The Oni Slayers: Chapter 3

nakamura-ryousuke
Dec 11, 2014
6 min read

“We haven’t killed that guy yet,” said Saiyou. “What?! You annihilated the entire gang already!” exclaimed Takuya. “He most likely knew we were following him and escaped during the entire fiasco.” “Is he the murderer that killed my girlfriend?” Takuya asked anxiously. “It’s hard to tell because the bombing destroyed the demon scent already.” Depressed, Takuya looked glumly at his shoes. “Don’t worry, kid. It’s my job to protect people and help them.” Saiyou smiled and then said, “C’mon. I’ll treat you to Korean barbecue.” “No, no! It’s quite alright.” “Don’t worry, the bill’s on me,” assured Saiyou and pulled Takuya along. “You assisted me well today. Let this be my treat. And your name is ...?” “Takuya. I’m 18 years old and I currently attend Sekka High.” “Too much information there. Not that interested.” “I know you’re Saiyou.” “That waiter told you didn’t he?” “ Huh? Oh yea, how did you know? Anyways, how old are you? You don’t look too old.” “That’s none of your business and I look fantastic for my age. Ask one more question and I’ll put you to rest six feet underground.” “Uhh ... where’s the place we’re going?” “It’s just up ahead.” They had reached Koreatown. A neon sign with Korean characters shone in the darkness indicating a restaurant. “Ah Saiyou! You’re back,” greeted a middle aged woman. “I see you have brought a friend.” “Two people. I might leave if you talk too much,” joked Saiyou. “Ah yes, yes,” and the woman hurried to show the two customers to their table. The waiters quickly poured two cups of hot barley tea and set up small plates of banchan.

“Where do you live Saiyou?” asked Takuya. “Didn’t I just tell you to stop asking questions?” “I’m sorry! I’m just curious.” “Anyways, I’m going back to that cafe tomorrow.” “Can I come along?” “After all that R-rated stuff, you still wanna come along?” “I know that you’re gonna protect me.” “Protect you my fuckin’ ass.” “Please!” “If you die it’s not my fault.” “Well I’m doing this for my girlfriend! And for the city!” The waiters interrupted the conversation by setting up the grill and brought over huge plates of sliced meat, another plate of galbi, and another plate of vegetables. The slices of bulgogi sizzled as it hit the hot grill. The fragrance of spicy marinated beef filled the air. “Perhaps you should join the Organization,” Saiyou suggested casually. “What organization?” “I am part of the Organization of Demonic Affairs.” “Is it like the mafia?” “More like a military in my opinion if you ask me. Anyways, there are other members like myself that dedicate themselves to removing oni that attack human beings.” “That’s so cool.” “It’s hard work to get a position as an oni slayer. You have to work your way up with good credentials.” “Do people know about you guys? I mean clearly I haven’t heard about demons until I saw one out my front door.” “Uhhh ... a lot of these things are under the wraps. For the most part, we just say we work with local police.” “Kind of makes sense,” said Takuya recalling calling Saiyou a lunatic. The next day, Saiyou and Takuya met up at the cafe. “Excuse me, I’m looking for one of your employees,” said Saiyou. “I will try my best to assist. Can you please provide me with a name or description?” said the lady suspiciously behind the counter. “Takuya, do you remember his face or something?” asked Saiyou. Takuya replied, “Well he had a bit of a mustache and thick eyebrows.” “That has to be Ryosuke,” said the lady. “He was out and didn’t come back yesterday. He called us this morning saying that he’s taking a few days off.” “Can we get his address?” asked Takuya. “I’m sorry, we cannot give addresses of our employees to others.” “Idiot. No one gives their addresses to strangers,” said Saiyou now turning to leave. “I just really want to kill that guy!” said Takuya. “At your standards, that guy’s gonna kill you.”

Disappointed, the two left the cafe with a cold trail. “Argh! If that guy’s never coming back to work, we’ll never know where he lives!” shouted Takuya. “What are you talking about? I can break into the office.” “Saiyou! You’ll get caught!” “I have my ways. Anyways, get back home and wait.” Takuya boarded the train home. I will avenge your death, Tsukino, he thought. Just as he reached home, the phone rang. “Hello?” said Takuya. “Is this Takuya?” “Yes ...” “Saiyou here.” “How didya get my number?!” “I told you, I have my ways. Do you have a few days to spare? I probably shouldn’t be asking this since you should be in school and NOT tagging along on dangerous missions.” “Well, tomorrow’s a Sunday. Monday and Tuesday I have off from school. I guess I have time ... “ “Good. Meet you at the train station 9:00 am tomorrow. Bring money, food, whatever. Bye,” said Saiyou and hung up. “Well, if I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die,” said Takuya. “Don’t say such things!” Takuya’s mother burst in. “It’s bad luck.” “I’m gonna be out for three days, mom.” “Oh goodness, that long? Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Where are you going first of all?” “Um. There’s a ... anime festival! But it’s about eight hours away and I’m staying someplace with a couple of my classmates. Don’t worry, I’ll call you when I get there.” His mother sighed, “ Takuya, I know you’re old enough, but you should have let me know earlier. I was going to bring you shopping with me.” “Mom! You know I have better things to do.” “Get some sleep okay?” “Fine.”

The next day, Takuya left the house with his book bag of survival. He waited by the train station as indicated the day before. Saiyou walked over to Takuya with his rather large bag and put his arm over Takuya’s right shoulder. “Yo,” Saiyou greeted. “We’re not taking the train, we’re going by car.” They walked away from the train station to a black sports car. “Is the car yours?” “No, it’s my partner’s.” A short haired man was leaning on it. His hair was a striking electric blue. He was young like Saiyou and wore a genial expression. “That’s Shimura, my partner,” pointed Saiyou. “Hi,” said Takuya. “I’m Takuya.” “Yoroshiku,” said Shimura extending out a handshake. “The oni at the cafe goes by the name Izkral. According to previous data confirmed by our organization, Izkral is a level C oni. Oni like him can shape shift into humans and blend in, but are not particularly strong,” explained Saiyou. “Level A and B are the intelligent oni and much more dangerous. Most of them are being hunted down by the organization. Level E and D are the weakest of the bunch. I suspect that even you Takuya can take them on if you tried.” “Really?!” said a surprised Takuya. “Where is this Izkral?” interrupted Shimura. “He’s at his current home and we’ll be staking out for the time being,” said Saiyou.

Getting into the car, Saiyou drove them into the neighborhood. Gangs prowled the streets protecting their territory. Parking the car near Izkral’s apartment, the three waited inside. After four hours scanning the streets, Takuya was bored to death and regretted coming along. He hungrily chomped down on a plain mantou. Shimura and Saiyou pulled down the shades of the windows and reached into their bags. “What are you two doing?! We’re suppose to be watching Izkral!” shouted Takuya. “It’s lunchtime and everyone’s hungry,” said Saiyou. “Besides, since he disguises himself as a human, he should be having lunch.” “That doesn’t make sense! We’re letting our guard down!” argued Takuya. “You already got a head-start on your own lunch. Anyways, it doesn’t matter. We can still catch him,” said Shimura. “I thought this was a serious stakeout! “ exclaimed Takuya. “Itadakimasu,” said Saiyou and Shimura and dived into their o-bento. “Yo, I don’t want my wasabi rolls. You want, Saiyou?” asked Shimura. “I don’t like wasabi. Give me your unagi,” said Saiyou. “No, I want my unagi,” said Shimura quietly. “C’mon, I trade you for these black beans.” “Shut up, everyone hates black beans.” “How ‘bout you have my dessert?” “Too bad, I already finished the unagi.” “You bastard.” They rolled up the shades and watched outside. Izkral walked out his apartment with a briefcase. “Follow him,” said Shimura.