Fukusha Model Eight – Chapter 28

“Something doesn’t feel right.” I grasp Rin’s arm as he throws more of my clothes and his into our traveling bag. Ninjin stands guard at the door.

With everything happening, I would rather stay and fight now. The low-pressure system has made its way onshore, drizzling Susami with mist and rain, and my head is back to a constant state of pain. But this is no time to complain.

“They’re letting us get away too easily. I don’t think we’ll make it out of the city.”

I bounce back and forth between my feet.

“If we don’t leave, they’ll just come here. The yakuza don’t give up when money is at stake.”

“Right. You’re right.” There’s no arguing with Rin because he’s right. We have to go. I grab my pack, slip on my shoes, and follow him out the door. There is no sunrise today but a gradual lifting of the world’s curtain, the sky lightening bit by bit. Within moments, I’m already wet from the rain.

“Remember the plan,” Rin whispers at me, and I nod my understanding. We’re going to skirt around the neighborhood and then enter the public transit system where we have less of a chance of courting violence amongst the masses. Then we’ll head for Mugi, the port city to the west, where we’ll hire a boat to take us to the Northern Continent. This time I have drugs to get me through.

But something nags at me.

“What if,” I say, grabbing Rin’s sleeve. “What if we got rid of Haku? It’s only Haku holding a grudge with maybe his brother and a few of his lieutenants.” Rin’s face is the picture of skepticism. “These are people who would be happy if Haku were gone. They’d run home to Kitakyushu and immediately take over his business.”

“What about Gen from your homeworld? We saw him working with Haku. If Haku is gone, you don’t think he’ll just pick things up where Haku left off?”

I shrug. “Probably. But I’d be fine with killing Gen too.”

Rin shakes his head with a smile. “No. We need to get out of town and get you to safety. Our backup is on top of things. They have the plan too. We can’t deviate now.”

I want to ask him about this backup, who they are and what I can expect of them, but Rin is off before I can ask questions. I’m sure Kazuo is involved. I haven’t seen him since the meeting yesterday. I trust Rin and Kazuo, so I have to keep moving.

We cross through several streets, up and down alleyways and through back gardens, all the while keeping our heads down and our feet moving. I don’t know enough about this town to determine where we’re going, but I trust Rin’s sense of direction. He lived here for three months while I was in Kitakyushu, so he knows the streets. The two days I’ve been here, I’ve mostly been inside, and the neighborhoods are like a giant blur. It’s not helping my memory problems at all. Susami has no place in my head like Shin-Osaka or Kitakyushu do.

A dog barks and Ninjin’s ears prick up.

“Shhh,” I warn him, but he shakes out his body spraying water everywhere, and his collar jingles.

We pass a row of closed up shops before coming to a quiet residential street with two warehouses at the end. Rin pauses at the corner to peek down the street, freezes, brings his hand down slowly, and my knees buckle along with it.

Dread fills me from head to toe. We’re in trouble.

I grasp Rin’s soaking shirt to pull him towards me so I can whisper in his ear. “If anything happens to me, I meant what I crossed out in my notebook, and you have to promise me you’ll take care of Ninjin.”

He takes my face in his hands, and wiping away the rain on my cheeks, he commands, “I want you to say it.”

Rain drips off his head and splashes across my nose. “Only you would demand a declaration of love at a time like this.”

His cocky smile doesn’t let me go. “I’ll want that declaration when we’re done. Don’t worry. Remember, we have backup.”

From around the corner, a low voice calls out. “We know you’re there! Come around now before I blow the building to pieces!”

I close my eyes and silently swear. Haku. I could never forget his voice, nor what he wants from me.

Clutching Ninjin’s leash in my hand, I wish he wasn’t with me. I feel horrible for always bringing my dog into dangerous situations. Rin points at me and urges me to go out first. With no plan and only a few weapons between us, we’re screwed. But there’s backup? From where? What should we do? I look to Rin for help, and he’s gone. Poof. Vanished into thin air.

Except not. He’s climbing up the side of the building to the roof.

I step out into the street, my body shaking and my heart galloping in my chest. I knew something was wrong. My instincts are on point this morning.

“Well, well. Miyazawa said you’d run eventually, but I didn’t believe him. Figured you for the type that would hole up and try to wait us out.” Haku stands in the middle of the quiet street with his legs wide and his thumb hovering over a bomb kill switch, its antenna blinking through the mist. Which building is he ready to blow up?

Climb faster, Rin.

I stand with Ninjin at my side about twenty meters from Haku. He’s still as imposing as always, tall, rotund, and muscular. Rain drips down his black coat and puddles around his black boots. If we had horses and leather chaps, this might be a stand-off in one of those old Western movies my father loves so much. I’m dying for Haku to call me a pilgrim or a varmint.

“I have places to be and things to do, Haku. So let’s get right to whatever you want.”

Haku glances at the man next to him. A younger carbon copy of himself, Masato grins and pants like an animal in heat. “My brother here runs most of the black market in Kitakyushu, and he tells me you’re worth a lot more than just being a prostitute.”

Masato jerks his chin in my direction. “Word around town is that the proprietary technology you brought from your home planet is a prize no one can say no to. More than I gave you credit for yesterday.”

I swallow, trying to keep my heart and stomach calm while I stand in the rain and wait for my demise.

Haku throws back his head and laughs. “Imagine my surprise to find out I had an alien woman living in my apartment building for three months. You could’ve brought me a hell of a lot of money had I known.” He lifts his hand with the kill switch in it. “So here’s how it’s going to go. You give me the tablet and data device Gen Miyazawa swears you have, and I’ll let you live. Fair enough?”

“And just what do you think you’re going to do with it?” I shout. The rain increases and a shiver runs down my back.

“I’m going to sell it, of course.” He gestures to the men behind him and several emerge from building corners and front stoops. Down the street, I recognize Gen, dressed in black army fatigues and carrying a high-powered assault weapon. The natives certainly have gotten him up to speed on the local battle tactics.

“Give it up, Yumi!” he calls out, tucking the gun into his shoulder and looking down the barrel at me. “It’s over!”

I sense movement behind me, and I suspect I’m surrounded without even having to look. Turning my head a fraction, Saki and Shun dissolve out of the mist along the street.

If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em, right? What a bunch of traitorous assholes.

Saki’s eyes are cold, black, empty holes. I’ve seen her angry before, and this goes so far beyond it, I’m chilled from the inside out.

I glance left and right, knowing Rin is somewhere in the building, probably doing his job of disarming the bomb and evacuating the people inside. Where is this backup he spoke of?

I lower my voice. “What should I do?”

“It’s time.” A whisper, barely louder than the rain falling, comes from my right.

I blink, and Kazuo zips out from an alley and takes Gen by surprise. Gen’s disarmed in a flash by the time my legs move. Shots fire and shouts echo up the street. I sprint with Ninjin to the nearest doorway, hoping I’ve chosen a building Haku didn’t arm to blow.

More shots pierce the air, pops that jolt my heart into a panic. The wall next to me explodes, and I crouch down to shield Ninjin.

Shouting crescendos over the rain falling, Haku first and then Masato.

“She’s gone for the building!” Saki’s voice makes me want to scream in rage, but I hold it in.

I peek around the corner of the doorway to find out what’s going on and gasp in surprise.

Mara, a Kiiroi Yama kenryōshi whom I haven’t seen in months, has one of Haku’s men pinned to the ground, and she’s wailing on him. Punch, punch, slap — she grabs him by the hair and slams his head into the ground. I pump my fist for her victory.

I don’t see Saki or Shun. My heart rate flies into a panicked pace wondering where they are.

Masato fights another kenryōshi with a sword. I squint my eyes into the rain, trying to discern who it is, until he turns and Kengo’s face appears through the rainy mist. Kengo! I can’t believe that asshole came here to fight for Rin. He hates me!

A burst of pride swells my heart. These are the people Rin trusts, and they’re here to help us.

“Yumi, move!” Rin’s voice echoes off the building next to me, but I can’t see him.

Where? There is no place to move! I’m in a doorway with no cover anywhere. I try the door handle, but it’s locked.

More of the wall next to me explodes from gunfire, and I stop a sob from overtaking me as Ninjin whines. There’s only one place to go, and that’s inside. Planting hard kicks on the doorjamb, I use all my leg strength to buckle the handle and the lock plate.

“Come on!” I scream again as I plant one last bone-shuddering kick and the door bursts open.

Ninjin jumps inside, running from the front of the house we’ve just broken into, straight through the rooms to the rear. I slam the door shut, frantically look around the room for something to block the door, and stop.

A mother and two kids are huddled behind the couch I was about to grab.

“Shit!” I jump back with my hand over my heart, and they cringe, squeezing into a tighter unit. “Get out,” I whisper to them, my voice harsh. I’m dripping water all over their beautiful wooden floors, and they’re crying and shaking their heads.

“Out,” I insist, ushering them towards the back. “There’s yakuza in town.”

“Who-Who are you?” the woman asks, her chin trembling as she gathers her kids off the floor.

“No time. Out the back.”

As they run for the back door, the front door explodes in a fury of shattered wood and metal.

“She’s here!” Masato shouts.

“Go!” I urge the family. They make it out the door before I do, and I send them to the right while Ninjin and I head left.

This alleyway is a series of rear gardens and porches, all silent in the early morning rain. Shouts from the street bounce off the surrounding buildings, confusing my sense of direction and magnifying the fight in the streets.

Choose a path, Yumi.

I dart for an alley with Ninjin and run into Gen Miyazawa. Our eyes lock as he pulls a sword from his waist. He must have lost the gun in a fight because it’s missing and his lip is bleeding. A gun, I’m doomed. A sword on the other hand? I can deal with that.

This is my chance to end him, but I have nothing but Ninjin’s leash in my hand.

I keep my eyes on Gen as I reach down and unclip Ninjin. Thank the gods, I bought the two-and-a-half meter leash and not the shorter one.

“Go on, Ninjin,” I say, shooing him to the opposite end of the alley. I want him out of the way while I fight.

Gen laughs, raindrops flying from his lips. “What are you going to do, Yumi? Fight me with a leash? Give up now.”

Taking a step to the right, I circle him until his back is to the wall. My fingers skate along the length of the leash, tying knots in both ends. I’ve said it before that I’m shit with the sword, but I learned other ninja weapons in the dōjō. The rope was one of them.

Gen, though… Hmmm. I don’t think his family ever encouraged him to fight in the dōjō, and he never did well at kendo at school. His attacks always depended on brute force and obvious moves.

He raises the sword high above his head and comes in for an attack. I shift sideways and whip the clasp end of the leash through the air, aiming for his head. My attack is too long, and it bounces off the wall. I yank, and the leash clip snaps past his shoulder and hits his hand hard enough to startle him.

Gen cries out. I duck out of the way as his sword comes down. Spinning around, I grab the leash in the middle and swing both ends at Gen’s back. The contact cracks and breaks open his shirt, splitting not only the fabric but also his skin. The pain eggs him on, and he fumes as he swings the sword wide. I dodge and roll, coming back to my feet. The blade glances off the side of the alley, jarring Gen and sending his weight in the same direction.

Go for the feet! I can hear Shintaro yelling in my head.

I swing the leash again, but the rain pouring into my eyes distracts me long enough for my aim to go wide. Gen lunges for me, and his sword slices along my waist. But like the idiot he is, he only catches my shirt because the sharp edge of the blade is pointing away from me.

“Ha! Got you!” A smile widens his face but doesn’t last long. I throw all my strength into my arms, and my leash screams through the air and wraps around his sword. I love this move, and it usually works better if my opponent grabs the rope too, but I can work with this. I charge and yank at the same time, pulling the sword from his weak hand. It flies into the wall and clatters across the stone pavers. He’s too stunned to act, and my foot connects with his stomach doubling him over and revealing his neck for the final move.

With the leash in my left hand, I wrap it around his neck and cinch it up with the opposite end. He falls to the ground, grasping for his throat.

“No,” I growl at him. “I’ve got you.”

His eyes pop as I grab his discarded sword and hold it over his heart.

“You want this?” I’m losing my voice as I shout this last chance at Gen. I’ve wanted to kill him for ages. He was an asshole back home. He’s sided with the enemy here. Why would I even want to spare him?

Because I can picture his parents. I remember how much they love him, the way my parents love me.

That’s no excuse.

“Stop!” Mara runs up to me, her hands out. “Stop.” She dips her head down to look me in the eyes. “We could use him.”

Fuck that. He deserves to die.

“Yumi!” she yells at me, and her voice breaks through.

“How?” Anger rattles my nerves as I grip the sword harder.

“We’re on our own here. Kengo, Rin, and I, we’ve left Kiiroi Yama. We need every hostage we can get.”

Mara’s hand closes over mine and removes the sword from my hands. Gen has passed out. I look down at his prone body and want to kick him.

“Have you seen the androids?” Where did Saki and Shun go? I thought for sure they were going to kidnap me for themselves.

“What androids?” Mara asks, squatting next to Gen and releasing the leash from around his neck. She checks his pulse. “Go,” she says, looking up at me. “You need to run to shelter. Now!”

“Where?” I don’t have anywhere to go.

Haku and one of his men appear on the street side of the alley, and Mara turns with two swords out, ready to fight. She’s formidable in a way I could never be, frightening and powerful at the same time.

I run the opposite direction, the way Ninjin ran. Maybe I can catch up with him. I’m only a little worried about losing him. He was trained to stick close by, even in desperate situations.

But where is shelter? Where can I find safety? Will I ever be safe?

Low hedges and potted plants stand in my way as I vault over and down the alley gardens of this part of town. But I have no idea where I’m going or should go. I shout for Rin and immediately regret it.

“Here! She’s over here!” Masato’s voice bounces off the building in front of me, but I don’t see him. Footsteps pound, and if I don’t find cover right now, my enemies will be on top of me at any moment. I don’t know where Rin is, Mara, or Kengo.

I need to return to my allies.

Where did Ninjin go? I hiss his name into the chaos of pounding rain and wind. Circling through one of the porches I just crossed, I hug the back wall, trying to stay in the shadows.

“We’ve got her! Blow it!” Masato’s voice comes from my left, so I turn to my right to get away.

Lightning rips through the sky, and the boom of thunder knocks me sideways. My ears ring as I hit the ground and roll across the wooden porch only to collide with a set of patio chairs.

The world is black as rough hands grab me by my back and pull me from my resting spot. Time blurs with the rain falling on my face. Did I black out? That was some lightning strike.

I crack my eyes, but only my left eye focuses on the man over me. I blink harder, clearing droplets of rain from my lashes. Haku’s brother has my backpack in his hands, and the building next to us gushes smoke into the cloudy sky.

“Thanks. I needed this,” he says, holding up the backpack and smiling.

I’m stunned, and my right arm is numb. My body refuses to respond to the signals I’m sending it. Get up! Get the tablet back! Don’t let them take it!

“Fuck. You.” My lips bumble over the words, but I spit them out.

Masato’s smile falters, and his face slackens, his shirt darkening with blood.

He falls to his knees and into a lump next to me as Rin pulls his sword out of the man’s back.

“Shit, shit, shit.” The profanities spin from Rin’s lips as he dives for me.

I feel curiously detached — absent from my body — much like that first night on Kurai when Gen performed surgery on me. I must have lost a good amount of blood though I’m not sure from where.

“It’s hard to see you.” Everything feels broken. “That was some lightning.”

Rin’s hands tremble as he touches my face and his fingers come away bloody.

The shift in his demeanor is subtle but jarring, businesslike. It’s the face of a nurse arriving at a grizzly accident.

“What did you say, my love?” he asks, ripping off his jacket and then his soaking shirt. He presses it against the right side of my face.

“Am I speaking in strange tongues?”

“Does English count?”

“Right, right,” I say, switching back to Japanese.

“They had the whole street wired to blow. You were lucky you were on the backside of the building.” He hisses as he picks me up off the ground. “Fucking yakuza. They play to win at all times. But no one beats me.”

“Shiroi Nami,” I whisper. “You must —”

The pain in my head differs from any migraine I’ve ever had, and the sharp jolt as I settle into Rin’s arms sends me right into the black land of unconsciousness.