"Mr. Yoshimura said it'd be better if I kept being a one eyed ghoul a secret." Kaneki replied, a bit unnerved by Eto's tone.
"Kaneki, what did we say about Father?" Eto continued in that same sweet tone as she peeled the eyepatch off of Kaneki's eye, revealing his kakugan.
Eto soothingly stroke Kenki's cheek as he sighed. It's been five years, but she still had an effect on him. He couldn't help but feel guilty about hiding his "gift", as she puts it.
"Yoshimura is soft and doesn't know what he's talking about?" Kaneki guessed as he rested his face against her hand affectionately.
"Exactly. He's only scared of what we're capable of. Father is rotting your mind with ridiculous notions of getting along with humans. We don't befriend food. When's the last time we've had a proper hunt together? That should help clear your head of this nonsense he's filling you with." She suggested with an angelic smile.
Kaneki sighed and pulled her hand away from his cheek, looking at her sternly. "No, Eto. I've made friends here in Anteiku. If I were to hunt here in the 20th Ward. then it'd be like betraying my family."
Eto scowled and moved away from Kaneki, tossing his eyepatch to him like it's a piece of trash. "Father has made you soft, Ken-Ken. I plan to fix that." She smiled again, moving to place a hand on his cheek again, but was stopped by Kaneki's own. Eto giggled and simply overpowered his strength effortlessly, successfully cupping his cheek in her hand, much to Kaneki's surprise. "I can make you strong, Kaneki. Right now, staying here will only waste your potential as a one eyed ghoul. Come with me, to Aogiri Tree, and you'll never be weak again." Eto kept her wide smile as she continued stroking Kaneki's cheek.
"I said no." He repeated sternly, causing Eto to sigh to herself in disappointment.
"I'm not giving up on you, Ken-Ken. We're partners after all, and there's nothing we can't achieve if we work together. One day, you will come to me and we will accomplish great things together. It might not be today, it might not be a month from now, but you will come to me." Eto giggled and lead over to the older teen, kissing him on the cheek and walking away.
"I'll be waiting...Ken." The green haired half ghoul flashed Kaneki a brilliant smile before walking out of the coffee shop.
Kaneki was left speechless at the behavior of his long time childhood friend. Sighing and regaining his composure, he put the eyepatch back on his eye and went upstairs to go to his room.
There was a lot to think about. Eto's return, the fact that she's really Sen Takatsuki, and her offer.
He wasn't going to accept. Naturally.
Even if it is Eto, he made a family here in Anteiki thanks to Kuzen Yoshimura. His daughter might hate her own father, but Kaneki respected Yoshimura and owed him a great debt for raising him to being the person he is today.
Kaneki was a pacifist now, like many of the ghouls here in Anteiku. He didn't enjoy fighting, and he was far from Yomo's level of skill.
Yet if he were to go with Eto to Aogiri Tree, he'd be turning his back on the family he's made and shatter the peace they had made during his 12 years here.
That was something he couldn't live with.
Eto promised strength, but at what price?
A price that was way too high.
Even for his dear friend.
xxx
Ken Kaneki couldn't sleep.
You should get something to eat...
The reunion with his childhood friend left him swimming in his thoughts, so he resorted to a late night stroll to clear his head.
Not wanting to disturb the other residents of Anteiku, Kaneki did his best attempt at stealth...
Only for his heart to nearly jump out from his chest as Touka's door opened as he comes face to face with the scowling purple haired teen in her nightgown.
"You make too much noise." Touka grumbled, rubbing her eyes. "So, what the hell are you doing up this late?" She yawned and grabbed Kaneki by the collar, yanking him into her room, closing the door behind him.
Kaneki could only make a small yelp at Touka's sudden actions, causing him to stumble.
This always happened when Touka wanted to talk with Kaneki privately and get things off her chest.
The two were actually really close friends, despite how abrasive Touka appears around Kaneki. Not to mention that Kaneki was the only one in Anteiku even close to Touka's age.
"I was going to go for a walk. The events today kinda made things hard for me to sleep." Kaneki replied, rubbing his head
"Your "friend" back there gives off a real dangerous vibe. Almost like a real crazy power hungry vibe." Touka glared at the one eyed ghoul, who looked away sheepishly.
"I can guess you heard everything?" Kaneki asked, refusing to meet her eyes.
"Not everything, but I saw enough to know that this Eto chick is bad news, and that she's got her claws deep in you." Touka warned, placing a hand on his shoulder. Even after a first encounter, Touka could tell how emotionally manipulative Kaneki's friend was.
"I refused her offer to join her. I'm not getting wrapped up with her again, and I'm done hurting people." Kaneki replied, still not meeting her eyes.
Touka sighed and flicked the black haired teen's forehead, causing him to yelp in surprise. "Dumbass, we're ghouls. We gotta fight to survive, and I sure as hell ain't going to let you get your ass killed because of some ideal against fighting." She sighed and looked out into the night sky through her window. "Still, if Eto shows her face around here, I'll kick her ass for trying to make you lose your way." Touka chuckled and playfully punched Kaneki's shoulder.
"It's fine, Touka. It really is. Now I'm going to take a walk and get some fresh air. You also should get some sleep, since you got school in the morning." Kaneki waved her off and headed to the door. "Night, Touka."
"Night dumbass." Touka snorted with a hidden smirk as Kaneki left her room.
The purple haired girl tried her damnest to hide her creeping blush after he left before returning to bed.
xxx
Aren't you hungry? You really should find something to eat.
Kaneki shoved the small thought deep in the back of his mind as he wandered the 20th Ward.
The sweet iron smell of blood filled Kaneki's nose as he passed an alleyway and to his horror, he found himself salivating. A ghoul has killed in the shadowy alleyway, and he was right there.
Would you look at that, fresh meat ripe for the taking.
The thoughts invaded his mind again, persistent and yearning. Like a voice whispering into his ear, tempting him to kill again, to hunt again. Like he did so long ago.
But he wasn't that person anymore. There were rules in the 20th ward to prevent the watchful eye of the CCG to cast it's gaze over the resident ghouls of Anteiku and the others here.
Yet the voice felt familiar, like an old friend.
Shaking his head, Kaneki went down the alleyway to investigate. Someone needed to be aware of the rules here.
The voracious sounds of flesh ripping and eager chewing and swallowing were heard as Kaneki got closer. The scent of blood became more and more intoxicating as he approached.
Whoever was here had did more than just kill, they practically slaughtered.
Kaneki donned his mask, the one he kept after all these years, with the eyepatch restitched on to conceal his normal eye.
"There's a rule against hunting here in the 20th ward." Kaneki spoke into the darkness and the eating noises suddenly stopped.
The one eyed ghoul staggered back in shock at what he saw. Before him, was a pile of human corpses, all young men, in various pieces. Sitting on top of the pile was a familiar face.
Mired in blood and viscera, a slender pale hand rose to her mouth and licked up the blood from her fingers with a hungry grin.
"You smell delicious, my dear." She simply said, crimsion eyes shining in the moonlight.
Sitting on the pile of corpses was the purple haired girl he recently met in the cafe, the one who liked Sen Takatsuki.
Rize Kamishiro...