There I was—standing knee-deep in stagnant water, the stench of mold and decay crawling into my nose. Mado, Amon, and a couple of uniformed officers were beside me, flashlights cutting through the gloom of the sewers.
"How is it?" Amon asked, eyes scanning the shadows.
"Nothing here," Mado replied casually, his tone bored.
Amon pulled out a tablet, skimming through the ID scans we'd run earlier. "I ran the identification on those two high schoolers. Nothing came up. The info's bogus—probably a prank or something."
Amon sighed. "Let's go. We're wasting our time."
But then Mado stopped. "No," he said, eyes glinting unnaturally in the dark. "You two go on ahead. There's something I'd like to do."
I froze inside.
Ah shit. He's gonna do it. He's going to place Ryoko's arm here so Hinami smells it.
"Understood," Amon and I said in sync.
We didn't question it. Mado had been like this for a while now—borderline unhinged, but effective. After retrieving the arm from the morgue, we returned to the sewer. Mado didn't even look at us. He just crouched in the murk, gently setting the severed limb down like it was some kind of ritual offering.
He waved us off. "Go. I'll wait here."
Amon and I split off, each heading to our assigned patrol zones. I kept Amon within line of sight for a while—close enough to react, but far enough that he wouldn't notice me watching. I had to keep an eye on the Kaneki situation, see how things unfolded.
Eventually, we disappeared into the maze of concrete. The silence was heavy. Tense.
And then—a call came in over the radio.
"I found the little rat and the rabbit. Come here, now." Mado's voice crackled with manic glee.
"I'm on my way!" I responded, already sprinting down the sidewalk, footsteps pounding against the wet concrete.
In the original story, this is where Kaneki shows up—fighting Amon to protect Touka and Hinami. But with me here? The outcome was uncertain. The narrative was shifting. My presence changed everything.
I rounded the corner, the moonlight spilling over the concrete like a spotlight.
Ahead, the sewer stairwell came into view.
But so did him.
A figure stood in front of it, blocking the path—tall, broad-shouldered, clad in a dark trench coat. A raven-like mask covered his face, blank and emotionless. His presence hit like a wall. Calm, yet suffocating.
Fuck.
Yomo stood there like a damn brick wall—unmoving, unspeaking. I could already feel the beatdown coming. I didn't know a whole lot about him, but I was pretty sure he wouldn't kill me… probably. Then again, this could easily turn into a fight for my life. Yomo's not much for words—he Charges forward, and me? I react.
He swings. It whooshes over my head as I barely duck in time. Lucky for me, I've been practicing Total Concentration Breathing: Constant. I activate my quinque, and in my mind, I call it out:
Sun Breathing: First Form – Clear Blue Sky.
Spinning 360, I slash at him. He twists and blocks it with his forearms. His sleeves tear. Two shallow cuts mark his skin.
Tsk. Of course a c ranked quinque wouldn't do shit to someone like him—this guy once blocked Arima's quinque barehanded. What was I even thinking?
Then—boom—he lands a brutal kick to my gut. Pain explodes in my abdomen. FUCK. Ribs cracked for sure.
If I can't cut, I'll have to pierce.
Sun Breathing: Seventh Form – Sunflower Thrust!
He tries to dodge, but I toss my quinque in the air, snatch it mid-spin, and stab right where he sidestepped. Bingo. He throws up his arms to block, but I drive it through with all I've got. Steel meets flesh. My blade rips through—one of his arms drops to the floor.
I flip back, breathing hard, a grin forming."You ever tried cutting a steak with a butter knife?" I say to no one. "You can do it… but you gotta apply three times the effort."
Sun Breathing: Third Form – Burning Bones, Summer Sun.I launch forward in a spiral, striking over and over, fast as I can. He blocks, dodges, parries with his remaining arm. Then—he stops.
Looks across the way.Kaneki's fighting.
He must've decided it's time to help his friend.
That's when he pulls out his kagune—Ukaku. looks like raven wings, and it's crackling with electricity.ZAP.
i couldn't have dodged it not in this limited space so i try to block but the thing about electricity is that it goes right through quinque steel his Lightning hits me dead-on.
"SHIT—BZZZTTZZTZZZT—!"My body locks up. I drop, stunned, smoke practically coming off me. A normal human would've been out cold. But not me.
besides the broken ribs and my muscles shutting down for a second im mostly fine i could still fight.
No. I've got two options now.
Option one: Sit here and play dead.
Option two: Go help Mado. End this.
I could easily kill Touka and Hinami right now… but did I want to?
Mado's been good to me, yeah. He's my teacher. But the story's got to move forward, and he—he's a killer.Saving him means killing Touka and Hinami.I can't do that.
I stay where I am.Alive. Hurt. But not broken.
At least Yomo didn't finish the job. I'll take that as a win.
I reach for my quinque, lay it beside me, and lean against the railing. Breathing hard. Ribs screaming. The night dragging on.
Still gotta keep my eyes open.Never know when another punk-ass ghoul's gonna try something.