This was made over a few days. I actually didn't touch this on the 2nd or 3rd because I had received my first jab that morning and I felt awful when I got back home, so I spent a small amount of time relaxing with my guitar before going to bed early – around 8. Now I'm just in and out of being really tired, so could be worse. Not convinced that its all because of the jab, just because my sleep schedule is awful at the best of times. Anyways, this chapter is what, double the size of the previous one? Around that.
On another note, thank you for reading and following. It means a lot to know that people enjoy my story enough to follow it already, despite being so low on words and actual content at the moment. Considering this is my first piece of fanfiction, I would appreciate knowing what you think of it. I don't write full time, but I would still like to know where I could improve. I'm one of those annoying "If a jobs worth doing, it's worth doing well" kinds of people when it comes to things like this.
Thanks again – hope you enjoy.
The rest of the night was spent in a slightly worried haze. Why was Hide's life at risk? Who would endanger Hide like to that extreme? Well, the first thing that came to mind was a Ghoul. Creatures that supposedly looked human, that feasted on human flesh. It would make the most sense – ghoul attacks in the 20th had been increasing as of late. It would be a slight bit more coincidental that Hide was attacked by ghouls only a day after Kaneki himself got out of the hospital, but it wasn't out of the question.
Another idea he had was just that the Game decided it would kill Hide if he failed. Kaneki had no idea how these systems worked, it could just as easily decide to kill off people around him as a mere incentive to take part. Either way, Kaneki needed a plan. And the best plan would be one where the worst case scenario was thought of. If a ghoul really was involved, then the two boys stood no chance, but with this power? Maybe. At least they could probably run away if needed. Probably.
Hopefully.
Either way, Kaneki needed to increase his stats quickly. He briefly noted that he took the game 100% seriously now – Hide's life wasn't worth the risk of not taking the game seriously, at this point – and set off to the local gym.
The sun was barely setting in the distance, but people still wondered around the streets of Tokyo. That was what happened in a city of this size, after all. There was always going to be someone awake and on the streets for some reason or other. Most were there for benign reasons – work, dates, or other such commitments. But everyone knew about the underlying problem of the city. They just liked to forget that the ghouls existed while they didn't bother them in particular.
Kaneki wouldn't lie and say he wasn't the same. Maybe if he had been more cautious and known more about ghouls, he would have noticed something that would have warned him away from Rise. Then again, maybe she was very good at what she did – he was completely charmed after all. No use dwelling on it either way.
Kaneki briefly remembered that he needed clothes to change into and out of when he actually got into the gym and quickly turned back inside to grab them, before setting off for real this time. He realised he should be better prepared with someone's life on the line, but in his defence, he hadn't gone to the gym pretty much ever since he lived in Tokyo. Not as far as he could remember at least.
He put a simple white T-shirt and a pair of black joggers in a small bag, which was now safely sat in his inventory. It would keep the bag safe after all, and keep his hands free – he wasn't taking chances after coming close to death himself.
It wasn't far to the gym – maybe 5 bus stops away, or a ten minute walk. Maybe 5 if he took the back alleys. Was 5 minutes going to be the difference between Hide living or dying? Kaneki didn't want to find out, and so took the alleyways.
They were dirty. He remembered them being dirty before he was in the hospital, but this was a lot different up close – he was always told as a kid to stay away from them because you could easily get mugged and people would find it hard to see you. Dirt lined the brick walls, and water from rain splashed down at his ankles. He briefly wondered about getting a new pair of shoes for working out in, before remembering his time limit a moment later.
Once Hide lived, he could do what he wanted. But right now, he needed to hurry.
Away from the crowds of people, Kaneki took off in a sprint down the alley in the vague direction of the gym. It was a lot more straining than he thought it would be for a moment, but then suddenly the weight on his chest lifted and he felt like he was going faster than when he started. A quick glance to his side told him why.
[Skill Created]
Through continuous action, a Skill has been created.
[Sprint (Active) LVL1]
When active, grants a 10% movement speed bonus.
Whilst active, increases Dex by 1
Increases Noise Generation by 200%
Through continuous action and strain, +1 to Vit
That explained things just slightly.
Although, it did beg the question, was it wise to use his SP now or later? He could probably perform better at the gym and even get there faster if he used them now, but was it worth it? There was no real answer to the question at that moment – Kaneki had no knowledge of how often or when the game would give him points in certain stats, or how XP requirements would increase later on. The Game could be a dangerous thing to use without that knowledge, and yet as far as he knew, there was no tutorial. Maybe he could get more information by pressing the names of the stats and so on, but how much information it would give him was entirely unknown to him, if any at all. No. It was much better to save his points until he had time to really look through the games systems.
[Quest Gained]
[Details]
Go to the Gym or other such training area and prepare for tomorrow.
Obj – Gain 5 stat points in any stat through training and hard work alone.
Bonus Obj - ?
Bonus Obj - ?
Reward – 5SP, 200XP
Y/N
Is this what Kaneki's life was now? A bunch of screens telling him how to live? It was almost disappointing that this was how he was going to live the rest of his days, but then again most people would think this would be exciting. Kaneki just wanted to go back home and read, but he couldn't do that if his friends life was in dang-
[DANGER SENSED]
3M BEHIND
Kaneki turned quickly, vaguely seeing the shape of a man in the dark, before a blur appeared and kicked him into the side of the alleyway. There was the faint taste of blood in his mouth – he realised that he bit his tongue down particularly hard to the point of it bleeding. In the back of his mind, Kaneki realised that it took the moment for him to get on his knees for the pain to all but disappear. This proved the Game had effects on his body, even if he had been trusting it regardless. Now he knew he was right to.
You have received 56HP of damage
"Huh." A voice called out. "You know, at first I smelt a human, but now I'm not so sure… you don't smell so good up close."
A hand grabbed his head by the hair, pulling him up to his feet. Kaneki wished he could feel deathly afraid of this man – who he could only now assume was a ghoul – but alas, the Game restricted his emotions it seemed. It was good in some ways, bad in others. Like how he was paying attention to every word that was being said, but even then it left him confused.
What was he? If he smelt like a human and then awful up close, to a ghoul at that, a creature that ate humans like humans ate breakfast bars in the morning, then what exactly did Kaneki become when he was out? And why was it taking him so long to realise?
"Hmmmm…"
The voice was starting to grate on Kaneki's nerves now. This guy was going to beat his ass and what? Not even try and eat him? The fuck was this guy doing?
Regardless, Kaneki wasn't going to let his chance go to waste.
He looked the guy up and down subtly, realising that the guy looked, for all intents and purposes, skinny and weak. It probably wouldn't take much to win in a fight against him if he was human – which he wasn't. Kaneki needed to look out for that appendage they could bring out. Rise caught him by surprise with hers – it wouldn't happen again.
Kaneki also quickly assigned his SP. He put them all in Dex, bringing his speed up. He needed to be able to react to any incoming attack, and he hoped this would be enough to do so. Was it smart? No. However, he hoped he had enough health to take a couple more hits if something happened. Considering the rest of his stats at the moment, it looked like he might be ok.
Name – Kaneki Ken
Species - ?
Title – The Gamer
Lvl – 2
XP – 0 (200 to next Level Up)
HP – 74/120
MP – 120
Str – 5
Vit – 6
Dex – 10
Int – 6
Wis – 6
Lck – 1
SP – 0
The last thing Kaneki needed was an attack plan. If he could make a Skill on his first hit, would that help him? Maybe. It was very vague with how a skill was created – he made one by running, and made one by – he only just realised – being in the presence of the person currently attacking him. What more could he do to keep his life?
Well…
There was one thing he was sure would hurt.
With his feet off the ground? This guy wouldn't even see it coming.
"I've decided…" The man started. "I'm going to eat you slowly, just to see if I like you. No hard feelings. Hahaha…"
He started to lean in to Kaneki's shoulder, and this was the moment Kaneki decided to strike. Pulling his foot back as far as he could – which wasn't far, considering the wall in its way – he threw it forward directly into the ghoul's crotch, feeling more than seeing the poor guys grip slack enough for Kaneki to grab his hand and throw him into the wall himself, back to the wall. Kaneki then quickly rained blows into his stomach, one hand after another, and then punched him in the face when he finally moved his arms around to defend. A moment later, and Kaneki knew it was time to move, as the ghouls eyes widened and turned black.
The only reason he knew to back off was due to Rise. Honestly, if he never went on that date with Rise, Kaneki wondered if he would be here right now.
Kaneki noticed that moment that there was a green bar hovering above the ghouls head – something else the game did? – which was about half full. There was also a name – Akinari Tanaka. So now he was psychic too. Was there a limit to this ability?
The final thing he spotted was a level above his head – specifically, 4. Double Kaneki's own.
It was now dangerous to get close to the ghoul. Just great. At any moment Kaneki could be cut in two and there would be nothing he could do about it, bar maybe scream and hope to get medical attention again, but considering he already received treatment for one ghoul related incident not a week ago, he doubted he would be so lucky again.
"You bastard…" The ghoul growled out, hands tightening into fists. There was a slight red glow on the wall behind him – proof that Kaneki was right to back off. "I'LL KILL YOUUU!"
They both ran at the same moment, Kaneki sprinting down the alley toward the gym again, and the ghoul following close behind. The plan had changed. There was no way Kaneki would be underestimated again, so he had to think of something else – either a weapon, or being out in the open. If he was in the open, he could hide amongst people – no ghoul hunted in the middle of busy streets after all, and although the gym was a little out of the way, it was still barely off the main street. More than enough exposure to keep himself safe.
There was no crashing sound behind him to indicate the ghoul catching on him, just footsteps – which he supposed was good, as a lack of footsteps would mean this guy either got onto the rooftops somehow or was flying, which was even scarier to think of. Meanwhile, Kaneki knew he wouldn't tire – or at least, trusted the Game to make sure he didn't – and would only get faster the more he ran. If all went smoothly, he would be safe in no time.
Kaneki also briefly realised that the eyepatch he had been wearing this whole time had been knocked off in the scuffle. When exactly he had no idea, or maybe it had been taken off whilst he had been coming up with a plan. He had no real idea.
Did it even matter? Kaneki just got told to keep It on because the eye had to be replaced or fixed or something like that. Honestly, if the Game already fixed it by way of its own systems, he supposed it should be fine to expose it to the open air.
Looking at his feet in the water, Kaneki finally realised that he was gaining more ground on the ghoul chasing him, if the shouts from the distance were any indication. Good, but he wouldn't be safe until he was with other people.
Wait…
Kaneki stopped suddenly. He saw something in the reflection in the water - something he had only seen on a very small number of people beforehand, and something that he never thought he would see on himself.
A red eye. His left, specifically. It was hard to see in the reflection of the water, but he could see it still. Although he knew it was just like any other eye that ghouls had, he was almost tempted to say it was originally Rise's, and probably would have said so if he didn't remember that her eyes were purple. How did this even work? Was it just the eye?
In fact… did this mean he was a ghoul?
Almost as if to mock him, more screens popped up.
Species uncovered
Species – Half Ghoul
[Quest Complete]
You have found out what you are! Hopefully, this will help prepare you for what is to come.
Reward Gained – Access to Racial Abilities, Access to Racial Stat Bonuses,
Access to Racial Title, Access to Relationship Menu,
Low Tier Skill Book (Solidify Kagune)
1000XP
5000
New Feature – A Ghouls Hunger
Received From – Half Ghoul Heritage
Ghouls need to consume human flesh to survive – and it's no different for you!
Consume a certain amount of Flesh (Represented by RC resource) or be consumed by [The Hunger] Status Effect
This Status Effect Nullifies Gamers Mind
While under the effects of [The Hunger], your mind will be assaulted and you will struggle to control your actions. The effects of this can partially be mitigated by a high Wis stat.
While under the effects of [The Hunger], you will find and consume whatever flesh you come across unless resisted by a high Wis stat.
Once RC resource hits 0, [The Hunger] will start at its lowest effect.
When RC hits 0, Int and Wis are halved.
Even if RC is stored, eating anything but flesh will inhibit all abilities and stats
RC Resource
The RC gauge is a way of seeing how much flesh you have eaten and how much more you need to survive.
Ghouls use RC in their Kagune and, in some cases, Accelerated Healing. Therefore, the use of more RC than the body has induces a slight state of insanity on the user known as [The Hunger], which gets worse over time.
Since you are the Gamer, eating human flesh also grants bonus XP!
RC Resource replaces MP
As a Ghoul, you gain +10% to every physical stat, increased to 40% when your Kagune is manifested.
Kaneki heard the footsteps grow louder behind him.
He ran once more.
Touka was a simple woman. Or at least, that's what she would describe herself as. There were a few types of people in the world, and they could be split into two categories.
Those that could look after themselves, and those that couldn't.
It tended to be that humans fit into the last category. And that was what separated one kind of ghoul from the other. There were those that would eat who they wanted when they wanted, which, aside from being the most callous of actions, was stupid and irresponsible, bringing more trouble to the 20th ward that she called home.
She was a part of the first, for the most part. She was nowhere close to being useless by any means, and she realised that there were some things she could do better with, but honestly, who didn't? Besides, at least she wasn't one of the ones in the first category that were up their own ass with their strength.
Nishiki, she quickly decided, was on the borderline. He was weak, almost stupidly so, but he wasn't exactly useless. Which was why she was careful, watching him from the rooftops as he stalked the alleyways looking for prey.
Touka didn't want to be there – not by a long shot. But she there on Anteiku business. She had to make sure the ghouls of the 20th knew not to try and take Rise's old hunting grounds since her death. It was only a week or so after and they were swarming the place, although it looked like Nishiki was the last one. If he used them, that was.
She lost him for a moment as he turned a corner and suddenly she had to jump to the opposite rooftop to follow him. Seriously, did he know, or did he like walking as if going through a maze?
Either way, she saw his intent to kill the moment she spotted him again.
There was a body – very much human – laying in a pool of blood, and another ghoul eating. Presumably, the one that killed the human in the first place. Looked like he hadn't been able to eat in a while, what with Rise taking up almost half of the 20th. Regardless, the only thing wrong was Nishiki.
He didn't look pissed, but then again she knew the façade for what it was. She was sure that if she was closer to him, she would see his eyes burning in anger.
She dealt with him once or twice before. Well, she didn't – old man Yoshimura did – but she still knew how angry he was about Anteiku being the deciding factor for most of the goings on in the 20th. Or at least, how vocal he was at the time. Instead of shouting at Yoshimura when the rules were brought up to him about 6 months back, he made his objections clear and left. That was both the smartest and stupidest move he could have made. Not only did he reveal his intent to push back against the rules, he showed to the old man that that he was weak enough to be cowed by their force. Why leave straight away if he was strong enough to be on top?
Nishiki showed his weakness. Anteiku weren't about to show theirs.
Before he could do anything truly damaging to the ghoul simply wanting his meal, she jumped from her position to stand between Nishiki and the corpse. She landed on the blood – but really, when did a bit of blood stop a ghoul? – and straightened her stance.
Nishiki's eyes widened somewhat. He probably hadn't noticed she was there, and wasn't that a slight boon to her ego, not that she'd admit to having one.
"Nishiki." She started before he could. "These grounds are under the jurisdiction of Anteiku to be divided between the weaker ghouls. You have no reason to be here."
Yeah. Way to piss him off. She could tell this was going to quickly turn into a fight, if him moving into a fighting stance and showing off his Kakugan was any indication.
It wasn't like she was unprepared. Although one of the more inexperienced ghouls of Anteiku, she wasn't weak by any means. She could take Nishiki no problem – she just wished her kind were more willing to talk instead of possibly draw the ire of the humans.
Just never let Touka be the one talking, seemed to be the rule so far.
"And let you fence-sitters at Anteiku hoard it all? Why should I. I took these grounds when Rise died. They're mine, fair and square."
He had a smirk on his face, but Touka saw the brittleness to it. It was a little too forced, as if he didn't want to fight either. Was this what her mother told her about when she was young? That some people will always try and take the harder route when it made no sense to do so?
Stupid, she called them.
Touka didn't know quite what she meant at the time, but now that she was faced with it? Very much an apt description. Unless he thought he could take her? Well, they'd soon see.
"Look. Rise took these grounds from weaker ghouls and killed them while she was at it. The rest of them got pushed away for fear of having their territory taken too. There needs to be some assurance from someone that these grounds are safe for the weaker ghouls or they'll start moving onto other territories or giving in to their hunger. And we both don't want the effects of that, do we?"
He was watching her carefully, listening to every word she said. She hadn't activated her Kakugan yet – there was still a vague hope that some sort of agreement could be made, but the longer she waited for a response, the more she lost that hope.
After what felt like an eternity but was more likely just a moment, he responded about as well as was expected.
"If any of them come onto my territory, I'll kill them. Yourself included."
Hm. Yeah. The time for talking was over, it seemed, as Nishiki started lunging for Touka. In an instant, she had her Kagune solidified, and she was moving faster than he could even dream of.
It was almost laughable, how she cut into him using only her Kagune itself. There was no skill, no finesse, certainly no strength – just a battle of speed. May as well have been a footrace.
A footrace with a brick tied to Nishiki's ankle.
When they passed, there was only a breeze to signify Touka even moving – well, that and her being opposite her original position.
Within seconds, blood was flying. From Nishiki's arm, legs, torso and face, there were well over ten or so cuts on his body. They were painful, or at least that was what she was told about her Kagune. No matter how used to pain you were, being hurt by a glorified pair of wings seemed to sting in more ways than one.
Either way, Touka was just glad there was going to be no one dying tonight. Nishiki would live, and really, that's all that matters.
That everyone got out of here alive. Bar the corpse, of course.
The idea that Kaneki should be panicking wasn't a foreign one. He knew he should have been panicking back when he was in the hospital seeing the same screens and being told he had an emergency organ transplant, when the quest screen popped up implying Hide's impending death, and so much more. Learning that he was now a monster that needed to kill and eat people in order to survive? And people like Hide, at that? That was a blow that could topple a skyscraper. The kind of twist that authors dreamed about from the beginning of their story's conception. But he didn't panic.
He almost wondered what it would take to break himself, if the game would ever let him break.
He had some time to think, since Kaneki actually took a moment to run into another alleyway when he heard the ghoul catching up to him. It only took a moment more of running and about 3 more levels in [Sprint], but now he had a moment to ponder these recent findings.
He was a ghoul. It made some amount of sense, although he had the feeling it would make a lot more sense the more he found out about ghouls. It also was possible in reality. There could have been a mistake and he had been given organs from Rise, which could have altered his body enough that he was, in all ways that mattered, a ghoul. He had no idea how that worked, but there had to be something that caused it, and that was the only thing he could think of. Not unless the Game caused it, and really was that even an argument at this point? The game seemed to be a system that allowed him to grow strong at a potentially rapid pace. If that's what it did, then he needed to stop treating it with so much distrust. There was no way it turned him into a ghoul.
Would the Game have appeared to him whether he was human or not? He didn't know. It was something he doubted he'd ever know the answer to.
Regardless, he had some decisions to make. First, to look over his new Racial Skills and Title. Not to mention check his RC gauge.
Racial Skill Discovered
[Kagune Manifestation – Rinkaku (Active) LVL1]
On command, manifests the Rinkaku Kagune, gifted to you by Rise's Kakuhou.
Produces an amount of tentacles – amount based on level. These can deal damage independantly, can be brought together to combine their strength, can be used as a shield, and their almost liquid like nature allows for a regenerative effect second to none.
Effects
Manifest 2 Tentacles
Each tentacle can deal 100 damage per attack
Each attack has a 5% chance to inflict Bleed
Can be combined to protect a body part of medium size – such as an arm or leg
Can combine strength, dealing 100*combined tentacles worth of damage
Can block and completely mitigate up to 50 damage
If broken, can be re-manifested in 2 hours.
If broken, lose 500 from your RC resource
Gives Passive – [Rinkaku Regeneration]
[Rinkaku Regeneration (Passive) LVL1]
Allows for a superhuman regeneration as long as there are RC cells available to the user.
This ability comes instinctively to Rinkaku ghouls, and therefore cannot be deactivated.
Effects
Regenerates 1% of Max HP per second at the cost of 5% of Max RC resource
Can be inhibited by certain effects
Can be slowed by user, but never turned off manually
When slowed, regenerates 0.5% Max HP per second at cost of 3% Max RC resource.
Deactivates automatically when HP is at/above 100%
[Predatory Instinct (Passive/Active) LVL1]
Ever wonder how a ghoul knows who is human and who isn't? Well, this is it!
Effects
Passively;
Doubles the effectiveness of every sense
Allows for differentiation of scent, allowing you to smell the difference between humans and ghouls
Actively;
Triples the effectiveness of every sense for 20 seconds
Allows for Basic Tracking
Grants a 10% chance to break someone's stealth within a 10M radius
[Natural Edge (Passive) LVL1]
A ghoul naturally has higher strength, speed and endurance compared to a human. We can't allow you to lag behind, can we?
Grants a 20% bonus to Str, Vit, and Dex. This bonus is always applied last when calculating stats, once every other bonus has already been added.
Also, gain [Bladed Immunity].
Title Gained
[Young Half Ghoul]
With human nature on one side and the almost cannibalistic instinct on the other, which will you choose?
Effects (When Equipped)
Gives 10% bonus to every stat.
When Kagune is manifested, +40% to every stat instead.
Increases levelling of ghoul abilities by 10%
Increases XP earned by 10%
Feel the effects of a ghouls Hunger twice as much
Looking at the new title in comparison to his older one showed that The Gamer title was nothing more than a placeholder, which was fine with Kaneki. The bonuses for the title were too good to pass up.
Speaking of bonuses, he also had a lot of level ups, so he supposed he should check his stats and see how far he had come since learning about his ghoul nature and what he could do with the extra stats.
Name – Kaneki Ken
Species – Ghoul
Title – Young Half Ghoul
Lvl – 5
XP – 400 (800 to next Level Up)
HP – 130/148
RC – 80/132
Str – (5) 6.6
Vit – (6) 7.9
Dex – (11) 13.2
Int – (5) 6.6
Wis – (5) 6.6
Lck – (1)1.1
SP – 15
1 Evolution Point Available
Kaneki thought for a moment. Just an hour or so ago, he was at level one, and had… what, approximately half of the total stat points? This was an insane amount of growth. Not to mention the Evolution Point he had supposedly gained – from where, he had no idea. There was a moment of silence for the death of tutorials, since the entity that turned his life into a game had obviously decided to kill them before cursing the young mans life, before Kaneki put an extra 4 points into luck, turning it from terrible to potentially something that wouldn't keep hindering him. He then put all the points into Vit, making sure he had more than enough health to take a hit.
That brought his Vit up to 22.4 altogether, dragging his maximum health to 448. His luck stuck at a 5.5, but that was fine for now. He had no idea what Luc even affected, so it seemed a lot better to focus on things he could see working out for him. Being at a 1 though? That was just asking for trouble.
So, now he was a ghoul. There was a lot to be said about the Kaneki that existed about a week ago, but what couldn't be said was that in the face of all this he would be calm. That wasn't in his nature, after all – he was timid. He was frightened. He was a lot of things, but brave or fearless? Not one of them. The fearless were the stupid ones regardless, but the brave at least saw the reason to fear something and would run away if they needed to. Right now, he was fearless – or at least, very close to. He could still feel the fear if he thought hard enough, but it was muted, as if it was waiting for a better time to show itself. That's what he'd felt ever since he got the quest to go with Hide, and he was somewhat grateful that it was there at all. It meant that in the ways that mattered, he was still human.
Not that he was really all that human, all things considered, but he still had his humanity. That was good.
Now, Kaneki had to escape.
He had no idea how strong the other ghoul was – but if he was to try and apply the logic of the game to everyone around him, then Kaneki supposed they should be about equal, if he himself wasn't weaker due to lack of experience. That… wasn't bad, but then again wasn't that great either. It was basically a coinflip, and whilst Kaneki only just improved his luck, he wasn't willing to place his bets on it just yet.
The other ghoul – Akinari, he remembered from earlier – probably had some way of tracking him too. If that was listed as a ghoul ability, then there was probably some truth to most ghouls being able to do it. That meant it was only a matter of time before this ghoul found him again.
Which meant one of two things. Either Kaneki continues with the original plan, or he kills the ghoul.
Could Kaneki kill Akinari? In fact, could he beat Akinari at all? He didn't know. But he also didn't know if this ghoul would become a greater threat down the line. Maybe by killing him, Hide would be safe tomorrow anyway? Maybe Akinari is the reason Hide would be in danger tomorrow?
No. It wasn't right to think like that. Who was he to decide who lived or died? Just because the game told him information, at that? He could very well have pieced it all together wrong. If there was a possibility of Kaneki getting out without killing Akinari, then that would be the objective he sought.
After all, he was meant to be saving a life tomorrow, right? Then if Akinari wasn't the one endangering Hide, that would potentially be three deaths caused by him. Akinari, the attacker, and Hide.
There were too few rewards for so much risk.
Also, he was running out of time before the gym closed. Really, that should have been the first thing he thought of to be honest, but with someone ready to kill him somewhere in this maze of an alleyway, there were bigger things on his mind.
Kaneki took a moment from his pondering to listen to the world around him – distant hums of cars all around him, slight bussle of streets – nothing unusual. Then, once he thought he was safe, he turned the corner and ran in the direction of what he thought was the gym. Although by now he had kind of lost his sense of direction… he was still somewhat certain it was this way.
Taking a sniff of the air, he realised how much of a different world it was for ghouls. He could smell so much around him that it was almost disorientating, and he dreaded to think of what would happen if he dared to use the active part of the ability. Speaking of smells, he realised he smelt something that was probably out of place…
Kaneki stopped suddenly and stared at one of the rooftops, which typically would have no one on them. Turns out there was this time.
With short purple hair making a fringe over most of her face, wearing a light blue and black jacket of sorts and some dark shorts. Above her head laid a health bar, full, a name, and a level.
Touka Kirishima, LVL24
…
This could go really bad really quick.
"You can come down." Kaneki said in his most non-threatening tone. "I don't bite."
She didn't say anything, at least straight away. First she took to walking to the edge of the roof and simply walked off, falling for a brief moment before landing in a crouch.
She almost looked completely disinterested in everything about him. Kaneki supposed he should have been slightly offended at that, but there was something more taking his attention.
"Your that waitress… At the coffee shop. Anteiku, was it?"
That got her attention, and suddenly Kaneki was aware of the danger of saying something like that. Back then, he was completely human, and she would likely remember that.
"And your that boy…" She said slowly. "How did you… "
She took a sniff, which was exactly what Kaneki didn't want at that moment. Then again, if he didn't want a talk with the second ghoul he came across, he should have continued running. The only problem was that she was keeping up with him, and doing it very quietly at that.
'Damn it.' He thought to himself. 'Well… in for a penny…"
"Listen. You might not believe this, but I used to be human and I need help."
"What? What does that even mean, 'used to be human'? What the hell happened?"
Shit, she was getting pissed and was walking closer. Great. No way was he going to be able to run away from this one.
"Look, look… Rise died, and I think the doctor put her organs in me to save my life – I was crushed you see, so most of my organs were gone. So-So- wait don't come closer – Arhggh!"
Her hands wrapped around his neck and pushed him into a wall, completely cutting off circulation and slowly suffocating the boy.
"You listen! I don't know what games your playing human, but you smell like both human and ghoul. Your going to stop making shit up before I eat you." She let her Kakugan show – for effect, Kaneki assumed. "Got it?"
Her grip let up slightly, allowing Kaneki to swallow up the air around him. Really, in this situation, there was only one thing he could do.
Kaneki opened his eyes and stared at Touka.
Red stared at a suddenly mismatched pair of eyes.
Kaneki fell to the floor.
