The Disappearance of Osomatsu-san

Chapter 83: Checkmate

Todo and Lonely only woke up to the sound of screaming, not so long after they were knocked out. Choro rubbed on his temples with a whine, while Todo hissed from the stinging pain from behind his head. But when he opened his pink eyes, he saw six identical girls by the doorway, all screaming in sync, a man that happened to look like a police officer carrying a flashlight with one hand and a walkie-talkie on the other, Kara blocking off Chibita's butcher's knife with what seemed to be a metal skewer, Oso blocking off Totoko's broadsword with an axe, Ichi at the far back of the room, back pressing against the wall, and Jyushi facing him with a katana stabbing through something..

Wait.

"HATABOU?!"

Hatabou stood in front of Ichi, arms spread wide, beads of sweat dripping from his forehead, breathing harshly, and gritting his teeth. The pain of having something piercing through you was too much to be described in mere words, but that wasn't what Hatabou was focused on; seeing one of his friends, especially Jyushi, in a way like this.. it was much more painful than the katana piercing through him. This.. it was Jyushi, yes, it was Jyushi holding the katana.. but it wasn't Jyushi at all. His eyes were lifeless.. and as silly as it sounded, Hatabou knew that it wasn't Jyushi's heart.

Whoever you are, I will never forgive you for doing this to Jyushi.

"You.." Jyushi let out a gasp, his arm trembling. "Hatabou.."

As painful as it was, Hatabou forced himself to make a smile. He knew it wasn't a good idea, as everything hurt so much, but.. he had way too much emotions coursing through him. He had no idea why the hell there were two Osomatsus, or why Kara was fighting someone with a skewer, or why Hana and Yuki were on the floor.. but Jyushi was in front of him, and whatever was controlling him had tried to make Jyushi kill his own brother. But the reactions.. it was a sign that Jyushi was still in there.

He just had to wake him up.

"Jyushi.." Hatabou was having trouble trying to speak to the point he forgot to add his verbal tic at the end of his sentence. Not good, he thought. Jyushi's eyes were trembling now, darting over to Hatabou and the katana. He had to show Jyushi he was okay, if he wanted Jyushi to snap out of whatever was controlling him. So, even if he wanted to, there was no way in hell was he making comments about the katana. "You.. heh, wow, you're so fast. I almost thought you'd get to Ichi.. argh!" Oh my god. He was coughing up blood. He knew it was blood, it was impossible it wasn't-

Jyushi suddenly pulled the katana out of him, causing him to scream in pain. He fell to his knees and started coughing, not noticing the dark look Jyushi had on his eyes, even darker than the one he previously had.

Lonely tried to get up, and so did Todo, but both males flinched at the sudden pain on their bodies. Totoko had thrown Lonely hard enough to knock him and Todo out, and her strength was something that shouldn't be underestimated, even as she was looking at Hatabou with a hint of shock on her face. Chibita was the same, and it gave Kara a bit more time to crawl out of Chibita's area and against the wall, right next to the unconscious Osomatsu. The group of sisters huddled together in fear, watching the scene play out, while Ken-san stood in front of them defensively, just in case someone were to attack them.

"Jyushi.." Hatabou tried talking again, covering his mouth with his hand. Something fell out of Hatabou's coat pocket as he started talking, and it made no noise as it fell to the floor. Hatabou grasped at the small object with his fist, before coughing again. "Jyushi.. you've grown strong.. heh.. I'm proud of you.." Tears were forming on his eyes as he continued to talk. "I remember when we were kids, before I left for Akatsuka Ward.. you were always so clingy to Ichi.. and when I left, I met a friend that always reminded me of you brothers.. and that was Osomatsu."