Losing Privileges

There I stood, at the top floor of Ninagawa Charlotte's place of business, her office. The office building sat directly in the heart of Arakawa-ku, surrounded by buildings that operated legal practices, blissfully unaware of who resided just a few meters away. I was escorted in by what I presumed was a secretary of sorts and allowed full access to visit Charlotte so early in the morning without prior notice. My hands trembled as I knocked on the door, waiting for her response with bated breath.

"You may enter."
Echoed off the walls, muffled by the thick layer of tinted glass between my Oyabun and myself.

I opened the door quietly, stepping into her space that wasn't the slightest bit cluttered. On the wall behind her chair hung a large calligraphy portrait that read "Shihai," translating to "Dominance." Charlotte sat with her legs crossed, her head unmoving as she glanced up from a stack of papers she had been reading over. The room was decorated vibrantly with various art pieces, ranging from Samurai to Shoguns, and in the corner of the room was a fully intact Kabuto helmet, resting neatly on a golden pedestal. The smell of tatami wafted in the air as I took a few steps closer, my eyes never leaving hers.

"I don't recall inviting you here, puppy. State your business or leave."
Charlotte hissed softly, returning her glance to the papers on her desk.

I let out an audible gulp, lowering my head as I bowed deeply to my boss; my dictator. With a firm voice, I spoke,
"Good morning, boss! I have a request!"

Charlotte's eyes snapped up, and she made it very clear that my words were foolish. She let out a long sigh, leaning back in her chair and studying my face.
"Request? I don't recall you being in a position to ask for requests, puppy. Kazuya is your captain, not me. Take it up with him."

"I can't!"
I shot up from my bow.
"Kazuya would never agree! I need you to listen to me!"

Charlotte's face contorted with annoyance. She pulled her kiseru pipe from her sash, set it on the table, and said,
"You're being awfully disobedient this morning, puppy. Care to adjust your tone when speaking to your Oyabun?"

"Hidaka Jin, the owner of Hidaka's Ramen and Beer! I want you to transfer his debt to me!"
I shouted at her, my eyes seething with determination.

The room went pin-drop silent. I stared at Charlotte, and she stared at me. I felt that if I even wasted a single second blinking, she would end my life without a second thought.

"How dare you! Do you understand what you're even asking, you lowly mutt?! You're asking me, your Oyabun, to simply revoke a six million yen debt from a lying prick like Hidaka Jin and push that debt onto you, a filthy stray dog that can't even afford a place to sleep?!"
Charlotte shot up from her desk, storming over to me with a fire in her eyes.

Quickly, I stepped back, pulling the tanto blade that Kazuya had entrusted me with and lining it with the base of my pinky finger. I let out a grunt, pressing so hard that my finger began to bleed.
"I do understand! I'm willing to perform yubitsume to atone for the inconvenience! I'll get a job; I'll earn money to ensure Hidaka Jin's safety!"

I hadn't even had time to blink before Charlotte thrust herself forward, yanking my tanto blade from my hand and shoving the tip against my neck, just enough to draw a single droplet of blood.
"Just how foolish do you think I am, puppy?! You don't think I know what you're trying to do?! You want that cute little Nozomi girl to break free from her father's mistakes! I didn't mind your friendship with her, but if this is how you plan to defy me after allowing your little play dates to go unnoticed, then you must truly think I'm stupid! I'll sell that little bitch to Daisuke to recover his debt if I have to!"

You've got to be kidding me! How does Charlotte know about Nozomi?! How does she know that I've been spending my nights at Hidaka's ramen shop?! What the fuck am I even saying?! Of course, she knows! She has eyes everywhere! Just how much has she seen between Nozomi and me?! Screw this!

Something sinister took a hold of my consciousness in that moment. I knew I had a duty to protect Nozomi, and I wasn't about to let Charlotte threaten her innocence in such a crude way. I gripped the edge of the blade with my palm, yanking backward and landing a hard spinning kick to Charlotte's temple. My shin collided with her face, causing her head to snap to the side with a sickening crunch.

I leapt backward, my hand gushing crimson blood all over her tatami mats. Charlotte kept her head cocked to the side, slowly lifting two fingers to touch her now-bruised cheek with a soft wince from her lips.

"Don't you dare think about involving Nozomi in this!"
I screeched at her with pure hatred in my voice.

Charlotte tilted her head in my direction, a look of shock and disbelief crossing her face. She gripped the tanto blade tighter in her hand, stepping forward with perfect rhythm.
"Game over for you, puppy,"
she whispered like a snake.

Quickly, I side-stepped her slash to my hip, using my small frame to my advantage as I grappled her from behind. I began to claw at her scalp, attempting to yank her two metal hairpins from her bun and use them as weapons. I was suddenly thrashed around, Charlotte slamming herself back-first into her own desk, causing me to take the full impact of the blow. I yelped loudly, my breath disintegrating from my lungs as I released her, clutching one of her sharp hairpins in my right hand. Still gasping to recover my breath, I somehow managed to roll to the side just in time before Charlotte brought the tanto down on my chest, landing on her wooden desk instead. I gripped her hairpin tighter, using it to slam down on her hand, piercing her flesh and bone while it clamped her palm to her desk.

Charlotte let out a howl of pure distress, the guttural shriek making my eardrums hurt. I fell to my knees, trying to crawl away while my breath began to come back. In that moment, Charlotte yanked the hairpin from her hand and towered over me with blood dripping from her fingers. I felt the full force of her geta clog sandals pound into the side of my ribcage, sending me flying into the wall at what seemed like Mach speed.

I screamed, clutching my side as tears flowed down my face. She was right on top of me, standing over me with a doomful glare, her hair now completely down and resembling a demon. I raised my hands to cover my face as that same metal hairpin pierced through both of my palms, the blood splatter temporarily blinding me as she drove the full force of her strength down on me, attempting to penetrate my skull. If not for my elbows being planted on the floor, giving me just enough strength to prevent the spike from entering my head, I would have died on the spot.

"Fuck you, Ninagawa Charlotte!"
I brought my knee upward, slamming it into her groin and causing her to fall forward. I rolled back, prying the hairpin from my palms with my teeth.

"You little shit! I'll hang your head on my wall!"
Charlotte shot up to her feet, gazing down at my low stance with both of my palms dripping.

I charged forward, attempting to strangle her with my bare hands. I lunged my grip toward her neck, to which she immediately grabbed my wrist and pulled me close to headbutt my nose. The crunch traveled deep into my brain, causing me to cry out in pain. Charlotte wrapped her forearms around my neck, applying so much pressure I could feel my eyes start to bulge. I clawed at her desperately, feeling the last of my consciousness fade as my vision tunneled into darkness. In my final act of rebellion, I tried to punch her chin, but it was no use. My arms fell to my side, and before I knew it, I had been rendered unconscious.