Black Hole Sun

The look that settled over not-Hattori’s face was...different from the face he’d given in Raijin’s other dreams. Even after he’d told him he’d remained stoic, or sometimes he’d even get angry. He’d tell him it was his fault for not being good enough to protect them, that he should have been the one to die while they should have lived. Those times he didn’t even have a response, because the figment was right. He was a loose cannon, he had never been quite as invested in advancement as the two had. He was third in line and he’d been so sure he’d never have to take up the mantle because Hattori and Take never fucked things up like he did. But then they were gone and everything was staring him in the face, and he did was he did best: he fucked stuff up.

Suddenly, the figment raised his paw and Raij just stared at him. He could try to hit him all he wanted but it would just pass through him like every other time. Hence, when the paw started descending he didn’t even flinch. Then, it smacked him square across the face so hard that his head actually turned to the side. For a second he didn’t move, he simply blinked in surprise. Then, his head turned and he stared at Hattori for a second. “How the hell,” he gaped. He was...real? Like, really real? How? He’d seen him go over that cliff. Apparently his cousin was made of stronger stuff than he’d thought.

The Genji man had so many questions, starting with why the hell he hadn’t returned to them or made it known that he was alive. But, he supposed he could fill in the initial pieces then Hattori could fill in what happened after. “On our way to the meeting we were ambushed, all of us. It seemed like they each had a target, but some of us were assigned two. Takemikazuchi, you and I for example. By the end of it, everyone was killed besides myself and two others...well, I thought so anyways. We held a funeral for you...and Take...and Chīfu Hattori told everyone that you’d died an honorable death. But there was nothing honorable about being attacked from behind. I...looked into it,” he gave Hattori a meaningful look. In addition to his diplomacy, Raijin had been trained in various interrogation techniques alongside the Iga heir. He would know as well as anyone what he meant by that phrase.

”Hattori...your father ordered it. He ordered us ambushed and killed, anyone who attended that meeting.”