Lesson 5: Always Keep a Watch on Hand
[REN]
Ren's attention was drawn to an explosion. It wasn't the wall that she had destroyed either, it was a pipe. How strange. Gin and his friends flashed through her mind and she made her way towards it, hiding in the shadows and swiftly moving towards it with Haru still swung on her shoulders. The girl was now silent but she didn't question it. She would deal with questions later and now was not the time, she had sensed that there were people looking for her, after all, she did take down two Hyakka members and there would surely be more looking for her.
She arrived at the scene of the explosion and found a trail of rope along with a hole in the roof. She saw a slight flap of white cloth turn around at the corner and began to follow it, the explosion didn't seem like an accident and she was worried about the others.
Sneaking through the alleyway she found herself outside a door of a house and heard voices inside. Definitely Gin's. Carefully, she put Haru down and tried to reinsure her friend. Ren's hand reached to gently touch her shoulder but Haru jumped. Ren glanced into her green eyes that were glimmered with fear, "I'm not going to hurt you."
Before Haru could answer her she opened the door to see Gin, Shinpachi, Kagura and another woman. She was certainly a beautiful women with blonde hair and bright purple eyes, her face was scared and her eyes widen at the sight of the stranger.
"Sorry I'm late. I was caught up." Ren said lightly and made Gin sigh.
"You're always bad with timing."
"I'm just a bit late you know."
"You're an hour late."
Ren looked up at the ceiling, "There isn't any sun here, so I lost track of time."
"Stop making excuses you slack!" Gin joking retorted which made Ren shrug.
"So I'm guessing it was you who caused the explosion?" She glanced at the group in front of her, they looked a little beaten up but not anything too bad.
"Yeah… We couldn't exit and they took Seita-kun…" Shinpachi muttered.
At the mention of his name, Ren noticed that the little boy wasn't there. On the way to Yoshiwara he had told his story, about how the top courtesan was his mother and how he wanted to see her. An admirable boy, even at a young age.
"Oh, who did?" She asked curiously.
"The Harusame." The blonde woman answered.
Gin glanced around Ren at the girl behind her. She was pretty and he knew immediately who she was. The same green eyes as the girl in the photo, except her eyes were full of uncertainty, fear and confusion but yet a little hopeful.
"So I see you found her."
"Yeah, we were interrupted." Ren muttered, the blonde woman jumped up.
"Y-You took her? From the brothel? You… did you kill the Hyakka?" She asked angrily but Ren waved her off.
"Nah, just gave them a concussion and maybe… maybe I cracked their skulls? But they're not dead, although they'll probably have a really bad headache the next morning."
"Tsukuyo-san… d-don't kill her please…" Haru whispered, causing Tsukuyo to look at her with confusion. She knew who this girl was, when she was younger she tried to run away a bunch of times but failed. Who was the woman that stood in front of her that guarded her so protectively?
"So, what's the plan?" Ren asked Gin.
"I'm going to show these women what the sun's like."
"Hmph, seems like a good plan. I think I'll tag along," Ren said, she opened the door further and gesturing Haru to go in, "Haru, you stay here."
"W-What? I… I can go with you!"
"No. If you go, you'll get killed. You'll stay here until I come for you. When this is all over, we'll go get some taiyaki," Ren said, she slowly reached for her hand and unlike before, Haru did not flinch, "That's your favourite right?"
The brown haired girl began to cry but she couldn't say anything. All she could do was nod and grip her gloved hands tighter but that was all Ren needed. Ren walked out of the door but not before giving Haru a smile and closed the door shut.
Tsukuyo gave Ren a mask, which she put on, covering half of her face. They were walking towards the huge castle at the end of the street. The castle loomed over the other buildings of Yoshiwara, although it was simply a building it was intimidating.
"Ren-san, you don't have to do this…" Shinpachi said, Ren couldn't help but stifle a laugh. Gin, Kagura and Shinpachi all had bombs on their chest, making it look like they had abnormally large breasts. She eyed them for a second before shrugging.
She knew she didn't have to. She could take Haru and run but she also knew that she couldn't leave them. They were up against Yato, sure, Gin was a strong man- she had seen him in battle but she couldn't leave them.
"Ne Ren-nee chan… I have a question," Kagura started, "Why, why are you doing this?"
Ren looked at the girl and noticed that the group was looking at her. Why indeed? Perhaps it was the fact that she didn't want to leave Gin again. Maybe it was that she would feel guilty if she left them. But maybe it was the fact that she knew that if she ran, Haru would be hunted down. She would have to live a life in fear, the hopelessness and loneliness would never fully leave her eyes. She wanted to see the girl smile again, and not the practiced smiles but a real smile. Ren wanted to see her friend bathe in the sunlight in which she loved so much. That was all she wanted. Even if she would have to destroy this entire place she would, just to see her real smile just once more.
"I guess… I just hate seeing a beautiful flower trapped in such a shitty place."
"But they are Yatos! You could die!" Kagura exclaimed.
Ren patted her head, "Do you think this is the first Yato I'll be fighting?"
Gin looked at her oddly, they had fought in the war together but there were no Yatos in the war. He had just realised that he didn't really know much about her. He knew there was something strange about her, when he saw her fight, it was restrained, as if she was trying to contain something but he didn't know what. No one knew where she came from, where her parents were or why she was here. All he knew was she was an Amanto and that was that. He didn't even know what race or planet she was from.
Ren looked at her silver haired friend and ignore his questioning stare. They had finally made it inside the castle, only to be attacked by hundreds of kunais flying in their direction. She managed to evade all of them, picking up a few stray kunais just in case and ran up the stairs with the group. It was going to be a long fight. Ren knew it but before she could attack the Hyakka women Tsukuyo stopped her.
"Go."
"What? You're going to stay?"
"Yeah, don't worry, I ain't gonna waste my life in this place. Just go."
Gin threw her the rest of the bombs and took her pipe, "Make sure you follow us."
Tsukuyo nodded and the three of them began to move away. Ren looked at Tsukuyo with uncertainty, "You're really going to die."
"Don't worry. I won't."
Ren placed her hands on her shoulder, "I'll see you then. Don't die, I'd hate to see a good woman die."
With that, Ren left, following the rest of the group down the hairs. Tsukuyo could hear her heeled boots echoing through the hallway as it slowly faded away.
[AUTHOR]
"Urgh, my damn arm." Abuto, the older Yato man grumbled as he wrapped up his arm. The stupid fight between Housen and Kamui cost him an arm and another member of the 7th division of the Harusame. He finished bandaging his arm when the door slid open. He turned his attention to a man standing in the hall way. Standing tall was a man cladded in dark red clothing. It wasn't the clothes that the Yato usually wore but instead it looked more militant with gold clasped buttons across his chest. He had multiple belts around his hips. On the right side of his jacket, sewn in gold was the name 'Himura/火村'
"Oh~ Abuto, what happened to your arm?" The man asked, smirking as he leaned against the wall.
"Akihiko, have you finished exploring?" He asked lazily.
"You didn't answer my question… This place isn't bad! When Housen dies I want it!" he said cheerfully, sitting down beside Abuto who rolled his eyes at the spoiled man.
"Oi, don't sit too close, you're fucking hot." He groaned and pushed the man away. Himura Akihiko ran hotter than usual and it wasn't a compliment on his physical appearance even though he was very attractive. It was like he had a fever all the time, except it was hotter than that. His skin felt like the heat of summer and summer and Yatos did not mix well.
"Oh Captain, I see you're unharmed. Damn, I was hoping you'd lose an arm or something… maybe your head?" Akihiko said looking at the vermillion haired, 18 year old man in his blue eyes. His face was smiling but his eyes said that he was completely not joking.
"Of course I won't be harmed. I'm the pirate king!" Kamui said happily, ignoring the look in Akihiko's eyes.
"Pirate King? We're not in One Piece you know? What do you want to be next? The Hokage?" Akihiko scoffed.
"Hmm… that seems like a good idea…"
"I WAS JOKING!"
Akihiko rolled his eyes. He didn't like the captain, not one bit. He hated the fact that he was the captain and he hated the fact that despite countless of duals they had never been able to declare a winner. The two of them were pure opposites. Kamui was a stereotypical Yato with fair skin, light eyes and hair. Himura Akihiko on the other hand had dark skin and even darker hair with eyes bright, flaming red. He loved the heat, Yatos didn't. What they had in common was strength and resilience. Every time he travelled with the 7th division he stood out like a sore thumb. While everyone walked under umbrellas he relished the heat. He hated the fact that he was under Kamui's command but they liked to fight and even though he didn't like to admit it but after years of travelling together they were one interesting companions. But he would never admit that out loud.
"You Yatos must love this place. You can indulge in food, be as lustful as ever and stay away from the sun. Can we hurry the hell up and get out of here? I heard earth's summer is almost ending, I want to catch some heat before it does." Akihiko said.
"You're the epitome of stereotypes Akihiko." Abuto pointed out.
"So are you guys!" He snapped back.
"I don't see what's so good about the sun. You Kaisaihito are so strange. Maybe that's why you all got wiped out!" Kamui said with a light hearted tone.
Akihiko forced himself to calm his heart, Kamui annoyed him to no end (even though he is a good opponent). It was true, Kamui was sort of right. But his people weren't wiped out because they were 'strange'.
Himura Akihiko was from a planet that was hot, there was nothing but sun and little rainfall. Some had called the planet a living hell. The sun was hot and the food was spicy. The trees and water there were not like earth and the people were not either. The Kaisaihito had dark skin, red eyes and dark hair. They lived in scorching heat and loved it, they were strong, conquers of planets and lived like kings. Well, he did anyways, after all, being the first born son of the Royal family had benefits.
Akihiko glared at the captain who glared back at him. He felt his fists clenching and felt his blood begin to boil. He didn't want to fight Kamui, not here. Frankly, the thought of the paying for repairs frightened him a bit. The Harusame would not pay for his bill… again.
"Ah~ I'm going for a walk." Abuto interrupted the glaring contest and got up from his seat on the tatami floors.
"Eh, it was just about to get fun!" Kamui pouted.
"I'd rather not be here when you guys try to kill each other. Losing another arm today is not in my plans. Plus, if you destroy Housen's castle he'll get even more pissed off."
"Then I'll accompany you."
"Why?" Abuto asked Akihiko who shrugged.
"I heard a commotion, I think we have some guests."
BOOM!
"What the fuck?"
Ren looked up only to see an older man with brown-blond hair holding an umbrella. Yato. He stared at the three of them, his eyes bring drawn to her. He had dramatically entered the hallway by bursting through a few rooms. So much for not trying to destroy Housen's castle. The older Yato man stared at the group in front of him, apart from the familiar vermillion hair his eyes were drawn to a woman.
"Hm… those red eyes… I think I've seen them somewhere before." He noted, rubbing his chin and tapping his foot in contemplation. It was strange, she had never seen this man before and by the looks of the room, he was strong. Very strong. She looked at Kagura who returned her stare of concern.
She looked at the man who stepped closer in her direction, Kagura was about to attack him when he put up his hand, "No, no, I just want to observe… I feel like we've met."
"Is this a lame pick up line?"
"You're pretty, but I'm not hitting on you… Where the hell have I seen you before… Modelling?"
"Yeah, you're definitely hitting on me aren't you?"
"No, I'm not! Hm…" He murmured, stroking his chin as he stared into her eyes but he turned around when he heard a familiar voice.
"Oh, I haven't seen you in a while."
Ren paused, she knew that voice. It was the voice that could never leave her ears, a low humming sound that only grew louder in her nightmares. She felt her blood begin to boil and the hand that gripped onto the kunai hardened to a point where it dented the metal.
"Oh, Akihiko, did you get lost? What do you mean you haven't seen me in a while, I just saw you seconds ago."
"I got a little lost… but it's not you who I haven't seen in a long time."
Abuto looked up at her and then at the man a few meters behind him. He stepped out of their line of sight only to see the two glaring at each other and that was when he made the connection. They looked strangely similar. They had the same dark hair and the same strangely coloured eyes but their skin was much different. Akihiko was darker than her and the woman had a lighter skin tone than he did.
Akihiko loosely pulled out a necklace from his jacket and swung it on his finger. It was the gold pendant that he always wore, a symbol of his royal blood. The pendant he was so proud to wear. Everyone looked at the girl who had the same pendant hanging around her neck. The girl didn't move an inch but her eyes seemed more focused on the man and as seconds passed it seemed like she was ready to rip his head from his neck.
"Ren, it has been a while. Or should I call you little sister?"
A/N: New Chapter! Woop! This is quite a long chapter I think and yeah, a little back ground info! There will be more coming so stay tune and alert this story! Also please review :( I get sad when there is no reviews lol. I'm still a little bit emotionally fragile from watching the newest arc from Gintama like holy crap! The feels :( Anyways, I will update soon and yeah, leave a review please! I know I say this ALL the time but I like reviews and I get really happy when I get them. Also reviews encourages me to write so :)