"Tsuki, this isn't really what I'd call a good date." Fumi complained.

"Sorry. The Chief called me in, I can't really say no to the cops." Tsuki frowned.

"It's okay, it's okay… I'm just a little worried after what you told me last time."

"Nah, it's the old man. He's alright, I guess."

Tsuki sat with Fumiko in another interrogation room. Luckily, this one was far less harsh than the last one.

Instead of beat up steel chairs and a table, this one had a nice wooden table and chairs. The lights above didn't make a horrible buzzing noise, and there was a ceiling fan.

The Chief entered quickly. He slammed the door behind him, before grabbing Fumi's hand. Either he was in a good mood, or a really bad one.

His voice boomed. "Oh, hello, Miss Nakano! How are you feeling?"

"I'm doin' good." Fumi nodded.

The old officer sat down across from them and bowed his head. "Are you doing well too, Tsukiko?"

"Yeah, I'm alright."

"I hear you've gotten yourself into some trouble." The Chief lowered his voice.

"...what about it?" Tsuki tried not to show her fear on her face.

"Lighten up." Fumi nudged her.

"You've done some damn fine work out there." The Chief smiled.

Fumi cocked her head. "I thought cops hated that kind of thing."

"Not us. Some of us on the force are even rooting for you, Miss Himura." The Chief laughed.

"Why?" Tsuki asked.

"Well, to be honest… We haven't been doing so well on the investigation."

"Seriously?" Tsuki groaned.

"Police work is hard, Miss! You try getting any damn work done when you're spread this thin." The Chief whined.

"That's not my problem!" Tsuki crossed her arms.

The old man sighed. "Listen, Miss… could you at least tell us anything you know?"

"Why should I?"

Fumi leaned in and whispered. "You really wanna pick a fight with the cops?"

Tsuki lowered her head. "Good point."

"W-what is it?" The Chief asked.

"If I tell you, you promise to show me what you've got?" Tsuki made a bold offer.

"I thought that was obvious!" The Chief laughed. "Of course!"

He reached below him and pulled out a silver suitcase. He placed it on the table, unlatching the locks and putting his thumbs inside.

"What's that?" Tsuki asked.

"Tell me what you know, and I'll show you." The Chief latched the locks again.

"Fine…"

"So, what do you know?" Fumi turned and asked.

"There's two gangs. The first one started falling apart, so a bunch of people started a second gang." Tsuki scratched her head.

"...sounds about right." The Chief nodded.

"The second gang is the violent one. They're wearing painted masks now, not white."

"How do you know all this? Why didn't you tell me?" Fumi pouted.

"I was waiting for the right opportunity." Tsuki hid her face.

"Painted masks, huh?" The Chief opened the case and revealed the contents. "Like these?"

The suitcase contained several damaged or chipped masks. They had all been hastily painted in bright colors. A few were intact, but others had been reduced to nothing but shards of plastic and porcelain.

A bright red one stood out the most. Below that, a green one, and below that one was a blue one. They sat in an odd order, but she didn't know if it meant anything.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Wait, gimme that!" Tsuki grabbed the blue mask.

"What's wrong?"

"Sy-- Somebody… told me that the man who stabbed Fumiko was wearing a blue mask now!" Tsukiko inspected the painted plastic mask carefully.

The mask was in immaculate shape. There wasn't a scratch on it. The paint job, however, was of poor quality.

It was a coat of spray paint over the old white and gold mask. The surface was uneven. As she ran her fingers over it, pieces of the paint began to rub off and chip.

The underside hadn't been painted either. There were marks from where the paint had somehow shifted in drying and left marks on the inside. It was almost embarrassing.

There was also a photo of a man in a hat that hung on loosely with a small piece of tape. He had a big smile on his face and a badge on his chest.

"That mask was found in the belongings of one of my officers, oddly enough." The Chief stared at the blue mask.

"Really?" Tsuki looked up at him.

"Yeah. He wasn't even related to the investigation. We just found it in one of his drawers the other day. He was pretty angry when I confiscated it." The Chief's eyes narrowed.

"Does that mean…"

"Tsuki." Fumi nudged her.

"...can your officer be the man who stabbed Fumi?"

"It's a long shot, but…" The Chief sighed. "I can't think of any other reason."

"Hey, Tsuki, I know what you're thinking, but--" Fumi's pleas went ignored.

"Do you know where he is right now?" Tsuki stood up.

"I… I had to fire him today. He was hiding evidence and interfering with the investigation. I didn't trust him anymore after that."

"So, where is he?" Tsuki asked again.

"He just left a few minutes ago. If you run after him, you should catch him."

"Hey!" Fumi shouted. "Aren't you supposed to stop her?"

The Chief looked down at the table. "Miss Himura's tough… she can handle it, can't she?"

Tsukiko began to walk toward the door, but Fumiko caught her. "You're seriously not gonna look for him, are you?"

"Fumi, what's your deal?" Tsuki pushed her away.

"I know that look in your eyes. You're gonna do something stupid, aren't you?"

Tsuki paused for a moment, before turning and walking out the door.

--

Tsukiko stepped outside of the police department. The sky had turned a dark, swirling grey. The wet asphalt outside reflected the light of the neon signs above.

She started walking faster and faster, in a straight line from the station. She didn't even know where to look, she just wanted to find the man.

The streets were almost empty, so it was easy to pick people out. She ran past several people, scanning their faces. Most of them were people trying to escape the rain, holding things above their heads to block the rain drops. One man caught her eye, however.

There was a short looking man, holding an umbrella. In his other hand, he held a white cardboard box. He had an angry look on his face, and a nice pair of black boots. Tsukiko recognized the man from the photo attached to the mask.

He suddenly turned a corner into a dark alleyway. He looked around before walking rather slowly. Tsuki followed, trying to avoid the footsteps running behind her.

"Hey!" Tsuki ran up to the man.

"Who're you?" The man asked.

"Did you stab my friend?" Tsuki spoke bluntly.

"What?"

"Did you stab my friend?" Tsuki asked again, slower.

"No, I didn't stab anyone!" The man started pacing faster.

Tsuki pinned the man to the wall, grabbing him by his collar. "Why did you have a blue mask?"

"Get away from me!" The man shouted.

Tsuki punched the man in the gut. "Tell me why you had a blue mask!"

"I'm not in the gang anymore, I swear!" The man struggled.

Just then, Fumiko and the Chief appeared from around the corner.

"Tsuki stop!" Fumi shouted.

"Tell me what you know then!" Tsuki hit the man again.

"I don't know anything!" The man pleaded, dropping his things.

The box in his hand tumbled to the ground, and papers and things fell out. Tsuki looked down and noticed a black and gold mask rolling on its side, before landing flat.

Tsuki threw the man to the ground, shouting. "What do you know about the gang?"

The man yelped when he hit the ground, but did not speak again. In her frustration, Tsuki looked around for something. She grabbed a loose pipe off of the ground and held it up to the man.

"Tsuki, don't!" Fumiko shouted again, to no avail.

"Talk!" Tsukiko pressed the pipe against the man's cheek.

The man tried to inch away.

Tsuki pulled back the pipe, preparing for a swing.

Fumiko ran in front of her swing, protecting the defenseless man, but taking a brutal swing to the arm. Nearly instantly, the sound of the pipe hitting Fumiko's body made Tsuki sick to her stomach. Her brain went numb for a moment, as it failed to figure out what had just happened.

"Fumi?" Tsuki blinked.

Fumi held up the Chief's revolver, pointing it at Tsuki's head. Her hand was steady at first. She began to shake as her finger touched the trigger.

The gun clicked as she pulled back the hammer. "Put it down, Tsuki."

Tsukiko could see the fear in Fumiko's eyes, and she could feel her own fear again, all in an instant. She shook her head and tossed aside the pipe. It made a hollow metal sound as it hit the pavement. She turned and saw the police chief slowly walking toward the both of them.

Fumi began to sob and cry. Her grip on the revolver was still tight. Her finger moved off the trigger, and onto the frame.

She put one arm over her eyes to wipe her own tears. Her arm pointed the gun in Tsuki's general direction.

Without a word, the Chief took the gun from Fumiko, who was shaking with fear. He decocked the gun and unloaded it. He simply shook and lowered his head.

"You could've killed him." The Chief spoke quietly.

The sudden realization hit Tsuki like a ton of bricks. "I-I'm sorry, Chief, I…"

"I know. You're not the only one at fault here, y'know." He hid his face in shadow. "Don't kill anybody, Tsuki. Never cross that line, alright?"

"I didn't mean to, I just snapped, and--"

"Just go! Your friend's crying. Make it up to her. We'll talk later." The Chief walked a few steps away before pulling out his phone.

Tsuki wrapped an arm around Fumiko, and began walking away. Her heart was still pounding. The Chief's words burned into her mind.