Probably last one today? I have a ton of homework, haha.
FUN FACTS:
Ch. 18: Yamiya Sayuri is an OC I made for Gin, but since I'm a hardcore GinTsu shipper, I wanted to cry and rejoice at the same time...and then Zenshi was born, but he was at first a weird visual kei/punk guy...and his final design...is THIS!
Random: I hope you guys know that I have art of him on my deviantART!
Ch. 19: Yato literally means "night rabbit", hence the golden bunny thing that Kamui was talking about.
Random: Every single time I write, "aye aye, cap'n" all I hear is the Spongebob theme song.
Random: I can totally imagine Kamui singing "Anata MAGIC".
Disclaimer: If Gintama were mine, Mitsuba would live and Otae would realize how important Kondo is to her. Oh, and the Oedo Greater Postal Service would be a thing.
Eyes of Wolves
- 19 -
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
Zenshi narrowly missed being hit by a flying, purple-haired kunoichi from the entrance of Yorozuya's parlor.
.: TWO and a HALF YEARS AGO :.
"Merchants?" echoes Kamui, when Zenshi reiterates the report in as few words as possible. He has just come back from some negotiation with a foreign prince's delegation — what was it? Prince Baka? — for under the table Harusame protection, and he is all but talkative.
"I know them," Petty Officer Jinlin says flatly. "The Kaientai, a company run by humans. They're quite successful, apparently."
"Oh, humans!" chirps Kamui.
"And they want to deal with us, why?" inquires Abuto, poking at the touch-screen monitor to browse a few incoming correspondences.
"They want to buy armaments," Zenshi reads from his latest reports.
"Reason? Aren't they merchants?" Kamui says, rubbing a reddened knuckle. From what Zenshi can see, the boy has probably taken out his stress — though what stress the carefree Yato suffers from is beyond them all — one on the training room's stiff, metal dolls.
"Space interaction has become increasingly perilous," Zenshi explains, "and they require firearms."
"I'd say that's reasonable," Abuto conferred. "We, as a battleship, do have more cannons than we could possibly ever need."
Zenshi passes the documents to Mei, who briefly scans over them just for show, and then retreats from the room. She never reads those documents.
She does, however, stack them very neatly.
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
"Gin-san!" came the anguished cry, exaggeratedly dramatic sobs raking the air. All Zenshi saw was a mass of lavender hair, and he stiffened when the woman crawled to her feet. She mutters to herself before attempting to enter Yorozuya's office again, tiptoeing up the stairs with practiced stealth. As if she was not already creepy enough in Zenshi's book, Sa-chan suddenly grafted herself to the roof and slithered to the back of the house.
Zenshi decided it would be a good time to leave.
.: TWO and a HALF YEARS AGO :.
"Not bad at all," Abuto appraises, surveying the merchant's crew of ships. "A decent fleet they got there."
As the two main spacecrafts pull alongside one another, the merchant ship's captain and his aide cross onto the Harusame warship. They are led to cabin two, designated for on-ship negotiations with outsiders.
The manager is, honestly, not what Zenshi expects. He laughs with brash loudness, as if his brain is empty, and simply asks how they are doing. He has no regard for formality, though he is very amicable, and grabs Zenshi's hand, shaking vigorously.
"Hello!" he calls, with slightly too much force, "I'm Sakamoto Tatsuma! A pleasure to meet you! Ahaha!"
He mistakes Zenshi for the captain, but Zenshi doesn't say a word until Kamui very offhandedly corrects him.
The man, with a head of ridiculously curly brown hair, simply keeps laughing. His vice-captain, a shorter woman wearing a round straw hat and a dark cloak, pushes him aside irately.
"I'm going to take a stab in the dark and say you're the real negotiator?" Kamui approaches, with a smile.
"I'd say you're stabbing in broad daylight," replies the woman tersely, but with a hint of humor. "The Kaientai's Sakamoto and Mutsu," she adds, reaching a hand out to shake with captain, vice-captain, and lieutenant.
Abuto's mouth forms a slight oh, nodding in recognition.
"What brings a human's merchant ship here?" asks Kamui, lacing his fingers in seemingly thoughtful bridge beneath his chin. "You know, you're dealing with pirates, here."
"I like to think I'm well-versed in the ways of space pirates," Mutsu answers emphatically. "At least, better than this one." She jerks a thumb at her captain, who has tilted his head up to study the room's high tech lights and computers.
"Oh? Us Harusame are the brutal type. I'm warning you in a friendly way," Kamui says. Zenshi often thinks that the captain lacks tact, but that's just Kamui. He interrupts the conversation before Kamui can wind himself into a circle.
"It is a pleasure to host Mutsu of the Chidori on one of our Harusame ships," he greets courteously, nodding her way. She gives the briefest of smiles.
"I appreciate the sentiment," Mutsu replies, "but it seems I'm no longer affiliated with the Chidori. The Kaientai, however, is where you will find me."
"Of course," complies Zenshi. "Your request for a set of fleet armaments is negotiable."
"I'd expect nothing less."
Kamui is staring now, interest piqued at the mention of "Chidori", another pirate group once said to be on par with the Harusame.
"Hey Mutsu," says Sakamoto, with a chuckle, "d'ya see that?"
He points at the screen monitor behind Kamui.
"They're already giving us the cannons."
Mutsu smiles, a wry expression.
"I told you, Tatsuma. I'd expect nothing less."
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
The elevator ride down was dusty and silent, full of buzzing warm air and the absence of morning freshness to accompany him. When he stepped out onto Yoshiwara's entering street, he paused.
There was, undeniably, the scent of an outsider.
.: TWENTY-TWO YEARS AGO :.
He is so, so proud of his photo that he puts it up in his room.
His father, however, is never home to see it.
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
He sprinted down the main street, following the familiar smell. Reaching Hinowa's place, which was now completely renovated and fixed up, he slipped inside the parlor to find only the proprietress relaxing in her chair, brewing a cup of tea.
"Tsukki has a message," Hinowa said. "She and the Hyakka are at Hosen's old palace. She said something about capturing an illegal drug ring." The woman went on, half conversing with herself and half explaining Yoshiwara to Zenshi. "Mostly, drug rings are discreet enough that even Yoshiwara doesn't care. But apparently this stuff is called Paradise or something, and it's deadly."
"It has dangerous side-effects," Zenshi told her knowledgeably.
"I'd probably guess as much," sighed Hinowa. "Check on her, but don't interrupt their work."
Zenshi nodded, only stopping to grab his customary cloak before heading back out into the streets.
.: TWENTY-TWO YEARS AGO :.
His mother plucks the guzheng with skillful delicacy.
His father, however, is never home to hear it.
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
It hit him like an ocean wave, overwhelming and choking. Zenshi ducked back into an alley, inhaling sharply as if to confirm his suspicions.
They were, evidently, inside Hosen's palace. He pursued the trail, and once he entered the palace's main corridors, he only came upon a few Hyakka.
At first, they questioned why he was there. Then, when a few came back to report on the situation, they were too startled to care.
"They found the ringleaders?" one woman exclaimed, alarmed.
"No, they didn't," said the scout, "there were some suspicious people in Hosen's study."
"Then what about the drug ring?"
"I don't know if they're related, but only that they—"
There was a deafening crash, and the women ran outside to see the commotion. From outside, a clear view of the main building revealed a collapsed roof, clouded with debris and dust. Several figures leaped out from the palace and into the streets, most of them remaining on rooftops and dodging south.
Zenshi confirmed, by sight, his apprehensive predictions.
He pulled his cloak over his shoulders and drew the hood tightly over his head, obscuring everything but his eyes.
.: TWENTY-TWO YEARS AGO :.
There is something terrifying in the way Umibouzu stands.
Zenshi's father, however, has never shown that fear.
.: MAY, PRESENT :.
Tsukuyo brandished a few kunai, and the three perpetrators retreated onto opposite rooftops.
"Don't move! Yer surrounded!" exclaimed the leader of the Hyakka, fiercely. "Give it up, we know you've got the drugs!"
"Drugs?" came the incredulous reply, from the shortest of the three darkly dressed intruders. The voice was feminine, light, and snarky. "We're not here for drugs, missy."
"You're obviously here for something!" accused another kunoichi from Tsukuyo's pursuing team. "The symbol on that one's shoulder makes it obvious!"
There are three total, but the one on the leader's right does have a faded Harusame badge inked on the shoulder of his cloak.
"Harusame!" came the outraged cry. "We know you're the ones dealing the Paradise drugs!"
"That's not our faction," the pirate leader replied sourly. One of her associates whispered something to her, and she audibly sighed in exasperation. "All right," she said, apparently relenting, "We'll use that."
The man on her right leapt down behind a building, and then resurfaced moments later with a struggling Seita locked in his grasp.
"Tsukuyo-nee!" Seita shrieked, his voice garbled in the choke hold.
"Seita!" Tsukuyo exclaimed, her toughened expression slackening into one of horror. Almost immediately, the Hyakka lurched forward as one, but the leader of the intruder trio whipped out a curved, short knife and accepted transfer of the hostage to herself. Now in possession of Seita, she pressed the blade to the child's throat.
"Move, and there goes his head," she said, dangerously low. Even from a distance, they could see the blade pressing so slightly into Seita's skin.
Zenshi disappeared into the shadows, melding into the back alleys as he wove his way around the district. His presence, at least a majority of it, was cloaked with expert experience. When he found a ladder up onto a higher balcony, he nimbly climbed his way up, carefully ascending as quietly as possible.
He knelt where he stood, a finger to his lips.
He couldn't, however, prevent the majority of the Hyakka's eyes from flashing in his direction. One of the pirates whipped around.
Zenshi's fist connected with the man's jaw, throwing the intruder towards Tsukuyo's currently frozen team. When the second accompanying assailant turned to apprehend Zenshi, he ducked away rapidly and went for the leader.
She ducked away nimbly, knife locked in position by Seita's throat.
In an instant, Tsukuyo had leapt into the fray, her kunai whizzing past Zenshi's ears and landing just left of the second intruder. The two cloaked attackers, one man and one woman, pulled their thick hoods from their faces and drew matching umbrellas. Tsukuyo and Zenshi both took a step back in unison.
The man, who had recovered from Zenshi's initial strike, rubbed his jaw and growled beneath his breath. The woman, whose unwavering, gray gaze sent a shiver through the armed courtesans, aimed her umbrella at them.
"You are contending with powers far higher than you can comprehend," she warned. "The new King of the Night's orders are absolute. It would be more convenient for all of us if you simply put down your weapons."
"King of the Night?" Tsukuyo spat. "Ya mean to say that that red-haired brat is our ruler? What a joke. And who are you supposed t'be?"
"The Harusame's elite squad," replied the man. "We're here on surveillance. We do not intend to oppose you."
"Sure ya don't," drawled Tsukuyo, grip tightening on her kunai. "Since y'all have already kidnapped Seita, I'd say it's safe to assume that yer gonna call a truce with us."
"Look, missy," said their leader, who pulled off her hood and issued a sharp glare at all of the other women. "I don't know what your purpose here is, but you're in the way. The captain specifically told me not to decapitate anyone, so if you value your head, you'll refrain from making me lose my temper."
"And you are?" snapped Tsukuyo, advancing few steps forward, despite the umbrellas raised to shoot at a moment's notice. "No, don't tell me. Some big guy's little girl, on a mission to prove she ain't a ditz."
"Excuse me?" came the shrill, outraged exclamation. Zenshi, a bit surprised, had not expected Tsukuyo to out-sass the other woman. The Hyakka, at least a few of them, smiled beneath their masks.
"If you insult our esteemed Lieutenant Mei again, we won't hold back," said the woman, whose parasol was still raised threateningly. Now Zenshi wanted to laugh. The entire time, he'd recognized Mei and Jinlin, plus a third, newer member of his former aide's squad. But lieutenant? While his own promotion had proved to be a shocking power play by Abuto and a few others, this was simply ludicrous.
"They won't hurt Seita," Tsukuyo deduced beneath her breath. Behind her back, she signaled for the Hyakka to begin advancing. Out loud, she called, "Then prove it to me!"
"Prove what?"
Tsukuyo threw a kunai, and Mei deflected it with ease.
"How about you," taunted Mei, "prove to me that you can actually fight? Or is that your bodyguard right there?"
She nodded haughtily at Zenshi; the Yato man was rather put off by the fact that she, along with the others, still had not recognized him. Perhaps because his trip to town obscured his scent with that of many humans?
"No, he's just the audience," Tsukuyo said dryly. "He doesn't do much."
"I'm sure," snarled Mei, her grip tightening on Seita.
Tsukuyo moved forward quickly, but the Yato overwhelmed her almost immediately. Jinlin and the other officer passed her in an instant, dispatching almost every single Hyakka with quick, calculated blows to the back of the head or the gut. When they had successfully knocked every woman unconscious — cautiously avoiding vital blows — they whirled around to face Tsukuyo, who, in shock, had been rooted to the spot.
"Just take these last two out," Mei ordered. "We have what we need, it's just getting out that's the problem."
Tsukuyo lunged for the pale-haired Yato woman, but Jinlin apprehended her. The other man, whom Zenshi didn't realize, branched away from his partner. Now facing Zenshi, he brandished his umbrella.
"All right, Mr. Bystander," he said gruffly, "it's time to take a nap."
The older Yato man very nearly disappeared, with the immensity of his speed. Every time Zenshi managed to evade, however, he realized that his attacker was increasing the ferocity of his blows, hoping that one strong hit, even just a graze, would take Zenshi out.
He apologized silently to whoever owned the shop across the way — and threw the man directly into the building.
The force Zenshi applied was so great that the building crumbled in on itself, if only the front wall. He dove into the dust, finding the Yato officer, and driving his hand so hard into the wall beside him that the pressure split the man's ear across the lobe and scarred his cheek.
"Lights out," Zenshi mouthed almost inaudibly, his one arm pinning down the man's, and his free hand pushing a choke hold until his opponent faded from consciousness.
He turned back to see how Tsukuyo was faring. The dust from the crash, however, obscured his view until he leapt back outside. The head courtesan was parrying adroitly with Jinlin, who relentlessly swung her parasol with a speed that sufficed for both offense and defense.
Tsukuyo struck out with a kunai; she missed.
The umbrella crashed laterally into her shoulder, sending her sprawling across the rooftop. A few straggling Hyakka, not quite decommissioned, cried out and tried to reach her, but could not stand.
Tsukuyo pushed herself to her feet, slightly unsteady. She held her left arm, which was probably bruised beneath the battered sleeve. Nonetheless, she used her good arm to draw another throwing knife.
At this point, Zenshi had drawn his own umbrella, and fired three precise shots in the direction of Jinlin's feet. The woman leapt backwards, sliding to a halt beside Mei. Both turned to see the masked Yato, who easily sprang to Tsukuyo's side.
"Oh? You hired one of us as your bodyguard?" said Mei, amused. "We're quite an expensive mercenary clan. How ever did you afford it?"
"It's not an it, it's a him," Tsukuyo hissed, "and Yoshiwara, if ya haven't noticed, is very wealthy."
"It's kind of gross, if you ask me," Mei snorted.
"I know, yer a perfect match," sneered Tsukuyo, glaring heavily. Mei and Tsukuyo exchanged a battle of curses and insults with such great intensity that it was a wonder no one began to bleed from their ears.
"Jinlin!" shouted Mei, pointing at Tsukuyo, who readied herself for battle. Zenshi placed a few fingers on her good shoulder, careful when she winced. Silently, he pushed her back and brandished his old umbrella.
He looked down and noticed that it was the one with a golden insignia, that of his father's family.
Jinlin swung her umbrella.
He ducked, slamming the handle of his own weapon into her abdomen and sending her flying half a block away. She hit a wall hard, and fell heavily to the ground. Without hesitation, Zenshi aimed his umbrella at Mei and Seita.
"Are you sure?" taunted his former aide, pressing the knife deeper into Seita's flesh. A bead of blood formed on the boy's neck, sliding thinly to his collarbone. "Don't you need your employer's directions, first?"
"He ain't got any," shouted Tsukuyo. "I'm not his employer."
"Oh? Then—"
Suddenly, Mei froze.
Zenshi was behind her, his hand grasped around her own, guiding the knife away from Seita's throat. When she retaliated, Zenshi swept a kick across the back of the girl's knees, causing her to fall in a painful crumple. One hand pushed Seita towards Tsukuyo, while the other hand parried a strike with his umbrella. Mei rapidly rebounded to her feet and fired her parasol's gun.
Zenshi let the bullet zip past his ear, hitting a building behind him. His right arm knocked away the umbrella, while his left gripped the woman by the cloak collar. She struggled until she recognized the eyes beneath the heavily cloaked figure before her.
Dark blue, with stitches and scars and the weight of everything and nothing in them.
"Ze—"
"Lights out, Petty Officer."
This was kind of hard to write, too. And it's long. Haha.
By the way, if you're not up to date with the manga, sorry about the spoilers. Mutsu and all.
Notes: -SAKAMOTO CAMEO!
-Mutsu is a pirate!
-This is long?
-I need to do homework?
-This is such a hard thing to write sometimes.
-I don't like typing with nails that are too long aRGHHH.
Ushishishi, ciao ~