Dazai strolled into the infirmary. He threw a pointed finger over his shoulder, before slumping into a vacant chair. "Chūya's dying. You could help, or not. Up to you."
Yosano's eyes drifted to the door of the infirmary, where multiple yelling Agency members pulled the limp body of Chūya Nakahara. Blood was trailing down his arms, burns littered his face, and his clothes had been all but shredded. Kunikida lugged the unconscious mafioso onto a hospital bed, too out of breath to explain what happened. He gestured to Dazai, who sighed.
"Chūya was tortured to the point of having to use Corruption. The Agency was called to deal with the terrorist group, and we found Chūya just in time for me to use No Longer Human to save him. Another three seconds and he would have died. Now patch him up or something, so we can send him back to the mafia or they'll come hunt him down."
The doctor turned her attention to Chūya, noticing how shallow his breathing had become. He was on the verge of death. A large gash in his shoulder trailed across his collarbone, and Yosano realized if it wasn't healed soon, the loss of blood from that alone would kill him.
"Everyone out! Let me concentrate!" Kunikida quietly asked if she would need any assistance, to which she shoved him out the door, along with Dazai.
Carefully, Yosano cut away the tattered bits of cloth to fully expose the enormous cut. Bruises decorated the edges of the tear in the flesh, and Yosano realized it would be a lot of work to completely heal Chūya.
Since he was already on the brink of death, Yosano didn't need to bring him any closer to use her ability. In fact, she was able to heal him twice without harming him any more. However, due to how frail he was because of the torturing, if Yosano tried to use Thou Shalt Not Die again, Chūya would definitely die.
The major wounds and burns were healed completely, leaving Yosano to tend regularly to the smaller bruises and nicks in his skin. One fairly large cut on Chūya's forehead hadn't been healed by Yosano's ability.
Once she was finished, Chūya's ripped pants covered bandaged up legs, his left arm was spotted with patches of gauze, and his right arm was held in a sling, so as not to open up any more wounds by movement. A bandage was plastered on his jaw, and his hair was pushed out of his face by a strip of bandage wrapped around his forehead. Yosano chuckled at her handiwork, amused at how reminiscent of Dazai he looked.
Yosano was adjusting the dressing around Chūya's when his eyes fluttered open. His immediate reaction was to smack her arm away and take note of his surroundings. He relaxed once he realized he was at the Agency, but a scowl set on his face.
Embodying her job as doctor, Yosano started out with a few questions. "Does anything hurt? What's the last thing you remember?" When Chūya started shaking his head, Yosano glared at him. "Answer the questions. I'm here as a doctor, not a member of the Agency. I'm only trying to help you."
The redhead sighed. "Nothing hurts, but I want these stupid bandaids off me."
"Afraid I can't do that. My job is to patch you up, and I'm not seeing you leave unless I have full confidence you'll be back to normal. Taking the bandages off will only slow the process and cause more pain. Now, what's the last thing you remember?"
Chūya rubbed his hand along his forehead, growling when he found more bandages dotted over his forearm. "Uh, the one terrorist group I was tracking down got hold of me. Next thing I know I was spitting blood. From the looks of things, they beat me up badly enough to force Corruption out of me. Am I right?"
Yosano nodded. "A few members of the Agency got a call about the terrorists, and were sent to investigate. Luckily Dazai was with them when they found you, or your body would have buckled under the pressure Corruption was putting on you. That man has an affinity for prolonging death somehow. Be grateful you have his ability on hand."
"Speaking of Dazai, where is that bandage-wasting machine? While I'm here I might as well take my anger out on someone."
"Bandage-wasting machine? You're one to talk." Chūya's grimace only fueled Yosano's laughter. "You're in no condition to be smacking Dazai around, even though I wouldn't mind seeing how you manage that with a sling."
The infirmary door burst open. Michizou Tachihara of the Black Lizard stood in the doorway, dual guns pointed to Yosano.
Chūya slung his good arm in front of Yosano, doing his best to cover her. "Hey, hey, Tachihara, calm down. No need to shoot."
"Mori ordered us to come find you, and you're holed up in the Agency's infirmary! What happened?" Tachihara's guns lowered, but Chūya's arm stayed in place.
"They saved me from a terrorist group when I was cornered into using Corruption. Yosano here was simply saving my life as a doctor, not the enemy. I understand you're here to take me back, but at the moment I'm not in the best condition to come back to the headquarters. Tell Mori I got it all under control, and I'll return when I'm ready."
The Black Lizard commander cocked his head in confusion. "You're… gonna stay here at the Agency?"
"Just until I'm healed, alright? I'll report back to Mori in no more than three days time. I'll be fine."
A battered Kunikida dizzily walked into the room, not worrying himself with Tachihara's guns and only grabbing his wrist to throw him out of the Agency. A minute later, Kunikida returned. "Ah, he's awake. How long until we can haul him out of here?"
Yosano looked Chūya up and down. "If he cooperates, no longer than tomorrow night."
Chūya folded his arms. "Mori's gonna be on my tail about why I've been gone, but I'll cooperate unless Dazai shows. Make sure he stays out of here."
The doctor grinned. "No one comes to the infirmary unless absolutely necessary. He'll stay out. You're stuck with me for the next twenty-four hours."
Kunikida raised an eyebrow, sighed, and left, muttering something about bringing food.
Yosano left the infirmary shortly after to settle a dispute among the detectives. Chūya was left alone for about forty-five minutes, stuck sitting in his hospital bed. He spotted a bag bulging with the amount of knives stashed in a corner, along with a massive butcher's knife leaning against the wall. He shivered at the horror stories of Yosano's ability that had made their way to the Port Mafia. Even high level executives such as him cowered at the thought of her treacherous healing ability.
The redhead picked at some gauze on his arm. It peeled back a bit to expose a nasty bruise, and Chūya found himself grateful that Yosano took the time and care to treat his wounds. Back at the mafia headquarters, he would've tried to take care of himself so as not to appear weak in front of his subordinates, subsequently only injuring him more from infections and such.
The Agency's doctor came back in through the door, wielding a tray with two dinner plates settled on top. Chūya chuckled to himself when he saw the bottle of wine in the doctor's other hand.
"You must be hungry, so hope you like whatever this is that Kunikida made." Yosano gave one plate to Chūya, and started eating her own, after setting the wine bottle on the bedside table.
"I hope that counts as medication, and isn't just for you," Chūya said, eyeing the wine.
Yosano laughed, popping open the bottle and pouring a bit into a pair of glasses. "You're a wine connoisseur as well? Figured we might as well treat ourselves while the Agency burns down."
With that, a large crash emitted from the main office. Yosano ignored it and took a sip of her drink. "Kunikida's too much of a hothead, especially when it comes to dealing with Dazai. I try to stay out of it as much as possible." Another crash echoed through the building, followed by faint yelling, probably from Kunikida. Yosano took another sip. "So, how're you feeling?"
Chūya shrugged, chugging his entire glass of wine, having already downed his dinner. He was pretty famished after his energy loss from using Corruption, and the wine was a nice touch after his long day. "Better now. I just-" Chūya wasn't able to finish due to immense throbbing in his forehead. He doubled over, grabbing at the bandages, trying to tear them off instinctively, to get rid of the pain.
"Woah, woah, hold on." Yosano set to work, sitting him up again, and slowly removing his bandages to see the problem. The doctor cursed, quickly grabbing a bottle of disinfectant. Chūya growled at her, trying to swat her arms away, but she restrained him, intent on finding the problem. "Calm down, it's infected. Stop acting like a child, or it'll make it worse."
Once the bandages had been removed, Yosano found herself struggling to keep Chūya's hair out of the wound. Thinking quickly, she unclipped her butterfly hairpin, and snapped it into Chūya's locks, holding back his bangs.
After a few minutes, Yosano sat back to survey her work. A large piece of gauze was taped to Chūya's forehead, and the golden butterfly was perched atop his head, looking as if it had come to life and landed there. The doctor noticed the mafioso's thinned eyes and scowl, and giggled a bit.
"You look absolutely ridiculous. I love it." Yosano folded her arms, making no move to remove the clip. Chūya muttered to himself, reaching up to take the pin out, but it ended up getting tangled in his bangs. Only now was he noticing the amount of knots and kinks in his hair from his battle hours before.
Yosano leaned over to help retrieve the butterfly. Carefully pulling it out from the knot, she threaded her fingers through the red hair, slowly and deliberately untangling it. She snapped her fingers, remembering something. "I'll be right back." Her skirt spun as she quickly left the infirmary.
The butterfly pin had been left on Chūya's lap. He gently picked it up, running his fingers over the grooves. Once again, his mind drifted to the doctor's kindness in treating him. He much preferred the Agency's infirmary to the mafia's, comparing the glistening floors in front of him to the neglected, rotting ones he had seen all too many times. He remembered the bloodshot eyes of the countless nurses, who had been pulled into underground hospitals against their will, struggling to pay their rent while living in fear of every one of their patients. He recalled the screams of wounded subordinates, cursing through gritted teeth as the stack of bullets pulled from their chests piled up.
Chūya was pulled out from his stupor of thought as Yosano entered the room again, brandishing a small wire hairbrush. Her excited smile told Chūya exactly what he had been thinking; he never wanted to go back and face the mafia's doctors again, not when doctors such as Yosano existed, willing and wanting to see their patients happy and healthy.
Without a word, Yosano quickly set to work combing through Chūya's hair. Chūya had to admit, it felt pretty nice to have Yosano brushing his hair. She took care so it wouldn't pull too hard, and only a few minutes later, his auburn hair was back to being silky and smooth. Yosano had also tied up his longer locks into a small bun, to keep it out of the way.
The Agency's doctor glanced over to the clock, blinking a bit in surprise. "Later than I expected. I'd better be heading home now, but first, let me explain what's happening tomorrow. After a good night's rest, you'll be ready for me to use my ability again. Once that's done with, you'll be free to go. Understood?"
Chūya's eyes widened a bit at the prospect of being conscious for Yosano's ability. He hummed in acknowledgement, not quite sure what to say.
"Alright! We salvaged your phone from your pockets, it's right there on the nightstand. My number's there with it, so call me if anything happens. I'll be locking the door to both the infirmary and the main office for safety reasons, but if an emergency occurs, the fire escape is out the window."
Yosano collected her things, and waved before closing the door to the room. The small lamp beside Chūya was the only thing lighting the space, and the knives in the corner reflected the light menacingly. He shivered, realizing he'd witness, firsthand, their use in Yosano's ability tomorrow.
Groggily, Chūya opened his eyes to see the blurry outline of a straw hat in his vision. Blinking the blurriness away, he sat up to take in the room better. The infirmary was bathed in the cool morning light through the window.
Hearing the squeak of the hospital bed, the hat turned its attention to Chūya. Upon closer inspection, it sat atop the head of a young boy, no more than fourteen or fifteen, smiling brightly, face sprayed with freckles. His blonde hair was tousled underneath his ragged straw hat.
"Good morning! Are you feeling better this morning?"
Chūya grumbled, still too disorientated to speak completely. The boy held out a small hand, introducing himself. "I'm Kenji Miyazawa! I'm a detective here at the Agency. I'm just here to get you ready this morning."
Kenji turned back around, grabbed something off his lap, and brought it back around to Chūya. It was his hat, which he had assumed had gotten ruined in his fight. There seemed to be a new chain dangling off the side, this one gold, not silver, like it was before.
"Yosano-sensei patched this up for you! She had to repair the hatband, and replace the chain, since it got destroyed. I think she used one of her jewellery pieces for it. Here you go!"
Kenji stood up and plopped the hat on Chūya's head, making sure it fit snuggly. "Uh, thanks?"
The boy smiled again. "I've got breakfast for you! Yosano-sensei will be here soon, so you better eat up before she heals you again." With that, Kenji placed a tray holding rice, fish, and miso soup. "Enjoy!"
He left Chūya to eat breakfast in peace. Once he had finished eating the surprisingly delicious meal, Chūya took off his hat to look at it more closely. The gold chain did closely resemble that of an expensive necklace. It also matched the color of Yosano's butterfly clip.
Not long after, Yosano came in through the doors, a purse draped over her shoulder. "'Morning, Chūya. Have a good night? I see Kenji brought you your hat."
"Oh, yeah. He said you tidied it up. You didn't have to replace the chain, though." Chūya fiddled with the portion of necklace as he said that.
"Eh, I had something laying around, I might as well. And you look good with gold, like the clip yesterday." Yosano laughed, and put her purse down. She spun around the room, stopping when she saw her pile of knives. Grinning, she went and grabbed the largest cleaver, throwing it over her shoulder and walking back towards the bed. "You ready for Thou Shalt Not Die?"
Chūya gulped as he saw the wicked gleam in her eyes, reflecting the shimmer of the steel blade. He braced himself for what was about to come.
Two hours later, Chūya awoke from unconsciousness. All his bandages were gone, and a set of clothes were laid on the bed in front of him. He cautiously got up, and quickly changed from his hospital gown to the white button up and pale wine red vest provided for him. The mafioso smiled that the Agency thought to give him a new pair of leather gloves as well. They were even inscribed with his initials, CN, in gold lettering, probably courtesy of Yosano. His hat had been set to the side, and he put it on, glad to finally be back in normal clothes.
Chūya inspected his limbs, checking for any sign of his battle the day before. Nothing. Even the infected gash on his forehead had been healed. After a minute of struggling to remember what had happened during Yosano's surgery, Chūya eventually gave up, mostly out of fear for what he might recall.
He stepped out of the infirmary, and into the main lobby of the Agency. Luckily, Dazai was nowhere to be seen, and the only one's around were Yosano, Kunikida, and a timid looking redhead boy. "Ah, Chūya! Finally woke up?" Yosano called out to him.
Chūya nodded. He was still too much in a daze from the past two days to be able to properly speak. It didn't help that the Agency was so different than what he expected; kind doctors and smiling teens. It seemed Dazai was the outlier amongst the detectives.
"After I finished up with my ability, I made sure to do some routine checks over with you. Everything healed up perfectly, but between me and you, hold back on the cigarettes a bit. Pick up a different habit when you're stressed, because with the amount of physical work you executives have to do, smoking can put even more stress on top. Alright?" Another nod from the redhead. Yosano clapped her hands together. "Great! You're free to go!"
A moment passed, and Chūya contemplated his options. Standing up a little straighter, he looked Yosano straight in the eyes. "You know, I told Tachihara to give me three days before I report back. I still got two of those left. Would you care to join me for dinner this evening? Maybe share another bottle of wine?"
All noise stopped; it seemed even the clock paused ticking. Kunikida let out a loud, disgruntled sigh. The younger redhead didn't make sound, but meekly bowed his head into his hands. Chūya stood his ground.
The young doctor grinned. "Only if you pay."
Chūya chuckled. "Of course."