"Holy shit, you are fucking minted! And here, I'd been feeling guilty for having you buy me shit," Noiz didn't react to that other than to raise an eyebrow, walking across the room and cracking open his fridge without so much as marvelling at the ice-dispenser on the front. "Alright, so that's bullshit. But seriously dude, you own this whole floor?"
He ignored him then, because it was obvious he owned the whole floor but Sly's reaction made him feel all kinds of strange, wondering where he'd expected him to live, some kind of crack den by the sound of it. Maybe he'd spent too recklessly, but he didn't see why he couldn't have a few comforts for once, though he guessed that most fourteen year olds would see a double bed as a luxury rather than a sprawling apartment. "Your fuck buddy came to see me the other day."
"Oh yeah? What he need you for?"
"Beni-Shigure and their leader went missing."
"Again? Man, they have no luck lately," he changed the topic immediately, darting around from shiny thing to shiny thing, stopping in front of the TV that seemed almost bigger than him and was certainly the biggest he'd ever seen, seeing his grubby reflection in it and turning away with a frown. "Hey, hey, how fucking big is this TV? Shit dude!"
The TV was 56 inches, but he had no desire to tell him such an unnecessary fact when he'd just dropped a massive piece of intel, in front of an information broker no less, tone insistent as he turned to regard him, "again?"
"Yeah, yeah, they all disappeared for a couple weeks end of last year, it's old news and they came back just as self-righteous as ever so who gives a fuck?"
"Apparently not yo-" he was almost irritated now at how little importance Sly was attaching to this news, because a whole group of people disappearing twice was hardly something you could just drop into conversation then rapidly abandon. But his door sounded then and he knew exactly who it was already, having deliberately scheduled their visits to overlap if only to get more time to study them together, or to see what information he could wheedle out of them while in the same room.
He gestured for Sly to get the door and he did as he was told for once, opening it and expression faltering as he took in the bartender who looked equally confused at seeing his fuck buddy stood there, looking dirty on plush white carpet. "Ew, why are you here?"
"I could ask you the same. But I'm here to see your friend."
"I don't have friends, asshole."
"Both of you shut up," Noiz was rolling his eyes, throwing a beer to Sly and watching with what looked like mild distaste as he yanked the top off with his teeth, resisting the urge to spit it onto the ground and tucking it into a ratty pocket instead. "I've got what you wanted."
"Awesome, and… I'm guessing you still don't want my money?"
"Doesn't need it more like, dude lives in a fuckin palace!" Sly seemed amused at himself, wandering off into one of the rooms coming off the living area without a care in the world and Noiz not even watching him go, Mizuki noting with amusement his battered trainers left neatly by the front door.
"Come in, I've made a map for you. And you're right, I don't want your money, but I do have one request."
"Sure."
"You take me with you when you go," Mizuki looked uncertain then and he continued speaking even as he flicked several screens onto the blank wall where there really should be windows, the bartenders face paling as he regarded the images there, knowing he was being blackmailed or something similar. "And you answer my questions."
"Where'd you get these? Or is that a dumb question to ask an information broker?"
"I hacked Sly's coil, interesting though, that the owner is listed as one Mizuki Namida. A gift, was it?" His eyes were narrowed and he knew he had him cornered, there was no way he could release this information to the public without it causing a wildfire of gossip and rumour, and though Mizuki knew that wasn't his intention, he wouldn't risk it either.
"I didn't need it anymore. Call it charity."
"Hm, so, these pictures, they sure weren't taken in his warehouse, or at his Grandmas, care to divulge?" How he knew what both his warehouse and his Grandma's looked like, he had no idea, all he could register was how dangerous this situation had rapidly become, and how unprepared he was for it.
He was being blackmailed by a fourteen year old, an actual kid had hacked into his old coil, Sly's current coil, and had now decided it was an excellent idea to beam the other teenager's nudes onto the walls of his living room, regarding them blankly as Mizuki scowled. "My bedroom, they're in my bedroom."
"And what was he doing in your bedroom?"
"Taking nudes, apparently."
"You think you're funny."
"Not particularly," he responded, aware things were heading south and rapidly so, unsure as to why Noiz was suddenly being so passive aggressive about this, like he had some stake in Sly and was fighting to see who was most deserving of him. It was fucking bizarre.
"So, you're fucking."
"Yeah."
"That's it? There's no sweet little romance going on? No unrequited feelings?"
"No. But maybe you should ask Sly about that."
"Hm, maybe I will." They just stared at each other for a few moments, silently weighing each other up and Mizuki knowing that if it came to it, he could take this teenage brat in a fight easily, not noticing Sly had arrived in the room after his explorations until Noiz silently closed the images and the conversation was deemed over. "I've got the map you wanted, sit down."
It wasn't an offer, nor had the one been to enter the apartment in the first place, they were demands, he expected the orders to be obeyed and he wasn't allowing any disagreement, waiting stoically until he obeyed the command and sat down stiffly, the opposite of Sly who had flung himself out across the couch and made himself at home.
"Alright, so I managed to trace the movements of Koujaku but the cameras only cover a small area of the island before they end so I had to improvise."
"Improvise?" He was asking more for a definition of the word than an explanation of what he meant and Mizuki knew that but Noiz didn't quite catch the confusion in his voice, just continuing on and Sly left to frown in annoyance at being left out.
"A drone, flew it over the island looking for sources of body heat in outlying buildings," Mizuki didn't even bat an eyelid now, because of course this stupidly rich kid would have some kind of military-grade sounding heat seeking drone, he didn't know how he'd expected any less. "Found a few, homeless people, street kids, that kinda thing mainly. But one building, off in the north district, by the old junkyards, had too large a heat source to be one person, it's more likely to be all of Beni-Shigure than anything else, though nobody has left the building so I can't confirm it."
"Wait, wait, so it took you two days, and all you can say is that it might be them and that they're in the forbidden part of the Island?"
He bristled then, actively bristled, and Sly's smirk widened, almost looking forward to their seemingly brewing argument, sat between them and silently goading them on as Noiz's expression grew less impressed. "This is the Yakuza we're dealing with, you saw how little intel there is on Virus and Trip, consider yourself lucky I found anything at all. And besides, you already gave me payment."
"Ooh, ooh, what did he want?" He was like an excitable child for a moment and it was almost cute, but then his eyes grew wide with nasty glee and his mouth fell open, "Oh, Dry Juice tell me you didn't fuck the kid!"
"Of course I didn't fuck the damn kid! All he wanted was-"
"Information."
Sly just blinked then, looking baffled before rolling his eyes as if to say that he'd expected no more from the foreigner, Mizuki pausing to take a deep breath at how ridiculous this whole thing was, forcing his tone into politer territory. "Alright, can you send me the map then? It's at least worth checking out."
"Sure. I already know your number, let me know when you're going," Mizuki nodded in agreement, coil buzzing with a new file from a blocked, unlisted number and the conversation seeming to have been killed even before his last order. "You can see yourself out."
'We're meeting today at eleven.'
'K.'
It wasn't exactly the response he'd expected, rolling his eyes as he pocketed the coil and figuring that with Noiz's alarming knowledge of everything, he probably already knew when and where they were meeting, though that he, a fourteen year old, was awake at nine am did come as a surprise.
He didn't have much time to brood on the shitty response though, because in ten minutes people would begin arriving for operation 'save Beni-Shigure', not that anybody had called it that of course, but it was the basic gist of the operation and a good a title as any other he might invent. He hadn't been thinking much that morning, he had no idea what was going to happen anyway and there was little to think of when everything was so unknown, he'd just stood under his shower spray for too long like always and naively, childishly, hoped everything would turn out alright.
He ate breakfast as if nothing was wrong, wolfing down some toast and finding a yoghurt about to go past it's date, hidden at the past of the fridge, practically pouring it into his mouth when he heard the bar door unlocking and knew Tio had arrived and probably brought others with him. He forgot to brush his teeth and as he reached the bar and ran a tongue over their fuzzy surface, he knew there was no way he could go back and undo his mistake, hoping today wouldn't end with the same feeling.
Kou was there again, nervously running a hand over and over Jin's dog, other perched on the floor beside him and talking as if nothing was wrong, actually drawing a couple of queasy smiles and Mizuki relieved somebody was managing to make things seem okay even for just a moment. The canine seemed to be soothing him most though, her head lying in his lap and large, baleful brown eyes blinking up at him, sensing his mood and copying it unconsciously, nuzzling into his stomach when he stopped stroking and his expression tightened, distracting him enough to finger velvety soft ears and forget about today for another second.
Kin and Tio were talking with Kouhaku in one corner, the other checking his coil and looking up to the door just as Yuu walked in, greeting them with his usual sunny smile, not bothered by anything that happened around him and a beacon of positivity always. People like that normally annoyed Mizuki, they weren't realists, they refused to show a single bit of despair or hopelessness and he didn't like people who wouldn't admit the pain life could cause. But something about Yuu was endearing and everybody who interacted with him always left feeling a little better, no matter what ill luck might have befallen them. They'd certainly need him today.
Others followed in, punctual as always, some straggling after, the usual late comers, smiling apologetically as Mizuki checked his watch and cleared his throat of nothing at all, conversations dropping off fast because this wasn't just a social meeting.
His speech started off strong, but dropped into useless, vague comments remarkably fast because he had no idea what they were even doing that day other than hopefully finding Beni-Shigure. "Alright guys, gather round. So, we're gunna go in there, and… Find what we find. And then… We'll deal with it." His words dropped off a little abruptly and he was met with more than one raised eyebrow, lack of trust and some half-hearted amusement spreading through the group, Tio suddenly at his shoulder and obviously hiding a laugh at how crap his motivating pep talk had been.
"Not your most inspiring speech."
He wasn't being mean and he'd lowered his voice so nobody else could hear, he clearly had nothing to say either and Mizuki decided it was best to admit that and show weakness than to try and seem in control and fail completely, "we'll deal with whatever we find, that's all I can say because I don't know any more. There's a chance they might not be there anymore, or that they weren't there at all, I don't know. But this is our best chance at finding them."
"They're there," a voice louder, more confident than any of the rest of them could be and all eyes turned to the door that had been opened and closed silently, some frowning at the stranger in their midst who dressed so strangely and seemed so young, some narrowing eyes in suspicion. But then he did that weirdly casual flick of his fingers and an image appeared on the emptiest wall the bar possessed, projected poorly over tattoo sketches and messily arranged art prints, making the image seem a little raised off the wall and lines that should be straight bending instead.
But it was there, clear for all to see, a view from above of the large building they were planning on infiltrating today, frowning as it was hardly proof of Beni-Shigures' presence there, zooming in so fast and smoothly it made Mizuki feel a little sick, refocusing to see the small, red form of a bird lying on the ground. There was an outcrop of rock, seemingly cut for building purposes then dumped to grow moss in the middle of the wastelands, and under it, barely visible in the original image Noiz had projected, Beni, the allmate of Koujaku, lay still and immobile. A single, tiny speck of red was in the zoomed out image and how Noiz had spotted it nobody had any idea, straining only to reach the conclusion that they'd view it as a flower and nothing more, and would move on.
"That's his Allmate, he doesn't seem the type to just let it go wherever it wants."
"No, he loves Beni. He'd never lose him, he'd go crazy with worry," Kou was shaking his head, fingers trembling on brown fur and no amount of whining and nosing at his palm would stop the tremor of his voice as he stared at the images.
"This is Noiz, our informant. He's coming with us today."
He nodded stiffly as he was introduced, turning back to the wall just as quickly, seeming both comfortable and out of his depth in front of the team, ignoring them to speak authoritatively and plainly, more images projected onto the wall in small patches. Mizuki was more than happy to let him take over, he had the information after all, "there are security cameras all over the exterior, they're well-hidden but they're there, there's no direction you could approach from where they wouldn't know you were coming. Basically, there's no secrecy in this, the second you get within a hundred metres they'll know you're there. As for guards, Allmate or human, I haven't seen anybody enter or leave since I started surveillance, your guess is as good as mine."
"What about if we went at night? The cameras wouldn't pick us up, right?"
"Night vision," he cut off his thought without an ounce of tenderness, words clipped and cool, tugging at the piercings on one of his hands as he removed the images and the group blinked back into reality, staring at this child who knew so much and seemed so foreign. "They will have noticed my drone too. They're expecting you."
"What do we do?" It was rare to see Tio actually nervous, but now he looked a little pale and he couldn't have his right hand man look so uncertain about this whole thing, if he needed anybody on his side it was him, and he opened his mouth to speak when a voice interrupted him sharply.
"We go get them, what else is there to do?" Hysteria had crept into Kou's voice and the comforting animal on his lap grew nervous, hackles rising and whining gently as she stood up suddenly, cowering back against Jin's legs. "We have to get them!"
He'd approached Mizuki almost desperately, aggressively, as if he wanted to smack sense into him, bartender reaching out for his shoulder before he could get more agitated, directing his initial words to him in a firm, authoritative tone. "Nobody's saying we're not going to. Okay? We planned to go today, we're going today. This information changes nothing. We just need to be ready for a fight. So, are you with me?"
Shuffling feet, a dry cough, exchanged glances and understanding spreading as people took deep breaths and said silent prayers that this would end well for all of them, beginning to nod slowly and shoulders being thrown back, arms tensing, fingers coiling into fists and relaxing again. "Are you with me?"
This time nobody paused, and the sound of their combined agreement roared out into the streets beyond, streets they'd soon be walking down, but who knew in what state?
It was a decent trek there, through the streets at first, people parting to let them through as always, news having somehow gotten out about both Beni-Shigure and their attempted rescue, people calling good luck and wishing them well with their endeavour, offering blessings and good tidings. It buoyed their spirits until the town ended, even the seedier areas dying out behind them and ending up in the junkyards of the island where nobody would either want or need to be, heading past abandoned, half collapsed buildings, just empty husks and the wind whistling through them ominously.
There was plenty of undergrowth where nature had reclaimed the area, trees sprouting out of what had been a living room, complete with the skeleton of a couch and a pile of mangled plastic that could once have been a television set. Past stacks of tyres and finally into the true junkyard where things had once been organised and stacked by whoever for whatever reason, trash divided up neatly then left to rot. Tyres looming around them on all sides in high piles or messy stacks that towered double the height of even the tallest among them, rusty shells of cars and other electrical devices haunting where they creaked and lay, rusted orange and sickly brown in the wreckage.
There were occasional buildings, small hut like things and the rare concrete structure that just remained standing, but it wasn't until they were unnervingly close to the mountains that ran around half the island that the ground started clearing, becoming concrete underfoot. The junkyards almost fell away then, stepping out into a large, relatively clear area of concrete with the tall building they all recognised leering out at them.
Noiz had been leading the way and he stopped them then, holding out an arm that didn't come near to touching anyone, all staying well back, wary of this teenager who was so cold and spoke with so much authority that even Mizuki silenced when his mouth opened.
"Turn off Allmates, they'll give off signals. I can hack the cameras and block all real-time images of you, but it'll take me a minute to set up." He didn't look out of place at all in amongst all the no trespassing signs, just continuing to speak easily, "the cameras will be able to see us if we go further. You might want to make a plan." With that he fell silent, lowering himself to sit, cross-legged on a single tyre, opening his coil and weirdly out of place, almost chirpy electronic music playing as he began playing a game like this was just a jolly outing or a peaceful Sunday afternoon walk.
They all stopped then, genuinely taken aback because not only had their guide immediately dumped responsibility back onto them, but he was so incredibly blasé about the whole thing that it was nothing more than horribly unnerving. His shoulders belied none of the nervous tension that ran thick through the group, no distractions here now as they stood there like lost sheep, searching for a leader when not even theirs knew what to do or say.
It was Maoi who spoke first, having been quiet thus far but sensing nobody else would do anything, nervous to speak over the others but growing with confidence as he realised he spoke the words all the others feared to say. "Well now what do we do? Surely we don't just go in."
"What else are we meant to do? There's no point us being here if we just linger outside." Michi now, frowning even as his cheeks turned pink as all eyes turned to him, words having been blurted out as if he hadn't intended to do any more but think them, if that, glad when Hitomi replied.
"Well how do we get in? I doubt we can just walk in the front door."
"You can, there's no locks or security. Last week it was so windy the door blew open, stayed that way all night and was closed the next morning by somebody inside. That's happened a couple times," it seemed every time there was a gap to be filled in, Noiz chose to speak, waiting infuriatingly to give them the information they needed, as if telling them all at once would make his presence useless. "Signals are blocked, all good on my side."
"So. We gather ourselves, and just go in there. I- I know it's not our style, but this isn't our normal thing, so, if anybody has a weapon, or can find one. That's… That's probably a good idea," the sound of flick knives opening was almost unnerving in it's suddenness, at least two thirds of the group removing knives from concealed pockets, some opening blades clumsily as if unused to it, others holding them with such focus Mizuki didn't doubt they'd practiced with them. Others broke off in small groups of two or three, searching slightly further away, amongst the junk they'd walked through but always remaining in sight, finding twisted pipes of metal or loading their pockets with lengths of rope and rusted wire.
It made things seem surreal and Mizuki hadn't expected that, he'd anticipated that when they arrived things would suddenly smash into him and he'd be enveloped in terror, but seeing his team, his friends, holding weapons seemed so unrealistic it could have been a dream.
"Alright. So, if anybody doesn't want to go in, now is the time to leave," the wind picked up then and his hair blew into his eyes, hiding the confused expressions of the team, eyebrows furrowing and frowns appearing, insulted at the implication they'd come all this way only to back out now. If they could say anything about their team, it would be that they didn't go back on promises, and Mizuki was glad for that now, silently gesturing for them to follow him and stepping out of the safety into full view of the cameras.
Noiz was right, and he didn't know why he was surprised, because he'd always been right so far and he wouldn't be so arrogant if he didn't know his information was good, door opening silently and light streaming into a dim corridor beyond. The men behind him knew to stay silent, after all the whole situation was something more than unnerving, it thickened the air they breathed with dread and even with Noiz outside, connected to Mizuki and Tio by earpieces, they didn't feel too reassured.
Hand gestures too they suddenly followed with military precision, understanding Mizuki's unspoken commands to break into two groups, one staying put by the door they'd closed behind them, the others swarming around him and Tio, familiar faces hardened with the task they had set out to achieve. Hideaki, who had a baby back at home, Jin, who had four dogs and loved them more than anything, Yuu, who iced intricate pastries in his mother's bakery. All holding weapons and with expressions so stern nobody would guess the sweet, kind people they were every day, intimidating and oppressive in their stealth, footsteps hurried but quiet as they headed to where the hallway bent.
Another signal then, Kiko being the one to send it and bringing up the rear, towering over even Kin at six foot seven, a pillar of muscle and power who had a bad temper but kept the most beautiful garden at the family house where he still lived. The others met up with them quickly and this time they were the ones to go ahead, finding two doors and Mizuki's nod clear enough, they were to divide up again, into groups of equal strength and ability, arranging themselves easily and Kiko leaving them now, Kin taking his place with a hard pat on the back, the ultimate gesture of trust.
What was beyond the right door, Mizuki would never know, but the left was where they went, one person opening it and the others ready to pounce were something to jump out, blinking in pain as harsh light flickered into their widened pupils. It seemed empty at first, but as they all snuck inside and closed the door, forms of what looked like trash bags became clear, the ceiling high here and clearly the main room of the complex, floor hard concrete and walls the same.
"Mizuki, it's-" Masao's voice cut off at the same time everybody else realised, Riku actually gasping even as Tio stepped forwards and was grabbed by two different hands, letting them pull him back into the pack without complaint, mouth hanging open and lungs burning with his harshly pulled in breath.
There was a hand digging into his shoulder and when he looked up at the figure looming above him he could see his own confusion, his own unnerved fear reflected in matching blue eyes, freckled face tense and deep grooves in his forehead where he did something more than just frown.
"Koujaku isn't there."
"What's wrong with them all?"
"The door isn't locked, why didn't they just leave?"
Nobody could answer the questions and nobody cared to either, staring across the empty space and sudden commotion from the opposite side of the room drawing nervous, flickering glances from Dry Juice, the rest of them piling into the room and stopping dead in their tracks. Silence fell for a good few minutes while they all just stood there in abject shock, murmuring uncertainly and the thick atmosphere in the room getting oppressive, pressing down on them sickly.
"Hagima!" It took more than a couple of them to hold Kou back when he spotted his friend, trying to fight them off and movements growing less frantic as the team began to turn as one, too slowly to be normal and eyes staring at them without seeing. The whole of Beni-Shigure were there, heads hidden under black hoods that fell down low, almost over their eyes but not enough to hide the blank, emotionless expressions their faces held, barely even blinking as they eventually faced the other team. He too, was the one to react most strongly, backing away and shaking his head, fear choking him and voice trembling wildly when he spoke again, "w-whats wrong with them? Why are they acting like that?"
"We don't know, just stay back, okay? Wait and see what they do."
It was terrifying, unnatural, the look in their eyes, the coordinated way they approached as one body, as if they could all communicate entirely silently, heads covered in the same black hoodie and hands empty of weapons but everything in their gait promising danger.
"What's wrong with them?" He'd been asking Kin, who stood close by his side, but it was Noiz who answered through the earpiece, though he had to admit he doubted any of his fellow team members would have a decent answer.
"They've been brainwashed. It's obvious."
"You're serious?"
This voice was too loud and close to be anything but an actually spoken remark, a figure neatly slotting himself in between Tio and Mizuki, and answering completely calmly, "deadly. There's a kind of light, and music too, that act as hallucinogens, make you trip the fuck out. Yakuza have been trialling them on people in different places, clubs and shit. Like mind control."
Tio frowned then, turning to regard the mere kid who was suddenly stood at his side, eyes scanning him and trying to work out why he was even there, let alone how he knew all this, just nodding slowly and figuring he was probably right, he'd led them to Beni-Shigure after all, he deserved some trust.
"Thought you were waiting outside?" Noiz didn't respond, just regarded him blankly and shrugged, fingering the bandages over his hands absently and ignoring the couple of older fashioned team members who glared at him, annoyed he'd disrespect their leader so blatantly.
Even if he'd been planning on replying there was suddenly no time to, it was as if they'd waited for them all to be in one place to run at them at full speed, the noises of alarmed surprise or sudden aggression would have been funny if they all hadn't been incredibly aware that this might be a hard fight. Any lingering indecision about fighting people they recognised gone as the crowds smashed into each other hard and the insanity really began, no time to wait and hope this could be fixed with words.
They were split up fast, grabbed and dragged into the middle of the suddenly loose group of unrecognisable Beni-Shigure members, Tio lost both Mizuki and Kin, aware of somebody close by his side who had been similarly dragged into things. But he couldn't exactly wait where he was or take a moment to gather his bearings because somebody had swung at his midsection with a fist he'd swear had supernatural levels of strength. So he ducked and tried not to hit back because he knew these people and he didn't understand why they'd be attacking them with no real reason, their eyes reminding him of those of the dead fish at the grocery store on his block.
Dry Juice was the bigger team, the stronger team, the one who actually had turf battles more, so the fact they were gaining the upper hand already wasn't entirely a surprise, but it was alarming that when the Beni-Shigure guys went down, they stayed there.
But in the second he'd taken to realise this, staring in alarm at first as the guy he'd only hit once sprawled onto the floor and didn't get up, feeling alarm flood him even in this situation that didn't call for it, somebody else was on him. He registered the glint of steel and the hairs standing up on his neck rose as one, no time to duck away properly, seeing almost in slow motion the slash of the blade through the air, body behind him trapping him in place and waiting for the sharp pain.
But somebody had jumped in between then, a trainer whizzed past his face at a height a leg shouldn't be at, connecting with the guy at the same time as another hooded figure tried to prevent the movement, colliding with a crash and the crack of bone hitting hard floor.
There wasn't time to even think, he saw the blur of freckles as the figure fell and any slight fear, panic, whatever he might have felt was wiped from his mind as somebody grabbed him from behind and he had to turn to smash them in the face and knock them to the ground where they were all but trampled.
He'd never really been violent, and it had taken a lot of coercing from Mizuki to get him to even consider joining a Rib team, so in situations like this, in fights, he was never one to use more force than necessary, but it was even harder now when he recognised the people he was hurting. He knew the face of the man he'd just delivered a harsh blow to, could name the children of another who was striking out at Sora while he jumped out of the way, ducking skilfully until he mistimed something and a foot struck him hard in the chest.
There were flashes of metal, and whether they were Dry Juice's weapons or ones acquired by Beni-Shigure, he didn't know, but he could hear noises of pain and scuffles from everywhere, losing track of everybody, too occupied with himself to take care of anyone else.
But they were losing their advantage and they knew it, the guys in black were getting up off the floor but the others weren't, none looking like they were about to die but certainly not in any fit state either. They were sloppy, reluctant to fight in this situation and it was obvious as the recognisable face of Hagima appeared in his vision, elbow smashing into his chin and only narrowly avoiding his second attack, raising a forearm to block it.
Bringing weapons had been an awful idea, the only thing it had done was arm the enemy, loathe as he was to see them that way and he knew they had to retreat, "Mizuki!" The chances of him hearing above the noise was unlikely but he had to try, they needed the instruction of their leader now and if Tio was in charge they would have surrendered almost immediately after this began.
But either he hadn't heard and it was a strange coincidence, or he'd heard and thought it was a request for help because suddenly he was there and Tio was left again to be horribly impressed by how damned good a fighter he was. People said Koujaku had never lost a fight, but he damn sure didn't put as much effort it into as Mizuki did, punching one guy square in the face before spinning and taking another out with a kick, two down in seconds and a third following soon after.
"We need to get out of here! This- it's a decoy!" How he'd suddenly realised that he had no idea but there was no way this wasn't a distraction from the very Yakuza who had taken them, voicing the thought the moment it occurred and Mizuki nodding as he ducked to avoid a blow, Tio striking out over his body to take him down.
They were rising up again, like zombies from the ground as Mizuki finally gave the call to retreat, voice cutting through the noise of impact and scuffles and the occasional grunt or yell of pain as a blow hit, only the Dry Juice guys making any noise. He yelled over and over for them to draw back, to head out of what Tio realised in strange detachment had once been a factory, one wall filled with loading bays numbered from one to six and the ceiling interspersed with old machinery.
The passageway they took this time was different to the two before, a double doored space that led into a narrow, weakly lit corridor, three guys there waiting for them who were taken out easily by those at the front. Mizuki ushered Tio to go, seemingly insistent on fighting off the rest himself so they could make their escape, ducking and hitting out without stopping to breathe, checking everybody had limped or run out before he followed them as they took flight down the corridor.
What might be the oddest thing though, was that they were not pursued, after the initial three had fallen, no more came and they were able to slow their pace a bit, Mizuki getting to the front and pausing in the group to check for injuries. Reaching a door to the outside, chinks around the metal frame letting in beams of daylight and Mizuki yanking it open without a single thought for what might be there, eyes burning as they stepped out into the cool air.
It was a kind of car park, a very rudimentary one anyway, surrounded by chain-link fence and with a large gate pushed open to have allowed the two cars in, one was a people carrier, black with the windows blacked out too. The other looked like it had been there a little too long to work, Tio's eyes lingering on it long enough to make out the plants beginning to grow and curl around it and the flatness of both rear tyres, hearing the group gasp and a door slamming.
There were more of the black hooded men surrounding the old car, but it was the two people who'd seemingly emerged from the van that they were staring at, Tio's gasp coming later than everybody else's and freezing in place, somebody called out then, probably Mizuki, a single name that had been haunting them all for days.
"Koujaku!" It had been unconscious, he was sure of that, just joining the mass of the team and nobody so much as glancing his way, focused on the gleam of silver against a pale neck, at the small trickle of blood trailing down to stain a t-shirt with a dumb slogan on it. Odd though, that he'd yelled the name of the captor, not his victim, second hand man just standing completely still, eyes wide with horror and betrayal as the leader of his team held a knife to his throat.
There was movement again then, the bodyguards moving forwards as if to lunge for the one who had spoken, team closing ranks around Mizuki protectively, anticipating more fighting and each of them trying to work out who the person was holding Kou in place, because surely it couldn't be Koujaku.
"Wait," but he spoke then, coming closer and dragging Kou with him, knife digging into his skin deeper and forcing him to push into his body just to avoid it, swallowing thickly as his mouth filled with saliva and he couldn't help it, wincing at the sharp sting. He stopped a short distance in front of them all, Mizuki's eyes narrowing as he pulled down his hood with one hand and everything stopped but at the same time nothing did, "I almost didn't think you'd come all the way here. Just like you to make me wait, Mizuki."
"Koujaku, what are you doing?" His voice shook but his expression was so stony those around him wondered if this was something they were uninvolved in now, the world around them seeming to dissolve until it was only them left, the leaders smile too superficial to be anything but unnerving. "Let Kou go."
This wasn't the face of the Koujaku he knew and he said everything with that same false smile, not answering his demand and just inclining his head as he continued to speak, hair loose and flowing around his face, ends tipped with red and wilder than he'd ever seen it. "What happened, Koujaku? We were worried when Beni-Shigure disappeared again."
"Hm? Never mind that now, just listen, Mizuki. It's amazing. We were reborn as members of Morphine. It's like being a God, the most powerful Rib team on the island. No, more than just some Rib team, we're legendary."
"We?"
"Of course. The others came willingly when they found out we could become so powerful. Now no other team could pass us!" He started laughing then and it sent chills through him, it was harsh and ugly, and nothing like a laugh that would ever come from Koujaku's mouth, not the chuckle when he flirted with his customers and not the genuine bark when with friends. It was hysterical and manic and he could almost see the cogs of his mind steaming and grinding as he spoke, eyes bearing that same distant look as the others of his team, smile so wide and disturbing, his bodyguards not moving and just staring with doll-like eyes.
"This is fucking insane, Koujaku! The fuck are you doing, man? Open your eyes! This isn't you, this isn't Beni-Shigure!" Desperation had crept in now and somebody behind him crumpled to the ground but he barely spared the fallen member a glance, hearing quiet words and knowing his team were sane enough to look after each other still.
"You're the insane one. You could have had all this power, more than you have now! More than anybody on this island!" Still that smile, like he was talking about the weather, "Rib is so much more than some petty street fights. It's not too late, Dry Juice, you can join us, the reborn Beni-Shigure, I'll even give you a high ranked position."
"I'm not interested in power, or in joining you."
If anybody had been stood close enough they would have seen him shaking, hands balled into fists and trembling at his sides, with rage or concern even he wasn't sure. Wondering where this had come from, because to his knowledge Koujaku had never taken Rib that seriously, nowhere near as much as Mizuki had anyway, for him it was more a casual hobby than a lifestyle, so to find he'd been craving power this whole time baffled him. None of the words he was saying were things he'd ever say, they were foreign and wrong leaving his mouth, something about his eyes was wilder than normal, crimson eyes dyed darker and too wide, smile eerie.
"Oh, really. I see. Whatever. I have a good idea, anyway." Mizuki's eyebrows were furrowed as he spoke almost to himself, sure he'd never heard Koujaku use the word 'whatever' before, let alone speak so vaguely, almost as if he was drugged up, remembering Noiz's words. "You guys really care about Kou here, huh?"
The arm around his neck tightened and he let out a choked breath as cold metal formed a new cut, just above the first, Mizuki could feel sweat drip down his back, "Koujaku, stop it."
"If you join Morphine." Kou had closed his eyes now and his face was stiff, his fate in Mizuki's hands even if directly it would be his own friend who'd deal the death slice, trying not to even breathe in case the knife cut deeper. Silence falling for a terse second and only the sound of a crow and the wind rustling in the surrounding trees breaking it, Mizuki turning to meet Tio's eyes, showing nothing helpful and just opening his mouth wordlessly, not knowing what to do either.
"Let go of him."
"You don't get it, do you? Become part of our team."
"I said no."
"Huh? I'm not bluffing, Mizuki. Don't regret it afterwards, you're the one who chose not to join me," Mizuki started forwards then as the knife dug in deeper and Kou actually made a sharp noise of pain, eyes squeezed tight shut and expression almost accepting, as if anticipating that he was going to die here.
"Koujaku! Stop! For fuck's sakes!" His legs were moving without him asking them to, and if he'd thought it through he'd realise how stupid it was, how much he was endangering Kou's life, but Koujaku didn't react fast enough and he'd grabbed him by his shirt already. He could hear a scuffle behind him and knew Kou's neck had been cut more as he'd torn the hairdresser away from him, was aware of several voices, questions of concern, requests for something to use as a bandage, reassurances and apologies.
But Mizuki's eyes had locked with Koujaku's and something weird had happened, starting in his gut as a sort of achy swooping, then everything went black and he could see vivid yellow swarming his vision as it was obscured with a more familiar image. He could hear scissors snipping neatly and repetitively, there was the low bustle of a street, but far away, as if heard through a window, low hum of pleasant conversation and the feeling of comfort that faded soon.
There was fire suddenly, and burning pain all over his back and stabbing needle-pricks against his face, screaming everywhere and then crimson splashed over everything and he was covered in sticky tar he couldn't escape, sinking into it and black tendrils of hair suffocating him.
He was talking, Koujaku, with tears in his eyes and looking so miserable, saying things he'd never known, never thought to ask, about how disappointing his Rib team was to him, about how much he looked up to Dry Juice. Saying all he wanted was to be popular like them, to be so well regarded, to be more than just some flirtatious hairdresser, he wanted to be admired, to have his team stand above all others and to finally be proud of something.
Mizuki opened his mouth to speak but he couldn't, teeth wound shut and just forced to listen to Koujaku instead, saying how Morphine had come to him, promised to make him stronger than anyone, to make his team the best, the favourite on the island, said he'd said no at first then realised maybe it was okay. But they hadn't been what he'd expected, they'd tricked him and changed things and taken control of everybody, bent Beni-Shigure out of shape and not put them back together, they'd done whatever they wanted with them.
But then his expression changed even as Mizuki tried to move forwards and his legs finally let him, gripping onto his stomach in intense pain and pitching onto his knees on the floor of his hairdressing studio, hair clippings surrounding him. Reaching him just in time for his mouth to open and everything to fall out from under him with another sickening jerk.
He didn't know who'd screamed, whether it was him or Koujaku, he didn't even know what had happened as he suddenly snapped back into reality, crimson eyes he'd been staring into intently rolling back into his head as he released him in terror and stepped back.
Things smashing back into him along with another scream and this time he knew the sound hadn't come from him, it was torn from lungs already damaged and destroyed, ripping the sky in two and every face there freezing with mouths open and eyes wide.
Not even a scream, a howl.
Long-haired head raising to the sky as if he was tearing apart, fingers ripping at his hair and mouth opened in a hoarse scream. He'd say he was crying but that wasn't true, his eyes were watering madly, mouth overflowing with saliva and trickling down his chin, nose running and all combining as he roared at the sky, voice cracking and breaking into cry after cry.
"Koujaku! Hey, Koujaku!" He reached for his shoulder, to try and snap him out of it, but his eyes had rolled back into his head and they were so dilated they were nothing but crimson now, Mizuki stepping back despite his best intentions and not able to do anything but stare, stomach feeling like lead and shaking like a leaf.
Somebody was grabbing onto his sleeve but he pushed them off, head distorting and able to hear somebody yelling in his voice, telling them to get out, to run while they could, roaring at them until they obeyed and the sky rushed down to meet him.
"You're finally awake then."
"Kou- I- What?"
"It's been chaos since you got out here." He blinked then, suddenly remembering what had happened, the knife against his throat, staring at the strip of shirt wound around his skin, soaked crimson, aware then he was resting almost in his lap, sitting up dizzily.
"Where's Koujaku?"
"Over there," Mizuki followed his hand shakily, seeing the form of the hairdresser lying face down on the ground, members of Dry Juice surrounding him, picking up his limp form and somebody lying down a makeshift stretcher, a piece of corrugated iron. "We're going to the hospital with him, you can deal with your own team."
He left him then and he wasn't sure if the tone in his voice was disappointment, concern or anger, just staying on the ground a little longer as people began to disperse, the remains of the black hooded guys coming out of the building and following along behind the stretcher silently, still not fully conscious but not as ominous either, looking a little lost.
He tried to stand, to go look out for his own team as he'd been told, but his legs buckled and he figured lying down for a couple of minutes would be okay, somebody would probably come looking for him anyway and every time he closed his eyes all he could hear was Koujaku screaming so he definitely wasn't going to pass out. He just stared up at the sky and blinked slowly, feeling strength returning to him and not even trying to think about what had happened, memory of it fading away until he couldn't remember much at all before Koujaku had begun screaming.
