Soy Sauce

"Goddamnit." Oe slowly pulls herself back together. Literally. The sun's high in the sky, heating up her metallic body until it's sizzling to the touch. She reaches a hand upwards and closes her fist around the sun.

"I guess Blackadder's done." Nanako's two halves have only just finished fusing back together. "Oh well. It was fun while it lasted."

"Yeah, I think." Nakano squats nearby. Her hands tremble slightly, craving another cigarette. "It kinda sucks it all had to end this way but eh, we had a good run."

"I guess I can stop doing the voice now." Kanano's soft-spokenness startles everyone more than her yelling ever did.

"What the hell is wrong with you all?!" Oe grunts as she sits up. "Are you all really just going to sit here and give up?!"

"I mean… yeah." Nanako shrugs as she detransforms back into her school uniform. "We've got exams and stuff soon so this kinda came at a good time."

"Where's your drive?! Where's your ego?! Where's your honor?!" Oe starts yelling. "What happened to you guys?"

"Some things just can't be helped, Oe. This is one of them." Kanano pats Oe on the back as she walks away. "Sometimes, these things just reach their natural conclusion."

"It's best to let live and let die, I think." Nakano helps Nanako up.

"See ya around, Oe. Let's go out for karaoke sometime." Nanako shoots Oe a two-fingered salute.

She's powerless as she watches the three people who have stood by her side for the longest time walk away from everything they've built. Walk away from everything they've worked so hard for. Walk away from her. They vanish into the distance.

"GRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAGH–!" No matter how hard Oe tries, she just can't accept this outcome. She conjures her chainsaw blades and starts slashing at the air, imagining herself cutting that bitch Daisuko into pieces. But most irritating of all is that the more she thinks about it, the more appealing just giving all this up and living a normal life becomes. Maybe… maybe the time for her to retire really is upon her.

"I see that you're having something of a bad day." A voice calls out to her.

"Hm?" Oe turns around to see a girl with braided hair. "Who the fuck are you and what do you want?"

"The real question is: 'What do you want?'"

"Sorry, I'm kind of stupid, you see. You're going to have to spell out what your game here is to me."

"I come to bring you an opportunity to serve a greater purpose."

"Then you can fuck off."

"I also bring appropriate compensation."

"You can shove your cash up your ugly ass."

"I'm not talking about money."

Oe squints at the girl. "Then what are you talking about?"

"I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse."

"I leave you alone for one week and what happens?" Kiara raises a cup of tea to her lips and takes a sip.

"We know what you're about to say, and before you cave my pretty face in, I would like to raise a counterpoint: Ozawa is now ours to dominate."

Kiara reclines in her chair. "And what good would that do us? There's no threat to fight anymore, nothing to protect the common folk from. How are we supposed to convince them to be on our side?"

"Forgive us, mama. We weren't thinking." Oka bows as deeply as she can.

"Also, what happened to your eyes, Oka? Is it a disease of some kind?"

"No, mama. It's… well, there's actually another reason we did what we did." Oka scratches the back of her head. "It's a bit of a long story."

"The Lady of Osaka… an ICMG major?" Kiara sets her empty teacup down on its saucer. "Firstly, I'm disappointed in you both. I've told you ever since you were children not to trust strangers, especially strangers from the ICMG."

"Forgive us, mama–" Oka starts but Kiara holds her hand up to signal that she's not done talking.

"Secondly, it pains me to see my two children atoning for my mistakes." Kiara stands up from her seat and looks out the window. "Ordering Shouko's killing was a mistake. I was paranoid. I was a tyrant. I was everything I tried to avoid." Kiara shakes her head. "There's no other way to say it. I made a mistake."

"…" Oka backs away from Kiara. As she does, her hand brushes against the red pen resting on the table, marking her palm with scarlet.

Daisuko's eyes linger on her sister's face, unsure of what's going on behind her eyes.

"Regardless… I suppose we've been given a chance to atone for our sins." Kiara folds her arms behind her back. "What did our… 'benefactor' say we need to do to earn our keep?"

"She was sort of vague. But from my understanding there are people coming here to kill us and we're supposed to kill them back."

"Then I trust in you both to give them a warm welcome." Kiara sits back down behind her desk, silent.

"..." Oka wipes her hands with some wet wipes she had in her pocket. A small red inkstain refuses to come off no matter how hard she tries.

I've noticed our mood has depreciated.

"Of course it has." Oka rolls her eyes as she splits her chopsticks in two and starts eating her beef bowl. "What does she know, anyway? She's the one who made us kill Shouko in the first place."

"I'm sorry, what's this about?" Daisuko leans in close, beef bowl in hand.

"I'm just saying that I didn't like mama's tone earlier. 'Given a chance to atone for our sins' she says. Like I did anything wrong."

"Mmm." Daisuko sips her miso soup. "Keep telling yourself that."

"What did you just say?" Oka's temper flares, earning the curious gazes of the other customers. "What the hell was that supposed to mean?"

"Oka. Listen." Daisuko claps Oka on the shoulder. "Listen to your older sister for once. The harder you deny it, the stronger your guilt will be. And eventually, if you let it get to that point, it will crush you."

"...So, what? Are you accusing me of killing auntie? Even though mama was the one who ordered the hit?"

"All three of us are equally at fault." Daisuko places her chopsticks on top of her empty bowl. "Or that's just what I think, anyway. But what do I know? I'm just ol' bone-headed Daisuko."

"Hmph. That you are." Oka goes back to eating, head still hot to the touch.

I think I stumbled on the memory you were talking about.

"Yeah? You gonna give me your two cents on this as well?" Oka whispers under her breath.

I come from a different time. I have sins that can never be washed off either. There's no shame in admitting that. There's no shame in having regrets.

"You done?" Oka raises an eyebrow as she finishes her meal and places her chopsticks on top of the now empty bowl. "I think I've had enough of being lectured."

Daisuko sighs as she shakes her head. "Let's just go." She places payment for the meal on the table along with a little extra tip. She's about to turn to leave when someone places her hand on her shoulder. Oka tries to stand but someone places her hand on her shoulder as well.

"Daisuko Kuze and Oka Shibusawa?"

"Yeah? Who's asking?" Daisuko's hand creeps towards her guns at her hips.

"Officer Tohru. You're under arrest."

"For what?"

"Assaulting an I-C."

"You got proof for that accusation?"

"I don't need any. The ICMG just wants an excuse to have you gone."

"You're revealing your hand just like that?" Daisuko laughs dryly. "Fair enough, I like direct women."

"We kindly request you come quietly."

"And who is 'we?'"

Four other I-C's, all dressed in matching suits and shades, fan out in a semicircle around Daisuko. One of them cracks her knuckles. Oka looks to her sister to follow her lead. Daisuko's hand stops creeping to her handgun and instead raises it to hail the waiter.

"Another beef bowl–" Daisuko starts but one of the I-C's draws a handgun and plants two shots into the waiter's chest. People scream out and run. He falls down, dead on the spot. "...Well, that was unnecessary."

"Now, miss Kuze, if you please–"

"I guess this counts as self-defense." Daisuko doesn't waste another second, grabbing the girl's raised hand and pushing it upwards as she stands. She pulls the trigger but the shot goes wild, poking a hole in the roof.

"「Inverse Fuinjutsu - Divine Sword Clarent!」" Daisuko conjures Clarent and thrusts its tip into the I-C's face, unmasking her. Oka follows up by whirling around and cutting off the I-C's head from the neck.

The other three I-C's back off and draw their weapons. A pair of nunchucks, a wizard's grimoire, and a katana. "Shit. Looks like Osaka got here first."

"Oka! Don't get distracted!" Daisuko draws herself up to her full height, Clarent's edge drags against the ground.

"Right!"

"Burn." The grimoire-wielding girl raises her hand and hurls a fireball at the pair. Oka steps forwards and dispels the fireball by slashing through it. In the same stroke, she brings her "sword" up and stabs it into the I-C's face, like an eagle breaking its descent. Her mask goes flying, revealing her gem to be on her shoulder like a pauldron. Daisuko aims straight for the jugular, bringing her sword down on the gem, shattering it completely. The I-C falls down, dead on her feet.

"Who's next?" Daisuko, not exactly trained in sword fighting, brandishes Clarent around like one would a bat. She's so focused on the two remaining I-C's that she doesn't notice Oka staring at the dead body.

She was alive just a second ago and now she's not. Unlike the other I-C's which were just dismembered, this girl was killed. This girl with grieving friends and family. She could have done something and she did nothing. Is this death her fault too? The question bounces around in her mind, pulling her away from reality.

"Oka!" Daisuko blocks a draw-slash from the katana-wielding I-C. "Any day now!"

"R-right." Oka looks up just in time to see half of a pair of nunchucks inches away from her face. Preternatural instincts yank her head backwards, dodging the blow. That snaps her back to reality. She thrusts the 'pommel' of the letter opener upwards into the I-C's jaw. It serves a double-purpose, unmasking her while also throwing her off-balance. Oka doesn't give her even a second to breathe, wrapping her hand around her gem and ripping it out. It pulsates slightly in her grasp, almost like a beating heart.

The last I-C is a little smarter than her peers. She forgoes using her katana in favor of attacking Daisuko in ferocious close-combat where her enemy's sword doesn't have enough room to be useful. Daisuko cusses under her breath after the second time the I-C jabs with her katana's pommel before following up with a punch to her gut The third time it happens, though, she's ready for it. The pommel darts towards her stomach but she manages to catch it with one hand. And with the other, Daisuko draws her gun and fires at the I-C. She's forced to dodge away from her, buying her the space she needs to slash across the gem embedded on her neck.

"That's three down." Daisuko wipes the sweat off of her forehead. Without looking back, she raises her gun and fires two shots into the gem Oka's holding in her hand, shattering it instantly. Blood flows out, staining her fingers red. She quickly drops it, as if it had suddenly burned her. "Four."

Daisuko looks down at the beheaded I-C, unmasks her, and shoots two bullets into her gem. "Five."

Unlike Daisuko's eyes which are sharpened to a razor's edge, ready for combat to resume at any second, Oka's eyes are glued to her bloody hand. She scrubs it against her skirt but all that accomplishes is spreading the damned stain even more.

"You alright?" Daisuko raises an eyebrow at Oka.

"Y-yeah. Fine." Oka says, very visibly not fine. "Let's just… get out of here."

"That was only five out of an expected thirty. There's probably more around the city somewhere."

"What should we do about them?"

"Well, judging by how they only sent five, they're probably grossly underestimating us." Daisuko, ignoring the first rule of gun safety, taps the barrel of her gun against her chin. "I think we should hunt them down before they have time to hunt us."

"Right, right… you're right." Oka nods as she stares down on the lifeless bodies at her feet. "Let's go… do that."

Daisuko suddenly walks up to Oka, trampling on the bodies under her feet, before grabbing the sides of her head and forcing her to look at her. "Look me in the eye."

"Wh-why?" Oka tries to wrench her head away but Daisuko is relentless, forcing her to look her in the eye no matter how hard she struggles. Then, all of a sudden, she lets go, sending Oka reeling back.

"You should go ahead to the hideout." Daisuko turns away and begins to walk out the door. "Let your older sister take care of this."

"...Are you going to kill them all?"

"Remember what I said, Oka." Daisuko taps the muzzle of her gun against her temple. "Embrace it."