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Chapter 32: A Knife in the Dark

March, 1867

The sun was shining brightly. It was a beautiful spring day with clear skies, but there was an unseen darkness brewing on the horizon.

"Kazama and the others have returned to Kyoto?" Sen asked, furrowing her brow, when she heard Kimigiku's latest report. The kunoichi was kneeling respectfully before the younger girl.

"It seems the storm shall soon begin." Sen said gravely.

—∞—

"Itou-san treated you to dinner!?" Sano said incredulously. He, Shinpachi, Okita, and the girls had been hanging out on some steps back at headquarters while watching Saitou practice his swordsmanship, when Shinpachi had suddenly dropped that bomb on them.

"Shh! You're way too loud, Sano." Shinpachi shushed him.

"He was trying to recruit you, wasn't he?" Sumiko asked, furrowing her brow and frowning worriedly.

"Yeah." Shinpachi said, only slightly surprised to hear that Sumiko had already figured out what was going on. "He was like, 'Aren't you dissatisfied with the Shinsengumi?' and 'If the Bakufu can't expel the foreigners, it's finished.' At the end of all that, he asked, 'Won't you come with me?'"

"What did you say?" Chizuru asked.

"I'd already had plenty to eat and drink, so I said, 'Bein' partners with you all wouldn't be any fun.'" Shinpachi replied with a smirk. Sumiko smiled.

"I wish I could've been there to see the look on Itou's face." She said.

"It was the same with you, Hajime-kun, right?" Okita said, glancing at Saito.

SLICE. SLICE.

Saito had cut the straw target he was practicing with in two places so swiftly, that it almost appeared as though both blows had been delivered simultaneously.

"Hai." Saitou said, sheathing his sword, as he turned around to face them.

—∞—

Later that day, as the sun was setting, Okita was on patrol with his squad and the two girls. "If the heads of the 2nd and 3rd divisions were entertained, why didn't he call for me, the head of the 1st?" He wondered out loud, still thinking about their conversation from earlier that afternoon.

'Isn't that because you'd kill him on sight if he did?' Sumiko thought, smiling wryly

"If he invited you, would you go with Itou-san?" Chizuru asked.

"Of course." Okita replied calmly.

"Huh? Okita-san!" Chizuru gasped, shocked.

"And maybe kill him." He added, glancing back at her with a smirk.

"I swear!" Chizuru said as she quickly hurried to catch up to them. "That doesn't sound like a joke!"

"That's because it wasn't…" Sumiko said, sweat-dropping, while Okita laughed. "Hm?" Sumiko said, pausing when she thought she sensed someone watching them.

"Koff! Koff!"

"!" Sumiko said as Chizuru gasped, and they rushed over to Okita as he covered his mouth and bent over when his latest coughing fit hit him.

Nagumo Kaoru smirked as he observed this from the shadows.

—∞—

Sumiko and Chizuru had been sleeping peacefully in their room that evening, when they were awoken by the sound of heavy footsteps on the porch outside their room. They sat up in their futons and turned to see a dark silhouette just on the other side of their door. Sumiko furrowed her brow. Something wasn't right. There was an eerie feeling, like on the night when San'nan had drank the Ochimizu…

"Who's there?" Chizuru asked nervously. Sumiko's eyes widened as the door slide open to reveal a white-haired man with glowing crimson eyes.

"Blood… blood!" He chanted to himself as he stared down at them with a crazed look in his eyes. "Give me your blood!" He cried as he stepped into the room.

"Look out!" Sumiko shouted as she moved to push Chizuru out the way when the bloodthirsty rasetsu reached down the draw his sword.

SLASH!

"Ah!" Chizuru cried out in alarm when the older girl threw herself at her just in time to push her back when the rasetsu attacked. She winced when she felt his blade cut into her arm as he swiped it at them, but she gasped in horror when she opened her eyes and saw that Sumiko had taken the brunt of the attack. "Sumiko-san!"

"Run, Chizuru!" Sumiko grunted in pain as she gripped the blade of the sword in her side with one hand to prevent the wound from deepening and clenched the other into a fist to punch the rasetsu in the face, sending the dangerous man stumbling backwards as he let go of his sword. "Nngh!" She groaned as she fell onto one knee, bracing herself.

"Sumiko-san!" Chizuru screamed as the rasetsu started laughing, high on the scent of their blood.

"Blood! Blood!" He laughed gleefully, staggering towards them again. 'Give me your blood!"

SLICE!

"Yaaah!" The rasetsu cried out in pain when he was suddenly attacked from behind and fell face first to the floor, revealing their savior to be none other than Hijikata.

"Hijikata-san!" Chizuru gasped.

"Come with me. Hurry!" He urged the girls.

"Ah, Hai!" Chizuru said, letting go of her bleeding arm to help Sumiko up.

"!" Both girls gasped in alarm when the rasetsu reached out and grabbed her ankle as they tried to get away.

"Blood! Blood!" The rasetsu chanted, grinning manically up at them as the deep wound on his back closed.

"Tch!" Sumiko winced, pulling the sword from her side while Chizuru screamed, about to use it to remove his hand, but Sano's spear pierced the rasetsu's wrist and pinned it to the floor, beating her to it.

"Gyaaah!" The rasetsu screamed in pain as he released her ankle.

"Chizuru! Sumiko! You okay!?" Heisuke shouted as he and the others arrived on the scene.

"H-Hai!" Chizuru replied nervously. "But Sumiko-san…!"

"I'll be all right…!" Sumiko said, gritting her teeth as she held her bleeding side and winced in pain. "Let's get out of here!"

"Blood!" The rasetsu cried as he picked himself up off the floor, determined to go after them. "Give me your blood!"

"Looks like he's in no condition to talk." Shinpachi said, noting the depraved look in the rasetsu's eyes. His bloodlust had completely taken over.

"!" Chizuru gasped when the rasetsu turned and focused his attention on her and Sumiko again.

"Give me your blood!" He roared, charging at them.

"Tch!" Hijikata furrowed his brow and glared sternly at the rasetsu as he stepped in front the girls to cut him down. While Hijikata attacked from the front, Sano struck from behind and stabbed the rasetsu through the heart with his spear, killing him. Sano swung his spear, sending the corpse crashing toward the doors to prevent it from collapsing on Hijikata and the girls. The limp body crashed into the doors, knocking them loose from their setting so that it was lying on top of them askance in the middle of the porch outside.

"Sumiko-san!" Chizuru cried when the older girl's knees buckled, and they almost fell to the floor together.

"S-Sorry, Chizuru… It looks like I'm loosing blood faster than I thought..." Sumiko said, breathing heavily, as she tried to stay focused while keeping a hand clamped to her side in a loosing attempt to apply enough pressure to stem the blood flowing from her open wound. Dark spots were starting to swim around in field of vision.

"Heisuke, get Yamazaki!" Hijikata ordered urgently upon realizing the severity of her wound.

"H-Hai!" Heisuke said, immediately running off to fetch the next skilled medic in the headquarters.

"What's he… even doing here?" Sumiko asked weakly as she stared at the rasetsu's corpse. Why did he come looking for blood in the main part of the compound? Was the medicine she had made to prevent this not good enough…?

"My lack of supervision is to blame." San'nan apologized grimly as he approached them.

"San'nan-kun. What's the meaning of this?" Kondo asked.

"I don't know what happened either." San'nan said as he stared down regretfully at the dead man.

"Miyagawa-san, are you all right?" San'nan asked, concerned, as he entered the room and knelt down beside the two girls, noticing right away the serious condition the older girl was in. "Miyagawa-san…?" He asked, reaching out to touch her when she didn't respond.

"Sumiko-san!" Chizuru gasped in alarm when she realized her friend was leaning on her because she had passed out.

"Oi, Sumiko!" Shinpachi yelled.

"All this blood…" San'nan said quietly, furrowing his brow, as he touched her wound, and his hand became soaked in Sumiko's blood.

TH-THUMP.

"!" San'nan gasped. His eyes widened when something inside him began to break under the combined weight of the scent of both girls' blood and the sensation of the warm crimson liquid on his hand.

"San'nan-san?" Chizuru asked, concerned when he started to tremble while staring at the palm of his blood-soaked hand.

"Dyaaaaah!" San'nan cried out as he began shaking violently while holding his head.

"San'nan-san!" Sano said as they all stared at him. Hijikata's eyes widened in realization.

"What's the matter?" Chizuru asked worriedly.

"Get back, Chizuru!" Hijikata shouted as he quickly grabbed both girls and pushed them out of harm's way as San'nan finally snapped completely.

"Aaaarghhh!" San'nan cried out in like a tormented soul as he reared back and his dark hair faded to white.

"San'nan-san!" Chizuru cried.

"Blood… I…" San'nan gasped, taking a step toward the three of them as he stared at the girls with glowing red eyes. "I want blood. Blood! Agh!" He groaned in pain as he grasped his throat.

"Dammit!" Shinpachi cursed as he watch their friend succumb to his bloodlust. "The smell of blood has gotten to San'nan-san, too?"

"Ah-haha." San'nan laughed as he stared down at his bloodstained hand. They all watched, horrified, as he licked it, savoring the taste of Sumiko's blood. "Your blood…" San'nan said, grinning wickedly as he reached out for the unconscious Sumiko in Hijikata's arms. "I want your blood!" Saito quickly dashed into the room to Back Hijikata up, guarding him, as he tried to shield Chizuru while carrying Sumiko. The four of them tried to evade San'nan by quickly moving to the side, but he simply turned and followed them, determined to get more of the blood he had just tasted.

"Guess we've got no choice, huh?" Shinpachi said regretfully as he drew his sword.

"Dammit!" Sano cursed as he readied his spear, and Saito prepared to draw his own blade. "We'll take him all at once." He said grimly.

"Wait!" Hijikata said when San'nan suddenly froze and started to tremble.

"Guh! Guhaaah!" San'nan yelled as he cradled his head and fell to his knees on the floor. "Nngh!" They watched with bated breath, stunned, as San'nan's white hair faded back to its original dark color, and as he raised his head again, they could see his eyes had returned to normal as well. They all stared at him in astonishment and relief to see that he had somehow managed to repress his bloodlust and return to normal, something that was thought to have been impossible.

"San'nan-san!" Chizuru exclaimed.

"Yukimura-kun. Just what did I…?" San'nan said, looking up at her before glancing around the room in confusion. "!" He gasped when his eyes landed on the body of the dead rasetsu. "I see." He said, furrowing his brow. "Like him, I…" But then, how did he manage to regain his senses…?

"Just what is all this racket!?" The voice of the person they least wanted to hear at the moment demanded fussily as they all turned to see Itou standing out on the porch, staring down at the dead rasetsu, while he raised his kimono sleeve to cover his mouth. "Someone explain it to me! Hah!" He gasped, startled when he looked into the room and saw the bleeding girls and San'nan. "S-San'nan-san! Y-You should be d-dead! Why…!?" He exclaimed shakily, looking as though he had seen a ghost.

"Come, calm yourself, Itou-san." Kondo said, stepping forward to handle the situation. "We'll talk tomorrow. It's already late." He said gently, guiding the panicking man back to his room.

"H-How could I possibly be calm!?" Itou exclaimed incredulously as he allowed himself to be herded away from the bizarre scene. "You need to explain this to me!"

"Looks like we're busted. Should I kill him?" Okita asked calmly, glancing at Hijikata.

Hijikata furrowed his brow but didn't reply. What was taking Yamazaki and Heisuke so long?

"Use my room for tonight." He told Chizuru. "We'll bring Sumiko-san there once she's received treatment and have Yamazaki look at your wound."

"I'm all right." Chizuru said, avoiding his gaze, as she held a hand over the cut on her arm.

"There's no way you're all right!" Hijikata said, concerned. The cut on her arm may not be as grave as Sumiko's wound, but it still looked painful and deep. "Sumiko-san may not be in any condition to treat you herself, but Yamazaki-san is our resident medic—"

"I'm fine! I can treat my own wounds." Chizuru insisted, starting to panic. "Please have Yamazaki-san focus on taking care of Sumiko-san." She said quickly, bowing, before hurrying off to the privacy of Hijikata's room so they wouldn't see how abnormally fast her own wound was healing. She bit her lip, saying a silent prayer for Sumiko as she entrusted Yamazaki with her friend's wellbeing.