Chapter V: What almost was

'Don't think I'm ever going to get tired of this.'

That was the first thing Ragna thought to himself as he awoke with him and Taokaka in each other's arms as they lay naked beneath the bed covers. This had been a constant way for the two to awaken ever since Ragna and Tao had confirmed their engagement. Of course, since they'd had to as of yet marry, Tao would still be a virgin for their wedding, whatever importance that had…

Though their nightly activities were hardly what anyone could be considered maidenly.

They told the Elder of course and soon enough word had spread throughout the entire village. In the days that followed, the couple could hardly walk down the village streets without words of congratulations being offered from both the adults and the young children. Tora had been pleased as well, but had to leave soon afterwards to go on an important journey. She'd helped to ease Tao disappointment by promising she'd be the first one back for the wedding… and if she decided to have a bridal shower.

A date hadn't been set for their union in question, but Tao had said she didn't mind waiting a few more months while Ragna continued his travels. She was willing to be patient and that was only adding to her new growing sense of maturity. Maybe it was because she knew he was leaving today, but Ragna had actually managed to get out of Tao's grasp without waking her. Sitting up before giving a tense morning stretch, he quickly got dressed in his regular Reaper's attire. He'd already decided that he'd be leaving the coat here for safe keeping and making it a village exclusive. Not only that, but Tao would need it for reference as she wanted to also make coats for the Murakumo sisters.

Ragna might've considered leaving her with breakfast before he left if he hadn't already known that Litchi was going to stop by again with meat buns at the elders. He still felt like he should give the doctor a visit, but if she was going to be in the village then that meant he could probably hold off on that for a time. He knew he was going to stay in Kagutsuchi for the time being, but he was going to stick to the middle and upper levels for now while he looked for inspiration for his next book.

'Probably never going to write about our home though; this village doesn't need to be forced into the rest of the world just yet and they'll be thriving with a little more help.' Finally getting his signature red coat on, he gave a glance down to his still sleeping mate. Smirking softly to himself, he leaned down and softly planted a kiss on her cheek. "See you soon."

Tao smiled slightly as she stirred, but kept her eyes closed. Probably in the middle of a good dream,

Leaving their shared home and walking down the empty streets of the city, he found himself with only his thoughts to keep him company.

Kagutsuchi -Middle Levels-

'Maybe I should've left Tao's coat on after all; I don't like all of these eyes on me,' Ragna thought as he headed through the busy city streets of the 13th Hierarchal City.

All of the citizens had started giving him a wide berth the moment they saw him and the looks on their faces we either of disgust (if they were the rare supporters of the old NOL) or fear (if they weren't). It was easily clear that Ragna wasn't about to approached for any book signings and if anything. he was about to get the authorities called on him soon… what little good that was going to do them. The truth was he had little idea what his current reputation entailed, but it was likely better than if news had really gotten out about him. Outside of those that had been present at the Event Horizon and short list of officials at the absolute highest level, no one knew about the terrifying True Azure he possessed. The ability to manipulate reality to that degree would make him a god to just about anyone (instead of just a Divine Slayer) and he wasn't in any mood to be worshiped, out of fear or otherwise.

'Guess it's time for the old way then,' Ragna thought before he ducked into a dark alley.

The few eyes that followed him didn't trail him for long once he returned a fierce glare and soon enough he was finally alone. Casting a hybrid stealth-suggestion Ars, this was an effect that kept him protected on a mental level rather than making him purely undetectable. Anyone without an insane amount of Ars Magus or Magical aptitude (which to be fair was everyone he already knew) would still acknowledge his presence so he wasn't invisible, but they wouldn't register him as Ragna the Bloodedge or anyone of consequence. Perfect for blending into large crowds and it did just that as when Ragna headed back into the streets no one was giving him a second glance.

'Much better, long as I don't do anything to attract attention or speak with them directly, then I'm in the clear,' Ragna reminded himself, since it had been a while since he'd dealt with crowds of this size. Traveling down the city streets, he tried to come up with a game plan. 'Dammit, I should've done some research and come up with a plan of some kind before I left Tao. Maybe there's a museum or something I can get into? Right a review of that? A show maybe… Do I even want to write another Travel Book? I could just scrap this whole…' He shook his head. 'No, the Kaka village can still put that money to good use and I can't just cut them off out of the blue. I need something to put out there, but what?'

Grumbling as he tried to formulate an idea while walking the city streets, he caught sight of a familiar furry tail. Wanting to verify instead of being an ass and assume, getting closer he was confirmed that it was Noel's close friend, Makoto Nanaya. Ragna hadn't seen her since their brief run-in at Chef Kaka's food stand and while he knew she'd said she was here on business, he'd figured she'd already concluded it and left by this point. He knew it was probably better to just leave well enough alone… but he was already too bored to listen to reason and this would give him so procrastination from writing.

He didn't call out to her immediately, instead electing to follow her until he could talk to her in private and ask what was going on. While she'd appeared to be going about her business at first it was made increasingly clear that she was taking actions to keep a low profile. Sticking to the shadows, moving along untaken paths to keep away from wandering eyes. Ragna knew that she wasn't that skilled with Ars Magus and had to resort to more practical means. By the time she was off the public streets, Makoto was going full on stealth mode so that no one could follow her… no one except Ragna.

Continuing to follow her from a distance eventually led him to an uncompleted section of Kagutsuchi; an entire sector's worth of construction projects that had eventually lost funding and wouldn't be revisited for some time. Using her agility, Makoto quickly bounded up the side of a half finished building before she reached the roof. Heading over to one side before crawling down onto her knees, she took out a pair of digitally enhanced binoculars and pointed them off in the distance.

"Still there, and security's just as tight as it was yesterday," she muttered to herself. "Dammit, this is gonna be tricky."

'That's enough creeping around for now,' Ragna thought before stepping up to Makoto, his steps now heavy enough that she could hear him. Once she did, the demi-squirrel immediately got onto her feet and into a fighting stance, but dropped it once she realized it was him. "Didn't know you were still in Kagutsuchi."

"Damn, how long have you been following me?" she demanded.

"While back; soon as I saw that big ass tail of yours," he answered as he closed the distance before holding out the small take-out bag he'd been carrying. "Grabbed myself some breakfast to go on the way. Want some?"

"…Yeah, I didn't have breakfast and it's not like I'll be going anywhere anytime soon," she answered with a sigh as she set her binoculars down before sitting cross-legged at the edge of the building. Ragna sat across from her and the two began digging into the modest breakfast. "So… shouldn't you be with Tao?"

"I'm leaving the village for a bit; not the type to stay in one single place for that long," he answered before taking out a breakfast croquette and biting into it. Not a bad flavor and it had been pretty cheap too. "Didn't have anywhere in mind to go, so… here I am."

"You're following me out of boredom?" she asked before snickering. "Sounds like the kind of thing everyone expects me to do."

"Heh, you're not wrong," the Reaper agreed with a content chuckle before he looked off where Makoto had been observing. "So that low-rise complex over there… that have anything to do with the assignment you alluded to a few days ago?"

"That's right. And just finding this place was a pain in the ass too," she sighed. "What's it to you? Are you hoping to help?"

"If I can, I guess," Ragna answered fairly. "Seems like you're having some trouble at least."

"You could say that; take a look," Makoto instructed as she bit into her own croquette. Looking through, Ragna could already see plenty of armed guards patrolling around with Ars Magus enhanced weapons. Upon a closer look though, it seemed like these weapons were just for show and the real weapons were more scientific based. "Apparently, there's still a splinter cell out there in Sector Seven that really has it in for Kokonoe and maybe even the reformed NOL. Kokonoe's pretty sure that some of the higher ups are involved in it, but she can't seem to get any closer without alerting that she's onto them. That's why she sent me to Kagutsuchi; the closest she could find was that they had a base of operations somewhere in the city and she needed someone to look into it. Someone not from the Sector directly, but someone she could trust."

"Lucky you," Ragna answered as he continued looking around. "If you found it, then why not flatten the place? Even if they've got all sorts of Ars Magus and science shit for protection, I know firsthand how strong you are. You could probably do it from here in one punch."

"Aren't you a charmer?" Makoto asked rhetorically. Was it just him or was there some disapproval there? If there was, it didn't last. "But I can't just blow this place to the ground; we need answers before anything and that place should have a pretty substantial server room filled with all kinds of data if Kokonoe could still tell it was here. The idea is to get in there, get the data using a device I got from her, and get out. Problem is they've got it locked down tight with plenty of round-the-clock patrols and they'd probably got a button to delete all of their data once they think someone's going after them. I could probably steal all the data once I'm inside undetected, but I'd need to make sure none of the guards caught sight of me. Can't take them out either because they all check-in every few minutes over radio. Whoever's doing this is being verrrrry careful."

"Putting it lightly," Ragna agreed as he continued to survey. "Can't go to Kokonoe to help?"

"I can only talk to her every few days for safety and the last time I couldn't even get through to her. I'm running out of time and options."

"Something's weird about one of these guards though…" Ragna mused as he stared at the one that was right in front of the buildings main entrance. They wore a long, purple coat and were armed with a killer spear on his back that was radiating electric Ars enchantments. Occasionally the spear would let off a stronger spark to show its power and when it did their face shimmered slightly. "What the hell is that?"

"Talking about the lead guy? I noticed that too and it just made things even more difficult. They're wearing an illegal digital camouflage device on their face to keep appearances up, but I managed to recognize who they were by that weapon. The codename they go by is Death Hawk. They were a Lieutenant during the Ikaruga Civil War, but they were forcibly removed from service due to their war crimes."

"The old NOL actually removed one of their own guys from that slaughter?" Ragna asked with some surprise.

"Just goes to show how much of a monster this guy was; cannibalism, prisoner mutilation, and worse. So many of the crimes in his report had to be redacted. To be honest, I think the only reason he was actually removed was because someone from the media saw what they were doing and one of Death Hawk's superiors panicked."

"Okay, so ex-NOL, but why is this Death Hawk freak with Sector Seven?" Ragna tried to reason.

"Probably because they've also got a high bounty on their head; an S-Class bounty. In fact, aside from you and Kokonoe, I think this guy's got the highest bounty on him in history. They've been behind a lot of attacks and raids on outlying settlements for no real reason other than to cause slaughter. Maybe their contact in Sector Seven is promising them protection from the law in exchange for their help. Or maybe they're getting new weaponry for the job? If that's the case, I'd be careful; one of the non-redacted parts did say they had a bone to pick with you. Don't know why though."

"Guess I'll just have to ask him myself… if I care to listen," Ragna answered before handing Makoto back the binoculars and stuffing the rest of his croquette into his mouth. Before Makoto could ask him what he'd meant, Ragna had already leapt over the side of the building, fell several stories, and landed with perfect ease like nothing was wrong. Giving her a passive wave to follow as he dispelled his stealth Ars, Makoto still kept her distance but tailed him as best she could over the rooftops.

'I really hope he's blowing this for me… but if he's doing what I think he is then I'll have to hurry when it's time,' Makoto figured as she leaped over the roof tops while scouting the complex ahead as best she could to get some last-minute reconnaissance. 'I guess this is what everyone's complaining about when they chide me for charging on ahead.'

Meanwhile, Ragna's plan was going flawlessly as his simple approach was enough to get all eyes both mechanical and natural on him. Already some of the security guards were notifying the main base of his presence while those who weren't communicating over radio had their weapons trained on him. Nothing that would kill him, but he had to assume that Sector Seven tech could cause some serious damage if he wasn't careful. Still, the only thing that mattered was that he got the leader's attention and in that he succeeded in spades as they were the only one approaching him directly.

"This is restricted area; either you leave voluntarily… or I remove you by force." If it wasn't for their overly aggressive body language or their tone practically begging that he take the second option, Ragna's senses were honed to detect bloodlust and this was the biggest collection he'd gotten ever since recreating the word (and that was after being in the same room as Tsubaki). "And I can't guarantee that you'll leave with all your limbs… Grim Reaper."

'Gotta convince everyone I'm only here for him.' "After the fortune I spent trying to track you down, you think that's going to scare me away? You're even more insane than I thought, Blood Hawk." Their smile only seemed to grow to a near nightmarish sharpness as they realized Ragna had backed them exactly into the corner they wanted. Ragna saw something in their smile that reminded him of Azrael. "Keeping that weapon of yours around when you're on the run was like asking that I find you. Plus… I've heard you been talking a lotta shit about me."

"Not my fault that you had to go from top bounty in the world to a floundering writer," Blood Hawk insulted.

'Okay, I figured that there was some kind of beef with me, but did he really have to go there?' Ragna was only mildly annoyed, but he actually made him put on a much more hostile expression to show they'd hit a nerve. "Enough barking; we doing this or what?"

"THOUGHT YOU'D NEVER ASK!" Blood Hawk shouted as their spear was out in an instant. The pure surge of electricity that followed completely eradicated any cover that the digital camouflage mask was providing them. Their horribly scarred face (which Ragna had a suspicion had been self-inflicted) and deranged eyes almost got a shiver out of the Reaper. Ragna went for his sword as Blood Hawk's electric aura shocked him all over, but they'd already succeeded in a shallow cut across his chest. "I'M GOING TO ENJOY BLEEDING YOU DRY!"

'Here goes nothing,' Ragna thought as he made his own opening slash, meeting the tip of his opponent's lance with his blade. Not only was his attack easily blocked, but a powerful current of electricity traveled up his blade and shocked him so badly that his skeleton was exposed. Ragna had to ensure that his yell of pain was convincing enough… but really, this lightning was still a few levels lower than Rachel's or even Tager's. Going for a swing out of (false) reflex, the blow was easily dodged as Blood Hawk hopped back before lunging forward and impaling Ragna in the shoulder. The Reaper gagged at the pain as his opponent's face glowed with sadistic glee as they gave him an even further devastating shock.

"COME ON! SCREAM MORE FOR ME! I WON'T BE DONE UNTIL YOU'RE WRITHING ON THE GROUND!"

'God, will this asshole just shut up already?' Ragna boredly thought through the lightning. 'And his breath stinks too… Please hurry Makoto.'

Inside the Base

"This is risky," a scientific man in a lab coat commented from ominous shadows. "If this gets out of hand and he tries to use the Azure against us, there's no way we'll be able to withstand his power."

"He's losing and this is a chance that we can't afford to squander," a second female scientist said as she studied the battle. Watching Ragna suffer as he was continuously hit with barrage after barrage of lightning and getting impaled… well, it wasn't a turn off for her. "Blood Hawk just wants the satisfaction and reputation of killing Ragna the Bloodedge. We'll get his body immediately afterwards and start the extraction process for ourselves. If anything, this will only move our timeline forward once we both have it."

"But he hasn't started to use the Azure! If he does-!"

"Then our men will take him; I've ordered all rifles fixed on him and safeties off. The second it looks like he's about to bring it out, we'll have our chance!" she said, her face growing with a blush as her sadistic hormones set in. "And if we can even bring him in for a vivisection, then-!"

WHACK! WHACK!

'That was just getting obscene,' Makoto thought. After hearing the woman's dialogue, the first thing she wanted was to scrub the filthy feeling off with a bath. Her job came before that though as she inserted Kokonoe's data card in a nearby terminal and let her employer's digital magic do its thing. 'It's working fast at least and these guys won't be waking up anytime soon.' Staring at the screen, she watched as Ragna was cut, stabbed, and continued to be electrocuted. Even if she knew that this was part of the act… it wasn't an easy thing to see. 'Hang in there, I'll be out of here soon as I can… wait, what's our signal?'

Later -Outside-

"TO THINK THE GREAT GRIM REAPER WOULD GET HUMBLED SO EASILY!" Blood Hawk shouted as he held Ragna's blade back easily with his own spear. With the continuous voltage he was getting as he tried to keep the spear back, Ragna was having a hard time keeping ahold of his own sword… or at least that's what he was trying to make it look like. While he continued holding the Reaper's sword back with a single hand on his spear, Blood Hawk used his other to channel a deadly amount of lighting Ars Magus before delivering an open palm strike to the Reaper's chest that sent him flying into a far away wall. Ragna gagged as his back slammed against it before he crumpling to the floor. "LOOK AT YOU! YOU CAN'T EVEN STAND UP!"

'Makoto… hurry already,' Ragna groaned in his mind. Blood Hawk then impaled him straight in the chest. He couldn't feel the nostalgia of his previous fights to the death with Nu for long as his entire body was then overloaded with hit after hit of lightning. Ragna continued to fight to stay conscious… only as a piece of debris fell beside him. It was risky to do it right in front of him, but with Blood Hawk so focused on killing him, they didn't notice the small checkmark carved into its side. 'Friggen' finally!'

Grabbing the spear with a seeming final surge of strength, Ragna both shoved the weapon out of him as he fought his way to his feet. Blood Hawk sneered as he didn't want his target fighting back any further. Going for another stab to his chest, this time Ragna was too fast for him as he met the point with a heavy sword slash and broke cleanly through the metal, caking both of them in a massive burst of wicked lightning as the weapon discharged.

"WHAT THE-!?" Blood Hawk could barely start before charging his dispersed lighting into his palms. This was on another level from before and he intended it to be the killing blow as Ragna would be stunned in place from the explosion, only to see the Ragna was standing before him like all that lightning was doing nothing to him. Smirking, Ragna simply flicked his index finger up…

And Blood Hawk felt the titanic blow as a slender mass of shadows jutted out of the ground and stuck right beneath his jaw. He was launched off his feet and spiraled through the air until he saw Ragna above him. With a roar, Ragna brought his fist down and plunged them both down to the floor with a tremor that could be felt throughout Kagutsuchi.

'…I didn't kill this weakling? Did I?' Ragna thought worriedly. "Gurgle if you're still alive…"

"…Guh…"

"Only out of commission? Good," Ragna said with a sigh of relief as he grabbed their body and hoisted it up. He was getting approached by the other guards and their weapons were trained right on him… Luckily, they were all a single Boo away from wetting themselves. "I'd vet your guys a bit better in the future; maybe next time an S-Rank bounty won't get into your ranks."

"We'll uh… we'll keep that in mind," one terrified guardsman barely managed to speak up. If Ragna wasn't already intimidating enough the residual lightning was bringing his threatening presence to an entirely unforeseen level. "So… you're just…"

"Here for him; I'm not looking to get arrested," Ragna promised as turned away, leaving his back fully exposed. If anyone took the shot, then that would mean that all of this had been for nothing. Thankfully his performance had done the job and no one else was going to be foolish enough to challenge him today. 'First thing I gotta do is link up with Makoto… then we'll both be able to take care of this piece of work.'

Later

"You didn't tell me that you were a registered Vigilante," Makoto noted as Ragna exited the local bounty offices. He'd made a point to turn in Blood Hawk personally, and the sight of him lugging around the (current) most wanted man in the world on his shoulders was too much for any cloaking Ars and it was back to being feared… at least until he collected the paycheck.

"At first, I didn't think that it'd ever be worth it to register, but when you have a few criminals trying to off you for clout and a couple of shadow governments trying to get ahold of your body, the money seems to start coming straight to you," Ragna explained with a chuckle. The Reaper had allowed his healing factor to kick in once he'd linked back with Makoto and in no time at all he'd already self-restored back to peak condition. "Sad to say, I'm earning more a lot more from this than from my book sales."

"Considering the price they had on their head, I don't think even a best seller novel would get you that kind of cash. Since your bounty went unclaimed, that was probably the biggest bounty payout on a single individual in history," Makoto rightly figured. "Come on, we'd better slip back into the shadows so I can try to get back in contact with K… with her."

"Right, lead on."

Ragna had insisted that right before reapplying the suggestion Ars around both of them. Finding an empty alley (he made sure to be careful that no one was listening in anyways) Makoto brought out her mobile phone and attached an unusual device that Ragna figured that Kokonoe had given her as a sort of encoder. The device hummed for a bit before it seemed to surge to life with a proper connection.

"Code Alpha-Bravo-Charlie-Delta. Do you read me?" Makoto spoke into the device.

"Loud and clear, and you're timing couldn't be better. Assuming you've got some good news to give me," came Kokonoe irritated voice on the other end. "Was just in a meeting with a board, and no matter what mind games I try I can't seem to narrow down who wants me taken out. If anything, it could be all of them trying to get me removed." This was a bit surprising to Ragna; aside from when Azrael was loose, he figured Kokonoe basically ran the Sector in all but title and position. "But enough with the nothing news I have on my end; last check-in you were closing in on the location and I have a call logged from earlier. Did you find their hideout?"

"Even better; I got the data with me right here," Makoto boasted with a cocky smile as she flashed the data drive… before realizing that this was an audio call. Ragna had to hold in a chuckle.

"And you managed to break in on your own? How did they have it defended?"

"Pretty tightly, but I managed to get in, knock anyone out before they could see me, copy the data while deleting the security footage, and made sure there were no current outgoing connections other than radioing their guards. Everything went flawlessly." Makoto then glanced at Ragna, trying to gauge how involved he wanted to become. The Reaper nodded. "Of course, I had a helpful distraction."

"Distraction? What, did you bring hookers to keep the guards entertained?"

"No… but the eggheads were probably hornier for my arm than any piece of ass out there," Ragna answered crassly.

"Ragna the Bloodedge…" Kokonoe tone wasn't disappointed, but it sure as hell wasn't pleased either. "You sure have a habit of sticking your nose…"

"No, no; stop trailing off and finish that sentence," Ragna taunted. "Where it's not wanted, where it's none of my business, where it's not needed? Come on, what's your insult this time?"

"Don't get so cocky you jackass!" Kokonoe yelled at him from the other side of the phone. Ragna was glad he'd added in extra measures for the silencing threshold on the Ars he cast. "Fine… Makoto, what did you promise this idiot?"

"Uh… I didn't promise him anything," Makoto answered nervously.

"Ha! Just like you to ask for something after your side of the job is done!" Kokonoe declared in victory. "You can barely think two steps ahead at the best of times."

"…I didn't want a reward in the first place. I was just bored, so I decided to help," the Reaper answered irately before calming himself. "And besides… shouldn't we be past this?"

"What are you implying exactly?" Kokonoe asked.

"The old NOL has been completely crushed, I removed Terumi from all existence, and this is the most peaceful the world's been in… a while. It's on us to make the most of this, so we shouldn't be wasting all this damn time with posturing, politics, or any of that other useless crap. You need to call on me for help? Go ahead, and I'll just do that same when I need something."

"Tch, that's one of the most naïve world views I've ever heard."

"Who's the asshole that remade that same world? I know what I'm doing," Ragna insisted before pulling out his cell. "At least give me your number; this way we can in touch if something's wrong… and I don't need to worry about all that speaking in my head again."

"Don't about the second part; can't do it anymore anyways." Ragna retained a healthy amount of skepticism there; Kokonoe wasn't one to let a good tool go to waste. "Fine; I'll play nice with you and try it your way for now. Here's how you can reach me." He had to resist the urge to label her call number with another unflattering nickname, but settled with the codename Lab. "But that means I'm going to need another favor from you now; playing bodyguard for Makoto."

"Wha-? Professor! I can handle myself!" the Beastkin tried to insist.

"And I know that, but I also know that the people against me are crafty, cowardly, and have no morals or anything else hindering them from playing nasty. Good as you are; one single bad step and that's it. I need whatever guarantee I can get and those are a lot easier if they're hunting after bigger prey."

"'Least you're not calling me bait again," Ragna recounted from the events with Azrael. "Does that mean we're headed back to Sector Seven then?"

"No; you'd stand out too much traveling in public together through airships… and I'm surprised you're not on any No-Fly lists."

"I mean, I haven't tried yet."

"Let's keep it that way then. And traveling on foot would take too long, even if you both travel much faster than most. Really the best thing would be to send that data by using the communication device, but with a file that size being sent over there's a big chance someone could tamper with it or at least detect it. Keeping whoever has it out for me in the dark is the best play here. What I'm going to do as a compromise is arrange a discrete supply pickup from Kagutsuchi. Once Makoto stows away on that ship, she won't be in for any more trouble. All I need is for you to stay with her until tomorrow when I get the transport there."

"Keep her and the data safe, make sure they both get aboard that ship, and don't try any shit with the rest of Sector Seven after that," Ragna summarized. "Gotcha."

"I'll leave the details to you; but you're not allowed to stand out at all; if anyone from the Sector notices you and thinks there's a connection after that stunt you pulled, it'll sound the alarm for certain." Kokonoe sighed. "I'm… I'm counting on you here."

"…Wow, really had to choke those words out, didn't you?" He didn't get a response as she'd already hung up on him.

"Guess that's that; Makoto answered. She wasn't entirely pleased with the situation, but she couldn't go against what Kokonoe had decided. "So what now? Should we head down to the Kaka Village to hide out?"

"Not a chance; if these guys are as bad as Kokonoe's saying, then there's no way I'd ever let them loose on the village if they ever did track us down. Even if they didn't get you, there's no telling what they'd do to the village if they found out it was associated."

"You're right, bad idea," she agreed, readily admitting her mistake. "Then… head to one of the uncompleted parts of the city and keep to the shadows?"

"That's the first place anyone would try to look. We'd need to go somewhere…" He had an idea… and she wasn't going to like it. "Stick with me on this one."

"Are you… blushing?"

Meanwhile Sector Seven

For the umpteenth time that day, Kokonoe ran another security scan on Azrael's sub-zero container. For the umpteenth time, the report stated that there were no suspected data breaches or vulnerabilities in her firewalls. For the umpteenth time plus one, she ran it again.

"If you keep diverting power to these checks, they're going to notice," Iron Tager reminded. Kokonoe had constantly kept the red giant of a man nearby in case whoever was trying to get rid of her tried to follow through with their plan. As a key player in the overthrow of the old NOL, Tager would've been ready for just about anything… so long as that anything didn't include the Mad Dog Azrael.

"The power I'm using is reserves that I've been saving ever since I got my lab back. Combine that with the more efficient systems that I perfected, and they don't even know that all of this power exists," Kokonoe informed him. "But if I'm going to stay invisible for this long, then I'm eventually going to need to send you on a new assignment, and that means that I'll need to ready some defenses in case they think that I'm about to leave myself wide open. Maybe I can hide Makoto here during that time, just in case."

"But you don't want Ragna the Bloodedge here," Tager clarified. He'd been in the room when Kokonoe had her call with Makoto (then again, where else would he be) but had been silent as he'd listened to the entire call. "Do you think he's going to set your assassin off if he arrives?"

"After he went and got himself involved with that attack, there's no doubt that they'd know we were working together. Hoping that they think it's nothing more than a coincidence is the best we can do," she explained.

"…I know you're going to bite my head off for this," Tager began cautiously. Kokonoe took her eyes off her monitor long enough to turn her scowling gaze to the Red Devil. "If their finger on the trigger is Azrael, then the best course of action would probably be to have an ace up our sleeves to match. Ragna said that you can call on him if need be; maybe if we think they're getting too close, get him to perform the first strike."

"Thing about that is you're talking about that from the purely militant angle, so you're not wrong there. The problem is what happens afterwards with Ragna. If it got too far out of hand, he could end up fracturing Sector Seven beyond recognition. And then what happens to him? Every other government body in the world is going to see him and lose all their shit. That happens then he'll be the target of the next first strike from the rest of the world, and I don't think the new Imperator will be able to pardon him a second time."

'That's… unexpected. I didn't think she would care what happened to Ragna one way or another. Maybe his idea of peace time is changing her for the better,' Tager thought before reconsidering as Kokonoe growled to herself while she tried to type up a new plan of attack or moves to make (written in her personal code). 'Or it's just a matter of her overwhelming pride.' "Have you told him about the possibility of Azrael escape?"

"Dumb as I call him to his face, he's at least smart enough that he's figured out that it's the most likely way they'll try to get me. Might explain why he's so interested in helping," she considered. "He'd rush here in an instant if he heard that… instant…" Kokonoe mused before returning to her plans. "If I can buy time… then there might be a way."

Back in Kagutsuchi

"…I want to kill you," Makoto said to the Reaper with a tight scowl. "Well, maybe not kill… break a few bones at least."

"I already warned you before we got here that you weren't going to like it," Ragna groaned as the two stood in the red-light district, right in front of one of its Love Hotels. It wasn't the most extravagant of offerings, but it wasn't one of the seediest rundown ones either. This was comfortably in the middle and given how early in the day it was, there was hardly a person around as the two continued to try and keep their low profile. "Where's the last place anyone would think to look for us?"

"The last place either of us would want to be," she groaned, though she didn't like that he was making a point. "…Fine. I've got words for you, but we can save them until we both get a room at least."

Ragna had selected this specific hotel because the front desk would be automated for discreet couples. No interaction required and no risk of his stealth Ars being broken; just pay for a room, get the offered key, head inside… and try to figure out why Makoto was still fairly pissed at him. To her credit, she didn't look like she wanted to be upset with him at least. Probably because she was still grateful that he finished helping her with her assignment.

'Probably the only reason that she'd willing to hear me out at all,' he reasonably concluded as the two headed up to their room.

He'd been hoping to get a room close to ground level, but their assignment was on the top floor of the five-story complex. Not a fall that either of them would have trouble with obviously, but it could limit some of their escape options if it came down to that. Figuring that the elevator would be a death trap if they were being followed, they elected to take the stairs and moved cautiously should they run into anyone. They'd heard a few people talking in the hallways, but no one had caught sight of them and all they were discussing was the great night they'd had with their partner last night. One of them was even shamelessly saying that they were enjoying the affair she was having from her husband.

'This is why I'm going to have words for him.' Unexpected to Makoto, there was a brief twitch of anger to Ragna as he heard the words. Maybe he didn't see his situation as similar to cheating, but she needed confirmation from the man himself.

Finally getting to the room, Ragna set their supply bags down. Inside was food to get them through the night and so that Makoto wouldn't have to deal with an empty stomach during her ride to Sector Seven. She was immediately going to have her promised words with as soon as the door closed behind her, but the Reaper raised a finger to silence her before starting to cast another stealth Ars. Nodding and taking his example. She scouted around the room for any kind of hidden cameras or listening devices. Even if they'd likely just been placed by a peeping tom, their hidden opponent from Sector Seven might've been able to hack them in order to locate the duo. She didn't find any thankfully and Ragna had just finished his casting as she ended her search.

"Okay, that should hold until tomorrow and we shouldn't be bothered until then," he promised as he took a look around the gaudy room they'd been given.

A crimson heart shaped bed was the obvious mainstay of the room, as was the tacky mirrored ball above it. Ragna made a mental note not to hit the light switch out of the sheer awkwardness that would be sure to follow. At the very least there was also a couch off to the side for use and a mini-fridge to keep all of their food and drinks chilled. A recently cleaned bathroom with a sizeable bath, nearly big enough to be a hot-tub and plenty big for two people. There was also a large television in the room, but… Ragna was going to make a point to keep it off.

"Guess it'll do," Ragna decided before he crossed his arms. "So… those words you were threatening me with earlier?"

"It's about Noel. Since it was on the way, I visited her church and talked with her and her sisters. While I was with them, they let something slip about you visiting and… well Nu had some things to say." Ragna didn't want to take any guesses; the old version of her spoke in nothing but innuendos half the time. "Noel and Lambda made it clear that you hadn't gone that far… yet."

"Did they also make it clear that we talked it over as well?" Ragna said, trying not to seem too defensive.

"Yeah… if what happened had just been with Noel, it'd feel like someone would be taking advantage of her. Lambda at least seems to have a decent head on her shoulders." Both could agree that Noel still had an innocence to her that needed to be protected. "And they told me that they wouldn't mind if you even found anyone else, but if what I'm suspecting with you and Tao is true…"

"Let's clear that up right away; I actually called Noel after I found out what was going on with Tao. Long story short, I got sent here by my Sensei with no real idea that he was trying to marry me off to her." Makoto could only stare at him after that news. "Yeah, real asshole move on his part. We both decided that we're going through with it and we have things worked out between all of us. I'm not trying to take advantage of anyone." She didn't seem all that convinced, so he tried to figure something else out. "Okay, so what about Kagura?"

"…What about him?" Makoto asked, her eyes narrowing dangerously as Ragna considered how close he was to getting blasted through the wall.

"I mean the guy's not a known womanizer for nothing; you see any of that when you look at me?" he asked with a shrug. Makoto didn't answer. "Shouldn't you be able to tell since you two were… close?"

"Define close," she ordered. Ragna was getting ready to parry whatever hit was coming his way… and hoping desperately that it wouldn't cause a shockwave to level the whole building.

"I mean… the way I heard it from Noel… while she's not the type to spread rumors… it kind of sounds like… you two both went and-"

"For the love of-! WE DIDN'T FUCK!" she screamed in his face. Her face growing crimson with embarrassment and her anger was peaking.

"I-! I'm not judging either way!" Ragna insisted as he put up his hands defensively. "It's not my business who you've had any sort of-!"

"YOU ASSHOLE! I'M STILL A VIRGIN!"

…Silence that you hear a pin drop in.

'Don't look surprised. Don't look surprised. Don't look surprised. Don't look surprised. DON'T LOOK SURPRISED.' Ragna was desperately considering every option to keep this from going further as her face hadn't become any less red. "I mean… I believe that you're telling the truth." At least he was trying to. "But Noel's not the type to spread rumors, especially not about you…" 'Oh god, I'm making this worse. Gotta pivot like hell.' "So… is Kagura just lying then? About you two…?"

"He's…" She was starting to calm down a little, at least to the point where she wasn't shaking in her rage. "He probably doesn't think he's lying. In fact, as far as he's concerned, he probably really does think that we…" Taking a deep breath, now she was staring Ragna down with a different kind of rage. "You don't tell anyone else about this. Not even Noel. Got it?"

"I promise, but you don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Ragna tried. "I mean, I can tell you're being honest enough with me right now, if that's worth anything."

"Maybe a little, but…" Makoto sighed. "Maybe it's time that I finally got this off my chest with someone. The truth is… I almost slept with him."

'The sheer amount of stress she's putting on that one word is almost breaking vocal language itself in half.' "Go on…"

"I… I was in a bad place. Still getting judged for just being a Demi-Human, now people were hating me with how close I was getting to the NOL, I didn't even have Noel or Tsubaki to turn to during that time. It was… well, it was horrible honestly." Makoto chuckled as she scratched the back of her head. "Heh, but compared to what you've been through, it probably just sounds like a little kid whining."

"Don't ever say that; shit I've been through doesn't have anything to do with the demons you've had to deal with," he answered reasonably before sitting on the couch and patting on the open cushion for Makoto to join him. "And it does sound like hell… so then he swooped in?"

"You make him sound like a vulture that way, but… I don't think he was purely opportunistic," Makoto sighed as she took the offered seat next to him. "Obviously I was skeptical of the guy even that far back, but Kagura's always been a persistent one. Giving me compliments, flowers, inviting me out to dinner. It was… I think it was him telling off some of the racists that he really started to get to me though. When he promised that some day there wouldn't be any room for that intolerance in the NOL or even the rest world… I could see he'd meant it."

And Ragna didn't doubt that he had either. Once again aside from his multiple flings and constant break-ups, Kagura had a character to him that made him ideal for leadership in a better world.

"Eventually, I got the point where I'd already made up my mind. We went to dinner, had a few drinks there, then we went back to his room. I… I'd already stripped down to my underwear before he… fell on the bed next me. Completely drunk."

"…He what?" Ragna asked honestly. "He… he had a chance to score with you-" He hadn't meant to emphasize it like that, but kept going. "-and he blew it by falling asleep drunk? …HOW?"

"It actually happens with him more often than you'd think; I talked to some of his other romantic partners, and they said that it's happened at least a couple of times. I wasn't all that special. The thing with them though is that even when it happened, it was either usually on at least their second time together and if not that then they would be joining him in bed soon enough anyways."

"Meaning he's got a record on his side then, but because Kagura doesn't remember that night, he thinks…" Ragna then remembered back to when Kagura had first gotten sight of Bullet in the Coliseum. The Black Gale had admitted himself that she was exactly his type, but there was next to no chance he'd remember spending a night with her if he'd been drunk. "Okay, I'm getting most of the picture, but there's still a part to it that I don't get. Since that's what happened, why not just tell him and be done with it?"

"Uh… well… part of it's that if thinks he was that close to getting me, he'd probably be willing to try again… not that he doesn't already, but I'm saying he'd try harder now." Ragna nodded at the fair point made. "The other reason is… it'd honestly be more embarrassing."

"More embarrassing than letting him think he slept with you?" Ragna asked with a comical tilt of his head. "I'm trying to understand, but you've lost me."

"It's… okay, it's dumb now that I'm saying it, but it's honestly a little more embarrassing to think that I'd actually fallen for the guy. That I was actually letting myself get that close to doing it with him and I wasn't even the one that stopped it. Maybe I was a little blinded at the time by his whole charming routine, but…" She trialed off.

"But those feelings for him were still real," Ragna finished. She didn't even react. "So… how are things now? I mean, I know he's still hitting on just about any girl, but how do you feel about it?"

"I don't have strong feelings for the guy like before. He's… an important friend. I think that's the best way I can describe him now. He's doing a lot of respectable work, but I'm not about to get involved with him or any of his vices again." She shook her head. "Changing topic for a second. I know he was dogging you for a while, but you haven't seen any sign of Carl Clover, have you?"

"Uh…" Ragna scratched the back of his head. "This is gonna be kind of weird to explain, but.. when I got out of the Azure Gate with Amane, I kind of got a small peak into the world. Nothing major, but I did get to see all of the chosen that had returned. Saw Noel going back to the church with her sisters, Jin's promotion, Tager and Bullet working together… lot of stuff like that."

"But you didn't see Carl?"

"I did see him, but only for a second before he turned away and… vanished. I know you want to find him, but I don't think him or his sister's around anymore."

"…I kinda guessed it was something like that," she sighed. Trying to get her mind off all of the heavy subjects at hand, she decided to turn the TV on and have it drown out her thoughts.

…Forgetting that the two were still in a love hotel and shrieking at the hardcore porno that was flipped on. Unfortunately, the last couple had liked it loud, so the already obnoxious moaning was even louder as she fumbled with the remote before shutting it off.

"…So," Ragna slowly began, his face growing crimson out of their shared embarrassment. "…Was it just me, or was the male actor dressed to look like a poor man's Kagura?"

Makoto only managed to keep her mouth covered for about five seconds before she completely lost breaking out into the most laughter Ragna had ever heard from her. It was all absurd and he wasn't even sure what she was laughing at… but seeing her happy enough to start crying from her own laughter, he couldn't help but smile softly. She was stuck like this for an entire minute before she eventually had to breathe.

"Glad to see you're doing better," he said honestly. "As far things here go, I think you should probably be the one sleeping tonight since you'll have to be on guard your entire ride back. I'll stand guard for the night. Could probably find somewhere else to sleep after I make sure you catch your ride anyways."

"I think that'd work for the best, so thanks," she agreed. "And… thanks for hearing me out and not just jumping to conclusions."

"Eh, no problem. You and I have never really had beef anyways," Ragna answered before heading over to the supplies he'd brought. "Speaking of which, how spicy do you want your beef fried rice?"

"Uh… you said you'd picked up some meals, not ingredients," Makoto reminded though it was more in the form of a question. "As in ready-made meals, not the stuff that you'd need to cook… I don't even think there's a microwave here."

"The lack of a microwave never stopped me when I had to cook in the wilds; in fact, I had even less to work with out there because Jubei would never let me use Ars Magus to cook," Ragna explained as he started taking the supplies he'd gotten from the grocery store while Makoto had been standing guard outside. The were even a few cheap ceramic bowls and some value level silverware that he'd be able to use. "Not promising my best work, but for hideout food I don't think you'll be in any mood to complain."

"I figured we'd be snacking on instant ramen bowls and some cheap sodas, so I'm down for eating whatever you're cooking," Makoto assured him. "And if your food from a few days ago was anything to go off of, you know what you're doing. Expecting a lot from you, Bloodedge."

"And you'll get it, Nanaya. You'll get it," the Reaper promised before zeroing in on his work.

Though Makoto's main focus that morning had been Kokonoe's mission, she certainly hadn't kept her suspicions of Ragna's flirtatious nature too far out of mind. Looking at him now and having talked things through with him though… maybe she could understand where Noel was coming from when she said he was actually a sweet guy.

Author's Note

Sorry it's late. Hope you Enjoy. I'm going to go play Shadow Generations now. Ciao.

Wlyman2009: Gonna have to wait just a little bit longer for those.

Almightylord: Concern is a hell of a good word.

Vanitas50: Hope you enjoyed this little read.

A cultured Man: Sorry, no… cultured scenes this time around.