Past is Prologue

by Knowledgeseeker66

Everyone has a past. The Kannagi siblings, Azumi and Yu, are no exceptions to this rule. They along with their family and fellow survivors have survived and endured in a world overrun by the creatures known as Aragami. The past has shaped them into who they are, and it is up to them to decide their futures.

9. One Last Supply Run - Part I

Author Notes: It is time for the Anniversary update for Past is Prologue. It is a shame that there was a year gap between the release of the previous chapter and this one. I will make it a goal of mine to ensure the gaps between the release of this chapter and the following one have a significantly shorter span. Personally, I understand the idea of becoming invested in a story and being disappointed by a lack of updates. I will do my best to rectify that in 2020.

Anyway, I'm glad that I was able to portray the story that I had planned to so far. It was one thing depicting original characters to exist in the God Eater world outside of Fenrir. It was another to have them interact with the canon characters. I did my best to take inspiration from the God Eater anime to depict the situation. While the Anime adaptation has its flaws, it has excellent points as well. One of them depicting how life outside Fenrir is not one anyone should ever desire.

I hope you are all doing well in the wake of the WuFlu. As long as we stay vigilant and do our best, we will all make it through this. This will eventually become a memory in our rearview mirror.

On another note, I also hope everyone else had a good Father's Day earlier this month. I especially hope yours went far better than mine did in regards to my own father injured himself last year and then sadly passed away before the end of 2019. Make sure if you have any outstanding issues with someone do your best to resolve them. Do be sure to cherish the good moments you all have.

Enjoy reading the chapter and please leave a review. Your feedback is always appreciated.

/

Past is Prologue

Chapter Nine: One Last Supply Run – Part I

/

We are near the end

There are a couple of things left

Let's take care of them

/

Temporary Camp – Night

It was the dead of night. Nearly everyone in the camp, except for the lookouts, were attempting to go to sleep. Some were more successful than others. Understandably, there were a few people that were having difficulty getting passed what had transpired earlier that day. After months of traveling with a single goal in mind, they had been denied entry to Fenrir, the only safe haven they were aware of. Their journey was forced to continue, but they had no destination in mind with no goal to achieve other than to stay out of the Aragami's way.

Only Azumi, Yu, and their father, Haru, had tested positive to become God Eaters and allowed entrance to the safe haven. However, even though Azumi had been fortunate to be granted entry into Fenrir, she was having difficulty falling asleep that night. She convinced her brother Yu to go to sleep while she would help with the lookouts. In the end, all Azumi could do was walk around the and look upon the inhabitants of their temporary campsite.

As Azumi walked around, her head looked over to several survivors attempting to sleep. She would then look to the other side to see some other survivors talking to each other. She didn't try listening in on the conversation, but she was pretty sure she heard something along the lines of assuring each other they would make it through this. She would also heard some of them add the word 'somehow'. Azumi knew that those people would be a lot more convincing than she would, so she kept her mouth shut. If anything, she'd only make it worse.

When Azumi was walking, she heard a clanging sound. It was a sound she had grown used to over the years, but the sound attracted her all the same as she walked to it instinctively. She was not the least bit surprised by the source. It was none other than their mechanic and weapon maker, Minato.

As usual, Minato had found himself a secluded area to set up shop. He would be able to work well into the night without disturbing the other survivors. The only reason Azumi heard him was due to her walking nearby. When she looked in, she could see Minato had been busy.

Presently, Minato was working on a spear. His tools, including a hammer, were on the workbench, and he was attempting to put the final touches to the spear by polishing it. Azumi then looked over to see several weapons next to Minato piled on top of each other. The weapon Minato was putting the finishing touches on was now added to it. There was another loud clanging sound after Minato dropped the spear.

As soon as Minato was finished with that weapon, Azumi heard him sigh as he slumped down. His elbows leaned on the table, and he needed his hands to keep his head supported. It looked like he might have reached his limit for the night, but it didn't seem like he was ready to go to sleep either.

It didn't seem like Minato was aware that Azumi had been observing him for the past few minutes. Azumi considered walking away and leaving him alone, but she decided that there was something she needed to speak to him about. She decided that she might as well speak with him now before it was too late.

Azumi took a breath and spoke up, "Hey, Minato."

Minato's eyes widened and his body briefly stiffened. However, he recognized the voice as he readjusted and looked over his shoulder. He softly replied, "Hey, Azumi."

Azumi marveled at Minato's work as she commented, "Still busy as ever as I see."

"Gotta do something." Minato tilted his neck until there was an audible crack as he continued to speak, "Might as well try to keep my mind off of things."

"Right …" Azumi nodded.

"I'm almost surprised you're still here." Minato remarked.

"Trust me." Azumi assured, "When we leave, we will tell you."

Minato didn't seem assured as he crossed his arms, "I would hope so. I'd hate to think you'd leave me out."

"Um … Minato …" Azumi hesitantly replied, "There aren't any hard feelings about …"

"No." Minato stood up, "I'm not happy about this whole situation." Azumi saw Minato's fingers curl up into a fist which caused her to take a step back. "It really doesn't make sense for them to reject all of us just because we can't become God Eaters." He laid his closed fists on the table. "There has to be more than just God Eaters working there, right?"

"Um … I …" Even though Azumi knew there was an obvious answer, she wasn't sure how to go about giving a response.

"Forget it …" Minato's fingers then became limp before bringing his hand up and running his fingers through his hair. "This has nothing to do with you. You didn't make the rules, and you didn't create the test. I get that. I'm just …" Minato softly admitted, "… pissed."

As if his legs gave out, Minato then plopped back onto his seat. He was shaking his head as he took a heavy breath. He looked as if he could just go to sleep right there.

"Minato …" Azumi replied, "I know what we're doing is kind of a dick move, but I wanted to let you know myself. I didn't want you to find out we took one of the kids and just left you behind. I thought it'd be better this way. Was I wrong?"

"Nah." Minato shrugged it off, "I get it. There are a bunch of little kids that aren't gonna be as lucky as Yu was. Taking one of them would probably be the best idea for more than one reason."

"Yeah …" Azumi crossed her arms as she concurred, "One less mouth to feed. One less kid to go running off. Someone safe behind secure walls. Fenrir thinks they might have someone useful. Everyone wins." Azumi added, "Even the parents can be assured their son or daughter is safely secured."

Minato remained sitting as he asked, "How pissed off do you think Fenrir will be if they find out whatever kid you bring with you isn't gonna be useful?"

"Whoever we take with us will be useful. Someday." Azumi insisted, "We'll make sure the little squirt is useful to Fenrir one way or another. Like you said, there has to be other people there besides God Eaters. Personally, I think they are really stupid and short sighted for not allowing you to be part of Fenrir's workforce." Azumi pointed out, "I mean you can make weapons and fix vehicles. Seems pretty stupid they wouldn't even bother asking you if you could do something else."

"Right …" Minato shook his head again, "I thought they might still let us in if we showed them we had something to offer."

"Yeah." Azumi stated, "Anyway, most of these kids are a lot younger than Yu. They don't need to be useful yet. They can just enjoy a nice childhood in a safe place. We can worry about them being useful some other time. Don't you think so?"

"I see …" Minato leaned back as he admitted, "I honestly didn't think about that. Sometimes I just forget about life before the Aragami."

"Me to, but here's hoping they can even enjoy it." Azumi stated, "I still remember when I first saw the Aragami when I was their age."

"If they can be at peace, I'm sure they will." Minato assured her.

"Yeah." Azumi then stated, "Anyway, Yu and I are gonna do a supply run. It might be our last one for the group before we do this. We're gonna leave before we're too far away from Fenrir."

"Okay …" Minato stated.

"Another thing …" Azumi stated, "We are gonna try to get my Mom to come with us."

"You probably should." Minato leaned back as he remarked, "It'll probably be easy on all of us if she's in Fenrir, but would they let her in? Your father, brother, and you were the ones that tested positive for that God Eater test thing. Not her. You think they'll let her in?"

"They said family members." Azumi reminded him, "That's what we're gonna go with."

"Well good luck with that." Minato then asked, "Need any weapons for your supply run?"

"Well …" Azumi pulled out her knife as she remarked, "My knife has gotten a little dull. The same for Yu. Mind doing some maintenance?"

"Sure, but you should take these." Minato pulled two fresh knives from the pile as he told her, "It'll take a little time to make those knives any good, but they'll be ready before you head over to Fenrir. In the meantime, you might as well try out these new ones."

"Thanks." Azumi handed over her old knife and took the new ones, "I'll stop by and drop off Yu's later. You might as well get some sleep."

"Yeah …" Minato looked away as he agreed, "Probably …"

"I'll see you tomorrow." Azumi turned around and walked away.

After Azumi made her exit, Minato placed the knife down on the table. He stood up and was about to turn in for the night. It was then something caused his ears to perk. He turned around and no one was there. He called out, "Azumi? Are you still there?"

There was no response. Instead, he saw something was on the ground. It was a can from his personal supply. He sighed as he said in exasperation, "Good Grief. You can be a little too clumsy sometimes, Azumi."

Minato then turned in for the night without incident. He was able to sleep like a log.

/

Prior to leaving for the supply run in the morning, Azumi made it a point to stop by her father's tent. There was no one else there besides them, so they were able to speak freely. As usual, Azumi didn't beat around the bush, and she went straight to the point. Haru kept his mouth shut until his daughter was finished speaking her piece.

At the end, Haru could only sigh, "Too be honest, I was hoping you would say that. It saved me the trouble of needing to ask you myself."

"So you'd be fine letting mom go and staying outside of Fenrir?" Azumi inquired.

"Absolutely." Haru stated, "It'll be a lot easier knowing you're all safe behind those walls."

"I figured you wouldn't have a problem with it, but just had to be sure." Azumi then stated, "Anyway, Yu and I are gonna go on one last supply run for the group. Thanks to the God Eaters, there are still a decent number of buildings intact, so I'm sure we'll find a few useful things for you guys. Then, we'll be heading back to Fenrir tomorrow or the day after."

"Hmph." Haru shrugged as he remarked, "I'll be sure to set up a goodbye party."

"Yeah." Azumi sarcastically replied, "I'm sure everyone would be happy to be reminded they didn't make the cut."

"Heh." Haru leaned back on the table as he replied, "Learn to take a joke."

"Yeah, yeah." Azumi dismissively replied as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Have you decided on who you will be taking as your 'cousin'?" Haru asked.

"Not yet." Azumi tilted her head which caused an audible crack to be heard. When she moved her head again, another crack could be heard as she requested, "I was kinda hoping for some ideas on that from you."

"Hmm …." Haru considered it for a moment before suggesting, "I could find out who would benefit the most for having their child …" Haru shook his head, "No, that's not the right way to put it."

"Just go with who might be more willing to go along with it." Azumi suggested.

"Right." Haru replied, "I might have an idea or two."

"Okay …" Azumi then stated, "Anyway, if you need us, we'll be heading to those buildings just outside the camp. I'm sure you noticed them. They look like they might've been a warehouse of something, so we might find something there."

"Fine. Just be careful." Haru warned.

"Aren't we always?" Azumi then turned and left, "See ya later."

As Azumi was moving through the exit, Haru softly replied, "Later …"

Once Azumi had passed through the exit, Haru was left alone. He remained sitting by his table. His head tilted downward. His posture diminished as he bent over and let out a breath. There was nothing.

A few moments passed and his ears perked at the sound of someone else entering his tent. When he looked up, he saw it wasn't someone he was particularly interested in giving the red carpet treatment. The uninvited guest was Kouta.

Haru didn't waste any time before sharply demanding, "What do you want, Kouta?"

Kouta merely replied, "I know I'm not exactly the guy you'd want to see right now, but there's something I wanted to say. If you'd just give me a chance …"

"Fine. Out with it." Haru was leaning on the table as he stated, "I'm busy."

"Actually, it was something I needed help with, and I believe you're the only person who can help set things right." Kouta added, "It's about your daughter."

"You have my attention," Haru repeated his demand, "Out with it."

"It's an apology." Kouta clarified, "I owe one to your daughter."

Haru raised an eyebrow, "That's a sudden change of heart. What gives?"

"Well …" Kouta replied, "I thought about what happened and what you said. It got me thinking. It got me thinking a lot. I was … You know … Out of line."

"…" Haru remained silent as he leaned back.

"I know I haven't been the most pleasant person to deal with." Kouta stated, "I was really pushing it sometimes, but I want to make things right. Can you help me do that? I would like to speak with your daughter personally as soon as possible. I think it would be best if we speak sooner rather than later. I would like us to bury the hatchet and put our differences aside. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"…" Haru stood up and leaned on the table as he replied, "I can help you talk to her. Whether she gives you the time of day will be up to her. Do you understand?"

"A chance. That's good." Kouta sounded agreeable as he stated, "That's all I wanted."

"Fine." Haru reluctantly stated, "I'll take you to her. She told me where she was planning on going for a supply run, so you won't have to worry about anyone else listening in."

"Sound perfect." Kouta smiled as he said, "I really appreciate this."

/

Equipped with their backpacks and weapons the sibling duo of Azumi and Yu made their way toward the warehouse as quietly as possible. Azumi took the lead as she walked straight ahead. Yu on the other hand walked behind her and acted as a lookout. He would scan other parts of the surrounding area as well. They had two sets of eyes, and there was no reason for them to remain focused on what was in front of them.

By the time they arrived at the warehouse, they were certain they were not being followed. They found an unblocked door they could enter. Azumi leaned against the wall to the right of the door, and Yu leaned against wall to the left.

Azumi pulled out her gun with one hand and a flashlight with another. She glanced over to Yu. Without saying a word, Yu nodded his head, and Azumi did the same. She then reached for the doorknob and opened the door. Azumi entered with her gun raised with her brother following. The siblings scanned the interior. It was a generally open interior with piles of material gathered in different areas.

Neither sibling said a word as they walked further into the warehouse. There was no sign of anyone there. Due to several holes in the rooftop, the warehouse was illuminated even without the flashlight. At this point, Azumi holstered her gun and flashlight as she said, "Looks like it's just you and me."

"Good." Yu remarked as he closed the door behind them.

Since Azumi was sure that they were alone, she was able to walk up to one of the shelves. It appeared decrepit. Simply touching it caused an audible 'cracking' sound to be heard as she took a step back. She turned to Yu and commented, "I guess not even the God Eaters can stop this place from falling apart."

Yu concurred, "Nope."

"Some things might be falling apart, but I'm sure we can still find something for the group." Azumi ordered, "Keep your eyes open."

"I will but um …" Yu trailed off.

"But what?" Azumi inquired.

Yu remarked, "It feels kinda weird this will be our last supply run for the group."

Azumi reminded him, "It might be our last supply run for our group, but it might not be our last supply run."

"Huh?" Yu tilted his head.

"We don't know what else God Eaters do besides fight Aragami." Azumi suggested, "It wouldn't surprise me if they also had to collect a few things for Fenrir while they're out there."

"You really think so?" Yu didn't sound convinced.

"Think about it." Azumi pointed out, "That wall is huge. I bet when those scientists or whoever they were made the God Eaters, they had them help with building it. Something like that would've required a lot of metal and other stuff."

"Huh …" Yu conceded, "That's a good point."

"Anyway, let's see if they overlooked some stuff here." Azumi told Yu, "I'll check over on this side, and you check over there."

"Got it." Yu ran to the opposite side of the warehouse and began looking through the supplies.

After about five minutes of searching, Yu called out to his sister, "Hey, Sis! I think I found something good!"

Azumi rushed over to where her brother was only to be taken aback by what he had uncovered. There was a barrel of weapons. To be more accurate, it was a barrel filled with swords with the hilts sticking out of them. They appeared to be tradition katanas used by samurai of old.

Yu looked over to Azumi and asked, "I think I did pretty good, right?"

"Yeah …" Azumi leaned forward and looked at the weapons, "I think you did very good." Azumi reached out and pulled one of the swords from the barrel. She held it up in the air as she looked it up and down.

"Are they real?" Yu inquired.

"I think so. I'm no expert, but …" Azumi then put the sword back into the barrel as she finished, "it feels pretty real to me."

"What're a bunch of swords doing here?" Yu asked, "Did they sell them or something?"

"Hmm …" Azumi considered it for a moment before replying, "Maybe. Father once told me about how the sword was important to our culture centuries ago. According to father, carrying around a sword was banned after certain things happened, but the sword remained important as a symbol or something. I know that in games and shows, it wasn't unusual to depict the hero as wielding one."

"Why?" Yu inquired.

"Well um …" Azumi said, "I think Father said it had something to do with honor or something called Bushy … Something." Azumi then brushed it off, "Anyway, seeing a barrel of these things is a real surprise." She suggested, "It's possible that whoever made these swords were selling them as decorations or something."

"Decorations?" Yu raised an eyebrow. "Who would sell a weapon as a decoration?"

"Umm …" Azumi scratched the back of her head as she attempted to come up with the answer. After coming up with a blank, she answered, "You'll have to ask Father or something else because he said something like that to me before."

"Ah …" Yu seemed to accept that and then remarked, "I bet Minato could get some real good use out of all this."

"Yeah." Azumi stated, "If he touches them up, they could be useful to the group. Or," Azumi grinned, "if someone doesn't want a sword, I bet he could make them into something else."

"Hmph." Yu looked at the swords as he remarked, "You know … A part of me is gonna miss doing stuff like this." Yu clarified, "This feels kinda fun most of the time. Even if we do stuff like this for Fenrir, I don't think it'll be like what we've been doing now."

"Probably not." Azumi admitted. "Even if it is similar, it'll be different."

"Speaking of Fenrir, about our 'cousin' thing …" Yu trailed off before biting his lip.

Azumi held up one finger as she reminded Yu, "We can only bring one and maybe mom as well."

"Are you sure we can't bring more?" Yu inquired.

"We can't." Azumi remained firm as she reasoned, "I'm pretty sure if we only pick one there won't be any problem."

"Even so …" Yu put a hand on his stomach as he remarked, "This doesn't feel right … What about the rest?"

"I'm sorry, Yu. This isn't gonna be easy, but we have to do this." Azumi repeated, "There's nothing we can do about that. If we bring too many, they'll know we're lying."

"…" Yu wasn't able to give a response. The only thing he can could do was look down and sigh.

"Listen." Azumi knelt down to be eye level with her brother. He looked up as she told him, "I'm not a big fan of this situation either, but giving one of them a better life is a lot better than none of them. Anyway, I need to choose one them, talk to their parents about it. Father said he would help. Can you help me too?"

"I …" After taking a moment, Yu reluctantly, but firmly stated, "Yes. I'll help you."

With a smile, Azumi ruffled Yu's hair, "I knew I could count on you."

"Hey!" Yu protested as he attempted to pry off Azumi's hand, "Cut that out!"

"Oh you know you like it." Azumi jokingly replied.

"Do not!" After a few moments, Yu successfully managed to push the hand away.

"Okay, Okay. Let's …" It was then they heard a creaking sound which caused both Azumi and to stand up in ready positions. The door had been opened, and they could hear footsteps.

Before either of them did anything, they could hear their father's voice call out to them, "Azumi, Yu."

That caused the siblings to lower their guard. They then walked out into the open and began to speak, "What is it, father? Did you …" Azumi trailed off when she saw who was beside him. Her voice lowered as she asked, "What do you want?"

Kouta held up his hand and replied, "I wanted to talk."

"Talk?" Azumi crossed her arms as she mockingly asked, "Why would you want to talk to me?"

"I um …" Kouta scratched the back of his head as he said, "I wanted to apologize …"

"Apologize?" Azumi raised an eyebrow before glancing over to Yu. The only thing he could do was shrug. She then looked back to Kouta and replied, "Okay …" Azumi uneasily said, "Apology accepted. Can you leave me alone now?"

"Hey, don't be like …" Kouta then stopped himself short and then coughed. "I mean … There's more that I wished to speak to you about."

"Then, let's talk right here." Azumi suggested, "I'm sure no one will bother us."

"Azumi." Haru spoke up, "Kouta wishes to make peace with you. Can't you at least attempt to meet him halfway? He wishes to settle your differences."

"…" Azumi's lips pressed against each other before looking over to Yu again. Yu stared at Azumi for a moment before nodding. She then sighed, "Fine. Let's get this over with."

"Great." Kouta suggested, "Let's talk in the other building."

/

Azumi remained quiet as she walked with Kouta and her father to the other building. She only looked at Kouta's back as they walked. As they walked, Kouta occasionally glanced around similar to how she and Yu would scan their surroundings, but she didn't bother doing the same. She hardly spared her father a glance. He was the only reason she even considered this. She thought that as she pressed her lips together.

As they walked, the only one to speak was her father who assured her, "I'm glad that you're willing to hear him out. It'll be good if you two can clear the air before you leave for Fenrir. It'll make things easier for all of us."

"…" Azumi briefly looked in her father's direction, but she said nothing in return. She wasn't sure if she could say anything. He said nothing else either.

After they entered the building, Azumi saw that the interior appeared to be another warehouse. There appeared to be quite a few materials scattered around. Azumi couldn't help but look at the materials as she absentmindedly asked, "Did you want to help us out with our supply run too?"

"Not quite." Kouta replied as he continued walking forward, "This is more of a bonus. A lot of important things could be hiding in here after all."

"Okay." Haru spoke, "I think we've gone far enough. Why don't you say what you were gonna say to Azumi?"

"…" Kouta stopped walking. Azumi and Haru did the same as they saw Kouta turn around.

"You said you wanted to do more than just apologize to me, right?" Azumi inquired.

"Well …" Kouta glanced to the side as he uneasily replied, "Yes …"

"Okay." Azumi crossed her arms as she demanded, "Out with it. I'd like to get back to helping Yu."

"I'm sure he'll be fine." Kouta attempted to sound assuring, "He's your brother after all."

"Hmm …" Azumi didn't seem the least bit assured as she remained unchanged.

"Anyway, I know you and I had our 'differences'. Our many, many differences, but I'm sure we can both agree that we had at least one thing in common." Before either Haru or Azumi could interrupt, he simply said, "We both wanted to survive. We wanted to keep going in this crazy world."

"Hmph." Azumi reluctantly conceded, "I'll give you that, but is that seriously everything you wanted to say?"

"No." Kouta scratched the back of his head as he then said, "I just wanted …" When he trailed off, he said, "There's so much to say, but I'm having a hard time thinking of it. You know how it is." Kouta chuckled, "You can think up a lot of stuff, but it doesn't sound so great when you try to say it out loud."

"…" Azumi narrow her eyes. She was about to open her mouth.

"Azumi." Haru interrupted and advised her, "Just be patient for a moment." He then turned to Kouta and told him, "I understand it isn't easy, but this is your final chance to say something to Azumi if you want to clear the air. You need to think it through."

"You're right." Kouta tone became deeper, "This is a last chance."

"Hmm?" Haru raised an eyebrow.

It was at this moment, Azumi felt a coolness in the air that she did not feel before. She then heard sounds surrounding them. They were soft creaks that one would expect to hear when moving in a decrepit building like this, but none of them were moving. She asked herself why it surrounded them.

On instinct, Azumi placed her hand on her knife as she inquired, "Kouta-san, why did you decide to bring us here? Was it really because you wanted more privacy?"

"I …" It was then Kouta took a step back as he failed to provide a response.

"Just what is …" The moment Azumi pulled out her knife something hard collided into her left hand. It was hard. It felt like a rock. Azumi felt it dig into her hand and hit the bone which caused her to lose grip of her weapon. Her hand felt rattled by what she was hit with as she cursed, "Son of a Bitch!"

"Azumi!" Haru called out before he then felt something hit into his back causing him to cry out in pain.

Before either of them had a chance to comprehend the situation, there were footsteps from all around them. They were coming at them with haste. Azumi hardly had a chance to turn her head before she felt hands grab her and shove her into the ground. The wind was literally knocked out of Azumi as her faced was pressed against the cold, dank floor.

Even though it happened so fast, it didn't take much for Azumi to understand what was going on. Kouta had played them for fools. He had brought them to a trap, and they had walked into it. As much as Azumi didn't want to think something like this could happen, she would be lying if told anyone some part of her couldn't imagine it happening.

Azumi felt her body being pulled back, and she was forced on her knees. Likewise, her father was forced on his knees as well. She glanced over her shoulder to see she was being restrained by two men. They were both armed with knives attached to their belts. Azumi also realized despite dropping her knife that was lying a few feet away from her, she had not been completely disarmed yet as well.

For some reason, her gun hadn't been removed from her belt. She couldn't reach for it with how they were restraining her, but it didn't make sense they didn't take her gun away from her. Did they not think to do so? Were they so confident they had her that they didn't bother right away? Regardless, Azumi decided it was best not to draw attention to it. Instead, she looked forward when she heard footsteps in front of her.

"Not too bad, Kouta." A woman who was probably a few years older than Azumi spoke as she congratulated Kouta, "Not bad at all."

"I was just fulfilling my end of the deal." Kouta took a step forward and inquired, "I'm assuming you will, too?"

"Yes." The woman looked away from Kouta and directly at Azumi as she said, "Everything will be taken care of."

"Excellent, I …" As Kouta was about to speak further, the woman was already walking toward Azumi causing Kouta to pause before saying, "All right, fine."

"You bastard!" Haru cried out in disbelief, "What the hell is all of this?"

"The only thing I can do." Kouta coldly replied, "The two of you have to go."

"You …" Haru cried out, "You sold us out! You sold my daughter out!"

Kouta coldly answered, "All she does is keep causing trouble for everyone, and all you did was enable her."

"You're nothing but a shameless, rotten bastard! Just a coward who can't do anything himself! You were my friend! You were …" As Haru was beginning his rant, the woman gave one of her men a signal who proceeded to punch Haru in the face before he could say another word.

"…" Azumi didn't say a word, but she gritted her teeth when she witnessed that.

The force of the punch not only caused Haru to shut up, it nearly caused him to fall to the ground if it wasn't for the people holding him in place. The punch elicited a small amount of blood from his lip. He looked at the person who punched him. Rather than saying another word, he spit in his direction.

When the man took a step forward, the woman held up her hand, and the man stopped. She then looked down at Azumi and remarked, "At long last, we finally meet."

"…" Azumi remained silent as she remained biting into her lip.

The woman knelt down and reached out to Azumi. Azumi closed her eyes only to feel something odd on her cheek. When she opened her eyes, the hand was there caressing her cheek. It was not a comforting feeling. Not comforting at all.

As the woman caressed Azumi's cheek as she rhetorically asked in an oddly polite tone, "I'm sure you have an idea of who I am, don't you? You did get to know my men very well."

"You …" Azumi softly replied, "You're their leader, aren't you?"

The woman stopped touching Azumi's cheek as she then began to clap, "Bravo. Bravo. Gotta give you points for getting it right on the first try. For that, I'll reward you by telling you my name is Estuko. It's truly a pleasure to meet you for the first time Narukami Azumi. I can see why you gave my men a lot of trouble." She then touched the tip of Azumi's nose, "You look like quite the survivor."

"You've been tracking us this whole time?" Azumi spoke in disbelief, "It's been weeks. You actually went through all this trouble?"

"Of course, I did." Estuko stated in a matter of fact tone, "You killed my men. A lot of them. Did you really think I'd just let you go?"

Azumi protested, "It was in self-defense. They tried to kill me and my family. You expect me to just let them kill us? Did you …"

Before Azumi could say another word, she was cut off when she saw Estuko move her hand followed by a swift movement that slapped her across the cheek. Azumi was helpless to avoid it, but she did not close her eyes. Azumi could feel Estuko's hand make contact on her face, and it felt she had been hit by a whip as her face was forced to move to the side.

Any politeness that was in Estuko's voice had dissipated as she told Azumi in no uncertain terms, "I don't give a damn what your reasons are! My men are dead and that's all I care about!" Estuko then pulled out her own knife. It was a switch blade, and Azumi saw the retractable blade popup before Estuko held it in front of her face. "I see you have a couple of lovely scars on that face of yours. I'm sure you wouldn't mind a few new ones being added to the collection. I'm sure your brother and father will enjoy watching your punishment!"

Haru attempted to struggle as he demanded, "Let her go! She doesn't deserve this! If you want someone to punish, kill me!" His 'demands' quickly changed to pleading as he said, "I'll take anything you planned to do to her and then some, so please just let her go! Just let her live!"

"Father …" Was the only word Azumi could muster.

"How touching." Estuko continued to wave her switchblade in front of Azumi as she said, "A father willing to sacrifice himself for his daughter. Now that's what I call …" Estuko paused as she considered, "What's the word …" She then snapped her fingers, "Oh right, 'Love'. You must really love her." Estuko then moved her blade down and nicked Azumi's right cheek eliciting a little blood as she remarked, "Too bad it doesn't mean much."

Azumi bit her lip as she felt the tip of the knife dig into her cheek. She could feel the blade was making a shallow cut, but it was causing a dividing line in her skin. She could feel the blood beginning to drip down her right cheek.

Likewise, Haru gritted his teeth. He looked as if he was about to charge forward like a raging bull if it wasn't for the two men holding him. However, their grip on him was too strong.

"I'm sorry. Really. I am." Estuko took a few steps and proceeded to lick the tip of her knife as she remarked, "I'm afraid your daughter has elicited one too many debts that can't be easily repaid. Your son has also acquired a bit of debt that requires reparations as well."

"You …" Haru said in a low voice.

"He'll be joining us shortly." Estuko stated, "When we're done with them, you'll wish that it was the Aragami that got a hold of you."

"Bitch." Azumi remarked in a low voice, "You're just as messed up as the rest of them."

Estuko shrugged, "I didn't ask for your opinion. Not like that's gonna to matter."

"I'm sure it won't. All that matters is whose alive in the end, right?" Azumi rhetorically asked.

"Exactly." Estuko leaned forward and grinned as she remarked, "You know what. I kinda like you. It's too bad we couldn't have met differently. I think we would've gotten along …"

"Gah!" Before Estuko could say another word, the man holding Azumi's right arm cried out as he was knocked into the ground. Everyone's attention was drawn to what just happened.

Everyone saw that Yu had landed onto of the man, and Yu had stabbed him in the back of the neck as he pinned him down. He shoved the knife through. The man had no chance.

Estuko's eyes widened at the sight of this. "You! How did yo-" She was unable to say another word after what happened next.

With her arm free, Azumi reached for the knife she had dropped moments earlier. She managed to grab hold of it, and she turned her body towards the man who was still holding her left arm. Before the man realized what Azumi did, he saw Azumi holding the knife. He let go of her hand and attempted to move away, but Azumi thrusted the knife forward. The man felt the knife dig into his throat before falling to the ground.

Azumi then looked back at the leader of the group that had decided to go through all these lengths to hunt them down. With both her hands free, Azumi was able to stand up, and she pulled out her gun. When she pulled the trigger, a loud bang could be heard ringing from within the building and the surrounding area.

/

Author Notes: The chapter came to an end with a literal bang. Originally, the chapter was going to end a little differently, but I believed that was a decent spot to end the chapter with. It goes without saying that the next chapter will continue where this one leaves off. I do not plan on leaving this cliffhanger unresolved for too long either.

I have written a number of scenes for the future upcoming chapters, especially the next one. I hope to put the pieces of the puzzle together to complete them, so you can see them uploaded in the near future. I believe the result will be enjoyable.

While it is a shame it has been a year since the last time I updated this story, I mentioned earlier that it is my plan to rectify it in 2020. The preliminary plan is the end the story this year, so I can give any fans of this story a conclusion to this. I considered a good stopping point of this story, and I hope I can potentially reach it before 2020 is over. Whether or not I will consider making a sequel to continue from that point going forward will largely depend on you.

Thank you for reading. Please leave a review, and I hope you all stay safe out there.