(Overwatch is property of Activision-Blizzard)
"HAAAAANAAAAAAAAAA SONNNNNNG!" The tranquil nature of the Hanamura Gardens was destroyed by a shout of anger from Kiriko Kamori. She wasn't going to stand for this; she needed to find out just who and what this Hana Song woman really was. Was Jonathan seeing things? It was awfully foggy after all, the sun's light was barely any help in making anything out through the thick, grey emptiness. Kiriko's anger blinded her even more so but she couldn't let the person who was helping her accept herself (or so she felt) be treated like this, whether or not Hana was Jonathan's ex now was practically irrelevant. Kiriko jumped into a dash towards the fog, heading where she thought Hana had gone off to since she didn't see her coming from where the bathrooms were a few minutes ago.
I had a feeling this was going to happen, but I didn't know it was going to be this soon. I hope he's okay by himself for a few minutes…that bitch isn't getting away with this. Kiriko wished she had brought her kunai with her, but she didn't want to give Jonathan the wrong idea. She stopped running, and began thinking about how to actually get Hana's attention. Luckily, she knew just the thing, perhaps the one thing that the old Shimada man had told her in the last twenty years that was actually useful; Hana hated the idea of Jonathan being near any other woman.
"You afraid to face the present, Hana? You think you can just treat my man like that, huh? News flash bitch; HE DOESN'T LOVE YOU!" shouted out Kiriko, stopping by the central atrium where the large bell was, its appearance different to when she had been there a few years prior. The Shimada family emblem is gone…those Hashimoto pricks don't know when to stop, huh? Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of footsteps approaching her, instantly causing her to take a defensive stance. Kiriko's eyes darted around at a rapid pace; she couldn't afford to be caught off guard since she didn't know her opponents capabilities. She's just a girl…but Shimada told me not to underestimate her…keep your guard up, Kiriko. The footsteps grew louder and louder until a figure came through the fog in front of her, stopping right in front of her. She was about the same height as Kiriko and dressed in an unassuming black suit with a white shirt and black tie. Her lapel had a badge on it, with an all too familiar sight to Kiriko emblazoned onto it.
"You, you're Hashimoto?" she exclaimed, tightening her fists even further. It was evident that the woman in front of her was just who she was looking for, judging by the calm but eerie grin on her face.
"Hmph, you're not as cute up close as I thought you'd be…" Hana said, giving Kiriko a quick look from head to toe. "You'd better loosen up, fox girl. You might tweak somethin' and you wouldn't wanna be doing that when you've got that lil shop to run now, do you?" Hana laughed as Kiriko remained steadfast in her stance. "You think we didn't know? Well, that's understandable. The rest of the group don't know much about you either. However, Kiriko-chan, I know every little bit about you. Your father running off from you, your best friend abandoning you when she went to university to be with, of all people, him! Tell me, how does it feel knowing you're getting Aki's sloppy seconds hmm? You wouldn't know how to even love hi-"
"What makes you think he still loves you after everything you di-" Kiriko's words were interrupted by Hana's finger pressing against her lips, before the Korean's cold, icey glare met Kiriko's feisty, fiery eyes.
"I would choose your next words, very, very carefully, Kiriko Kamori…or should I say, Kiriko Yamagami?" The mention of Kirko's birth name and the tone of Hana's voice shook Kiriko to her core. Her cover was completely blown, and she could feel the situation turning dire for her. In desperation, Kiriko tried going for a sweep kick of Hana's legs, but Hana moved quicker than anything Kiriko had ever seen from a human being, knocking Kiriko over with a quick tackle of her own before putting her shoe over Kiriko's belly, totally in control of the young girl from Kanezaka.
"Uhnkhh!" Kiriko groaned in pain, hitting the stone floor with her butt with some force.
"Foolish fox. I am no mere grunt of the Hashimoto clan. I am a different kind of woman. I'm the demon your mother told you about, the nightmare of your slumber…I'm the wife of Jonathan Cujoh, and you better respect that, bitch." Hana pressed her foot into Kiriko's stomach, causing Kiriko some pain though - thankfully for her - nothing too major. It was a warning though, as Hana flashed her left ring finger by Kiriko's face. From what she could see of it, it looked old and not properly maintained, but it did have an extremely beautiful small diamond encrusted into the top of it.
"Now, Kiriko, you can go back and play pretend with my husband for now. He has his punishment coming soon enough, heehee! Run along now, I'm sure we'll meet again sooner than you think" Hana gave Kiriko a small wave with her fingers before backpedalling into the abyss of the fog, her sinister smile etching itself into Kiriko's mind. Kiriko stood up, groggy from Hana's earlier domination of her, frustrated more than anything else.
Am I…in way over my head? Was all of my training for nothing? How am I going to protect Jonathan if I can't even sweep a girl's leg?
Questioning herself, Kiriko made her way back to Jonathan, who was still visibly upset but he had stopped shaking and was breathing normally, at least relatively. His phone's ringtone was blaring out, surprising Kiriko. Why hasn't he picked up the goddamn phone? She thought as she took the device out from his pocket, seeing a name she wasn't happy to see come up on the Caller ID.
"Shimada Hanzo…tch…" she hovered her finger over the Decline button, but hesitated. She'd just had a run in with Hana, and Hanzo knew a lot about her. Kiriko hated the mere idea of having to rely on Hanzo for anything, but if it gave her an advantage against Hana, then maybe….
"Oi, Shimada, what do you want?" said Kiriko in a snarky tone, trying to hide any pain she had from her earlier assault.
"K-Kiriko? Where's Jonathan?" said Hanzo, his voice panicked.
"He's right here, funny story, we just ran into H-"
"Angela's gone missing. Jesse didn't see her at the apartment when he went there earlier this afternoon."
"What? I thought Jesse was staying with her?" Kiriko said, confused as to what was going on.
"That's not all, Kiriko…I uhm…don't know how to say this but uhh…"
His hesitation caused Kiriko's impatience with him to spill over.
"Oh just fucking spit it out already you useless cunt!" she said angrily.
"...your mother, Asa…didn't show up at the station this morning. Chiyoda Police are considering her a kidnapping victim. I'm sorry Kiriko-"
"...ha….shi…" Kiriko's voice was barely audible, Hanzo struggled to hear anything she was saying.
"HASHIMOTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" screamed Kiriko, gripping the phone intensely before raising it back to her ear.
"Shimada, I'm going to your office in Shinjuku. Get your brother and the Clint Eastwood wannabe there too. I'll be there, with Jonathan, in 45 minutes. Don't be fucking late." Kiriko said before hanging up the call, making sure Hanzo couldn't get a single word in.
The Hashimoto had made their move; and this time, it was personal. Kiriko wasn't going to let them - or Hana - have the last laugh.
It was time for her to finally stand up for herself. "Get yourself together Jonathan, Angela needs you now more than ever…" she said, trying to calm both Jonathan and herself down. "...and I need your help, your strength that I know that you have deep down within you" she said, looking deeply into his lost blue eyes, still questioning if what he had seen was real, though the taste of deep cherry flavour on his lips simply wouldn't disappear. Hana did appear to him and did not die seven years ago. Hanzo and Genji had known this seemingly for a while now too. He began questioning whether or not anyone was really on his side, whether he could trust those closest to him…but the woman in front of him right now was looking, pleading with him, to be strong. Kiriko Kamori was someone that Jonathan knew for barely even a week, but her eyes told the truth no matter what. He could feel every ounce of her inner emotion and turmoil from within her mesmerising gaze.
"Y-You're right, Kiriko…I have to be strong…for Angela, for you…and also for myself" he said, his breathing finally back at a normal state. "Hana…she's done something with Angela, and I don't know what but we need to hurry, otherwise…" Jonathan's voice trailed off as his mind flashed back to what happened to them on that nightmarish day in Korea.
"I know, Jonathan…let's go back to my place first, there's a few things I should probably get before we go to the Shimada building" said Kiriko, heading off towards the entrance, covering her face up again, Jonathan followed suit. As they began to head towards the train station, one thought entered Kiriko's mind that had been bothering her since Hana saw her.
If they're after me, why didn't she grab me there and then? And how did she know about Aki?
Unknown Location, Unknown Time
The sombre notes of Claire de Lune were all that could be heard throughout the large room, only filled with two people and a piano. The echoing of the keystrokes and their notes floating throughout the world filled the air with peace and tranquility, though not for the woman being held in a blindfold. Her mouth was gagged, desperately trying to scream for help. It was useless though. Not only was the piano loud enough to drown out her groans and muffled screams but they were on the top floor of some building, at least that's what she overheard when she was being dragged here after being knocked out earlier. A lot was running through the woman's mind; Why was she here? What did her captors want with her? Were her friends safe?
Angela Ziegler's mind had a million and one thoughts on it; however they were clouded by the solemn notes being rung out of the nearby piano, wondering why of all songs her captors had to play, it was her least favourite piece of classical music.
Kiriko's Apartment, Ueno, 15:30 PM
"Go and have a seat, Jonathan, I'm going to get a few things ready and then we'll head out. Don't get too comfortable, though" said Kiriko in a very plain voice as she went into her bedroom, closing the door behind her as Jonathan sat on the couch where he and Kiriko shared their first kiss only a few days prior. There wasn't a lot to look at that he hadn't seen already, as if he was already comfortable with the relatively new environment he was in. It was peaceful and relaxing, to a degree though the noises coming from Kiriko's bedroom sounded like the opposite; disorganised, frantic, anxious.
I should check on her…but she told me to wait here…I don't want to piss her off more than she is right now, I guess.
About five minutes passed and Kiriko emerged from her bedroom dressed in her work uniform, with some modifications.
"Uhh…interesting outfit to try and take the yakuza out in. You gonna purify them to death or something?" Jonathan said jokingly. Kiriko gave him a sarcastic laugh back. "No, dummy. I'm just…I'm just being who I am, showing off myself because I want to prove to everyone that I can take care of myself…besides, I've got these" she said, pointing toward her five kunai that were attached firmly to her waist. She walked over beside Jonathan and grabbed his hand.
"Take this" she said, handing him one of her many ofuda. "I don't know what's going to happen out there, but with this, you'll always be protected by me. I don't know how much of a spiritual guy you are but, trust me…I won't let any one of them harm you" Kiriko said with a brave face, looking directly into Jonathan's eyes.
"Let's go to Shimada now. Let's save mom, and Angela and finally put this sorry story of ours behind us. The Hashimoto clan, Hana Song…we need to have closure here."
"C'mon, honey. Let's go kick some ass!" she said confidently, motioning towards the door.
Hashimoto Offices, Shinjuku, Tokyo, 15:50 PM
"She's still out?" asked Hana, looking at the unconscious but still breathing body of Asa Yamagami. The person she asked, Kojima of Kuriyama's team, responded with a simple "seems like it, chief" before lighting up a cigarette. "Man, I'm glad Hashimoto-sama lets us smoke in here, it's a pain in the ass not bein' able to smoke outside, right Hana-san?" he said, trying to break the ice but Hana wasn't in the mood to respond. Kiriko's words from earlier stung her deeply. Her mind was set on making sure that little girl from Kanezaka would go through a hell that only she could come up with. Hana had become Hiromi's most trusted lieutenant for several reasons, one was her tenacious ability to get results no matter the cost. Kiriko had defiled her marriage to Jonathan in her mind, even more so after the claims that Jonathan didn't love her anymore.
What does that bitch know about loving him? She barely fucking knows him. Her friend was fucking him for years and she's just pretending not to know that? Heh, maybe I should get her involved in this. It might make things more…interesting.
Hana smirked, which caught Kojima's attention. She took out her cigarette from the packet and placed it in her mouth, but couldn't find her lighter on her person at all.
"Ah shit…" before she could put the cigarette back into the packet out of frustration, Kojima approached her with his hand extended, a lighter was held in it.
"I know the feeling too well, Hana-san" he said with a smile, flicking the lighter on. Hana bent down and lit her own smoke up, throwing her hazel eyes into Kojima's glance quickly, causing him to blush slightly before recomposing himself quickly.
"Thanks, Kojima-kun," she said before heading to the exit. "Keep an eye on her and text me if she wakes up. I have plans for her…"
"Sure thing, Hana-san"
"Oh, and Kojima-kun?" Hana turned to Kojima before leaving the room.
"Hmm?"
"Don't get any funny ideas about you and me, 'kay?" she said with a sinister smile that sent a wave of chills all throughout the young man's body. "D-Didn't plan on it, Hana-san!"
"Good" she said, walking away and closing the door of the room behind her firmly.
That kid…he's got no chance with me. Not a married woman. My heart belongs to Jonathan. Still though, he's got guts. Reminds me of myself when I first came here…
Seven and a half Years Ago
The rain wouldn't let up, and the cold winter air sharply and quickly threw itself at Hana's body with a relenting torrent of freezing gusts. Hana wouldn't let that stop her though. Her goals depended on her finding a weapon to even begin her long arduous plans with. She had heard rumblings of a small crime family in the Shinjuku area that she thought would be easy pickings for a simple weapons acquisition. After all, she was blessed with The Widow's Kiss. Her body's strength and her combat ability was incomparable. She had only been bested once before by the old cowboy back in America, but that was before Brigitte and Satya had told her how to focus her abilities and potential to allow her to achieve maximum control of her awareness and body. It was their downfall though. Hana had to kill them both to escape their grasp and arrive in Tokyo safely. She figured it was only a matter of time before she was caught again, had she stayed in America. The person she was after, Jonathan Cujoh, was now living in Japan, a place where she and Jonathan had spent a special moment together only a year or so prior. Now was not the time to reminisce though. Hana snuck her way into the depot where she was told by the crook earlier that the weapons were stored. After breaking the lock and opening the door…
"Nothing?"
"Wow, you're really stupid, you know that right?". It was the crook from earlier, surrounded by three other goons, all equipped with brass knuckles and nunchaku. Hana was in a pinch, but it was a pinch she knew she could get out of.
"Your funeral" she exclaimed before obliterating the first crook with a devastating straight punch to his nose, cracking his skull in half. The exhilaration overtook Hana, who began gleefully tearing into her opponents, bobbing, weaving and dancing her way through them swiftly with her blows. None of them were killed, but it was safe to say they wouldn't be bothering Hana ever again.
"Hmph, you're after taking out three of my men and you're trespassing on my property." said a female voice from behind her. Hana quickly turned around to see a silenced handgun staring at her directly between the eyes.
"You want some too?" said Hana, cockly. She dashed past the gun and attempted a left hook into her opponent, but she was met by a swift kick to her abdomen, falling to her knees and coughing up a small amount of blood.
"You're tenacious, I'll give you that. I am Hiromi of the Hashimoto clan. My father runs this neighbourhood. What the hell are you doing trespassing here, you lil pup?" she said in a dominant tone, placing her heeled boot on Hana's head, twisting it lightly.
"I just…tch, needed a …weapon"
"Aww, and you didn't even ask? Didn't your parents teach you manners, lil pup?"
"Desperate times call for desperate measures, Hiromi"
"That's Hashimoto-sama to you." She said sharply, pushing Hana's face into the wet concrete.
"You are quite cute though, I think I have a use for you, hell, if you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. What's your name, lil pup?"
"Hana Song"
"Ohh, a Korean? Well, nobody else needs to know about that for now. I'll take you in. You'll be my little puppy for a while and…maybe, I'll get you what you want. That weapon, and more, if you're a good little puppy" she said, bending down to meet Hana's eyes with her own.
"I don't have much of a choice, do I? Fine…" Hana said, embarrassed.
"Good girl. I don't have much of a use for a puppy that can't follow orders, so if I feel like you stray too far…"
"...I'm minced meat"
"That's a clever girl!" she said, rubbing Hana's head like a dog. "Come now, Hana-chan, let's get out of this horrible rain, hmm?"
"Yes, Hashimoto-s-sama" said Hana, standing up to follow her new master off into the darkness of the alleyway ahead.
Shimada Institute, Shinjuku, 15:45 PM
"You took him WHERE?" Hanzo screamed at Kiriko.
"Hanamura, what are you deaf aswell as stupid now?"
"Kiriko I sent you a text EXPLICITLY telling you NOT to bring him there! What on Earth were you thinking?"
"Do you think I read your texts, Shimada? Honestly?" Kiriko said, exasperated. Hanzo looked at her dumbfounded.
"Can't say I didn't expect this, Hanzo" McCree said in a cocky tone.
"You should have said something Jesse," Hanzo said, leaning against the wall, his body language seeming to be absolutely defeated. "Either way, now Hana's made contact with Jonathan. We can't just sit idly by and do nothing now. Asa's been captured by the Hashimoto and it seems Angela has been too. We have to do something" Hanzo said, a slight tone of regret evident in his voice.
"We have to go after 'em. Surely the police can help up if one of their own is captured?" McCree suggested. Genji shook his head in response. "The police in that neck of Shinjuku won't respond to Hashimoto related incidents. They're completely at their mercy. It has to be us five. Nothing else will work."
"We'll be putting Kiriko at risk though" Jonathan chimed in. "I can't let what happened in Korea happen again to someone I care about".
"Dude, I'm more than able to take care of myself" she said, throwing a glance towards Genji.
"She is capable of things that even I've not heard of, from what I know"
"What do you mean, Genji?" asked Jonathan, concerned.
"It's up to her to tell you, Jonathan" he said, Jonathan's attention now firmly set on Kiriko. Before any awkwardness could emerge, McCree chimed in. "Well, looks like we have to go and storm the whole goddamn' Hashimoto buildin'. We'll have to deal with Song later I guess"
"A-actually, McCree…" said Jonathan, trailing off. "...Hana's a lieutenant with the Hashimoto"
"She's WHAT?" the Shimada brothers shouted out in unison.
"That could only mean one thing…they know of, and use to their advantage, Hana's Archaeon ability…"
"Archaeon?" Jonathan said, confused.
"It's the real name of the psychotherapy she went under when she was captured by Talon" said Genji matter of factly. "It's what caused her strength to be increased so much after she was kissed by Amelie Lacroix, that was her activator though it can theoretically be different for each person who has the Archaeon"
"Huh…" Jonathan thought out loud, seemingly confused.
"In any case, we have to be careful. Give me…an hour or two to think of a plan, Hanzo and Jesse too. The two of you go to the break room upstairs and get some rest before we head out. Nobody uses that room anyways. We'll go over the plan then, when I have it ready." Jonathan and Kiriko simultaneously nodded at him, following his orders to leave the room promptly.
"You almost let the cat out of the bad there Genji" Hanzo said.
"If Jonathan knew that Kiriko was like Hana in regards to the Archaeon…he'd never forgive us, and we owe it to him not to hurt him anymore than we have"
"Yer too right…" said McCree, solemnly.
Location and Time Unknown
"Ahh, don't you just love the sound of the piano?" a female voice called out to Angela. Her mouth was still covered up, as were her eyes. All she could hear now was what sounded like a stream or a lake. "This building truly is magical, I think. The way this room can transform into almost anything I desire is…breathtaking, don't you agree? It was expensive, especially installing those haptic feedback OLED displays but it really…adds to the immersion I think."
"Say, Angela, would you like to meet an old friend of yours? She's going to be here real soon" Angela violently shook her head from side to side. If there was anyone she didn't want to see right now, it was Hana Song.
"Hmm, that's a shame because she really wants to see you- oh, there she is now! Haaaana-chaaaaan~!" the voice called out in a childish but friendly tone. A pair of footsteps approached Angela, before suddenly becoming silent. She felt the soft hands of a female caress her face and run through her hair, before her blindfold was quickly pulled off. The bright lights of the "sky" made her take a minute to readjust her vision, before she refocused on the person in front of her, touching her face and gazing into her eyes.
"Long time no see, Angie" said Hana with a smile.
(Authors Note: Hey everyone, thanks for stopping by for the next chapter of the Operation Sakura Arc! Hana and Kiriko come face to face for the first time as Jonathan learns more about everyone around him. Hanzo and Genji try to keep their secrets hidden, but McCree can't bear it anymore. Asa remains unaware of what she's involved in while Angela is reunited with Hana, Hiromi gleefully watching on from afar. Thanks again for the reviews and favourites over the last couple of chapters. Keep 'em coming! I'll see you all in the next chapter, until then, take care folks!)