Hub World, Earth, Japan, Tokyo.
*Flash!*
Not even a second after casting [Return], Tatsuo, with Christie and Ayane in hand, appeared in his bedroom. At the same time, Christie, who was not resigned to her fate, stopped clawing at the dragon scaled hand wrapped around her throat and reached down towards her belt.
*Bang!*
However, before she could even touch one of the knives sheathed on her belt, Tatsuo slammed her back first onto the floor, the force he used to slam her down almost crushing her wind pipe. At the same time, he gently kicked the back of Ayane's knees, causing her to fall to her knees so that he was not forced to slam her face first into the floor, as well.
"Did you really think I let my guard down, bitch?" Tatsuo asked, his voice little more than a feral growl. "You taught me better than that, after all."
Though it was clear she was in pain, Christie did not show any signs of despair in her expression. Instead, a faint smile was on her lips, seeming to be proud that she had helped create such a dangerous individual. And when Tatsuo looked deep into her eyes, he could see something he did not expect. A hint of affection.
Deciding that he did not want to think about what went through the mind of such a sadistic woman, Tatsuo used the [Metal Magic] he learned with the use of [The End] when he met Alfonzo to create a set of manacles around Christies wrists. Then, a sturdy chain was created, connecting the two manacles. Though, not before it wrapped around Christie's body, completely restricting her movements.
*Bang!*
"Tatsu-Chan!" Sumire shouted frantically as she burst through the door to Tatsuo's room. "Are you okay?"
In fact, Sumire's frantic behavior was all an act. She had been monitoring Christie's actions through her [Perception] ever since she showed up a few months ago. However, Tatsuo did not know that. Nor did Sumire want him to know.
Sumire knew that Tatsuo wanted revenge on Christie and another woman from DOATEC, and he wanted to take it with his own hands. So, she did not interfere. However, because she had been watching Christie, she was completely aware of when Tatsuo managed to catch her.
However, because she was not concerned with Ayane, when Sumire saw her in Tatsuo's other hand, she was actually quite surprised.
"Yeah, I'm fine, Mom." Tatsuo replied, his voice still sounding rather bestial because of his [Half-Dragon Transformation]. "I just had to put this bitch in her place real quick. Oh yea, I brought a gift for Kasumi-Neesan, too.""
"I can see that." Sumire replied.
At this point, both Mai and Tio also arrived at the door of Tatsuo's room. And while Tio was surprised to see the necks of two women in Tatsuo's dragonified hands, Mai was her usual self.
"Tatsu-Kun, why do you always have to bring women into our love nest?" Mai asked dramatically. "Aren't I enough for you?"
"Not now, Mai-Chan." Sumire said sternly.
"Fine~~~." Mai replied in a whiny tone.
Meanwhile, Tatsuo finished securing Christie with is magic. So, he removed his hand from around her neck.
"*Cough* *Cough*" As soon as her air flow was returned, Christie could not help coughing violently.
With each cough, a bit of blood was forced out of Christie's mouth, the force from Tatsuo's slam causing a bit of internal injury. On top of that, there was a large, hand-shaped bruise on her neck, as well.
Usually, a slam like that, that did not destroy the floor beneath her, would not be much of an issue for someone like Christie. However, the floors in the penthouse were different. Sumire had heavily reinforced them, rather, she had heavily reinforced the ceilings of the training room that was located one floor down. Meaning, the floors of the penthouse were passively strengthened, as well.
While all this was happening, Ayane, who had been forced to her knees with her neck still in Tatsuo's grasp, was staring at Sumire blankly. Although she had seen her the day before, because of the distance, she never got a good look at her. But now that she was so close, Ayane was terrified.
The shinobi of the Mugen Tenshin Village would take almost any mission. As long as the client could afford their services, there was little they were not willing to do. However, there were a few exceptions. And one of those exceptions was standing right in front of Ayane while gushing over her Tatsu-Chan.
For the Mugen Tenshin Village, Sumire and those she held dear were completely off the table when it came to becoming targets. Because no one in the underworld, worldwide, was unaware of the terror Sumire could bring to bear should she choose to. In fact, had the Mugen Tenshin known that Kasumi had been adopted by Sumire, they probably would have given up on the mission to purge the traitor altogether.
'This boy is right.' Ayane thought to herself as she gritted her teeth in anger. 'That woman really is a bitch. She actually suggested that I use that monster's son as a hostage to get to the traitor. Then, she actually targeted me during the altercation. If she survives her capture, I'm definitely going to kill her myself.'
"Hey, if I let you go, you're not gonna cause any trouble, right?" Tatsuo asked, snapping Ayane out of her thoughts. "Because if you do, you'll be tied up like that bitch over there."
"If I had known this is what you're into, I would have tried it a lot sooner." Christie said, clearly not scared of what would become of her. "Too bad it took me so long to find out what your kinks were. *Sigh* You live, and you learn, I guess."
"If you think you're gonna live long enough to learn from this, you're sadly mistaken." Tatsuo growled.
"Mmm~! Keep talking dirty, just like that." Christie replied in a sensual tone.
"Sumire-Sama, can I kill her?" Mai asked in a deadpan tone.
"Maybe later." Sumire replied nonchalantly. "For now, I have a few questions for her."
"Understood." Mai replied.
Meanwhile, Tatsuo turned back to Ayane.
"So?" Tatsuo asked as he allowed his draconic features to fade. He then took a breath to try calming his emotions. Though, that was a much more daunting task than he thought it would be. "You're going to behave, right?"
Ayane nodded her head in response. With that, Tatsuo slowly released his hold on Ayane's neck. He then stepped away from the young kunoichi as she started rubbing the area Tatsuo had been holding onto.
'Such a weird sensation.' Ayane thought to herself as she recalled the scales that sprouted from Tatsuo's hands. 'Just what is he? Is he like Hayabusa-San? A human-dragon hybrid... But I've never seen Hayabusa-San do anything like that.'
"Good." Tatsuo said with a nod. "Oh, that's right, I need to tell Kasumi-Neesan that we're not at the construction site anymore."
With that, Tatsuo reached into his pocket, grabbing his smartphone. Then, he quickly dialed Kasumi's number, telling her that she should come home, instead of meeting him outside. He also mentioned that Ayane had been captured and was at the apartment and unharmed.
As Tatsuo hung up, he could hear Kasumi breathing a sigh of what he assumed to be relief. He then tossed his smartphone onto his bed, where a magnetic charger lay, connecting it to let his phone charge while dealing with the matters at hand.
'Oh, there's one more thing.' Tatsuo thought to himself as he started navigating through his [System] mentally. 'I got a [Notification] a couple of minutes ago. I should probably see what that's about.'
{[Notifications]
[Skill], [Space Manipulation] has increased in rank from B+ to A-.}
'I guess that happened when I tore through space.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'Honestly, I never even knew I could do that before. But when I got pissed off, it just kinda happened. I wonder if I have to be in my transformation to do it, though. I'll have to do some experiments during training, I guess.'
"Alright, let's deal with all this trouble." Sumire said cheerfully. "Then, we can sit down and have dinner. I doubt we'll have time for training tonight, though."
"I'm fine with that." Tatsuo replied with a shrug of his shoulders.
Mai and Tio also nodded in agreement, as well. Seeing that, Sumire's smile widened. She then turned to look at Ayane.
"You're welcome to join us, as well." Sumire said. "I figured a good meal would do you some good. I mean, you know you're probably going to be living on the streets for a while after you report what happened to your Clan, right?"
The contemplative expression Ayane had been wearing while comparing Tatsuo and Hayabusa Ryu, a shinobi from another clan, immediately became downcast after hearing Sumire's expression. Like Kasumi had surmised in the past, Ayane was fully aware of what it meant for her to attack Soramoto Sumire's son. So, she could only nod her head slowly in a depressed manner.
"Well, don't be depressed." Sumire said as she approached Ayane. She then reached up and patted the kunoichi on her head. "I'm sure we'll be able to figure something out. Who knows, this might even lead to something good for everyone involved."
"Even me?" Christie asked.
"Probably not you." Sumire replied without changing her tone. "Though, if you answer my questions, you might get to keep your life."
Reaching that point, Sumire glanced at Tatsuo, who was still trying his best to process his anger.
"I wouldn't hold my breath on that one, though." Sumire added with a shrug.
"Well, at least there's a glimmer of hope, I guess." Christie said, trying to shrug her shoulders as she did so. Unfortunately, the chains Tatsuo conjured were too tight. "But I guess I can tell why none of the cloning experiments worked. I mean, trying to use human methods would have never worked. I bet Lisa will just kick herself for not figuring that out sooner."
"She won't get a chance to regret that oversight, either." Tatsuo growled once again.
"Either way, we can deal with that later." Sumire said, drawing all eyes in the room onto herself. "Tio-Chan, would you mind taking our guest to my office?"
Sumire gestured at Christie as she asked her question. In response, Tio nodded her head. Then, she walked over to Christie. And with one hand, she lifted the taller woman, chains and all, and carried her out of the room.
Seeing Tio's feat of strength, especially with how slender her arms seemed to be, both Christie and Ayane widened their eyes in surprise. Though, no one paid them much mind.
As for the rest of us, let's head to the living room." Sumire said with a smile. "I'll start cooking dinner. We can talk about all the serious stuff when Kasumi-Chan gets home."
After mentioning Kasumi, Sumire turned to Ayane once again and gave her that stern mother look, which looked more adorable than intimidating when it came from Sumire.
"And no starting a fight, okay~?" Sumire asked.
"I understand." Ayane replied obediently.
"Good girl." Sumire said with a nod as her expression returned to a smiling one.
With that, Tatsuo, Mai, and Ayane made their way into the living room and took seats on the couch, with Mai snuggling up to Tatsuo as soon as they were seated. Meanwhile, Sumire entered the kitchen to start cooking dinner.
"Oh, by the way, Mom." Tatsuo called out.
"Yes, have any requests, Tatsu-Chan?" Sumire called back from the kitchen.
"Not really." Tatsuo replied. "But I'm pretty sure my cooking has gotten better. So, I wanna test it out some time soon."
"Okay, I'll let you cook this weekend." Sumire replied. "I'm sure you'll be tired after school and training."
"Okay." Tatsuo replied with a smile and a nod.
"Did Tatsu-Kun's cooking get better again?" Mai asked curiously. A moment later, she smiled dreamily as she continued. "Does that mean Tatsu-Kun is gonna cook a romantic, candle-lit dinner for me some day?"
"Who knows." Tatsuo replied with a shrug. "Only time will tell."
Naturally, Mai managed to hear Tatsuo's words differently. As a result, another promise that only she was privy to had been made. She then continued to gush affectionately over Tatsuo.
'What in the world is wrong with that woman?' Ayane asked herself while watching Tatsuo's and Mai's interaction. 'I mean, he's only fifteen. And that's Shiranui Mai, the only survivor of the Shiranui Clan, a twenty-three year old woman. Why the hell is she hanging all over him like that? Has she no shame?'
If anyone living in the Soramoto residence could have heard Ayane's question, all of them, even Mai, would answer with a resounding, no. But since none of them were telepaths, Ayane was spared the additional mental damage.
"So, Ayane-San, I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this question, but how did you find me and where I go to school?" Tatsuo asked. "I mean, I've been keeping you within my field of [Perception] ever since I saw you on the street a while ago. And I made sure to never let you see me and Kasumi-Neesan together."
Tatsuo's question pulled Ayane out of her thoughts. She then stopped to recall what he asked exactly. However, when she registered that she had always been in his range of [Perception], her eyes widened in dumbfounded amazement.
"Wait... I've been moving all over Shibuya for more than a month." Ayane said. "You're saying you've been tracking me that whole time."
"Yeah...?" Tatsuo replied, not seeing the issue with that. "I mean, you saw that I'm not exactly human, right? So, is it really that big a deal?"
Ayane could not argue with that logic. Especially after recalling the way Tatsuo tore a passage in space and pulled Christie through it from so far away. The fact that he teleported the three of them into an apartment in a location unknown to her made it quite clear that Tatsuo was not human... At least, not completely human, as well.
"I suppose that makes sense." Ayane replied. "And to answer your question, that woman, Christie gave me the information. She neglected to mention that you were the son of Soramoto Sumire, though. If she had, I would have never even approached you."
"I see." Tatsuo replied. "Well, I don't know why that is exactly. But I'm sure I'll find out sooner or later. But that sounds just like that bitch, ruining lives without a second thought."
"Yes, it makes me want to kill her, as well." Ayane said through gritted teeth with her fists clenched tightly. "My life as a... *Sigh*"
Seeing Ayane slump her shoulders, Tatsuo and Mai, who had no idea about the Mugen Tenshin Village's laws, other than the fact that Kasumi broke one by exposing the clan's existence, exchanged glances, feeling that things were worse for Ayane than they originally thought.
Not long later, Tio joined them in the living room. Shortly after that, Kasumi, with a worried expression on her face, also returned home. However, that worry turned to relief when she saw that Ayane was in even better shape than she expected after she had a run in with Tatsuo.
"Why do you look like that, Nee-San?" Tatsuo asked while rolling his eyes. "I told you she was unharmed."
"Yes, you did." Kasumi replied with a smile. "But I know just how strong you are physically. So, I was kind of expecting to see some bruises and cuts."
"First of all, I know better than to leave a mark on a girl that I'm not trying to kill." Tatsuo replied while rolling his eyes. "Second, I held my strength back to peak human levels. Well, except when I pushed her out of the way of the tranquilizer. So, there might be a bruise on her back."
"It's nothing I can't handle." Ayane said, most of the heat in her gaze when she watched Kasumi from a far, nowhere to be seen. "No bones were broken. Nor were any muscles damaged. Like he said, there's probably just a large bruise on my back.'
"I'll help you treat that later." Kasumi said.
Though Ayane wanted to deny her sister's assistance outright, she, who had also broken the clan's laws, felt that she had no right to judge her anymore. So, she just nodded her head and fell silent.
"Alright, dinner is ready." Sumire's cheerful voice rang out from the kitchen. "Everyone, wash your hands and come to the table."
With that, the conversation came to an end. Then, everyone left the living room to follow Sumire's instructions before they all sat down for dinner. They would discuss what to do with Ayane after dinner was finished.