"I was able to access the files," Genos said when he got back to the computer. "It appears that Metal Knight may also have the files, too."
"Can we reach him?" Saitama asked while holding Mitsumi on the couch again to keep her calm. She was pressed into him completely and had her eyes closed. She was still fighting with the fact that they had to kill her brother. Saitama just kept a hand moving through her hair and another rubbed along her back. He knew her mind was an absolute mess right now.
"I can reach Child Emperor first," Genos said and took out his phone to call the boy. "He can request for us. I have yet to get a direct line with Metal Knight."
"Did we get the security room?" Mitsumi managed to ask now.
"We did. Lightning Max is ensuring the cameras are functional. It appears that some areas of security were purposely taken down after various staffing were removed. It was very odd. We will need to thoroughly go through each floor to ensure everything is well. I know Kianna, Rendor and Terrible Tornado were doing so. Shenjou is assisting with removing rubble and garbage buildup in areas. The other heroes were going over the grounds," Genos said.
"Hey," Kamikaze said when he walked in. "Inichi told me where to find you all. There's a very weird spot of dirt behind the house. You wanna check it out with me?"
"I have the files, so we can all go," Genos said and secured the hard drive and the flash drive in a small strongbox. Saitama rose up with Mitsumi being carried in his arms and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"I should walk," she sighed.
"Nope. I got you," he said calmly and moved with them to the elevator. "Do you know anything about a dirt pile?"
"No," she frowned. "I have no idea."
He nodded at this and the small group walked into the main floor before heading outside. Inichi was now gathering them up into a blue bubble to bring them to the odd mound of dirt. Saitama set Mitsumi down and began to excavate with Genos. Zenchu was just as curious on what it was, and they brought up a small chest. Now they realized that it was activated with an external battery pack.
"This is holding something. It feels cold. Refrigeration, I think," Genos frowned. "It requires a key code lock. I don't know…"
"I can help," Shenjou said when he was brought over and offered his venom. Saitama took off his glove to apply a small drop to the lock. After it was destroyed, Genos took it all apart. Saitama made sure to put his glove back on before they finally took off the lid. Mitsumi's jaw dropped with horror at the carefully sealed and labeled jars of internal organs.
"That's her! Parts from her!" Zenchu seethed. "It's like they were saving her for a snack?!"
"I'm…gonna be…!" Mitsumi grimaced for Saitama to quickly rush off to the bushes with her for her to vomit.
"They planted this all over…" Inichi fumed when he showed up to see it with his own eyes. "There are other spots throughout the property. Not only was she harvested from for things, but this was deliberately done to force her to see this if she ever came back. Daiki…he knew. His remorse knows no bounds. He's telling me where the rest is. Let's find it all and destroy it. We simply must."
"There is a note…" Genos grimaced, but he picked it up to read it from where it was lightly taped to the inside of the lid. His eyes glowed a solid yellow for intense rage. "It states that the sweetest one to taste is from the heart. It tells how each one tastes when cooked in different ways. I need to incinerate everything. Bring it all to me!"
"I can't…Saitama! I can't…!" she pleaded with him with harsh whimpers of panic after she emptied the contents of her stomach. He felt himself ripping in half from the pain and anguish she was going through now. "I can't do this…anymore…I just can't…! Please…!"
"I know," he said softly and sat on the ground to cradle her. Inichi was able to deliver a glass of water to Zenchu to help her rinse out her mouth. Saitama was nearly beside himself with rage. :Inichi, did any of her family eat that?!:
:No. Only she did. That thing. Ah…a suggested vibe that…Fumihiro did, too…but only after the transformation.: Inichi cringed with anger. :And those parts…they were still alive! The ones in the lab were dead from being left alone for so long! But the ones in those containers?!:
:Destroy. ALL. Of. It. NOW!: Saitama ordered sternly and continued to cradle Mitsumi close. She was sobbing as loudly as she did when he first met her, and all he could do was continue to comfort her to show he was there. "I'm here. I'm here. I'm not leaving. No one will do that again to you. Never again."
"Fan Dancer?" Sweet Mask asked on walking over. Saitama suddenly looked over his own shoulder to glare at the hero to make him stop in his tracks. He rose up a gloved hand with a signal to stop. Then he wagged his finger to keep away. After that, he did a waving motion for Sweet Mask to walk away. At first, Sweet Mask wasn't going to heed the warning. Then he changed his mind when Saitama narrowed his eyes with a protective rage.
"Yeah…don't do it," Zenchu muttered and had Sweet Mask turn around and walk back to the others. "She got sick. Like…as sick as in the restaurant sick. Give her time to recover. Inichi found out something, anyways, and it's absolutely horrific. If she found out…"
"What was it?" Sweet Mask asked when they got out of earshot.
"Those crates…" Zenchu said with his own rage. "The parts in them are all from her. Harvested when she was knocked out. The parts are still alive."
"What?!" Sweet Mask gaped.
"Saitama said to destroy everything. All of it. We vowed we would, anyways, if we saw anything like that. It's been said there are ten of these shit boxes all over the property. We have to bring them to Genos to get fully destroyed. I mean…ten crates?! Of her?! That fucker had her knocked out every other day and was just removing parts from her! Inichi has a sick feeling that this was done right before she changed for the snake bite to quickly hit her and reform the organs every time. He pulled out her fucking heart! Her lungs! Everything! And this was done multiple times!" Zenchu raged.
"Oh…" Sweet Mask paled.
"And to become food for monsters?!" he spat out and seethed. "They fed on her like a fucking delicacy!"
"I don't know what to think…" Sweet Mask swallowed.
"Because you've never encountered a level of evil like this before," Inichi said when he hovered with them now. "This is the type of monster that woman is now. It has been confirmed. And to know that her brother also tasted her organs?! Kianna is already going through the various kitchens. She found more parts that were frozen and prepped as though ready for various dishes. It is all being gathered for complete destruction."
"There was more?!" Zenchu asked with complete horror.
"There was…" Inichi said with extreme sorrow. "She was able to be harvested from for nearly thirty days. Think about it."
"Ugh! I just…I…" Zenchu grimaced and found himself running back over to where Saitama and Mitsumi were. He crawled up to them in a submissive way and pushed his head into Mitsumi's arms like a cat wanting affection.
"Zenchu…" she whimpered and let him lean into her.
"I wish…I met you before…" he whispered. "I wish I could have stopped this from happening."
"I know," she said softly and stroked his locks of hair.
"You'll get stronger from this," he said and continued to let her comfort him. "We all will. This is just…a nasty blow again."
"Yeah," Saitama frowned and sighed.
"Saitama…there was…frozen stuff…" Zenchu shuddered with rage.
"I see…" he said.
"It's being collected now to be destroyed," Zenchu said with forced control.
"Good," Saitama said and continued to let Mitsumi press into him. "Let me know when the place is clear of it."
"Okay. Inichi will tell you," Zenchu said and just sighed at Mitsumi's comforting hand in his hair. She was horrified on it all, but she was finally able to be kept calm. She closed her eyes to take a deep breath for control.
"Saitama," she said weakly.
"Hmm?" he looked at her and kissed her forehead.
"I know…she may be doing something nasty when we find her," she shuddered. "If we see her eating parts of me…keep me strong."
"What do you mean?" he frowned. Zenchu seethed, but she kept him calm with her hand in his hair.
"She may have another crate of me delivered to City L. To the place she's at. I wouldn't put it past her," Mitsumi said with a hard shudder of disgust.
"Oh. Yeah. I can see her doing that," Saitama grimaced. "Inichi can warn me if it's happening. All of this will be over soon. I promise you. And if we find more crap, then we'll take care of it together."
"Okay," she nodded and let him kiss her protectively.
"I won't let anyone touch you again like that. The moment the place is clear, we'll go into your room. Okay?" he said.
"Why?" she asked.
"I know they'll be searching and combing through the place. You and I need to take a small nap. We'll let them go through everything. We know your room is safe. The bed looks nice, anyways," he grinned lightly. "An hour should be plenty of time for you to recover with me."
"Saitama…" she sighed and shook her head. "I don't know."
"Trust me," he soothed and kissed her softly. "Have I proved you wrong yet? Hmm?"
"No…" she smiled softly.
"Zenchu, make sure no one bugs us. You'll be in charge while she and I rest. She needs to recover her mental state," he said and finally rose up with her to carry her. Zenchu nodded and got a tight hug from her.
"I love you, big brother," Mitsumi whispered and got the top of her head kissed in a purely brotherly way by him.
"And I love you, too, little sis," he chuckled. "It's like he said. We'll tackle everything as it comes to us. Yeah, all of this sucks. I don't blame you for acting as you do. But, think of it this way. The more it happens, the less it will affect you. Right now, they won the mental horror factor. They won't win anymore."
"I just worry that other parts of me were sent elsewhere. You know?" she cringed. Zenchu sighed hard at that thought.
"We'll destroy all of that the moment we find it," Saitama said flatly. "No excuses. No questions asked. We just take care of it. We know now that it may be out there. We're aware of it. That card was played against us. They can't do it again to get the same result."
"Yeah…" she nodded and started to get carried into the mansion.
"Wait. Allow me to get you to her room directly," Inichi offered when he floated over. Saitama nodded and let the blue bubble form and carry them directly to her bedroom window. Zenchu was also carried to her room, but he moved right outside the door to ensure no one would disturb them. He was able to take one of her chairs out to sit right in front of it. Saitama set Mitsumi down, put the cover back up on the window, as there were two other windows that were covered still, and then moved right back over to her.
"Mitsumi," Saitama said and lifted her up to sit on her bed with her in his lap. "Talk to me. Confide in me. Every time you break like that, I need you to tell me everything on your mind."
"I have…no words…" she admitted and pressed into him to get cradled. "I still have to wonder why. Why it was me. Just…why…"
"Hmm…" he nodded and gazed at her.
"And then…to see those jars…" she looked down and trembled. "I remember how no one wanted me to see the lab. It's like…I just saw what was in it. Those parts were mine! They were stolen! And…I mean…yeah…I got everything back…but to take out my heart?! I mean…the only way that could have happened is if…I was ready to change…"
"Yeah…" he nodded again.
"He killed me several times and I got brought back if that's the case. He murdered me. Raped me…" she cringed and got squeezed now. A desperate kiss was pressed to her mouth now and she found herself set on the bed directly. When he got up and began to fully undress, her jaw dropped. "Saitama! What…why?!"
"We both need this," he said and set his uniform on a plush chair before moving over to her. "We have a good hour. Zenchu will ensure we're not disturbed."
"I don't know," she frowned and sat up on the bed to tuck her knees underneath herself in a sideways manner. Now he looked at her and seemed to give a small smile of understanding.
"This is your childhood room. Didn't you ever fantasize of having a man in your bed?" he asked with a slight grin now. "Even one that's stupidly strong?"
"Ah…" she found herself blushing.
"It's time to let that fantasy come true," he muttered and pulled her close. "In fact, I'll go a step further."
"Oh?" she asked and traced a finger up his arm. The horrors from earlier were finally melting away. He wanted the events to completely lose hold on her.
"Tell me how to undress you," he growled lightly. "Where to touch you. Guide my actions."
"Guide…?" she asked with a husky whisper and found herself kissing him heavily now. With this new game in motion, Zenchu was calmly sitting in the chair with his back against the door. He was barely able to hear the sharp giggles, and he found himself chuckling softly.
"Zenchu!" Genos said when he strode over. "Where is Master Saitama?"
"Keeping Lady Mitsumi calmed and happy. They need an hour," Zenchu said and crossed his arms over his chest to show he wasn't moving. "With the shit uncovered and what she had to witness, it's needed. She even puked from it, remember? She needs this to remain calm and to regain herself."
"Ah. I see," Genos nodded. "An hour?"
"Just about. It will give the others time to ensure nothing else is in this place that can fuck with her mind," Zenchu grunted out.
"Very well," Genos nodded and walked off to investigate the other floors in the home. With clear instructions to not disturb the intimate couple now, it was twenty minutes later that Mitsumi found herself resting on Saitama's chest with complete comfort. He had his eyes closed with a sensation of light resting with contentment and he had his arms around her. At the feel of her moving a finger along his chest, he smiled softly.
"What?" he murmured.
"I wonder what you could do to me with a blindfold on," she mused. He popped his eyes opened and glanced at her now.
"We will get one," he said to have her start giggling.
"I also always had a secret fantasy. It was nothing bad. More like…something I always wanted to happen," she said with a soft sigh.
"Okay. What is it?" he asked.
"I…well…it's silly…"
"Nope. Tell me."
"I don't know…"
"Tell. Me. Now," he said and kept his eyes fixed on hers.
"Well…I always wanted the guy I was with to…read to me," she said with a soft blush. Now he looked at her with a small smile. "Kinda like the video games. But…just holding me and reading to me."
"Okay. Anything in particular?" he asked and looked around the room.
"Not really. But…the only books I know I have here are…romance novels," she said with a slightly nervous grin and a shrug. Now he gave her a blank stare to get her laughing at him. "I always liked stories with happy, romantic endings. Considering what happened to me. Our meeting is a bit like a romance novel, too, if you think about it. So…yeah…I liked romance novels."
"Get me one," he said without changing his expression. Now she realized he was serious about it.
"Ah…what?" she blinked at him now.
"Get me a book," he said again.
"Um…okay…" she glanced at her main desk and moved off him to get up and look through a few of the drawers. "There was something else I had on my mind, though."
"What's that?" he asked as he watched her.
"When it came to the fans and what I did earlier. I only had two fans out. Not three," she said with soft realization.
"Oh! That's right," Saitama blinked at the thought.
"It's like…almost like with Rendor's situation. I think…the fans are a little sentient from the blades. The more I gather them back together, the stronger and more 'awake' they become. At least…I think…" she frowned.
"That would be something, huh?" he found himself chuckling. She found a book soon after and brought it to him. He had her get under the covers with him, but propped up on the pillows. Then he paused on opening the cover to find a letter addressed to her. "Mitsumi?"
"What?" she frowned and gasped. "That's…Father's writing! I mean…how?! I never saw this before!"
"Hmm…" Saitama frowned and took out the brown envelope. He set the book aside to read to her later. "This is dated…two days before he died…if Inichi is telling me right..."
"What?!" she asked with shock. He opened the envelope now to reveal the letter. He noticed there were a few pages, and he glanced at her. She nodded at him to read it all. Inichi was quickly nudged to pay attention to the mental words that would be read out loud. The moment he was mentally asked about the date of her father's death, he was already paying close attention.
"'To my dearest daughter, Mitsumi. If you are reading this and I'm dead, then I can only hope you still live. I know my life is coming to an end. So, I am leaving careful instructions with you. If you still live, and I am clearly gone, RUN from this home if you have no means to claim it back. Run away and come back when you know you are stronger to reclaim what is yours.
"'As much as you think you are defenseless, you are not. Mami Ito trained you in her footsteps. You are from the legendary Wind Crane Clan now. Only you can bring down my murderer. If you figured out it was your mother, then you are correct to assume so. The will I showed you, she discovered. As much as it saved your life, it made my life forfeit. If you rescue your brothers and sisters and wish to care for them, then that decision is ultimately yours to make. And yours alone.
"'You are my last hope to keep my vast memory alive. As much as I know I did much wrong, you are my salvation. My last attempt to do something right. I tried with Atsuko. You saw how she lost interest. Daiki is too confused. Himiko may help you, but only if she sees why. I do worry that Fumihiro is just too young to care. I can only hope you can break through to them to expose what your mother is. As to how she got this way, well, here it goes.
"'When I married her, there was nothing wrong. It was an arranged marriage. She knew who I was. I knew who she was. We were fine with our marital duties. We did care for each other, but it was just enough. Not true love. And I can only hope you find that, too. But, it was a month after you were born that she said she was approached by someone from a group called 'Secret Skins'. They brought her to a meeting, and she found their company enjoyable. She wanted to fund them a bit. I told her she had her money. That was on her. I should have realized that it was a grave mistake…'"
"Saitama…!" Mitsumi cringed and he hugged her. He simply flipped the paper over to continue reading and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"'It was when I started to see her eat more that I realized something was off. She always took excellent care of her figure. Then I saw how she started to neglect you. Regardless of how we were politically, she never rejected her children. She figured you were a lost cause on just being born. That was when I realized that something was severely wrong. I hired a spy to follow her to one of these meetings. He was found dead a few days later. That was when I knew that the woman your mother was…was no longer your mother.
"'I took action right away. I invested in a nanny for you. I always spent time to devote to you. The moment you needed me, I became the sole provider for you. If there was something you wanted, within reason, of course, I ensured you had it. Thankfully, you never asked for much other than the usual doll or book. Even the small posters of cute animals. You never needed much at all.
"'If your mother took any interest in you, I made sure to have you tell me everything she said in those fun little pictures I had you draw for me. That was our secret way of communicating. Do you remember? I'm sure you didn't realize it then, but you should know now. Those pictures are all in the floor safe under the rug in my study. You know where it is. Find them. Show them to those you trust. They will prove your innocence and her horrific mind that she has now!'"
"The pictures! The drawings in pen and crayon!" she gaped. "I…"
"We'll look for them after this," Saitama nodded.
"Okay…" she frowned, but she knew that Inichi already had others looking for them now to safeguard them for her to see later.
"'When I saw Mami Ito perform with her fans, I knew exactly who she was. No others ever knew how to perform like her. There were dances with fans. But actual fan dancing, itself? To make the fans dance for the dancer on their own? Only the Wind Crane Clan had that talent. All had forgotten about it, but I didn't. I loved reading the lost tales about them. And knowing that Mami was one of the last ones that knew this art? I had to approach her and ask for her to train one of my own daughters. It was rumored that only women could learn it due to the intense focus that was needed. Some males could do it, but it was incredibly rare for a male to successfully learn this tricky form of art.
"'She was baffled as to why I was insisting that she train one of my daughters. That was when I told her of your mother. The moment I said 'Secret Skins', her eyes went wide with complete shock. Mami Ito demanded to see to my daughters at once. She said the situation was dire now. She had to see if one of them would take to what she offered. I have never been prouder to know that it was you, Mitsumi! You were the only one that ignored what your mother said about it being a useless skill and only good for entertainment! You kept to the training and stuck to it until it was completed!
"'And when you told me you were excited to learn about special secret fans, my heart simply soared! I knew that, eventually, your mother would be stopped! But…I also knew that I may not be alive to see the day that you finally found out your hidden secret. Should you find out, then you will know what you are. If this is your first time learning this, well…you are practically the last known survivor of the Wind Crane Clan to my knowledge.
"'I know the fans you wield now are part of a set of ten. This was revealed to me by Mami. She told me that she wanted you to find them all. Some of the business trips I did, well…I did find two sets of fans. They are waiting for you in the same place the pictures you drew for me are. Hopefully you will find a way to utilize them. As to where the others are, I am unsure.
"'I can hear your mother moving around, so I must bring this letter to a close before I slip it away in one of your books. I leave you with one final request. Reach out to my brother, your uncle, Kiyoshi Takashi. Show him this letter. Tell him how I died. I told him before that I feared that your mother would kill me. He scoffed at me then. I wonder how he'll take the news now. As it stands, I love you, Mitsumi. You are my pride and joy! Avenge me! Save the Takashi name! Save our family!'" Saitama finally finished reading.
"Two fans…in his study?!" she gaped.
"We'll have half the fans now!" Saitama said with excitement.
"And to contact my uncle…okay…there should be a note with his number somewhere," she frowned. "But…Father…everything we suspected…he knew who Mami was! He knew! And with Mother…he knew she changed, too! This letter…it reveals everything!"
"I'll read to you later. We need to dress and check out the study," Saitama sighed and put the letter back in the envelope. Then he pulled her close and kissed her passionately. "You are an amazing, wonderful girl. I am so glad that you're with me now and in my life."
"Saitama…" she swallowed and pressed into him. "I still…can't believe that someone like you loves me. Of all the girls out there in the world. I was the one that stumbled into your life. And that you saved mine."
"I take you as my wife," he said with a small smile on his face.
"I accept you as my husband," she smiled back and let him kiss her deeply and with intense care. He squeezed her to him now before letting her go to dress. Inichi was already waiting outside the door with Zenchu.
"Study. Now," Zenchu nodded. "Everyone is in there waiting."
"Okay," Mitsumi nodded and let Saitama lift her in his arms to carry her there while she held the precious letter. She was just excited that she was going to get two more fans to her arsenal. She couldn't wait to see what she could do with them now.
