With blood oozing from his nose and mouth, Genya glared at Inosuke lying unconscious at the bottom of the stairway, and then he left to rinse himself off. He selected a restroom far from the party to avoid witnesses, but then Tanjirou entered with his features flushed until he paled upon seeing Genya. "What happened?!"

"Work accident."

"Work accident," echoed Tanjirou dubiously. "Fine. Let me help."

As Tanjirou wiped the blood from the surroundings, Genya asked, "Why're you over here?"

"Stuff's making me frustrated. I needed to cool off. Something's lodged in your cut." Tanjirou rubbed gingerly at the wound, and unable to remove the splinter, he opened his wallet for a card to scrape it with. In the wallet's window was a human incisor, and Genya saw it and inquired, "Why'd you keep it?"

Tanjirou shrugged, dislodged the debris, and wiped absently at Genya's face until Genya stopped him and repeated the question. They were close enough that he could see the precise moment when Tanjirou's eyes started watering, but he contained himself and answered, "To always have a piece of you near." Genya glanced to his hands where his injuries were beginning to heal and then moved to leave, and just as he reached the door, Tanjirou mumbled, "Why didn't it happen between us?" Genya let the door swing shut, and he headed home, texted his family that he was tired and leaving, and settled into bed.

How generous of Tanjirou to gift a thinking exercise! Now Genya could lie awake pondering what he'd done to earn the designation of "God's least favorite child." It left him in such a groggy stupor that the following morning, nothing seemed off when he heard people in his kitchen, and he found Sumi and Hiroshi preparing breakfast. Without looking up Sumi asked, "Who sent you home early?"

"What're you talking about? I told you I left because I was tired."

Hiroshi said, "We saw your bloody clothes in the hamper."

Genya muttered, "Let me get washed up." Breakfast was eaten wordlessly, and afterwards Genya said, "Tell me you didn't tell Mom."

"She's on her way right now."

"Sumi! Why—" Three knocks interrupted him, and when Genya opened the door, two officers said, "Sorry, Shinazugawa. You probably know why we're here."

"What's happening?" Shizu stood with Sanemi behind the officers, and they stammered their apologies and explained that Genya was to be detained. Shizu asked, "Who's pressing charges?"

"Hashibira's folks. He started it, but your boy ended it. Badly. Hashibira's comatose. The judge and prosecutor for this case are headaches. Bribes won't work on them, and they've got security footage as proof."

"Give me ten minutes with my son."

Genya sat uneasily, feeling smaller than his mother because he could sense that she was simmering, and then she said, "Sanemi, Hiroshi. Take Inosuke's family to join him in the hospital."

Genya exclaimed, "Mom, no!" and when she looked at him questioningly, he continued quietly, "They're nice people. Please don't hurt them."

She gazed at him awhile, and then she sighed, cradled his head, and said, "You've always been my most softhearted one. We'll find the best attorney possible." Her three other children protested the surrender, but she hushed them. All they could do was watch distraughtly as the car rumbled away, but not all hope was lost: an ally appeared before Genya while he was in the holding cell and whispered, "Genya! I can't believe this is happening."

Chief of police and Sanemi's confidant, Masachika, extended an extra blanket to the prisoner and said, "When I heard you were coming over, I recommended your family a lawyer. This guy's the best for tackling this judge. I've already fed him all the info about your case. You know how in our lovely country, police questioning starts before you see a lawyer? He said to stick to your story, say exactly what happened, and he'll handle the rest. You'll be seeing him in two days. I'll fix the camera and mic, so you say whatever you need to." Genya was astounded when a familiar, vacant face appeared, and as he and Muichirou were led to a meeting room, the latter snorted. Genya laughed, "Why're you laughing?"

"Why're you?! You're going to jail!"

"This is bananas. How do you know I'm going to jail?"

"I know the judge. He's like... my granddad's third cousin twice removed or something. I don't know. It's really distant, but he hates me. He's also a raging anus who loves jailing people." Some work was completed, but they quickly segued into casual conversation. Muichirou inquired about the circumstances leading up to the conflict, and Genya said, "He was drunk and talking shit. I gave him his comeuppance."

"That's how you two always talked to each other though."

"We hadn't spoken in years. If we'd been friends still, then okay, but you don't do that to a stranger."

Muichirou's gaze drifted to nowhere. "We haven't spoken in years either. Are we strangers too?"

Genya lowered his eyes and mumbled, "It's different. Everything's changed so much. I didn't think our high school reunion would be like this."

Muichirou fidgeted with his clothes and rambled, "Do you remember when we were reading Demon Slapper, and our faves died in the same chapter? What's weird is that I was somewhat happy for them because they were freed from the burden of existing. Now that I'm older, I'm happy for them because they died young. No struggling with bills or bureaucracy. Or watching their parents grow old. Or failing to find time in friends' lives because we're all exhausted with responsibilities and private miseries." Genya rolled a pen in his hands for several seconds before saying, "We'll hangout after this."

"Will we? Or will we do that thing where we constantly say we'll hangout without actually doing it?"

Genya had no answer, and Muichirou said, "It's Yuuichirou's fault that I'm here. I had no idea what to do with myself, so he said, 'Be a lawyer, and work with me.' He wanted to come see you too, but he's busy with another client." Muichirou listened to the air conditioning rumbling and then continued wistfully, "I miss when we were all friends. I dreaded growing up because I was scared that we'd grow apart, and we did."

"That's life."

"Right? 'It gets better,' they say. No it doesn't. It gets worse. Adulthood's just endless worrying: what should I eat later; am I making the right choices; what'll I do with myself tomorrow and the day after and the next decade."

"Damn, my family really paid you just so that we could have emo hour."

"Hey, I gave them a discount when I heard it was your dumb ass. Still, it's pretty punk rock to walk off to jail laughing after beating an ex-friend comatose." Muichirou smiled upon seeing Genya's smirk, and the former said, "We'll hangout after this."

Two days later, court was in session. On the prosecuting side were Hisa and her lawyer, Hantengu, and on the defending side were Genya and Muichirou, who stamped his foot at the prosecutor as they entered the courtroom. Hantengu flinched and exclaimed, "Did you see that?! He's bullying me!"

"I didn't do anything."

"Enough," said Judge Tsugikuni. As they took their places, Muichirou glanced at their three opponents and said to Genya, "Looks like we're up against Crusty, Dusty, and Musty today."

Hantengu cried, "He's being mean again!"

"Stop talking. You're ugly, so your opinion doesn't count."

Michikatsu said, "Tokitou, you're this close to being charged for contempt." The trial proceeded, and at a point where Hantengu was arguing that Genya had used excessive force, Muichirou contended, "Hashibira doesn't understand limits. Shinazugawa had to incapacitate him to ensure his own safety."

"Hashibira was already unconscious when he was flung down the stairs."

"No he wasn't."

"Yes he was."

"No he wasn't. Look at the footage."

"I've looked at the footage. Yes he was."

"What'd I say about ugly people's opinions not counting?"

Michikatsu interjected, "Tokitou, you will behave in my courtroom, or you'll be facing legal consequences."

"Your courtroom? This is the people's courtroom. Our taxes pay for this entire building."

"Don't get flip with me."

"You're saying that because you have no comebacks." That was the last straw. Michikatsu stood, flashed his palm, and said, "I've got your comeback right here, boy." Muichirou tensed in anticipation of a brawl, and Hantengu backed the judge.

Papers went flying, furniture was toppled, and Genya watched, dismayed and certain that at this rate, he'd be getting the death penalty. Hisa, who'd been mild and cooperative all this time, urged the judge and prosecutor on by suddenly shouting, "Stomp his ass!" and Genya regretted not letting his brothers thrash her. Muichirou requested that the court officer escort the defendant into the hall, where he asked, "Is this normal...?"

"Yeah! You should've seen them last time!"

As Genya's faith in the judicial system perished, the commotion could still be faintly heard. There was the sound of Hantengu squawking and then whining, "He spat on me!" followed by Michikatsu snarling, "Insolent brat!" and then a smack. Some more crashes and chaos were heard, and then finally there was silence.

The door opened to reveal Muichirou, whose hair was rumpled and whose face had handprints upon it. He was otherwise mostly unharmed though, and he summoned Genya back in. Hantengu was cowering in a corner, and Michikatsu, who was nursing a bloody nose, declared, "Twelve months imprisoned and a 100,000 yen fine." Muichirou countered, "Shinazugawa's terrible at math. He can't count that high. Give him a number that he can count on his fingers. Five months."

Genya hissed, "Why're you attacking me?!" but Michikatsu talked over him: "Twelve. He can use his toes too."

"He doesn't have toes."

"What nonsense. Shinazugawa, remove your shoes."

"Don't, Genya. He's trying to satisfy his foot fetish. Pervert! Weirdo!"

Michikatsu was in no mood (or state) for another round of Muichirou's antics, and galled, he said, "Ten months! That's final!"

Ten awful months later, Genya was freed, and outside he found Sanemi, who gave an uncharacteristically feeble smile. The visit from Shizu a week before his release had made it seem like she or at least another sibling would be present, but they were the only two in the car. Genya said, "Want me to drive? You look tired."

"It's fine. I got something for you." Sanemi handed him a takeout box, and as Genya ate he praised the food and described what else he'd missed in jail: privacy, a comfortable bed, a decent shower. They approached a magnificent building, and he asked, "Wow, where are we?"

"Your bed and shower are inside." Sanemi drove into an underground parking garage linked to a mixed-use high-rise, and they exited the car, ascended the floors, and arrived in a modestly sized but sumptuous condo. Genya marveled at it and then asked, "What is this place?"

"We bought it for Mom."

"Where is she?"

"Shower first and then I'll tell you. Your clothes are in the bedroom." There was only one bedroom, and Genya was perplexed to find his belongings in boxes stacked within the room. He shrugged it off, took a luxuriously long shower, and then exited to find Sanemi closing a suitcase loaded with weapons and ammunition. Genya said, "That's a lot. Is Mom trying out a new business venture?"

"You know how Dad left behind that enormous debt and how Mom's been making monthly payments ever since? She finally saved up enough to pay the rest off in one go."

"Nice!"

"No, Genya, it isn't nice because those shit-sniffing rat bastards were expecting to keep Mom trapped forever. They got suspicious of where she got the money from, discovered what she was doing, realized the main source was one of her kids, and—" Sanemi paused, took a quavering breath, and then continued, "I stepped away for one fucking second, and they'd shot everybody. They figured that whoever survived would be the one. Nobody lived though, so they've narrowed it down to me and you. They're thinking it's me because I was the one always accompanying Mom, so while they're hunting me, I'm also hunting them."

This sounded so surreal that Genya didn't register it as reality, and he said slowly, "What should I do?"

"Stay here. This is your home now. You'll hate this, but you can't leave this building until I kill all those guys." Sanemi's trademark was good intentions with awful execution, and years of this had fatigued Genya, who glowered out a window and grumbled, "Jesus titty-fucking Christ on crutches, I just left jail, and you're imprisoning me?"

"This is to protect you. Look, everything you need's here. There's a balcony for your gardening, the ground floor has restaurants and shops, and there's a gym and pool exclusively for residents. Compare this to when we were all crammed into one shitty apartment. We're moving up in the world! There's no debt, and we're not dividing the money eight ways anymore. It's only you and me. A couple more harvests, and we'll be swimming in cash." Sanemi being the eldest meant he was crown prince to his mother's legacy, but he hadn't expected to ascend the throne so early. Genya thought the crown's weight combined with the grief and fury were making his brother delirious, and he didn't know how to react. At the lack of a response, Sanemi said, "Everything's settled then. Here are the keys to your mailbox and front door. Contact me if you need anything. Don't follow me."

Sanemi pulled the suitcase along, descended into the garage, and was just about to enter his car when he heard Genya behind him. "What'd I just say?!"

"We only have each other left, and you're endangering yourself by running off to play John Wick?! Do you even know what these guys look like?! They always wore masks!"

"I still saw their eyes and shit. I know the regulars, and I've even caught one of them. The hitman though was some new guy with big ears. When I catch that big-eared son-of-a-bitch, I'll rip his motherfucking spine out and whip him with it."

"Aniki, please don't do that. What happened to 'living well is the best revenge?'"

"Eviscerating your enemies is the best revenge. Now go back upstairs."

Genya didn't budge, and Sanemi sighed and said, "You know I love you so much, but I'm telling you as your brother: don't follow me. It's for your own good. Go back upstairs."

Genya remained stationary, and a vein popped on Sanemi's forehead as he growled, "Alright you asked for it." He withdrew a machete, and Genya exclaimed, "Where'd you get that from?!"

"My ass. I'll count to two. One."

Genya jammed the button to close the elevator doors, and they shut just as Sanemi said, "Two." The building's atrium had a transparent elevator at the center, and as Genya rushed to his condo, he could see his pursuer ascending. He scrambled inside his home, slammed the door shut, and watched it anxiously until there was the horrific sound of it unlocking because Sanemi had a spare key. Genya frantically shouted, "I'll stay inside!"

"That's what I thought. If you exit this building, then I'll chop your legs off and drag you back in."

So Genya was reduced to princess-in-a-tower status, and this princess couldn't leave because the dragon guarding this tower was a machete-wielding maniac. He waited some days and then tried escaping, but somebody who appeared as a regular civilian gave him the machete treatment again. It seemed like Sanemi had eyes scattered around, so Genya was forced to resign himself to grieving his lost family and adjusting to his new, languorous lifestyle. Some months into this, he was unlocking his door to head inside when he spotted at the end of the corridor a dash of blue framing an ethereal face. Inosuke walked up to him so that they stood before each other, and Genya asked, "How'd you find me?"

"I work here, jackass. You never come down to where I am, so I came up to bring these hands to you."

"We don't have to do this."

"Yes we do. Everything's gone because of you."

"We're in the same boat then. Can we just forgive and forget?"

"Fuck forgiving and forgetting. I wanna remember and retaliate."

"What about—I don't know—healing with the power of love or whatever?"

"Fuck the power of love. I'm here for the power of all-consuming, blinding hate."

Genya gazed into the distance wearily and then looked back to Inosuke to say, "Have you eaten? I'm frying croquettes. It isn't tempura, but it's similar." If Inosuke was moved or astonished that Genya remembered his favorite food after all these years, then he hid it, but he answered grudgingly, "I haven't eaten yet."

Conversation proceeded cautiously until it gradually slackened, and as they informed each other of their respective circumstances, Genya inquired, "You mentioned being able to read numbers and a few letters again, so I get how you're a valet, but how'd you find the job?"

"I'll never fit into society 100%, so I was considering returning to the forest. When I got there though, I realized I couldn't unlearn everything and be blissfully ignorant like I was before. While I was standing there in limbo, this building's owner recognized me from that documentary they filmed about me. He likes outdoorsy and survivor stuff, so he asks for my advice and takes me with him sometimes."

Genya felt a twinge of pity. "Don't stress over not fitting in. There're people who've been in civilization their whole lives, and they still don't know how to act. Hell, look at me."

Genya's words must've revived a link between these misfits because after a moment, Inosuke asked, "Do you wanna see something?" He took from his backpack the pig doll that Takaharu had given him, set it on the table, and squeezed its left ear, and it snuffled, took some steps, and somersaulted. When he squeezed its right ear, instead of snuffles, there was a recording of his grandparents saying, "Be good, Inosuke! We love you!"

Genya said softly, "That's really sweet."

"It's the only thing I have with their voices. I'm always forgetting to photograph or film stuff. My brother did all that, but he's run off because he said somebody's after him."

"I feel you. My brother's off chasing someone." These fools sat there, not connecting the dots, and then Genya began clearing the table. In doing so he accidentally knocked the doll over, and it hit the floor with a crunch. Both faces broke into horror, and Inosuke hurriedly collected the doll and pressed its ear only to receive a garbled electronic noise. "No!" he whimpered, and he tried again only to get silence.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! I—"

Inosuke's eyes brimmed with furious tears. "What the hell's wrong with you?! Why do you ruin everything?! No wonder your family's dead!" He pressed a hand over his mouth because even he knew he'd gone too far. "Sorry. That was uncalled for. I—"

Genya had flipped from repentant to riled, and he said in a barely controlled voice, "I overlooked your years of bullshit and invited you in to make peace, and this is how you repay me? Get the fuck up." If Genya was swapping sides, then Inosuke would too: "You know what? I'm not sorry. I don't give a shit about your dead family, especially the bitch who gave birth to a dog like you!"

Genya landed a right hook, but his opponent only tottered briefly before reciprocating with a flurry of blows. The fight was leagues more brutal this time because both parties were sober, and the tile became speckled with red as they progressed from the dining area to the living room. They were near the fireplace when Inosuke slammed Genya down, but there was an unexpected, strangled gasp. Genya had fallen onto the rack of fireplace tools, and the poker had impaled him in the back and exited out the front of his torso. Homicide wasn't Inosuke's intention, and he panicked until Genya stood, headed for the restroom, and said, "Don't call for help."

"You'll die!"

"I won't." Genya sat in the tub, gritted his teeth, and extracted the poker, leaving a gaping wound. Most people have seen a venous bleed via minor injuries, but very few people have seen an arterial bleed where the blood's viscous and spurts rather than dribbles. Of course Inosuke had butchered animals for food, but this was an extremely different experience to see it happening to a human whom he was acquainted with. He was blanched and trembling, but Genya was nonchalant. "You don't have to stay."

"Shouldn't we go to the hospital?!"

"Aw, you look cute worrying about me."

"Shut up! Why aren't you dead?! This happened before! Back in high school, I thought I found your corpse."

Genya removed his shirt. "It's a long story."

Inosuke sat on a rug, signaling for the story to proceed, and Genya watched his blood pulsing with his heartbeat awhile. "They used to call my dad Kyougo the Immortal back when he was alive and on the streets. Shoot him, stab him, hit him with a goddamn car; he wouldn't die. One day I angered him, and he cut my face to the bone. I needed stitches, but fuck a hospital bill. Instead I ran away for a day, and when I awoke the next morning, it had healed. When I told my siblings, none of them could relate. Only I had my dad's weird ability." He touched his facial scar and then asked, "Do you know how much a human heart currently fetches on the black market?"

Inosuke stared, and Genya said, "Twenty million yen. Kidneys, 25 million each. Marrow, three million per gram. And so on until I'm just a head attached to an empty body."

Suddenly all the scars made sense. "So you're not cutting yourself or being pimped out?"

Now it was Genya's turn to stare. "Why would you think that?"

"Well you never allowed us over, so we assumed your family was doing something! I mean, you are, but it's not what we thought. Doesn't it hurt though to have your organs harvested?"

"I'm anesthetized. It only sucks when the anesthesia fades after the operation's over. I'm aware but unresponsive until enough regenerates."

"What the fuck? That sounds nightmarish to be stuck in your mind... Wait, who's doing this operating?"

"You know how Kanao's family is crazy rich? Her dad's the president of the hospital you stayed in. You can deduce the rest."

"Then Kochou-sensei... Are all our teachers crooks?!"

"Let's just say that teacher salaries are a joke, and most of them have second jobs."

Inosuke sat digesting all this before asking, "If you make so much selling organs, then why work? Why'd you become a cop?"

"When my dad died, he left behind a giant debt. The cop thing happened because the chief is Sanemi's friend. We pay him to cover for us, and I was there to help with that."

"Huh! If your dad was immortal, then how'd he die?"

"Sanemi. It turns out that the key's a headshot."

"I figured he was more than just a math teacher, but that's..."

"Oh, yeah. If you want someone to disappear, then Sanemi's your man. I'm not the only one we're harvesting from; I'm just the only one who can survive multiple rounds. If you wanna work with him, then we can discuss it when he stops by this weekend for a harvest. He could use the help since our other siblings are gone. It pays way more than being a valet."

"I'll... consider it."

"Great. Just keep quiet about all this because if Sanemi catches you snitching, then he'll take you deep sea fishing—"

"What...?"

"—with a cinder block." They remained mute awhile, and then Inosuke said, "Maybe I should go back to the forest."

Genya laughed, "Is the capitalism overwhelming you? Did you genuinely believe that my mom, one woman, could support seven kids in this day and age via honest, decent work?" Some mute seconds passed as Shizu was inwardly commended for being the most supreme of mothers because she'd do anything to keep her children afloat, and then he said, "Hey. What started all this?"

Inosuke stood and made to leave. "Don't pretend you forgot how you ditched me."

Genya called after him, "Really? You've held a decade-long grudge because I wouldn't watch some movie with you?" Inosuke stomped back with his face flushed. "No, Genya, it's not about the movie. It's about how you trashed three years of friendship the instant you got into a relationship. It was our last summer together. What if we'd never seen each other again?! Is that how you wanted it to end?! Lying to me?!"

Genya had never heard Inosuke be heartfelt about his grievances. "It was wrong of me to lie to you, but it was because I'd never had anything like what I did with Tanjirou. I didn't mean to push you aside. You were and are important to me."

"Is that what you'd tell yourself while you two were sneaking around behind my back?"

"What? We didn't do anything. I know you think I'm a steaming pile of hippo shit, but I would not do that to you."

Inosuke scoffed, and Genya insisted, "I wouldn't! I know how it feels to be in your position." The former appeared unconvinced, and Genya added quietly, "How it feels to watch someone's love for you fading even as you love them with all you have. Or how it feels when you need someone more than they need you."

Inosuke drooped slightly at the reminder of what they'd both lost, but then he leaned against the doorframe and grumbled, "Don't talk like we're equals. His parents like you. For me they were poised to call animal control."

"Tanjirou's parents? It's probably because I donated my heart to them, and they and my mom worked together."

"Doing what?"

"Money laundering. It would've been questionable for my family to be moving that much cash, but the Kamados can use their bakery to disguise it as business transactions. In turn we give them a share."

Inosuke was thunderstruck, and Genya said, "You really think a bakery alone is supporting a family of eight in the 21st century?"

"How many more people are involved?! I feel like a donkey in a horse race being the last to learn about all this! Oh, whatever. It doesn't matter anymore. Forget Totoro and his sexually transmitted parasite."

"His baby? That was an accident. I mean, it seems like he's enjoying fatherhood, but yeah..."

Inosuke's eyes bulged. "How do you know?"

"Our families are still working together, so we talk."

"How'd he screw up worse than both of us?! You went to jail, I went into a coma, and he went and made a whole-ass human?! Who's the crustacean that he knocked up? Do I know her?"

"We both know her, and she's no crustacean. She's been in front of us all along. It's—"

"Don't tell me. It'll just irritate me more." Inosuke's expression darkened. "This calls for revenge."

"Did you learn nothing from all this?!" Some seconds passed where the only sound was of Genya's blood dripping down the drain, and then he said solemnly, "Listen, Inosuke. If we're gonna be homewrecking, then we've to be strategic about it. First, you—" Genya couldn't finish because Inosuke had started guffawing at the idea, and as they dissolved into laughter, all the idiocy, mirth, and obscenities erased over the years began sprouting anew.

When they'd caught their breaths, Inosuke said, "Here's the plan: I'm gonna punch his bitch in the face and throw his infant off the roof—"

"No. I was kidding."

"—all while you keep him distracted."

Genya grimaced with disapproval, and Inosuke continued, "You don't see how he looks at you when your back's turned. It's not even funny how easy it'd be."

"I couldn't. I don't want Tanjirou to feel like he owes me just because I did some stuff for him and his family. Also messing with him means messing with lots of the people involved in this."

"Suit yourself. I'm sure he's hungry for another dose of vitamin D, especially since you said you know how to make him lose his mind. He told me that too."

"Why would Tanjirou tell you that?"

"I asked him because I wanted to be better than you."

Genya shook his head and scrutinized his wound's healing progress, and Inosuke surveyed his own injuries and then said, "So... are you gonna provide a demonstration?"

"I'm still very much in the mood to murder you, so if you bring your dick near me, then it's likely to get bitten off."

Inosuke nodded thoughtfully. "It was worth a shot."

After some deliberation Genya said, "Maybe later," and Inosuke smiled. On the dining table stood the pig doll, needing nothing more than for its batteries to be replaced, and on Inosuke's phone appeared a notification that he couldn't wholly read: Takaharu had sent him a cloud link containing a collection of family photographs and videos.