world thinks of you."

Feeling Mutsuki's other hand beginning to slowly trace down the side of his muscularly-sculpted bicep, Haise felt himself becoming light-headed at the many conflicting thoughts that were arguing with one another in his head. "... I don't know what to think anymore, Mutsuki; everything so… So different nowadays."

"Good… We can be different together," Mutsuki said in a sultry voice, before closing his eyes to lean forward to lock lips with his mentor. Sensing the same hesitation and confusion from his mentor like earlier that night, Mutsuki's worries were eventually casted away after feeling Haise's body beginning to relax.

Letting out a soft moan, Haise's reasoning and logic gave way for his feeling of repressed passion as he found himself sliding his tongue into Mutsuki's mouth, just like how he had done to him in the alley.

"You're disgusting," Hinami's voice called out to him from across the room, while Haise did his best to ignore her presence.

Graciously accepting his mentor's tongue into his own mouth, Mutsuki let out a small moan while twirling his own tongue around Haise's, as the window to the left side of the third-story window illuminated the dimly-lit bedroom in the soft glow of the reflected moonlight above.

After having eased Haise into a sense of safety and comfort to the best of his ability, Mutsuki reluctantly pulled out from the man's kiss before pausing to stare off at the dancing ripples of the Pacific ocean. "... Haise," Mutsuki announced in an intimate-tone, as he became memorized at the waves while feeling the happiest he'd ever been in his life.

"Y-Yes, Tooru?" Haise replied back, after catching on that the quinx had wanted to be on a first-name basis with one another during that moment.

"... Can you think of me as a woman when we're together? As in… Can I be your girlfriend when we're alone?" Mutsuki asked in an uncertain and vulnerable tone in her voice, before slowly looking away from the window to smile back at her mentor. "I… I want you to be the only man who sees me this way."

Breathing with his jaw hung slightly open, Haise gazed into Mutsuki's exposed eye before slowly reaching up to remove her eyepatch. As he had hoped for, Mutsuki truly trusted him enough to remove the article of clothing from his head and soon Haise was finding himself getting lost in her green eyes that were illuminated by the dancing moonlight of the sea.

Before Haise could give his answer, it was then that he caught a whiff of the alcohol in her breath. "T… Tooru, are you… Are you drunk!?" Haise asked with a shocked expression taking over his lustful expression.

Giggling at the question, Mutsuki's eyes squinted and a smile formed on her lipstick-stained lips as she nodded. "Y-Yeah, of course I am, Haise…! T-There's no way that I was going to do this sober…!"

"You sicken me."

Wondering how he didn't recognize that when he was kissing her, it was then that Haise remembered that his tastebuds weren't as reliable as they once were, and although he could smell it just fine, alcohol was something that he couldn't taste.

'... Now that I think about it, it sort of explains why she was walking kind of weird when she came inside,' Haise thought to himself as he soon found himself unable to continue. "Tooru, I… I can't, you know? I can't do… That, with you! I would be taking advantage of you…" Haise admitted with a slightly-panicked look in his grey eyes, while Mutsuki remained calm as she stared into his eyes. "This… This was a mistake, I-"

"-Ah, I see what the problem is… I can fix that, Haise," Mutsuki slurred out with a goofy and mischievous look in her eyes. Kissing Haise on the forehead, Mutsuki pushed herself up from his lap before stumbling her way over to his kitchen to bend down to search in the cabinets.

While Mutsuki was going through his kitchen cabinets, Haise couldn't help but to take a peek at her exposed white-panties that were visible after she had bent down with her skirt accidently hiked up. From where he was sitting, he could make out a wet-spot on the fabric between her inner thighs.

"You're a monster."

"There we go…!" Mutsuki said with a sense of accomplishment in her voice, before standing up to pop-the-cork off of the bottle of complimentary blood-wine with nothing but her thumbs. "Drink up, Haise. You're going to need a head start before we party…!"

Subconsciously, Haise knew that what he was doing was wrong. While having multiple partners in a polyagmous relation wasn't necessarily wrong, the new idea was something that made Haise feel uneasy, but it also wasn't the reason behind his concern.

The fact that he was willingly about to get drunk after just recovering from his binge drinking earlier was what worried him. However, with the image of Mutsuki's wet panties ingrained in his lustful mind, Haise couldn't help himself but to eagerly accept the bottle from Mutsuki.

"You're a piece of shit, Onii-Chan."

Having might as well thrown his better judgement out to the sea outside his window, Haise felt his baser instincts take a hold of his mind as he felt Mutsuki climbing back to her spot on his lap. Feeling the tip of his erected-cock pressing up against the warm-wet spot on Mutsuki's panties, Haise lifted his chin up to begin chugging the wine while his underling held the bottle up for him.

The only justifiable excuse he kept repeating to himself as he chugged himself back into a drunken stupor was that he at least wasn't going to have to see the judgemental look of Hinami's face staring at him from the corner of his apartment.

If there was one good thing that came from his newly-found dependence on alcohol, it was that it kept his shame and guilt-ridden memories repressed into his head, just like how they used to be while he was under CCG's control.


End of another long chapter!

The next chapter will be full of smut, so please make sure to leave a review or PM me if you have an idea for what Haise and Mutsuki should do!

I'll try to address as many reviews as I can!

First and foremost, who DOESN'T want to get into Haise's pants? But the more I write and read your reviews, the more I'm open to the idea of writing some smut between Haise and Hinami. One with her imagining herself being with Haise, and maybe one where Haise's open to the idea of fulfilling her fantasy.

Thank you for the funny review, L! RIP Haise's turtleneck sweater, and Haise is pretty good at recovering from binge drinking, which he's starting to become reliant on.

Thanks for reviewing Saitama! Yes, CCG now knows that Haise is alive. Just like how they did in the original manga, they'll disregard what Ayumu has to say and just implement their 'justice' on him. Although, with both GOAT and United Front posing as a threat, they might be more willing to 'pardon' him if he helps them.

Eto is pissed, and she'll probably be Haise's main waifu who he regularly shows affection and love to, and not just one-night stands. Haise recovers from eating meat, but can survive off eating what humans eat.

Eventually we'll see Saiko having a flashback of what Mutsuki did to Haise, and probably be ashamed of herself for finding it hot or something, idk lol.

Thank you for reviewing Root A! Loved reading that paragraph you wrote, and yes, Hachikawa has been known to pull bitch moves from time-to-time.

Thank you for leaving a review, Carla! Eto was shown to resort to going back to her old ways if she feels the need to, and don't worry, Eto is going to be Haise's best waifu and their smut will be more frequent and less reliant on Haise needing to be drunk.

Mutsuki is about to play with Haise, all right lmao.

Thank you for writing that review, Reviewbruh! As for Phantom Hinami saying that Haise ate Hide, she's not omnipotent but just a manifestation of his guilt. Deep down, Haise thinks he did while he was Kaneki. Of course, you do make a great point though. It didn't make sense for Hide to only have his lips and cheek eaten, considering how much damage Kaneki received while fighting Amon. Don't worry, Haise will be drunk with Eto and probably start their intimacy that way at first, before they become a thing.

I too look forward to Eto reuniting with Haise. It pains me that I can't do that without breaking the flow of the story, sadly omg lol.

Honestly, Haise probably should have robbed ORCA when he had the chance, but he was too focused on escaping to care about money.

Intoxication is currently the only way Haise can keep his hallucinations at bay, and yes, that's the only reason why he drinks in the story. I love that idea of him finding the real Hinami while drunk.

RIP Shachi and his bar.

Haise always attracts trouble, lol.

Haise and Eto are currently both S-Rank, but their kakujas can lead them to be SSS rate. They've both recovered mostly from their injuries, but still deal with head trauma.

Thank you for the review about Haise being funny; it made my day lol.

Until next time, have a great day!