Insane

 

Several Hours later…

 

 

The group of now-seven had found a bottom-bracket inn on the verge of the town of vice. As told by the innkeeper herself, there had been a rash of rapes, murders and kidnappings after a band of criminals had ventured into the area a couple of nights ago. Sugimoto puffed his chest as he booked the room for himself and Asirpa at the thought of a bunch of shit-heels trying their luck with their group. Before he could get into the details of the matter, he was given a disapproving look and the worker reached behind the desk for the whistle used for calling the police.

 

“We’re a travelling party of tour-guides, natives, and soldiers,” Inkarmat cut in before a bad situation could be made worse. “We need two rooms next to each other: three females, four males.”

 

Still giving the group of men disconcerting looks, the innkeeper calculated the cost with a grunt.

 

“Do you include meals?”

 

“Miso soup and rice.” A collection of disheartened groans hung in the air as they followed the sour-faced inn-keeper up the narrow wooden staircase. “It may not be the prettiest place, but we don’t stand for any unsavoury activities here.”

 

“Do you have a bath?”

 

“Does this look like Kyoto to you?” Not waiting for a rebuttal to the obviously rhetorical question, the frail old-maid hobbled away and left the group to settle in.

 

“We’re more likely to die from malnutrition in here than the cold out there.” Hiking up her bags that she had taken from Tanigaki, Sen sucked in a breath of rotten wood and stale air.

 

“I’ll have-” Shiraishi held his hand up only to get a crack over the back of his noggin from the foreigner.

 

“You’ll get a broken jaw, you little weasel. I heard my horse came in third - use those winnings to ask for more bedding.”

 

Watching the woman reorganize her bags, Tanigaki adjusted to his knees and put his hand out in front of the foreigner who was clearly about to leave. “Where are you going?”

 

“I didn’t almost die out there for years on end just to perish in this hovel. I’m going to get us something proper to eat.”

 

“They’ll get angry if you bring in food you didn’t buy.”

 

“Mountain-Man, you’ve been living all wrong.” Checking that her hunting knife was secure against her upper thigh, Sen fixed the edge of of her haori. “Bring an offering and you can do anything the hell you please.” Slinging her pack over her shoulder, she flashed a smile. “Besides, what can that granny do about it either way?”

 

“It’s only for a night; can’t we survive on miso soup and rice?”

 

“I refuse.”

 

“I want roasted meat…” Asirpa mumbled with a sly side-eye and as soon as she said that, a chorus of rumbling stomachs out-voted the Matagi.

 

“I’ll go with you,” Ogata told as he rose to his feet from his perch on the balcony.

 

“You just want to show off, don’t you?”

 

“’Can’t have our personal bank ending up mugged and raped.”

 

“Thanks for all the concern.”

 

Just as the pair were about to set out, Shiraishi returned, shadowing a young girl carrying extra bedding.

 

“If you’re going to harass her, at least carry the load.”

 

Face instantly turning into dumbard putty, the ex-con skulked. “So sorry…”

 

“Order what they have if you get hungry; we shouldn’t be more than a few hours.”

 

Shiraishi eyed the pair at the open doorway which led out into the hallway. “Unless there’s any trouble.”

 

“Are you trying to curse us? Do you not want us to come back or something?”

 

“It’s not like that - it’s just that when you two go off together, I’m always expecting only one of you to come back.”

 

“Sharing a goal is the biggest strength for a group that wouldn’t necessarily band together - it really does act like a glue.” Adjusting the hakama tucked into her boots, the foreigner glanced across the faces she was sharing accommodation with. “Any single one of us on our own wouldn’t get very far no matter our skills or perseverance: Sugimoto may very well be an immortal, but he doesn’t know how to speak Ainu; Tanigaki is from a tracking clan and could likely punch a hole through somebody’s head but he’s a deserter; Ogata can probably head-shot a phantom but he’s also on the run and has no people skills; Asirpa is a brilliant survivalist and hunter, but she doesn’t have the muscle to take on this fight alone; Shiraishi is…actually, besides escaping, why is Shiraishi here?”

 

“I know what all of the other convicts look like. What about you, Mistress of Murder.”

 

“You have no right to call me that, you fuckin' Pea-pod.”

 

“Where does all this aggression come from, Sen San? And why are you giving me all these mean nicknames?”

 

“He’s right though. Why couldn’t you go out on your own if all you want is to prevent the gold from falling into the wrong hands? There are cuts going to be taken either way.”

 

“I don’t care if I get a cut; I can make my own ends meet but there is something that you lot could help me with.” Absolute silence befell the room as all eyes landed on the foreigner as they waited for her continuation. “I have an issue concerning a friend of mine. She’s being held captive by somebody I can’t defeat by myself, and I refuse to leave her there.”

 

“And you’re asking for our help?”

 

“I wouldn’t go that far - I’m just saying, if we’re in the same place at the same time, back me up if you can…”

 

“I’m more surprised she had a friend,” Tanigaki mused aloud, not quite intending to cause the scoff he received.

 

“Tch, if you’re gonna be like that, forget it.”

 

Asirpa paused making up her bed to examine the older woman’s face. The usual condescension was missing and she could tell that her muscles were tensed even underneath the extra layers. “She must be very important to you if you’re swallowing your pride to ask for the help of strangers.”

 

“I’m sure she’s the only person I’ve ever loved that’s still alive.”

 

“We’ll help you.”

 

Sugimoto’s head snapped to his partner, his brows furrowed. “We will?”

 

Shiraishi’s eyes almost popped out of his head. “If someone like her needs ‘help’ dealing with them, what does that make that other person?”

 

“A demon amongst demons.” Sen waved her free hand in farewell and brought her unlit pipe to her lips. Trotting down the stairs and out of the front door, Sen inhaled the frigid air laden with the stink of humans as she looked up at the sky growing dark. “How can one hate a place, but be so lost without it?”

 

A yard behind the woman who had stepped into the street gaining a frost too wet to stick, Ogata shut the sliding door to the inn. “Are you really that lost?” His shoulder knocked hers as he passed and stood a pace ahead of her. “Which way shall we go?”

 

“West, but just a little, and then south: we’ll catch the remnants of what’s still docile before the night fully sets in.” Lighting her pipe with a match, the woman slung her gloves to the sniper and began walking. “There’s a stream that runs through the mountain over there, so there should be plenty of fish, birds and critters.”

 

“No bears?”

 

“If we happen to be so unfortunate to run into a bear at this time of year when it’s just us, we’re the ones who will probably end up as a meal.”

 

“Aren’t they suppose to hibernate?”

 

“Yes, so if you see one, run before they see you.”

 

“You killed one.”

 

“That wasn’t a regular thing - that was revenge.”

 

“Uh, now you talk to animals?”

 

“A bear is no joke at the best of times. One that didn’t get to hibernate is a nightmare; they’re foul-tempered, menacing creatures.”

 

“Sounds like someone I know.”

 

“I hope you’re not referring to me.”

 

“Who else?”

 

“I dunno; how many bare ladies you’ve got waiting?”

 

“Was that a pun?”

 

“You can’t stop me~”

 

“I wouldn’t even bother trying.”

 

“Seriously though, just how good are you with that thing?”

 

“With the back of your hand brushing my crotch every time your arms swing and the fact you keep eyeing my gun, I’m not sure which you’re asking about.”

 

“You’re the one standing so close to me. Don’t make out like I’m going out of my way to touch you.”

 

“It’s cold and you give off a lot of body-heat.”

 

“That’s why I gave you my mittens.”

 

---

 

At the inn, the group sat around a low table. Amongst the complaints of the terribly bland food and cold weather refusing to shift as spring tried to break through, Inkarmat tweaked her sleeve with her eyes down. “How did you come to be travelling with that woman?”

 

“Do you know her or something?”

 

The woman shook her head, her expression growing more disheartened the more she thought about the stranger. “No, I just get a strange feeling from her.”

 

“She has that affect on everybody,” Shiraishi garbled, his face screwing up when he tried to stomach the odd-tasting soup. “Especially Sugimoto, apparently.”

 

Prodding at the rice in her bowl, Inkarmat glanced up to look the aforementioned man in the eye. “You both have the same type of inconsolable sadness about you.”

 

“I’m not sad.” Sugimoto pouted and turned away.

 

Stink-face morphing her features, Asirpa told what everybody already knew. “He’s sulking now.”

 

“I am not.”

 

Stoic as always but hand quivering when he tried to bring another spoon of the soup to his mouth, Tanigaki stole a quick peek to the woman beside him. “Will you be joining us when we set off tomorrow, Inkarmat San?”

 

“If it’s no trouble, could I until we reach the next town? It’ll be much safer than travelling alone.”

 

“Where are we even heading next?”

 

“There’s supposed to be another skin at the other end of Kushiro.”

 

“Shiraishi, do you have any idea who it could be?”

 

“It could be anyone. Well, anyone that hasn’t already met their end.”

 

“Talking about meeting one’s end, did anybody else notice that both Ogata and Sen San were covered in blood and dirt when we met back up in town earlier?”

 

“I tried to ignore it.”

 

“Makes you wonder what they were doing…”

 

“I really don’t, though.”

 

“Killing, fighting, or fucking…”

 

“Get your mind out of the gutter, Shiraishi.”

 

“Let’s just be honest for a moment while the psychopaths are gone. It’s not like they were eating snacks and taking a stroll, right?”

 

“You never know.”

 

“You’re optimism really knows no bounds, Asirpa Chan.”

 

“It doesn’t make a difference either way. If one kills the other, it’ll save me a job later.”

 

“Ah, and there goes Sugimoto bringing home the grim reality.”

 

“What’s it matter to you anyway? She calls you names.”

 

“Yeah, but she also fed me and fixed my mouth-”

 

“-I wouldn’t be so sure about the latter-”

 

“-and she’s given me spending money-wait-what?”

 

“You’re just trying to sleep with her yourself, aren’t you?”

 

“Whaaat? Noooo…”

 

“That’s a guilty expression if every I saw one.”

 

“You’ve got no chance.”

 

“Especially if she is…with him.”

 

“There really couldn’t be men on any different ends of the scale.”

 

“You’re an egg, he’s a mountain cat.”

 

“You mean a mouse?”

 

“No, an egg.”

 

---

 

[Meanwhile]

 

 

Crouching down by the riverbank, Sen watched little wooden pegs jitter on the surface as her throw-net collected the fish just waking up for spring. Sometimes, she really did feel awful when gathering food. Those poor little bastards had struggled to fill their bellies before the winter, slept for months, and now they were about to be ate by a bunch of criminals.

 

Off to the left and behind, sitting on tree branch, Ogata kept watch. “Did you get anything?”

 

“Enough fish for tonight’s dinner and maybe breakfast.” Reeling the net showing its wear up towards her feet on the unstable ledge made from slick rocks, Sen plucked up the fish and placed them inside the tanned-hide sack which was practically a giant water flask. “On the way back, we’ll ch-” Halting mid-word, verdant eyes shot to where she felt a shift in the atmosphere. Wafting her arm behind her back, Sen stood up slowly. “I heard there was a bandit group around here and it’s late. I’m getting scared of staying up here too long.” Scratching the back of her head, her index finger of the same hand pointed to his 2-o’clock for a split second.

 

These days, Ogata wasn’t sure of much but he was absolutely positive that woman was not scared. Not scared of demonic bears, nor a bunch of half-wit bandits with a penchant for violating women. Hell, she constantly goaded Sugimoto, a so-called immortal and it wasn't above her to irk Ogata himself, a man known for having no qualms about shooting someoneintheback. He was starting to have a difficult time believing she’d so much as flinch if a God came down to personally smite her. Unless, of course, they were of the feline kind.

Eyes narrowing and scouring the area barely illuminated by scarce moonlight, he almost instantly pin-pointed what had alerted the woman. Rifle bolt already back, the sniper squeezed the trigger and shot through the neck of a stranger trying to sneak up on the woman. Using the given mitten to cover the bolt as he reloaded in order to muffle where he was situated, he found a second man trying to run away twenty yards from the first.

 

Realizing that the female was unarmed, a third man ran low through the shrubbery and tackled her down to the floor. Air knocked from her lungs when her back hit the corner of rockery, Sen hacked and threw her arm out blindly as her eyes tried to refocus.

 

“Oi, you dead?” Ogata called out when the scene whizzed past just below his line of sight. A gunshot cracked the air and chipped bark rained from above his head. “Tch, shit.” Scooting around the far side of the tree, Ogata shimmied up the bole for a better vantage point.

 

Forearms squashed down into her chest as she fought with the man on top of her, Sen bucked her hips repeatedly and her body slipped further below the hips straddling her torso.

 

“Hehhh~ I love a girl with some fight in ‘er. And a white bitch, too. It must be my lucky day.” Eyes glistening under the moon reflecting on the water’s surface just over an arm-span away, the attacker leaned forward and licked up the side of her face as his blade jagged close to the side of her cheek on the other side. “Tattoos…just what did you do, Sweetheart?”

 

Squirming under the criminal who stunk like the rear-end of a manure cart, her fuzzy vision tried to lock on the attacker and bared her teeth. “Ended shit-heads like you."

 

Tightening her fists pinned close to her torso, Sen gnashed and spat like a feral animal cornered. Soon noticing that he wasn’t overpowering the female like he had many others, his brows furrowed. “Maybe not this much fight, though…” One hand around her throat, the other used the blade to slice down the fabric wrapped around her torso. Wild eyes scanning pale skin akin to a fresh pearl under the natural luminescence, the bandit grunted pure lechery over the nude body. “Women ‘round here don’t have tits like this. Look, they won’t even fit in my hand,” calloused, dirt-crusted nails dug into her skin as he squeezed hard enough to force a yelp from her.

 

Heel of her foot getting stuck in the mud due to a semi-raised boulder, Sen grinned up at the heap atop of her through grit teeth. “You fuckin’ stink, you slob. No wonder you have to try an’ rape girls. Nobody in the right mind would fuck you. Not even if you paid ‘em.”

 

Easing up just enough to slug her in the nose, the attacker barked as saliva flew from his jowls and slopped down the side of her bare skin prickling red in the scuffle. Glowering down on the female half-imprinted in the frozen ground melting under her body-heat and constant thrashing, the man took a fist of her hair and snarled into her ear. “I’m going to fuck you to death.”

 

“Oh, yeah?” A cough caused the blood from her nose to bubble. Now having somewhere stable to support her foot, she thrust her hips up and thrashed her head forward.

 

In the topple, the man instinctively released the grip on her to put his hands out in order to protect his own face. Latching onto the cloth covering his chest with one hand, Sen punched him in the throat with the other and used her bodyweight to throw him over onto his back. Now sat atop of him, his torso and her knees in the shallows of the river, she grabbed either side of his hair and used her entire weight to smash his head off a rock until sanguine a brain matter splattered up her front and spread into the water.

 

“Oi, Mistress, how many have you dealt with?” The occasional crack of gunshots lingered a couple of dozen yards away. “If you're alive then answer me!”

 

“Both you and your girlfriend are dead.” A voice came from the blackness.

 

“She’s not-”

 

“He’s not-”

 

Slopping up the bank with her shirt barely hanging onto her shoulders thanks to being soaked, Sen’s hand fingered under the left side of her haori. Seeing the foliage shift, she plucked her weapon and launched it at Ogata. Skimming past his head, and likely taking a few loose hairs with it - the blade lodged into the open mouth of the man attempting to sneak up behind the sniper.

 

Staggering back, the victim refused to go down. Traipsing through the slush smeared with blood, soaked and shaking from the spiked adrenaline and biting cold, Sen yanked her knife from the bandit’s face. Glaring at the mess spreading between their clothes touching in the close proximity, she kept her eyes on his as she slid the blade along his neck as if she was trying to find his spinal column.

 

“You really should answer when I call you.” When Ogata didn’t get any answer from the female, he merely scoffed. “I was going to leave you all by yourself because I thought you were dead.”

 

“Then why didn’t you?”

 

“Like I said, you’re our personal bank-” Mouth refusing to form the words he wanted when she turned around, the sniper looked away as if he was doing her a favour. “You should probably cover up.”

 

A branch snapped as Sen was about to point off and Ogata made for the back of the tree. Only, he was cushioned by a plush body before his shoulder could connect with the trunk when his foot slipped. Wet from head to toe in river water and blood, the pair stuck to each other as they listened to what the remnants were talking about. 

 

“Kill that bitch.”

 

Pelvis to the back of her rear and her right shoulder used as a stabilizer for a long barrel, Sen remained still. Adrenaline barbing her nerves and able to feel her pulse between her legs grow to the point she could no longer ignore it, her entire sense of danger was thrown to the wolves.

 

Feeling his weight shift behind her as he went to reload, she reached backwards and squeezed the front of his hip. “Wait a moment; the last will come out in a second - shoot them all dead.”

 

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

 

“Do you think you can hit from this angle?”

 

He pushed against her while the barrel of his rifle locked on the target. Nose in her hair and his lips against her ear, that nasally tone which always spouted condescendence was now practically a purr. “I have no problem hitting it from any angle.”

 

From what she could feel on her rear, Sen wouldn’t be too surprised if that was true. However, if this kept up any longer, she was really going to have to call his bluff. Maybe she was more messed up than most people initially gauged because without fail, the adrenaline and blood, the fight for survival when her life was on the line always heated her up. And unlike every other time before right now, there may just be someone left around to help her out when the blood stopped spraying and it returned to silence.

 

“Are you going to take the shot?”

 

“Shut up and cover your ears.”

 

“Are you having performance issues?”

 

Purr turning to a hiss, Ogata pulled the trigger and shot one of the remaining bandits. “Are you really so insane that a fight turned you on that much?” Reloading, the second man was shot through the chest before the first had even hit the floor.

 

“C’mon, we both knew it was going to happen sooner or later.”

 

Easing up a little, the sniper was having serious doubts over whether she was messing with him. From what he’d seen of her personality, it wouldn’t be beneath her to lead him on and leave him up a mountain with blueballs. “Look at me.”

 

“I never took you as a face-to-face kinda guy.” Smirk on her bloodied face, Sen shrugged off haori and ripped shirt. Clothes slopping onto the ground, she stared him in the eye. “It’s been a while since I’ve had to ask a man twice if he wanted to sleep with me. You can say no, but hurry up either way because if you’re not going to do it, I’ll do it myself.”

 

Scanning the curves illuminated by sparse moonlight, her hair ragged loose in the tussle distorting where one part of her tattoos ended and another began, Ogata clenched his jaw. His heartbeat thundered and his pants had become impractically too tight. Hooking the strap of his rifle on the branch by her head, numb hands fumbled with his belt buckle. Doing the same with the tie of her own pants, Sen turned around and spread her feet.

 

“It’s cold; fuck me.”

 

“That’s my line. Hurry u-” Shoved forward with so much force her collarbone slammed into the tree trunk and scraped the side of her cheek, Sen giggled at what she had caused.

 

Using his boot to knock her right foot further out to the side, one hand took her hip as he lined up with her entrance. The severe difference in temperature from his frozen fingers to her hot insides felt as though he was sucked all the way in without any preparation. Not like she needed any, when he was lining up, her juices had completely covered almost the entirety of his palm. Moving his free hand to the top of her shoulder and steadying his footing, Ogata didn’t give her any time to acclimatise to his cock stretching her out. He’d only gotten five strokes in when he felt the familiar knot in his stomach. Sen could tell, too.

 

“I swear, if you finish this quickly, you’ll be joining those other bodies.”

 

“J-just shut up.”

 

“Grab my hair.”

 

“What?”

 

“Pull my fuckin’ hair.”

 

“Do you always-”

 

Pushing him out backwards with her hips, Sen dragged him down onto the floor. “Lie down,” she said, but she didn’t really give him much choice in the matter as she was already hovering over him by the time she’d finished speaking. Taking a hold of him with a firm grip, she slid down onto his erection and adjusted her knees so she could get as low as possible. Rolling her hips, her breathing completely changed from forced out huffs to shuddering breath.

 

Jaw slack, Ogata’s eyes vision refused to focus as she picked up the pace. “T-this is having the opposite effect on m…me lasting longer.”

 

“Well, I’m gonna keep going until I finish, so you’d better hang in there.” Sitting up as much as he could, his left hand tangled in the back of her hair. Yanking her head back to expose her neck, his teeth nipped at delicate skin as his free hand tweaked her nipple. “Harder.”

 

“Don’t start crying if I hurt you.”

 

In the throes of fuzzy heat and electrical charges racing around her nerves, Sen’s cackle fell from her open mouth. “I’d love to see you try.”

 

“Fucking crazy bitch.” Hair wrapped around his fist, canines broke the skin of where her neck and shoulder met. Muscular forearms tight around the back of her waist, Ogata panted with each of her rolling bounces, his face now buried in her chest as a shudder took over him. Mounting moans tickled his ear and her nails anchored around his shoulder blades pulled his mind from all of the horror and manipulation he’d endured. He wasn’t in control of his body any longer; she had both a metaphorical and very real grip on him, and that scent he was enveloped by was going to drown him any moment now. Hips tensing and releasing, the sniper grunted against sweaty skin.

 

A throaty moan got lost in the side of his hair and before he could bask in his climax, cold air replaced where the woman had been. Quivering legs made their way back to the stream. Crouching down at the water’s edge, she urinated and washed away the seed seeping out of her. Finishing cleaning herself, she nudged the man still trying to fix his belt with her foot as she picked up her clothes .

 

Chewing on a nub of dried meat from her bag, Sen tossed a portion of the snack to Ogata. “I guess I win this round.”

 

“Heh, I put down more targets - it’s my win.”

 

“I was almost had by a low-life-”

 

“But you won-”

 

“-Exactly. I won.”

 

“You word-twisting bitch.”

 

Unfurling what was left of her clothes shredded to bits, the woman stood up straight and tossed the load of fish to the feet of the sniper. “Don’t go getting pissy just cause you finish everything quickly-”

 

Plucked up by her collar, the sniper scoffed. “I happen to have a record-breaking reload time. Shall I prove it to you?”

 

“Mhn, I’ll take your word for it.” Lighting her pipe, Sen glanced over the corpses. “I can do without getting knocked up, thanks. Especially by someone like you.” Collecting her knife from the floor, she set off walking the way they’d come from. “On the plus side, we may have caught a fox.”

 

“And there was me wondering if you’d get weepy when I told you I wasn’t interested in marrying you.”

 

“It’d be a weight off my shoulders if you didn’t bring shit like that up.” Pushing foliage out of the way, Sen advanced downhill. “Us screwing was obvious at one point or another because we clearly enjoy baiting each other, and I’m not against us using each other again but let’s not pretend either of us are in it for the long run.”

 

“I’m not used to dealing with girls who know the score from the get-go.”

 

“It must be so difficult for a man of your standing have a woman not fawn over you.”

 

“ No need to be snide about it.”

 

“Just don’t go shooting the next guy I decide to fuck, ‘kay?”

 

“As if I’d care who you want to sleep with.”

 

“Oh, and for the sake of keeping an amicable dynamic, let’s not tell the others what we did.”

 

“Sleeping together, or murdering a group of bandits?”

 

“Like I give two flying shits about some punks who can’t gauge who they shouldn’t mess with. I mean, don’t tell them we fucked because if it comes down to a split  decision during a group disagreement, if they know about what we did and we don’t agree with the rest, there’s no doubt they’ll say that’s the only reason.” Centre of gravity low as she tried not to slip down the incline, Sen felt her insides betray her. Scowling when warmth slipped out of her slit, she grumbled to herself. “And you release way too much. Cum outside next time – it’s still running down my legs.”

 

“Next time? Who said anyt-"

 

“Don’t try to lie and say I’m not the best you’ve ever had.” Picking up what was in the trap to her left, Sen grinned behind her turned-in shoulder at the loot and expression of the man following close as not to get lost in the mountains during nightfall.

 

“I’ll end you one of these days.”

 

“What with? Your rifle? I took that earlier,” she turned to face him, her smile stretched at the edges and her eye narrowed into crescents. “Or your dick? ‘cause either way,” she knocked his crotch with the back of her hand and his knees buckled, “you’d have to try a lot harder than that to out-do me.”

 

Groan escaping the fearsome sniper, he clung to a bole, overtaken by heavy panting and a cold sweat at the close-call of potential serious damage “You really are insane, aren’t you?”

 

“Nah, I’m just playing.”

 

“Well, don’t. If you keep on like this, I’ll have to put you on your knees and teach you a lesson you won’t forget.”

 

“That almost sounds like a promise.” Glancing over her shoulder as they hit the boarder between the forest and settlement, Sen's eyes glistened in the fragments of firelight from an outdoor lantern.

 

“I do owe you one already,” calloused finger reached for his belt.

 

“Oooiiii-yaaah~~~ is that you two, Sen San, Ogata?”

 

Quickly fixing his clothing, the latter addressed ground his teeth at the shrill call. In a beat, both Shiraishi and Tanigaki approached from the footpath on their left.

 

Seeing the pair from their party come into view, Sen handed off the evening’s catch. “Why are you out here?”

 

One of the bandits came into town screaming bloody murder about demons killing his group,” Tanigaki paused as he looked the hunting duo over, “but I guess we already found them.”

 

“Thank you for being smarter than you look.”

 

“Did you come across trouble? Sen San, your clothes...”

 

“Let’s just say it’s a good job our sniper was concerned enough to find it a good idea to protect the bank.”

 

Despite the smile from the female as she ribbed Shiraishi as if they’d been mud-friends since birth, Tanigaki did not buy the cleanly put together tale she and sniper shared about merely being attacked and ‘dealing with it’.

 

He may not know her, the female calling herself Sen, but he did know Ogata Hyakunosuke – and that man was rotten in every aspect. There had definitely been  more that went on in the three hours the pair were gone.

 

Tanigaki was no spy by any means, nor did he have the aspiration for such a job. But he would find out what they were up to, or so he planned. But now, with the Wildcat at his back with a full stock to the weapon they were trained with and that stranger intermittently glancing back to apparently scout as she shared jokes with the ex-Abashiri prisoner over what could only be morbid tales they’d sooner or later have to go up against, Tanigaki felt himself the last man standing in terms of any firm of morals.

 

Glancing back and meeting the line of sight of the Matagi, Sen halted. "You've been nothing but stiff - well, more so than usual - since you came upon us, Mountain Man. Are you planning to kill us, or are you suspicious that we're about to do the same to you?"

The men stopped at the words. "Of course I'm suspicious of you two being alone for all that time."

"I can tell you what happened if you want?"

"Won't it just be a lie?"

Expression turning taught and muscles flexing, Sen bared her teeth. "I don't lie for no reason - and you, Mountain Man, are not even a hitch in the road to me." Inhaling a long breath not laden with smoke, she emptied the dead tobacco from her pipe and stepped to the Matagi. "We were attacked by those bandits the okami told us about and as you should realize, they picked the wrong people. When they didn't get what they wanted, they assaulted me."

"I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?"

Sen wafted away Shiraishi's fretting hands, his brows furrowed while he inspected her for any serious injuries. "Who's the one still breathing? Of course, I'm fine. Them, however..."

"Serves 'em right."

"I was turned on, so I tried to seduce Ogata - he was having none of it so I took care of myself - and then we made our way back down and happened upon you two."

The Matagi choked on the words he was sure he'd misheard. "E-eh?"

Shiraishi, however, had no problems erupting with jealousy. "Ogaaataaaaa~!"

Tanigaki glanced to the sniper, "I guess you're not as entirely vile as I expected."

Ogata held his back to the group, a sneer masked by his poncho. 'Doesn't lie? What a fucking joke. She's the worst of all.'