Yami No Matsuei Fan Fiction ❯ Darker Than Shadow, Brighter Than Light ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: Ann H 
Anime/Manga: Yami No Matsuei Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama / Hentai / Psychological | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 01.30.2003 | Pages: 3 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 1.2K | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Yami No Matsuei Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Drama / Hentai / Psychological | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 01.30.2003 | Pages: 3 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 1.2K | Status: Work In Progress
And here is the second part. More plot then I expected; this will definitely be a long story. This section is PG-13 for implied violence.
Title: Darker Than Shadow, Brighter Than Light (Part Two)
Author: Ann
Rating: NC-17. Sexual themes, including non-consensual relationships, other violence, varied Muraki-evilness.
My stories include male/male sexual inclinations and relationships. If you are too young for mature themes, or don't care for this concept, please stop reading now.
Pairings: Various pairings involving Muraki, Tatsumi and Tsuzuki, including Muraki x Tatsumi. Yes, you read that right; no, I didn't mean to type Tsuzuki instead. Some Watari x Hisoka if I can find a way to build it into the plot.
Disclaimer: Yami no Matsuei characters and all rights belong to Youko Matsushita. This is fan fiction and no profit is made from this endeavor.
Feedback is adored. Ann89103@lvcm.com
Archiving: At MediaMiner.org, under author name Ann H. Any others, please ask.
Notes: This is my first Yami no Matsuei story, so please be kind and let me know what mistakes I've made. I've probably taken quite a few liberties with the given powers of the Shinigami and Muraki, and am building my own past history for Tatsumi and for the short Tsuzuki/Tatsumi working partnership: thus, this should be considered an alternate universe story.
Spoilers: DVD episodes 1-13: events in this story take place six months later. I do not have access to the manga and thus do not use the established storylines from them, though some ideas I use are inspired by translations I've read.
Mood music: Yami no Matsuei soundtrack, volume 2. I *love* this CD, especially the bonus tracks. I'm a sucker for rock and orchestral music featuring the violin. "Devil's Trill" (metal version) may never leave my CD player.
*emphasis*
//song lyrics or quotes//
~thoughts~
***
After an hour of genial chitchat and a generous serving of cake (or servings, as in the case of one Shinigami), most of the guests were gone, leaving only Tsuzuki, Watari and Tatsumi at Hisoka's bedside. The day had been unusually warm, but the early evening was pleasant; a window was open to allow a refreshing breeze to circulate through the room.
Watari, Tatsumi decided, was a miracle worker: he kept the conversation on easy ground, concentrating on office gossip (none about them; well, Tsuzuki was fair game) and his most recent inventions. Tsuzuki, for his part, was well-behaved: lots of smiles and gentle behavior, aside from his bouncing on Hisoka's bed and asking Watari if the office had extra mattresses he could 'appropriate,' as this one was 'extra snuggly.'
The three men stopped all conversation to stare at him when he declined to vehemently object to such theft.
~Well, they're going to find out soon enough, it may as well come from me.~
"I resigned my position as secretary today, and asked to be reinstated to active duty."
"What?" Both Tsuzuki and Watari managed to hit an upper register Tatsumi didn't think either man could reach. Impressive, yet scary. Hisoka was speechless, yet Tatsumi could tell the young man was trying to read his feelings on the matter. He tried to radiate a confident and relaxed aura, but he could tell Hisoka wasn't fooled, judging by the anxious expression on his face.
"Why?" They just went another note higher. Truly scary.
"I'm not being taken off active duty, am I?" Hisoka is a survivor, despite all the pain he's been through; indeed, because of it he is dedicated to our work, a valuable member of our office. He just doesn't fully believe it yet, as the tremor in his voice can attest to.
"Of course not," Tatsumi replied, focusing exclusively on those green eyes, hoping his sincerity carried in his voice, "why would Shoka Division break up it's most successful team? No, Watari says you can return to duty after one more day of rest, so you'll just have to accept you're stuck with him," as Tatsumi pointed towards his partner.
"So..." Watari's voice had thankfully returned to it's normal range. "Why *are* you returning to active duty? Tired of pushing papers and adding small numbers? Or is there more to this decision?"
Watari sometimes reminded Tatsumi of a paper cut: seemingly insignificant at the outset, yet sharp and deep beyond the deceptive facade.
~He's far more intelligent than most give him credit for; all they see are the wacky inventions and near-catastrophes in the lab. If only he'd give up on his 'potions'...~
"With you, Watari," Tatsumi answered, "they are more likely *large* numbers, totaling extremely high damage costs. But, yes, I am a bit bored with the routine, and I do need to keep my skills sharp. It seemed like the natural step to take."
Tsuzuki chose this moment to break into the discussion. "So are you staying in our Division? Who are you assigned to work with?"
Three pairs of eyes, purple, green and amber, gave Tatsumi their total attention. The intensity was a bit unnerving. The blue-eyed man found himself fiddling with his glasses once again, before he found his voice.
"Congratulations, Watari. You've finally been assigned a permanent partner."
***
The next morning...
Normally at this time Watari Yukata would be sleeping, cleaning up the aftermath of another chemical explosion in his laboratory or coaxing Tsuzuki Asato into sampling another one of his 'successful' potions. Not today; today he and his mechanical owl 003 were sitting at his rarely-used desk in the main office area, waiting for the fireworks to start.
~And so it begins!~
All discussion came to a halt as Tatsumi Seiichiro walked into the office, exactly five minutes before eight.
~Looks like he'll remain a perfectionist and keep arriving for work on time. Damn!~
The tall man hesitated briefly before heading towards the empty desk next to Watari's. Every eye in the room followed his progress, watching as he removed his coat jacket, draping it over a chair, then found his handkerchief, using it to start wiping down the thin layer of dust covering every item upon the desk.
After another few minutes of the hushed scrutiny, Tatsumi turned to face most of his co-workers. With a slight lift of one dark eyebrow and a slightly dry tone to his voice, he commented, "If you are going to stare at me all day, then perhaps I should charge a fee, like they do at a zoo."
Suddenly most of the staff found they had very pressing duties to finish, and proceeded to divert their attention back to work. Watari only laughed and leaned back in his chair, placing both feet comfortably upon his desk. At the motion a small cloud of dust rose into the air, causing 003 to hoot his disdain before fluttering away to the nearest window.
"Watari, are those dust bunnies there for another experiment of yours?"
The blond chuckled once again at his newfound partner. "No, I've actually created a nature preserve for the care and feeding of homeless dust bunnies. You know I do most of my work either in the laboratory or in the computer lab. But it is nice to know that taking you out of that office has restored your sense of humor, such as it is."
Tatsumi looked at his partner, a wry smile on his lips. "You'd best get used to it. Do we have any current cases to deal with?"
"No," the scientist replied, "but I do want to check on Hisoka once more before I let him return to work. So I'll take care of that early today, so you and I can have a chat: then you can tell me what's *really* going on around here."
Tatsumi gave Watari a 'who, me?' look, which only caused the blonde man to snort, "Give it up, Tatsumi. You were a lot scarier as a secretary. Now that you don't control my budget anymore..." here Watari paused to beam merrily at the brunette, "...hey! My budget should go up, now that I have a permanent partner. This is great!"
Tatsumi smiled as well, which for some reason made Watari a bit nervous. "Not quite right, Watari. *Our* budget will indeed be raised, but one guess as to which of us was given control of the money?"
"Waah!" Watari's chair hit the floor, him almost with it. He staggered back in dismay, ready to argue, when everyone in the room was hit with a wave of mental agony that was almost indistinguishable from physical pain.
Both men raced from the room, immediately recognizing the danger, heading once again to the infirmary, 003 fluttering along as well. Tsuzuki was there, barely able to restrain his partner, a fuda held to Hisoka's forehead while the young man's body convulsed incessantly.
Watari took charge, re-sedating the youngest Shinigami quickly, then efficiently drawing blood and preparing slides for more tests. While he worked, Tatsumi pulled Tsuzuki away from his partner and towards the large windows on the opposite side of the room. Speaking loud enough for his new partner to hear, Tatsumi asked, "Tsuzuki, were you here when the attack began?"
"Yeah, Tsuzuki answered, almost breathless from exertion, "I brought in some files Hisoka wanted to review before returning to work, plus breakfast. He had just started on the first report when he went off, just like yesterday!"
Watari interrupted, "Did the curse marks appear? We were caught off-guard with the last seizure. It could help us to determine a treatment."
Tsuzuki immediately tensed. "Yes, it was glowing red. At first I thought *he* was here, but I sensed no intruders during the entire episode. The bastard! Why won't he leave us alone?"
Tatsumi could easily read the combination of anger and fear in those words, as well as understand the use of 'us' instead of 'him.' Muraki had left his mark on both men, body and mind. But he couldn't allow his anger to cloud his judgment. Not now. They had work to do.
Tatsumi walked over to Watari's workstation, and laid claim to the phone found there. Within moments he was demanding information from the GuShoShin in his most commanding tone.
"Look for anything unusual taking place at ten-thirty yesterday morning, then again within the last half-hour, starting around eight-fifteen. Any large numbers of suspicious deaths, peculiar discrepancies in the Book of Death, anything suspicious. Call me directly."
Upon ending that conversation, Tatsumi turned to his co-workers. "Watari, I take it you'll be busy trying to reverse Hisoka's condition?" At the scientist's nod, he then turned to Tsuzuki. "I suggest you and I return upstairs and start reviewing all the most recent newspapers online for anything out of the usual taking place in the Land of the Living."
His former partner gave Tatsumi a sharp, appraising look before asking, "Do you think it will be that easy? Muraki loves to play mind games."
Tatsumi adjusted his glasses as he considered his reply. The urge to protect Tsuzuki and the others was, as always, powerful, yet he wouldn't lie. "Yes, but I think he wants to be found. The important question is 'what does he want?' and 'how do we stop him?'"
Tatsumi took a deep breath, then addressed both men, "The last thing I want is for anyone else to fall into that madman's grasp. No-one, and I mean *you*, Tsuzuki, goes after him alone." He waved an arm before the black-haired man, cutting off his comments before he could begin. "If we are going to stop Muraki, it is as a team. I am counting on both of you." With those last words Tatsumi turned and walked out the door, leaving both men behind.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Tsuzuki and Watari managed to exchange small smiles.
"He's still giving commands, not one full day back on active duty," Watari sighed, the warmth in his eyes giving lie to any complaint in the words, "Bossy! But I think things are going to work out just fine."
Tsuzuki's eyes had also regained some of their sparkle. "He was that way back when we were partners, Watari. He may have been a bit demanding, and definitely a slavedriver, but he always backed his words with action."
~And I always felt protected.~
He too, then headed upstairs; there was no time to waste.
***
It took them less than two hours to find the information they needed.
"Mainichi Newspapers reported this morning four bodies were found in a warehouse located near the eastern part of KyuShu University yesterday, mutilated beyond recognition. Nearby residents say they noticed nothing unusual taking place in the area other than the unexpected electrical storm that took place mid-morning." Tatsumi read from story shown on his computer monitor. "The time of death has yet to be determined, but police sources state the company owning the site had shut down for their annual two-week's vacation two days before the bodies were discovered."
"And Asahi Shimbum is reporting breaking news on their website of more bodies just found," Tsuzuki added, "Reports are sketchy, but police are searching the location, so they obviously believe the killings are very recent."
Tatsumi immediately turned to face him. "Close to the first murders?" he asked.
"Close enough," Tsuzuki replied, "they also happened in Fukuoka, but in the southwestern part of the city. Now they're reporting classes have been canceled at the Ropponmatsu Campus of the university, which is in the same general section, along with all other nearby schools, due to the police search and continuing poor weather."
Tatsumi was puzzled by the last comment. "The storms haven't abated? I thought Fukuoka was known for mild temperatures and calm weather."
Tsuzuki frowned, drumming the fingers of one hand on his desk. "It is, I've done enough work in the area to know. I've never encountered any problems there, as opposed to Kyoto." Tsuzuki commented, spitting out the last word as one would a curse.
Tatsumi didn't want to think about Kyoto either. Luckily enough the elder of the two GuShoShin approached the two men, providing a welcome distraction. Floating over to Tatsumi's desk, the god, as always brightly adorned in a blazing red cap and distinctive yellow bow, handed over a small report.
"All the expected souls are accounted for, Tatsumi. However, there have been some unexpected deaths, accidents or murders, in the last two days. Those souls never arrived, and their names were somehow removed from the Book soon after they appeared."
"And all from Fukuoka, I take it?" Tsuzuki's voice held a cynical edge to it that Tatsumi didn't care for from the normally warm-hearted Shinigami.
"Why, yes!" blurted out the astonished GuShoShin. "How did you know that?"
"Lucky guess." was Tsuzuki's grim retort. "Muraki's certainly made it clear where to start. Now all we have to do is find him."
"We can start with KyuShu University," Tatsumi declared. "Muraki tends to stay near hospitals and schools, using his medical knowledge to his advantage."
"And since the murders occurred near two of the school's campuses," Tsuzuki broke in, "he will probably strike there again. The man continues to harm innocents for his own selfish purposes."
"GuShoShin, could you please obtain all data available about KyuShu University?" Tatsumi politely inquired, adding his thanks as the god nodded his agreement then floated down the hall. He then turned to look at his ex-partner, watching the various feelings of anger, frustration and self-blame cross his expressive face.
"You did not cause this, Tsuzuki," Tatsumi stated calmly, "none of these events are your fault. The blame lies with a evil man lacking a conscience, no one else. He will use your doubts against you if you let him."
Tatsumi shifted uncomfortably under the full scrutiny of those dazzling amethyst eyes, almost missing Tsuzuki's softly-spoken comments.
"You're right, Tatsumi, but it's not that easy. You've met him twice in fights, but you haven't spent any great amount of time around him. He was a way of getting under your skin, turning your mind inside-out, finding every weakness and using them against you."
"I'm sorry--" Tatsumi started to apologize, but Tsuzuki cut him off. "You're doing everything you can, Tatsumi, and I appreciate that, both Hisoka and I do." Tsuzuki tried for a carefree smile, but to Tatsumi's eyes it was forced. "I want to check on him before we head down to ChiJou. I'll meet with you later, okay?"
Tatsumi returned the sad smile with one of his own. "Go on, you go visit Hisoka. I'll finish up here and join you at the infirmary shortly."
For almost an hour after Tsuzuki left the room Tatsumi sat at his desk, brooding, unmoving, completely ignoring his surroundings and the curious stares of his fellow Shinigami.
~Tsuzuki, he won't take his madness out on you this time, I swear!~
***
End Part Two
Title: Darker Than Shadow, Brighter Than Light (Part Two)
Author: Ann
Rating: NC-17. Sexual themes, including non-consensual relationships, other violence, varied Muraki-evilness.
My stories include male/male sexual inclinations and relationships. If you are too young for mature themes, or don't care for this concept, please stop reading now.
Pairings: Various pairings involving Muraki, Tatsumi and Tsuzuki, including Muraki x Tatsumi. Yes, you read that right; no, I didn't mean to type Tsuzuki instead. Some Watari x Hisoka if I can find a way to build it into the plot.
Disclaimer: Yami no Matsuei characters and all rights belong to Youko Matsushita. This is fan fiction and no profit is made from this endeavor.
Feedback is adored. Ann89103@lvcm.com
Archiving: At MediaMiner.org, under author name Ann H. Any others, please ask.
Notes: This is my first Yami no Matsuei story, so please be kind and let me know what mistakes I've made. I've probably taken quite a few liberties with the given powers of the Shinigami and Muraki, and am building my own past history for Tatsumi and for the short Tsuzuki/Tatsumi working partnership: thus, this should be considered an alternate universe story.
Spoilers: DVD episodes 1-13: events in this story take place six months later. I do not have access to the manga and thus do not use the established storylines from them, though some ideas I use are inspired by translations I've read.
Mood music: Yami no Matsuei soundtrack, volume 2. I *love* this CD, especially the bonus tracks. I'm a sucker for rock and orchestral music featuring the violin. "Devil's Trill" (metal version) may never leave my CD player.
*emphasis*
//song lyrics or quotes//
~thoughts~
***
After an hour of genial chitchat and a generous serving of cake (or servings, as in the case of one Shinigami), most of the guests were gone, leaving only Tsuzuki, Watari and Tatsumi at Hisoka's bedside. The day had been unusually warm, but the early evening was pleasant; a window was open to allow a refreshing breeze to circulate through the room.
Watari, Tatsumi decided, was a miracle worker: he kept the conversation on easy ground, concentrating on office gossip (none about them; well, Tsuzuki was fair game) and his most recent inventions. Tsuzuki, for his part, was well-behaved: lots of smiles and gentle behavior, aside from his bouncing on Hisoka's bed and asking Watari if the office had extra mattresses he could 'appropriate,' as this one was 'extra snuggly.'
The three men stopped all conversation to stare at him when he declined to vehemently object to such theft.
~Well, they're going to find out soon enough, it may as well come from me.~
"I resigned my position as secretary today, and asked to be reinstated to active duty."
"What?" Both Tsuzuki and Watari managed to hit an upper register Tatsumi didn't think either man could reach. Impressive, yet scary. Hisoka was speechless, yet Tatsumi could tell the young man was trying to read his feelings on the matter. He tried to radiate a confident and relaxed aura, but he could tell Hisoka wasn't fooled, judging by the anxious expression on his face.
"Why?" They just went another note higher. Truly scary.
"I'm not being taken off active duty, am I?" Hisoka is a survivor, despite all the pain he's been through; indeed, because of it he is dedicated to our work, a valuable member of our office. He just doesn't fully believe it yet, as the tremor in his voice can attest to.
"Of course not," Tatsumi replied, focusing exclusively on those green eyes, hoping his sincerity carried in his voice, "why would Shoka Division break up it's most successful team? No, Watari says you can return to duty after one more day of rest, so you'll just have to accept you're stuck with him," as Tatsumi pointed towards his partner.
"So..." Watari's voice had thankfully returned to it's normal range. "Why *are* you returning to active duty? Tired of pushing papers and adding small numbers? Or is there more to this decision?"
Watari sometimes reminded Tatsumi of a paper cut: seemingly insignificant at the outset, yet sharp and deep beyond the deceptive facade.
~He's far more intelligent than most give him credit for; all they see are the wacky inventions and near-catastrophes in the lab. If only he'd give up on his 'potions'...~
"With you, Watari," Tatsumi answered, "they are more likely *large* numbers, totaling extremely high damage costs. But, yes, I am a bit bored with the routine, and I do need to keep my skills sharp. It seemed like the natural step to take."
Tsuzuki chose this moment to break into the discussion. "So are you staying in our Division? Who are you assigned to work with?"
Three pairs of eyes, purple, green and amber, gave Tatsumi their total attention. The intensity was a bit unnerving. The blue-eyed man found himself fiddling with his glasses once again, before he found his voice.
"Congratulations, Watari. You've finally been assigned a permanent partner."
***
The next morning...
Normally at this time Watari Yukata would be sleeping, cleaning up the aftermath of another chemical explosion in his laboratory or coaxing Tsuzuki Asato into sampling another one of his 'successful' potions. Not today; today he and his mechanical owl 003 were sitting at his rarely-used desk in the main office area, waiting for the fireworks to start.
~And so it begins!~
All discussion came to a halt as Tatsumi Seiichiro walked into the office, exactly five minutes before eight.
~Looks like he'll remain a perfectionist and keep arriving for work on time. Damn!~
The tall man hesitated briefly before heading towards the empty desk next to Watari's. Every eye in the room followed his progress, watching as he removed his coat jacket, draping it over a chair, then found his handkerchief, using it to start wiping down the thin layer of dust covering every item upon the desk.
After another few minutes of the hushed scrutiny, Tatsumi turned to face most of his co-workers. With a slight lift of one dark eyebrow and a slightly dry tone to his voice, he commented, "If you are going to stare at me all day, then perhaps I should charge a fee, like they do at a zoo."
Suddenly most of the staff found they had very pressing duties to finish, and proceeded to divert their attention back to work. Watari only laughed and leaned back in his chair, placing both feet comfortably upon his desk. At the motion a small cloud of dust rose into the air, causing 003 to hoot his disdain before fluttering away to the nearest window.
"Watari, are those dust bunnies there for another experiment of yours?"
The blond chuckled once again at his newfound partner. "No, I've actually created a nature preserve for the care and feeding of homeless dust bunnies. You know I do most of my work either in the laboratory or in the computer lab. But it is nice to know that taking you out of that office has restored your sense of humor, such as it is."
Tatsumi looked at his partner, a wry smile on his lips. "You'd best get used to it. Do we have any current cases to deal with?"
"No," the scientist replied, "but I do want to check on Hisoka once more before I let him return to work. So I'll take care of that early today, so you and I can have a chat: then you can tell me what's *really* going on around here."
Tatsumi gave Watari a 'who, me?' look, which only caused the blonde man to snort, "Give it up, Tatsumi. You were a lot scarier as a secretary. Now that you don't control my budget anymore..." here Watari paused to beam merrily at the brunette, "...hey! My budget should go up, now that I have a permanent partner. This is great!"
Tatsumi smiled as well, which for some reason made Watari a bit nervous. "Not quite right, Watari. *Our* budget will indeed be raised, but one guess as to which of us was given control of the money?"
"Waah!" Watari's chair hit the floor, him almost with it. He staggered back in dismay, ready to argue, when everyone in the room was hit with a wave of mental agony that was almost indistinguishable from physical pain.
Both men raced from the room, immediately recognizing the danger, heading once again to the infirmary, 003 fluttering along as well. Tsuzuki was there, barely able to restrain his partner, a fuda held to Hisoka's forehead while the young man's body convulsed incessantly.
Watari took charge, re-sedating the youngest Shinigami quickly, then efficiently drawing blood and preparing slides for more tests. While he worked, Tatsumi pulled Tsuzuki away from his partner and towards the large windows on the opposite side of the room. Speaking loud enough for his new partner to hear, Tatsumi asked, "Tsuzuki, were you here when the attack began?"
"Yeah, Tsuzuki answered, almost breathless from exertion, "I brought in some files Hisoka wanted to review before returning to work, plus breakfast. He had just started on the first report when he went off, just like yesterday!"
Watari interrupted, "Did the curse marks appear? We were caught off-guard with the last seizure. It could help us to determine a treatment."
Tsuzuki immediately tensed. "Yes, it was glowing red. At first I thought *he* was here, but I sensed no intruders during the entire episode. The bastard! Why won't he leave us alone?"
Tatsumi could easily read the combination of anger and fear in those words, as well as understand the use of 'us' instead of 'him.' Muraki had left his mark on both men, body and mind. But he couldn't allow his anger to cloud his judgment. Not now. They had work to do.
Tatsumi walked over to Watari's workstation, and laid claim to the phone found there. Within moments he was demanding information from the GuShoShin in his most commanding tone.
"Look for anything unusual taking place at ten-thirty yesterday morning, then again within the last half-hour, starting around eight-fifteen. Any large numbers of suspicious deaths, peculiar discrepancies in the Book of Death, anything suspicious. Call me directly."
Upon ending that conversation, Tatsumi turned to his co-workers. "Watari, I take it you'll be busy trying to reverse Hisoka's condition?" At the scientist's nod, he then turned to Tsuzuki. "I suggest you and I return upstairs and start reviewing all the most recent newspapers online for anything out of the usual taking place in the Land of the Living."
His former partner gave Tatsumi a sharp, appraising look before asking, "Do you think it will be that easy? Muraki loves to play mind games."
Tatsumi adjusted his glasses as he considered his reply. The urge to protect Tsuzuki and the others was, as always, powerful, yet he wouldn't lie. "Yes, but I think he wants to be found. The important question is 'what does he want?' and 'how do we stop him?'"
Tatsumi took a deep breath, then addressed both men, "The last thing I want is for anyone else to fall into that madman's grasp. No-one, and I mean *you*, Tsuzuki, goes after him alone." He waved an arm before the black-haired man, cutting off his comments before he could begin. "If we are going to stop Muraki, it is as a team. I am counting on both of you." With those last words Tatsumi turned and walked out the door, leaving both men behind.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Tsuzuki and Watari managed to exchange small smiles.
"He's still giving commands, not one full day back on active duty," Watari sighed, the warmth in his eyes giving lie to any complaint in the words, "Bossy! But I think things are going to work out just fine."
Tsuzuki's eyes had also regained some of their sparkle. "He was that way back when we were partners, Watari. He may have been a bit demanding, and definitely a slavedriver, but he always backed his words with action."
~And I always felt protected.~
He too, then headed upstairs; there was no time to waste.
***
It took them less than two hours to find the information they needed.
"Mainichi Newspapers reported this morning four bodies were found in a warehouse located near the eastern part of KyuShu University yesterday, mutilated beyond recognition. Nearby residents say they noticed nothing unusual taking place in the area other than the unexpected electrical storm that took place mid-morning." Tatsumi read from story shown on his computer monitor. "The time of death has yet to be determined, but police sources state the company owning the site had shut down for their annual two-week's vacation two days before the bodies were discovered."
"And Asahi Shimbum is reporting breaking news on their website of more bodies just found," Tsuzuki added, "Reports are sketchy, but police are searching the location, so they obviously believe the killings are very recent."
Tatsumi immediately turned to face him. "Close to the first murders?" he asked.
"Close enough," Tsuzuki replied, "they also happened in Fukuoka, but in the southwestern part of the city. Now they're reporting classes have been canceled at the Ropponmatsu Campus of the university, which is in the same general section, along with all other nearby schools, due to the police search and continuing poor weather."
Tatsumi was puzzled by the last comment. "The storms haven't abated? I thought Fukuoka was known for mild temperatures and calm weather."
Tsuzuki frowned, drumming the fingers of one hand on his desk. "It is, I've done enough work in the area to know. I've never encountered any problems there, as opposed to Kyoto." Tsuzuki commented, spitting out the last word as one would a curse.
Tatsumi didn't want to think about Kyoto either. Luckily enough the elder of the two GuShoShin approached the two men, providing a welcome distraction. Floating over to Tatsumi's desk, the god, as always brightly adorned in a blazing red cap and distinctive yellow bow, handed over a small report.
"All the expected souls are accounted for, Tatsumi. However, there have been some unexpected deaths, accidents or murders, in the last two days. Those souls never arrived, and their names were somehow removed from the Book soon after they appeared."
"And all from Fukuoka, I take it?" Tsuzuki's voice held a cynical edge to it that Tatsumi didn't care for from the normally warm-hearted Shinigami.
"Why, yes!" blurted out the astonished GuShoShin. "How did you know that?"
"Lucky guess." was Tsuzuki's grim retort. "Muraki's certainly made it clear where to start. Now all we have to do is find him."
"We can start with KyuShu University," Tatsumi declared. "Muraki tends to stay near hospitals and schools, using his medical knowledge to his advantage."
"And since the murders occurred near two of the school's campuses," Tsuzuki broke in, "he will probably strike there again. The man continues to harm innocents for his own selfish purposes."
"GuShoShin, could you please obtain all data available about KyuShu University?" Tatsumi politely inquired, adding his thanks as the god nodded his agreement then floated down the hall. He then turned to look at his ex-partner, watching the various feelings of anger, frustration and self-blame cross his expressive face.
"You did not cause this, Tsuzuki," Tatsumi stated calmly, "none of these events are your fault. The blame lies with a evil man lacking a conscience, no one else. He will use your doubts against you if you let him."
Tatsumi shifted uncomfortably under the full scrutiny of those dazzling amethyst eyes, almost missing Tsuzuki's softly-spoken comments.
"You're right, Tatsumi, but it's not that easy. You've met him twice in fights, but you haven't spent any great amount of time around him. He was a way of getting under your skin, turning your mind inside-out, finding every weakness and using them against you."
"I'm sorry--" Tatsumi started to apologize, but Tsuzuki cut him off. "You're doing everything you can, Tatsumi, and I appreciate that, both Hisoka and I do." Tsuzuki tried for a carefree smile, but to Tatsumi's eyes it was forced. "I want to check on him before we head down to ChiJou. I'll meet with you later, okay?"
Tatsumi returned the sad smile with one of his own. "Go on, you go visit Hisoka. I'll finish up here and join you at the infirmary shortly."
For almost an hour after Tsuzuki left the room Tatsumi sat at his desk, brooding, unmoving, completely ignoring his surroundings and the curious stares of his fellow Shinigami.
~Tsuzuki, he won't take his madness out on you this time, I swear!~
***
End Part Two