Piratical Peculiarities! The Two Lions of Pirate’s Market!

[Vio]

^{Kohaku #1}

---

It was a simple relationship: Wherever he went, she had no choice but to follow. One could not deny him, but it had always been clear — some times more than others — that he led with purpose. That and, well, she was stuck in a seemingly endless struggle to take back what was rightfully her own family’s. Such ventures had led the odd duo to a place called the Pirate’s Market. A place often surrounded by fog and whose weather almost always seemed rather dull as a result of winds that drew mists down from a place called Reverse Mountain. Not to say it couldn’t experience nicer weather from time to time, but today was not one of those days.

^{“Oi, oi! Takeda,” a man grumbled:
“Don’t ferget to take out the trash!”}

“Ah! Gomenasai, Avery-sama,” came the reply. Avery was a short old man, no taller than five feet, but only thanks to his hunched posture. A straight back betrayed him in his venerability, though his form was far from frail, muscles defined despite the thinning of his once broad and youthful physique. Though years had not been kind to him, he was still very much mobile with strength and wits about him, and that only made sense when one knew of his past. Most did not. Either way, the bearded and grey veteran was dressed in a simple cream vest and chocolate cardigan, with black slacks and a rather conspicuous pair of bright green frog slippers.

“What are ya? From the moon or somethin’? Just say ‘sorry’ like e’ryone else,” Avery grumbled, puffing cigar smoke as he poked his head out from the storeroom of a rather dull but presentable inn — The Lilypad. Over half-moon spectacles he eyed the oddity as she, dressed in her mint-coloured garb and golden-brown sash, scurried from one end of the hallway to the other. “Eh– And stop apologisin’ for e’rythin’!”

^{“I’m sorry…!”}

^{—— SOMEWHERE OUTSIDE ——}

Sniff… Sniff… Through the ramshackled streets of the Pirate’s Market walked another — a noble swordsman on one of his usual daily patrols through this lawless land. Once more, the bitter and lingering scent of burnt black powder greeted his nostrils upon the gently rolling winds, reminding him of the nature of the town. The rest was a veritable olfactory buffet, ranging from metallic odours to those of a much richer flavour, such as baked bread and simmering stews. But his daily routine had to include one visit above all others.

The jetty.

There he sat, staring with conviction out into the foggy sea beyond. The salty tang of the sea air helped to clear those unwanted odours from his nostrils, such was the blessing it would bring him every day since arriving. To depart this land would be a blessing further still, but he could not leave without her — his disciple. And for her to leave meant she needed to accomplish two things; the first was an easy task, the second far less so. He had no way to tell her, no means of instruction, nor did he see a need for one. If she could not figure it out of her own accord, then it was proof that she was still not worthy of the blade held by the curl of his bushy tail…

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
As Avery reminds Kohaku to take out the trash, Koshishi makes his daily rounds.

---

Notes: SnowDog

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi | #??????
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555

[SnowDog]

Stepping back out from the tavern he just inhabited, the half-blood's sight was greeted with the same thick fog that had blanketed the area before he had entered the building. Goji was rather surprised the fog had not cleared out by this point, it felt like he had been in there for quite a while now.

"Huh, that's weird." He muttered aloud to himself, one hand moving over his brow while his other moved to rest upon his hip, "The fog here is crazy! Wonder if a storm is brewing up or something." Glancing around him, the quaint little port town was bustling with a life that did not match the gloomy weather that surrounded it. For the briefest of moments, the half-blood had wondered where that mean-mugging guy from inside had run off to out here. With a shrug, Goji spun about on his heel and began to jaunter his way around the port area. He gave a gentle pat to his overcoat's chest pocket, making sure the Junpei's tiny mass was safely sat within. "I guess while we're here we might as well look to see if we can get ourselves a bigger boat. The raft I came here in could easily take us both but it's a bit rough to sleep in. Especially when it rains..."

-

After a couple of minutes of wandering the boardwalks and trying not to get too distracted by the various shops and kiosks, Goji found himself arriving before the docks. His eyes opened wide as he took in the sight of all the various ships, each one appearing to grow larger and larger as he walked down the row. Colorful sails with various symbols and iconography decorated the cloth; Jolly Rogers as they were called, albeit it was not a concept the half-blood fully understood. He just liked the pretty shapes.

Before he got too lost in the sights, Goji's eyes were drawn to something that wasn't a boat or building. Gazing out over the water sat a small dog, although it wasn't just the dog that drew his eye, it was rather the item the dog seemed to holding with his tail. As another creature who had the ability to hold things with his tail, this fascinated Goji who began making a bee-line towards the canine.

"YOOOO LITTLE DOG!! You can hold things in your tail too?! That's so cool!"

[Vio]

^{Kohaku #2}

---

It was one thing to clear the odours from his nostrils, another to purge them from his coat. And so, disgruntled but fastidious, he’d begun the tedium of near ritualistic cleanliness. People did not stop, but always gave him looks that ranged across many types of emotion — he had become a standard of their daily jaunts across the docks and jetties. Those that did not know of him either ignored his presence, or took a second look, but seldom did anyone untoward approach. On these streets there were rules, even if there were no laws.

“Yoooo! Little dog…!” Ears pricked slightly in the direction of the noise, listening attentively on the off-chance it were to become pertinent to his situation, but all the while nipping and licking away. The natural hustle and bustle of this city seldom bothered him, footsteps common to his ears, but never footfalls as enthusiastic as those that graced his senses. He stopped preening, body straightening and turning to face the oncoming thunder of feet. Who could have believed it all came from one individual? Wild azure mane and strangely undefined features spoke of mixed ancestry — two-legged folk rarely showed as drastic extremes of variance as his fellow four-legs.

“Mrrr,” he replied with a low but audible ‘purr’ from his throat, uncertain of what to make of this man that looked like evolution hadn’t progressed quite as far as it had with others. At the very least, the little dog couldn’t discern any ill intent coming from the blue baboon, just an apparently single-minded fascination with how he held a sword in his very gently wagging tail.

^{—— MEANWHILE ——}

Somehow managing to open the inn’s backdoor despite having both arms occupied, Takeda Kohaku carefully shuffled under the rather low frame. Or, at the very least, she tried to do so. The obnoxiously stuffed bag of junk she carried under one arm wasn’t too keen on leaving the premises, despite her best efforts at crushing it down to a more sizable form. There was only so much one could do to lessen the burden, especially when you were also trying to carry a bucket, mop, and broom in your other arm. Heavens had granted her just one blessing — the bucket was empty for now.

^{“Come… on!” Amber huffed:
“I can’t make you any small– Ah!”}

Riiip… Crash– Crumple– Splat! Giving way of its own accord, the trash bag sundered its own confines, contents spilling outwards as the sack gave way enough for the woman’s own exertion to carry her out into the backstreet. Feet catching on the threshold, Kohaku managed to save herself from landing face first in the assortment of hard and soft refuse, instead landing rather roughly upon her hip as she tumbled to one side, dropping bucket and mop with their classic wooden clamour.

^{“Owch…”}

^{“Oh, man… Oi! Lady,” a voice sneered:
“Look what you’ve gone and done…”}

“She’s gone and ruined your new boots, Diego,” said another, drawing Kohaku’s eyes upwards from the mess she’d created to a gang of five. Men of mostly average height, dressed in decidedly punkish attire — leather jackets and pants with a variety of patches sewn on. Driven by instinctual understanding of the situation, Kohaku knew exactly what she had to do next, wasting no time in standing tall and straight. And then…

“Sumimasen!” she exclaimed with a bow…

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
As Koshishi turns to face the oncoming monkey, Kohaku finds herself accidentally ruining a pirate’s new shoes!

---

Notes: N/A

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi [NPC] | #ffffff
Goji | #1979e6
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Diego [NPC] | #b92a2a
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555

[SnowDog]

Goji raised his hands defensively when the sword-wielding dog in front of him began to make a noise. He wasn't sure if it was an unfriendly tone, but Goji didn't wanna make enemies with this cool little bean.

"Hey there little guy, it's alright!" he reassured the little shiba, "Check it out though! I can also hold things with my tail!" The half-blood glanced around for something he could demonstrate his abilities with, not finding anything in the immediate vicinity around them. For a moment he pondered showing off with a sizable rock nearby, or even a decent-sized stick. A stick? A rock?! C'mon, Goji! Those don't hold a candle to an actual sword! With a sigh of frustration, Goji bit the bullet and scooped up the nearby stick with his tail, securing his grip on the lower part of it to appear as if he was holding it like a sword and swinging it around lightly for effect.

"See? I can hold things too!" Goji exclaimed with a hearty smile. "Say, you wouldn't happen to have an owner would ya? I'd love to have a cool little dog like you on my cr-"

"Hey kid," a voice spoke out coming from just behind Goji, cutting him off mid-thought. The Monkey-boy turned to face the direction the voice had come from, locking eyes with a rugged pair of pirates who were standing just a few feet away from him and the shiba, one looking more sternly down at Goji while the other stood off to the side of the man with a sickly smile curling at the edge of his lips, "That wouldn't happen to be your dog, would it?"

Goji side-eyed Koshishi for a hot second before gazing back at the pirates.

"No, but I was just about to-"

"GORAGORAGORAGORA! Come on Donnie, we're wasting time asking him!" The grinning man chortled as stepped closer to Goji and 'Shishi, his eyes slowly fixating on Koshishi, noticeably more on the sword tucked in his tail rather than the dog himself, "Let's just take it and get out of here!"

"Tsk Tsk, didn't your mother ever teach you manners, Durden?" Donnie said walking up beside his comrade. Both ruffians drew their swords and aimed the points of their blades at the monkey and dog. "Figured I'd be polite. Listen freak, you can keep the mutt, but we're taking that sword! A blade like that will fetch us quite a nice sum of berri! DARRORORORORO!"

[Vio]

^{Kohaku #3}

---

“It’s alright,” the monkey man said, using his tail to scoop up a stick, which Koshishi eyed. Was this really all people cared for when they saw a dog? Well, if not for his stoic grasp upon the blade reminding him of its presence, an eager waggle of instinctual excitement may have occurred. “See? I can hold things, too,” the blue man spoke, waving the stick as if it were a blade in its own right. Were it not for the goofball’s smile and artlessness, one could have mistaken it for a challenge.

The dog’s eyes sharpened.

^{“Hey,” said another:
“…Would it?”}

^{“No, but…”}

“Let’s just take it and get out of here,” groaned a second. Two figures that the curious canine had spied meandering the docks of this land, though had paid no mind to, had now set their sights on opportunity. They were up to no good, that much piqued the senses of the sword-carrying Shiba — their scent was pungent like sea salt, sweat, and gunpowder, and their body language was half-hidden and hostile. Preternatural senses weren’t needed to see that they meant ill, to which Koshishi responded with slightly bared teeth and partly raised hackles.

^{“Listen, freak,” said the first:
“We’re taking that sword…!”}

“Grrr– Rau!” barked the Little Lion, recognising the threat and yet unfazed by the blades brandished against himself and the blue one. By no means was his vocalisation aggressive or panicked, but strangely calm and assertive. A bark of confidence, as if to tell the troublesome twosome ‘I will not surrender’. Ground held, chin up, the orange animal’s stance eased now that the truth of the scene had been revealed. He watched, steadfast as the two ruffians split themselves and trained their blades upon the stranger as if to keep him at bay…

^{—— MEANWHILE ——}

“That’s right, I– Wait… What?” questioned the man identified as Diego, seemingly taken aback by Amber’s actions as she stood locked in a low bow. “Tch! Lady, I don’t think you get it,” he began, coolly shrugging off his moment of surprise and resuming that characteristic sneer and swagger with which he seemed so comfortable as he stepped closer, prompting the Lioness to raise her head anew. “You think you can get away with just saying ‘sorry’? How long have you been here? Any length of time and you should know that ‘sorry’ ain’t gonna cut it…”

^{“Ah! I didn’t–” Kohaku stammered:
“G– Gomenasai, Diego-san…!”}

^{“…The f*¢<…”}

“Grr… You’re starting to test me. And, let me make it clear, you don’t wanna p¡$$ me and my boys off, you got that? So how’s about you make it up to us,” the punk of a man with his oily, slicked back red hair said, putting forth one boot atop the fallen pail — a boot barely blemished by the spilled trash. “If you’re doing chores for the old geezer that runs that s#¡+hole, then make yourself useful and polish these! I want them looking good as new, else me and the lads will have to repay the favour,” he sneered again, his compatriots propping themselves up against backstreet walls and posturing as if to block any immediate exit that wasn’t the backdoor and its littered step…

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
As Koshishi and the monkey deal with aggressive thieves, Kohaku proves to be a little too annoying for Diego’s liking!

---

Notes: N/A

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi [NPC] | #ffffff
Goji | #1979e6
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Diego [NPC] | #b92a2a
Donnie [NPC] | #881f1f
Durden [NPC] | #787878
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555

[SnowDog]

These goons' words appeared to not have the effect on the sword-wielding dog that they had initially hoped for. Both Durden and Donnie's lips curled at the side of their mouth, flashing a sinister grin to both of the fur-covered individuals standing between them and their prize.

"I don't care." Goji replied, responding to their previous threat with a bit more directness than his usual cheery self. Donnie's brow crooked as he watched the smile on Goji's face disappear in the blink of an eye. The little sword dog then stood tall and barked something at the wannabe sword thieves, which sounded like he wasn't willing to back down from this altercation.

"Y-Yo Don, you just gonna let them talk to you like tha-"

"SHUT IT! Listen here, fuzzhead; I already told you, we're taking that sword!" Growing flustered, Donnie took a half step closer, the tip of his sword edging closer to the exposed skin on Goji's chest. "Now I tried being nice, tried being civil about all this, but now?! Now you've forced our hand!"

Before Donnie could make his next move, he fell onto his back as Goji instantly shifted into his zoan hybrid form, towering over the sword thief with a much greater mass and bulk than before. This had been the second time today he had to deal with somebody in this matter, only he hadn't needed to toss this one into a wall first. Then again, the day was still young...

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

"It's their sword." The half-gorilla growled, his voice reverberating lowly as he stared daggers down at the helpless goon. Donnie looked over at Durden who was staring back unsure of what just happened.

"Durden! Quit standing there! Grab the dog!"

Snapping back to reality, the sword thief shook off his nerves and turned his focus towards the determined pup and made a lunge for him, diving down to try and apprehend the amazing sword held in his tail.

[Vio]

^{Kohaku #4}

---

Koshishi’s focus was unwavering. It had to be, always. There was no room for foolishness here. No room for those who didn’t heed the warnings of their environment. Whatever the blue one was, his own confidence — a far cry from his foolishness — shone through. Koshishi would remember that. All the same, his focus was far from the curiosity of the simian sapien as the moment intensified, for it was made very apparent that these ruffians would not turn tail without a fight.

Humans were so very blind.

^{“Eeeeh–?!” Durden panicked:
“How’d he– Ah…! I’m on it, Don!”}

“Mrrr– Rau!” the little lion rebuked, paws in motion as he spun about on the spot as if chasing his tail, bounding sideways as the thief lunged. What Durden received was a blow to the face as the sought after sword’s sheath smacked him squarely in the schnozz, knocking him back as he clutched his nose in pain and cussed under his breath. But by the time the man opened his eyes, what he and Donnie saw now was the steel bared. Scabbard still held firm in his tail, the stoic shiba now clutched the sword’s grip in his jaws.

^{—— MEANWHILE ——}

^{“Oh,” Amber exhaled:
“I’m sorry! I don’t–”}

^{“STOP APOLOGISING, DAMMIT!!”
“…Gomen…”}

Smack…! Diego’s hand swung fast, the clatter of trash the only noise to accompany the successive silence as Miss Takeda was knocked to the ground by a backhand from the now enraged thug. A red mark left itself upon her face, but she didn’t care about the fact she had been ‘wounded’ physically — to be knocked to the ground by such a man as this was a challenge to the one thing she held dear. And so she stood, hand finding purchase upon the handle of the broom as she raised herself from amongst the litter.

^{“Learn your place, b¡+€#,” Diego growled:
“You don’t get to talk to me — only do as I say!”}

“Those who act without honour,” Kohaku spoke, turning to face Diego with broom in hand. “Are not deserving of the respect they demand,” she stated, defiant and poised as the ruffian cracked his knuckles. His comrades, equally disgusting and shameful no doubt, placed themselves more aggressively. But even then, as she stood there with such conviction, Diego’s sneer could not help but return in the form of a laugh.

^{“What? You wanna go?” he mocked:
“A broom’s not gonna help you…!”}

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
As Goji and Koshishi face off against thieves, Kohaku demonstrates conviction irrefutable once Diego loses his cool!

---

Notes: N/A

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi [NPC] | #ffffff
Goji | #1979e6
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Diego [NPC] | #b92a2a
Donnie [NPC] | #881f1f
Durden [NPC] | #787878
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555

[SnowDog]

"No... No, there's- There's no way that mutt just hit me the way it did, right?!" Durden struggled to understand what he saw before him. The small Shiba with its ornate sword unsheathed and held within its mouth glared back at his would-be assailants. Even Donnie could see past Goji's form well enough to witness the little dog standing ready for their next move. Gritting his teeth, the roughneck thief scuttled back a bit before rising back up to his feet. He then reached into his coat and produced a small pistol from within, spinning the weapon around his trigger finger with a small flourish before taking aim toward Koshishi.

"Then get off your ass and put it down then!" He roared to his comrade, "Damn thing might be armed, but it ain't bulletproof!"

Goji wasn't fast enough to stop the man from scuttling away from him and for a moment was hoping that the transformation would've been enough to just scare the duo off. The sight of the thief drawing the gun however snapped him right back into action! Dropping his arms down and running in a similar manner to a gorilla, Goji bolted towards the sword thief before springing himself into the air.

"Shifting Swing-"

The massive shadow of a hybrid-formed Goji soon enveloped Donnie whose attention was now turning towards the leaping half-blood. With both arms held high, the blue-haired monkey boy utilized his zoan abilities once more to shift from his hybrid form to a full-on gorilla. Donnie's eyes widened as he reflexively tried to bring his weapon upwards to him to try and protect himself from the nearly 400 pounds of falling ape about to come down upon him. With a massive swing, Goji brought both of his clenched fists down in a mighty arcing motion, clobbering the thief straight down to the ground.

"SLAM!"

Struggling a bit to rise to his feet and catch his bearings, the would-be thief known as Durden stumbled a bit forward still holding his nose. Following the orders given to him, Durden also reached into his coat and drew forth a similarly shaped pistol. As his face slowly began to swell, he took aim at the dog. With a bit of venom in his words, he sneered one last look at the dog before pulling back the pistol's hammer.

"Bye-bye, pooch..."

[Vio]

^{Koshishi [NPC] #1}

---

“Bye-bye, pooch,” Durden spoke, clicking the hammer of his pistol. Yet Koshishi was attentive, ears alert and eyes focused. Warnings had failed and it seemed that his companion in this confrontation — however monstrous he might have been — understood that as well. In that case, it was time to forget the bark and deliver the bite, and so the shiba sprang into motion when all other attempts had failed. With due haste, he bounded forwards, twisting and turning in an irregular bob and weave that made the gunman less sure of his shot.

Bang– Pew…! Lead flew, the ring of burning gunpowder harsh on the canine curiosity’s ears, but it was the boards of the jetty that suffered the impact of a hot bullet embedding itself into them. Unpredictable motions and a sudden leap had given the dog the perfect opportunity to dodge a bullet, even if by just inches as he felt displaced air ripple his coat. Paws hit the ground into a full forward sprint now, closing the gap between himself and Durden as the thug panickedly cocked the hammer of his weapon again.

SPOILER: Click to show

{

^{Dog Sword Style: Hunting Sword
Kentōryū: Ryōken}

}
_{Holding the sword in his mouth, Koshishi takes a moment to ready himself, then dashes towards his opponent at speed. Upon closing the gap, he performs a single, powerful slash upwards and across whilst performing a leap and back flip.}

Slash! Steel flourished in an upward arc as Koshishi turned forward momentum into a vertical, spring-loaded leap, blade slicing through cloth and flesh in a shallow but certain warning to his opponent — this pooch wasn’t to be trifled with. Durden let out a cough of shock and pain as he tumbled back onto his butt again, pistol careening from his grip and bouncing off into the water as the little lion’s form flipped over and landed on all fours again.

“Mrrr,” Koshishi growled…

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
The focus stays on Koshishi for this one, as he delivers a warning strike!

---

Notes: N/A

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi [NPC] | #ffffff
Goji | #1979e6
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Diego [NPC] | #b92a2a
Donnie [NPC] | #881f1f
Durden [NPC] | #787878
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555

[SnowDog]

Gunshots rang out in the market which caused immediate panic to everyone around those involved in this scuffle. Goji's eyes widened as he looked up from the crater he just implanted the wannabe thief into. His gaze darted around trying to find Durden who had moved away from his position, fearing his shots were successful against the dog. However, upon seeing the resolution to that scene, Goji's expression shifted from fear to outright excitement! Standing above Durden's body, the dog was no longer defenseless and unarmed; held in his teeth was the mighty sword unsheathed from the scabbard still tucked into the signature curl of a shiba's tail. Stars practically formed in Goji's eyes as he shifted back to his 'human' form.

"WHAAAAA That's so COOL!!! I didn't know you could use that sword!"

Goji's fanboying focus of the sword-swinging shiba swiftly shifted back towards Donnie as some sort of buzzing was coming from the crater he was still stuck in.

~Puru puru puru... Puru puru puru...~

Goji's brow crooked as he wondered what kind of noise Donnie was making over there and casually approached the impact area where the wannabe thief still lie, his eyes rolled back as he laid unconscious on the ground still.

~Puru puru puru... Puru puru puru...~

There was that noise again. Goji bent down to examine Donnie, leaning down to put his ear on the thug's chest. Wasn't coming from inside of him so he could rule out that he didn't have a freak heart or something. The blue-haired half-blood rose his head again and began to frisk Donnie's coat for the source of this strange noise. As he fumbled with the dark leather jacket, Goji managed to accidentally bump Donnie's transponder snail tucked into one of the inner pockets.

~Puru puru puru... Puru pur-*KA-Lick*~

"Oh it stopped."

>>"Donnie, it's Walt, do you copy?"<<

Goji looked back at the shiba with a bit of confusion on his face. He didn't recognize the voice coming from Donnie's pocket but he sounded much more collected than either of these two thugs ever tried to be.

>>"The boss hasn't heard you two check-in for a while. Is everything okay? Do you copy? Over."<<

"Hey little buddy, come check this out! This guy's coat can talk!"

>>"Boss is moving the operation forward. Standby, we're sending reinforcements to your designated area, get ready to raze the markets..."<< *KA-Lick*~

"Reinwhatsits now? What does his coat mean by razing a market?"

[Vio]

^{Kohaku #5}

---

“Yip!” Koshishi replied, seemingly having claimed victory over Durden, who had apparently passed out from the strike that had been delivered unto him. By no means would it be fatal. All the same, the canine contender took a few seconds to wipe a small amount of claret from the katana’s blade on the ruffian’s trouser leg, paying mind that the edge was clear before rotating it in his mouth and carefully returning it to its saya. Ears pricked up at the distorted mumbling coming from Donnie.

^{“Hey, little buddy,” Goji said:
“This guy’s coat can talk…!”}

^“…”

“Boss is moving the operation forward…” Click! And with that, the voice had stopped. The shiba’s eyes narrowed as the question was posed, a glance to the simian sir given both to affirm that something was wrong, and perhaps to simply question his intelligence. Even then, he gave little more than a grunt before darting off into the streets of the Pirate’s Market, where wooden walkways and stone paved the way through an otherwise labyrinthine hive of less than reputable folk.

^{—— MOMENTS LATER ——}

Thwack…! Bop…! Smack…! Mere moments was all it took—mere moments were all that she needed. By the time that Koshishi and his curious company entered the back alley, they would be immediately met with the panicked and pained sounds of yet more rabble scurrying away as if their life depended on it. Crooks with bruised limbs and great lumps where something hard had whipped into them with significant force. And there, resting the brush of a broom against the ground, was a lone woman standing over the scrambling mess of a man with slick red hair as he clambered back to his feet and began a hasty exit.

^{“Y– You b¡+¢#…! I’ll get you back for this,” Diego rasped and ran:
“When the boss finds out, you’re dead! You hear me…?!”}

“…Sorry…” Bowing her head slightly as she uttered out a soft apology, Miss Takeda quickly turned back to start sweeping the litter up into a neat pile before a familiar form approached. That of a dog. “Hm? Oh, there you are, Koshishi! Where have you been?” Dark honey eyes soon thereafter looked up from the little lion and to the shock of blue that seemed to have been accompanying him…

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Post Synopsis:—}
A worried Koshishi decides to head back to his master, Kohaku, just in time for Goji to witness Diego and his lot hightailing it out!

---

Notes: N/A

---

Takeda Kohaku | #decc9c
Koshishi [NPC] | #ffffff
Goji | #1979e6
Avery [NPC] | #31dc87
Diego [NPC] | #b92a2a
Snail Voice [NPC] | #ffa31a
Donnie [NPC] | #881f1f
Durden [NPC] | #787878
Miscellaneous [NPC] | #eeeeee | #bbbbbb | #888888 | #555555