Chapter 3
"Why the hell is he here?!"
Kaneki froze, tray in hand as he navigated the café. It was Touka and she was shouting, which wasn't all that surprising to Kaneki. Touka seemed to shout a lot, mostly at him. The sun had set and only Kaneki and the other employees were still around.
Ordinarily, Kaneki would have merely listened a second longer before remembering his manners and walked away in embarrassment for listening in.
It was the reply that made Kaneki linger outside the door Touka's voice had come from.
"He is here because I agreed to hire him." Yoshimura responded and Kaneki frowned.
Touka didn't often get into rows with the manager, Kaneki couldn't think of a moment where anyone had said anything negative about the manager.
But here Touka was, apparently yelling right into his face. Their words caught Kaneki off guard and his breath hitched.
Were they talking about him? Touka had made her reservations about his presence in the café clear numerous times.
"He's not a ghoul! He'll ruin everything!" Touka slammed her hands down and Kaneki flinched at the muffled thump.
"Touka. Do you think Ichigo's arrival in Tokyo and the recent ghoul murders are merely coincidence?" They were talking about Ichigo.
"W-what? You think he did that! That's impossible he's just a human!"
"Touka, I have been around for many years, I know what a human smells like. While Ichigo may appear human, it is obvious he is different."
"What is he then?"
The manager paused.
"I don't know."
"Then why is he here?"
"You know what they say, Touka, keep your friends close but your enemies closer."
"Well, which one is he?"
"We'll just have to wait and see. "The manager solemnly replied. "Until then Yomo will keep an eye on him."
Kaneki hurried away as he heard Touka approach the door. It soon swung open as he slipped around a corner.
He breathed a sigh of relief as Touka left, ignorant to his eavesdropping. Kaneki wandered back on track to his original destination, engrossed in his thoughts.
Ichigo wasn't a ghoul? He assumed the manager would only hire ghouls to keep their cover, but no, Ichigo wasn't a ghoul. Kaneki bit his lip as he realised what that meant.
He would have to be extremely careful around his orange-haired co-worker, lest Ichigo discover what lay behind Kaneki's eyepatch.
Or even worse, if Ichigo was responsible for the killings. Kaneki hoped it wasn't true, but the manager's words and his gut instinct told him that Ichigo was someone to be afraid of.
Someone to be feared. Prey or predator, Ichigo Kurosaki was dangerous.
Ichigo pushed open the door to Anteiku with a slight sense of déjà vu, the small bell tinkling softly as he stepped inside from the pouring rain.
"Yo! Ichigo!"
His eyes flicked to the bar, then to the blonde hair and blinding yellow jacket. Hide waved enthusiastically and grinned.
Ichigo lazily waved back and shrugged off his dripping raincoat onto a radiator. Looking back towards the smiling Hide, he noticed Touka standing beside him, smiling a gentle smile.
Her eyes met his and her smile faltered for a moment before Touka smiled brighter.
"Ichigo, your shift starts soon, you should get changed." She gestured to the door before allowing Hide to slip back into a cheerful barrage of a one-sided conversation.
Ichigo slipped past the duo and pulled the door open. He glanced up the stairs directly in front of him and paused.
Kaneki stood at the top of the stairs, deep in thought as he descended the narrow stair way. Ichigo stood to the side as the smaller teen approached before he finally glanced up.
He nodded slightly to Kaneki. "Kaneki." Ichigo greeted laconically.
"Ichigo! U-uh, I mean, hi." Kaneki nervously replied as he passed Ichigo, who attributed his behaviour to Kaneki's skittish nature, before making eye contact.
Ichigo's brown eyes met Kaneki's black eyes.
Kaneki stared back for a moment before shaking himself and moving on. Ichigo frowned over his in confusion before shrugging to himself and climbing the stairs.
He soon slipped into his uniform and stepped out and returned down the stairs.
Ichigo was met with a near silent room. The low hum of a radiator occupying the room. The café felt vaguely empty without Hide's overbearing voice, instead an uncomfortable silence reigned in the room as Kaneki and Touka worked.
Anteiku was empty aside from Ichigo, Kaneki and Touka, but a feeling of warmth persisted despite the silence.
The pouring rain was merely a muted rattle upon the panes of glass, droplets swiftly sliding down each window.
Touka and Kaneki hesitantly acknowledged his presence before dutifully returning to their tasks. The dull monotony was ended as the door to Anteiku swung open and the bell pinged gently in reply.
Touka immediately swivelled to the door, cheery smile plastered across her face. "Welcome!" She greeted in faux cheer that was so typical of waitresses.
"Touka. . ." Soft-spoken and gentle, the woman at the door was an undoubtedly angelic woman. Light brown hair cast in a braid running down her shoulder, a minuscule frown graced her face.
Buried into her arms was a young girl who Ichigo could only assume was her daughter from their striking resemblance.
"Miss Ryouko!" Touka blinked in surprise before acknowledging their soaking clothes. "Kaneki, Towels!" She snapped in a sudden 180 turn to her previous tone.
Ichigo stepped aside as Kaneki rushed to fetch towels in response to her demand. He observed the tender care Ryouko gave her child as she gently stroked the girl's hair.
It resonated with Ichigo. It was nostalgic, memories surfaces of an ignorant yet blissful childhood in the arms of his own mother.
Ichigo almost smiled.
He looked away when he realised he was staring. Kaneki stepped past him with his arms full of towels curiously watching Touka interact with the duo, revealing a soft side to her that he never knew existed.
She carefully plucked a towel from the pile in Kaneki's arms before offering it to Ryouko as she gently dried her daughter's brown locks.
"Ichigo." He looked up. Touka had turned slightly towards him. "We're running out of coffee beans, go get some more from the storage room."
It was subtle but Ichigo understood that she wanted him gone. He could respect her desire to give the obviously distressed mother space.
He nodded silently in reply before exiting, assuming the request was actually legitimate, Ichigo entered the storage room.
He worked in silent contemplation, scanning each shelf for the coffee beans required. His brief unorthodox introduction to Ryouko brought up more painful thoughts than he was willing to admit to himself. Despite all the years, Ichigo wasn't sure he ever got over his mother's death.
And he wasn't sure he ever would.
A child shouldn't have to see their mother die, but the world is cruel and fate is even crueller. Perhaps that gap was slowly filled over the years, his friends and family ever at his side, supporting him.
But there would always be that feeling. Of rage, an unquenchable hunger that drove him onwards.
Anger at himself, anger at the hollow that took his mother's life, anger at the world. It was his greatest strength but also his greatest weakness.
Because the hollow thrived in his fury and he was a slave to its power.
The hollow was a reflection of his most primal desire for revenge against the world, for bloodlust for the sake of wanton destruction.
And it frightened him. Before, he could have fought back, and he had. But now, he was vulnerable and more than anything it was an unknown.
There wasn't a face to put to the hollow, nothing to blame and pretend it wasn't him doing the killing.
Ichigo paused and sighed heavily, reaching forward to grasp the bag of coffee beans. Turning and leaving the silent storage room, Ichigo slammed the door shut with a little more force than necessary.
It was only a few days later on his shift with Koma when he finally saw it.
"-however CCG can confirm that the murder weapon was indeed a large cleaver-like blade, possibly made from quinque steel."
Ichigo paused momentarily as he heard the reporter's description. He looked up as he placed a mug of coffee before an eagerly awaiting customer.
The TV continued the broadcast, ignoring the awful feeling settling in his gut.
"The CCG investigators present at the scene have indeed confirmed the appearance of this ghoul." The reporter's image was suddenly replaced with a dark picture. "We advise more sensitive viewers to look away now."
With a deep sense of dread, Ichigo slowly recognised the photo. It was him, standing in the darkness, Zangetsu in hand, surrounded by corpses.
They were the ghouls he had slaughtered, and at his feet lay the impaled human teen, the one his recklessness had killed.
His black clothes had mostly blended into the shadows that night, but large tears and splotches of blood reflected shimmering crimson in the dull lighting. Among the vague details of his body, his mask gleamed like a pale moon.
Each red tattoo stood out on the stark whiteness, looking for all the world like rivers of blood flowing down his mask.
Each socket was a void of colour save for the bright golden pupil, murderously glaring the camera.
"This photo was taken by the investigators present at the scene from a concealed breast pocket camera."
Ichigo cursed internally. He had been so careless.
"Whether or not this new ghoul was responsible for the murders committed in the past few days is unconfirmed but evidence has swayed detectives in favour of this line of thinking. "The image disappeared and the reporter returned. "Fortunately, all victims have all been identified as ghouls. Analysis of the scene has concluded that the only human victim was mostly killed by one of this new ghoul's victims."
Ichigo blinked as the tray in his hand wobbled and he shook his head before continuing to place mugs around the room.
"This ghoul has been officially code-named by CCG as "The Butcher". With the addition of a dangerous ghoul to the ranks of others like The Binge Eater and Jason, CCG encourages you to stay safe on the streets and report any suspicious persons to your local branch of CCG."
The report changed topics to a more light-hearted tone and he lost focus.
The Butcher. He had a title now. They'd given him a moniker based on his brutal conflicts with other ghouls.
Cleaver-like blade. Zangetsu wasn't a cleaver, it was his zanpakuto. It was frightening to think that the manifestation of his soul had been described as a weapon of slaughter. Of bloodshed, the weapon of a killer.
"Scary stuff, huh?" Ichigo whipped around in surprise.
"Relax, it's just me!" Koma held up his palms in mock surrender from where he stood beside Ichigo.
Ichigo sighed gently and sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Sorry." He grunted unapologetically. "Just thinking about that broadcast."
Koma smiled kindly. "Yeah, it's pretty freaky to think something like that's prowling around at night." He exaggerated a shiver and chuckled deep in his throat. "Don't let that stuff get to you, the 20th ward is the safest place in Tokyo."
"I suppose. They did say all the victims were ghouls so far, maybe the killer isn't going to target humans?"
Koma hummed in thought. "I doubt it. I reckon it's only a matter of time before The Butcher decides it's time for a different kind of meat. "He met Ichigo's brown eyes with a knowing stare.
Ichigo twitched slightly as he stared back, unwilling to break eye contact first.
Koma smiles again. "Ah, well. In any case, it's time for you to get a move on."
"Huh?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Your shifts over, Ichigo. Didn't you look at the clock?"
Ichigo glanced over to the wall and spotted that his shift was indeed over and the afternoon sky had begun its slow transition into dusk.
"I forgot." Ichigo cleared his throat. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."
Koma nodded and smiled wanly. "See you around."
Ichigo was falling.
The world slipped by in flashes of muted colour, blurring images that flowed like a waterfall.
An endless stream of information passed through one ear and out the other, each only memorable for seconds before they vanished from his mind.
An endless darkness surround his body, a silent wind whipped around him. He was frozen in place, unable to move as he fell deeper into the invisible chasm.
Ichigo fell for what felt like hours. He could turn to face his doom, only comforted with notion that it was swiftly approaching.
Invisible hands clawed at him, rough palms and vicious nails, tearing the flesh from his bones.
A trail of blood followed his descent as a claw tore a bloody line along his arm.
He couldn't scream in pain or protest, nor futilely flail against his aggressors as his body was violently dyed red.
Instead he watched in dull acceptance. He couldn't breathe as another finger ripped a thin line across his throat.
Endlessly he fell, petty wounds appeared across his body.
Until he met the ground head-first with a sickening crunch of bone.
He lay there, unmoving yet alive, as his blood caught up with his landing.
The red liquid splattered across his shredded clothes, seeping into his skin and dripping into his mouth.
Ichigo choked breathlessly, leaning his head forwards until his chin met his chest.
He watched his muscles clench in agony as his chest was impaled. A spear made of shadows nestled where his heart would be if not for the gaping void that had replaced it.
Soon it faded and Ichigo was left staring at the hole in his chest. A violent hiss like a pneumatic pump and a silvery gas flowed from the void in chest.
It slithered across his skin in billowing clouds, before settling over his body. It became a freezing liquid as he was coated in.
Slowly it wrapped around his legs in a ceramic substance, chilling his stiff limbs.
His hands and arms were coated in it.
Ichigo opened his mouth to scream but his throat was frozen.
Suddenly, it was upon him and it covered him head to toe.
And then it was over.
He had no mouth but he tried to scream over and over again.
And again and again and again and again and again.
Ichigo rubbed his eyes for the nth time that morning.
Deep bags had formed under his eyes and his eyelids dropped continuously. A hand steadied him as he stumbled slightly sleepily balancing his tray held in his hands.
"You look terrible." Touka released him as he straightened and crossed her arms.
"Sorry, I-"Ichigo yawned loudly. "I haven't been able to get much sleep."
She appraised him silently as he swayed. Her mouth curved downwards into a frown.
"Well, just make sure you get some soon. You almost dropped that tray." Touka sighed gently. "I'll take care of it, I just know you're going to drop the tray if you keeping going at it." She pointed to the counter. "Tell Kaneki to make a cup for Hinami and bring it to her room."
Ichigo nodded thankfully and passed off the tray before sluggishly meandering in the general direction of the counter.
He dragged his eyelids open and waved wearily. "Kaneki." The teen in question jumped slightly at his voice, looking up from putting the finishing touches on a latte.
"Uh, what is it Ichigo?" Kaneki seemed rather bewildered at the sudden change from Ichigo's normal serious, frowning self to his current languid, docile behaviour.
"Touka said to get a coffee for Miss Fuegechi."
Kaneki seemed to brighten at the mention of the girl. "Oh! For Hinami is it? All right then, just wait a moment."
He set of in a whirlwind of motion and Ichigo's sleep deprived self made little effort to follow his movements.
He stirred from his new position face down at the counter by a hesitant Kaneki peering down at him.
"Tell Hinami I said hi."
"Yeah, sure."
Ichigo straightened and stood before accepting the proffered cup and saucer of coffee with a lazy nod, before turning on his heel and walking off in the direction of Hinami's room.
Fortunately, it didn't take him long to find it. He rapped twice on the unassuming brown door with the back of his knuckles.
"Who is it?" Inquisitive and childlike, the voice could only belong to Hinami, though Ichigo had yet to speak with her.
"It's Ichigo, I've got your coffee for you Miss Fuegechi."
"It's open!" Ichigo turned the door knob and stepped inside, carefully balancing her coffee in one hand.
The room was as warm and welcoming as the rest of Anteiku and Ichigo felt like he could collapse right where he stood.
As it was, he made his way over to the couches where Hinami sat, carefully tracing her finger along the page of a book as she read.
Her brown eyes and hair invoked a feeling of déjà vu in his exhausted mind.
He gently set the china saucer down on the glass table brefore she finally glanced up from her book.
"Thank you."
Ichigo shrugged slightly. "Just doing my job." He turned and began the slow walk back to the door.
"You look really tired."
Ichigo blinked in surprise before turning around again. "I haven't been getting much sleep recently. It's nothing you should concern yourself with."
"Bad dreams?" Her surprisingly empathetic yet juvenile analysis had pin-pointed his problem.
"Yeah, just some bad memories, I guess."
Hinami slid the bookmark between the worn pages before gently closing her book. "Mother said it's very bad for you if you don't get enough sleep."
It definitely felt odd to be mothered by a girl at least half his age. "Thanks for the concern but you shouldn't worry about me."
"No way!" Hinami shook her head vigorously. "You're almost dead on your feet."
It was true, Ichigo could almost feel the gears in his brain grinding to a halt as his legs wobbled incessantly.
"Really, I'm-"he yawned again. "Fine."
Hinami was unconvinced and shook her head. She bit her tongue in thought for a moment before her expression brightened.
"Oh, I know! How about you take a nap here and I'll read to you like mother does when I can't sleep?"
Ichigo rubbed his eyes. The other couch seemed incredibly inviting and he didn't have the energy to win an argument against a stubborn child.
"I can't, I'll get fired if I'm caught slacking off."
"Don't worry, I'll just tell them you were just keeping me company. I'm sure big sister and big brother won't mind."
Ichigo felt like he heard that before but he couldn't be bothered to argue with that logic. He stumbled towards the coach opposite Hinami before collapsing onto the pillows.
He felt his eyelids droop as Hinami began to read aloud in a soft, familiar tone. Ichigo felt his vision darken slowly.
"Thank you. . . Yuzu." He mumbled quietly as his eyes slipped closed.
Hinami paused. "Yuzu?"
But Ichigo had already fallen asleep.
Ichigo watched from the corner of his eye as Hinami and her mother warmly greeted Kaneki and Touka, all smiles and cheer in the cool afternoon.
"Morning, Ichigo!" He blinked in surprise at Hinami's greeting to him from where he stood on the far side of the room.
Ichigo hesitantly waved slightly in reply as he met Koma and Ryouko amused smiles, along with Kaneki's puzzled stare and Touka's raised eyebrow.
He felt slightly sheepish now that Hinami and brought their attention to him and his half-hearted greeting.
Before long, they had looked away and Hinami and her mother left the room.
Touka chastised Kaneki for something or other and they each turned back to their work.
The door to Anteiku slid open with a smooth motion and the bell jingled pleasantly, attracting their attention back to the door.
"Welcome!" Kaneki greeted brightly, eager to greet the customer.
Ichigo twitched when he looked up and saw who stood in the door.
Tall and extravagant, the purple haired man stood in the doorway, wearing an exquisite tailored suit of the most flamboyant red possible. He exuded an aura of charisma and charm.
He inhaled deeply before sighing contently.
"Mm, what a fine aroma." He brought a delicate hand to his face and ran his finger along the bridge of his nose. "I really do feel more relaxed here."
The door swung shut behind him with a thud.
END
A/N: At last, I have finished chapter 3. School has kept me incredibly busy in the past month so yeah.
Thanks to everyone for the incredible amount of feedback and followers. I am genuinely overwhelmed to see so many people enjoying my story.
YOLO, M-Girl and G-Girl: You are entirely correct. Thank you for pointing this out, hopefully this chapter has addressed this issue. In summary, Koma, Irmi and Yoshimura are aware Ichigo isn't entirely human and as mentioned, Yomo is going to be watching Ichigo from this chapter and onwards.