The poisoned atmosphere flung to his nostrils the moment he loosened his mask, but that didn't deter him. Dosing his breath to minimize the amount of toxins he inhaled, Genya slipped the cigarette into his mouth and flicked on the lighter.
"You chain-smokers are a species of your own."
Genya glanced over his shoulder. Kafka stood leaning on the door, hands folded underneath her back. He smirked and turned around.
"Coming back right at ya. Scientists are whack."
He closed his eyes slightly when he took in the drag. As if on purpose, the smoke irritated the airways more than usual, and he ended up coughing. Kafka sat down wordlessly on the stairs next to him and hit him in between his shoulder blades.
"Thanks." Genya wiped the saliva from his mouth and stuck the cigarette back in. It tightened unpleasantly in his chest, but he ignored the warning. Propping his chin on his palm, he stared into the piles of waste and pipes scattered around the building. Without thinking, the young man lifted the cigarette vertically up to his eyes. Holding it with the tips of his fingers, he watched absently how the paper flashed an orange-red, before blackening and curling away.
Everything ended up like usual. The small situation somehow escalated into a big conflict in which he didn't fit. He embarrassed himself in front of everyone. At least they kicked him out right away and didn't ask any questions. It instantly stung at that thought, and Genya bit into the cigarette. He missed and got right on his tongue.
"Shit... goddamn!" The young man hissed, jerking with his entire body. The cigarette dropped down the stairs and into a puddle. It ignited with a blue flame.
"Must be some expired medicine," Kafka noticed offhandedly, leaning forward on her elbows. Genya relaxed slightly, mouth hanging ajar to alleviate the pain in his tongue.
"Yeah," he said awkwardly. He slouched sideways against the wall and watched the blue fire blaze at their feet.
His brother would be furious and disappointed at home. Genya sighed and, shifting, placed his bent leg on the top step. His boot grazed the nurse's hip.
"Do you know Niyaniya?" He stared at the shimmering puddle. Kafka picked the ground with the tip of her shoe.
"No." She turned her head slightly, revealing a glint of curiosity. "Is he the reason you came looking for us?"
She was, like he had come to learn, disturbingly perceptive. He wasn't yet able to determine whether it stemmed from intuitive or deductive skills. Genya scoffed, hiding his uneasiness, and rummaged through his jacket.
"Yeah. He got his entire arm replaced." He placed another cigarette in his mouth; his lungs could haunt him later. He pressed the button, and the flame popped out of the opening.
"I didn't operate on him," the woman shrugged. However, Genya noticed how her eyes slid warily in his direction. "Why do you want to know?"
It was probably useless to hide it. The young demon slayer blew out the smoke and watched it unfurl in the air. His face darkened. It was something that bothered him for a while now. He thought he'd be able to solve it by investigating, but that idea got fucked up pretty quick...
"I picked up the demonic scent, although I couldn't trace it back to him," Genya said emotionlessly, flicking the cigarette in his fingers. The woman's pupils trailed after the moving object, before rising and stopping at the young man's face. By her polite stillness, the demon slayer understood that she was waiting for him to continue. That attention caused him an unusual discomfort, and he averted his eyes.
"But my watch said nothing." As a reflex, Genya glanced down on his wrist. The screen was placid and black. And just like that, he was pissed off. That wretched piece of metal could sense a demonic eyeball a bunch of kilometers away, but completely blanked out when faced with a demonic stockpile literally a wall away.
Kafka was quiet, watching the blue flame simmer out into a small ember on the puddle. In the blaze, Genya told apart the outline of her jaw in the mask. Just for a second, the dark features that were her lips twitched in something like a smile.
"I want to say that you shouldn't rely on technology, but that's not really your point, right?" She said easily, giving him a light-hearted, teasing look. Genya managed to grin back, but inside he actually felt crushed; even though it was benevolent, something in the jab stung like hell.
Seemingly unaware of his reaction, Kafka pointed to the small, lantern-like posts that were jammed into the ground at the building's perimeter.
"See those posts?"
Genya nodded, eyeing them. He dismissed them previously, assigning them to the rest of the junk that this toxic wasteland was swamped in.
"Demon detectors are all built in the same way," Kafka mused, looking down on her feet. "They project electromagnetic fields of certain frequencies at which demonic red blood cells behave differently than human red blood cells. The posts around this laboratory deflect these frequencies. As for the limbs..." she shrugged. "All implants are chipped so that they don't trigger the sensors. It's basic augmentation."
Genya didn't answer, preferring to fold his arms on his knee and nestle down his chin. Basic augmentation, huh... the intel sure sounded classified. His eyes darted at the woman. He wouldn't be surprised if she was demoted from the military.
"Can I ask you something?"
Genya blinked and, stirring, lifted his face. Kafka watched him expectantly. Out of nowhere, the young man noticed that her mask had slid slightly down her face, leaving two pinkish imprints underneath her cheekbones. Genya shook his head, trying to focus.
"Sure."
"When you got all your surgeries... " the nurse trailed off. "Or injuries from your missions..."
Genya smirked lightly, catching onto her hesitation. For the first time, the woman was acting upon the reputation of his job. It was unusual to see her this way, but definitely not unwelcome.
"It's fine." He brushed it off. "What is it?"
Kafka turned around fully to face him. She stretched out her legs, and they rested comfortably next to his own. Her head was titled, and a quizzical twinkle hovered in her expression.
"Do you receive treatment at regular hospitals?"
Genya frowned. He wasn't following her train of thought. "Yeah. Why?"
Her eyes narrowed. "When was the last time you took a blood test?"
"Now." At the sight of her wrinkling forehead, the young man gave a dry, quiet laugh. "Fine, fine. I don't remember. Maybe five years ago? The hospital has my records—" because I spent my life there. Genya stumbled, but the nurse didn't seem to notice. "Demon slayers go through a physical examination every half a year - if they don't kick the bucket before that. Otherwise..."
Not letting him continue, Kafka took out a folded piece of paper from her pocket.
"Here. It's your blood test."
"What, am I missing something?" Unfolding it, Genya scanned the document with his eyes. At first, he got lost, but someone, as if anticipating his reaction, scribbled with a black marker in the center of the paper.
dRBC: 0.037%
The comment was complete with a big, fat circle around it. Genya stared at it. dRBC, dRBC... he immediately made the connection. Cold beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, but at the same time, he felt someone speak next to him.
"I don't know if you were aware of this, but you're lucky that neither the sensors or hospital staff picked up on these."
It must be from him eating those demons. Throat dry, Genya lifted his head abruptly, but all his words halted in his mouth when he saw Kafka's expression.
"If you ever need full medical assistance, feel free to use our services." The corners of her eyes wrinkled in what looked like a smile. "Five or six of those will amount to how much the surgery here should have cost you."
Genya stared at her, trying to find a catch in her words. "You..." His brain emptied out. "Wait, for real?"
"Yes."
The young man lowered his eyes at the outstretched hand in front of him. Hesitant, he reached forward and took her hand. Her clear, plastic gloves crinkled at the contact, and it was weird sensing the heat from her palm.
"This is just between you and me," Genya said, feeling slightly embarrassed. It wasn't like him to make acquaintances, and the context of the situation made it even more awkward. However, she didn't ask any questions, and if his blood was actually fucked up, it'd be better to hide it.
Kafka squeezed his hand, and her eyes softened. "Of course. Doctor-patient privilege."
"Can't believe it applies even here," Genya mumbled under his breath, breaking off the handshake and leaning back towards the wall. Reclining on the railing, Kafka raised her eyebrows.
"Would you rather I acted like a regular organ dealer?"
Genya grinned crookedly. "Well, things would've certainly been more fun," he said half-jokingly. The woman blinked, before shaking her head and laughing.
"I guess it'd be less complicated."
"I guess," Genya laughed along. For the first time since he lopped off Niyaniya's arm, he felt at ease. Throwing his head back, he gazed at the grayish-purple sky, obstructed by skyscrapers, electric lines, and all other possible shit. It seemed that the mission was coming to a close.
"I won't deny it, I'm grateful you left that demon slayer for us to manage," Shinobu said politely, taking a seat. Zou shrugged gracefully, sitting down behind the desk across from her.
"Him infiltrating the organization at the same time as you is certainly ironic, but I don't see it as anything problematic. I don't think his lack of presence here will affect anything."
Shinobu remained respectfully quiet, and by the slight tilt of her shoulders, Sanemi understood that she was giving him this moment to step in. He smirked bitterly to himself and continued wrapping the gauze that the nurse gave him around his bleeding hand. If Kochou thought he was going to contribute any possible way to the discussion, she was wrong. She and Zou could figure it out by themselves for all he cared.
Demons, these gas mask maniacs could fuck themselves. They didn't matter at this point. His little brother tried to infiltrate this psychotic organization by trying to sell his organs. Sanemi gritted his teeth and yanked the plaster around his palm.
How the fuck did Genya even end up here? His to-do list was excruciatingly simple: wake up, kill several small demons, go home, done. Sanemi would've preferred to skip the second step completely, but since Genya wound up in the Corps, there was no avoiding it. He wasn't supposed to try on this job; he was supposed to keep his ass alive.
His head hurt. It was splitting into pieces, in fact. Everyone seemed to be a walking problem, and it pissed him off.
"By the authority I have from the Demon Slayer Corps, I would like to request confiscation."
Sanemi absently listened to the argument. If he was alone, he'd just dump wisteria into that storage room; he didn't even feel like decapitating them all. Deep inside, he knew it was just his reluctance to maneuver around a confrontation - something that Kochou was doing now for him.
"Confiscation?"
"Of the demons in the warehouse as well as currently in your laboratories." Sanemi heard how Shinobu's voice tensed. "As a hashira, I cannot allow such a dangerous concentration of demons in one location."
"Is that all? Then how about a reduction?" Even though his face was hidden, Sanemi could swear that the man was smiling."Would that decrease the risk that my company undergoes?"
Grimacing, Sanemi clicked his tongue. That hurt.
His eyes darted at Shinobu, and he saw that the woman's fingers, resting limply on the desk, tightened into fist.
"Don't joke around." The strain of the day finally peeked out in her intonations. Sanemi grouped himself. "I'm sure you understand our purpose..."
"Which is unacceptable for me." The man's gloved fingers jolted slightly on top of the knuckles. "And atypical for you. So it'll be for the best if we left the matter al—"
The desk rattled dangerously when Sanemi slammed it with his hand at full force.
"Which part of killing demons..." he growled, glaring at the man behind the mask. All of his previous apathy got obliterated into nothing and was replaced by trembling, barely controlled anger. Who did this guy think he was? "Is atypical for us?"
The mask looked up at him. "When was the last time you killed a harmless demon?"
Sanemi scoffed bitterly. "We kill indiscriminately."
"Then why is Kamado Nezuko alive?"
Everything happened quickly. Sanemi grabbed Zou by the collar and dragged him forward across the desk. The man reacted with a second-long lag, pushing against the desk with his feet and squeezing the hashira by the wrists. There was a sharp, reverberating inhale inside the mask as the demon slayer jerked him roughly.
"Kamado Nezuko," Sanemi enunciated, voice dropping to a rumble. He tightened his grasp. "Is not your fucking problem."
"It's yours, correct?"
Sanemi threw the man across the room. He crashed against the wall and slid down. Coughing filled the air.
"Tell me all the complaints later," Sanemi said quietly as he walked up to the collapsed man. Glimpsing at her, he was surprised to see a grim, but satisfied expression on her face.
"I don't have any at the moment," she commented softly back. Sanemi gave a joyless grin and, without answering, crouched down next to the man. Gripping him by the top of the rubber mask, the hashira yanked him upwards so that their faces were on the same level.
"Nezuko-san... isn't the only one in question..." despite the labored breathing, Zou's voice remained even. "Yamamoto Yushiro and Tamayo from the Yamanashi Prefecture..."
"You're very informed," Shinobu remarked coolly, stopping next to Sanemi. There was a wheezing chuckle.
"If I captured any of those three, my encounter with the demon slayers would've been expedited."
That struck the wrong nerve. Sanemi hit the man's head mercilessly against the wall. Zou coughed again, and his arms traveled up to the mask. With a delicate motion, he loosened the straps around his neck. Once more, the wind hashira heard a deep, long inhale.
"Please, hashira-san. Don't force yourself to go through this."
"You're the one who's asking for it, dumbass," Sanemi made out through clenched teeth. He felt Shinobu tap him on the shoulder and reluctantly released his hold. Zou slumped down, but almost immediately pulled himself up into a sit. Is he seriously, flashed in Sanemi's head, planning to argue with them while in this uncomfortable position.
"Think about it." Zou gazed straight at them, and the fluorescent lights blinked on the reflective eye pieces.
"I allow you to kill all the demons. What then?"
"What are you talking about?" Sanemi snarled menacingly, feeling how the foothold glides from underneath him. The man was implying something, and although the wind hashira couldn't pinpoint what exactly, he had a bad feeling about it. Judging by Shinobu's eerie silence, she was thinking the same.
"Taking away all hindrances, I can accumulate the same amount of demons I have now in three months. Will you 'confiscate' them again?" For the first time, a clear emotion rang out in his voice. It was sardonic and almost despicable. "Should I give you a call?"
"Don't fuckin' screw with us, you asshole," Sanemi bellowed, grabbing the man by the lapels of his coat.
"Shinazugawa-san."
"What?" He snapped, turning his head to look at Shinobu. "Why are you allowing this motherfucker to insult us?"
"I'm just trying to resolve this peacefully," Shinobu replied coldly, before transferring her eyes on Zou.
"What about court?" She asked, arching an eyebrow. "If we keep everything as is, I'm sure we'll have more than enough evidence to accuse you."
Sanemi felt the man shift in his grasp.
"Of what? Finish the sentence, Kochou-san."
Her laugh was hollow. "Oh, I don't know. Sewing demonic parts to humans..."
"Not legally prohibited."
"Capturing demons..."
"Practiced all the time by demon slayers for the Final Selection."
Not loosening his grip, Sanemi scowled. Shinobu narrowed her eyes.
"Fine," she acquiesced stiffly. "Then how about something as banal as organ trafficking?"
"Demonic organ trafficking," Zou corrected her gently. "If the court convicts me based on that, it essentially accepts demons as equals to humans. Personal stances aside, that's... impermissible."
A long silence followed afterward. Not believing his ears, Sanemi stared at the man in his hands. Did he actually get them? It was ridiculous. This place was swarming with demons. It was a threat to public order from every fucking angle. How the hell was this still a conversation?"
"Do you seriously view demons as equal to humans?" Shinobu asked finally. Sanemi turned to her in frustration.
"Kochou, this is fucking stupid—"
"As produce, obviously."
Sanemi felt someone touch his hand and whirled his head. Zou squeezed his knuckles carefully.
"If you don't mind..."
"No," Sanemi grimaced and unceremoniously dropped the man. Standing up, he walked up to Kochou. Her gas mask had a transparent plate, so he could see her worn out, but at the same time angry expression.
"Well?" He lowered his voice. Part of him was listening to how Zou climbs up to his feet behind them. "What are we doing?"
"Unfortunately, he's right," Shinobu answered just as quietly. "Even if we kill all the demons now, I don't see how we can stop them from collecting more." Her eyes darted over his shoulder.
"Our best bet is a legal battle."
Yeah, right. Sanemi moved closer to her, kneeling down to her ear so that she could hear his whisper.
"You know we were just lucky with Tanjiro. There's no saying how that cyborg will behave this time."
He saw how her eyebrow twitched. Without answering, Shinobu pushed past him and walked up to Zou.
"We'll report this matter to our leader," she said evenly. "Since there's nothing we can do at the moment, we'll be taking our leave." Sanemi saw her briefly hesitate, but then the muscles around her mouth relaxed and she gave an effortless, warm smile. "Thank you for allowing us in."
"The pleasure is mine," Zou replied neutrally. He looked just like usual, as if he didn't take a beating seconds ago. Sanemi suppressed the wave of irritation. "I'll show you the exit."
Not waiting for their reaction, he walked past them and opened the door. The hashiras exchanged glances, but followed him out. When stepping out into the hallway, Sanemi bumped into a plump, short man running with a box in his hands. Peering closer, he recognized Subaru, the guy who led him in originally.
"Already leaving?" Subaru called cheerfully. Running backwards, he grasped the box with one hand and waved with the other. "Take care!"
Sanemi winced slightly and made his way after Shinobu. Zou seemed to have led them to a back entrance because the interior looked different from what the wind hashira remembered. His suspicion was confirmed when Zou pushed forward the door, causing the two people sitting on the steps outside to jolt from surprise.
"Finished?" It was the woman. Sanemi eyed her, but she calmly held his gaze.
"Yes," Zou nodded. The nurse stood up and, without a single word, brushed past them into the building. Zou caught the door as she stepped inside and looked carefully at the demon slayers.
"If you ever need our services, please feel free to come again," he offered gallantly.
"That won't be necessary," Shinobu countered swiftly, unclamping her mask and handing it over to him. Sanemi had already hung his on the railing and was now walking down the staircase. When he passed Genya, the latter stood up and, quickly taking off his mask and placing it next to the wall, hurried after him. Sanemi felt it squeeze nauseously inside his chest. He didn't know yet what to say to his brother. Genya's cautious movements around him didn't help. The wind hashira inhaled slightly. He was smoking again...
The door creaked behind them, and heels tapped down the stairs.
"Well, that's that," Shinobu slinked her arm around Sanemi's and sighed. "Let's get out of here before the toxin takes effect." She glanced at Genya. "You alright, Genya-san?"
"Yeah," the young man muttered, hiding his gaze. Sanemi felt Shinobu's grasp tighten tellingly on his elbow and tensed. He knew he should be the one telling his brother off for acting outside the Corps's knowledge, but he didn't want to. It's not what he was frustrated the most about.
"I'm beat." Both Genya and Shinobu looked at him in surprise. Mentally, Sanemi smirked. He'll have to talk it out with his brother eventually; however, right now was not when he wanted to do that.
"Let's go home, Genya."
"I... yes." Something brightened momentarily in Genya's face, and for once, Sanemi didn't regret his words. Even if they were wrong and only prolonged the dreadful conversation, seeing his little brother relax was very much worth it. Stopping at a blinking street sign, Sanemi looked over his shoulder.
"See y'later."
By the way her smile saddened, he understood that Shinobu had figured out his feelings. Well, screw it. He knew that she kept secrets really well.
"See you tomorrow, Shinazugawa-san."
They walked out in opposite directions, the distant Wisteria District shimmering above their heads.
A/N: Hello, hello everyone! Apologies for the absence; I got sick, and that threw me slightly off.
This is the wrapping up chapter for the "organizers" mini-arc and actually will be the last chapter for a while.
When I started this story, I had ten or so chapters already pre-written. I was able to post comfortably every week while editing and writing new chapters simultaneously. However, my writing speed is pretty slow, so it wasn't long before I caught up with my catalog of chapters. As a result, I've been writing these last ten chapters for each update (which switched between a bi/tri-weekly schedule, no matter how much I tried). I'll admit, it was stressful. Writing this story made me reevaluate the importance of proper planning and editing… and of course, I had to learn it the hard way.
I was able to write so far despite having a very generic outline due to everything being "shoot-and-run" style. Lots of action, basically. However, this next arc is where I want - and it is my goal - to really dig into those characters. In fact, a lot of the developments in the arc are hinged on characters and their interactions with one another - not because an evil demon popped up and decided to cause some damage. And for me to write that… I won't be able to see the big picture until I've written it all.
So I want to take a break. Before anyone panics, it's not a hiatus because I'll be actively writing during this time. Just not posting. Once I feel that I have enough chapters to last through a stable update schedule, this story will resume like usual.
I am immensely grateful to all my readers. You guys are so special. Every comment, every bookmark, every kudo, damn, simply reading these chapters is what motivated me to write even when inspiration was chilling out somewhere… and I've always managed to find inspiration midway through the chapters and zoom through them with a renewed vigor. However, if it wasn't for your neverending support, I wouldn't have even touched my writing docs, and all these chapters would have remained as simple hypotheses.
If you sat through this long author's note, thank you so much. I debated for a long time whether or not I should take a break, and, although I'm saddened to do so, it's unfortunately necessary.
I hope to see some of you again when I come back with new chapters. In the meantime, I'll be writing and reading other great fanfictions that are out there :)))
Thank you so much.