Weapons (3)
*THWANG*
Reiji looked up at the arrows that had been fired into the sky, whistling away at a much faster speed than he had anticipated.
When they reached their peak, they plummeted straight down, gravity doing its duty as usual.
*TCHAAK*
The three arrows embedded themselves into the concrete, cracks forming around the entry point to showcase just how sharp the tips were.
'Is that video game logic or are those tips made from fucking Vibranium??' he thought internally.
"Aren't they beautiful?" Hayashi laughed uproariously, clapping his hands with glee at the power of his weapons.
"Yes, but only when they're in the right hands," Reiji replied.
Hayashi shifted positions on his throne, leaning back as he refocused on the group of men that had intruded on his sanctuary.
"Don't worry, they're in the perfect hands! I'll make such good use of them!"
'That's what I'm worried about,' Reiji rolled his eyes.
"Let's make things easy for both of us. You give us control of the shipment, and you get to leave the country with your head still attached to your neck. How does that sound?" he asked coldly.
"Haha, quite bold of you to threaten me when I'm the one with the upper hand here."
"Do you seriously think that's the case?"
"I have a good reason for it," Hayashi said with a smug look.
Reiji was slightly taken aback by his confidence, which didn't seem to be purely due to the weapons in his hands, though he didn't show it outwardly.
'Is there some other factor?'
If that was the case, he made sure to raise his vigilance and was grateful for planning the contingencies beforehand.
"I'd offer you a seat, but as you can see, mine is the only one around here," Hayashi waved his arms, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"We're fine, let's get down to business. I'm guessing you weren't exactly planning on keeping this operation a secret, seeing how you were expecting us to show up."
The portly man grinned widely, revealing a few gold teeth that had replaced his missing ones.
"Smart lad. I don't quite remember you, but you don't look like a regular member, seeing how you're commanding this group despite your young age. Are you related to Daichi in any way?"
"Is that important?" Reiji asked.
"Not really, it doesn't make much difference. But I am a curious man, after all. In any case, I was actually hoping that you all would come, as it makes things easier to explain."
Reiji crossed his arms, leaning back against the steel beam that held up the roofing covering them.
"Let's hear it then."
"Tell me, does Daichi think I'm doing this for revenge? Or, to build up my own force again?"
"....A bit of both."
"I don't blame him. Some nights I dream of gouging his eyes out, lavishing over the thought of him begging for mercy and crying out for help! Oh, I get such good sleep when it happens, you have no idea," Hayashi moaned, shuddering in a way that made Reiji want to puke.
"Wow," he recoiled in disgust.
The man shook his head and continued, "You may not know, but he took everything from me, more than what you all would be privy to! I feel like I'm actually pretty tame with my dreams, all things considered. But the point is, revenge is definitely a goal of mine, one that will happen sooner or later, just.... not at this moment."
Hayashi stood up slowly, adjusting his white suit and fedora as he took out a piece of paper from his pocket.
"You see, I'm not actually here for my own purposes; I'm simply completing a job I was hired to do. As much as I would love to put an arrow through that man's head right now, that will have to wait. I was hoping Daichi would come personally, so I leaked information about this plan deliberately. This was, of course, at the request of my client. For some reason, they wanted him to come pick up his 'mail' instead of it being delivered to him, though I'm not sure why. I guess you'll have to do."
He held out the envelope, intending for someone to take it from him.
Baldy glanced at Reiji, who nodded.
He walked over carefully, watching the movements of the guards behind Hayashi in case they made a sudden move.
But it seemed like they really didn't have any intention of fighting.
He grabbed the paper and returned while still facing the opposing men, handing it over to Reiji, who opened it immediately.
***
Dear Daichi,
I hope this letter finds you well.
I miss you.
I miss us.
It's quite boring in here, with no one to talk to but the walls.
But no matter.
We will talk again soon, face-to-face.
And I pray that this time, we won't be at odds.
For your sake.
And for mine.
These crossbows are a gift; do with them what you will.
Ideally, you won't be idiotic enough to dispose of them still.
Because you know you'll need them, no matter your skill.
But even if you do?
Haha
This is a message.
A message that something like this isn't enough to stop me.
Oh, and let Hayashi leave the port alive. He's quite useful for now, you see?
Unless you don't mind the consequences, which would be a pity
Till the day we meet once more, the day when you flee
Your dearest friend,
~ Z
***
Reiji clenched his teeth, his mind racing with disbelief as his hands unknowingly crumpled the ends of the letter by accident.
'That psychopath..... He actually showed up this early? And he's related to the syndicate somehow?'
A certain arc from the game popped up in his memory, his heart pumping faster and faster as he struggled to understand what this meant in the bigger picture.
'But.... Ah shit, I didn't sign up for something like this!'
"Oho, from your expression, I doubt that the letter contained anything good. Mind sharing it with me?" Hayashi chuckled at Reiji's crumbling mood.
"....You didn't read it?"
"I'm a professional. I was told not to, so I didn't. I don't even know who my client is," he shrugged.
"Then what were you planning on doing with these crossbows?" Reiji asked in puzzlement.
"My client said I'd know after handing over the letter, but I'm assuming you'll leave us be, with how disgruntled you appear. Did he threaten you somehow? Or maybe struck a deal you couldn't turn down? Come on, I'm getting impatient here," Hayashi snapped irritably.
Reiji raised an eyebrow and let out a small laugh at his ignorance.
'He's not going to react well....'
"On the contrary, it's you who'll be leaving us be. The letter states that the crossbows are a gift for us."
"....What?"
Hayashi blinked. And then blinked again.
"What the fuck do you mean??" he yelled.
"Are you deaf? Your client is quite friendly; he's giving us this shipment for free."
"Let me see the letter!" Hayashi demanded.
"Ah, I can't do that. It contains some sensitive information, you see."
Reiji couldn't let him know that even though he wasn't lying, the letter wasn't exactly a good thing.
If Hayashi, who already had thoughts of revenge, took advantage of this moment of weakness in the future, it could be devastating.
And telling him about Z would be even worse; it would give him unnecessary confidence for now.
"Then I don't believe you," he growled.
"I'm not asking you to. You know as well as I do that there are only two ways this ends. You either try fighting back and forfeit your life, or you hand over the shipment and walk away alive," Reiji sneered.
"No! I was promised safety! And a path forward! There's no way I'll hand over this many weapons to that accursed man!"
"You said you don't even know who your client is. Why did you even believe that?"
"That's not your concern; the promises were validated, so you have to be the one who's lying," Hayashi hissed.
"....Well, we were asked to let you leave safely, but that doesn't change the fact that these crossbows are now ours."
Hayashi collapsed back onto his throne, his sweaty face wrinkling with anger and frustration.
"...This can't be happening, this was supposed to be the start of my redemption," he murmured to himself.
"So, what's it going to be?"
Reiji shifted his balance, placing more weight on his front feet in preparation.
"Nononono, I-I can't!" the deranged man wailed as he grabbed the crossbow next to him and pulled back the mechanized string.
"SCATTER!" Reiji yelled, and the men behind him sprang into action.
Hayashi's own guards were a step slower, not expecting this turn of events.
They quickly readied their own weapons, the close-combat henchmen unsheathing their knives and batons while the archers stepped back for a better vantage point.
"I FINALLY HAD HOPE, AND I'D RATHER DIE THAN START OVER AGAIN!"
Hayashi aimed at Reiji, who had quickly ducked behind the wide steel beam he was leaning against before pressing a button on his phone.
*THWANG*
An arrow flew past, completely missing his area as he watched it shoot towards the body of water, submerging once it had gone quite a distance.
'Where is he?'
Reiji looked towards the trucks where the cargo was being offloaded, and grinned as one of them roared to life.
At the same time, the electricity in the entire port turned off, enveloping the location in semi-darkness, with the only light coming from the moon filtering its way through the extremely thick clouds, and the beams from the truck illuminating the area in front of it.
'Bingo.'
