A/N: Aghhhhh, I'm so sorry for the late update! I know, it's been like what? 50 years? Jesus, I'm so lazy, it's insane! I was also very busy with school work and stuff like that, so I'm really sorry! I hope this chapter makes up for it. It's pretty long but I think I made it exciting enough. LOL enjoy! And please don't forget to leave a review!

Something was wrong.

Something was very, very wrong.

Touka hissed a curse, her eyes widening as Kaneki stumbled forward, his hand clutching his stomach wound almost desperately.

His breathing was broken and shallow, his shoes were scraping the sidewalk, and his entire body was trembling violently as if he was wracked with uncontrollable fear. Dry blood crackled against his fingers and his feet tugged him side to side like a drunk dancer. Why did it look like he was tortured by Satan himself? Well in a way, maybe he was.

But Touka could almost scoff.

Her shoulder was still screaming in agony, but it was something she could handle. Granted, Kaneki was shot at least three times but as the most feared mafia leader in all of Japan, wouldn't bullet wounds feel like mosquito bites?

She internally shook her head, mocking herself for exaggerating such a thing. He's still human; pain would still be a thing for him, stupid fucking idiot.

Still, something wasn't right. She heard so many stories of Kaneki being injured multiple times. And after all those times, he would still somehow be able to find the energy to fight off hundreds of men without breaking a sweat.

Were those just rumors? Maybe they were just fabricated stories to make himself seem cooler than he really was. What if they were all just lies? Maybe he wasn't all that great after all-

Her train of thought was suddenly shattered the moment Kaneki's weight toppled into her, knocking her off her feet and sending them both crashing onto the concrete floor. She winced, holding back a wretched scream as her shoulder crunched against the nasty pricks of the sidewalk.

"Kaneki, what the FUCK-?!" she glanced down at him in fury, but for a moment, for just a brief second, her heart came to a sudden halt.

He was on top of her, sweat visibly clinging to his brow. Fresh blood was oozing out of his wounds, dripping onto the floor and staining the white with a putrid red. He was hacking out a cough, his breathing more shallow and broken than before, and his eye was squeezed shut.

"Hey!" she breathed, panic latching onto her chest. "What's wrong?!"

She quickly sat up, ignoring the excruciating pain in her shoulder. She grabbed his own two shoulders, struggling to push him up without applying more pressure onto his injuries. A faint whisper brushed past her ear, causing her to swiftly lean in.

"What?! What did you say?"

She noticed him give a sharp gasp for air. He was in an obvious daze, his eye glossed over with a strange sense of urgency and exhaustion.

He opened his mouth,

"P-Po…ison…"

There was another aggressive attempt to take in air.

"B-Bu…llets…p-po…is…oned…"

A violent jolt ran through her body, reaching down to her toes and through to her fingertips. The bartender felt herself grow cold, her hands gripping his shirt as if it was her only way out of this godforsaken mess.

Poison?

Was he for real?

Poison?!

An eerie breeze splashed against them, sending another ominous chill down her spine.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit." She gripped her hair, painfully tugging at her scalp as she looked around frantically. "What the fuck? That bitch, she – oh my god, she actually – oh my god, what do I do? Jesus Christ!"

Her heart was pounding against her ribs, sending anxious vibrations through her nerves and reaching down to the pit of her stomach. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all. She wasn't a doctor. She didn't know jack shit about poison. There was no way she would be able to tell what kind of poison Rize shot him with. The symptoms she could pick up were too broad - trouble breathing, excessive sweating, obvious discomfort, and pain.

Those were the symptoms of basically every poison out there!

She felt her breath hitch upwards, another stroke of panic threatening to overflow.

She had to calm down. She had to breathe.

Think, Touka. You need to think.

Then quietly, like the dying wisps of fading embers, an image came to mind: an innocent smile and the hand of a child gently grabbing her own.

Ayato.

Slowly, she felt herself relax, watching her breath hit the winter air like gentle puffs of smoke. She couldn't lose herself here. Right now her priority was to get some help and save this moron.

Why? She didn't know. Maybe it was just her sense of justice. She owed him for saving her life the other day after all. A bottle of wine wasn't enough for retribution.

"Kaneki," her voice was still and calm, her bangs shifting with the cool wind.

He slowly opened his eye, the dull gray iris peering into her orbs of deep violet.

"You're going to be okay." She whispered before carefully propping him up against the wall of a building to her left. "Stay here. Try not to move. I'm going to go and get help. You said your men was just up ahead, right? I'll be right back."

His lips parted as if he was trying to say something but nothing came out. He couldn't move, and this time, Touka saw a flash of genuine panic rush across his expression.

Was he that terrified of dying? The poison could be deadly. It would make sense for Rize to pull a dirty stunt like that.

She straightened her back then took off her jacket, softly placing it on him.

God, she felt like a mother.

"Don't die." She mumbled, feeling goosebumps pop up on her skin once the jacket left her hands.

Winter wasn't being kind to them, or was it still autumn? Damn, she was starting to lose track of the months now. She was going insane. She could almost laugh.

Then, with another glance at Kaneki, she took off.

But, Kaneki's lips were still parted when she left. His eye wide and full of anxiety as he watched her back disappear into the distance.

"N-No…" he gave another cough, the world spinning aggressively.

It wasn't the pain getting to him. Pain was something he could handle more than anything else, but there was a sickening feeling of nausea gurgling within his stomach. His vision was blurring, the artificial lights blending together to form a cauldron of muted and bright colors. His limbs were refusing to move; it was as if gravity was against them, suffocating them with immeasurable strength.

"T-T…ou…ka…" he tried again, his voice cracking and crumbling against the cold.

It was no use. He knew that, but he had to stop her.

Something was wrong.

He should've realized it sooner.

Why did Rize switch the bullets to poisoned ones when she shot him? She could've just stuck with regular bullets.

No, before that, how did she go down so easily? The Rize he knew rarely ever lost. Ever.

So why-?

A thunderous strike of dread slammed against the mafia leader, realization finally grabbing him by the ear.

She lost deliberately.

Another dry cough crept up his throat, his vision only failing him. But, even with the blurred outlines of numerous buildings and the kaleidoscope of various colors, Kaneki could make out a single figure looming over him.

"My, my," a familiar voice giggled. "What a shame. Down so soon? Well, it's to be expected. Those bullets were practically drenched in my special serum after all."

Kaneki felt his teeth grind together.

"Ri…ze…" he choked, anger evident in his tone.

"Shhhh," she smiled, lightly taking his chin in her hand and forcing him to look up at her. "Don't push yourself. I'm surprised you're not dead, though. One bullet should've been enough to make you pass out from the pain. But you were hit with three so, you should've died from the pain alone; forget about the poison!" she trailed off, examining his face with a delighted grin. "I guess I underestimated your pain tolerance, hm?"

She let another giggle fly with the breeze.

"So?" she suddenly whispered, her voice low and trembling with anticipation.

This time she grabbed him by his hair, jerking his head back with a violent pull. Kaneki suppressed the urge to vomit.

"Where is she?" she hummed, glancing at the jacket that Touka had left behind. "Did she go and try to get help? Oh no, no, no. If she did then that's going to be a problem."

Kaneki watched as the world only started spinning faster.

"After all," she giggled, licking her lips playfully. "My men have this place surrounded. My orders? To take in a purple haired girl in a bartender uniform and to kill any witnesses."

She caught it, that faint look of horror and alarm flickering across his face. The look that was absolutely delicious.

"Now, why don't you stay here and bleed to death? Hm, but then again, killing you might give me more enemies. But then again, you are my greatest obstacle at the moment." She tilted her head, tapping her chin with false contemplation. "What to do, what to do…"

Touka's lungs were practically burning.

She's been running for a while now without even taking a moment to catch her breath. And yet, there were no signs of life.

He said that the members of his stupid group were just up ahead, so why weren't they?! What the hell?!

But something else was bothering her. It wasn't just mafia members that were missing. The entire region that Touka was in was like a ghost town. It wasn't that late. There should've been at least a few people walking around, right? And it was the city, as a matter of fact, a place where human beings practically flourished. No matter how late it was, there would always be someone driving or walking around aimlessly.

So why in God's name were there no signs of human life?!

She finally stopped, her legs numb and throbbing, her chest pounding and aching, and her face frozen and flushed. Panting, the bartender's eyes darted around the area.

It was quiet.

Only the sounds of distant cars and police sirens could be heard, which meant it wasn't the city itself that became a ghost town. It was only this part of the city. Her part of the city.

She stared at the ground, the streetlight above her buzzing lowly. She stared at the grooves of the sidewalk, listening intently. Then she stared at a peculiar shadow in front of her, a shadow that was gradually stretching further and further and further…

Instantly, she twisted her body to the right, lashing out her leg and watching her heel come into contact with someone's jaw. A disgusting crack tore through the atmosphere and the man fell to the floor, moaning and writhing in pain. The metallic clatter of a knife resounded, the weapon falling beside him. His hands were wrapped around his mouth with blood trickling down his cheek.

Touka could only sprint away.

"Not good, not good, not good!" she ran down the street, the stinging cold biting into her cheeks and nose. "Fuck, fuck, fuck! Who was that?! Shit, shit, shit!"

The booming crack of a gunshot and the sudden burst of pain that tore through her leg was enough to send a scream flying from her lips. She fell to her knees, blood gushing through her fingers as she gripped her thigh.

No, no, no, no, no, no.

She looked over her shoulder, the air suddenly becoming harder to take in. There was more than one person with a gun. There were a group of ten people, some carrying knives and others carrying rope. And they were all running towards her – sprinting even – at full speed, malicious smiles twisting their lips.

"Get up!" Touka hissed, wincing as she dug her nails into the street, trying to push herself to stand. "Up! Get up! Touka, goddammit, you need to GET UP!"

She didn't know what was happening, but it was obvious that it wasn't something good. She had to stand, she had to run, and she had to get the fuck out of there.

But the pain was too much, and they got her in the leg, too. She could practically feel her muscles snapping against the pressure, and she could feel her blood gurgling down onto the floor like a crimson waterfall.

She looked back again. They were only a few feet away from her now, but she sensed something else other than anticipation and thrill. Their movements also had a weird layer of fear.

"Quickly!" one of them whispered. "Tie her up!"

She scanned their clothes, blinking in confusion at the fresh blood that was splattered across their attire.

"Hurry!" Another voice piped, but his tone was basically dripping with dread, a wild and desperate look painting his features. "Before he comes!"

Touka stared at them. She blinked, then she blinked again.

A scream of anguish suddenly pierced the thick blanket of muffled quiet, and the gruesome sound of flesh being ripped apart wrenched Touka away from her confusion, bringing her a wave of terror instead. Flesh was being torn and shredded, blood spattering against Touka and the pavement around her. A human hand flew past her ear, and for a moment, it looked like it was raining mutilated corpses.

A severed head rolled into her knee, its lifeless eyes peering into her as if it was staring at something beyond her, something that she couldn't comprehend. She looked up, and there in the middle of the puddle of blood and intestines, was a man.

She didn't move, and she wasn't sure if she was relieved or horrified because it was someone she knew but something was off, something was unnatural.

The man was smiling.

"Tsu-" she whispered. "Tsukiyama…?"

His suit was dyed in the pulsing color of crimson, his once lilac hair now soaked in the same color. He was drenched head to toe with blood, and there was something in his eyes that Touka couldn't quite pinpoint.

There was a peculiar glint in his eye - a murderous glint of insanity.

"Touka," he said, his voice hushed and almost singsong. "Are you alright?"

Her throat was now parched, her tongue suddenly feeling like sandpaper. It was getting even harder to breathe. Her thigh was now caked with dried blood, her fingers stuck to her leg like glue.

"Y-Yeah," she breathed. "I-I'm…I'm fine…I just…"

She gave a dry gasp for air then lurched forward, spilling the contents of her stomach out onto the pavement. Heaving, she pressed the palm of her right hand against her mouth, shivering out of fear and nausea.

But Tsukiyama didn't look too concerned. In fact, he wasn't even looking at her. He was instead, keeping his focus on the area behind her.

"Where is my leader?" he smiled gently. "Where's Kaneki?"

Stray blood dripped down from the cuffs of his sleeve, Touka's eyes following its path and watching it melt onto the floor.

She paused.

"FUCK!" she stood up instantly before stumbling forward, wincing at the sudden pain. "KANEKI!"

She forgot about him! Fucking hell, she forgot about him!

She was such an idiot! How the hell could she forget about a poisoned, injured piece of-!

"Over there!" she snapped, pointing frantically in the direction she came from. "He's over there! Just keep going straight and-!"

The bartender let out a gasp of surprise as a hand grabbed her by the wrist, jerking her forward. Tsukiyama quickly hoisted her up onto his back, his usual charismatic smile still tugging at his lips, but that sinister glare in his eyes didn't fade.

She shivered, his suit pressing against her stomach and chest causing fresh blood to soak through her shirt.

This guy was a monster.

"I can't leave you here alone." He chuckled, but there was a citric edge to his voice. "It seems you are the main target. Rize's men are-"

"Tsukiyama," Touka cut in immediately.

Something about her tone made the man raise a brow. Her eyes were wide with fear, a haunting look of unease sinking into her expression.

She gripped his shoulders, "Kaneki is poisoned. We need to go now!"

Tsukiyama simply smiled.

And, Touka suddenly feared for her life.