Mugetsu knows there's something going on in his city. Szayelaporro is still out there, but he isn't the one pulling the strings. He knows that now, but he has no clue as to who Szayelaporro is really working for. As he stood at the top of a building, he looked around and wondered where the next criminal is going to come out from.
"Where are you?" Mugetsu questioned as he wanted to know where the next criminal is. He plans to put all of them away. As he looked around, he spotted Orihime walking down the street. Ever since she came back, Ichigo hasn't been able to stop thinking about her, especially after what Uryu told him. Still, it didn't matter to him. He doesn't want to drag Orihime into his life and it's not going to change anything with him. Suddenly, his instincts kicked as he could just feel something coming at him from behind. He jumped out of the way as a strange weapon shot through with it connected to a chain.
"Nice moves." Mugetsu followed the weapon back as it was pulled back. It was now in the hands of a scrawny guy with long black hair and an eye patch over his left eye with him wearing a strange white outfit with him wearing curling shoes and a spoon-like piece on the back of his head. His weapon was even connected to him by a chain. "You handled that well, but you can't just dodge. What's your name?"
"You first." Mugetsu said.
"I suppose you should know the name of the man who plans to kill you. I am Nnoitora Gilga. No more talking, let's get right to the fight!" The strange man was just attacking him for no reason as he jumped up in the air and readied his weapon for an attack. He came straight down at him, but Mugetsu jumped out of the way and saw him crash against the roof.
"He's scrawny, but he sure seems strong." Mugetsu said. Nnoitora came at him once again as he swung his massive weapon around, but Mugetsu kept dodging the attacks. He tried to fight back as he shot his sword forward only to have it deflected. Mugetsu tried again only to have Nnoitora catch his arm.
"What kind of blade is this? Custom made? I made my weapon like that as well, but is that really all you can do with this weapon? That seems like a real waste." Nnoitora said. Mugetsu kicked Nnoitora back and freed his arm, but Nnoitora barely felt it. "Is that really all you got?"
"Who are you and what do you want from me?" Mugetsu questioned.
"I would be more concerned with staying alive!" Nnoitora claimed as he swung his weapon at him again, but Mugetstu leaned back and avoided it. Mugetsu moved around his weapon and tried attacking with his fist, but Nnoitora easily caught it. "Attacking with with your fist instead of your weapon? Why are you holding yourself back like that? That's not the makings of an assassin."
"A what?!" Mugetsu said. Then, Nnoitora bashed his head against Mugetsu's and and then kicked him back with him almost going over the edge. "What did you mean by that?"
"Are you that stupid? I'm saying you don't have what it takes to be an assassin." Nnoitora claimed. "You have some moves, but you don't have the instinct to kill."
"That's because I don't kill. I'm not a sicko criminal that would just kill people." Mugetsu said.
"You don't kill? Is that weapon just for show? How pathetic." Nnoitora said.
"What makes you think I'm an assassin?" Mugetsu questioned.
"I don't, but my boss thinks you could be one of us." Nnoitora said.
""Us"?" Mugetsu questioned as he didn't like the sound of that.
"That's enough, Nnoitora."
"You've had your fun, but I think now is the time for negotiations." Two more showed up. One was a man with dark skin that had tiny spikes on his head with skull earrings and bony necklace with markings over his face. He also wore white mandarin-style clothing. The other one was dressed in a white robe with a large mask covering his face.
"Zommari... Aaroniero... Don't try to spoil my fun." Nnoitora said.
"I think you've had plenty of it." Aaroniero said.
"We are here to recruit him, not kill him." Zommari said.
"What do you mean by recruit me? Who are you people?" Mugetsu questioned. "It doesn't look like they were sent by Szayelaporro. They must be working for someone else." He mumbled to himself.
"Forgive our rude and rash comrade." Zommari said.
"He's always been known to jump straight into action. Fighting to him is almost like an obsession." Aaroniero claimed.
"Hey! It's not an obsession! It's just something I was made to do!" Nnoitora argued.
"We have heard about you, Mugetsu. Our master has taken an interest in you." Zommari claimed. "We would greatly appreciate it if you were to come with us. We have much to discuss."
"I don't think so." Mugetsu said. "You want me to come with you to become an assassin, is that right? That's what the three of you are. Mercenaries, hitman, assassins, or whatever you want to call yourselves. I have no interest in becoming something like that. I suggest you leave or else."
"Or else what? You can't scare us with empty threats, but I'm happy to oblige with a fight." Nnoitora said as he was fine resuming what they started.
"Nnoitora, we did not come here to fight." Aaroniero claimed.
"We had a feeling you wouldn't come so willingly, but we have a mission to fulfill." Zommari said. Mugetsu was ready to fight all three of them, but then something happened. He felt a sharp pain right in his shoulder for a bullet actually shot right through him.
"What...?" Mugetsu mumbled as he could see the bullet and he could barely keep himself together. "They got me, but...how...? I didn't see, hear, or even sensed anything..." He complained before he passed out and collapsed.
"Nice shot, Starrk." Aaroniero said as they all looked up to another building. There was another one with him having shaggy brown hair with a face that made it look like he didn't care for anything. He's also quite the sniper as he made a shot that didn't kill Mugetsu at quite a distance. Mugetsu was out like a light. With him defenseless, Nnoitora held his weapon near his neck to kill him. "Nnoitora, we're not here to kill him. We're here to recruit him."
"I don't think he has what it takes." Nnoitora claimed.
"It's not for us to decide." Zommari said. Nnoitora hated to let prey go, but he knew this wasn't his call. What's going to happen to Mugetsu now?
...
Mugetsu
"Urgh... Aww..." Mugetsu felt himself in pain, but he was waking up. That meant that he was alive. He woke up, but felt some pain in his shoulder. As he woke up from sleeping on a futon, he saw he was somewhere else. He was in a room he didn't recognized. "Where is this? Where am I?" He took a look and saw he was bandaged up after being shot. "I've been patched up, but my costume is still on."
"We simply respected your privacy." He looked across the room and spotted Aaroniero. "As you can see, I too wear a mask. If you're going to be one of us, you're going to need to conceal your face."
"What are you talking about? I'm not going to be one of you." Mugetsu said. "What the hell is all of this? Where am I?"
"We brought you to our home." Aaroniero said. "As we said before, our boss has taken an interest in you and would very much like to meet you. We've managed to patch you up, so there shouldn't be much trouble with that wound. Now, get dressed and I'll take you to meet him." Mugetsu would much rather fight and find his way out of there, but he soon realized he didn't have his sword on him.
"My sword! Where is it?!" Mugetsu questioned.
"Our boss has it. It's rude to keep him waiting." Aaroniero said. "If you want your precious sword back, you'll have to meet him." It looks like Mugetsu doesn't have much of a choice. Once he got dressed, Mugetsu followed Aaroniero through the place and saw he was in some sort of facility in the middle of the night. He looked around and saw people were training and studying, but it was normal stuff. They were training to use weapons, studying the body, and many ways to kill people.
"What is all of this? Where are we?" Mugetsu said. "You better give me a straight answer."
"Welcome to Las Noches." Aaroniero said.
"Las Noches?" Mugetsu questioned. "Doesn't that mean night in Spanish?"
"Of course. An assassin does his best work when it's dark." Aaroniero said. Mugetsu didn't like the sound of that. "If you're thinking of running off, don't bother. We're actually on an island. You won't be able to escape so easily." At least he now knows where he is, but that means he's stuck on an island that is training killers. Aaroniero contiuned to lead Mugetsu through the place until they reached a temple-like building and went on inside. The two of them kept going until they soon reached what looked like a throne room. Once they were in there, Aaroniero dropped down to his knees.
"Now where are we?" Mugetsu said.
"My own personal chamber." Mugetsu looked ahead and was met with an old man that had dark skin, rather big, and was in black and white clothing with a crown-like piece on his head. Mugetsu also noticed that the old man was holding his sword "So, you are Mugetsu."
"And who might you be?" Mugetsu questioned.
"I am the one that rules over this land. I am Baraggan Louisenbairn." He introduced himself and then had a look at his sword. "This is a rather fine sword you have here. I was told you custom made it yourself. It's quite exceptional."
"I did make it myself, but that's besides the point. Why am I here?" Mugetsu questioned. "Your thugs said something about making me one of them? You want to turn me into an assassin or something."
"First, they are not my thugs. They are my subordinates." Baraggan said. "I rule over this place with an iron fist. Anyone who does not obey my ruling will suffer the consequences. Second, I sent them to bring you here to me. I actually do want to make you another one of my subordinates."
"Be ruled by you? I don't think so." Mugetsu refused.
"I've seen what you can do. I think your talents are being wasted, but you certainly have potential." Baraggan claimed. "I could teach you, train you, hone your skills and you could be a real assassin."
"Not interested, and don't bother changing my mind." Mugetsu said as he was strongly against the whole idea. "I've trained myself well to get to where I am, but I didn't do it so I could become a killer. I have no interest in being a killer."
"Are you sure about that?"
"You might want to change your mind. Lord Baraggan is not someone you want to oppose."
"At least we'll get to settle our fight." Mugetsu looked behind him and saw the ones who attacked him earlier, and including Starrk.
"Let me introduce you to the Muerte. These here are some of my best." Baraggan said. "First, we have Nnoitora the Aggressor."
"I'm called that for my fierce power and love of battle." Nnoitora claimed.
"Coyote Starrk the Silent." Baraggan introduced.
"Sorry about shooting you earlier, but it was such a hassle to convince you to come along."
"Zommari the Submitter." Baraggan introduced.
"As in I have others submit to their demise." Zommari claimed.
"And Aaroniero the Mystery." Baraggan said.
"You can see why I am called that." Aaroniero claimed as he referred to his mask. Mugetsu didn't like this. He was surrounded by trained killers, but it's possible that the person responsible for killing his mother could be here. From the looks of things, this place has been up for years.
"I understand why you would be hesitant to become one of us. We are killers, we take life, and we do it without a second thought." Baraggan said. "It's never easy for someone to take a life, but that's why you just simply power through it!" He made his point by taking Mugetsu's sword and throwing it like a javelin. It pierced the floor and hit the floor rather hard. Mugetsu tried to pull it out, but it was stuck in there rather good.
"He might be an old man, but he's got some muscle to him." Mugetsu said as he was actually impressed with how strong Baraggan was.
"I know how you see people like us as a bad thing, but are we?" Baraggan questioned. "If a police officer shoots a person, are they a killer?"
"That's a different matter." Mugetsu said. "It's a matter of self-defense from when a criminal attacks them with their own gun. You people probably kill for profit."
"More or less." Nnoitora said. "No matter how you word it, people kill people. It's really a kill or be killed world."
"We do make profit, but we're not really bad guys." Starrk claimed. "Anyone can hire our services. We've actually taken out some pretty bad people ourselves like dirty politicians, crime lords that managed to escape every time, and much more."
"We might assassins and hitman, but it doesn't mean we are bad people." Zommari said.
"And we want you to be a part of it. Lord Baraggan knows about you and your skills. He wants you to become one of us." Aaroniero claimed. "In fact, each one of us here was recruited by Baraggan personally. Others are here because they want to be, nowhere else to go, or to help hone their own skills to provide service for their countries. We're not as bad as you think we might be."
"Oh? What is it about me that you like so much?" Mugetsu questioned.
"You have skill. You fight rather well, and you work your way around the authorities so they don't interfere with your work." Baraggan said. "You work in the shadows, but you are also direct. No one seems to be able to stop you. You also don't leave much of a trace that you were present. You show true promise. The problem is that you won't deal the finishing blow. You hold yourself back from killing your target."
"That's because I don't kill! I'm not a cold-hearted killer!" Mugetsu claimed. "I'm willing to do whatever it takes, but I will never kill. That would make me no better than the thugs I want to put away."
"But wouldn't killing them mean it's a permanent solution? You wouldn't have have to deal with them ever again?" Aaroniero questioned.
"Not when they have friends and family that are concerned about them." Mugetsu said. "I've seen some of them that are just victims in someone else's work. They're not beyond redemption. I'm just simply doing what the police can't do. I take them down, but not out so they can face what they have done. Killing them would just be the easy way out."
"I knew it. He's not as cold and dark as he appears. He's just a poser." Nnoitora claimed.
"Settle, Nnoitora." Baraggan ordered. "Mugetsu, those are the words of someone who hasn't experienced their first killing. Once you do, you might change your mind. You don't understand the beneficial side. Hunters kill animals so they don't overpopulate the wild. Police officers kill criminals to stop them. Once can justify their actions. The truth is that the concept of right and wrong does not really exist."
"That's only your opinion. Again, I have no interest in this place. It's not for me." Mugetsu claimed. "Now, I'm leaving."
"I think you got the wrong idea. Who said we would let you leave so easily." Nnoitora claimed as he held out his weapon to him. "You ain't going anywhere!" He charged right at him without even thinking, but Mugetstu was a step ahead. Mugetsu pulled his sword right out of the ground and tried to hold Nnoitora back. "What?!"
"He was stalling to get his weapon out!" Aaroniero claimed. Mugetsu grabbed a hold of Nnoitora's chain that connected him to his weapon and threw him against Aaroniero. Once he did that, he made a run for it.
"This is a real pain." Starrk complained as he didn't try to stop him. Mugetsu ran straight for a window and jumped right through.
"Starrk, why didn't you stop him?!" Zommari questioned.
"Too much hassle." Starrk complained. Baraggan got up from his throne and walked over to the window to see Mugetsu was gone.
"You think you can escape?! You think you can run and hide?! This is my island! You clearly have no idea what you're up against!" Baraggan claimed as it seemed like a hunt was on. On an island filled with killers, how is Mugetsu going to get out of this one?