Chapter 24

Untitled. Part 4

"I wonder what's down there…" Nami quivered. It was a little cold and she was nervous too. The girl didn't want to end up like her friend that was just electrocuted who currently seemed to have difficulties while walking. The investigator had to hold his arm to help him stand.

Kaneki gulped. They were almost at the end of the stairs. Nothing weird down there so far, but he was still cautious. His steps were hesitant but he forced them anyway. Not cooperating with the doctor would harm him and maybe Nami too.

"Here we are." Kanou spoke as his shoes finally stepped on the white tiles.

What awaited them downstairs was a big space of a white room. Kaneki tilted up his head. From where he stood he saw a rectangular window on the higher part of the wall.

"What is that window for up there?" Kaneki asked out of curiosity.

"That?" Kanou tilted up his head. "That is where I and the other doctors will observe you." He said something secrete in his words.

"W-what are we doing here?" Kaneki asked nervously.

Kanou smirked. "Do a mock battle." He turned on his heels as he shifted his eyes to the silent investigator. "Louis."

Under the doctor's command, Louis let go of his hold over Shiki's arm. Shiki managed to stable his body and pain seemed to be ceased away by then.

"Are you alright, Shiki?" Nami asked worriedly.

Shiki nodded as his hand tried to rub his back. "I'm fine."

Kaneki kept his eyes onto Kanou's and Louis' back. He watched where they were going. Then there was an opening lift on the same wall with the window, and the two humans entered it, leaving the three children alone.

"That lift must be taking them up there…" Kaneki said. Next he looked around the room. The only way out was the stairs where they came from. Then there was one thing he realized.

"Now that you see it… The floor and walls are full with scratch marks…" Kaneki said as he browsed around the room.

"What did Kanou say to us before he left us here?" Shiki asked the two. "'Do a mock battle'. This must be where they make subjects fight with their kagune. Maybe a place for… practicing."

"But look at all of these marks," Nami said. She even saw 5 marks near where she stood. "There must've been other children before us!"

Kaneki frowned. That was possible. They had been doing this for a long time, but the boy didn't know since when. Was it possible it started when they got The Binge Eater in custody? Or maybe even longer? Then what happened to those subjects? Became failures? Dead?

Suddenly, the three children heard the lift was opened again. It revealed the silent investigator from before. However, he seemed different. His hand carried a metal suitcase which he didn't bring before.

"W-why is he coming back?" Kaneki asked.

"Don't tell me…" Shiki squinted his eyes. "We might be fighting him." He tutted.

"N-no way—KYAA!"

Then without warning, the exit way to the stairs up was closed tight with a glass barrier. The sound completely shocked the three children, diverting their attentions toward that way. They all looked in horror. There was no way out, and the danger was in front of them.

"Attention please."

Under the echoing voice of Kanou's, Kaneki and the others automatically looked up towards the observation window. Kanou was looking down on them from his place, and it seemed like he wasn't alone.

"You will have Louis as your opponent. The goal for this battle is for you three to release your kagune and defend yourselves against his attacks with it for 15 minutes. Before your kagunes release yet, I will not stop the fight. Good luck."

Right after Kanou finished his instruction, Louis activated the quinque on his hand. It turned into the shape of a long gun, glowing in green pulse. The man's green eyes stared focus onto the children, and his grip on his gun was more firm.

"The only way to defend against my quinque is by using your kagune. But I'll go easy on you." Louis spoke for the first time that day. The children flinched over his voice that was lighter than they had thought. "Even with kagune, I'd still be able to hurt you. Can you imagine how it'd be if you don't have anything to protect your skin?" Louis smirked. "I might accidentally put more holes than what I intended."

"Run!" Shiki yelled. Immediately all of them ran on different ways. Louis was thinking on which one he should play with first.

Then, his emerald eyes locked on one's back. His hand was lifted, the arm was steady. The gun's body on his hand was glistening under the light, ready to fire its bullets.

"Number three, watch out."

"Kaneki!" Nami screamed.

But it was too late. The moment Louis gave his warning, his hand already pulled the trigger. A painful scream echoed in the basement, delightful in the dove's ear. His face was kept stoic to not violate his work ethic. He had a job there and was the only investigator involved in that experiment. Louis didn't want to mess it up. He was paid handsomely for what he exactly had done.

"AAAARGH!" Kaneki screamed as his small body fell down to the floor. His hand grasped on his shoulder where the investigator shot him. Unlike the glass shard he used to kill himself 5 days ago, this bullet was able to make him bleed. His eyes were tightly shut trying to erase the pain somehow. Tears formed in his eyes, threatening to spill out.

"KANEKI!" Both Shiki and Nami shouted. The situation made them realize that they need to support each other, that they were on the same side. Deep down they knew they had become friends the moment they saw the raven haired boy fell down and screaming in pain.

"You better worry about yourselves," Louis said, "This will be over if you can bring out your kagune."

Kaneki was still gasping for air. His hand that was clutching at his hurt shoulder felt wet with blood. His mind screamed that it hurt, it was the first time he was physically hurt that way. He kept on saying to himself that the pain would go away, dissipating into void. And somehow it worked like a mantra.

"H-huh?" Kaneki opened his teared up eyes. He looked down towards his shoulder, and he saw no hole. It completely healed. The only thing that was holed up was the fabric of his cloth. "I-it's healed…?" He thought maybe he wasn't actually shot at all, but the blood on around where the hole was became the evidence that a bullet did gone through his body. "Is this a ghoul's ability?"

With that in mind, the boy stood up again, his eyes moved right and left worriedly towards both Shiki and Nami. He was the dove's first target, who was next? Then the moment his eyes were set on the other boy besides him, his scream was the next to be echoed around the room.

"Shiki!" Kaneki screamed that instant. The brave boy fell down, clutching his leg that was shot. Meanwhile Nami could only watch in horror, but she tried her best to run and avoid any incoming bullets. They didn't have any weapon to protect themselves. The only weapon they had was the kagune they didn't know how to bring out.

Louis realized that the boy he shot first had already recovered. He raised his eyebrow, amused by that fast recovery he had seen from the past subjects that got Binge Eater's liver. But all of them didn't make it by the end of the month. It was quite hard not to get bored by not waiting for new subjects to come in this facilities. Doing this and protecting the place was what Louis was paid for. The director of the CCG chose him instead of the higher ranks above him, so he intended to do his best and be professional.

"Pretty fast, right?" Louis asked Kaneki. "That was only one shot. I will shoot two at a time for the next round."

"You said that you'll go easy on us!" Nami whined and somehow believing that her effort for saying it would somehow let Louis let them go.

"I'm going easy on you by telling what my next move is." Shiki steadied his arm again and this time he pointed it towards the girl, "All you have to do is just to deflect the bullets with your kagune."

"AAKH!" Nami fell down after her right shoulder was shot. She cried in pain, for it being her first time to be hurt like that.

This was no time to worry about others. They'd recover later just like his shoulder back to one shape. Kaneki had to think how to release his kagune, but he didn't even get the picture of how it worked, how it looked like, where could it possibly sprouting from his body. Then, he tilted his head up facing glass to see the doctor. Kaneki didn't like it. He didn't like that man's calm face who only observed them without getting himself involved and safe.

"You have to explain to us how does kagune looked like and work or we won't be able to control it!" Kaneki knew for sure that the doctor would be able to hear him nice and clear. His loud voice startled the other people inside there. Immediately they turned their attention towards the raven haired boy.

"Oh, you're right." Kanou replied from the speaker.

"Kaneki…" Shiki muttered under his breath. The wound on his leg was starting to close up and he could tell the pain started to dissipate. He really thought that Kaneki wouldn't even try to control this kagune they heard of. For the least, he thought he would be the only one who would actually try to fight first.

"Louis, please hold off for a moment." Kanou instructed. Under the doctor's command, Louis hung down his arm and with his gun on his side. Then the doctor proceeded to explain,

"Listen to me carefully for I won't be explaining this twice. Kagune is basically composed of Rc cells. These Rc cells are really flexible but firm and sturdy when released. Ghouls need the nutrients from Rc cells to stay alive." He paused. "Rc cells have Rc Factor. A ghoul's Rc Factor is 10 times higher than human's. This makes it impossible for them to eat human's food and could only digest a human's flesh. The moment I implanted The Binge Eater's liver in your bodies, your Rc cells were duplicating rapidly over the night until it reached a ghoul's standard amount of Rc Factor."

This Rc cells explanation from Kanou surprisingly intriguing for Kaneki. He had never known about Rc cells before. He had never known that he had those within his body even when he was still completely a human. Maybe it was just his trait for studying as his hobby, but Kaneki decided to engrave this information inside his head.

"Now there are four types of kagune. Ukaku, a kagune that is grown from shoulders. Ghouls who have this type of kagune are the speed type, relying on agility, but low on stamina. Koukaku, a kagune that is grown from shoulder blades. Strength and defense type, but really lack on speed. Rinkaku, the kagune that is grown from the back of your waist. They have high regeneration ability, flexible, tentacle-like kagune. Then finally, bikaku. Ghouls who have this type of kagune is the balance type. Their power in speed, strength, and regeneration aren't completely different but that doesn't mean they are not strong. The kagune is grown from your tail-bone and usually shaped like a tail."

After fully understanding it, Kaneki voiced his question. "The wound from Louis-san's shot on my shoulder quickly closed up. Does rinkaku our type, then?"

"Quick to understand aren't you, subject three?" Kanou grinned. It was an uncommon sight to see a smart boy like him. "Yes. It's rinkaku. When you release it, the shape will be exactly the same like The Binge Eater's."

Kaneki tilted his head back down. He took a glance at his waist, thinking about the Rc cells and actually try to feel it. These Rc cells which a ghoul could control and bend at will, the raven haired boy had to find a way to released it. He wouldn't want to keep being shot at and running away wouldn't help either.

"Continue, Louis."

"Understood."

It looked like the doctor didn't give them enough time to think and figuring out how to fight it back. Nami and Shiki had already recovered by the time Kanou was in the middle of his explanation. Both of them looked at Kaneki. Kaneki realized that and he instinctively asked,

"Are you two alright!?"

"My wound closed up just fine! Thanks for asking him!" Nami shouted from her spot.

"Me too. If it's like this then perhaps we can—" Shiki's sentence was cut off by Louis' another shot that this time only grazed their legs. That was a warning shot, and the three of them knew then they didn't have much time to talk things out first.

"If I weren't going easy on you, I wouldn't just graze that leg to tell you to get focus." The investigator said coldly and successfully sent shiver down their spine.

"For now, all of us have to figure out on how to get this kagune out from the back of our waist. Scatter!" Kaneki shouted. The other two nodded, and they ran again just like before. It really seemed silly. Like they were playing child's game. But this really hurt them and their lives pretty much depended on it.

Two shots fired towards Kaneki's forearm. Once again he stumbled down, screaming in pain as he clutched his arm. However, he tried desperately to hold the pain knowing that it'd heal within minutes. The boy gritted his teeth and slowly back on his feet. He focused his mind to imagine the kagune, to feel the sensation of power residing in his waist. He closed his eyes, tears of pain desperately held back. But the sound of gunshot disturbed his focus and he was forced to open his grey eyes again.

It was Nami who got shot. Kaneki was close to get panic if only he didn't shift his eyes towards the other boy. He was doing the same thing like what Kaneki was doing. However, Kaneki could tell that Shiki desperately tried to stay calm. By this time, the wound on his forearm was halfway done recovering.

Then he could feel it. A tingling feeling swelled around the back of his waist, harmlessly trying to be released. It was a whole new sensation yet it already felt like something that is a part of himself. He was scared. It wasn't like he suddenly changed to be a brave boy just because he asked the doctor up there, at least not as gallant as Shiki who wasn't afraid to watch his mouth. Kaneki was about to do something that isn't human. Something that wouldn't make him… him.

That was where his heart suddenly wavered. He couldn't do it. He didn't want to change. He didn't want to be a ghoul. Yes, he was denying his non-human self again. He wanted to get out of that place, he wanted to go to his best friend. Hide was the first person that came into his mind. He wanted Hide to save him. He wanted Hide by his side. His head kept on swirling in a mess until a voice surprised him.

Another two gunshots were heard and ringing in his ears. A rough scream came from Shiki, and that woke Kaneki up from his train of thoughts.

"S-Shiki…" Kaneki was speechless of words. He couldn't possibly keep this up. He wanted to go out. He was afraid of this heartless man who shot them without carefulness.

"Three bullets for the next round."

"!"

Before Kaneki could prepare for it, the bullet shot his body again once more. It was his stomach this time, and it hurt like hell.

"AKH!" Kaneki screamed in pain as he fell onto his knees and crouched on four. His hand was holding on his stomach, his grey eyes watching his blood dripping little by little on the floor. It was different than being shot on his shoulder. It hurt more there and Kaneki cried again even knowing that it would close up. "…Damn!" Kaneki gritted his teeth.

"You better start running," Louis said, "I'm shooting you again now."

Then it happened.

"!" Louis widened his eyes slightly. His bullet was deflected by a single red tentacle which he had seen from last year.

The tentacle came from the back of his waist, ripping out his shirt as it protecting him from the bullet. He was still on four and his head was still hanging low. The wound on his stomach began to heal again. Kaneki slowly tilted his head up, and there, everybody saw his left eye turned into the authentic black sclera and red pupil against his own will.

Louis smirked. "Good job."

"I-is that a..." Nami couldn't help but gaping her mouth. She saw something extraordinary, something that was close to be terrestrial. That was what a ghoul supposed to be looked like. That was what she and Shiki supposed to be looked like.

"We can do it too." Shiki said as he getting up. He used his elbows to prop his weight.

"Shiki…?"

"We have to fight back." Then he mustered his focus, until slowly his left eye changed color. The black color slowly enveloping his sclera, until he managed to release a tentacle out from his waist, glowing freshly in red.

Nami gulped. Now she saw both of the boys done exactly what she wanted to avoid. But Shiki was right. Releasing kagune was what they had to do to survive. It's not like they would die, but avoiding pain and bullets going through your body would be wise. Because Louis wouldn't stop until they did what Kanou ordered them.

She saw what Shiki did and tried to copy him. Focusing on her waist, try to feel the Rc cells bulking up. She could feel a tingling sensation like whatever it was in there trying to come out. She didn't resist but encouraging it to come out and protect her. And then there it was, a single red tentacle kagune identical with the others. Her pink eye changed into the menacing ghoul eye.

Seeing their desired transformation, Kanou smirked from the observing room. They were quick. Past subjects managed to use their kagune when Louis fired the fifth round of his warning.

"JB found some jewels." Kanou complimented.

A/N:

Holy shit holy shit holy shit RIZE WAS A PART OF 'V'!? WTF!? AND OMG KANEKI WILL MEET AYATO AGAIN! SHIT'S ABOUT TO GET DOWN!

Thank you for the follows, reviews, and favorites! Much appreciated!