8 Chapter Six: Enter Night Raid

After setting fire to the entire place including the shed of dead victims, Gunnar and Tatsumi left with the ladies of Night Raid to meet and greet the other members who were waiting a little ways from the house.

"You're late! What the hell took you so long?! And who are these guys?" one of the members asked rudely. She was a young girl about Tatsumi's age and was of below average height. She had very long pink hair tied in twin-tails on the right and left sides of her head. She had big pink eyes and wore a pink outfit, consisting of a tied shawl with a high collar, a pink long sleeved shirt, a gown and black stockings with pink shoes. In her hands was some kind of rifle that seemed a little too big for her.

Alongside her was a young man with shoulder-length green hair that covered the left side of his green eyes and had red goggles on top of his head. He wore a long green jacket with a fur-trimmed hood over a white and red ringer shirt and blue jeans with brown shoes. He wore on his wrist what appeared to be a kind of gauntlet of threaded wire. How he would use it Gunnar didn't know.

The second guy waiting for them was wearing some kind of armor that was similar to that of the guards Gunnar noticed beforehand. In his hands was a long spear with a large spearhead. It seemed quite a collection of characters that stood before the X-Man.

"New recruits." Leone replied as she was carrying a resisting Tatsumi. Gunnar was right between her and Akame carrying makeshift body bags for Tatsumi's dead comrades. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you-" she then spoke to a confused and befuddled Tatsumi. She dropped him to the ground as she continued. "-starting today you both are part of the team. Congratulations, you boys just joined the Night Raid."

"What part of 'not part of the team' did you not understand?" Gunnar asked. "I only said I was coming along, only for the purpose for knowing more of the situation of this country."

"Trust me," she said cheerfully. "You'll both love it with us. I guarantee it." She then gestured to to the guy in the armor. "Bulat, he's all yours." The man grabbed a reluctant Tatsumi by the waist with one hand as if carrying a small log.

"Hey, put me down! I don't want to murder people!" he said to the man carrying him.

"Awe, don't worry. It gets easy," the armored Night Raider replied. There was something in the man's voice that Gunnar found a little uncomfortable, like uncomfortably cringy.

"What does that...?"

"The mission is now complete," the sword girl interrupted Tatsumi before he could finish his sentence. "We're heading back."

And with that, the mutant and Night Raid took off into the dark night, heading home through the cover of the trees. "Oh, how did I get myself into this?" groaned Tatsumi.

A few moments later, Gunnar and the members of Night Raid came across their base, a large reinforced building merged with a mountain, just ten kilometers north of the Capital. "Impressive. Conspicuous, but impressive all the same," he thought to himself. As Night Raid was about to inform their leader of all that's happened, Gunnar thought now would be a good time to bury Tatsumi's friends somewhere respectable. They both found a cliff a few ways from the base that overlooked a fantastic view.

Once done, Tatsumi was left alone for some final words for his friends. He had thought in his head the promise all three of them made; to be high-officials in the Capital and bring wealth to save their village. "So much for that," thought Tatsumi. "Now I'm out here all alone." He had flowers for their graves while Gunnar stood a few ways to give him a moment.

When it felt about right, Gunnar walked up behind the little shrimp and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm really sorry for what happened to your friends, Tats. If I were you, I'd do the same thing for them."

"What do you think it's best to do if you were me?"

"To be honest with you, I'd pay attention to the present, the here and now. There's always time to grieve for those you care about, but it won't do any good lamenting on the past. Right now, I'd focus my attention on making sure that this tragedy doesn't happen again. You can either live in the past or learn from it so your future can be a whole lot better. But how you decide to go about it from here is entirely up to you. Now that you know that not everything is all black and white, it's best now for the both of us to get all the facts about these guys. And who knows? If they're really looking to put an end to all this corruption, then that's good enough for me. But I'm doing it on my own terms. If they're not doing it for justice and they're just killers for hire then I don't care; because I'm ending this conflict one way or another. How about you?"

Just as Tatsumi was thinking it over, the mutant felt something on his free left arm. He turned to see Leone holding onto his burly arm, her boobs pressed against it. Both Tatsumi and Gunnar were surprised she was able to sneak up on them like that. "So, have you guys officially decided to join yet?" she asked.

"We were just discussing that actually." Gunnar answered, politely trying to brisk off her grip on him, followed by Tatsumi with his reply "I told you guys..." until he was interrupted by the blonde killer as she brought him in close to her bosom with one hand.

"You both have the makings of assassins, you know."

"Is that what they think or just you?" Gunnar was not all convinced yet, all the more reason for finding out the truth about these people.

"It's not a matter of whether I'm good at it or not, alright?" said Tatsumi, "I just don't wanna kill people."

"Well, I'm gonna introduce you guys to the gang anyway," replied Leone matter-of-factly. She then proceeded to try dragging both Gunnar and Tatsumi back to the base.

But before she could, Gunnar stopped her for a moment. "If it's all the same to you, there's something I want to do first before I come along. If it's alright by you, of course."

Leone was surprised for a moment, then shrugged. "Alright, but don't be too long. Otherwise, we'd have to track you down and find ya." She went ahead dragging a struggling Tatsumi by the collar of his shirt. Once they were a little ways away from him, Gunnar turned his attention to the two makeshift graves before him. He pulled his mask back as he bowed down on knee and bowing his head in prayer after crossing himself.

"Heavenly Father, please take good care of these two young people that are about to meet with you outside your pearly gates. May you treat them kindly in Heaven just the same as you did for them here on Earth. May you forgive them for any sins that they may have committed and bring down judgment upon those who have wronged them. Please also forgive me for the sins that I have committed and/or will commit in the days to come. May you judge me fairly as you will judge these two. Amen."

He crossed himself as he said the Lord's Prayer before crossing himself a third time for good measure. As much as a hardass he lead others to believe him to be, he still had compassion for those who were in need of it the most. He wasn't sure how long it's been the last time he prayed for anything. If memory served him well, it was his good friend and fellow X-Man Kurt Wagner (aka Nightcrawler) that persuaded him to take up praying as a form of condolence.

"I know you two may not know me," he said to the two makeshift headstones. "Hell, I don't even know what you'd make of me if we ever met. But I want you both to know that your friend Tatsumi's in good hands. Or at least the closest thing. I know I'll probably give him a hard time, but I promise you it's only to help him do better. I'll do what I can just as long as you guys can do the same from where you're at. May you be at peace where you're at and uh…see if you can put in a good word for me with the big guy, will ya? I don't always have to do everything for nothing ya know. Oh, and…if you should meet a guy by the name of Pete, tell him and his family I...said hi."

And with that, he pulled his hood over his head and made his way to the base as a gentle breeze blew behind him. Little did he realize that high above him watching from the building was Akame, suspicious about what she just saw.

Once inside, Gunnar could see an open hall with a desk set in the middle and sitting there was the same lavender-haired girl from the night before talking to Tatsumi and Leone. She took notice of him behind them and waved. "Oh hello. You must be Tatsumi's other friend Leone here was telling me about."

"We were just trying to give Tatsumi here a little encouragement about joining us," explained Leone. "Otherwise, if you're still hesitant in joining us, we would have to..."

"Let me guess, you'd kill me and him?" questioned Gunnar, interrupting her in mid-sentence.

The blonde bombshell chuckled. "See, Sheele? I told ya he was a sharp one, didn't I?"

Sheele then spoke. "On the account that we just showed you guys the location of our hideout, that would be the case. If we can't convince you, then you'd be dead."

"Uh, is that supposed to be encouragement or a threat? Tatsumi asked nervously. But Gunnar just smiled.

"You're all more than welcome to try," said Gunnar. "Everyone else has. Even if that were the case, I still wouldn't be here if your friend hadn't left me alone outside for a few moments. I only stayed because I wanted answers and I'm hoping to get those answers. Otherwise, it would result in just as you previously stated. But let's hope it doesn't have to come to that for your sakes."

"Just give it enough thought, okay?" Sheele went back to her book which was entitled 'Mend Your Air-Headed Ways'. Both Gunnar and Tatsumi had concerning looks on their faces, with Tatsumi thinking these guys were a bunch of circus freaks.

"Hey! What the hell?!" a familiar voice cried out from behind them. They turned to see the same pink twin-tailed haired girl from last night pointing at the boys. "Hey Leone, why'd you bring these losers back to the hideout?"

"They're one of us now." Leone responded, to which Gunnar looked at her annoyed saying "Again, what part of 'not part of the team' did you not understand?"

"And no one thought to ask for my opinion?" The pink haired female walked up to both boys to inspect them with an interrogating look. A few moments later, "I won't allow it!" she harrumphed. "It's obvious that you both aren't cut from the same professional cloth as the rest of the group."

"Excuse me?" Gunnar retorted.

"I mean just look at you both." Now it seemed like the girl was trying to be lil' Ms. Attitude.

"What's that suppose to mean?!" Tatsumi cried out feeling insulted.

"Exactly what I was thinking." said Gunnar.

"Aww, don't let it get to you guys." assured Leone. "That's Mine's way of saying hello."

"At least one of you doesn't look like some sort of clown." Mine was now taking shots at Gunnar, really annoying him.

"And just who are you to pass judgement, little woman?" the mutant snidely remarked.

Mine looked surprised and insulted that he said that to her. "You dare call me little?!"

"You said it, not me." Gunnar jeered. And with that said, Mine held her head up and left with a little tiff as a satisfied smile crawled upon his face. "First a big-titted broad, an air head, and now a pompous little brat. What's next?" he thought to himself.

The trio then made their way out through the back where they had what Gunnar assumed was their training grounds. "This is our practice field where we let off some steam." Leone was giving them the tour of the place as she acted as the tour guide for them. "And look who's already out here working up a sweat?" They looked to see a man training with a spear like a pro. "That's Bulat." From a distance, Gunnar could tell the guy looked like the sort of man who has been prepared for a fight, much less a war.

But when he was done, however, Gunnar had to get a better look at his 'do, making him hold back a snicker; it was combed up into a heart-shaped pompadour. "Are you seriously telling me that this guy is the bad-ass on your team?" he questioned Leone in amused disbelief.

"What's wrong with that?" she asked him.

"I mean, really? With hair like that? Tch, I've seen hipsters with better haircuts; and those are just one group of people I don't care for."

"I'd be careful if I were you. He's tougher than he seems."

"Oh, is that a fact? Well, I hope his hair doesn't kill the enemy first with laughter before I have anything to say about it." He couldn't really take Bulat seriously with that stupid haircut. "And you say 'he's tougher than he looks'?" He folded his arms. "Well, we'll just see!"

"Maybe you just might." She then had sly smile on her face. But before Gunnar could say anything, Bulat was walking up to greet them. Up close, the X-Man could tell the guy was a buff son of a bitch, nearly rippling with muscles. But how he compared to Gunnar's superhuman strength was is yet to be seen.

"Oh, aren't you the fellas that joined Night Raid last night?" Bulat asked. "I should've known you two wouldn't of recognized me like this. I was wearing my armor the night we met." Tatsumi may not have known it, but Gunnar did (I mean, isn't it obvious?). Bulat stretched out a hand to Tatsumi for a handshake as he introduced himself.

"Uh, hi there?" was Tatsumi's reply as he shook his hand. But as he did, however...

"And yes, he's gay." Leone said. Both Tatsumi and Gunnar were both taken aback about what she said, Gunnar reeling a step back defensively and Tatsumi pulled his hand back quickly.

Bulat let out a chuckle. "Now don't give them wrong idea...yet." It was how Bulat said that word that just made Gunnar just cringe in repulsion. He didn't care what a man or woman's orientation was, he just wasn't wanting any of it unless it was something he was okay with, much less have anyone of that nature coming onto him like that. He was much happier with his heterosexuality and that's the way he wanted it to be.

As Bulat offered his to Gunnar, the Wolverine clone refused politely but sincerely saying, "Forgive me if I don't shake hands. And the name's Gunnar for you to know. Nothing personal, I don't usually just give anyone my full trust or respect yet." With that being said, he left with Leone and Tatsumi to meet another member of their team.

As they were making their way to the teams' hot spring baths, which was where supposedly the teammate they were going to meet was at, they were taking an alternate route to him. As they traveled along the path, they eventually came across him laying on his stomach. It was the guy with the goggles and green hair; and by what Gunnar heard, he was waiting to peep on Leone's nude body much to the dismay of him and her.

She then pinned the peeping tom on the ground, holding him down with one foot. "You never learn do you?" she said to him as he cried out in pain. "Next time, I'll break your arm." She introduced him to Tatsumi and Gunnar as Lubbock. Gunnar only shook his head, he couldn't believe the kind of characters these assassins were. It seemed like a completely different story he didn't quite expect to see.

A few hours later, they found themselves walking along a creek while Leone was thinking of anyone else she could have missed. "I don't know how many more I can take." Tatsumi whined to which only made Leone giggle with amusement.

"Our next one's a cutie so try not to stare," she replied. "She's stuffing her face over there. Hey Akame!" She gestured to the long black-haired girl the boys met before. She kneeling before some kind of strange avian creature roasting over a roaring fire on a spit. She turned to notice them, to which Tatsumi said, "And there's this freak."

Gunnar nudged him in the side as leaned near him to make a note by saying, "Better hope she didn't hear you say that. Need I remind you this is the same 'freak' that almost killed you last night? I'd be more careful if I were you." He then acknowledged the huge creature roasting over the bonfire. "Did she happen to kill that thing all by herself?"

"Akame's our resident wild child," said Leone as they got closer.

"Leone, have some," said Akame, throwing her blonde friend a leg of the giant bird. She looked over to Tatsumi and Gunnar. "Have you two joined us yet?"

"I'm on the fence about it as of now," said Gunnar as Tatsumi's reply was 'no'.

"Then I'm sorry but I won't be sharing any of my dinner with you," she said. Gunnar let out a little chuckle. Akame was blunt, but she did seem straightforward about how she felt about new people.

"Is it me or is everybody feeling a little jacked up today?" Leone asked curiously.

"That's because the boss's back." Akame replied.

"The boss?" questioned a puzzled Tatsumi. Leone looked to the other side of the roasting critter and greeted a figure that was sitting in a chair. "Boss".

"Hey," said a feminine voice. Gunnar walked over and looked to see a woman with short silver hair and purple eyes. She wore an eyepatch where her right eye used to be and a black suit that showed her cleavage. What was most peculiar to him was her mechanical right arm.

"Welcome back!" Leone continued. "Did you bring me anything good?"

"Now why would I do that?" asked 'Boss'. Tatsumi soon came up right next to the mutant at this point. "About one of your recent assignments, I was told you completed it three days overdue." As she said this, her mechanical hand slowly clenched. Leone, for a moment, had a stunned look on her face as she had been busted; then took off running before anyone could say or do anything. She only got so far before the woman's mechanical hand shot her fist out to grab and drag the blonde assassin back as Leone was struggling. "When facing a powerful opponent, it's unwise to get caught up in the fun. Shouldn't you know better than that by now?"

"Okay! I've learned my lesson! Now please let me go!" said Leone in pain. Gunnar couldn't help but smile at what he just saw. It seemed that the woman was as sharp-minded and levelheaded as he was. She felt like the kind of person who could get things done.

"Anyway,-" the boss continued, finishing reeling Leone in like a mackerel as she took notice of him and Gunnar, "-tell me about them."

Leone stood up as she placed a hand on each of their shoulders. "Oh, that's right. These guys are gonna be joining us!"

"Okay, either this is a communication problem we're having or this is just a one-sided conversation." Gunnar smugly replied, unamused.

"Yeah, and I didn't agree to anything." Tatsumi complied.

"Do they seem promising?" inquired 'Boss'.

With a sure smile, Leone replied "Absolutely." After a brief moment of silence, she wrapped the two boys in a hug. "See? All we want from you is to try, 'kay?"

"That's not what you said before!" said Tatsumi. Before Gunnar could interject, the woman with the eyepatch told Akame to summon the others. Everyone rendezvoused back to the base and gathered at what Gunnar assumed was they usually held their meetings, a squared living room of red and yellow with a small red throne backed with small yellow columns where the leader of Night Raid sat.

Once everyone gathered with the mutant and Tatsumi in the middle, she started the meeting. After giving introductions as hers being Najenda, she then said "Thank you, everyone. So Tatsumi, Gunnar, how would you two like to be the newest members of Night Raid?" she asked them extending her mechanical hand to seal the deal.

"You're going to kill us if we refuse to join, right?" questioned Tatsumi, though that was just what Gunnar was gonna ask as well. But, to his surprise, the woman's response was opposite of what he's heard.

"No, we won't kill you," she said as she lowered her mechanical hand.

"But you wouldn't want us to leave though?" implied Wolverine Jr. with a toothpick in the corner of his mouth, his arms folded.

"Precisely." Najenda was impressed how attentive he was. "You two would have to remain here and work in our factory. Either way, we won't take your lives but I encourage you both to join. Your choice." Gunnar liked the straightforwardness of her taciturn attitude, almost like she was formerly of military rank.

As he was thinking it over, Tatsumi spoke up. "I just want to make a lot of money in the Imperial Capital so I can save my village from starvation. But the Capital wasn't what I thought."

"Tatsumi,-" Bulat spoke up this time, "-corruption in the Capital is creating mass poverty all over the countryside. Don't you wanna uproot the corruption at the source, like a man would?"

"Bulat use to be a high ranking officer in the Imperial army, but he joined us when he realized what was really going on in the Capital."

"Chalk up another person with a fucking conscience." Gunnar thought to himself satisfied.

"If we don't do something about the scum terrorizing the Capital, then it's never going to get cleaned up. So it's our job to take out those bastards whenever we get the chance."

"That's fine, but I don't think you can make a big difference by eliminating a couple of rotten eggs here and there. I mean doing things here and there won't save places like my village." The kid did have a point, but Gunnar knew that as much as he wanted to, he'd have hit them where it hurts the most first.

"There's an anti-empire group called the Revolutionary Army that has a hideout south of the Capital." Najenda said. "This army started out small, but they've grown into a very formidable organization. They needed a separate unit to specialize in covert operations such as recon and assassinating targets. That's why they created Night Raid. We're only putting out one fire at a time right now, but when the Revolutionary Army decides to make its move then the chaos will head straight to the cause of this mess..."

"The Minister," muttered the mutant clone.

"So you're going to...kill him?" said a stunned Tatsumi.

"Only then will our nation truly see change."

"So if our nation had a new start, you really think all of the people will be happy and safe again?"

"I am certain."

"I...I love it. It's like you guys are taking out the trash, killing off the bad guys one by one. You're a rogue team of assassins for the sake of justice!" No sooner after he said that, the others busted out laughing save for Akame, throwing Tatsumi and even Gunnar a little off. "What did I say?! Why's everyone laughing?!"

"Tatsumi, no matter how you describe it, we're still murderers," said Leone with a disconcerting look on her face.

"There's no atonement for the amount of blood we've spilled." Bulat interjected.

"Man, he has no idea!" said Mine. "It will be a thousand years before he can handle it."

"Hold on, I...uh..."

"Every team member fights for a different reason," said Najenda. "But each bares a strong resolve. Are you prepared to risk your lives?"

"What's exactly in it for us should we accept?" Gunnar finally spoke up. "Can't exactly do everything just for free."

"You both will be paid for your assignments. And if you work hard enough, you can earn enough to save your village, Tatsumi."

"Then I want to do it! Tatsumi exclaimed. "Please allow me to be part of Night Raid!"

"You probably won't go back to them as a hero you know," said Mine in an annoyed tone.

"I know, but that doesn't matter to me just as long as their being taken care of."

"Works for me," said Najenda. She turned her attention now to Gunnar with his arms still folded up. "Gunnar, what about you?"

"I didn't think there would be this much talking," the X-Man replied, taking the toothpick out of his mouth for a moment to roll it between his finger and thumb. "Honestly, I could care less on how you guys establish a new system of government just as long as it truly benefits the people of this world. All I care about is taking care of the trash that resides within the city walls. Just give me the knowledge I need, whether it's the target or about the history of this realm and I'll take care of the rest. You may not fully trust me yet and I sure as hell don't know enough to fully trust all of you. But as long as we have a common interest, I'm more than happy to help. Key word being 'help'. I want to clarify just one thing and one thing alone. And I ain't going to repeat myself again. Just because I'm agreeing to help you doesn't mean I'm fully part of your team...yet. It'll take some time for me to get settled in with everyone. But make no mistake, I've not hesitated to kill anyone since I've been brought to this world from my own."

"What makes you think you're capable of handling missions on your own?" Mine questioned him with a smart-ass attitude.

"Well, Miss Pigtails, if you must know. There are two things to keep in mind," he said this as he listed them off of one of his hands as he walked towards her. "One, I've had experience taking on beings far more powerful and skilled than anything this world can throw at me. And two..." he suddenly lunged at her pinning her against the wall so quickly and placed a knuckle blade against her throat. It happened so fast hardly anyone could make a move to stop him. Mine's eyes nearly bulged as she saw the metal blade against her throat. "If I wanted any of you dead, I would've done so right here and now. Get the picture?" She nodded and Gunnar released her, a smile of satisfaction on his face while everyone relaxed. He turned to Najenda, speechless about what she just saw. "Does that cover it all?" he asked her.

After a moment, Najenda had a small smile on her face. "Indeed. Prepare yourselves for a life like any other. Welcome to Night Raid. You're dismissed for the night." She spoke to Akame. "Akame, you're in charge of training Tatsumi and instructing Gunnar in whatever he needs." While Gunnar was satisfied, Tatsumi seemed uncertain as was shown on the expression on his face. "If they become a nuisance, be free to kill them."

"No problem," was all Akame said.

"No problem?!" Tatsumi couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Leone propped herself behind the two newcomers, a hand on each of their shoulders. "Better do a good job if you want to live," she said to them.

"Oh don't worry," said Gunnar. "I don't think I'm capable of providing such problems." While Tatsumi thought that he'd be so dead, Gunnar wasn't gonna waste any opportunity for anything he can get his hands on. "This could be an interesting experience," he thought to himself.