Chakra Wizard
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We’re nearing the end here! 
Hope this one turned out alright. Enjoy
Previous Chapter:
The halls were rather crowded for some stupid reason, so I was forced to push and shove my way through the swarm of lowlifes to Yatsumi’s office. I wasn’t even halfway there before I started rubbing my hand against the handle of my gun, and by the time I burst through the double doors, I was already waving it like a madman at the little prick sitting on the other side. The only reason I didn’t fill his forehead with lead right then was because I just had to hear his reasoning for turning Seishin into a hitman first – that and because I had a real hitman holding me back.
“YOU MOTHER****ER!! I’LL KILL YOU!! YOU HEAR ME!!? I’LL ****ING KILL YOU!!!”
Mao was completely unfazed, as he usually was, which pissed me off even more. He clearly wasn’t taking me seriously, nor was Roku, who sounded almost amused as he wrapped his arms around my own.
“Hey hey hey, settle down, tiger! No need to get your panties in a-”
A nice blow to the nose with the back of my head was enough to shut him up and force him to release his grip – wish I had thought of that years ago. Once I was free, I pulled out my gun and ran up to the desk, holding the barrel just an inch away from Mao’s forehead as every other person in the room unveiled their own guns and pointed them towards me. Once again, Mao’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. It was almost as if he thought he was immortal. …It wouldn’t have surprised me if he did.
“Mao, I’m gonna give you till the count of three to tell me why the **** you’re makin’ Seishin assassinate a government official, and so help me God, if I don’t like your answer, I’m painting the walls with your ****in’ blood! …Now spill it!”
I knew the answer was gonna be a good one – it always was when it came to Mao. But even so, I never anticipated the one he gave me.
“Because he asked me if he could do it.”
“…What?”
An impulse on my part almost prompted me to lower my gun, but I managed to catch myself just in time. I wasn’t about to let the little prick off the hook until I knew for certain that what he was telling me was true.
“It’s nothing overly complicated, Brother. Seishin overheard the problems Koi Iona is causing us right now and that we intend to have him killed, so he offered to be the one who does it for us. …What’s there to get so worked up about?” he answered me, expression as blank as ever. Much as his sarcasm pissed me off, though, the idea of Seishin coming to him to offer his help caught my interest in a way I couldn’t have predicted, and at last, I lowered my gun.
“Leave the room. Close the door behind you.” I said, the order directed towards the five to six lowlifes standing behind me. I didn’t take my eyes off Mao as I gave it, but the slight shift in his gaze told me that Hei – who was standing almost directly behind me – had just looked his way, prompting me to spin around and hold the barrel of the gun up to his nose.
“Ass****, don’t you dare look at a goddamn twelve year-old for orders after I just gave you one myself! I’m his older brother for **** sake! He listens to me, therefore so do you! Now get the **** outta this office!”
Hei was probably the only person I knew who could keep his composure better than Mao, so he didn’t flinch when I turned my gun on him. From the look in his eyes, though, it was easy to tell just how much he was fighting the temptation to look at Mao again – a loyal bastard if there ever was one. He eventually succumbed, though, and walked out of the room, everyone else following him out shortly after – Roku proceeded to glare at me as he closed the doors behind him, though the douchebag-y sunglasses made it hard to tell. Once we were alone, I walked over to the window and pulled out a cigarette, waiting until the cameras were off before I began speaking again.
“This whole mob boss shtick is really getting on my ****in’ nerves, Mao.” I said.
“I can imagine it would be, Brother. …Receiving no respect from the people around you while your pre-adolescent brother-”
“Please. …That’s not even the half of it.” I interrupted him. I took a few more puffs on my cigarette as I thought about what to say next – I had to make sure I chose the right words.
“The power’s going to your damn head, Mao. I can tell that it is. …I’m starting to get the feeling that even you don’t respect me anymore.”
I was bullshitting him, I’ll be upfront about it. I never once believed that Mao had respect for anyone else – it was just the way he carried himself, not to mention the emptiness in his words every time he tried to be sincere. Thinking about it now, I’m not even sure why I didn’t bother to say this to him outright. It’s not like it would’ve been a mystery to him or anything.
“So, this doesn’t have anything to do with Iona.” he said in a questioning manner. I almost gagged at the legitimate lack of certainty in his voice.
“Of course it doesn’t. Your age aside, Mao, you’re not even half a month into your reign over the yakuza yet. If you start pardoning those who threaten its existence this soon after you take control, Kaozu and Denashi are sure to remove you from that chair.” I explained, part genuine in my desire that Mao remain in power, and part disgusted that I had no problem with him ordering the assassination of a government official.
“What pisses me off is the fact that you decided to let our brother perform the hit and didn’t even notify me of it, …even after that little talk we had the other day.”
I put the cigarette out and crossed my arms, intent on staring Mao down as he tried to come up with an answer to this. As I said earlier, the little bastard had a habit of weaseling his way out of any question thrown his way, …so I was legitimately surprised when I saw his eyes start widening.
“I-I’m sorry, Brother. I forgot all about it.” he said as he looked up at me, like some little kid who had done something wrong and was trying desperately to avoid the belt. I’ll be honest, half of me wanted to believe he really was that young and naïve enough to forget something that happened just a few nights ago, …but still, the other half knew better.
“Really? …That’s the best excuse you could come up with, Mao?” I scoffed. I was almost embarrassed for him – it wasn’t every day that he couldn’t just pull an answer out of his ass and make it sound legitimate, but it looked to me as though I broke his streak. That said, Mao wasn’t one to admit defeat so easily, and as bad as his reasoning was, he was still determined to run with it.
“Brother, I swear to you it’s the truth. Do you have any idea how hectic it’s been around here since Iona appeared on television? I’ve lost count of how many people have been coming in and out of this office over the past two days, complaining and cursing up a storm, asking me how I intend to deal with this even long after I gave them an answer that was obvious from the start. …In all honesty, Brother, it’s starting to wear me out.”
He wasn’t telling me anything I didn’t already know. I knew full well that the life of a syndicate head was a stressful one. More than once, I’d seen Yatsumi lose his cool during his reign – I was his punching bag during such times. …**** me, I thought. Somehow, this little son-of-a-***** managed to go from a naïve little child to a middle-aged man with a full-time job and a hectic home life. And even worse, he made it sound convincing, as per ****ing usual. I could only heave a sigh and just barely resist smacking myself across the face as I gave him the answer he’d been waiting patiently for.
“Okay, Mao, I buy it. Still, even if not as an advisor, you don’t think you could’ve come to me about this, anyways? …As Seishin’s brother and the consequent patriarch of the goddamn family, perhaps?” I questioned him. His worried expression from before quickly changed into one of minor irritation. He clearly didn’t like the assumption that I had more authority around here than he did, not that the same thing couldn’t be said about me from my viewpoint.
“Younger brother, Brother. He might be disabled to an extent, but we’re not Seishin’s elders, or his caretakers for that matter. I’m sure after twenty-one years, he knows full well what people do around here and can make big decisions like this for himself.”
I’d be an ass**** if I tried to denounce that, not to mention a pitiful excuse for a brother, so I didn’t. What I did do, though, was stand up from the desk – I’d been resting my hands on it for the past five minutes – and turn my head towards the doorway, where I knew some lowlife had been listening in on our conversation for God-knows-how-long. Roku, if I were to guess.
“I know you’re still out there. Why don’t you make yourself useful and go fetch Seishin for us? …Mao wants him down here, too.” I called out, waiting for the sound of hasty footsteps to disappear before turning back towards Mao.
“I’m not buying it, …not for a goddamn second.”
The wait was about ten minutes, during which I took to the window to have another cigarette while Mao sat there with his mouth pressed against his clasped hands, staring either at the door or out into space – I honestly couldn’t tell. When Seishin finally walked through the doorway, he was greeted by one of Mao’s rare smiles, a gesture which he returned at nearly twice the original size.
“Hey, Mao! …Did you wanna see me, Aito?” he said as he turned to me. I wasn’t really in the mood to smile back, otherwise I would have as I put out my cigarette and walked over to him, placing my hand on his broad shoulder once he was within reach.
“Seishin, did you come in here earlier today and ask Mao if he’d allow you to assassinate Koi Iona?” I asked him, making two mistakes in the process. The first was assuming that he knew what the word “assassination” meant, and the second was in assuming that he actually used the governor’s name when and if he did make this alleged offer. I cursed myself for this, cause I knew that whatever answer he gave, I was gonna have to bite my tongue to keep from laughing at it.
“No, I heard him and Roku talking about killing somebody and asked if I could do it for him.”
Right on the money – and it was only made funnier by the fact that I saw it coming from miles away. Against my good instinct, I turned my head to face Mao who, as I knew he would be, was sporting an expression that both told me that he knew how close I was to laughing and encouraged me to go through with it. I nearly flipped him off for this.
“Do you have any idea what you were asking him to let you do? You’re not putting him to sleep or sending him off on vacation, Seishin. He’ll just be dead, cold and stiff, …just like Mom and Dad.” I said once the urge had passed. I was hoping that it was just that simple, that he merely didn’t understand the concept of death and murder and that bringing up our parents would help him realize what he was asking. Once again, though, I misjudged exactly how smart Seishin was…and how much he cared for his brothers.
“But, he’s giving Mao trouble, Aito. I gotta do something to help him.”
I wanted to believe him. God knows I wanted to believe what Seishin was telling me was true, but the fact of the matter was, in a house as corrupt as this one, I simply couldn’t trust anything I was told, especially when it concerned the little boy sitting behind me.
“What the **** did you say to him?” I muttered to Mao after spinning around to face him, doing my best to ensure that Seishin couldn’t hear me.
“Brother, I assure you, he just came to me on his own.” he calmly replied. Back to our usual prick-ish demeanor, I thought.
“Will you stop treating me like a ****in’ retard? Why the hell would he come to you and not me for anything in the first place, let alone for something like this?” I retorted, not thinking about my choice of words. Mao picked up on this almost immediately, much to my frustration…and guilt.
“That came out awfully smooth, Aito. …Retard…”
The wording was a pattern I had used towards him once before, and he knew it – the little bastard was obviously trying to gauge my reaction after he said it. I was about to give him a piece of my mind – which meant tons of cursing and maybe a death threat or two – but I stopped at the last moment and lowered my head in aggravation. Much as I would’ve rather not admitted it, I knew it was…insensitive…of me.
“Brother, if you don’t want him to do it, then I’ll stop him. Just give the word.” Mao suggested upon seeing my expression, not that I thought it was a sincere gesture or anything – which is why I turned it down.
“No, if he really wants to do it, then he is our big brother. I should not and do not have any say in it.” I replied before turning to look at Seishin. Once I was certain his mind was on a different plane of reality than ours, I spun around and leaned in, so as to whisper into Mao’s devilishly pointed ear.
“But, just let me make one thing clear, Mao. I’m not about to believe for a second that something or someone didn’t spur him to make this offer to you. And if I find that you were a contributor in any way, however minor, …”
I didn’t bother finishing my sentence. It’s not like neither of us knew how it was gonna end.
“Understood.” he said in his typical impassive tone. Once I caught wind of this semi-reassuring answer, I stood back up and turned around. There was Seishin, patiently awaiting my sign of approval – and with that dumb face of his, how could I not give it to him?
“You just be careful, alright, Seishin?” I said. Almost immediately, his unceasing grin expanded to twice its usual size and he started jerking his head up and down like a newly cast fishing bobber. I might’ve chuckled had I not just thought of something more urgent.
“Do you know how to use a sniper rifle?” I asked him. His eyes almost rolled into the back of his head as he tried to come up with an answer, which he did after a near five-minute wait.
“Uhhh, yeah? You just hold it out in front of you and pull the trigger, right?” he said, at which point a smirk lit up my otherwise depressing complexion.
“That’s a pistol, Seishin. How do you hold a rifle?”
He returned to his thinking expression, evidently convinced that the answer was lodged somewhere in his brain – it appeared that all three of us were smartasses in our own ways. I eventually stopped him when I realized we’d be standing in that room forever if I didn’t.
“We’ll teach you how to do it before it’s time to get going, okay?” I reassured him, bringing another large grin to his face before he spun around and took off – God knows what he was so happy about. I didn’t plan on sticking around much longer, either, but I still took the time to spin around and give Mao my conditions first – there was no way I was letting him decide how this was gonna go down.
“I want Denashi to go with him and help him out. And another three to five guys along for the ride, including me, got it?” I ordered, the last bit evidently catching him off guard.
“You seriously intend to work with Roku, Brother? …I thought you’d never dream of it.” he said, a hint of smugness in his voice. He was right, of course – I almost threw up just saying it out loud – but whether I liked it or not, Roku was the best hitman Yatsumi ever had…and as I’d already proven once before, I’ll do anything to ensure my brothers don’t suffer in the long run.
“I’m dead serious, Mao. You’re sending our brother off to pull a hit on a guy who almost certainly knows he’s gonna be targeted by us…and if he dies, I’ll personally see to it that you follow. Capiche?”
I was bluffing, of course. I had too much heart to kill Mao, especially after I had already disposed of our father in order to keep his hands clean – as clean as the hands of a mob child can get, anyways – but I wasn’t about to let him know that.
“Capiche.” he replied.
“Good. …I already assume you plan on negotiating with Iona before you go around plotting to kill him?” I asked, earning me another look of disbelief.
“Of course, Brother. You make it sound as if I WANT to kill everyone who gets in my way.” he answered me. I didn’t bother responding to the latter statement. …There was truth in it, after all.
“I WILL have an active part in your plans from this point on, understand me? **** job shadowing with Kaozu and **** being a novice. My opinion holds just as much weight as his. In fact, MY opinion’s the most important one in this entire house…cause if I’m not satisfied, you’re not satisfied.”
I can’t remember exactly how long we sat there with our eyes locked, his solid black set against my icy blue – both of them devoid of life in their own way. It was as though we were gauging each other for our next move, like a cobra and a mongoose locked in a bloody dance that would determine who would become the other’s next meal, the only problem being that at least one of them was hiding the fact they were a vegan. Sure, I might not have had it in me to kill Mao, but I was almost certain that his devilish little brain thought otherwise – and I KNEW he wouldn’t dare try to pull anything on me this early in the game, given he’d actually sunken that low at this point. My actions were just as unpredictable to him as his were to me…and as long as he didn’t know just how spineless I really was, I knew I could get him to do just about anything.
“I’ll be sure to inform him of your intentions.” he finally said, that ever so cocky smile of his etched across his face as I nodded and turned to leave.
Such was my hectic morning, almost begging me to leave the manor for a while and cool off, and so I did just that. I thought about calling Mahina and asking if she wanted to meet at the Saimin Shop, but at the last minute, I decided against it – why the hell should I ask her to partake in issues that weren’t hers? So, I went to the café alone, a bottle of Ramune waiting on the counter as soon as I stepped inside and sat down – the old man just wouldn’t give it a rest, I thought. As usual, I pushed down on the marble cap and threw my head back to chug it down, only this time, I actually found myself somewhat satisfied with the flavor.
“Mango.”
“Hmhm, it’s not every day you get a flavor you can actually stomach, Aito.” Susume said from behind the counter. His smile disappeared not too long afterwards, though, and he leaned in to give our conversation more privacy.
“Nani ga okotta no ka?” (“What happened?”)
“Mao wa sudeni anata ni itte inai?” (“Mao hasn’t already told you?”)
The look on his face told me all that I needed to hear, though the shake of his head certainly helped. I took another sip on my drink before giving him the answer he was waiting for.
“Iona Koi wa shinu tame ni okotte iru...soshite Seishin wa hikigane o hiku ichi ni narimasu.” (“Koi Iona is going to die…and Seishin will be the one to pull the trigger.”)
He must’ve stood there frozen for a good fifteen seconds before standing back up and grabbing a drink order one of the waitresses had placed on the other end of the bar. Once he finished making that one and two others that were dropped off since he began, he went back to cleaning glasses without so much as a word. I figured he was letting it sink in, so I waited until he had taken my now-empty bottle and thrown it away before speaking up.
“Ōtō ga arimasen?” (“No response?”)
“Iu koto ga aru to wa? Watashi wa sorenitaishite tōzendakedo, itsu kara watashi wa anata no san wa nani o subeki ka ni sekkyokutekini hatsugen-ken o motte ita?” (“What’s there to say? I’m obviously against it, but since when have I had an active say in what the three of you do?”)
I almost chuckled at him. That was the most honest thing I’d heard from anyone all day.
“Anata wa? Anata wa kare o tomeyou to shita nodesu ka?” (“What about you? Did you try to stop him?”)
“Mochiron oredeshitaga, kare wa kare no otōto o tasuke ni shinde setto no yō ni mieta. …Dono yō ni jigoku watashi wa sore o hinan suru nda?” (“Of course I did, but he seemed dead set on helping out his little brother. …How the hell am I supposed to denounce that?”)
“Hmhmhm, kare wa hako no naka de mottomo akarui denkyū o umarete inai kanōsei ga arimasuga, anata wa sore o hitsuyōna toki ni, kare wa ni anata o tasukeru tame ni soko ni tsuneni ita.” (“Hmhmhm, he may not have been born the brightest bulb in the box, but he was always there to help you two whenever you needed it.”)
I smiled at this as I sat there staring at the painting hanging on the wall next to the kitchen entrance, cherry blossoms swaying in the wind – how Japanese can an old man get? There was a lot of truth in his words. It might not have been the best idea to let him watch us when we were infants, nor could he do much now that Mao and I were older, but as young children, Seishin was simply amazing. His childish nature made him the perfect playmate, and when Yatsumi started abusing me when I was thirteen, he’d stay with me night and day until whatever bruise that fat bastard had left on me disappeared. He was probably the best older brother I could ever ask for, and Susume must’ve realized I was thinking that before he finally spoke up again.
“Anata wa hontōni kare ga sore o okonau ni wa shitakunai, anata wa?” (“You really don’t want him to do it, do you?”)
“Sore o okonau no shitsumon ya nai, Susume. Sore wa nani ka hoka no monodatta baai, ore wa kare ga yakuza no torihiki toka tasuketakatta ka dō ka o, ratto no o shiri o ataenaidarou. Ore wa, sore ga jijitsunaraba hanashi o suru yochiganai to omoimasu. …Mondai no jijitsu wa, daremoga kare ga tsumori taishō to suru to iu koto o shitte iru baai wa tokuni ansatsu wa, kare no tāgetto to shite risuku ga onaji kuraidearu to iu kotodearu. …Ore wa chōdo tai risuku wa haha to otōto no ryōhō o umeru koto o yoginaku sa rete imasen.” (“It’s not a question of do or don’t, Susume. If it was anything else, I wouldn’t give a rat’s ass whether he wanted to help with the yakuza’s dealings or not. I’d have no room to talk if that were the case. …The fact of the matter is that the assassin is just as much at risk as his target, especially when everybody knows that he’s gonna be targeted. …I just don’t wanna risk being forced to bury both my mother and my brother.”)
Who would, I thought. But in all honesty, it wasn’t just Seishin’s safety that I was worried about. Much as I wanted to trust that his intentions were just, I simply couldn’t shake the idea that Seishin’s presence in the manor was the only thing keeping Mao’s true nature at bay. …After all, why the **** would he bother hiding it from me?
“Aito wa, watashi wa anata ga Mao no fushin dore dake shitte iru, to watashi o shinjite, watashi wa sukoshi hanamizu ga anata o tsukuru no ni jūbun ni okonau no o shitte imasu. …Kare wa, shikashi, mada anata no kyōdaidashi, kare mo, Seishin no otōtodesu. …Sukunakutomo, kare wa nani demo kare ga dekiru koto o kakunin shite wa okoranai yō ni suru tsumorida shitte iru shinkō o motte iru.” (“Aito, I know how much you distrust Mao, and believe me, I know the little snot’s done enough to make you. …He’s still your brother, though, and he’s Seishin’s brother, too. …At least have the faith to know he’ll do whatever he can to make sure that doesn’t happen.”)
Again, it seemed as if the old man read my mind, and I went ahead and nodded in agreement. Maybe our presence was a nuisance to Mao, but either way, it was a long shot that he actually wanted us gone for good. …What would be stopping him from going through with it if that were the case?
“So, are you gonna order something, or did you just come here for a therapy session?” Susume asked, a bit of fake irritation in his voice. I chuckled softly at this – I guess I was getting in his way for a while there.
“Guess a bowl of wonton doesn’t sound too bad right now.” I said with a smile, at which point he jotted it down on a small piece of paper and walked into the kitchen. He remerged ten minutes with a fresh bowl of piping hot soup, which I engulfed in a matter of seconds.
“You talk to Mahina today?” he asked as I stood up to leave.
“I’ll do it tomorrow. …Got too much on my mind today.” I answered him as I looked towards the front entrance of the café.
“What the hell kind of logic is that? Last I checked, when you’re a couple, you’re supposed to be able to discuss your problems with each other.” he said, a mixture of amusement and disappointment in his voice. I chuckled at his concerns, or perhaps just the absurdity of being told this by him – the old man hadn’t had a significant other in at least thirty years.
“That’s what I got you for, old man.” I replied, earning me more of his disapproval.
“Please, like I’ve got time to stand here all day listening to your whiny little ass. …I feel you, Aito, believe me. No one wants to spread their depression to the people around them, but if you wanna get anywhere with Mahina, you can’t just go to her whenever things are going smoothly. …I’m assuming you plan to go the distance with her.”
Heh, like hell I was gonna say that out loud, old man. Granted, he did have a point, so I figured I’d appease him this time.
“Next time, maybe.” I answered before digging into my pocket and pulling out my wallet, throwing a few small bills on the counter before running my fingers through it again.
“And before I forget…”
A few seconds of sorting later, I pulled out a pair of twenties and held my hand out for Susume to take them into his own. He didn’t hesitate to do so, but he still proceeded to ask the question.
“What’s that for?”
“That tip I promised you? Remember?” I answered with a smile, at which point he looked back at the bills in his hand, smiling softly before stuffing them into the pocket on the top left side of his dusty gray apron.
“You’re a good kid, Aito. …Good kid…” he said aloud as I began walking out. It was a nice place to end our conversation, I thought, so I waited until I was out of earshot before voicing my disagreement.
“Ore wa sore o shinjiru koto ga shitai.” (“I wish I could believe that.”)
Another thirty to forty minute walk and I was back at the manor, walking along the tall, pointed fence towards the gate – I didn’t have the energy to jump over it right now. As usual, two or three lowlifes were there keeping watch, but rather than stare me down while I flipped them off and walked through as they usually did, one of them decided today would be a good day to converse with me.
“You plan on going to see the boss soon as you walk in?” he asked. My first impulse was to tell him to **** off, but I decided against it. My second was to be truthful and say that I planned on avoiding Mao for the rest of the day, but since he had already piqued my curiosity, that wouldn’t be very truthful at all. So, I answered with a simple-
“What of it?”
“He said to let you know he’s down below right now with Denashi and Kaozu…watchin’ your oaf of a brother practice his shot.”
This quick development definitely caught me off guard, but rather than express it normally with bug eyes and a ton of questions, my mind decided to focus on that subtle insult directed towards Seishin. Naturally, this resulted in him lying on the ground, one hand grasping his recently punched throat and the other holding his knee – I’m pretty sure I heard it pop when I plowed my foot against it. The other lowlife standing proceeded to cuss me out and try to jump me, but by that point, my gun was already pointed at his face.
“Talk shit about Seishin again and next time, I’ll be practicing MY shot.” I threatened the one lying on the ground before walking through the gate. Normally, I’d have walked up the slope to the front doors of the manor, but since he said Seishin and Mao were below, this called for a detour around the right side of the steep hill, where one would find a large metal door that required a voice verification. Naturally, being the former head’s son and the current’s brother, my voice was accepted with no trouble, causing the door to slowly swing open.
Hidden beneath the earthen monstrosity on which sat the Ryokudan estate was an enormous gymnasium – never used by its deceased owner, of course – containing virtually every physical accommodation its residents could ask for, from weights to a swimming pool. Then, there was the shooting range, where Yatsumi’s hitmen could hone their skills with either small arms or rifles whenever they pleased. The entire facility was divided in rooms of various sizes, so I go past all the rest to get there, where I was separated from it still by a long glass window, outside of which I found Mao, the douchebag, and Hei, evidently expecting my arrival.
“What the ****’s going on here?” I asked as I walked up, finding once I got close enough that Seishin was already inside the spacious room, goggles over his eyes, earphones on his head, and a rifle in his hands – guess he figured out how to hold one, after all.
“Whaddaya think? Boy’s gotta learn to shoot through cardboard before he can shoot through skin and bone.” Roku replied as he watched him from the other side of the glass.
“We have to admit, we’re quite impressed with the results so far.” Hei added as he twirled his red lollipop between his fingers, practically forcing me to peer into the room, looking for whatever had caused him to say that. Sure enough, I found the answer on the far end of the room.
“He’s at the two-thousand foot marker already? …Exactly how long have you guys been down here with him?” I asked, half-suspecting that they’d been keeping Seishin locked in there, forcing him to practice the whole two hours I was gone. Naturally, the words that would wind up breaking the tension – or perhaps adding a whole new layer of it – came from Mao.
“We just came down here just ten minutes before you arrived, Brother.”
Almost immediately after he said this, Hei handed me a pair of binoculars, which I took from him after a second’s hesitation. I quickly put them to use and lined them up with the target, making sure I could see it clearly through them before looking over at Seishin. In all honesty, never before had I seen him with such a determined expression on his face – or any expression that wasn’t even remotely carefree in nature. He just looked so natural with that gun, almost as if he felt at home with it resting against his shoulder, and no sooner after I had this thought did he prove it to be correct, firing off shot after shot until all five rounds in the magazine were spent, at which point he released it and put a new one in so fast that I was forced to do a double take. I peered back into the binoculars, which were still lined up with the target. Not a single shot hit…outside the innermost circle.
“Holy shit.”
To Be Continued…
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- Chance To Be Useful -
The halls were rather crowded for some stupid reason, so I was forced to push and shove my way through the swarm of lowlifes to Yatsumi’s office. I wasn’t even halfway there before I started rubbing my hand against the handle of my gun, and by the time I burst through the double doors, I was already waving it like a madman at the little prick sitting on the other side. The only reason I didn’t fill his forehead with lead right then was because I just had to hear his reasoning for turning Seishin into a hitman first – that and because I had a real hitman holding me back.
“YOU MOTHER****ER!! I’LL KILL YOU!! YOU HEAR ME!!? I’LL ****ING KILL YOU!!!”
Mao was completely unfazed, as he usually was, which pissed me off even more. He clearly wasn’t taking me seriously, nor was Roku, who sounded almost amused as he wrapped his arms around my own.
“Hey hey hey, settle down, tiger! No need to get your panties in a-”
A nice blow to the nose with the back of my head was enough to shut him up and force him to release his grip – wish I had thought of that years ago. Once I was free, I pulled out my gun and ran up to the desk, holding the barrel just an inch away from Mao’s forehead as every other person in the room unveiled their own guns and pointed them towards me. Once again, Mao’s expression didn’t change in the slightest. It was almost as if he thought he was immortal. …It wouldn’t have surprised me if he did.
“Mao, I’m gonna give you till the count of three to tell me why the **** you’re makin’ Seishin assassinate a government official, and so help me God, if I don’t like your answer, I’m painting the walls with your ****in’ blood! …Now spill it!”
I knew the answer was gonna be a good one – it always was when it came to Mao. But even so, I never anticipated the one he gave me.
“Because he asked me if he could do it.”
“…What?”
An impulse on my part almost prompted me to lower my gun, but I managed to catch myself just in time. I wasn’t about to let the little prick off the hook until I knew for certain that what he was telling me was true.
“It’s nothing overly complicated, Brother. Seishin overheard the problems Koi Iona is causing us right now and that we intend to have him killed, so he offered to be the one who does it for us. …What’s there to get so worked up about?” he answered me, expression as blank as ever. Much as his sarcasm pissed me off, though, the idea of Seishin coming to him to offer his help caught my interest in a way I couldn’t have predicted, and at last, I lowered my gun.
“Leave the room. Close the door behind you.” I said, the order directed towards the five to six lowlifes standing behind me. I didn’t take my eyes off Mao as I gave it, but the slight shift in his gaze told me that Hei – who was standing almost directly behind me – had just looked his way, prompting me to spin around and hold the barrel of the gun up to his nose.
“Ass****, don’t you dare look at a goddamn twelve year-old for orders after I just gave you one myself! I’m his older brother for **** sake! He listens to me, therefore so do you! Now get the **** outta this office!”
Hei was probably the only person I knew who could keep his composure better than Mao, so he didn’t flinch when I turned my gun on him. From the look in his eyes, though, it was easy to tell just how much he was fighting the temptation to look at Mao again – a loyal bastard if there ever was one. He eventually succumbed, though, and walked out of the room, everyone else following him out shortly after – Roku proceeded to glare at me as he closed the doors behind him, though the douchebag-y sunglasses made it hard to tell. Once we were alone, I walked over to the window and pulled out a cigarette, waiting until the cameras were off before I began speaking again.
“This whole mob boss shtick is really getting on my ****in’ nerves, Mao.” I said.
“I can imagine it would be, Brother. …Receiving no respect from the people around you while your pre-adolescent brother-”
“Please. …That’s not even the half of it.” I interrupted him. I took a few more puffs on my cigarette as I thought about what to say next – I had to make sure I chose the right words.
“The power’s going to your damn head, Mao. I can tell that it is. …I’m starting to get the feeling that even you don’t respect me anymore.”
I was bullshitting him, I’ll be upfront about it. I never once believed that Mao had respect for anyone else – it was just the way he carried himself, not to mention the emptiness in his words every time he tried to be sincere. Thinking about it now, I’m not even sure why I didn’t bother to say this to him outright. It’s not like it would’ve been a mystery to him or anything.
“So, this doesn’t have anything to do with Iona.” he said in a questioning manner. I almost gagged at the legitimate lack of certainty in his voice.
“Of course it doesn’t. Your age aside, Mao, you’re not even half a month into your reign over the yakuza yet. If you start pardoning those who threaten its existence this soon after you take control, Kaozu and Denashi are sure to remove you from that chair.” I explained, part genuine in my desire that Mao remain in power, and part disgusted that I had no problem with him ordering the assassination of a government official.
“What pisses me off is the fact that you decided to let our brother perform the hit and didn’t even notify me of it, …even after that little talk we had the other day.”
I put the cigarette out and crossed my arms, intent on staring Mao down as he tried to come up with an answer to this. As I said earlier, the little bastard had a habit of weaseling his way out of any question thrown his way, …so I was legitimately surprised when I saw his eyes start widening.
“I-I’m sorry, Brother. I forgot all about it.” he said as he looked up at me, like some little kid who had done something wrong and was trying desperately to avoid the belt. I’ll be honest, half of me wanted to believe he really was that young and naïve enough to forget something that happened just a few nights ago, …but still, the other half knew better.
“Really? …That’s the best excuse you could come up with, Mao?” I scoffed. I was almost embarrassed for him – it wasn’t every day that he couldn’t just pull an answer out of his ass and make it sound legitimate, but it looked to me as though I broke his streak. That said, Mao wasn’t one to admit defeat so easily, and as bad as his reasoning was, he was still determined to run with it.
“Brother, I swear to you it’s the truth. Do you have any idea how hectic it’s been around here since Iona appeared on television? I’ve lost count of how many people have been coming in and out of this office over the past two days, complaining and cursing up a storm, asking me how I intend to deal with this even long after I gave them an answer that was obvious from the start. …In all honesty, Brother, it’s starting to wear me out.”
He wasn’t telling me anything I didn’t already know. I knew full well that the life of a syndicate head was a stressful one. More than once, I’d seen Yatsumi lose his cool during his reign – I was his punching bag during such times. …**** me, I thought. Somehow, this little son-of-a-***** managed to go from a naïve little child to a middle-aged man with a full-time job and a hectic home life. And even worse, he made it sound convincing, as per ****ing usual. I could only heave a sigh and just barely resist smacking myself across the face as I gave him the answer he’d been waiting patiently for.
“Okay, Mao, I buy it. Still, even if not as an advisor, you don’t think you could’ve come to me about this, anyways? …As Seishin’s brother and the consequent patriarch of the goddamn family, perhaps?” I questioned him. His worried expression from before quickly changed into one of minor irritation. He clearly didn’t like the assumption that I had more authority around here than he did, not that the same thing couldn’t be said about me from my viewpoint.
“Younger brother, Brother. He might be disabled to an extent, but we’re not Seishin’s elders, or his caretakers for that matter. I’m sure after twenty-one years, he knows full well what people do around here and can make big decisions like this for himself.”
I’d be an ass**** if I tried to denounce that, not to mention a pitiful excuse for a brother, so I didn’t. What I did do, though, was stand up from the desk – I’d been resting my hands on it for the past five minutes – and turn my head towards the doorway, where I knew some lowlife had been listening in on our conversation for God-knows-how-long. Roku, if I were to guess.
“I know you’re still out there. Why don’t you make yourself useful and go fetch Seishin for us? …Mao wants him down here, too.” I called out, waiting for the sound of hasty footsteps to disappear before turning back towards Mao.
“I’m not buying it, …not for a goddamn second.”
The wait was about ten minutes, during which I took to the window to have another cigarette while Mao sat there with his mouth pressed against his clasped hands, staring either at the door or out into space – I honestly couldn’t tell. When Seishin finally walked through the doorway, he was greeted by one of Mao’s rare smiles, a gesture which he returned at nearly twice the original size.
“Hey, Mao! …Did you wanna see me, Aito?” he said as he turned to me. I wasn’t really in the mood to smile back, otherwise I would have as I put out my cigarette and walked over to him, placing my hand on his broad shoulder once he was within reach.
“Seishin, did you come in here earlier today and ask Mao if he’d allow you to assassinate Koi Iona?” I asked him, making two mistakes in the process. The first was assuming that he knew what the word “assassination” meant, and the second was in assuming that he actually used the governor’s name when and if he did make this alleged offer. I cursed myself for this, cause I knew that whatever answer he gave, I was gonna have to bite my tongue to keep from laughing at it.
“No, I heard him and Roku talking about killing somebody and asked if I could do it for him.”
Right on the money – and it was only made funnier by the fact that I saw it coming from miles away. Against my good instinct, I turned my head to face Mao who, as I knew he would be, was sporting an expression that both told me that he knew how close I was to laughing and encouraged me to go through with it. I nearly flipped him off for this.
“Do you have any idea what you were asking him to let you do? You’re not putting him to sleep or sending him off on vacation, Seishin. He’ll just be dead, cold and stiff, …just like Mom and Dad.” I said once the urge had passed. I was hoping that it was just that simple, that he merely didn’t understand the concept of death and murder and that bringing up our parents would help him realize what he was asking. Once again, though, I misjudged exactly how smart Seishin was…and how much he cared for his brothers.
“But, he’s giving Mao trouble, Aito. I gotta do something to help him.”
I wanted to believe him. God knows I wanted to believe what Seishin was telling me was true, but the fact of the matter was, in a house as corrupt as this one, I simply couldn’t trust anything I was told, especially when it concerned the little boy sitting behind me.
“What the **** did you say to him?” I muttered to Mao after spinning around to face him, doing my best to ensure that Seishin couldn’t hear me.
“Brother, I assure you, he just came to me on his own.” he calmly replied. Back to our usual prick-ish demeanor, I thought.
“Will you stop treating me like a ****in’ retard? Why the hell would he come to you and not me for anything in the first place, let alone for something like this?” I retorted, not thinking about my choice of words. Mao picked up on this almost immediately, much to my frustration…and guilt.
“That came out awfully smooth, Aito. …Retard…”
The wording was a pattern I had used towards him once before, and he knew it – the little bastard was obviously trying to gauge my reaction after he said it. I was about to give him a piece of my mind – which meant tons of cursing and maybe a death threat or two – but I stopped at the last moment and lowered my head in aggravation. Much as I would’ve rather not admitted it, I knew it was…insensitive…of me.
“Brother, if you don’t want him to do it, then I’ll stop him. Just give the word.” Mao suggested upon seeing my expression, not that I thought it was a sincere gesture or anything – which is why I turned it down.
“No, if he really wants to do it, then he is our big brother. I should not and do not have any say in it.” I replied before turning to look at Seishin. Once I was certain his mind was on a different plane of reality than ours, I spun around and leaned in, so as to whisper into Mao’s devilishly pointed ear.
“But, just let me make one thing clear, Mao. I’m not about to believe for a second that something or someone didn’t spur him to make this offer to you. And if I find that you were a contributor in any way, however minor, …”
I didn’t bother finishing my sentence. It’s not like neither of us knew how it was gonna end.
“Understood.” he said in his typical impassive tone. Once I caught wind of this semi-reassuring answer, I stood back up and turned around. There was Seishin, patiently awaiting my sign of approval – and with that dumb face of his, how could I not give it to him?
“You just be careful, alright, Seishin?” I said. Almost immediately, his unceasing grin expanded to twice its usual size and he started jerking his head up and down like a newly cast fishing bobber. I might’ve chuckled had I not just thought of something more urgent.
“Do you know how to use a sniper rifle?” I asked him. His eyes almost rolled into the back of his head as he tried to come up with an answer, which he did after a near five-minute wait.
“Uhhh, yeah? You just hold it out in front of you and pull the trigger, right?” he said, at which point a smirk lit up my otherwise depressing complexion.
“That’s a pistol, Seishin. How do you hold a rifle?”
He returned to his thinking expression, evidently convinced that the answer was lodged somewhere in his brain – it appeared that all three of us were smartasses in our own ways. I eventually stopped him when I realized we’d be standing in that room forever if I didn’t.
“We’ll teach you how to do it before it’s time to get going, okay?” I reassured him, bringing another large grin to his face before he spun around and took off – God knows what he was so happy about. I didn’t plan on sticking around much longer, either, but I still took the time to spin around and give Mao my conditions first – there was no way I was letting him decide how this was gonna go down.
“I want Denashi to go with him and help him out. And another three to five guys along for the ride, including me, got it?” I ordered, the last bit evidently catching him off guard.
“You seriously intend to work with Roku, Brother? …I thought you’d never dream of it.” he said, a hint of smugness in his voice. He was right, of course – I almost threw up just saying it out loud – but whether I liked it or not, Roku was the best hitman Yatsumi ever had…and as I’d already proven once before, I’ll do anything to ensure my brothers don’t suffer in the long run.
“I’m dead serious, Mao. You’re sending our brother off to pull a hit on a guy who almost certainly knows he’s gonna be targeted by us…and if he dies, I’ll personally see to it that you follow. Capiche?”
I was bluffing, of course. I had too much heart to kill Mao, especially after I had already disposed of our father in order to keep his hands clean – as clean as the hands of a mob child can get, anyways – but I wasn’t about to let him know that.
“Capiche.” he replied.
“Good. …I already assume you plan on negotiating with Iona before you go around plotting to kill him?” I asked, earning me another look of disbelief.
“Of course, Brother. You make it sound as if I WANT to kill everyone who gets in my way.” he answered me. I didn’t bother responding to the latter statement. …There was truth in it, after all.
“I WILL have an active part in your plans from this point on, understand me? **** job shadowing with Kaozu and **** being a novice. My opinion holds just as much weight as his. In fact, MY opinion’s the most important one in this entire house…cause if I’m not satisfied, you’re not satisfied.”
I can’t remember exactly how long we sat there with our eyes locked, his solid black set against my icy blue – both of them devoid of life in their own way. It was as though we were gauging each other for our next move, like a cobra and a mongoose locked in a bloody dance that would determine who would become the other’s next meal, the only problem being that at least one of them was hiding the fact they were a vegan. Sure, I might not have had it in me to kill Mao, but I was almost certain that his devilish little brain thought otherwise – and I KNEW he wouldn’t dare try to pull anything on me this early in the game, given he’d actually sunken that low at this point. My actions were just as unpredictable to him as his were to me…and as long as he didn’t know just how spineless I really was, I knew I could get him to do just about anything.
“I’ll be sure to inform him of your intentions.” he finally said, that ever so cocky smile of his etched across his face as I nodded and turned to leave.
Such was my hectic morning, almost begging me to leave the manor for a while and cool off, and so I did just that. I thought about calling Mahina and asking if she wanted to meet at the Saimin Shop, but at the last minute, I decided against it – why the hell should I ask her to partake in issues that weren’t hers? So, I went to the café alone, a bottle of Ramune waiting on the counter as soon as I stepped inside and sat down – the old man just wouldn’t give it a rest, I thought. As usual, I pushed down on the marble cap and threw my head back to chug it down, only this time, I actually found myself somewhat satisfied with the flavor.
“Mango.”
“Hmhm, it’s not every day you get a flavor you can actually stomach, Aito.” Susume said from behind the counter. His smile disappeared not too long afterwards, though, and he leaned in to give our conversation more privacy.
“Nani ga okotta no ka?” (“What happened?”)
“Mao wa sudeni anata ni itte inai?” (“Mao hasn’t already told you?”)
The look on his face told me all that I needed to hear, though the shake of his head certainly helped. I took another sip on my drink before giving him the answer he was waiting for.
“Iona Koi wa shinu tame ni okotte iru...soshite Seishin wa hikigane o hiku ichi ni narimasu.” (“Koi Iona is going to die…and Seishin will be the one to pull the trigger.”)
He must’ve stood there frozen for a good fifteen seconds before standing back up and grabbing a drink order one of the waitresses had placed on the other end of the bar. Once he finished making that one and two others that were dropped off since he began, he went back to cleaning glasses without so much as a word. I figured he was letting it sink in, so I waited until he had taken my now-empty bottle and thrown it away before speaking up.
“Ōtō ga arimasen?” (“No response?”)
“Iu koto ga aru to wa? Watashi wa sorenitaishite tōzendakedo, itsu kara watashi wa anata no san wa nani o subeki ka ni sekkyokutekini hatsugen-ken o motte ita?” (“What’s there to say? I’m obviously against it, but since when have I had an active say in what the three of you do?”)
I almost chuckled at him. That was the most honest thing I’d heard from anyone all day.
“Anata wa? Anata wa kare o tomeyou to shita nodesu ka?” (“What about you? Did you try to stop him?”)
“Mochiron oredeshitaga, kare wa kare no otōto o tasuke ni shinde setto no yō ni mieta. …Dono yō ni jigoku watashi wa sore o hinan suru nda?” (“Of course I did, but he seemed dead set on helping out his little brother. …How the hell am I supposed to denounce that?”)
“Hmhmhm, kare wa hako no naka de mottomo akarui denkyū o umarete inai kanōsei ga arimasuga, anata wa sore o hitsuyōna toki ni, kare wa ni anata o tasukeru tame ni soko ni tsuneni ita.” (“Hmhmhm, he may not have been born the brightest bulb in the box, but he was always there to help you two whenever you needed it.”)
I smiled at this as I sat there staring at the painting hanging on the wall next to the kitchen entrance, cherry blossoms swaying in the wind – how Japanese can an old man get? There was a lot of truth in his words. It might not have been the best idea to let him watch us when we were infants, nor could he do much now that Mao and I were older, but as young children, Seishin was simply amazing. His childish nature made him the perfect playmate, and when Yatsumi started abusing me when I was thirteen, he’d stay with me night and day until whatever bruise that fat bastard had left on me disappeared. He was probably the best older brother I could ever ask for, and Susume must’ve realized I was thinking that before he finally spoke up again.
“Anata wa hontōni kare ga sore o okonau ni wa shitakunai, anata wa?” (“You really don’t want him to do it, do you?”)
“Sore o okonau no shitsumon ya nai, Susume. Sore wa nani ka hoka no monodatta baai, ore wa kare ga yakuza no torihiki toka tasuketakatta ka dō ka o, ratto no o shiri o ataenaidarou. Ore wa, sore ga jijitsunaraba hanashi o suru yochiganai to omoimasu. …Mondai no jijitsu wa, daremoga kare ga tsumori taishō to suru to iu koto o shitte iru baai wa tokuni ansatsu wa, kare no tāgetto to shite risuku ga onaji kuraidearu to iu kotodearu. …Ore wa chōdo tai risuku wa haha to otōto no ryōhō o umeru koto o yoginaku sa rete imasen.” (“It’s not a question of do or don’t, Susume. If it was anything else, I wouldn’t give a rat’s ass whether he wanted to help with the yakuza’s dealings or not. I’d have no room to talk if that were the case. …The fact of the matter is that the assassin is just as much at risk as his target, especially when everybody knows that he’s gonna be targeted. …I just don’t wanna risk being forced to bury both my mother and my brother.”)
Who would, I thought. But in all honesty, it wasn’t just Seishin’s safety that I was worried about. Much as I wanted to trust that his intentions were just, I simply couldn’t shake the idea that Seishin’s presence in the manor was the only thing keeping Mao’s true nature at bay. …After all, why the **** would he bother hiding it from me?
“Aito wa, watashi wa anata ga Mao no fushin dore dake shitte iru, to watashi o shinjite, watashi wa sukoshi hanamizu ga anata o tsukuru no ni jūbun ni okonau no o shitte imasu. …Kare wa, shikashi, mada anata no kyōdaidashi, kare mo, Seishin no otōtodesu. …Sukunakutomo, kare wa nani demo kare ga dekiru koto o kakunin shite wa okoranai yō ni suru tsumorida shitte iru shinkō o motte iru.” (“Aito, I know how much you distrust Mao, and believe me, I know the little snot’s done enough to make you. …He’s still your brother, though, and he’s Seishin’s brother, too. …At least have the faith to know he’ll do whatever he can to make sure that doesn’t happen.”)
Again, it seemed as if the old man read my mind, and I went ahead and nodded in agreement. Maybe our presence was a nuisance to Mao, but either way, it was a long shot that he actually wanted us gone for good. …What would be stopping him from going through with it if that were the case?
“So, are you gonna order something, or did you just come here for a therapy session?” Susume asked, a bit of fake irritation in his voice. I chuckled softly at this – I guess I was getting in his way for a while there.
“Guess a bowl of wonton doesn’t sound too bad right now.” I said with a smile, at which point he jotted it down on a small piece of paper and walked into the kitchen. He remerged ten minutes with a fresh bowl of piping hot soup, which I engulfed in a matter of seconds.
“You talk to Mahina today?” he asked as I stood up to leave.
“I’ll do it tomorrow. …Got too much on my mind today.” I answered him as I looked towards the front entrance of the café.
“What the hell kind of logic is that? Last I checked, when you’re a couple, you’re supposed to be able to discuss your problems with each other.” he said, a mixture of amusement and disappointment in his voice. I chuckled at his concerns, or perhaps just the absurdity of being told this by him – the old man hadn’t had a significant other in at least thirty years.
“That’s what I got you for, old man.” I replied, earning me more of his disapproval.
“Please, like I’ve got time to stand here all day listening to your whiny little ass. …I feel you, Aito, believe me. No one wants to spread their depression to the people around them, but if you wanna get anywhere with Mahina, you can’t just go to her whenever things are going smoothly. …I’m assuming you plan to go the distance with her.”
Heh, like hell I was gonna say that out loud, old man. Granted, he did have a point, so I figured I’d appease him this time.
“Next time, maybe.” I answered before digging into my pocket and pulling out my wallet, throwing a few small bills on the counter before running my fingers through it again.
“And before I forget…”
A few seconds of sorting later, I pulled out a pair of twenties and held my hand out for Susume to take them into his own. He didn’t hesitate to do so, but he still proceeded to ask the question.
“What’s that for?”
“That tip I promised you? Remember?” I answered with a smile, at which point he looked back at the bills in his hand, smiling softly before stuffing them into the pocket on the top left side of his dusty gray apron.
“You’re a good kid, Aito. …Good kid…” he said aloud as I began walking out. It was a nice place to end our conversation, I thought, so I waited until I was out of earshot before voicing my disagreement.
“Ore wa sore o shinjiru koto ga shitai.” (“I wish I could believe that.”)
Another thirty to forty minute walk and I was back at the manor, walking along the tall, pointed fence towards the gate – I didn’t have the energy to jump over it right now. As usual, two or three lowlifes were there keeping watch, but rather than stare me down while I flipped them off and walked through as they usually did, one of them decided today would be a good day to converse with me.
“You plan on going to see the boss soon as you walk in?” he asked. My first impulse was to tell him to **** off, but I decided against it. My second was to be truthful and say that I planned on avoiding Mao for the rest of the day, but since he had already piqued my curiosity, that wouldn’t be very truthful at all. So, I answered with a simple-
“What of it?”
“He said to let you know he’s down below right now with Denashi and Kaozu…watchin’ your oaf of a brother practice his shot.”
This quick development definitely caught me off guard, but rather than express it normally with bug eyes and a ton of questions, my mind decided to focus on that subtle insult directed towards Seishin. Naturally, this resulted in him lying on the ground, one hand grasping his recently punched throat and the other holding his knee – I’m pretty sure I heard it pop when I plowed my foot against it. The other lowlife standing proceeded to cuss me out and try to jump me, but by that point, my gun was already pointed at his face.
“Talk shit about Seishin again and next time, I’ll be practicing MY shot.” I threatened the one lying on the ground before walking through the gate. Normally, I’d have walked up the slope to the front doors of the manor, but since he said Seishin and Mao were below, this called for a detour around the right side of the steep hill, where one would find a large metal door that required a voice verification. Naturally, being the former head’s son and the current’s brother, my voice was accepted with no trouble, causing the door to slowly swing open.
Hidden beneath the earthen monstrosity on which sat the Ryokudan estate was an enormous gymnasium – never used by its deceased owner, of course – containing virtually every physical accommodation its residents could ask for, from weights to a swimming pool. Then, there was the shooting range, where Yatsumi’s hitmen could hone their skills with either small arms or rifles whenever they pleased. The entire facility was divided in rooms of various sizes, so I go past all the rest to get there, where I was separated from it still by a long glass window, outside of which I found Mao, the douchebag, and Hei, evidently expecting my arrival.
“What the ****’s going on here?” I asked as I walked up, finding once I got close enough that Seishin was already inside the spacious room, goggles over his eyes, earphones on his head, and a rifle in his hands – guess he figured out how to hold one, after all.
“Whaddaya think? Boy’s gotta learn to shoot through cardboard before he can shoot through skin and bone.” Roku replied as he watched him from the other side of the glass.
“We have to admit, we’re quite impressed with the results so far.” Hei added as he twirled his red lollipop between his fingers, practically forcing me to peer into the room, looking for whatever had caused him to say that. Sure enough, I found the answer on the far end of the room.
“He’s at the two-thousand foot marker already? …Exactly how long have you guys been down here with him?” I asked, half-suspecting that they’d been keeping Seishin locked in there, forcing him to practice the whole two hours I was gone. Naturally, the words that would wind up breaking the tension – or perhaps adding a whole new layer of it – came from Mao.
“We just came down here just ten minutes before you arrived, Brother.”
Almost immediately after he said this, Hei handed me a pair of binoculars, which I took from him after a second’s hesitation. I quickly put them to use and lined them up with the target, making sure I could see it clearly through them before looking over at Seishin. In all honesty, never before had I seen him with such a determined expression on his face – or any expression that wasn’t even remotely carefree in nature. He just looked so natural with that gun, almost as if he felt at home with it resting against his shoulder, and no sooner after I had this thought did he prove it to be correct, firing off shot after shot until all five rounds in the magazine were spent, at which point he released it and put a new one in so fast that I was forced to do a double take. I peered back into the binoculars, which were still lined up with the target. Not a single shot hit…outside the innermost circle.
“Holy shit.”
To Be Continued…
I didn’t realize until now just how uneven Aito and Mao’s behavior towards each other is. I really need to work on consistency, I think. …Ah well, it’s not like this whole thing is a “final draft” or anything. lol
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I'd appreciate some kind of list of links to previous chapters so I wouldn't have to go to your profile and search through threads to find the first one 
