"Nap time's over, brat. Wake up."
Haruki barely stirred. He felt groggy and his head was pounding. Everything was dark.
"Wake up!"
Someone kicked him in the ribs. Haruki groaned.
Where am I? What's going on? Wait...
He remembered. He'd been at the estate. Kenji spotted intruders. They'd hidden, and then...
Kenji! Sora!
His mind racing, Haruki tried to sit up without success. His hands were still restrained behind him and the hood still obscured his vision.
What happened to my friends? Did Master Shin get back in time? Is Kenji ok?! What about Sora, and Yuto and Benjiro? And everyone else?
"Oi, you!"
The hood was whipped off his head. Haruki blinked a few times in the darkness.
He was in a tiny room with a concrete floor and no windows. It was damp and cold with water dripping down the stone walls. The only source of light was a flickering dim bulb hanging from the ceiling.
"Looks like he's finally awake again," a low voice grunted.
Haruki flinched. The masked thugs from before were towering over him.
"About damn time," another man said. "So now what do we do?"
"Standard procedure," The bearded man shrugged. "We process him and then off for adjustment. Right Sorahiko?"
"Soon. We'll receive further instructions from headquarters at any moment. In the meantime, we should gather all relevant information." Sorahiko leered down at the child. "You, boy. Your demon energy fascinates me. What class are you?"
Instead of answering, Haruki glared right back.
"Where am I?" he demanded. "What is this place? And where are my friends?"
SMACK!
"You don't get to ask questions here, brat," the bearded man snapped. "You'd best shut up and do as we say, or experience a world of hurt. Got it?"
Haruki gritted his teeth and forced himself to sit up. "No. Not until you tell me what you did to my friends!"
"Ha!" Sorahiko snorted. "Like we'd bother with a bunch of human crotch goblins. Like we'd have to in the first place..."
"I don't believe you," Haruki snapped. "What happened to them?!"
The men laughed.
"Well technically speaking, we missed the fun," one snickered. "But you don't need to see it to know the ending. They're all dead."
Silence filled the air. Haruki heard, but didn't comprehend.
"You're lying. You're lying!"
"Trust me, kid. Nobody survives when the Toguro brothers decide to kill them."
"That's not true!" Haruki shouted. Tears pricked his eyes. "They didn't...they couldn't have!"
Most of the men laughed harder at his distress, but Sorahiko checked his communicator and scowled.
"Ugh. If there's one thing I can't stand from these things, it's whining. Masato!"
The bearded man stepped forward. "Yes sir!"
"New message came in from headquarters. They need us up top. We'll have to come back for this one," He nodded at Haruki. "Take care of him."
YOU ARE READING
Sakura Urameshi: Chapter Black (Book 3)
FanfictionSakura took a step back and raised her energy shield. "Who's there?" she called sharply. The only response was that same distorted laughter in the darkness. "Wouldn't you like to know?" Something was hovering in the shadows, about to strike... ...
