Ch. 4

Tragic.

If her life was a book that would be its genre. She lost her Father to the Doves when she was eight and since then her Mother took over her Father's job as their family's breadwinner to take care of both of her and her older brother.

Her Mother is a very kind person. She tried to bring her and her brother up in a good environment trying to erase their differences to Humankind and thought both of them the things they needed to know to hide perfectly and coexist with them.

But as years passed and they grew up her mother had slowly grown weak. She was Already 14 when they knew that her Mother was afflicted and suffering from a disease that can infect their own kind.

Her only salvation is to consistently eat Human flesh to suppress it and find a doctor that could heal her.

Her older brother took the burden of being the Family's breadwinner and consistently hunted Humans for the next two years until he suddenly vanished. So, She took the mantle of being the breadwinner for both her and her Mother. But after her brother sudden vanishing a year after that her Mother passed away.

Now two years after her Mother died she sought for her Brother's whereabouts while trying to live her best in the cruel World of Ghouls.

But, it seems like it's already her time.

Nana will die.

***

Inside of a dark alley. Lying in a corner leaning at the wall of a building bleeding profusely while heavily breathing. Nana raised her head and looked eye to eye to the Dove standing in front of her holding his Quinque weapon ready to finish her.

'This is it? Is this how I'm going to die?'

Pity for herself filled Nana's heart. Tears started to fall in her eyes. Happy memories with her family started to flash in her mind, making her smile and forget the pain in her body she was enduring the whole time.

If I wasn't just born a Ghoul...

If I was just born a Human...

If we were just born Normal...

...

..

.

I hope I see you again next time. Ma, Pa, Nii.

Nana closed her eyes and eased her breathing already accepting her death. One of the Doves walks towards her and raises his wing shaped saber Quinque ready to swing it on her to end her pityful life. But before he can swing it a voice suddenly calls out.

"Surrender your Quinque."

Goro, the Dove who was going to execute Nana immediately halted and looked back where the voice had came from. Then he saw him, a man standing behind his associate in a full black attire holding the neck of his junior threathening to break it like a twig.

He was stunned seeing the man with a spiral mask. His brows furrowed and his pupils shrunk. He was a Ghoul Investigator for more than ten years. His experience of Ghoul slaying helped him to sharpen his instincts and intuition to beyond human limits, yet this man managed to sneak on him without him even noticing.

'He's dangerous.' He thought, increasing his cautiousness to the mysterious man. He held his saber tightly and immediately thought of ways on how to subdue him.

"D-Don't worry about me sir! D-Don't comply to his wishes!" His junior associate investigator said trying to fight and hide his fear.

"Oh, quite brave aren't we?" Mikio, the man behind the spiral mask, tightened his grip on the man's neck, causing the man to drop his suitcase and hold onto his hand, trying to break free from his clutch. "Three seconds. I will give you three seconds and if you don't surrender your Quinque in that span of time, I will break this man's neck and forcefully take your Quinque over your dead body."

Hearing this, Goro gritted his teeth. 'Based on his skills alone on sneaking, and speed I'm sure he was an S rated Ghoul. He can surely kill a veteran investigator like me if we're not aware of him.'

Goro turned his head back and glance at Nana who's lying on the ground besides him. Nana right now has a look of confusion on her face looking back and forth between Goro and Mikio.

'It seems like she didn't know him either. Too bad I can't use her as a hostage.'

"One..."

Mikio began to count.

"Two..."

With a grim expression, Goro raised his Quinque, and pointed it at Mikio who immediately sensed something about his sudden action. The Quinque then began to transform and produced multiple red, feather-like blades on its front blade before shooting them towards Mikio flying in the air like flying daggers.

Taken aback, Mikio immediately used the man he was holding as a human shield, intending to protect himself from the harm those flying projectiles might inflict upon him.

But before those feather blades can reach the man it suddenly change direction and spreaded out as if there was an invisible borg that protected them from those projectiles. Mikio questioned what's the purpose of those things in his mind, but he immediately focused his attention on the man he was holding after the man suddenly brought out a small Quinque knife and swung it at his arm making him drop the man and evaded the stab.

The man then immediately turned around and picked up his suitcase and retreated back beside Goro.

"My, forcing me to use force. Sigh... Very well, let's dance." Mikio mumbled bringing out a black stick underneath his coat and swung it to the air making it extend long.

"A baton?" Goro unconsciously mumbled, surprised that this Ghoul in front of him is using a baton instead of his own Kagune. 'Never once in my life I ever heard of a Ghoul who wields weapon instead of using their own Kagune. I heard of Ghoul who used martial arts before but not a Ghoul who uses weapons.'

"Shoot! This is no good." Goro muttered and made a sign to his subordinate to use his Quinque.

Based on the CCG reports, Ghouls have a high physical capability and are four to seven times stronger than the average human. In terms of physiques they easily outstats any of the Ghoul Investigators. But why can Investigators still catch and slay Ghouls even though they are physically inferior?

Well the answer is simple.

Skills.

Beside the other means that they have like tactics and numbers, Ghoul Investigators are highly trained individuals that possess extremely high fighting skills that can match or even overwhelm the Ghouls superior raw power in a battle.

Just like the wise man once said 'Strength is not power itself, but how you wield it.'

But what if a Ghoul is also skilled and knows how to fight properly and use their strength?

Well, that is one of the Ghoul Investigators nightmares.

Matasaka Kamishiro, aka Shachi, aka Orca. He is probably the strongest Ghoul out there that reached the SS rating based on his own strength and martial skills alone without a special Kagune or relying on cannibalism to attain Kakuja and become stronger.

Now in front of Goro is a Ghoul that may be the same as the SS rating Orca. But what Goro fears is if this man managed to kill them and took over their Quinques. Besides the fact that he will become more powerful the CCG association will remain unaware of such a powerful Ghoul in Tokyo.

Goro wanted to warn the CCG and make a call. But Mikio already started moving and ran towards them so he can only grit his teeth and increase his awareness hoping to survive this.

Mikio ran at a normal speed not too fast and not too slow. The other investigator made the first move and used his Quinque that originally a sword that turned into whip swinging it to Mikio, but at the moment the whip will connect to Mikio he suddenly speed up and seemingly vanish at his place appearing a few more steps ahead from his initial position.

Goro immediately made a follow-up attack seemingly unfazed by the sight of dodging and unleashed a barrage of feather blades to Mikio's direction.

Goro anticipated for Mikio to use his Kagune to shield himself from the attack like what Ghouls would usually do, but breaking his expectations again, Mikio held the baton in his hands tightly and raised it above his head.

Mist Breathing.

Third Form.

Mikio expelled the air inside his lungs and swung forth the baton in his hands down in a powerful swift circular motion.

Scattering Mist Splashed.

His powerful swing made a strong gust of wind, it blowed away the incoming feather blades away from him and blew it back to Goro and his associate although weakly.

This time Goro's impassive expression finally shattered. He was wide eyed mouth hanging looking at Mikio shocked at his show of peerless powerful skill. But even then, he didn't falter and attacked again unleashing a shower of feather blades toward Mikio. This time Mikio didn't blow away the incoming projectiles like before and instead vanish in their eyes like a phantom in the mist.

*Tap!*

They looked at the high wall in their left and saw Mikio in there running. Goro's subordinate feeling on edge swing his Quinque but Mikio easily avoided it and leap towards them.

But at that moment Goro also leapt forward facing him, his eyes are sharp and instilled on Mikio's head and exposed neck. Time feels run slowed. Goro's sword is slowly getting near at Mikio's neck.

*Thuck!*

Goro's eyes suddenly shook before it rolled upward turning white. Exposing the whole picture, Mikio managed to kick Goro on the back of his neck while Goro is unaware of it easily knocking him. It seems like Mikio purposefully exposed his neck for Goro to focus on it and not his lower part of the body.

Landing on the ground. Mikio suddenly felt something dangerously approaching him so he immediately reached for Goro's Quinque and used it to fend off the incoming subordinate's whip Quinque. He then spun around and threw his baton that flew like an arrow to the subordinate's throat knocking the guy out unmoving.

Standing up properly. Mikio look at the two knocked out Doves around him, then his gaze shifted at the Quinque in his hand. He turned it side by side checking everything about it.

"Good enough." He muttered quite delighted but still feeling unsatisfied because it's not a curve blade like a katana. But while looking at it he pressed something accidentally and the Quinque changed its appearance and turned into Katana making him smile behind his mask. 'Ok, this is actually better than I thought.'

"Who are you?"

Turning back his head Mikio looked at the seemingly dead talking corpse of young woman in the corner because of blood and deadly wound it have on its body.

'Sigh... If you just didn't talk maybe you would have a chance to survive and still live you know?' Mikio walks towards Nana swing his newly acquired Quinque in his hand and stood in front of the woman Ghoul.

Too bad... "I can't let you live." He muttered looking at Nana with a cold look.

"Y-you're... You're no Ghoul!" Nana mumbled, eyes widening in surprised.

Immediately, Mikio pointed the sharp end of the Quinque on his hand on Nana's neck

"What do you mean?"

———

Lord_Sleepless:

Ok readers, I appreciate that you're liking the story but don't expect too much to me. As you can see based on my past history most of my fan-fics are drop and unfinished.

I'm not saying that I'm going to drop this, I'm just saying that I don't want this to also be dropped so please be patient in updates because I don't want to rush writing this like what happened in my past works.

Anyway, what can you say about my writing? Are my sentences correct? Is there a word out there that I used wrong? You see I'm a Filipino and English is not my main language so please notify me if there's some error in my writing.

And one more. Please recommend me some Breathing Technique that can be practically use by the character. Because truthfully speaking I wasted more time researching info's about it than writing.

That's it have a nice day readers.