Consider this an intermission chapter that I wrote, due to me wanting to try tossing in 'slice of life' moments in between serious arcs.

The next chapter will continue where Part 2 left off. Author's notes will be at the bottom, please enjoy!


While Kaneki was crawling into the depths of the dark and treacherous underground jungle inferno that was Vault 973, Haise was enjoying a pleasant fall afternoon at one of the many farms within the 21st Ward. Accompanied by Rize, who had on a pair of denim overalls and a pumpkin-pattern black blouse, Haise wore a red and black plaid flannel shirt and a pair of denim jeans with leather cowboy boots, as the two took a stroll down the pumpkin patch.

Dragging a slightly rusted green cart behind him, Haise had a grin across his face and a long piece of hay between his molars, as he followed Rize, who was reliving the childhood that neither of them had. Carefully trotting over the green vines and occasional small and white gourd, Rize was kneeling down with her straw hat on top of her head of purple hair, as she reached down to gently wrap her hands around the bulky orange pumpkin that caught her attention.

Keeping one eye closed, Rize picked up the orange gourd and eyed its surfaces carefully— looking for any imperfections that would otherwise sway her decision of wanting to purchase it. With only a few knicks and scars here and there, the only thing that was left for the young ghoul to do was give it a good ol' knock with her knuckles, before putting her head against its orange exterior to listen for any sort of parasites crawling around inside of it.

Once Rize was satisfied with the results of her tests, she stood up from the pumpkin patch and turned around with her arms extended outward to show Haise her prized find. "I think I'm going to get this one too! What do you think, Haise? Is it a good one?"

Holding onto his chin with his thumb and finger extended outward like a gun, Haise leaned in and playfully inspected the pumpkin that Rize was so excited to show him. "Hermmm… Yep… It's just like I thought… That's definitely a pumpkin," Haise said playfully, and smiled mischievous as Rize shot him an unimpressed frown.

"Obviously... Now, tell me what you think of it— for real this time," Rize insisted with a slightly annoyed tone— making it clear to the half-ghoul that she wasn't in the mood for his jokes.

"Oh, alright... That's cool too, I guess," Haise laughed uneasily, while trying to make a smooth recovery as he leaned in again to show Rize that he was actually looking this time. "Yeah, you chose a good pumpkin… But that only begs the question: Are you planning on carving it, or making a pie out of it?" Haise asked with his friendly and comfortable demeanor making its way back to his face.

"Neither. I'll be painting over it," Rize replied back with a confident and slightly condescending look in her purple eyes, as she strutted her hips while making her way to the green cart to place her prized pumpkin down for Haise to carry around. "Carving is too messy, I'd much prefer practicing my skill at the brush rather than ruining perfectly good newspapers… Or whatever else I could use for scrap paper."

"True, true," Haise nodded slowly with an understanding look in his red and grey eyes, as he once again began walking behind Rize, who was leading him down the patch once again. Walking through the fields of colorful pumpkins, long and bright green vines, and towering sunflowers that grew taller than what Haise thought possible, the two made their way to over the light-wood arched bridge that allowed them to cross over the gentle flowing river separating the patch from the cozy cabin just waiting for them over the flowing water.

Over the sounds of the gentle creek, the sounds of the occasional crow cawing from the many surrounding evergreen trees that surround the vicinity of 'Autumn Farms', Haise and Rize both enjoyed the grey clouds of the overcast skies above while they made their way up the path toward the triangular-shaped cabin, that sat above a patio deck. Making their way towards the wide stairs up from the grassy path and past the roaring campfire where other visitors were enjoying themselves with pumpkin-spiced coffee keeping their fingers and lips warm, Haise parked their green cart filled with flowers and pumpkins with the others beside the base of the patio, before climbing the mahogany steps up toward the front porch of the farm's cozy coffee shop.

Walking past a wooden bench next to a large haystack with a cornucopia filled with tiny pumpkins on top of the golden stack of dried feed, Kaneki held open the glass door for Rize— the bell inside chimed gently as the two of them made their way into the fall-themed coffee shop. Vintage autumn music from 1940's playing gently through the overhead speakers of the warm and cozy coffee shop, Haise and Rize got in line to wait their turn to order.

Wrapping herself around Haise's left arm while leaning her head against his shoulder, Rize stared up at the large black chalkboard menu hung above the ordering counter, and discussed with her lover about what he wanted to try from the hipster-like establishment— knowing fully well that he had more options to choose from than just what she could order from the 'ghoul-friendly' menu.

"I'm thinking about bringing out my 'inner white girl' and getting myself a pumpkin-spice frappe with extra whip cream and caramel sauce on top…" Haise said half-jokingly, while allowing his eyes to wander off to the pastries menu to see what else he could get. "What about you, Rize? I know that's there not a 'latte' options for you, but that doesn't 'bean' we can't get creative…!~"

Although Rize wasn't exactly a fan of puns, she knew how important they were for Haise and how they were an extension of him being his true self around her. Smiling, Rize nestled her cheek against Haise's bicep and laughed softly at him, and giggled from seeing him being cute, more so than actually finding his puns the least bit entertaining. "You're cute when you're dorky, do you know that, Haise?"

"So I've been told," Haise replied back playfully with a silly grin on his face, before leaning down to give Rize a small peck on her soft and luscious lips. "But in all seriousness… What are you actually gonna order, baby girl? I mean… You ARE going to get something, right? It wouldn't really feel right if I were to get something, and then… Just drink it in front of you, while you awkwardly just stand there and watch me be a fat ass, haha…"

"Oh hush, now— you're not even fat, Haise," Rize snorted as she rolled her eyes at her half-ghoul's attempt at self deprecation for the sake of making her chuckle— which admittedly actually ended up making her giggle more so than any pun he had told thus far. "But, ummm… As far as ordering goes? Uhh… I don't know, what do you think?"

Licking his lips while squinting at all the menu options listed on the menu, Haise and Rize both moved up in line as he tried making his mind up about what to order. "Let's see, let's see…" Haise muttered to himself, before quietly smacking his lips while being deep in thought. "Hey, look! They got some 'pumpkin-spice' flavored creamer that you could get with your coffee! I haven't heard of that flavor being made for ghouls yet, sooo… Why not get a large coffee with, hermm... Ummm…. Like, five pumps of creamer, and call it a day?"

Pursing her lips while squinting her eyebrows, Rize continued to rest her head against Haise's shoulder while contemplating the possibility of getting his recommended beverage. "Uhh… I don't know about getting creamer… It sort of taints perfectly good coffee, wouldn't you say?" Rize asked, before suddenly remembering the sugary iced drink that Haise was planning on ordering. "Or, uhh… I suppose you WOULDN'T actually agree with that…"

Letting out a quiet chortle under his breath, Haise turned his head to Rize and was planning on giving the top of her head a kiss, but was instantly whacked with the brim of her straw hat— accidentally knocking it over onto the floor behind them. "Oop, sorry about that— I'll get it," Haise apologized quickly, and waited for Rize to let go of his arm before turning around to bend over. Grabbing the hat on the floor, Haise stood up with his back turned toward the counter, and found himself meeting the slightly nervous look of a young man who seemed like he wanted to say something, but wasn't sure if he could bring himself to do so.

"… Howdy there," Haise finally spoke up, after realizing that the young man with brown parted bangs over his forehead wasn't going to say anything.

Seeming shocked that Haise had greeted him, the young man swallowed back the lump in his throat before bowing down at the waist to show respect to the half-ghoul. "Ah! Ah, uhh… H-Hello! It's an honor to meet you, Sasaki!" The young man greeted nervously, while subtly gazing up and wondering why Haise wasn't returning the bow— unaware that formalities were never something reapers grew to learn. Thinking that he was interrupting Haise's time with Rize, the young man began to assume that the reason behind Haise not bowing back to him was because he really was intruding on their time together.

But before the young man could apologize for something that wasn't at all his fault, Haise awkwardly reached over and gently tapped his shoulder. "You can, uh… Y-You can get up now, buddy— there's no need for all that," Haise said casually with a friendly smirk on his face, and watched as the slightly bothered young man stood back up with a perplexed look in his eyes.

"I… I apologize, it's just that, uhh… I assumed that you were familiar with traditional Japanese customs… Because, you loo—… N-Nevermind," the young man awkwardly trailed off, after almost profiling Haise for the way that he looked. "I'm really sorry, I-I usually don't stumble this much over my words…"

Leaning into Haise's ear while staring dominantly at the nervous young man, Rize whispered, "Could have fooled me…!"

Turning his head to give Rize a playful look, Haise shook his head at her before gently putting her hat back on. "Behave," Haise scolded her without being too serious, before turning back around to give his attention to the young man, who clearly heard Rize's snide remark. "Well, how about we do a quick introduction? You said my name, so you probably know me already… What about you? What's your name?"

Adjusting the blue denim jacket he was wearing to look more presentable, the young man stood at attention the way a peacekeeper would do before speaking. "M-My name is Seidou Takizawa! I'm a Rank-2 peacekeeper, part of Division II, and enlisted in S3 Squad! It's an honor to finally meet you, Sasaki!"

"So you've said, Takizawa, haha…" Haise chuckled softly, while finding the peacekeeper's mannerisms and the way he was proud to be in the TSC to be endearing. "It was really nice to meet you too, friend! Look me up by my agency if you want a new job, or if you're looking for anything in particular— I'll do my best to help out a fellow peacekeeper!"

Although she appreciated Haise being a sweet and good man, Rize still felt the need to point something out to him. "But Haise, you're not even a peacekeeper anymore…"

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, Rize," Haise said with a mischievous grin on his face, "I'll always be a peacekeeper, because I love peace. And I'll always fight to obtain peace, no matter how many men, women, and children I have to kill to get it~!" Haise said proudly in a joking manner, which went over the heads of most of the other patrons who turned to look at him with uneasy stares. Realizing that only Rize was the only one who got the joke, Haise awkwardly coughed into his hand to clear his throat, before announcing to everyone, "T-That was just a joke, people! I, uhh… I don't actually kill— well, no actually, I usually do often end up in positions where I have to take the lives of others… B-But, like… Only the bad guys, I swear! I'm usually the hero in those scenarios!"

"Pffftt….! Usually!?" Rize asked with an amused look on her face, as she giggled at how much of a clown Haise was making himself look in front of a coffee house full of offended people.

"Y-You know guys know what I mean…!" Haise muttered with a flustered look on his face, before once again turning his attention back to Takizawa, who stared at him with a flabbergasted expression on his face— his perception of Haise possibly being anything like Arima had instantly shattered. "You get me, right Takizawa? You know what it's like out there in the wasteland…"

"I-… Y-Yes, yes, I-I do," Takizawa replied back with a stuttering voice, as he was still trying to comprehend how such a carefree and goofy guy, who was the same age as him, could possibly be the same cold and calculating 'Black Reaper' that rumors within TSC had painted him to be. "Sasaki, uhhh… M-May I actually ask you something personal? I-It's nothing serious, I was just wondering if you would be interested in making an appearance at an office party that I'm planning."

"An office party, huh? Well, uh… I sure do love parties…" Haise said with an intrigued look in his mismatched eyes, while Rize was appearing bored of the conversation as she whipped her phone out of her overall pocket to mess around on it. "It's not a Halloween one, is it? I sort of already have obligations to attend one at the end of the month… Oh, and I've got her birthday coming up in two days, so that won't work out either," Haise said, before pointing a thumb to the ghoul beside him, who was looking up memes online while the two of them talked.

Shaking his head politely, while at the same time feeling more relaxed around Haise, now that he knew he wasn't as serious and intimidating as many made him seem like, Takizawa replied, "It is actually a Halloween-themed office party, but I'm hosting it at the Main Office, on the Saturday before the actual holiday— that way, it doesn't get in the way of those who already have prior obligations! Such as yourself, Sasaki."

"Well then, I don't think I have anything scheduled for that day, sooooo…" Haise muttered to himself, before pulling out his cellphone to bring up his calendar app. Repeatedly nibbling on his bottom lip while scrolling over the days Mutuski had noted for him, Haise made his way to the Saturday before Halloween, and smiled. "Yeah, okay! Sure, I can make it… What time is your party?"

"It's going to be at eight o'clock at night, at the Main Office in the first ward…" Takizawa said with a cheesy grin on his face, before nervously pulling out his own phone. "With your… Permission, Sasaki, might I have your phone number, please? That way, I can message you if anything changes…"

Completely unopposed to giving his cell phone number out, Haise exchanged contact information with Takizawa, before wishing him a good rest of the day. Turning around with Rize putting her phone away to wrap herself around his arm again, Haise felt her cheek pressing up against his shoulder once more as the two of them finally reached the counter to give the cashier their order.

Once they placed their order down, it wasn't long until their name was called. Thanking the barista for her hard work, Haise gave the blond woman a tip, which she gratefully took from him— something that Rize wasn't very fond of, but she didn't want to ruin the moment, so she kept her jealousy to herself. Making their way outside of the cozy and comfortably-lit coffee shop interior, Haise and Rize made their way down the patio staircase and took their seat at the roaring campfire— cuddling together and sipping their beverages, while sitting down on top of a log beneath the cold autumn skies above.


And there we have it, Seidou Takizawa was introduced in this chapter, before his ghoul transformation. He and Amon will be tortured and forced to become one-eyed ghouls later, after they try to fight Tarata of course.

And let me just get the reviews real quick.

Yeah, the Overseer really screwed the pooch in Vault 937, lol.

I remember everyone hating 'The Happening' lol. Especially that scene where they're all running away from the scary air. Reminds me of 'Bird Cage', kinda. The spores shouldn't be infectious because of what the vault scientist said, at least not lethal, but they'll definitely give them all hallucinations, that's for sure lol. It'll be revealed that the Black Hibiscus was made from the corpse of a White Zetsu from thousands of years ago, hence why the hallucinations give them a connection to 'The Moon'. Kaneki's wearing a mask, so he's good for now, Mizu would probably lock herself up to protect herself from her transformed Blades, and had been fighting Kaguya's attempt of turning her.

Kaneki will probably either destroy the vault by causing a gas leak and igniting it, to kill all the flowers, or he'll want to keep it to farm Stimpaks. It's a hard decision, but Miza will definitely be pro-burn everything. If anything, Kaneki will probably have Yūgao use a sealing tag to capture samples of Red Maui flowers and Bleeding Tarot Roots to grow at a new vault, or in Saitama, before agreeing to destroy everything in Vault 937. Of course, not after looting it and using Yūgao again to compress all of his treasures into scrolls.

And thank you for appreciating the horror aspect of this arc lol. And yes, Kakashi will definitely be more trusting of Kaneki once Yūgao tells him how he saved her, which then will make Kushina more trusting of GOAT. Although, after this, Kaneki will definitely need to implement more training and uniforms for his soldiers, so that they're utilizing the strengths and knowledge of both Tokyo and Konohagakure to best perform. Hence, he'll be looking for instructors.

Kaneki might be able to learn Shadow Clone Jutsu later, but for sure he'll pick up some ninjutsu tricks later on, along with Haise and Yusa, who technically have the same black chakra in their bodies. But that won't be until later on I think. Kaneki producing clones to train and have sex would definitely be something though, I'll say that lol.

And Hinata having access to multiple Narutos does seem like it would make her a very happy woman, that's for sure lol. And yeah, I'll definitely use Elden Ring for inspiration for more monsters, and yeah I'll definitely probably implement Malenia Blade of Miquella later on, if it fits well. I could use more villains, so adding her as a member of Akatsuki would be awesome. Like, that Giant Serpent idea definitely seems like a good idea.

Also, I'm pretty sure shoving an RC sac into someone's open abdomen would probably just kill them lol. Hence why knowing how to do the surgery along with having the equipment and knowledge to perform it would be vital.

Okay, that does it for now. Thank you for reading, and hope you have a damn good day!