Someone is carrying me...
That was the first thought that came to Legoshi's mind as he slowly came to his senses.
For a moment, he thought it were his friends from Room 701, who had woken up before him and were, once more, trying to play a prank on him by carrying him to the shower and drenching him in water for laughs.
Nothing cruel, only your regular playful prank between roommates. Which was one of the reasons why Legoshi always tried to wake up before they all did, so they would not have the chance to play a prank like that on him.
He did disliked water, after all.
However, as his nose twitched, he caught not the smell of dogs around him, but of cats.
Of lions.
That was when the memories came back to him, and Legoshi blinked, his eyes widening as he saw himself being dragged across an unknown hallway by a pair of lions who he didn't knew.
However, he knew what their business was with him.
"Hey, look who's awake!" Free said as the hybrid they were dragging started to struggle but found that he could not squirm himself free so easily, with his hands ziptied behind his back and his ankles tied on the same manner. "Good thing, the boss wants to have a word with you before we finish you off."
This, of course, only made Legoshi want to struggle harder, as the hybrid wanted to get out of their grip and leave that place. When squirming failed, the hybrid tried to resort to biting. This, of course, did not settle well with the lions who were dragging him.
"Cut that out!" Dolph said, punching Legoshi hard on the cheek. Hard enough to make the hybrid stop struggling. The lions continued dragging the hybrid, until they arrived into a pair of double doors, which they opened and then continued to drag the hybrid into the room, where someone was already waiting.
Legoshi was forced on his knees on the expensive-looking carpet of the floor which, much to Legoshi's horror, the hybrid realized it was an orange pelt with black stripes.
Do you know how much a tiger skin in good conditions costs around this area?
The mere sight of that furry skin on the floor was more than enough to convince Legoshi: he was at the Black Market.
And this left no doubt on his mind as to who those lions were.
And to why they have, most likely, brought him there.
Meanwhile, the lion sitting on the chair before him, looked very intently at the hybrid, as Free and Dolph steadied him before reaching for his hoodie and pulling it back, revealing the hybrid's dark mane, as well as his eyes, which locked with the lion's one eye as he looked t him with a cold hostility that was, in all honestly, much scarier than your plain old rage.
"So..." The lion on the chair said after nearly a minute of just looking at the hybrid forced to kneel before him "It is you."
Legoshi said nothing in return, and he continued to look at the hybrid.
"You are the son of Ibuki..." The lion said once more, and he continued to glare at the hybrid with his single eye, while Legoshi only remained silent.
"What's your name, boy?" He asked, and the hybrid said nothing, only continuing to glare at the lion. His upper arms were tied up behind his back, but his lower ones were still free, hidden beneath his clothes. He could still use them. However, there was the problem of his ankles being tied as well...
Suddenly, a bang was heard, as the lion slammed his crane into the ground, causing the younger carnivore on the room to flinch.
"I asked you a question..." The lion said, his voice dangerously low as he continued to glare at the seventeen-years-old kneeling before him, flanked by two of his loyalist lions, who were standing in attention in case the brat tried anything.
The hybrid looked at him for a few more seconds, before he finally decided it was better to answer:
"Its Legoshi..."
"Legoshi..." The lion said, repeating the name slowly, nearly as if he was tasting it on his tongue. Then, he scoffed.
"What a stupid-sounding name." He said, and he got up. "Honestly, that sounds like something one of those Komodo dragons would name their children... Did Ibuki really decided to name his son that? I did expect him to have better taste in names."
"But, then again..." The lion said, as he started to make his way to the kneeling hybrid. "Ever since his betrayal, I lost any and all positive expectations for him."
He stopped before Legoshi.
"Where is he, by the way?" the lion said as he looked down at the hybrid. "Ibuki. In which prison is he in? I have been trying to find out for years. You go to visit him, right? Or you prefer not to have anything to do with your criminal father?"
Legoshi said nothing. He would not be answering to that question. He only glared at the bigger lion.
"So, just you and your mother?" The lion asked. He leaned over. "Is she still under the Black Devil's protection?"
Once more, Legoshi did not answered, and this seemed to thick the lion off.
"Off course she probably is." The lion said, "She is probably hiding somewhere near his tower, maybe even in the tower itself. I wonder if Yahya keeps her in a little doggy house somewhere. Maybe as his pet? That would not be a step down for that bitch who that worthless idiot decided to screw thinking there would be no consequences."
On the moment that the lion finished saying that, Legoshi charged.
His eyes had shrunk into vertical slits, and the hybrid growled as his lower arms moved, coming out from under his clothes. One of them grabbed the cane, snatching from the lion's grasp, while the other one grasped his tie and pulled hard, so Legoshi could headbutt him.
The lion was caught off guard, and he stumbled back after the hybrid headbutted him. Meanwhile, Dolph and Free were both so surprised that Legoshi managed to use the stolen cane to his one of them in the stomach hard and his other hand to hit the crotch of the other.
This served to distract them for long enough that Legoshi was able to free himself with his extra hands, by using them to rip the ziptie on the wrist of his upper hands, and then using his newly-freed upper hands to rip the one around his ankles.
With this, Legoshi was about to make a dash for the door so he could leave, but then one of the lions, recovered from the sudden blow, grabbed Legoshi by his jacket and started to pull.
With a mighty roar, Legoshi was tossed by the lion, causing both his jacket and his shirt to be tore from his body.
"The hell..." Dolph said as he looked at Legoshi, now shirtless, as the hybrid stood with the help of his four arms. He glared at Dolph, and then he roared, before charging at him.
Legoshi was skilled in combat, result of the training from both his father and grandfather. However, those lions were also used to fight. Moreover, they had a lot more strength than Legoshi due to their diets of meat having helped them build their muscles for combat. And, there was also the fact that none of them played fair, as they were all crooks, and it were three of them against only one hybrid.
Even Legoshi's skills and extra arms could only take the hybrid so far before he was overwhelmed. Especially when other lions, lured by the roar, started coming into the room and helping them overwhelm the hybrid.
"You stupid brat!" Their chief said, as he swung his cane on the back of Legoshi's head. It was not hard enough to knock him out, but it was shard enough to shake his brain and throw the hybrid completely off balance, allowing the other lions to finally put him down by pressing him hard into the ground and immobilizing him by holding onto his arms.
"He has four arms!?" One of the lions said, "What kind of freak of nature is he!?"
"And they are covered in scales." Said another, as he was holding one of Legoshi's lower arms and twisting it. "Man, that's just weird..."
Legoshi growled as he squirmed, but he was unable to free himself from those lions holding him down, and there were also the other ones that were gathering around him, all of them looking down on him.
"So, what we do to him now?" Said one of them. "Skin him alive?"
"Maybe we can cook him to eat."
"Nah, he is a hybrid. Their meat doesn't taste good."
"How do you know? Did you ever eat one?"
"Maybe we should cut off his members one by one and then left him to squirm before we cut off his head and put it on the wall as one of our trophies."
"Maybe we could just blow his brains and get this over with." Said Sony, as he pulled out a gun and held it to Legoshi's head, ready to pull the trigger.
"No." The boss said, causing all the lions, as well as the hybrid, to look at him. He had a fierce expression on his face, as he glared down at the hybrid with a single eye, which glinted with malicious intent.
"I know what to do with him... get the cement."
"Thank you again, Gosha-san." The doe said to the Komodo as they both stood before the small, humble buildings. The lizard with glistening, emerald-green scales nodded at her, saying that it was his pleasure before bowing to her in respect.
Gosha would love to be able to shake her hand like many other animals did, but that was risky when you were a Komodo dragon. The risk of some venom being left in your hand was an ever-real presence, so you learned to avoid physical contact with anyone who was not a member of your own kind. Even when you are sure that there is no venom in you due to you having carefully sanitized yourself, you kind of grow used to avoid touching others after a while.
However, Gosha always made sure to carefully sanitize himself before coming there. After all, he was going into a kindergarten full of kids.
This was a place where Gosha was a volunteer on certain days of the week. It was a special kindergarten, geared specifically towards hybrid children.
Even though people mentioned how rare hybrids were, truth was that, nowadays, there was a growing number of hybrid births. Mostly because of the greater incidence of interspecies marriages.
And yet, there was a lot of prejudice regarding hybrid children. So much that, before that one kindergarten was established, no other kindergarten on the city would accept them. Gosha knew that well, as he had hybrids as his relatives.
Leano looked like a purebred wolf when she was young, so there was no problem convincing the kindergarten to accept her. They probably thought Gosha was just making the wolf girl's parents a favor by dropping and picking her up.
Legoshi, on the other hand, had been clearly a hybrid since day one. Not only he was bigger than a wolf cub was supposed to and had a feline tail, but he also had a second pair of arms covered in scales. His mixed species was obvious, and that made it basically impossible to find a kindergarten that was willing to take him in.
Something similar happened with Gosha's granddaughters, who were basically lionesses with wolf tails. Most places were also vehement about not having them on their schools, all because of them not being purebred.
The thought alone was enough to cause venom to build up on Gosha's mouth, forcing him to swallow it to keep any from dripping out.
Yes, as both a father and grandfather to hybrids, Gosha knew well the difficulties they passed, as well as their families. Which was why he was only glad to be a volunteer for this place, which served to give those like his daughter and grandchildren and their parents the kind of support they needed.
This was something that Gosha really enjoyed doing.
Soon, he was bidding the doe who owned the kindergarten farewell, and was taking the road back to his home, when he crossed paths with a surprising figure.
"Ibuki?" Gosha said in surprise as he nearly bumped into the lion as he turned a corner to take the road back to his apartment. Ibuki was also surprised for seeing the Komodo there, as he stopped before him in surprise.
And so did the four teenagers who were following him.
"Ibuki, what are you doing here?" Gosha asked as he looked at the lion in surprise. They were very close to the Black Market. The one place where Ibuki could never go again because basically everyone in there was out for his blood. "And... why do you have a hammer?" He asked as well, as he looked at the object that Ibuki was carrying on his hand.
"I have to go to the Black Market." Ibuki said, and this shocked Gosha, even more as the lion forcefully pushed his past Gosha and took the road that, without a doubt, led straight to the Black Market.
Gosha, naturally, was shocked by this. After all, he knew that Ibuki would never be safe if he set foot in a place like the Black Market. The criminals of the area would be onto him in just a few minutes if he went there. That was why Gosha tried to convince Ibuki not to go there, to turn around and go back home, to his family, but then, Ibuki said words that changed everything:
"The Shishigumi took Legoshi!"
Gosha felt his heart drop as those words were said.
"L-Legoshi... I-is he...?"
"They took him alive." Ibuki said, and those words caused relief to the Komodo. Before he eventually realized that a gang like the Shishigumi taking a person back to their house alive was not a good thing.
"We have to go now!" Gosha said, and soon, he was walking right by Ibuki's side, both with matching marching speeds. "You kids go back! The Black Market is not place for children! Especially herbivores!"
"No way!" Haru said as she continued to follow the Komodo and lion. "Legoshi is our friend! We are going!"
Gosha cast a glance at her, and he saw the determination on her eyes. He then looked at the other two females and saw that they were just as determined. From those kids, the deer was the only one that had hesitation on his eyes, nearly as if he was doing something that he preferred to never have to do.
Gosha soon understood why Ibuki was allowing them to come with him. It would be hard to convince those kids not to come with them, and there was just not time. They could not waste a single second to go and rescue Legoshi.
Soon, the small group was making it into the Black Market, and soon they were attracting eyes.
After all, it was not unusual to see herbivores coming into the Black Market so willingly, unless there were in there to sell themselves in exchange for money for their families. It was something that happened around this area, but it was usually old herbivores on their final years who wanted their children and grandchildren to have the money to live, not school-aged kids who were still wearing school uniforms.
Some even wondered if the carnivores with them were responsible for bringing them in there. Maybe to be part of a trade or a special business dinner? They could have convinced those herbivores somehow.
However, the two herbivores soon were not the more interesting thing of that group, as some of the people on the Black Market started to think that the lion coming with them was familiar.
Especially after some of them heard the wolf of the group say:
"Ibuki-san, please, go slower!"
However, the lion ignored her. Just like he ignored the whispering coming from the people around him as they heard the female wolf call him by his name and realized who he was.
Ibuki the Lion was back on the Black Market, seventeen years after his grand betrayal.
And that was a huge thing.
It was only a matter of time now, and Ibuki knew it. That was another reason for him to hurry up and just do what he had to do and get out of there with his son.
He just hoped he was not too late.
"So, you are Ibuki right?" Said a tiger approaching him. "You are the one who sold the gumis to the Black Devil, aren't you!? Including the Toragumi! My brother was a member! He died because of you, you piece of-"
The tiger, however, didn't had time to finish that for, as soon as he tried to lunge at Ibuki, the lion reacted faster than he could have ever hoped. A swing of the lion's hammer right on the tiger's muzzle was enough to completely shatter his jawbone, causing teeth to sprawl everywhere, much to the shock of the onlookers.
Even the teenagers coming with them stopped and watched in shock as the tiger dropped to the floor, wailing in pain as he held his ruined jaw, tears leaking from his eyes due to the pain.
Ibuki, however, didn't even slowed his step. He just continued his way as if he had not just savagely ruined someone's face with a hammer. He didn't care about that. He couldn't bring himself to care about this tiger when his son's life was on the line.
Gosha was of the same opinion for, while he was a little shocked for seeing the tiger on the ground, he was soon able to put it behind as the worry with Legoshi's well-being was much stronger.
"So, we are really going to the Shishigumi's base?" Gosha asked.
"Yes." Was Ibuki's short answer, and the Komodo continued to look at him as he walked right by his side, being followed by the teenagers.
"They'll try to kill you as soon as they see you."
"I know." Ibuki said. The look on his face telling Gosha that he was, indeed, fully aware of this, but that it was nothing more than an afterthought. Right now, rescuing his son is the only thing on his mind, and that was something that Gosha could not only understand, but fully get behind.
"And, once we arrive there, what is the plan?"
"Break in and get Legoshi, smashing through anyone who stands in the way."
"Seriously, what is the plan?" Gosha asked again, and this time Ibuki said nothing. He only continued walking, and Gosha could only sigh, as he already knew where this was going.
They would be needing a lot of luck for this one, but they were certainly not backing away now.
Legoshi needed them.
"Is this really the way to this 'Shishigumi's' base?" Juno asked as they continued, and Ibuki confirmed that it was.
"It has been seventeen years, but I still remember where it is." He said, as he made them make a turn on a corner. "I could go there with my eyes closed."
"You better keep your eyes open here, Ibuki." Gosha said as he stood by his side, and soon, they all stopped, as they saw their path blocked by a group of three bears.
The same bears who tried to capture Legoshi when him and his carnivore friends stumbled into the Black Market.
"So, now it is Ibuki himself who comes to the Black Market, huh?" The leader of the three brothers said, taking a step forward. The rest of the group tensed, with some of them getting ready to fight. Louis' hand had been on the handle of his gun since they arrived on that place, and now he was about to pull it and point at the bears, and this time he was promising himself he would to hesitate to pull the trigger. Meanwhile, Haru was gripping the handle of a cutler which she had managed to snag from one of the meat stands while the owner was too busy looking at Ibuki and whispering with the owner of the stand by his side.
What? She needed something to feel a bit safer!
"Well, that's just nifty, ain't it?" The bear said, "Now we can get the full reward for your fucking head!" The bear said, as he and his brothers all started to make their way to the group, one of them pulling his hunting knife and running a finger over the edge.
As they came his way, Ibuki's hand gripped the handle of the hammer tighter, getting ready to swing it as soon as those bears were close enough, and he would be aiming right at their snouts and hit it so hard he would make them sink into their skulls.
However, much like what it happened to Legoshi with the same bears weeks ago, an arrow made of bamboo sank itself into the ground right by the bears' feet, causing them to stop and look over.
"That's close enough!" The panda said, while the bears looked his way.
"You again!?" The bear said, "Mind your own business, you old fart!"
"Most of what happens on the Black Market is my business!" Gouhin said back to him. "Now, whatever you were going to try and do to them, stop now and leave!"
"Shut the hell up!" The bear said to him. "This is the second time you meddle on our business and I am tired of it! You know what, I guess I will be taking your head as well! I am sure that someone will pay well for the head of a panda!"
The bear seemed keen on making this a reality, and he was about to take a step on the panda's direction, when a cold, deep and cutting voice said:
"You do that, and it will be your head decorating the walls of the Dokugumi's base."
This caused the bear to freeze, anger melting from his features and being replaced with fear. Slowly, he turned around to see a figure emerging from the shadows, wearing thorn black clothing and a mask over his face, very similar to the one Kiira was wearing.
"Savon..." Ibuki said as he saw that masked Komodo walk out of the alley, and then remove his mask.
He then put his fingers on his mouth, and kept them in there for a moment, before removing them. They were letting out greenish, noxious fumes as they were now coated on his venom-laced saliva.
"The Dokugumi has a few rules." Savon said, as he looked at the bears. As he did, a few more lizards, all of them dressed similarly to the first one, made their way out of the shadows, surrounding the bears. "One of them is..."
The Komodo placed his fingers on the wall, running it through them as he left deep, melt-like marks on the bricks, which were slowly spreading, as the venom ate through it like acid.
"Anyone who causes problem in our turf without a good reason, has to answer for their actions."
Savon finished passing his hands over the wall. At this point, the entire section of the wall of that building just came crashing down, as the venom at through it until the wall could no longer hold itself up.
This, of course, shocked and terrified most of the onlookers, except for Gosha, Ibuki and Gouhin.
"So, are you willing to answer for your actions to us?" Savon asked, as his men surrounded the bears. "Or, you prefer to leave now while you have still not done anything?"
Face the bunch of deadly venomous lizards or run for their lives?
Well, that was a no-brainer.
The bears were soon turning around and running for their lives. The Komodos didn't tried to stop them nor chase after them, but they made sure to watch them until they vanished from view.
Only then, they turned at the panda.
"Hey, boys." The panda said. "You know, you didn't need to intervene, I had it all under control."
"Come on, you are not as young as you used to be." Savon said to him.
"Ha! You are one to talk, Savon. You are older than me!" Gouhin shot back, to what Savon only shrugged.
"Whatever. We could not risk losing the one person on the Black Market who is willing to give us medical care." The Komodo said to him. Then, he turned his attention away from the panda, and to the group that was in there.
No. Not to the group.
They were looking at Ibuki.
"And you..." Savon said, pointing a finger, still fuming with remnants of venom in it, and there was even more venom on the lizard's eyes.
"We have a score to settle with you in name of our comrades who you sold to the Black Devil."
With that said, all the lizards started to walk to the lion, causing the whole group to tense.
Ibuki, however, showed no fear at all. In fact, he gave a few steps forward.
"I am sorry, Savon." Ibuki said, being very honest as he spoke that. This caused the lizards to stop.
"I am sorry for what happened to your friends. I really am." Ibuki said. "But I don't have time to deal with you now."
The Komodo hissed, and so did the other lizards, who were now removing their masks one by one. Some of them already had venom dripping from their mouths, fizzling on the ground with each drop.
"Well, that's funny, because we have a lot of time to deal with you right now." Savon said, "In fact, we have been waiting years for this!"
"The Shishigumi got my son!" Ibuki said to him, his expression taking on a fierce look. "Seventeen years ago, I did what I had to do in order to protect my family! And I will be doing it again now! And believe me when I say it is a bad idea to stand between me and my son! So get. Out. Of. My. Way!"
Savon was not intimidated. Neither were the other lizards, who looked ready to jump at Ibuki and tear him apart.
Until another Komodo dragon stepped in between them and the lion.
"Enough, Savon!" Gosha said, and this did cause all the Komodos to stop and look at him.
"What are you doing, Gosha?" Savon demanded, looking at the other Komodo. "Why are you protecting this piece of scum?!"
"He just wants to save his son!" Gosha said, "None of us is here after problem! We just want to save Legoshi!"
"And why is Ibuki's son your problem?"
"Because he is my grandson!" Gosha said, and that was clearly something that none of the Komodos had been expecting, as they all had shocked expression on their faces after hearing that.
"Oh, don't act so shocked!" Gosha said to the other Komodos. Savon, in particular. "You know well that the reason I gave up becoming a beastar was because my wolf lover got pregnant with my child! Well, that child she gave birth to is the same female wolf who Ibuki ran with seventeen years ago!"
Everyone looked in surprise. This included the teenagers who, up until now, had only been watching the scene developing before them.
"This means that Legoshi is my family as well." Gosha said, "I love you, Savon. But, if you are going to stand between me and my grandson, then I will fight you!"
For a long moment, they stood there, the two groups looking at each other, while Gouhin looked at all of them from the sidelines.
Then, the group of Komodos seemed to stand down.
"So, the wolf with a mane is your grandson, huh?" Said one of the Komodos, and this caused everyone to look at him. "I was patrolling the area near the Shishigumi's base earlier, when I saw them loading a big wolf with some really bad hair into one of their vans. From there they took the Saiuku road out of the Black Market."
"Saiuku road?" Gosha said, looking at the other Komodo. "But, that road leads to-"
"To the shore." Ibuki completed. Instantly, his mind made the connection, and he knew exactly what were the Shishigumi's plans for his son.
"We have to go, now!" Ibuki said, and soon he was turning around and coming back the way he came, with the Komodos all watching as they went.
"Wait!" Savon said, causing the whole group to stop and look back at him. With the exception of Ibuki, who remained with his back turned at the reptiles, his hand gripping the hammer harder.
He was ready to start swinging it if Savon suddenly told him that they would not be letting them leave.
However, those were not the words that came out of the Dokugumi's leader's mouth.
"We will help!"
This certainly surprised everyone, including Ibuki, who looked over his shoulder at the Komodo.
"What!?" One of the Komodos of the Dokugumi said. "Savon, you are not serious, are you!?"
"Yes, I am, Smog!" Savon said, "We are going to help them."
He then looked at Ibuki, who was still giving him an over-the-shoulder questioning look.
"Make no mistake, lion!" Savon said as he clarified. "It's not you who I will be helping! It's Gosha and his grandson!"
Once he said that, all of the Dokugumi members present stopped to think about it, and all of them agreed with their leader.
After all, they all had a great respect for Gosha.
"Guys..." The Komodo said. "Thank you."
Savon only nodded at him, and so did the others, who were now ready to follow their leader.
"Wait, can we even trust them?" Juno whispered, to what Ibuki said:
"We have no choice. All help is welcome to rescue Legoshi. Now enough wasting time! We need to get to the shore before it's too late!"
With this said, Ibuki was in with a quick step, and the rest of the group was coming right after him, including the Dokugumi, while Ibuki only saw then depart, and wished good luck to all of them on this.
As they all went, with dark clouds forming and thundering above them, Gosha could not help but think on how Ibuki was right.
Every help they could get was welcome for the sake of saving Legoshi.
And, if the Shishigumi had taken him out of the Black Market...
Gosha did not slow down his step not even one bit as he pulled his phone from his pocket and looked on the contact list for one that he last used when Leano came rushing back home with a lion in tow seventeen years ago.
He dialed the number, and after some calling...
"Yahya? This is Gosha..." The Komodo said on the phone. "I need your help..."
Soon, the heavy clouds on the sky started unloading their contents into the land beneath.
Big droplets of rain fell upon the city, prompting many of the beasts on the streets to either use an umbrella or to run to look for shelter.
Legoshi would do either of the two if he had the option. However, it was hard to do anything when he was tied to a chair. All his four arms had been tied on the back of the chair, granting that the hybrid would not be able to either stand nor use his hands. Even if he could stand from the chair, he would not be going anywhere with his feet both stuck into a bucket that had been filled with quick-drying cement, which had already hardened into concrete.
All the poor hybrid could do was sit on that chair and shiver as the rain drops fell over his body and soaked him all the way down to his soul, sitting on that chair on the top of a cliff by the edge of the sea, the sounds of the waves down there doing nothing to help his situation, as they only added to his nervousness and discomfort.
"Unbearable, ain't it?" A voice said, prompting Legoshi to look up. The chief of the Shishigumi looked down on him, in the company of twelve other lions, all of them looking at the hybrid as they gathered before him. Legoshi would not dignify to answer that. He couldn't with the muzzle over his mouth, anyway.
"Yes, it certainly is..." The lion said as he, like all the others, protected himself from the rain with a big umbrella. "I feel like rubbing my face only from hearing those drops. It certainly is unbearable to stand under the rain. To feel it soaking your body, seeping into your fur and clothes..."
He then leaned forward, looking at the bare-chested hybrid sitting on the chair. Towering over him.
"Then, you can imagine how horrid it is going to be when you are down there."
The very thought caused Legoshi to cringe. There were quite a few reasons why Legoshi never even considered taking swimming as a sport. One of them being how unbearable the mere thought of being completely submerged into water was.
"We all know how it is like." The chief said. "We all would rather never having been born than dying under the water. That is why this is a punishment that the Shishigumi only reserves for our greatest enemies and offenders. So, it is perfect for you, who are the fruit of the loins of the one who nearly destroyed us."
Legoshi then felt something touching his chin. He was forced to look up at the chief lion, as he moved Legoshi's head with the tip of his cane.
"Although, I have to say that I'd still prefer it was your wretched father in your place." He said to the hybrid. "This is all because of him, as well. All of this is the consequence of his mistakes."
He looked at the hybrid for a few moments, while Legoshi glared back at him.
"You don't know what I am referring to, do you?" The lion said to him. "You look like you know some of what I am talking about, but not everything. Well, I can't blame you, after all, the rumors spread so much that no one other than us remember the true story anymore."
He leaned over a little more.
"Would you like me to tell it to you?"
Legoshi could not answer. However, the lion seemed like he already had decided to tell the hybrid anyways.
Apparently, he thought that Legoshi deserved to know the exact reason why he was about to be killed on the most horrible way to someone who had lion blood on his veins.
"Years ago, there was a female wolf." He said to the hybrid. "She was the most beautiful one that this city has ever seen. This is no exaggeration. I saw a picture of her. I never felt attracted to any female outside of my own species, and certainly not a canine. But even I had to recognize she was gorgeous. It was no wonder that she was loved by nearly all of the other students of her school, carnivore and herbivore alike."
He made a pause, before saying:
"So much that they wanted her to be nominated beastar."
Legoshi blinked.
"Yes, that's right." The chief lion said, "The animals of your school were demanding for your mother to be made a beastar. Can you believe it? Just because of her looks! Well, apparently she was also very sociable and good in dealing with people, but it was more because of her looks. The worst part? Her school was seriously considering nominating her. That female wolf was going to become a beastar thanks to her beauty..."
"Now, normally I don't care for beastars. However, I am not one to waste a chance when it presents itself to me." He continued, "I did some research on this female wolf, and, to my surprise, she never ate meat on her life. Not even once. Can you believe it? Most kids her age would have visited the Black Market at least once! But she never had the taste of meat on her life. And this gave me some ideas..."
"What if we could make this future beastar, this beautiful female wolf, take a taste of meat? What if we could make her taste it enough that she would crave this flavor? That she would need it to live?" He looked down at Legoshi as he said those words. "What if we could make her addicted to meat, and assure that she would be reliant on us to get the meat she needed? All the while keeping her appearances for the people so no one would know this little dark secret of hers'?"
"Now, imagine this, a beastar who would secretly be a meat addict, and who would rely exclusively on the Shisihigumi to get her fix? We would be able to get her to do anything we wanted. She would be able to influence society and use her new position to favor our organization. To favor the Black Market. To favor me..."
He made a small pause, and some of the group traded looks. He then continued:
"Naturally, there was no way we could let such a chance slip through our fingers. We needed to take action to make this possibility a reality for us. For that, I decided to send one of my subordinates after her, get him to bring her to the Black Market and have her eat enough meat to addict her completely, and then she would be ours. Luckily, I had a very loyal and promising young lion among my ranks who was close to this female wolf in age. He also had the advantage of not sharing of the opinions of some of our older members on canines, so it would be easier for him to approach her and gain her trust. That was why I sent Ibuki on this mission."
"I told him how to proceed and sent him on his way. All I had to do was wait for him to do his job. So, I waited. And waited. And waited..." He said. "Ibuki's mission... was taking longer than expected. It should have taken him only a few days to get her to eat meat, but he was taking weeks. Not only that, but as time passed, Ibuki's behavior was becoming more and more suspicious. He was distracter, going missing for several hours each day and not telling anyone were he went, at some point he even started questioning some of our traditions. It was nearly as if he was having... second thoughts..."
The lion said those last words in a very strange way, before he resumed:
"After a while, I started to wonder... to think if Ibuki could actually be starting to... have affections towards that female wolf." He said between clenched teeth. "One day, I decided to go out on the Black Market. Take a stroll across it. It is a little hobby I have, take a walk around and look at the stands and the beasts on the street. And that was how I ended up crossing paths with her. The very female wolf I told Ibuki to bring."
"For a moment, I thought that Ibuki had finally done what I ordered him to. However, it soon became clear to me that this was not the case. She was in there alone, and she was looking for Ibuki. She looked quite distraught and desperate to find him. So much that I could not help but ask her what was her business with him. She told me that she wanted to apologize to him for something and tell him something important. I asked her again, but she insisted that it was personal and that she needed to talk to him."
"Eventually, I got her to tell me what it was she needed to talk with Ibuki by saying that I knew where to find him, and that I could take her to him, but only if she told me exactly what was her relation to him and what was so important for her to want to talk to him. Then, she told me..."
His expression then soured greatly.
"Ibuki was her boyfriend... and she was pregnant with his child."
Legoshi had been looking at the lion for a while as he spoke. He hadn't noticed that the raindrops had stopped. The lions, however, did, and one of them even mentioned something about it being the first of the summer rains, as they all put down their umbrellas. The chief only tossed his' aside as he glared at the hybrid.
"Now, I always had some principles when it came to the Shishigumi." He said to the beast sitting before him. "One of those principles is to be devoted to the pride above all. To have your loyalty belonging to your Shishigumi over anything else. To look after your brothers of the pride and to never lose sight of what is important."
"Now, this is not to say you are not allowed to have some fun. If you want to chase after some tail, if it is on your own time, that's fine. But you cannot allow yourself to be diverged by your duties with the pride! No serious affairs! No side dealings! No girlfriends! And, I should not even need to say this, NO. PREGNANT. BITCHES."
He was practically face-to-face with Legoshi as he said that. The hybrid growled as he tried to lunge at him but was held back by the ropes. The chief, upon seeing him trying to attack him once more, reacted immediately with a punch right to the face.
This caused the chair to nearly topple over. However, the lion had good reflexes, and he stopped the chair form toppling completelly and falling over the cliff and into the water with a hand into the edge of the sight, right between Legoshi's legs, pulling the chair back into place.
He didn't want the hybrid falling. Not yet. He was not done talking yet.
He grabbed Legoshi's chin and forced him to look him into the eyes once more.
"Your mother!" He shouted on the hybrid's face. "Was supposed to be an asset for the Shishigumi! But, because of Ibuki's lack of discipline, she turned into a liability! One I just could not allow!"
He growled as he looked at the wolf.
"I should have put an end to it all then and there." He said, his voice dripping in content. "Killed her and that child growing on her stomach with my own hands. But, I had the idea of having Ibuki be the one to do it, of having him be the one to take responsibility for his mistakes, to face the consequences of allowing himself to get distracted from his duties. I put him before her, with a gun on his hand, and told him to do what he needed to do."
"I guess I either underestimated his feelings for the female wolf, or I overestimated his loyalty to us. Because I never expected him to point that darn gun at me!" He roared, and he finally let go of Legoshi's face. "I never expected him to fight me to save that bitch! To run with her and go to the police! To the Black Devil himself!"
He was practically shouting now. He made a pause, apparently to calm himself down. Then, he continued:
"He set a trap for us..."
"Back then, we had our own way of communicating without the police catching wind of it." He said, as he reached on a pocket of his suit, and pulled something that looked like a miniature radio.
"We used devices like this..." He said, showing the device to the hybrid. "They work on a frequency that was not detectable to any other type of radio. We were able to use it as a safe way of communicating with one another, and with members of the other gumis as well. All of us had one... and Ibuki took his' with him when he left."
"Just a few days later, we received a message through our Black Line, requesting for an emergency meeting with all the other gumis on a terrain out of the Black Market, on the very edge of the city. Like fools, we went, and we met all the other gumis there, waiting for us. It didn't take long for us to realize that nor I nor any of the leaders of the other gumis had requested that meeting."
"It was a trap, and we walked right into it." He said, "Suddenly, we realized that we were surrounded by nearly all of the police force of the city, their guns pointed at us and ordering us to surrender."
He stopped, closing his eyes and shuddering at the memories.
"We barely managed to escape..." He said, "Only me and eight of my most loyal lions managed to make it out of there. We were still luckier than the Okamigumi, those mangy mutts. They were all caught. So were those smaller groups, like the tigers of the Toragumi and the eagles and hawks of the Tsumegumi. We nearly lost everything... and it was all because of Ibuki..."
He then looked down at the hybrid.
"All because your father, who thought it was a good idea to go to bed with the female wolf whom he was supposed to bring under our control." He said, "And also because of your mother, who thought it was a good idea to spread her legs to a man whom she knew for only a couple weeks. It was all a consequence of their irresponsible decision."
He then leaned over to the hybrid once more.
"You, Legoshi, are a consequence. The result of a couple horny teenagers who decided to throw caution and responsibility to the wind and throw their entire futures away for a quick lay. What leads us to this..."
"This whole situation we are in now is a consequence of the decision your parents made, Legoshi." He said, and then he lifted his leg, putting it on the edge of Legoshi's seat, ready to push the chair into the water below.
"So, if you must blame anyone for the fate that is about to befall you, blame them."
Then, as he was about to push the chair...
*BANG*
The lions turned around to see what this was, even the chief turned his body to look what was this. Legoshi too, could see the same thing they did.
A group was looking at them, formed by four teenagers (one a bunny with a cutler a bit too big for someone her size and the other a deer with a gun), a bunch of Komodo dragons, most of them members of the Dokugumi, and a single lion holding a hammer.
Even though he was drenched from the rain, Ibuki's expression didn't faltered even a little bit, as he glared at the lion who was the closest to his son...