Chapter 7
"Rock and roll boys," At the back of a black van, 3 tall figures checked their weapons for the umpteenth time as trained, before pulling the hood over their heads, and mask across their faces.
The driver flashed a thumbs-up and sped off.
Stealthily, the group entered the compound and split up towards their respective marked spots as planned, amongst the shipping containers in the dark.
A young-looking girl with dark magenta hair tied split in two long ponytails shivered in the dark, the air stank of rust and salt.
She could hear the captors in low murmur beyond where she and others were contained. Then the sound of a tiny metal clinking against the ground surface was heard, before a flash of light. This was followed by a chorus of muffled shouts and thuds before silence filled the void.
In a trice, the container door was forced opened - earning loud gasps and panicked movement inside the container.
All she could see was a dense cloud of acrid smoke that swirled and billowed like an otherworldly mist and that revealed a silhouette of a tall figure.
"Are you seeing this?" the tall masked figure spoke into his ear-piece.
Brown eyes scanned the frightened faces, one finger in front of his face to signal the captives to stay silent. One.. two.. three... there were six of them, he mentally counted. Flipping his head back to scan the surrounding, he then motioned at the captives to follow him out of the container.
(Pew-Pew-Pew)
The girls screamed and ducked to the ground when they heard the gunshot.
"Not so fast asshole!" one of the captors appeared.
"HURRY! GO THAT WAY!" the masked figure pointed to the captives, who scurried away.
Next few minutes were a whirlwind of fists and strategy. The masked man was trained in lethal combat techniques, moved with calculated precision, dodging the captor's gunshots, a testament to his speed. He needed him alive for interrogation.
(Wail-Wail-Wail)
Blaring sirens echoed louder and louder, signaling to the masked man that he was running out of time, it left him with no choice but to finish it with one final blow.
"Police! Don't move!"
Detective Soifon was shocked. She was expecting to find a container full of drugs, and, that she did. However, what she wasn't expecting, was to find a group of very shaken girls who had escaped from said container, along with 4 captors lying on the ground, 3 dead, 1 critically injured. But there was nobody else in sight.
One of short girls blurted out that they were saved by someone, who had disappeared like a ghost.
"Miss, do you remember anything? Did you see their faces?"
When Detective Soifon's eyes fell on the magenta haired girl, she just shook her head weakly. In her mind, everything was a blur. Earlier, she turned to see the fight between the tall man and the captor, and managed to catch a glimpse of the face of the man who rescued them, whose mask had fallen off. While she didn't remember his features enough to describe it to the police, all she remembered was thinking: Kakkoii ~ how damn hot he looked!
"Are you seeing this?"
Relief washed over the silver haired leader as he watched intently at the screen through Ichigo's body camera.
"Kisama. Some of them look underage!" the person next to him exclaimed, while the leader stood frozen.
His turqoise blue eyes widened when he stared the petite girl with short black hair. Momo... thank God you're alive... Damn you, Aizen!
Aizen was known for drug deals but it wasn't his department, someone else took care of narcs. However, there had been more kidnapping cases. When he found out that his childhood sweetheart had been reported missing he could no longer ignore the news. So he formed a group to save the missing girls. She was in her mid 20s but she looked young and fresh due to her petite form, probably the reason she was caught up in the human trafficking deal for "lolita" looking young girls. Fucking paedophile!
"Nice job boys! The remaining money has been wired into your accounts." A pretty looking guy announced as he entered the room where the 4 men were resting.
"Hey hey, I said I wanted it in cash!" The orange haired complained.
"Huh? How would I walk around with that much cash, numbskull? Besides, what do you need so much cash for, everywhere is cashless now!" The pretty guy retorted.
"Well it's easy to figure out. One would use cash at either gambling den or strip club, and Ichigo doesn't gamble." Standing at the door way was a new arrival, a black haired four eyed stoic looking handsome man adjusted his glasses after giving his analysis.
"I see, that's where you have disappeared to all those Saturdays eh?" The red haired tattooed man wriggled his eye brows devilishly, only to be ignored by the orange head.
"Yeah, Seireitei Night Club." At that moment, their silver haired leader entered and tossed a small pouch of cash on the table. "Consider this a little bonus. Well done." The group divided it and got about $2k each.
Ichigo groaned at the revelation that he had kept under wraps. He didn't want them poking their noses into his business. Nakama or not, he certainly didn't want them going there, the main reason being he didn't want them laying eyes on his woman skimpily clad. Call him selfish but he wanted to keep her all to himself.
"Woohoo, to the strip club we go! Lead the way, Ichigo," the red head suggested.
"Great idea," the quiet driver of the group spoke up.
"No."
"C'mon, we want to meet the missus!" This time, a baldy spoke, excited to have some fun and check out girls. "I bet she has cute friends too!"
"No."
"Yes, let us meet her. We promise not to tell her that she's making a terrible mistake," the four eyed added smoothly.
Pricks!
Ichigo scowled, he didn't find it funny at all while everyone else were laughing their pants off.
Sometimes, he really really hated his friends.
But they were his ride or die. They have been through life and death and were there for each other.
Back in Gotei High School, there was a group of five punks. They were feared as much as they were admired. Because they never done anything bad, they just couldn't stand watching the weak getting bullied in school, and they didn't understand why the teachers didn't do anything about it. So they stuck together, stood up against the bullies, and took matters into their own hands.
Together they joined the police academy as aspiring officers. They faced the grueling challenges of training together, pushing each other to their limits. Late-night study sessions, early morning runs, and the camaraderie that formed in the academy forged an unbreakable bond.
One day, everything changed for the worst. Ichigo was in despair when the girl he was seeing, Senna, was found dead. The suspect was caught but said they were drunk and doing drugs, he claimed it was consensual relationship, and she died because of overdose, that it was just an accident. Ichigo didn't buy it. The case was closed. It seemed to be covered up, like someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes.
Determined to uphold the integrity of their chosen profession, they started an unofficial investigation, sharing leads and hunches among themselves. After hours of digging into the depths of the allegations, they discovered evidence being erased by someone who held a high position within the police academy.
Ichigo knew this would end his career. His dreams to uphold the law, serve justice and protect the community was shattered. But it was something he wanted to do, something he had to do. He left the academy and pursued revenge. There was no stopping him. He did this alone, not wanting his best friends to be implicated.
Graduation day arrived, bittersweet yet triumphant. It should have been the five of them standing shoulder to shoulder. Instead, only two men stood tall, badges gleaming. Their unwavering commitment to honesty and integrity had seen them through the darkest hours. They had upheld the honor of the badge.
From afar, three friends watched on with happiness, wishing their heartfelt congratulations in silence.
"You guys regret coming after me?" Ichigo hesitated before asking.
"Yup, totally." Renji chuckled, and Chad nodded in agreement.
"Tch, well I told you not to, pricks." He smiled despite saying that.
Just when all hope was lost... It was almost as if luck was on his side. Ichigo was drawing attention to himself, embarking on a solo suicide mission to hunt down the guys responsible. His path was met with roadblocks after roadblocks. Till his friends showed up along with a much older couple to show him the way.
If you want to fight, you must first gain strength. If you want to protect, you must first gain power.
So Ichigo, Renji and Chad went off the grid for years, trained under their new mentors, pushed to their limits and endured relentless drills.
3 years ago, Ichigo was finally able to exact his revenge.
Ichigo joined Aizen's gang to borrow his strength and connections. By then he knew who the culprit behind Senna's death was, but he needed access, which Aizen's gang provided.
It was a rainy day. The roads smelled of asphalt. The flames blazed fiercely.
The motorbike rider was relentless, weaving through traffic with unyielding determination - the target was in a white car. With each twist and turn, the motorbike drew closer, its engine roaring like an impending storm. Tires screeched as the car made a daring turn into an alleyway, but the motorbike followed without hesitation. The car's tires lost their grip on the wet pavement. The car skidded and spun out of control. In a cacophony of metal against concrete, the car crashed into a brick wall, sending a shower of debris into the rain-soaked air.
Revenge was served. So why was he feeling empty? He thought he'd be able to smile again, to sleep again. But nothing changed.
Nothing changed, until he met her. He finally found someone he wanted to protect, with everything he has and more. He won't lie, it started from physical attraction, he really liked her body, it drove him into mad lust. She was slim but had womanly curves. Her full and round breasts were soft and perky, beckoning him to come on them...
What he liked about her... was those stormy ashen eyes that changes with her emotions. Her smile was bright like the sun, she reserved them for him, like he was her sun. She loves day dreaming as he caught her in a daze her with mouth parted. She had a questionable palate that was wasabi-red bean paste-obsessed, but he enjoyed the pancakes she cooked for them.
He learnt that she likes reading manga. And she was a diligent girl working hard to make ends meet, supporting her older brother in comatose. He thought about how he could help her someday. And wondered if she likes the flowers he picked for her.
"I know I don't deserve you. But I want you." He pushed away her bangs and kissed her forehead. "I know I'm selfish. But I want you to wait for me."
More than making an unreasonable request of her, it was him making a resolve and a promise to himself. A resolve that he would stay alive, in order to return to her, just to see her smiling at him again. A promise that he can't die, because he asked her to wait, and he won't let her wait in vain.
"Send the men to Seireitei Club, someone will be held responsible for this mess! Dead or alive!"
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.
End.
Blitch out x
Don't you just love double updates? It's Orihime's birthday so why not!
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Did you guess who was the girl with magenta hair?