Kasane Hattori's Truth

Kazuya drove up to his older sister Kasane’s flower shop, Blooming Haven, in Minato City. It was a two-storey wooden building, with the shop on the first floor and Kasane’s apartments on the second.

Kasane stood on the balcony connected to the outer stairs, looking out for her brother’s Honda Civic. Kazuya had called her frantically fifteen minutes ago, warning her to be ready for his arrival. So, she had thrown a thin grey jacket over her pink nightdress and slipped her feet into her wooden flip-flops. She was leaning on the bannisters of her balcony, looking at the street to the right. She saw her brother’s grey car stopping at her shop.

“Kazuya!” she shouted.

She ran down the stairs, but froze at the bottom. Kazuya had jumped out of the driver’s seat and swung the other door open, taking out his fainted half-dog-yōkai colleague. Kasane covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes wide from horror. The half-dog woman had a burned arm, a wounded throat, and lips smeared in blood.

“W-What did you do?!” Kasane cried to Kazuya.

“I’ll explain at the house. Please, heal her!” Kazuya begged, his eyebrows drawn up in the inner corners.

He ran up the stairs and into Kasane’s apartments. Kasane followed him, as frantic as he.

“Put her on my bed!” she urged, pushing her bedroom door open. “There… Now, let me see!”

She dashed to her bed, where Kazuya had placed the woman, and eyed her injured throat. She took out her handkerchief and wiped the blood off the woman’s mouth. Then, she held her hands above the woman’s throat and arm and channelled some warm, green energy into her wounds. Floral aroma spread from her hands. The woman’s throat and arm began to heal.

Kazuya sighed in relief. Inuko Takeda would be alright now. He plopped down on a chair nearby, exhausted. But then he perked up again, remembering the yakuza thugs were still after them. He whipped his pistol out of his pocket and jumped from his seat, about to return to the balcony.

“What did you do?” Kasane demanded more sternly. She had finished healing the dog woman. “How come your colleague was injured? Why were you speeding? And why are you holding a pistol? Kazuya, I need answers!”

“I… It was my fault. I miscalculated.” Kazuya sighed, angry with himself. He stood at the balcony threshold and peeked out at the empty street. “I… I failed to incriminate the Kagenashi Clan over the abduction and murder of a certain politician, Fuyuki Nobara, today. My junior colleague, Inuko Takeda,” he pointed to the dog woman on the bed, “and I were on the case together. So, when we failed, I got upset, and, with your message and all… I decided to visit the Kagenashi Clan on their turf. Miss Takeda could track them, so_”

“What?” Kasane’s eyes widened. “Kazuya, I messaged you that I was worried, and you went into the yakuza den?!”

“I couldn’t stand that freak manipulating you!” Kazuya cried. The anger he’d borne in his heart for four years erupted. “I wanted to shoot him dead! But he didn’t die even from the magical bullet. Miss Takeda helped me escape and was injured. She hurt some of those foxes, so now they’re on our tail.” He clutched his pistol and looked outside. “I can’t let anything happen to her!”

Kasane stared at him, her mouth agape. She knitted her brows, got up from her seat, and walked up to Kazuya.

“You think Yukihiro manipulates me?” she asked, her voice shaking from suppressed rage. She grabbed the collar of Kazuya’s shirt and pulled his face closer, glaring into his green eyes. “You haven’t read any of my messages these past four years, have you? It was I who suggested taking our friendship further, Kazuya! Yukihiro never crossed a line.”

Kazuya was shocked. Kasane had asked the grandson of Genzaburō Kagenashi out? – His clan had murdered their parents!

“Why would you do that?” he exclaimed. “Did you forget that our parents_”

“No, I’ve never forgotten.” Kasane’s frown deepened. “That’s how Yukihiro and I met, to begin with. He entered my flower shop for the first time when I was eighteen. Naturally, I wanted to kill him. But first, I needed the truth. So I imbued some of the roses for his ikebana with a special poisonous fragrance.”

Her smile turned malicious, giving Kazuya goosebumps. This was his sister’s true face – a fierce protector, making all his bullies run back to their mothers. Ever since childhood, Kasane had been ruthless towards anyone who dared hurt her family. Kazuya realised that she hadn’t changed a bit, unlike what he believed.

“In about five minutes, I had a hypnotised yakuza heir in my shop.” Kasane smiled as though she had had fun back then. “I tied him up with my thorny lianas and took him to the basement, where I keep my plant experiments. The drug I gave him is my special invention, which lets any yōkai speak only the truth. So, I asked him about our parents. He swore that Genzaburō Kagenashi and his clan weren’t at fault. He didn’t even know who was.”

Kazuya sighed. His anger towards his sister vanished. Now, he regretted not having communicated with her for years. But one doubt still gnawed at him.

“What if Yukihiro didn’t know?” he asked. “What if Genzaburō did it without his knowledge?”

“I thought about that, too.” Kasane shrugged. “But one thing was clear: Yukihiro was innocent. So, I healed him and let him go. I thought I’d ambush Genzaburō separately, but Yukihiro never allowed him near my shop.” She chuckled. “He must’ve realised I was dangerous.”

“So, he didn’t gang up on you with his cronies that very evening?” Kazuya laughed, amused by his sister’s smugness.

“No. He came back alone and talked with me.” Kasane blushed, remembering the handsome yakuza heir confronting her about her lethal methods. “He said he’d never been cornered by a human before, and was impressed by my skills. He wanted to recruit me to the Kagenashi Clan, but I refused. However, he kept coming back as a client, so we became friends. After two years, I decided to move the relationship further. He was a refined man, an aesthete… And I loved foxes. So, we hit it off.”

“Why didn’t you tell me all this?” Kazuya frowned, upset about their four-year-long misunderstanding. “We could’ve avoided so many problems!”

“Who let me?” Kasane glowered at him. “You sulked at me ever since you found out I was dating Yukihiro! You never read my messages and barely answered my calls.”

Kazuya wanted to retort when a shuffle came from the bed. Both siblings whipped around, looking at Inuko. She was watching them, her white dog ears pricked up.

“Miss Takeda?” Kazuya dashed to her. “A-Are you okay? Wait…” he turned red. “How long have you been awake?”

“Long enough to hear everything,” Inuko answered. “Sorry! I was too curious to interrupt.”

Her cheeks flushed, having admitted to eavesdropping. She noticed that her arm, which the black nine-tailed fox woman had burned, was healed now. And her throat no longer felt sore despite her usage of Raijū’s Bark. Neither her voice nor her lungs had suffered.

Inuko glanced at Kasane, the new face in the room. She was Hattori Senpai’s older sister and possessed Wood Magic, as Inuko had inferred from their conversation. Wood Magic had many uses, including healing. Inuko guessed that Kasane Hattori must be powerful, having healed a half-yōkai like her, who had used her patron god’s magic. She had never recovered so quickly from Raijū’s Bark.

“T-Thanks for healing me, Miss Hattori.” She smiled shyly at Kasane.

“Oh, don’t mention it!” Kasane returned a gentle beam. “It was the least I could do to atone for my brother’s misbehaviour.” She glared at Kazuya.

Kazuya gulped. He’d better not anger his sister further. Moreover, he felt guilty for mistreating Inuko. He had used her tracking abilities to exact his vengeance on Yukihiro instead of seeking justice for the Kagenashi Clan’s victims, as he had claimed. He bowed to Inuko.

“I’m deeply sorry for my actions today, Miss Takeda!” he said, his voice trembling with remorse. “My anger blinded me, and I drove you into danger.”

“I-It’s alright, Hattori Senpai. Please, raise your head!” Inuko shook her hands, startled by Kazuya’s formality. She smiled and got off the bed. “I’m happy you worked it out with your sister! We all make mistakes. I forgive you.”

“Thank you!” Kazuya brightened up. “I promise, I’ll never deceive you or endanger your life again!”

“It’s alright, Senpai.” Inuko’s smile deepened. She blushed and wagged her fluffy white tail. Hattori Senpai is kind. He’s vengeful because he’s sensitive. But his regret runs just as deep. Mom says people with strong feelings are the best.

Their conversation was interrupted. The roars of multiple engines echoed through the small, quiet street. Kazuya frowned, and Inuko bared her fangs. It must be the Kagenashi Clan, their pursuers. Kazuya clutched his pistol and walked towards the balcony, but Kasane stopped him.

“Let me handle them,” she said.

“But, they might hurt you, Miss Hattori!” Inuko said, her ears and tail slumping in worry. “I… I injured their senior members with my bark. They must be looking for me.”

“Kazuya barged into their den because of my relationship with Yukihiro, and dragged you into this.” Kasane frowned. “Leave this to me!”

She walked to the balcony to meet the Kagenashi thugs. Kazuya and Inuko followed her, wondering how a single florist could handle the strongest yakuza clan in Tokyo. But, judging by Kasane’s story about her first meeting with Yukihiro when she almost killed him, she shouldn’t have any problems with the yōkai.