A/N: As with the previous chapters, credit to Noniebee (4352183) for brainstorming with me over the "invasion" and coming up with some great lines. This chapter is hot off the press and will be edited later, so I apologize for any typos. Thank you all for your reviews! They really help with inspiration and refocus my attention to the story when I take breaks. Enjoy!

Gintoki had been a good man most of his life. Despite minor road bumps along the way, he had kept to a strict moral code and helped anybody that really needed it. He had cared for babies, welcomed complete strangers with semi-open arms and deadpan warmth, hell, he'd solved crimes and convicted dangerous perpetrators. There were times when things went sour, but it always ended well, because he cared with the same amount of attention most people put into buying a bar of soap.

None of that reinforced the track or lock of his front door when Kamui practically kicked it down. He had been minding his own business, watching Ketsuno Ana report on the first flower to bloom in the garden bed in front of a restaurant. Completely innocent. Then his door literally flew off it's hinges, and a fiery red head stormed into his home like he had caught him red handed.

"Where is she?!"

Nearly falling off the couch, Gintoki's first reaction was to jump and flail his arms over his head. He didn't know what that had done to help, but it was the first thing his body thought to do, and his home was being invaded before his eyes. Kamui stormed over to him and Glared down at the Yorozuya with far too much accusation than Gin cared to deserve.

Hands awkwardly perched against his chest, Gintoki gawked up at the man, then his follower that had stepped over the rubble of his destroyed entrance.

"She?" Echoing the word back, the samurai racked his mind for any hint of recognition. There was a she that Gintoki was supposed to be in possession of. "Kagura!" Calling the only name he could think to, he remained perfectly still when the closet in the living room opened, and the girl lazily poked her head through the sliding door.

"What is all of the yelling? Gin-Chan, I told you that I was sleeping off sixteen cakes and nine turkeys, yes?"

Peering up at the red haired Yato over him, Gintoki leaned back against the armrest of the sofa.

"She's just fine- see? She was just sleeping!"

"Not her!" Snapping back at the man, Kamui clenched his fists. He stared Gintoki down for another second, then walked to the closet Kagura was hiding in to pull the door all the way open. It broke off in his hand, and Kagura's face scrunched as she batted her arms towards him.

"Idiot brother, this is my room!"

"Humans hide in closets, Kagura." When he found nothing but his sister, he moved to another door and snatched it open to examine the room.

"Oi-" Gintoki's protest did nothing to stop him, but Abuto stepped forward and replaced Kamui's hateful glare with a voice of reason.

"The human-"

"Ame! Come out! I know you're here!"

Kamui's shouting cut into Abuto's mater of fact murmur, and as the older man glanced back, Kamui snatched Gintoki's bedroom door open.

"She's gone, and we don't know where she went. Something isn't right."

Lowering his defensive posture, Gintoki drew in a breath to compose himself and pushed himself to his feet. He stood as Kamui stomped back to Kagura's closet and yanked it open again. Seemed puzzled when the door came off in his hand.

"I haven't see her in a week. She's not here." Frowning at the older man, Gintoki barely turned when Kamui flipped his desk over and crouched beside it. As if looking under it wasn't enough.

"I'm going to kill you! Come out and make this easy!"

"Oi, idiot! She's not here!" Somebody had to rein Kamui in, and Abuto was the most capable person in the house.

"How do you know? She could be in the air vents." Slowly turning to eye the older man, Kamui flashed him a look that solidified his determination. If he wasn't stopped, he would pry the floor boards up to find her.

"We don't have air vents, we have paper doors, asshat." Still startled at the sight of his desk being tossed like a paper ball, Gintoki snapped the words back at Kamui. The Yato eyed him. Skeptical of his claims, and positive that every place had air vents to hide in.

"Nii-nii," Tiredly sliding out of the closet, Kagura slouched forward and rubbed her stomach. "Were you dumped? Your Human didn't come here..."

A deep frown took Kamui's features and he stood. Walked to Kagura's side and poked her forehead.

"You would hide her from me. How can I trust you?"

Abuto shook his head and turned back to Gintoki as Kagura scrunched her face again. He raised a brow and tilted his head, imploring the silver-haired samurai to join their search.

"She wouldn't leave. We just spoke, she-" When Kamui glanced back at him, his words died in his throat. Ame hadn't told him yet. Kamui was bad enough, but he didn't want to be the one to ruin the surprise. Wherever Ame had gone, she had to have a good explanation. If she didn't, Abuto was going to make her clean the public bathrooms for a week. Maybe drown her in the toilets.

Kamui turned back to Kagura as she pounced to her feet and shook her head.

"I wouldn't! I would be the doctor of love, and fix your broken relationship! You need a counselor, yes?"

With Kamui distracted, Abuto opted to make wild gestures and motions until Gintoki understood. He placed his palms against his stomach and stared at the man across from him wide eyed. When Gintoki frowned and recoiled, he sighed to himself, and started motioning in front of his stomach; trying to indicate a bulge or back issues, anything to get the man up to pace.

Gintoki eyed him all the while, squinting, and giving him one of the craziest expressions he had ever seen, but he continued at the expense of his pride. Finally, with one over-exaggerated motion, the silver haired samurai straightened his slouched posture.

"She's fat?" Squinting at Abuto, Gintoki seemed unaware of how stupid he was making himself out to be. Abuto glared back, and tilted his head as the man crossed his arms. "That's really rude, she was hot in my opinion."

"How dense can you be?" Muttering under his breath, Abuto shook his head. He ignored Kamui glaring back at Gintoki and sighed as he tried to come up with a better charade. When they were free of the scrutiny, he tried again with the stomach motion, and added an imaginary rock and cradle to the equation, intensely glaring at Gintoki all the while. Something seemed to click then. The samurai caught on, with as much disbelief as was expected; undetected by Kamui.

Straightening himself, Abuto coughed into his closed fist and cleared his throat.

"She wouldn't have left." Wide eyed, he stared back at Gintoki as recognition sparked in the man's gaze. His face contorted. First into a frown, then an inquisitively wordless drop of his chin, but he immediately fell silent. When he leaned towards Abuto, the older man shrugged and turned away.

"Don't ask me! Do I look like a doctor?"

That seemed to be enough.

Gintoki stood stark still as Kamui reached their side and took hold of a floor board. He pried it up with ease, much to the dismay of the silver-haired man before them.

"Oi! Do you know how much time it took to get Kagura house trained?! You can't come in here breaking-"

The words were cut short when the red haired man pulled a chunk of metal from the floor. Reached deep enough to be in the ceiling of the snack shop. He held it up for examination as Abuto stepped back and Gintoki stammered a line that almost made him laugh. This proved it. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Ame had been here now.

"W- What is that?!"

"This is Ame's work."

"What?" Spitting the word back at Kamui, Abuto took the offered item and glanced over it for good measure.

"She set a trap for you... She didn't even-" Slowly raising to his feet, Kamui set his gaze on Gintoki. The Yorozuya didn't move. Didn't even deny his accusation. But before he could murder him, Abuto's hand landed on his shoulder and tightly gripped down.

"Oi... Have that robot downstairs scan the building."

Cold concrete was the first thing to greet Ame. It was refreshing against her sore muscles and with a groan, the woman pushed herself from her side. Rolled onto her back, hardly able to manage that. It was in that motion that Ame was made aware of the pressure on her wrists. Still there. She was in the same place as before, and her memory rushed over her in thick chunks that sickened her with each detail.

How long had she been on the floor? Iori had stopped in multiple times, she had lost count of the exact number, and each visit had been the same. The woman would walk over to her and lift her chin. Examine her face, with all the cold calculation Ame remembered, and then some. Then ask her a simple question.

"Are you ready to apologize?"

"Fuck you." Peering back up at the pirate, Ame felt her stomach churn. She could smell food. Somewhere. Not in the room with her, but down the halls and through the entire building. She'd been in this room before; too many times to recall. Was usually on the other side of this. Starve the victim. Beat them. Break them until all they saw was acceptance and struck a deal.

Or waste them on the stone ground if they were too much of a hassle. Whichever worked. A sharp palm struck her cheek, but she was quickly grasped again. Guided to lean up and sit between her legs. She was still loopy, and whether it was from the drug she'd been injected with or the fact that her stomach was literally eating itself, she was unsure. Above her, Iori stood on the balls of her feet. The generous goddess from her memories, framed in raven tendrils of hair that could have taken to the air and swirled around her like serpents and still looked natural. Beautiful.

"Oh, Ame." Lightly murmuring to the woman, Iori brushed a lock of hair behind Ame's ear. Did so tenderly, as if she hadn't been the one to put her in her place and lock her away. When she took her leave, the light would be turned out again, and Ame would be left to drift in the dark and contemplate every failure and godless atrocity she had committed. "I hate to see you like this."

Lowering her gaze, Ame peered at the stained floor. The smell of old blood had soured the room and the physical evidence of such had stained the concrete.

"Look at yourself. You're a mess... But I brought you a present." Despite the woman's frown, Iori smiled. Dug into her pocket and produced a green apple. Ame's favorite. Chocolate eyes shimmered down at Ame as she held it, just close enough to be in reach, but Ame didn't raise her bound hands from the stone. Wouldn't give her the satisfaction.

Once again, Ame was truly back home. A worm at Iori's feet, made to grovel and beg for approval. Attention. Food. A single side of the apple hinted red over a plump curve of fruity goodness. Probably concealing a high water content as well. She was parched. The entire time Iori had been dipping in and out of the chamber, she had only brought small cupfuls of water. It wasn't enough.

"Nothing to say? This is the thanks I get for rescuing you?"

Still silent, Ame remained perfectly still. Ever under the watchful eye of Iori, she didn't risk even breathing too deeply. The scent of the room had already made her reject simple doses of water, actual food probably wouldn't do her any better.

"Ame..." With no response, Iori leaned in. Eyed her with combined anger and concern. The apple was pushed into Ame's face and held for her to bite it, but she didn't move. "Ame, eat. You have to eat something." Iori jabbed the fruit into her face and pushed it against her lips, practically crushing them under the force, but Ame simply turned her head. Allowed it to be thrust into her cheek, then maneuvered around to her mouth. Turning away again, Ame attempted to swallow past her dry throat.

Frustration boiled in the pit of Iori's stomach and her efforts were abandoned in favor of jumping to her feet and chucking the apple at the woman on the ground. It smacked into the concrete and barely bounced before meeting its resting place.

"You- you're doing this on purpose!" Screaming nearly at the top of her lungs, Iori leaned down towards Ame. "Just trying to piss me off! Say something!" The exact opposite greeted the pirate, and her jaw clenched as she scowled.

Not even looking at the woman, Ame held her ground. Didn't dignify her shouting with a response. She would out wait Iori, even if it was the death of her. The pirate hadn't even realized that she'd abandoned food for Ame, and that it would be retrieved the moment she left. When Ame had taken stock earlier, she found two of her knives gone. The one in her boot was still secure and concealed. She'd cut her way out of the rope and use it when the time came. For now, she just needed to wait.

"Just say it! Tell me you want to come back and I'll let you!" When the same response met Iori, her boot shot into Ame's chest and knocked the woman back. Stole the air from her lungs. She slid along the grit of the ground, and her skin burned at the friction, but after landing, Ame simply sat back up. Iori was quick to return to her side and crouched. Took hold of her arm, and rubbed her hair back out of her face.

"Oh, Ame- I- I didn't mean to- You forgive me, don't you?" The question wasn't even acknowledged. Didn't receive a shift of her weight, a turn of her head, or an excessively deep breath that Iori could over-analyze. But she persisted. Pulled Ame into an embrace and continued to stroke the hair from her face and eyes. "I love you... Just stop, okay? We could be a team again. Just us. No men, no distractions, no traitors... You'd like that, wouldn't you?" When Ame didn't move, Iori increased the pressure of her arm and hand, still rubbing her damp palm at the woman's face. "Wouldn't you? I don't want see you hurt any more. You can stop this all, just say it. Say you love me."

Turning to look at the woman, Ame shrugged away from her hand and the tight hug. Hope sparked in Iori's brown irises, and she smiled expectantly. Really thought that Ame would cave. She had been tortured before. This was nothing. And while Kamui may have been able to ease information out of Ame and convince her with his backhanded methods, Iori was a different case. A nut case, to be exact. She had taken a vow of silence, but all of the mood swings, the coddling, then abuse boiled up to a puddle on her tongue that was projected into her superior's eye.

All of the hope that had pooled on Iori's features disintegrated and was converted to insult. Rage. And for the second time in however long Ame had been there, she knew exactly what was coming. A palm jammed into her face and she was knocked back against the concrete as Iori stood and shouted something she couldn't make out. The door opened, and as men rushed into the room, Iori took hold of a handkerchief from one of the strangers. Wiped her face and squared her shoulders as she continued to the door.

"Give her some more."

The forms that flooded around Ame wasted no time in obliging. With one fluid motion, a boot was drawn back, then propelled into her jaw. She did the best that she could to defend herself. Curled into a ball and accepted the punishment for her actions. In the assault, she was propelled into what she could only describe as an elevated state of consciousness. Not only hyper-aware of the damage that she was taking, but numb to it all. Just waiting for it to pass. But all the while, just beyond the sea of legs that had enveloped her, the green apple beckoned to her stomach.

Patiently sat out the assault for its moment.

"There is a total of three." Tama turned back to the bar after prying the last device loose and set it down for the examination of six hungry eyes. As Gintoki turned to Kagura, Otose did the same with Catherine; worry etched into her features. Kamui, on the other hand took one and shook his head. This proved it all.

"Can we disarm them?" Otose's question received a single nod from Tama, yet Kamui clicked his teeth.

"Even I know how to turn them off. Ame-"

"Do not pull that wire unless you want to kill everybody here." Tama's warning received an odd turn of the man's head, though he didn't remove his pinched fingers.

"What? She uses these all the time. You just-"

"No, I implore you to listen. That will detonate them."

Frowning down at the bomb, the Yato turned it over for examination and took the android's advice. But that didn't satisfy him. He held it towards the green haired woman and pointed at the device that was all-too familiar to him.

"But why would she make these differently?"

"Don't you understand? That's not her usual work." Abuto chimed in and crossed his arms. Was just as disturbed as Kamui at the discovery, but concealed it far better than the younger man could have.

"So, what, she used us to test out her new techniques? That's not any better!" Gintoki barked the words but didn't dare to advance towards the live explosives. Kept the distance of no less than four meters from the bar where they rested.

"She didn't make these, dumb ass." Taking hold of one of the bombs, Abuto rotated it to get a good look at the familiar box. "This isn't hers at all. But somebody that was taught the same as her... Somebody like her..." Glancing towards Kamui, Abuto placed the rectangular hunk of metal back on the wooden counter top. Otose and Gintoki's frowns drained away as Kamui offered the item in his hand to Tama and murmured under his breath.

"Iori."

The older man raised a brow to him. Didn't confirm or deny the suspicion, but let it hang in the balance of the room for consideration. Maybe even for an objection. Finally, Otose lit a cigarette. Her palm set on the counter as she glanced at Gintoki and found the man to be on the same page as her. Kagura's expression was far more curious. Maybe she hadn't had the displeasure of meeting the woman, but everybody else knew.

"We can take care of this. You four, go. If she's pr-"

Waving towards the woman, Abuto cut into the sentence before it could reach Kamui. The red headed man had focused on her. Was drinking in her words with all the caution and care of a man on a mission, and that was not what he needed to hear at a time like this. Otose bit her speech in half and frowned at the blond man. Tilted her head. Then her tensed form eased into disappointment. She corrected herself. Crossed her arms and leaned to one side.

"If she's been forced, there's no telling what they're doing to her." She had heard them speak before and been on edge the entire time. It was no joke, and nothing to make light of. Especially if Ame's last conversation with her rung true. Taking a drag of smoke from her cigarette, Otose watched as Abuto retreated and pulled the door open. Gintoki and Kagura were quick to follow, but Kamui remained in his seat across from her. Didn't move an inch when the older man called to him.

"You know the secret don't you? Abuto told you, but he won't tell me?"

"He didn't tell me." Eying the Yato, Otose tapped the ashes of her cigarette into a glass tray between them. There was no harm in telling him if she avoided the bulk of it. "She came by three days ago."

"She didn't drink three days ago." They were in a bar. Kamui knew Ame well enough to know that if she was in a bar, she would be drinking, and Ame hadn't smelled of alcohol in the slightest when he'd last seen her. More importantly, that meant that Ame was the one hiding things from him. He'd thought they'd cleared the air before, but there had been more, apparently, and she had withheld it from him even though he'd come clean. Instead of feeding into his skepticism, Otose angled her shoulder towards him and turned away. Gazed down the hallway behind her.

"I know."

He started to say more. To ask for more information, but Abuto called him again, and he knew he had to go. If his deduction was right, he was going to be breaking a human's fingers off before the sun rose.