Great, of all the times to be pestered by a Dove, and the one she was planning to hunt no less. She was probably here to do general questioning and gather info, so this might be a good time to throw her off the trial or gain more information about the woman from the source. And so, Touka gave her best customer service smile and maintained as even a tone as she could. "Can I help you with something ma'am?"
The woman stared at Touka for a moment, raising an eye before pulling out a notepad. "Yes, were you at the public park last night?"
Touka blinked for a moment. Right, they were talking about that on the news. It was amazing how fast the Doves acted when it came to their cases. Then again, many of their own had been dying in this Ward. She shook her head. "No, I went straight home after around 5PM," The woman wrote down the information and continued.
"Have you seen anything suspicious recently? Strange people out at night or any suspicious activity in this Ward recently?"
So she's after Aogiri and not me. Touka knew most Aogiri thugs wore robes and white suits. They probably thought the attack was on one of them. It seemed obvious, she had been making sure to stay hidden when on her hunts for Doves. Hunting at night, attacking in secluded areas, looks like her tactics were paying off. "I've seen a few weird guys in suits near just outside some of the shopping areas harassing owners, but I thought it was some weird yakuza or gang thing." That should keep her from sniffing around Touka's apartment.
The woman looked away from her notepad and met Touka's eyes. "Is that so?"
Touka froze for a moment. Did she know she was lying? "Yeah, like yelling about how bad the food at a restaurant was, or messing with bystanders, hazing and stuff. I haven't been around in a while though,"
"Alright then," The woman put away her notepad. "Thank you for your time," She began to walk to another table, and Touka breathed a silent sigh of relief. Man, that was tense. She thought, leaning back in her chair. I better scram before she starts asking me more questions. She was just about to ask for her check when the woman tapped at her table.
"By the way," The woman pointed at Touka's face. "How did you get those bruises by the way?"
Touka swallowed, a cold sweat running over her. One of the nice things about being a Ghoul was an insanely fast healing factor by human standards. She didn't have the absurd healing of a Rinkaku, but her ribs had already healed for the most part overnight, and most of her cuts were gone too. All that remained were the bruises on her face, something that had been taking its sweet time healing due to deep cuts made by Renji during their training last night. Ugh, thanks for the beating Renji.
She forced a sheepish smile. "Training," She said, raising her fists. "I do martial arts and self-defense. Streets are getting a lot scarier so better safe than sorry," Technically not a lie. "I, uh, still gotta' work on my blocking."
"I see…" The woman gave her a quick look before turning away. "Well then, try not to push yourself then,"
"Will do," Touka nodded, walking over to the cashier to pay for her coffee and leave. Sticking around longer would just unnerve her.
Guess she was just asking around. That was her next target. She didn't look too tough, but there was something about how she carried herself that made her seem strong. That calm, almost cold demeanor she had. Actually… I don't see a lot of girl Doves. She shrugged at the thought. Whatever, I'll kill her like I've been killing the rest. She pulled out her phone, doing a bit more research on the woman. Where she left off. Akira Mado… she was in that fight at Anteiku… Apparently, she was recently promoted at the raid at Anteiku, which was enough of a warning sign for Touka that this woman was strong. Alright then. She walked into an alleyway, pulling up her hoodie. Time to do some hands-on research.
Touka made sure to hide in plain sight. She blended in with walking bystanders, pretended to be on her phone, sneaking peeks at the Dove every now and then. The Dove was still asking questions there. Touka watched her from across the street, making sure her hoodie hid her face. Every now and then the woman would glance in Touka direction, but she merely looked down at her phone and pretended to be busy. The woman stayed there for a good fifteen minutes before walking out and heading to the park to do more investigating. This time Touka made sure to stay out of sight, hiding behind tree trunks, always standing or sitting far enough way to not raise suspicion. The woman asked questions around the park, examined the crime scene where Touka had killed the last Dove, took notes, and so on. It was the typical Dove stuff she had seen with all the others she had hunted. Nothing new.
Might as well actually check my phone. She pulled up her recent text messages, another text from Yoriko, and one from Irimi. Huh… haven't talked to Irimi in a while. Wonder what's up.
"We meet again."
Touka looked up, seeing the Dove woman standing over her.
Shit. So much for staying out of sight. "Hello again," The woman said.
Touka pulled down her hoodie, forcing a smile. Dammit… "Hello ma'am," Hopefully being casual wouldn't draw anymore suspicion.
"Come here often?"
"It's, uh, part of my training. Daily jogs and stuff. I'm just taking a break."
"I see…" The woman stared at her for a moment before turning away. "Well, stay safe,"
"Will do," Once the woman walked away Touka pulled her hoodie back up. Okay, time to stop for today. If they met up for a third time it'd spell bad news. Touka might end up the being stalked and tracked.
She decided to jog back home. Might as well stay true to her story after all, and Renji ha been saying she should be doing more basic training lately. By the time she at her apartment the sun was setting.
"Hold it! Stop right there" Touka froze, scowling. Shit! So close. So close to freedom. Dammit, why did I try tailing her?! She rolled her shoulder, readying herself for a fight. She'd be damned if she was going down without a fight.
She pivoted on her heel, ready to bring out her kagune and give her pursuer the fight of a lifetime, only to see several people in red robes and masks. Aogiri punks. "Tch," I got worked up over nothing. It was only a matter of time she supposed, Touka had been beating down Aogiri thugs ever since she moved to the 11th Ward. Most were fights they started when she first moved in, but a few hard knocked sent the weaker ones packing. She placed a hand on her hip, give a cocky smirk. Actually, I could use a good punching bag.
"Can I help you?" She asked the group. One lunged at her, trying to tackle her. She dodged it with ease and kicked the guy hard in the neck. It wasn't enough to knock that one out, but it was as a good a warning as any.
"Ugh…"
Touka scoffed, running a hand through the back of her hair. "Can I help you?" She repeated. Another went for her. She smirked. "Your funeral," It was all she said before forcing her kagune out and punching her attacker in the face, grabbing their arm and snapping it. They gave out a loud, pained scream before Touka kicked their jaw in with a sickening crunch. "Heh, weakling." Before the others could react, she blasted one with a few shards from her wing before pulling them into a chokehold, punching at their head until she felt their skull crack and blood spill out. There were only two left now, and both went to grab her by the arms with their own kagunes out. One pierced her leg, the other her chest, hitting a tender rib that was still healing.
"Gah, assholes!" It hurt, but it was nowhere near enough pain to stop her. She yanked one of her arms free and elbowed one of them in the head as hard as she could. A kagune went out of her leg, and she used it to knee the other's face in. It was over in an instant. "Geez… what a pain…" Guess this is what Mrs. Suzuki meant by causing problems.
"Oh my, someone's pretty strong,"
A feminine voice came from behind Touka, along with clapping. She turned to see a small girl covered in bandages, wearing a cloak and flowery scarf. It was an odd sight to be sure. "Those were some nice moves there. Are you a crime fighter or something?" Her voice was dripping in sarcasm.
"Tch," More Aogiri punks, just what I need. "You looking for a fight?"
"Me?" The girl pointed to herself. "No, I just wanted to see the girl that was trying to play hero like it was some sort of game." She walked over to Touka, practically skipping in a playful manner. "Besides…" She leaned close, her bandaged face just inches from Touka's. "It wouldn't be much of a fight anyway."
Touka narrowed her eyes at the girl., black sclera flaring. "You wanna' bet?"
The girl was silent for a moment, placing a finger up to her chin. "Hmm… no, I don't think it'd be a fair bet."
"You little-" Touka threw a mad punch at her, but she vanished in an instant. "What the-"
"My, so violent," She was behind her, speaking right into her ear.
How did she-
"Hm, I think I'll play with you a bit after all. It's been awhile since I've gotten my hands dirty." The kick was so fast. Touka didn't even have time to react to it. She was sent a few feet into the air before slamming to the ground, coughing blood out from the hard impact.
"Gaaah…" Touka gasped for breath, suddenly feeling a sharp pain in her chest. She screamed, something was pulled out of her.
"I think this is yours, little girl." A bone dropped in front of her.
The girl was standing right above of her now, pinning her down with her knee, crushing her ribs further.
"Oh my, did you break these already? It shouldn't be this painful." She pulled out another bone, this time one from her arm. Then a rib. Then a bone from her leg. Then another rib. Each time Touka cried out. "And this is yours. And this is yours. And this is yours." Three, she pulled out three of Touka's ribs, followed by a bone from one of her limbs, each time slower than the last. After the fourth the girl grabbed at Touka's hoodie and pulled her and closer to her face. "Does it hurt, little hero?" She whispered.
"Piss off!" Touka snarled. The girl only laughed at her defiance though.
"Kuku… so rebellious. I like you, little hero. You remind me of your brother with that wild streak of yours when provoked."
Touka's eyes widened. "How do you-"
and she could feel the girl's cruel smile behind the mask.
"Oh? Surprised, Touka Kirishima? Thought you were being clever?" She pulled out another rib.
"Aaah!"
"Sorry to ruin your fun, but you've been ruining mine for a while now." She cupped Touka's chin in her hand, squeezing tight. "I'm not telling to back off. No, I find it cute seeing you play the heroic avenger. But…" A knee this time. "How about you keep the heroics away from Aogiri." She let go of Touka and stood up. "Still alive?" She crouched down and poked at Touka's forehead, pushing her bang aside. Touka only glared at her, growling at snarling as the pain prevented her from speaking. "Hehehe, that actually got my blood going. You make a good punching bag," She stood up, giving Touka one last kick to the stomach before stepping back. "Actually, feel free to keep bugging us. I think I'll enjoy playing with you every now and then," With that, she walked away, vanishing as quickly as she came and leaving Touka on the ground as she lost consciousness.
"I'll… kill… you…"