Chapter Seven – Where is my Father?

Author's Note: I do not own the Buso Renkin series and the characters of the original series. I own only the original characters of this fic, Sakuya Mutou, Kaworu Jounouchi, their siblings and friends, Phalene, some members of the Alchemist Army, and the enemy, the Tetsujin Juusan. Buso Renkin is the creation of mangaka, Watsuki Nobuhiro.

–

Rumors have been spreading out in the dorm. The return of the Butterfly Man and Reiko's disappearance has been one of the most popular ones yet. Not a lot of girls really liked Reiko much and were very glad she disappeared. Some of the men lamented that fact. However, for Ouka, Yumi, and Mihoshi, that was the least of their concerns. They remembered when Kaworu and Sakuya returned home late last night, covered in wounds, cuts, and bruises. Tokiko was with them, saying something strange to them, but the three couldn't remember what it was. "Something's goin' on here," Ouka stated with her arms crossed. "Sakuya's hidin' something."

"Maybe she's like some secret spy in reality!" the fantasizing Yumi thought up, making noises of a jet pack and running around the room. "And Kaworu-sensei is her leading officer!"

"I think Sakuya would at least tell us if she was a secret spy…" Mihoshi sighed at Yumi's imagination, a bead of sweat dropping from her head. Just then, the door to the room opened, and Souta was there looking at the group. "Oh! Souta-kun!"

"Nee-chan wanted to tell you that…she'd be back in a few days," Souta said, holding his right arm in an innocent fashion. The trio stood up in shock. She left the school? Why? And without telling them, too! "I…I'm as shocked as you are…but…we just have to trust Nee-chan, right?" He tried to smile, but he knew that deep down, he was alone again.

–

It was just a few hours' drive to Yokohama. Wait, drive? More like a helicopter flight to the Alchemy Warriors Headquarters. As Tokiko and Kaworu led Sakuya off the helicopter, a blonde-haired male was there to greet them. "Hey! Tokiko! Kaworu-kun!" he smiled as he walked up to them, the rotator blades slowing down. Sakuya could stop holding her short skirt. "You must be Sakuya Muto! I've heard lots about you from your father!"

The word "father" clicked in Sakuya's mind. It took Tokiko to hold her back. "You know my dad?" she exclaimed, reaching out to the blonde-haired male. "Tell me! Where is he? Why hasn't he come back to us?"

"Sakuya!" Tokiko exclaimed and slapped Sakuya out of her somewhat rage. "Get a hold of yourself!...I know it's hard, but…all will be explained shortly. This is my partner, Warrior Chief Nakamura Gouta."

"He was one of my instructors when I started out here," Kaworu added as he held Sakuya by the shoulder. "Let's go. We'll tell you everything inside as soon as you meet the Great Warrior Chief."

Great Warrior Chief? He must be the leader of the group. No, maybe not the group, but the whole Organization! Sakuya was a bit excited to meet this person, but at the same time, nervous. She followed Warrior Kaworu and her mother down the stairs from the roof to one of the top floors. As they walked the halls, she felt herself shaking. Was she really nervous about meeting the Great Warrior Chief? Questions popped into her mind. What was he or she like? Was this person really that strong, or maybe good looking? She couldn't help think so many questions.

Just then, a hand placed itself on Sakuya's shoulder. She looked up to see Gouta smiling own on her. "You shouldn't be so nervous," Gouta remarked to her shaking. "The Great Warrior Chief isn't a bad person."

"I see…" Sakuya muttered. Gouta couldn't help but notice how Sakuya looked a bit like Kazuki, but had Tokiko's eyes. She noticed at him taking glances at her, and she glared at him. Ah, Tokiko's glare made Gouta froze, and Sakuya's was just as vicious. He stepped back a bit as she continued to follow. "Creep…" Sakuya muttered as they continued.

As the group continued to the Alchemist Warrior Headquarters' conference room, Sakuya noticed a man walking past them. He was wearing a long lab coat over his dress shirt and pants. His hair was kind of clean, leaning over his left eye, and his skin was pale, he looked a bit sickly. 'Hunh…they have scientists here…' she thought to herself as she continued to follow.

–

The conference room was…not as she thought. It was filled with giant monitors and heavy computers and technology as far as the eye can see. There were a bunch of men and women wearing the same uniform, a special uniform for the Alchemist Warriors. "Oh my god!" exclaimed Sakuya as she saw what was before her. She had never seen anything like this, and the world doesn't even know about it! "What is this place?"

"This is the Alchemist Warriors' Headquarters," a powerful voice thundered throughout the entire room. A man wearing a silver coat and hat turned to Sakuya, who was in awe and wonder of the man. "Yokohama branch, of course. We have branches all over the world, with many warriors and warriors-in-training such as you!" The man, through the shadows covering his eyes, saw the looks Tokiko and Gouta were giving him, and he cleared his throat. Stepping down from his station, he took off his hat. He was a middle-aged man! "Let me introduce yourself. I am the Great Warrior Chief, Captain BRAVO!"

Sakuya was taken aback by this man's energy. She hid behind Tokiko like a scared child. "Great Warrior Chief!" Tokiko yelled, upset with the man's actions. "This is Mamoru Sakimori, but we all call him Captain Bravo."

Slowly, Sakuya let herself move out of Tokiko's protection and slowly walked to Captain Bravo, holding out her hand. "H-Hi," she sheepishly greeted. "M-My name's-"

"Sakuya Muto, the daughter and first child of Warriors Tokiko Muto and the late Kazuki Muto." The adjective "late" made Tokiko cringe a little. Even Gouta and Kaworu couldn't look at Sakuya.

"L-Late?" Sakuya muttered, looking up at Captain Bravo with a worried face. "What do you mean? What are you talking about?" She grabbed Captain Bravo's jacket and yelled with anger and sadness mixed together in her voice, "What happened to my father?" Captain Bravo was silent now, closing his eyes. "You know something! Tell me, what happened? Tell me right now!"

"Sakuya…" Tokiko moved in to touch her daughter's shoulder, but Sakuya swatted her arm away.

"I want answers! What happened to my father? Why haven't I seen him in ten years?" She glared at all of them; some of the workers stopped working because they all knew what happened. Sakuya lowered her head, and her body hiccupped now and then as she began to cry. "Where…where is daddy…I want daddy…"

"Sakuya-chan…" Gouta started and looked at Captain Bravo, who nodded his head. "Your father…Kazuki-kun…he…" He couldn't get the words out properly, knowing this will hurt Tokiko. With a glance at her, he watched her nod. "Kazuki-kun…disappeared ten years ago in an excavation project." Sakuya looked up with red, watery eyes. "He was sent out to lead a group of our members to search for materials to create new Kakugane…one that can resurrect the dead."

"Resurrect…the dead?"

Captain Bravo turned Sakuya to the huge monitor in the center, and everyone turned to watch. "We have footage from one of our crew members. This…is what happened." He turned to Sakuya with a worried look. "Sakuya-san, are you prepared for this?"

Sakuya looked at the screen, and then nodded, wiping her eyes. With a smile, Captain Bravo pressed the remote, and the screen turned on, flickering on and off with static until there was a clear view.

–

Ten Years Ago

–

"Warrior Chief Muto!" yelled a man as the camera ran toward a taller man with spiky hair. His name was Kazuki Muto. "Muto-san!"

Kazuki turned to the camera with a smile. "Oh, Tatsuki-kun," he said to the man. "You look like you've been running around in circles. Here." He handed the man a carton. "It's Green Veggie Juice. It'll keep up your strength. An Alchemist Warrior has to keep up his strength!"

The camera looked down to the carton, and there was a slight shake; the man was shuddering. "Y-Yes, sir," Tatsuki complied with disdain as he plunged the straw through the hole and started to drink it. "Ugh…"

"Oh, are we recording?" Kazuki asked.

The camera turned up to Kazuki. "Oh, yes, sir! Great Warrior Chief said that this may be a monumental breakthrough if we do find the materials for the Philo-"

"TOKIKOOOO~!" Kazuki started to wave at the camera, making faces at it. "Look, I'm on TV! Tell Sakuya-chan I said HIIII~!"

"K-Kazuki-san, sir!" exclaimed Tatsuki, taken aback by this. "Please, control yourself! We're at the presence of your subordinates!"

"Oh lighten up, have some fun once in a while," Kazuki sighed and reached out for the camera, patting Tatsuki's shoulder (this could not be seen). "You came here for something, right? So whatcha find?"

"R-Right! My group has discovered something. There's a high energy reading back in station 1504 Beta."

"…And that is…"

"…Sigh…the one with a rock that looks like a snail's shell, and a series of rocks that look like baby snail shells following it…"

"Oh! That one! Take me there!" The camera turned to the opposite direction as it bounced up and down, a group of men beginning to get closer to it. There was a red light coming from the earth, and Kazuki ran to his men. "Don't go near it!" he exclaimed to them, and the workers stepped back. Kazuki drew closer and knelt to the light. He could see a red stone inside. "This is-"

All of a sudden, there was a loud scream. The camera turned to find a warrior struck with a tomahawk, his head falling off. "Noburo-san!" Tatsuki yelled, and Kazuki ran forward. "E-Everyone, activate your Buso Renkin!" At Kazuki's command, everyone did so, a long pole-arm extending from the side of the camera. There was another scream behind them, and they turned to find a huge iron ball smashing down two men, being pulled back by a chain. The camera looked up to find a group of shadowed members, all wielding weapons, staring down at them.

"H-Homunculus!" Tatsuki gasped, stepping back. "Human homunculi!" He turned to run, but Kazuki stopped infront of him. "Kazuki, sir! Let me go! I don't want to die!"

"Stop it!" Kazuki yelled and punched his subordinate. "You won't die! I won't let anyone else die!" The camera turned to watch Kazuki charge at the shadowed group, fighting with his Sunlight Heart+. The Homunculus with the dao-like weapon howled like a wolf and ran toward Tatsuki, slashing at him. "Tatsuki!"

Tatsuki parried with his pole-arm, the camera turning around to show him swat the Homunculi out of the way. It showed the fallen warriors in that site, and Kazuki fighting in the middle. All of a sudden, a black-haired male appeared before Tatsuki, swinging his arms around, and Tatsuki yelled out in pain. An arm and finger flew in front of the camera, and soon the camera fell to the side, showing a dismembered torso, arm, leg, and so on. Even the head was missing, for the camera was attached to Tatsuki's helmet at the time.

The camera showed Kazuki stepping to the side, turning to watch Tatsuki in horror. "TATSUKI!" he gasped and watched as the shadowed figures rushed him. The battery symbol was blinking, and the video ended.

–

The room was silent; nothing but the flickering of the screen, the beeping of the computers, and the scratching and stepping of the floor with their boots. "This...is the Philosopher Stone Incident," Captain Bravo started. Tokiko ran into Gouta's arms and sobbed. "We had reason to believe that materials for the forbidden artifact, the Philosopher's stone, had turned up. However…we were not the only ones. According to the video, Humanoid Homunculi, bearing Buso Renkin, ambushed the excavation group. It is likely to believe that someone…had tipped them off."

"A traitor, sir?" Kaworu asked, looking up.

"Yes. Someone supplied these Homunculi with Buso Renkin and told them the whereabouts of our excavation site. The only man to survive that scene was Professor Wataru Suzumiya, our leading scientist for Buso Renkin manufacturing."

"Were you able to get any information out of him?" Kaworu asked once more.

"He wouldn't talk," Gouta answered. "That man…became a nut-case ever since the incident. He works twice as hard, sometimes without sleep, and he chooses not to speak a word of the incident." He let go of Tokiko and stepped forward. "Great Warrior Chief, allow me to send out a reconnaissance team to search for Kazuki Muto once more!"

"Search?" Sakuya looked up at Gouta with a bit of hope on her face.

"We have reason to believe that Kazuki was not killed, but captured." Captain Bravo walked toward his station with his hands behind his back. "His body was not among the rest. We inquired Professor Suzumiya about it, but as Warrior Chief Gouta explained, that man will not budge. So now and then, we send out a reconnaissance team to scout Japan and look for him." He then turned to Gouta with his arm extended. "Send Warrior Chiefs Chitose Tateyama and Rintaro Inukai to scout Japan once more!"

"Yes sir!" Gouta saluted his superior and went off, not before placing his hand on Tokiko's shoulder reassuringly.

Kaworu watched his Warrior Chief leave and turned to Sakuya. "Sakuya-kun…what…do you plan on doing now?"

Sakuya wiped her tears and turned to her mother and teacher. "I'm…I'm going to fight!" she exclaimed. "In my dad's place, I'm going to fight the Homunculi and protect Ginsei City! Eventually, dad will come home. So…I'm gonna train myself for that day and protect the home he loved!" Tokiko smiled, and Kaworu rubbed the back of his head. "What is it, Kaworu-kun?"

"That just means more work for me…"

"BRAVO!" yelled Captain Bravo as he clapped to Sakuya. Everyone else did as well. "You defeated two homunculi and stood up against a dangerous Humanoid Homunculus! You have the makings of a true Alchemist Warrior! However, you are not ready yet! You must train with Warrior Kaworu once more and prove yourself to be a warrior!"

Kaworu nodded and led Sakuya from the conference room. Tokiko looked up at Captain Bravo. "Great Warrior Chief, allow me-"

"Tokiko, you will stay in Ginsei City with your daughter," he interrupted. "It is my fault you have left her for so long. But now you must protect her. That is why you are a warrior. Not to destroy all Homunculi, but to protect the ones you love. Do you understand, Warrior Chief Tokiko?"

"Captain Bravo…" Tokiko was at a loss for words, but she felt her spirit refill. "Yes sir!"

–

In a research lab filled with twelve tubes of red liquid, the deceased Homunculus teacher Akira Ishida was seen floating in one of the containers of red liquid. Slowly, he opened his eyes, and he was shocked. "I…I am alive!" he exclaimed. He looked around to see figures in the shadows, their eyes glowing. One stepped forward into the red light, tapping the glass. He had black hair that went over his squinting eyes and a sinister smile.

"Why of course, you're alive," he chuckled. "You were chosen by our Kami-sama to become one of us."

"One…of you?"

"Kami-sama!" exclaimed the muscular figure. "I do not understand why this man should be one of us! He was defeated easily by that girl who used her Buso Renkin for the first time!"

There was a silence, and Akira turned to a figure sitting on a chair. The figure stood, walking towards the container, and Akira's eyes widened. "Y-You're-"

"Calm yourself, Akira Ishida. You are no longer human, nor Homunculus. Instead, you are one of the chosen ones, those made to rule over all existence. Chosen by the Philosopher's Stone."

"Philosopher's…Stone?" Akira saw his feet reappear, and watched the liquid drain. The container slowly rose, and he fell to his knees, as if he couldn't walk like a newborn baby.

"You have been reborn by the will of Kami-sama," the black-haired man grinned. "Welcome, my brother, to the Tetsujin Juusan, the Philosopher Thirteen."

–

"Are you sure about this?"

"I'm sure…I'm definitely sure about this…"

"Once we start, we can't turn back. You're life will be changed forever…"

"Kaworu-kun…that was ultimately the corniest thing you've ever said."

"I'm sorry…let's begin."

Kaworu stood before Sakuya in a large open area in the Alchemist Headquarters (Yokohama Branch). He had his Buso Renkin ready. "As I've observed in your previous battles, your Buster Sword Buso Renkin releases a burst of energy from the cloth attached to the hilt." He lifted his claymore and pointed it at Sakuya. "That energy gives you a power boost. My Buso Renkin is stated to be 'an impenetrable fortess.' So break through my defenses! If you can't break through the Garden of Eden's barrier, then by the authority vested in me by the Great Warrior Chief, I will not allow you to become an Alchemist Warrior!"

Sakuya nodded and placed her hand over her left breast, where her Kakugane is. She breathed deeply and slowly, preparing herself physically and mentally. 'If I fail, I won't be able to protect everyone. Yumi-chan…Ouka-san…Mihoshi-chan…Souta-kun…Auntie Mahiro…everyone…I must do this! I gotta succeed!' "I will succeed! BUSO RENKIN!"

–

"Philosopher…Thirteen?" Akira asked as he looked up at the shadowed man.

"From here on, you are one of us, chosen by the Philospher's Stone. No longer will you be called Akira Ishida, but your name will be…Sasori."

The word "Sasori" was muttered over and over. "I see…yes, Sasori…fitting for a striking fiend such as I!" Slowly, the naked man stood, placing a pair of glasses on his eyes. "I am Sasori!" The black-haired man simply grinned.

–

The cloud of dust began to dissipate, and Kaworu fell back, the Garden of Eden falling by his side. The metal floor in front of him was heavily dented by the buster sword Buso Renkin. "Owww…" he groaned, holding his stomach as he looked up at Sakuya, who helped him up. "That was dangerous…you are a nasty fighter, Sakuya-kun."

"Well, what can I say," Sakuya smiled. "I can no longer hide it now. I am a master at knocking down the boys!"

"I think…we're thinking of two different things…" But none the less, Sakuya succeeded, and Kaworu couldn't help but smile. "Congratulations, Sakuya-kun. You are officially an Alchemist Warrior."

Sakuya looked at Kaworu, and then heard the door slide open. It was Tokiko, smiling at them, happy that her daughter succeeded. Sakuya smiled widely and jumped at Kaworu, wrapping her arms around his neck. Kaworu was surprised, even blushing, but he smiled gently and patted her back. "Okay…you can let go of me now…seriously, I can't breathe…Sakuya-kun…Sa…Saku…ya…-kun…"