Asphalts Never Looked So Soft

[Amy]

It was two nights and a full day later that Misaki finally decided she was fit for human interaction. She had been asleep for the majority of her time at the inn, staying awake the first night just long enough to wash off and shove a meal down her throat. The second night she woke up long enough to enjoy a soak and a much slower meal but was soon bundled up in bed once more. She had woken up that morning finally feeling refreshed, her eyes clear and bright as she stretched lazily in bed. Now that her brain wasn’t oozing out of her ears from exhaustion it was time to start her research. Yutaka had told her about a demon ring and a town called Jianyu, so those were two things she needed to look into. She doubted there would be much that she could find out here but it didn’t make any sense to not at least check into it.

She swung her feet to the floor, scratching at her bare stomach as she considered what else she needed to do before traveling. Money was a little tight seeing as how she would need one more night at the inn but she had gotten by on less before. There was also the matter of those men she had talked to the other day, she remembered as she walked over to the dresser, splashing water from the bowl on top across her face. It was shockingly cold, a shiver sliding down her spine that matched the trail of water going down her chest from the drops she didn’t quite catch with the towel. For some reason, she just believed that Yutaka was still in town. He had had a few different opportunities to run from her if had wanted to and since he never took advantage of those moments she could only believe he liked this town. Which was going to be a real shame when she told him what she needed to.

That, however, could wait until tomorrow. Today was research day. After giving the rest of herself a quick wipe down Misaki wasted no time in dressing and heading out onto the streets. It was going to be a long day of being pleasant to people she hoped had information for her…

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A long, and incredibly worthless day, Misaki thought grumpily to herself the next morning as she lay on her stomach with her head buried in her pillow. Not a single person had been able or willing to give her any information about yakuza with a demon ring or a town called Jianyu. And no one had raised her suspicions enough to give them any special attention. She had gotten back late the night before and had slept nearly till noon. Rolling out of bed she let out a quiet oof as she hit the floor, laying there for a second longer. Commiserating with herself. But that could only last for a moment so it was only seconds later she was bounding to her feet and starting her mo- afternoon routine. Then, it would only take a few minutes to pack and she would be on the road again except this time it would be to find her new acquaintance.

She had only known the man for a few days but he was so predictable it only took a few guesses for Misaki to find his card table. There wasn’t much of a crowd on the street, most people still working or sleeping. No one was drunk enough yet to try their hand at a game they knew was rigged. Good thing she didn’t need to be drunk to approach the man, especially since she wasn’t doing any gambling today. Keeping her steps silent she walked up from the side and plopped across the table from him in one swift moment.

“We need to talk.”

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka had been struggling to pull off a successful con these past couple of days. It seemed that people were starting to recognize him for what he was. But everyone forgets eventually, so for now, he just kept at it and hoped to see some new faces. The name of today’s game was blackjack, and unfortunately, no one was dumb enough to play. Why risk playing on the street with some random person when you could go to the gambling hall? Yutaka sighed as he thought of a new way to make money. He really didn’t want to have to go to another town. In all honesty, he was starting to develop feelings for one of the girls at the brothel. It's a foolish move, but a man can’t choose who he loves. There was no doubt it was going to end in disaster, but it wouldn’t be the first time. Yutaka just couldn’t seem to help himself.

As he continued to try and find some takers, the man wondered if he himself should just go to the gambling hall. Last time he did it, he almost got caught cheating. But how was he supposed to know there was a high level samurai at the table? One thing was for sure, though: no matter what he did, he couldn’t leave it to luck. For whatever reason, the universe seemed dead set on making sure he never won a game of chance. Not without cheating, at least. As the man mindlessly shuffled the deck in one hand, he was pulled from his thoughts by a sudden visitor.

"Well, well, well, looks like my stalker is back. Couldn’t resist my alluring charms? Don’t worry, you wouldn’t be the first."

He hadn’t expected to see Misaki again in,,,. Well, ever. Maybe he hadn’t given her as much information as he originally thought. The last night they spoke was still a blur to him. He remembered everything up until they left the bar, and then it was all blank. The next morning, he found that the girl was kind enough to pay for his night at the brothel. VIP treatment too. So he had expected that to be a goodbye gift. Apparently, he was wrong. The girl had almost become a good luck charm of sorts for him after their initial encounter. At the very least, she was a fantastic helper when it came to making money. But something told him that she wouldn’t be interested in any of that today.

[Amy]

The flicker of surprise that crossed Yutaka’s face pleased Misaki and she wasn’t entirely sure why. Undoubtedly, he had thought she was gone for good when she suddenly disappeared. Maybe the poor man had gotten used to feeling needed by her and his feelings were hurt when she just up and left. Unfortunate, if that was the case, because after today she really would be gone. Probably not permanently as there was no doubt that there were years worth of memories lost in that brain of his but acting on what she had now seemed like a much better choice than hoping to pull more from him. If she really needed him, she would find him.

Snagging one of the cards from the deck he was shuffling, Misaki laid it down flat on the table, tapping it once then flipping it over and tapping it again. “Ah, see, but I’m not the one doling out nicknames. Never been called a stalker before. A girl could get used to that.” Flip, tap. Yutaka would probably feel like he was talking to a nearly entirely new person now that he was seeing a well rested Misaki. She had admitted to no one except herself that her behavior the few days she spent with him was absolutely deplorable. And it was not how she was used to conducting business. Luckily, the drunk hadn’t seemed to mind her abrasiveness but that would not always be the case. Sweet as pie, as someone probably once said somewhere. That was how you got what you wanted.

“Anyways, I didn’t come here to flirt with you,” she said as she continued to flip the card, tapping it each time as she gazed around the block for the faces she was still hoping to find. “I came to tell you something I found out the other day but I would rather not run my mouth in the middle of the street so we’re going back to the inn I was staying at and we’re gonna have a mediocre meal.” She stood up, pushing the card towards Yutaka so he could add it back to the deck, pausing for just a second before she lifted her finger from the top.

Shaking her head slightly she began walking back towards the inn, assuming he was following behind her, fingers drumming on her leg. Really, she could have just told him at the table and been done with it but there was a small part of her hoping that this conversation might jog more of his memory. Plus, if he was still being watched they were going to be suspicious when she approached him and starting some shit on the side of the street wasn’t really her cup of tea. She didn’t really like to be watched as she worked. It was still pretty early, barely afternoon, so they had a couple of hours just in case. Realistically, they would be done with each other in the next thirty minutes.

Sliding into a booth, leaning back against the wall, Misaki smiled at Yutaka. Her head cocked slightly to the side, eyes wrinkled in the corners. Looking completely unassuming when she spoke next, one short sentence to give him time to process.

“I think the Yakuza in this town are watching you.”

[ThatGuy]

The man’s eyebrows raised as the girl playfully flirted with him. He hadn’t heard that tone since they first met. Whatever she had done in the past couple of days had certainly improved her mood. As she explained that she had wanted to tell him something, he nodded his head. It didn’t take him long to gather his things, he didn’t have much. So he followed the girl with a playful smile before speaking.

"You really don’t know how this whole ‘wooing’ thing works, huh? Don’t want to waste time on flirtin’, ya just want to eat and take me back to your place. I’ll have you know I’m not that easy.

With a laugh, he continued towards the inn. Upon arrival, he joined her in the booth and pulled out his emergency sake. Now seemed like as good a time as any to get drunk. Taking a quick swig, he listened to the girl’s statement. All the levity that normally accompanied Yutaka everywhere he went faded. Only the slightest change in body language gave away how tense he was. Setting the bottle down, he looked Misaki in the eyes.

"Well, I appreciate ya tellin’ me. I guess you’re not as heartless as ya try to portray."

The statement almost came off as an insult or a jab. Yutaka hadn’t meant to, but he was having issues staying calm with the mix of emotions inside of him. There was the grip of panic as he realized that he couldn’t stay in town for long. He’d have to run away again, and watch his back even more this time. But he also burned with anger. He was tired of running and just wanted to be left alone. Yutaka wanted to turn back toward his pursuers and face them head-on. He wasn’t some merchandise that they could send a couple thugs to reclaim. A waitress arrived at the table to take their order, and Yutaka waited until after she left to continue.

"You know how long they been keepin’ an eye on me?"

Taking another drink, he tried to keep calm. Only those who knew how to read someone would be able to tell something was off. Yutaka was a damn good liar after all. He wasn’t mad at the girl, she was kind enough to warn him. But the very thought of being hunted again made him want to either break something or run away. Keeping eye contact with the girl, he grinned. Trying to maintain that same levity she’d likely come to expect from him.

[Amy]

His little quip about her being heartless only brought a larger smile to Misaki’s face. Her hair danced around her face as she leaned further against the wall, pulling one of her knees up onto her chair. Heartless. It wasn’t that she hadn’t considered the possibility before now. In fact, she thought about it quite a lot when she couldn’t sleep at night. She definitely couldn’t say that she was nice to people. She acted nice to them but only while thinking about how their existence could best serve her and her purpose. And she had hurt a lot of people to get information but never anyone truly innocent. Aside from all of that, there was no doubt that she loved her sister. So like every other night it was easy to come to the conclusion that she did have a heart. It was just…a very selective one.

At the very least, he wasn’t as mad at her as she had been expecting. But, she thought to herself as she waved her hand lazily in the air, she hadn’t told him the infuriating part yet.

“Three or four days since I found out about it. No idea how long before that. They didn’t seem to know much, a week at most?” Misaki let her chin drop into her hand as she finished talking, keeping her eyes glued to Yutaka. It was cute, the way he was trying to pretend he wasn’t bothered by her news. She wondered, was he trying to impress her? Probably not, she quickly decided. Was he just afraid of falling off the deep end in the middle of the inn? More likely, and exactly why she had brought him to the restaurant in the first place.

“The last con I pulled the other day? Not exactly a con,” she said, taking a sip from the glass the waitress had dropped off, wiping the coolness off on her hip. “Two obvious criminals wanted to know some stuff about you so I sold ‘em the rest of what we had in exchange to answer a few of their questions.” Misaki yawned, waving her hand at Yutaka so that he wouldn’t interrupt her with his burliness. “I didn’t give them any information, don’t worry. They were terrible at their jobs. But, I didn’t think anything of it until after your story that night. That was when I realized they were probably connected to the group you ran away from.”

The waitress came back with their food, giving Misaki a look for having her foot up on the chair. Throwing her a quick wink, she dropped her foot back down and shoved a mouthful of noodles into her mouth. She got three bites in before realizing that Yutaka still hadn’t said anything.

“Anyways,” Misaki said, waving her chopsticks around in the air. “I told them that you’d probably only be around another week or so and if they haven’t made a move yet they probably will soon so you should leave town. I’m sure you can find another group of innocent people to rob.”

Dropping her attention back to her food, Misaki wondered if he would recover enough to eat. Obviously it had to be pretty shocking and unwanted but he was an adult now. He could just leave and start over somewhere else, couldn’t he? It didn’t even make any sense that he would try to settle in a town with a Yakuza presence and not even try to hide his brand. Afterall, she had made him in one night.

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka listened silently as the girl answered his question. He couldn’t blame her for taking advantage of the situation, hell, he honestly found it a bit admirable. She got bonus points for not actually giving them any information. Assuming she was telling the truth, that is. But it wouldn’t make much sense to sell him out and then warn him. The man took another drink as the waitress brought them their food. She looked like she was about to say something about him bringing his own alcohol inside but decided against it. Yutaka didn’t often use his size to intimidate people, but it was awfully convenient when they did it to themselves.

"Well, to be honest, I really would have appreciated that information sooner rather than later. But I’m sure you’ve been busy. I had no idea there were Yakuza here, though. I’d never seen any tattoos or heard anyone talk about organized crime here. Guess I’m losing my touch."

After shoveling a few bites of food into his mouth, he noticed a few people enter the inn. There were five men in total, all dressed as nice as a low-level sleazebag could be. Fear gripped his heart for a brief moment, but soon he found himself numb. The group approached the table, and the one who Yutaka assumed to be their leader took a seat across from him. The man put his arm around Misaki and casually grabbed his alcohol before speaking.

"And this must be the adorable sister I’ve heard so much about. Certainly hope you don’t mind us joining you. The more, the merrier, they say! Now I heard a funny sto-"

"HEY! Hands off Misaki!"

Yutaka snatched the bottle of sake from the man’s hand, hoping that the girl would appreciate his little pun. Seriously, though, who took a man’s drink like that? Thugs don’t have any manners nowadays! Clearly offended by his reaction, one of the Yakuza standing by the table put an arm on Yutaka’s shoulder and subtly drew a concealed tanto. The man across from him scowled. While the Kisama still felt numb inside, his gaze could practically pierce right through the man sitting across from him.

"I don’t think you understand how this is going to go. You two are going to come with us. If you’re both cooperative, we’ll let the girl go, but either way, you’ve got a bounty on your head, Yutaka. So I suggest you come willingly so no one gets hurt, you got it?"

"You’ve got a few things wrong. For starters, any minute now, that girl is going to break your arm. I’m amazed that she’s let you play the tough guy for this long. Secondly, I’m not going anywhere."

"Well, then I guess things are about to get messy."

"Hey, you finally got something right!"

Finally, the numbness gave way to the rage that had been building in Yutaka his entire life. The Yakuza that drew his blade earlier didn’t get a chance to react before Yutaka pulled him downward and slammed their head into the table. Wasting no time, he performed an ability that he rarely used anymore. Using his bloodline, the man transformed his hand into a large axe. With one fluid motion, he decapitated the henchman in front of everyone. There were going to be major ramifications for this, but he was moving completely on instinct. With a look that could kill, he used the dead man’s body to shield himself from the other Yakuza as he stood up. After grabbing one of them with his non-transformed hand, he flipped them over his hip and into one of the others. The remaining one standing went for a stab, and Yutaka buried his axe hand deep into their skull.

"You fuckers picked the wrong day to pull this. I ain’t runnin’ this time. Neither are you, because yerr not making it out of this inn alive."

The other Yakuza seemed intimidated, but not enough to stop them from continuing the attack. Yutaka transformed his hand back instead of pulling the axe out of the previous enemy. One of the remaining two standing drew their weapon. The blood covered Kisama simply prepared to go on the defensive. He was strong, but realistically, every weapon was still deadly. But the man had enough confidence in his ability to take these two down. Assuming Misaki didn’t first, that was.

[Amy]

”Well, can’t say that’s how I would have handled this situation,” Misaki thought to herself as she watched the scene unfold. When the men had walked in the door she had already had an escape route planned but Yutaka was frozen in place and she couldn’t leave him behind. As unlikely as it was that even five of them could capture Yutaka, she couldn’t take the chance. If they took him back now they would probably kill him or keep him locked up to make him use his ability which would really put a damper on her plans. So, instead of running she lifted the man’s arm off of her shoulders, dropping his hand on the table between them, patting it with a sneer on her face.

“Listen, boys,” she tried to interject but was interrupted by what could only be considered the worst pun she had ever heard. Shaking her head with her lip curled up towards Yutaka, Misaki then turned to glare at the man who was still crowding her but also ignoring her. It was cute that they were having a disagreement but she didn’t care for the fact that they thought they were going to be handling this between the two of them. She appreciated that Yutaka didn’t feel the need to try to protect her and that he understood she could hold her own. She just wished that he also understood that this was not the time or place to be starting a murderfest. It seemed it was much too late for that though, as he lunged up from the table.

She sat quietly and watched as he made quick work of two of the criminals, the other patrons running out of the inn screaming as blood sprayed around them. Way too gruesome for her.

“Stay here for a sec for me babe, huh?” Misaki said as she stood up. When the furious man stood and tried to grab her again Misaki caught his wrist in her left hand and swiftly drove the heel of her right hand into the back of his elbow, causing his arm to bend the wrong way at a ninety-degree angle. “Don’t touch me again.” Stepping around him, she considered for a moment before grabbing his un-injured arm and placing it on the table, palm up. The man’s eyes widened slightly as she pulled her own tanto out. A smile pulled at her face as she leaned in closely until he would be the only one who could hear her. “I bet your friends didn’t paint a good enough picture of me, did they?”

His screams followed her as she walked towards Yutaka and the other two criminals, her tanto now holding his hand to the table as he was unable to use his broken arm to pull it out. Couldn’t have him trying to run off while she dealt with the rest of the problem. Raising her arms slightly, it didn’t take long for the two men to charge her, thinking they had a better chance against her than they did against Yutaka. What fools. The first had no weapons and his hands reached greedily for her throat but with two quick steps towards him she threw his timing off and launched herself upwards with a swift uppercut, the sound of his jaw breaking echoing through the room. As he collapsed to the floor his companion swung a chair at her head slower than she knew was possible. She quickly dropped down and delivered a swift kick to his knee, breaking it and causing him to collapse.

“I find it incredibly insulting,” she said as she stood, withdrawing the wakizashi from her hip. “That even after your lackey’s told you about me that you thought you could come here with such pathetic men.” The word was acid on her tongue, as though it pained her to call them such. “And then, you ruined my meal. You half destroy this room and leave a mess for someone to clean up. And none of you are even worth the filth that collects on the bottom of my toes.” She tapped her blade against the cheek of the one with the broken jaw, forcing his eyes up to her. “Just so you know, I’ve felt sadder about killing pigs than I feel about this.” With one quick movement, Misaki stabbed first that man and then the second one through the heart, their gurgles lasting for no longer than a few seconds.

“Now, you,” Misaki grinned, turning until the point of her blade was almost touching their leader’s eye. He was still pissed but a little green in the eyes as pain ate away at his body. “You’re going to come with us. Because I think this poor man has some questions and deserves some answers. Bring him, Yutaka.”

Sheathing her blade, Misaki reached out and unceremoniously ripped her smaller blade from the man’s hand, his screams rising up again. She wiped the blood off on one of the bodies on the floor before sheathing it. Too bad it was going to be dirty again soon.

[ThatGuy]

It seemed that conning wasn’t the only thing the two worked well together on. Despite this not being her fight, Misaki seemed to be in her element. If Yutaka wasn’t so pissed, he might have even complimented her. But right now he was simply seeing red, barely able to keep himself from killing the man who was pinned to the table. The girl was right, though, he had a lot of questions for that bastard. After the girl retrieved her blade, Yutaka grabbed the man by the collar and pulled him up from the table.

"You crazy fucks are going to regret this. Do you have any idea who you’re messing wi-?"

Very quickly losing patience, the large man threw the Yakuza a short distance across the inn. They writhed in pain, attempting to cradle their broken arm as Yutaka approached. The large man was shaking, barely able to keep himself in check. Whoever this person was, they were unfortunate enough to be the target of his rage. All of the anger pushed down from Yutaka’s years as a slave and spent running away was finally coming to the surface. While this man was a scumbag, he truly had done nothing to earn the Kisama’s ire. It was just a case of the wrong place at the wrong time. Grabbing the Yakuza by the back of his neck, Yutaka lifted them up and started pushing them out the door.

"Sorry for the mess. Put it on my tab."

The words came out of his mouth like venom, despite his attempt to make it lighthearted. Yutaka looked around as they walked through the town. This was likely going to be his last day here. Even if the locals turned a blind eye to his rampage, word would spread, and eventually he’d find another pair of hunters on his trail. The man tried to protest a couple times along the way, but Yutaka would simply lift him up by his hair or give him a nice punch in the broken arm, and they’d fall back into line. The locals watched with horror as the two marched the man down the street. A glare from Yutaka was all it took to get them to mind their own business. After they made it a decent distance outside of town, Yutaka threw the man to the ground again.

"Who hired ya? Who told ya about the bounty?"

Yutaka didn’t give the man a chance to answer before he started punching him in the face. It was counterintuitive to getting answers, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself. It was stupid of him to think that he’d finally found a place to settle down. He thought he knew better than to get comfortable. Because there was always a bastard who would come along and ruin everything. Yutaka had completely lost himself in his rage, unable to hear either the Yakuza or Misaki as they spoke. The blood pounding in his ears muffled their voices until, finally, he felt something grip his wrist. Shooting a glare at whoever would dare put a hand on him, he realized it was Misaki. After a brief moment of eye contact, he collected himself and stood back up. He had no idea how long he spent hitting this man, but he was lucky that Misaki stopped him. With a low growl, he took a few steps away from the two and took some heavy breaths in an attempt to calm himself.

"J-just stop… I swear, I don’t know who it was… Some guy from the Oni branch."

The Yakuza spoke slowly as he tried to recover, periodically spitting out the pools of blood collecting in his mouth. It was a pathetic sight compared to how high and mighty the man was acting before. Just hearing the name of the Oni branch almost set Yutaka off again. Much like their name, they were demons that haunted Yutaka wherever he went. A powerful force that taunted him at every turn. Trying to keep himself together, he squeezed his hand into a tight fist, his knuckles cracking as he did so.

"All he did was… Give us a description… Said we’d make good money."

[Amy]

Misaki strolled comfortably through the town, unbothered by the blood that speckled her clothes or the wide eyed stares that followed her. Anyone who was brave enough to meet her eye received a dazzling smile. She hated this town. Had hated it from the moment she had set foot in it and some asshole had tried taking a leak right next to her head. The people were cowards and the criminals were useless. It was extremely unlikely that this loser had any important information but at this point she didn’t care. Misaki didn’t make it a habit of torturing people who didn’t have what she needed but there were always exceptions to rules and this asshole just became one.

When they had walked outside the town far enough to give them some semblance of privacy, Yutaka didn’t wait to start in on the guy. It wasn’t very effective but she didn’t bother to stop him right away figuring that if she did he would just keep interfering when she took over. Better to let him work through some of his anger as long as she stopped him before he killed the man. Which, unfortunately, looked like it was going to happen soon with the strength he was putting behind his fist. Sighing, Misaki pushed herself off of the tree she was relaxing against, calling out to Yutaka.

“You’re not going to get any answers if you don’t let him talk.”

He gave no indication that he heard her at all which didn’t surprise her in his current state. On his next pull back she wrapped her hand around his wrist, squeezing tightly enough to make a point but not so hard as to hurt him. His head whipped towards her, his eyes blazing and wild. But she held his stare, looking down her nose, hardening her stare until he finally relaxed enough to let the man go. She watched him walk away until she was comfortable with the distance before squatting in front of the blabbering man in front of her.

“What’s your name?” She asked.

“Kato, Jiro,” the man answered breathlessly, likely glad for a break from his beating.

Misaki just tsked as she stood up, thinking about what he said. She whistled idly as she grabbed him by the back of his shirt and dragged him backwards until she could toss him against a trunk. He grunted loudly but the screaming had at least stopped. Untying the fabric from around her waist, Misaki secured him to the tree by his neck, tight enough to be constricting but not so tight he couldn’t breathe.

“Such a simple, sad name for a simple, sad man.” She squatted in front of him again, pushing his legs out to either side. “Tell me what “guy” from the Oni branch.”

His head shook but he didn’t get the chance to follow it up with speaking before Misaki drove her blade into his knee, hard enough to chip bone.

“Don’t tell me no,” she cooed, slowly withdrawing the blade. “I hate being told no. Give me his name.”

The man choked as he tried to breathe too deeply, the scarf growing tighter around his throat. “I don’t know,” he gasped pathetically, reaching his bleeding hand towards Misaki.

She grabbed his hand, threading her fingers between his, her head tilting to the side as she smiled sweetly. “I think you do know, so why don’t you think harder.” Using her own fingers as an anchor, Misaki pushed his index finger back until it dislocated with a loud pop.

“Fuck!” He yelled, the word dropping into a growl. “What the fuck is wrong with you two!?”

“Too much blabbering, not enough answering. Tell me what I want to know or I will keep you alive for as long as possible.” She pressed on his middle finger now, going just a bit slower this time but that one also soon released with a loud pop. “And if you don’t answer soon you probably won’t be able to remember anyways. Pain has a funny way of fogging your brain up.”

The man writhed against the tree but there was nothing he could do and he knew it.

“I don’t fucking know his name but he wore a ring with some fucking demon on it or something. So original.”

“Great,” Misaki said, her voice suddenly dull. “That was easier than expected. Since when did the yakuza get so lax with their members?” She dropped his hand unceremoniously before standing up and looking over her shoulder at Yutaka. “He doesn’t know anything else. You wanna kill him or what?” When Yutaka gave her a dismissive shrug she shrugged right back. She understood. This guy wasn’t worth making a fuss about who killed him.

“W-Wait!” Jiro had just enough time to shout before Misaki turned and drove her blade into his heart, giving him the same death she gave the other men. Untying him from the tree, she kicked his body over and checked his body for any notes or money but only found a couple ryo.

“I’m walking to the river to wash up. You come too.” She waved at him as she walked off. The man needed to cool off in more ways than one and get a plan together.

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka listened as Misaki took over the interrogation, trying to keep calm. With each scream from the man, the Kisama found his memories wandering to his time in the cell, staring at the stain on the wall. There were always screams coming from down the hallway. Sometimes it was men, sometimes it was women, and sometimes it was children. Yutaka could feel his consciousness trying to slip away, but the anger kept him anchored to his body. When the man mentioned something about a demon ring, he knew exactly who it was. Taichi. So they were finally assigning lieutenants to hunt Yutaka down. Why the sudden shift of interest?

When Misaki asked if he wanted the kill, Yutaka simply grunted and shrugged. Having stopped hitting the man for a while, he didn’t care anymore. The large man’s anger was directed somewhere else now. He was starting to lose himself in memories of his time in the Oni branch. But when Misaki mentioned leaving to go wash up, he snapped out of it. He stayed silent for a bit as they walked. Not really knowing what to say. Finally, as the water was in sight, he spoke up.

"Kaneko, Taichi. That’s the guy with the demon ring, I’m sure of it. He’s the head of one of the three families under Kiyoshi. Mainly just sends his men to crack skulls and collect protection money, but he also owned the brothel I grew up in. I hate to admit it, but he knows me pretty damn well. If he’s sending people after me... Not sure if I can keep running. If you’re fresh out of leads on the trafficking ring, the Oni branch wouldn’t be a bad place to start."

By now, he had forgotten his revelation about the ring, he had gotten far too drunk that night. Plus, it was buried in memories that Yutaka did not like to dig up. As they reached the river, Yutaka wasted no time stripping down to his fundoshi. He’d gotten his kimono coated in blood, a shame, really. Because that was the only pair of clothes he had. The large man took a couple of steps into the river and started scrubbing his clothes.

"I’d really started fantasizing about settlin’ down here, ya know? I was stupid enough to start fallin’ for one o’ the girls too. I knew it wasn’t going to work out. But I’d hoped it would end naturally, with me running out of money and her throwing me out. Like a normal breakup. Now… Don’t know what the fuck I’m gonna do. I’m not going to be able to make a living with the Yakuza on my tail again. And the worst part? I got blood all over my fucking kimono."

The man stopped as he noticed how aggressively he had been scrubbing his clothes. With a sigh, he stepped out of the river and found a spot to hang his clothes to dry. Once again entering the river, he started to wash the blood off of his body, fighting with the congealed blood. I’ve really made a mess, haven’t I? Yutaka thought to himself.

[Amy]

Misaki only listened while Yutaka spoke. The information jarred loose from the tangled web inside his mind came at a high cost so she made sure not to miss anything. Kaneko, Taichi. He would be seeing her soon, she promised the universe. It seemed that he was the same man that Yutaka had been thinking about the other night when they had gotten him drunk. It was way too much of a coincidence now that he had come up again. There was no doubt now that Jianyu was the next stop for her and that Kaneko was her next target. Even while Yutaka stood beside her, defeated, Misaki couldn’t stop the thrill of excitement that had started to spark in her veins. Finally, after years, her life’s plan was beginning to take off.

As they stepped to the water’s edge, Misaki wasted no time in stripping off her blood soaked clothes. First, her kimono joined her waist cloth where she had dropped it in the water. Then, she removed her under shirt as well as her shorts. If Yutaka had been wondering whether Misaki preferred the traditional wraps or the more modern underclothes he would now have his answer as she stood knee deep in the water in just a bra and her underwear. If he asked, she would tell him that she had fallen in love with the more modern look right after exiting the military. But she doubted he would ask and as usual, Misaki did not offer him any information.

While her clothes soaked and Yutaka continued to talk, Misaki checked over her body, making sure that the blood hadn’t soaked through any further. Once satisfied she began gently scrubbing the blood out of her clothes, still silent. Her dark hair framed her face as she stared down at the water which was slowly turning a light pink. The water was cool against her legs but the sun was hot on her back. Yutakas voice threaded its way around her as he lamented about how unlucky he was. The longer they stood the longer the woods came back to life around them, birds chirping in the trees, ground rodents chattering to each other. It truly brought a smile to Misaki’s face.

“You should stop trying to live a normal life if you want to be happier,” she said with a groan as she straightened up. There was no way she was getting all of the blood out without soap but that would have to wait until they got to Jianyu. Laying her clothes in the grass next to the shore, Misaki splashed some water over her arms and her face, scrubbing until the dried blood was gone. “If they won’t get off your tail, make it not worth it for them. You kill a few groups like this and your bounty is going to start looking a hell of a lot less attractive.”

Misaki finally stepped out of the water and up onto a nearby rock where she layed out, letting the sun warm her chilled skin. Her eyes closed and she listened carefully while they waited, always on the lookout. She was in a tough spot, she finally decided. Yutaka had proven that he could still be incredibly useful to her but he was falling apart. He didn’t seem to be exaggerating when he said that he thought he could settle in this town. One thing was for certain, he certainly could not stay here. Her head supported in her hands, she finally opened her eyes to the blue sky, eyes following the clouds. Protect your assets. It was the one lesson she never forgot from her parents.

“There’s a town about eight kilometers south of here, I passed through on my way. Big enough town to not stand out but poor enough for there not to be any sort of organized crime. A few scoundrels but that was it. You should go there if you want to keep hiding. Or, pick a new continent and go there.” It didn’t matter what he decided as long as she knew where he was going and what his plans were. With that information she could definitely find him again.

“Either way, once my clothes are dry I’m heading to Jianyu. Seems like you forgot but you told me about it the other night and I had planned to go there anyways. Based on this little adventure I would say it’s pretty promising. Want me to bring you back a souvenir?” As she asked her question, Misaki rolled onto her stomach to warm her back, giving Yutaka the chance to see the amused grin on her face. “Or are you gonna hide from that too?”

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka listened passively while he scrubbed the last of the blood off of his body. She did have a good point, he really couldn’t have the life he wanted if he was going to be hunted at every turn. Plus, killing the hunting parties didn’t seem like the right thing to do. It wasn’t that he’d feel bad about killing them, but it wouldn’t make him feel any better. It’s not like he’d be getting revenge. He could hide in the town she mentioned, but something didn’t sit right with him about that, especially as the girl not-so-subtly implied he was a coward. After the last of the blood was washed off, he spoke.

"Listen, lady, if you think you can just take your clothes off to get me to do what ya want…" Yutaka turned around as he spoke, his eyes scanning the girl’s body before he let out a deep sigh, sounding defeated as he finished his sentence. "Then you’re on the right track."

The man laid down several feet from the girl to bask in the sun while he thought over his next move. Was he seriously considering going to Jianyu with Misaki? He’d spent his entire life trying to get away from that town. It carried too many terrible memories. But he was sick of running, sick of hiding. Maybe it was time for him to fight. At the very least, he knew Misaki was going to challenge them directly. So why shouldn’t he join her? With his help, she’d probably be able to take all those bastards down.

"I’m done hiding. Don’t suppose ya got room for one more on your way to Jianyu? I’ve got some old friends I’d like to have a chat with, to make up for lost time.

Before he even received an answer, the man was thinking about how the trip would go. For starters, where was he going to get booze? There was no way he could walk back into town after the incident earlier. Then where was he going to stay once he got there? He definitely couldn’t go to the brothel, but going to bed alone wasn’t something he liked doing. Also, there was the matter of how he was going to make money. Pulling cons in Jianyu would be a surefire way to blow his cover. Which brought him to the last order of business: how was he, a six and a half foot tall man with very distinct tattoos, going to blend in?

"You know of a place where I can pick up some booze on the way? If ya think I’m annoyin’ now, ya definitely don’t want to deal with me havin’ withdrawals."

With that, he closed his eyes, not falling asleep, but simply enjoying the sun on his skin. The sounds of the woods helped lower his stress. He wondered just what Misaki had planned. Did she just want to keep her source of information close, or did the girl have ulterior motives? Who was to say that she wouldn’t sell him out for information about her sister? He couldn’t even blame her, he’d probably do the same. Plus, what difference would it make? No matter what Misaki’s plan was, Yutaka would be walking into the lion’s den. So he made the final decision. He’d be going back to Jianyu, with or without Misaki.

[Amy]

“Hook, line, and sinker,” Misaki thought to herself as she rested her chin on her folded arms. Simple dealings for simple people was almost always the correct course of action. All they needed was the tiniest push in the right direction and you could convince them almost anything was their idea. As an added bonus she hadn’t even had to take the rest of her clothes off. There was always a time and place for that, of course, and she wondered if Yutaka realized just how many times her body had convinced people to do what she wanted. Though, surprisingly, it worked way more often with women than it did with men. Another story for another day, though. For now, they had to figure out the next step as traveling with Yutaka was going to bring its own set of challenges. And that started with telling him he was welcome…ish.

“Listen, if you wanna go on your own, you can do whatever you want and I won’t say anything about it. I also won’t help when you get into trouble. If you wanna go with me? Then you’re gonna do what I say.” Misaki finally sat up as she talked, sitting back on her butt and holding herself up with her arms. She had never let anyone else in on her plans before and she wasn’t going to let the first time be her end. “If I so much as dream about you causing trouble for me or blowing up whatever plans I’ve laid out I will hand you over to them myself.”

Misaki stared at Yutaka, waiting for a response. Some sort of confirmation that she wasn’t putting everything at risk here. But when he finally met her eyes again the only thing he had to say was about alcohol. What a great sign to start their travels. Pointedly, and with great feeling, Misaki sighed loudly and stood up with a leap, walking over to shake her clothes out.

“Did you even hear anything I said? Hey!” When she saw him close his eyes she stomped over to him and kicked him in the side. Not hard, just hard enough to show her displeasure. When he opened his eyes she would stare directly into them, her finger pointing in his face. “Do not make me regret letting you come with me. There aren’t going to be any games while we’re there. It’s not going to be like it was here. It could take weeks to gather the information that I need and I can’t be watching you while you do that.”

Misaki continued to stare until he gave some indication that he had heard her this time. Shaking her head, she turned back to attend to her clothes, already regretting her decision. She was definitely going to have to find a way to keep her cool over the next few weeks. Losing her temper every time he said or did something stupid would only serve to give herself a bigger headache. It was just a few weeks, she comforted herself as she finished shaking her clothes out and turning them over. She could play nice for a few weeks. Sitting back down on her warm rock, legs crossed in front of her, she skipped some rocks across the water. They couldn’t waste too much time here but she wasn’t about to go traipsing through the woods in damp clothing.

"And yes. There's a town a few miles from here we can stop at for supplies."

Her fingers closed around the serpent charm that lay against her chest. She did not think about her sister while she did it and she did not think about the revenge she was after. Misaki simply held it and breathed, reminding herself that as long as she was alive she hadn’t lost.

[ThatGuy]

"I’ll help, even listen sometimes, but don’t act like ya own me. If ya want me to follow your plan exactly, then there’s gotta be something in it for me. You can threaten to turn me in all you want. I’m sure ya actually will too, but do you really think that’s the best course of action? These guys are scumbags. I would know, so even if ya make a deal with them, you’ll still end up having to fight them. Might as well do it with some help, right? And I mean help. As in assistance, not a henchman."

Misaki was definitely not happy with his words, but not enough to punch him yet. Yutaka found his eyes wandering as she spoke. He was too busy taking in the ‘sights’ to hear what she was saying. But he pretended to listen all the same, he had gotten pretty good at it over the years. Yutaka noticed something new as he continued his observations. Has she always had that serpent charm? Realizing that Misaki was finished, he continued to act as if he were listening.

"You’re right. I’m sorry"

The man walked over to the river bank and started to collect more rocks, making sure to grab the flattest ones. He then returned to Misaki and dropped them off, grabbing one for himself and managing to get a few skips after a toss. It was almost comical how peaceful of a setting they had found themselves in after the carnage in town. Life was funny like that.

"Just so ya know... I am sympathetic to your cause. I'm not just sayin’ it, I really would love to help take those bastards down. But I also value my freedom. I hope ya can see where I’m coming from."

She probably wouldn’t, or would and just wouldn’t care. Yutaka saw the path she was on, and it wasn’t one that led to partnership. The road to her goal would be paved with blood and betrayal. The large man didn’t plan on being part of it. But a part of him wanted to see just how far she’d go. People who walked that path rarely made it to the end, and he knew she wasn’t ready to take on the people she was hunting. Maybe in the future, but she’d be dead within a week if she tried now. Remembering the charm, he spoke once again.

"Sorry if this is too personal, but I noticed your charm. It’s nice. I’m just curious. Some say that you can find out a lot about a person by the symbols they carry, but I’ve found that it’s often not what ya think."

If he was going to go back to that damned town and fight his former masters with this girl, then he’d like to know a little more about her. Yutaka didn’t hold his breath however, Misaki didn’t seem like the sharing type. He couldn’t expect someone to open up so soon after just meeting. But it was worth a shot, right?

[Amy]

Misaki leveled her gaze at Yutaka after he finished saying his cute little piece. She took a deep breath, wanting to make sure that she spoke clearly and left no room for confusion because he seemed to have a hard time really listening.

“There is no scenario where I want to own anyone, especially an overgrown brat like you. In case you’ve already forgotten, I did not invite you to come with me. You invited yourself. We’re not teammates and I don’t care about being equals. What I care about is that I’ve been doing things my way for the past six years and I will continue to do them my way. If you want to go off and do your own thing and form your own little team you are more than welcome to do it. But that’s not how I do things. That’s why I didn’t invite you.”

She saw his eyes drifting down her body but she didn’t let it stop her. If she waited for him to give her his full attention they would be there all day. But she did want to make sure he heard one thing loud and clear so she stalked over to him and snapped her fingers in front of his face several times until his eyes focused back on her.

“And don’t you ever insult me again by implying I would make a deal with people who buy and sell children.” Shaking her head, she walked several steps away so she wasn’t tempted to break any of his bones. It made her skin boil that he would dare to suggest she would make a deal with the same people who could have bought her sister. Her hands wrung in front of her, pulling angrily at her own fingers as she tried to calm down. The absolute nerve of him.

When she felt him get nearer, she turned harshly, cruel words starting to build up in her throat but she bit them back when she realized he was dropping off some stones near her. A worthless apology but she supposed it was something. She chucked the rocks angrily into the lake, not even trying to skip them. She let him talk but in her head she mocked him. He’s so sympathetic, and he really wants to help but his precious precious freedom, blah blah blah. This was why it wasn’t a partnership. Because he wasn’t angry like she was. He wasn’t angry at the life that got stolen from her sister and thousands like her. He only cared that he had some false sense of freedom now. Which was fine.

But she wasn’t in the business of trying to hold onto what she had. If cutting her arm off would get her closer to her goal she wouldn’t even second guess the decision.

The look of furious concentration fell off of her face when he asked about her pendant. He made it seem a lot more serious than it was so there was a small smile on her face when she slid her thumb beneath the chain and lifted it off of her chest so he could get a better look.

“It was my sister’s. After she disappeared it was the only trace that we found. I’ve worn it ever since.”

She looked down at it for a second, remembering when her parents gave it to her on her eighth birthday. It was all she had wanted. Misaki and her parents had been working extra jobs for weeks just to get it for her. It had made her cry out of happiness so it had been worth it. Taking a deep breath, Misaki knew she had to focus on the goal.

“I’m not trying to control you or make you into my minion. But what have you been doing the past six years? Do you know what I’ve been doing?” She paused once, waiting for the inevitable silence. “I’ve been working since I left the military, taking every single escort job I could find. I’ve been interrogating every single person I’ve worked for, every criminal that tried to crash my jobs. If I thought they were hiding things from me I tortured them until I was sure they weren’t or until they gave up their information. I’ve been practicing my stealth, how to lay plans within plans, how to fool people into thinking I have what they want instead of the other way around. I’ve been trying to save my sister every single day since I was eleven.”

She took a deep breath, eyes unforgiving.

“Tell me what you’ve been doing the last twelve years that makes us equals in this situation.”

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka sat there with an embarrassed look on his face. Well, now he certainly felt stupid. While they were certainly opposites, they did have one thing in common: neither of them had a proper childhood. What had he been doing for the last six years? Living his life how he wanted. Nothing but conning, drinking, and whoring. The girl forced him to put it into perspective. All he had really been doing was running. Running from the Yakuza, from responsibility, from memories, fromeverything. Nodding his head and throwing another rock, he gave her his answer.

"Forgetting"

At least he had gotten to learn a bit more about Misaki. He’d be jealous of the love she had for her sibling if it weren’t for the tragedy they both had to endure. Yutaka thought deeply about whether he had anyone in his life like that. The only family he had ever known were monsters. His ‘friends’ were always waiting to stab him in the back. The only women who he ever felt true compassion for were those who just put up with him for a paycheck. The large man couldn’t truly understand what she felt, but he could only imagine the pain. Pulling out his flask, he took a drink.

"I don’t know if I’ll ever understand that fire ya have in ya. I lost my shit back there, but my anger is different. You have your sister to keep that flame going. I only have myself. It’s not the biggest motivator. Hell, I can’t even remember half the shit that happened to me. I’ve been doing my best to avoid it all. But you came out of nowhere, looking for the same people that took me. Ya might not be strong enough to take them down right now, but for some reason I believe you will be, and when you do find your sister… I can’t even imagine the amount of love she’ll be feelin’. Especially when she sees that charm o’ yours hangin’ from your neck."

Growing sick of his own sentimentality, he took another drink. The large man decided to give the girl her space. Yutaka knew his little speech would do nothing but annoy her. So he walked for a moment, thinking of what to say. He had been going through a rollercoaster of emotions all day. After a few moments he took a deep breath.

"Alright, enough of that sappy shit. Anything you want to know about the Oni branch or Jianyu before we set out? I can always give you the rundown on the way too."

His kimono wasn’t quite dry yet. There was still some time before they should set out. The man sat down, using his ability to kill time. The first thing he made was a small brass crane. It wasn’t particularly ornate, but it was detailed enough that it couldn’t be mistaken for another bird. The second was a tiger of similar size. Finally, he made a small Hanya mask before taking another drink.

[Amy]

Misaki couldn’t help herself. She rolled her eyes dramatically at Yutaka when he finally answered her. As expected, he had absolutely no ground to stand on to think he was suddenly her partner in all of this. So far, the only good that had come out of this decision was Misaki deciding that this would be the one and only time she let someone come with her. It was already more headache than it was going to be worth. And no matter what she said, she couldn’t trust him not to interfere which meant she was going to have to find some way to keep tabs on him in Jianyu. He really did not seem to understand the situation at all.

Hell, he didn’t even seem to understand that Misaki did not plan to find her sister alive. Obviously, if that happened, she would love her mind in gratitude and relief. But there was not a lot of hope being carried around in Misaki’s heart. Shizuka had been fourteen when she was taken and she already was budding into a beautiful woman. But in the end, that was all she was. Her sister hadn’t had any skills or trades that would have made her valuable beyond her body. It was not expected that she would have made it to the other side of twelve years alive. She was just here to make sure that as many of them as possible didn’t make it to the other side alive either.

She snatched the tiger that he made and examined it. His skill was pretty neat, she had to admit. It had its limitations but that was probably a good thing. She could definitely see it being useful in the future. Or, even better, right now.

“Make more of these, some flowers or butterflies too. When we stop at the nearby village for supplies we can sell ‘em for cheap. It won’t be a lot but we’re gonna need money in Jianyu and you won’t be able to run around pulling any cons and I’m going to have my hands full.”

With that, Misaki set the tiger back down and just about collapsed in the grass next to her clothes. She was exhausted and the day felt like it was never going to end. It seemed impossible that it was just a few hours ago that she was checking out of her inn and finding Yutaka in the streets. Too often, Misaki forgot to take care of herself, forgot that was still practically a kid herself. She acted much older than her age of twenty-three and that in and of itself was exhausting enough. Always scheming, always planning, never taking anything for face value. It was a lonely path, the path of revenge.

She let eyes drift closed, one arm thrown over her face. She didn’t want to talk to Yutaka anymore and she didn’t even want to look at him. What she wanted was a nice bath and a hot meal and a polite, completely fake conversation with some random man. But, she would have to settle for a cat nap. It was a skill she had been working on for years but it was nowhere near perfection. Finding a way to get true rest without actually falling asleep. Making sure at least part of her brain stayed alert. Ready to be up at a moment’s notice should something go wrong.

As things usually did, in fact, go wrong.

[ThatGuy]

Yutaka nodded after the girl asked him to make more of the figurines. She had a good point. In all honesty, he could be doing this for a living. But something didn’t sit right with him about living off his ability. Deep down, he knew that it was the only thing that really gave him any value. Cons and gambling were just his attempts at avoiding the truth. At least he wasn’t being used as a weapon factory for the Yakuza. Noticing the girl lay down for a nap, he decided to take in the ‘sights’ again. There was no reason he had to be bored while he worked, right?

After a short time, he had made a small pile of knick-knacks. It would be enough to make a little bit of money. He was starting to get a bit lightheaded after using his ability that much. So he wasted no time in polishing off the contents of his flask. They were going to be picking up some more anyway. Checking his kimono, he was pleased to find that it was dry. After throwing it on, he walked over to Misaki’s clothes to make sure they were dry. It was time for them to head out. So he took one last peek at the girl’s figure, it wasn’t likely he would be finding any partners while they were in Jianyu.

"Hey, Misaki, clothes are dry. We should probably head out."

The girl seemed annoyed for a brief moment but got up not long after. Realizing he didn’t have anything to carry the figurines with, he sighed. Telling himself this was the last time he was using his ability today, he made a box large enough to carry them. The large man started to get dizzy… well more dizzy than normal. After collecting his trinkets, he set out with Misaki.