Chapter 8: Year 2: Departure

"Brace yourself for the main event, Y'all impatiently waiting, It's like an AIDS test, what's the results?~" Thin wisps of smoke rose for a workbench as a much mature and sharp-looking Takashi sat near with a precision welding torch as two robotic arms assisted him with the assembly of a submachine gun. "Not positive, who's the best? Pac, Nas, and Big, Ain't no best, East, West, North, South, flossed out, greedy~"

Takashi grinned rubbing the sweat off his forehead, unintentionally smearing a bit of fun powder across in the process. He nodded his head to the rhythm of the beat before moving, quickly assembling the gun as he put the welding torch down. 

(Image Of Switchblade X9 from COD: Black Ops 4)

"I embrace y'all with napalm, Blows up, no guts, left chest, face gone, How could Nas be garbage?~" Grinning widely taking the SMG, he unfolded it as he got up from his stool. Loading the magazine, he hoisted the gun, aiming at a static shooting target that was mounted on the wall of his underground base, far opposite from his workbench. "Semi-autos at your cartilage, Burner at the side of your dome, come outta my throne, I got this, locked since '9-1~"

Safety off, he pulled the trigger, muscles tensing controlling the recoil as he quickly emptied the magazine with precision into the head and chest area of the target. Shifting in a low-ready stance, he admired his handiwork and nodded in satisfaction. 

"Fuck with your soul like ether, Teach you the king you know you, 'God's son' across the belly, I prove you lost already." 

(A/N: Ether by Nas.)

Mounting the gun to the wall, resting it with several of its brethren, Takashi stepped back and admired his armory feeling pride bubble inside of him. 

It has been a year, Takashi was fifteen now and during this period he learned a lot of things. He especially learned a lot about himself. He loved when something came together. Whether it was an elaborate plan that he panned out after months of contemplation with trials and error or a Switchblade X9 that he made with his own two hands. It gave him a sense of accomplishment and motivation to do better than yesterday, every day. 

Powering down the workbench he stepped outside of the gun room and walked into his surveillance room. Sitting himself in front of a rather large grid of monitors, he poured himself his sixth cup of coffee as he navigated through the system and opened the encrypted email he had received from Camilla. 

"This... Does put a smile on my face." Takashi muttered to himself reading the contents of the email with a smile as he proceeded to take a sip from the cup. 

Rebranding themselves proved to be the right move for Takashi's and Camilla's LINE Foundation. Takashi 'invented' and spearhead countless ideas and products that LINE made available to the market which saw them a great rise in profit by a huge margin just within a year which not only proved Takashi's worth to Camilla but also cemented his position as the most valuable asset.

Camilla had a lot of questions when Takashi produced the prototypes of the first few products but after being refused an answer at least a thousand times before she gave up as any normal person would. 

(A/N: I'd probably give up after the second time but hey, that's just me •_• )

She realized that the answer was probably something that could melt her brain and as such, it was best not made known to her. Instead, she focused on the grand plans they had made. 

With the profits they had acquired, they gathered war veterans around the world and assembled a secret private army since the government had officially denied them permission to do so. The recruitment process was specifically designed by Takashi to keep the threat of defection of an operative to a minimum. 

The next step was within the LINE foundation itself. The board members of the foundation were briefed on Umbrella's grand plans and were provided ample proof to support their claims. Naturally, this caused chaos amount the members. 

All were appalled by the fact that fellow humans were ready to infect their world with such a disease just to sate their sick desire to create a distorted paradise that could rule over posing as pretentious gods. They wanted to stop umbrella.

While everyone was onboard with the idea of dealing with the heart of the issue as soon as possible but what caused minor rifts between the members was the solution to the problem.

Or rather each individual's separate solution to the problem.

Thankfully, the rifts were dealt with and fixed by Camilla with her polished social and negotiation skills. She categorized the suggested solutions into two categories. 

Aggression Prone solutions and Non-Aggression Prone solutions.

The members who had suggested Non-Aggression Prone solutions were quickly educated by Camilla on why their solutions would prove fruitless as negotiating with the government contracting umbrella would not only expose themselves of being aware of the whole B.O.W design but would allow put themselves in the crosshair of Umbrella who now has a private military that could possibly lead to their 'accidental' elimination. 

Secrecy of the matter was the utmost priority for now and anything or anyone that would put it in jeopardy was to be eliminated. 

It was a harsh verdict and they tried to rebel but none could succeed when they were made to face the barrel of a gun. Hesitant, but begrudging acquiescent the rest would turn as they knew how delicate the matter was and Camilla was not someone to be trifled it. That cold glare reminded them so much of her father and they knew very well just what lengths the man could go to obtain something he wanted.

Camilla only wanted their co-operation and clandestinity.

Aggression Prone proposals were ranked from the scare of non-lethal to outright termination and were taken into detailed consideration. 

Consideration of such plans required preparation and implementation of new rules, departments, and protocols, and within three months of extensive planning, much of the inner circle of the foundation had changed. 

The Ouroboros council took their seats and LINE employees and personnel were hired and fired according to Takashi's Requirement Protocols. 

On the public front LINE Foundation was A Multinational Giant with a penchant for public welfare and beneath the front was a huge group of hardened individuals that were preparing for a war on such a level that has never been seen before. 

LINE began to subtly divert their funds to their more 'peculiar' projects. Production of weapons, rations, shelters, bunkers, vehicles and various supplies was aptly in progress. 

Information technology saw a breakthrough under Takashi's indirect guidance that lead to the development of multiple advanced anti-surveillance systems.

(A/N: Insert your ideas here. If possible please give a detailed description of the effects of such. Thank you.)

All in all, Takashi was pleased with the development and he could confidently say the magical words now.

"Just According to Keikaku." Takashi smiled tapping his fingers together.

Pondering on the topic further damped Takashi's mood a bit as his smile flattered. Taking the last sip from his cup, he shoved the cup in an automatic dishwasher before getting up and out of the surveillance room. 

The next part of the plan involved Takashi's direct involvement with LINE. Camilla would officially make him a part of the Ouroboros Council and he would travel across the globe tweaking the multiple bases they'd construct according to his liking, finding and recruiting people of interest and sabotaging Umbrella's schemes, anonymously of course. 

But this was a matter easier said than done, physically and mentally Takashi was more than prepared for what was to come and what was planned ahead for him. The most difficult part was getting out of here. 

Takashi had a plan. He would leave with Camilla to be a part of a special education program by LINE Foundation where they would cultivate his intelligence and his talents. But it would take a lot to convince Raya to let Takashi go even with Camilla's prompts that she would sponsor Takashi and shoulder his expenses. 

Raya's affection for Takashi had developed to a point where it was toeing a thin, fine line between overwhelming maternal love and fine romanticizing obsession. While flattering, Takashi didn't find it appealing right now. 

While he could care less about legal, moral, and ethical things and wouldn't mind diving in to indulge himself in his mother, now just wasn't the time to do so. While letting Raya in on the matter at scale seemed like a plausible idea, Takashi wasn't sure it would work. If anything, considering her overprotective she would do anything in her power to shield Takashi from the matter. Even if she has to sabotage her friendship with Camilla. Takashi couldn't allow that to happen.

It would take some time and a lot of emotional manipulation to convince her but Takashi would manage to do so. 

Next was Saya. Takashi and Saya were dating, yes. Takashi officially asked her out four months ago and Saya was an important part of his life now. Saya wouldn't be easy to convince either but she would be comparatively easy to do so than his mother. She would be sad and mad, yes but she had mellowed out a lot since they began dating and Takashi knew for sure that she would understand him. He just had to give her something to hold onto. 

Besides Saya, there was another girl that he had the chance to get close to and it wasn't Rei. Looking back it even surprises Takashi that the girl was Yuuki Miku. Contrary to everything he knew about Yuuki from the source material, the girl was shy and timid being overly conscious of her maturing body. 

Her blossoming body subjected her to various forms of harassment. Bullying by her jealous female classmates, sexual harassment by her male classmates, and emotional and physical abuse by her good-for-nothing drunkard father. 

Takashi believed the abuse and the stress of looking after her sick mom and little sister caused her to pick on a slutty persona and do thing unsavory things to earn money and survive. 

Naturally, Takashi took care of the situation. Saya's death with the female bullies with verbal lashing while Takashi beat the males to the ground in a bloody brawl that almost got him arrested by Rei's father who despised him. Getting out of the legal trouble, Takashi had the Yakuza take care of Yuuki's father, had her mother treated in a LINE hospital, and made education available to her sister. 

It goes without saying that Yuuki harbored romantic feelings for her savior who had saved her on so many levels. They weren't dating but her feelings for Takashi weren't a secret to Saya who surprisingly was still quite civil with Yuuki. Yuuki was probably the easiest one to convince out of the three of them. 

Takashi sighed passing the dining room. Turning off the light of the training room, Takashi powered down the velocity generator as he began to climb out of his base.

Climbing up, the hatch opened up on its own, as Takashi climbed out of a manhole in the middle of the thick foliage of bushes and trees. Closing the hatch behind him he covered it with a blanket of green grass he crafted as he begin to walk away. 

Walking down the streets, towards his home Takashi began to ponder on more that developed in a year and couldn't help but smile. Besides the growth of LINE, Takashi himself had improved a lot, and his proficiency in various fields had increased exponentially since he began tinkering with weapons, various objects, and types of equipment and began crafting them. With regular and repeated practice Takashi was able to create basic human weaponry from scratch with or without his crafting system. 

With his knowledge, the cost of advanced weaponry was almost halved and Takashi was pleased with his progress. Besides his crafting, his physical and his combat capabilities had improved by leaps and bounds and Takashi was dying to test his limits on an active battlefield.

Besides that, the system had received a few minor patches that thankfully didn't nerf the system any further. The second patch he received was a construction assistance sub-system that helped Takashi create his underground base. The third and last patch he received was nothing major, it just eased the store prices a bit and while it was a small gesture, Takashi still appreciated it nonetheless. 

Standing in front of his home Takashi couldn't help but sigh, Camilla had already called ahead of him and informed Raya about the 'education program' now, it was all up to him to convince her to let him go. 

It was going to be a tough battle but Takashi could do nothing but smile wryly and ready himself for the onslaught. 

"It's going to be a long day." 

Opening and closing the door behind him, Takashi removed his shoes and sighed as he heard footsteps approaching him at a rapid pace. 

"Takashi! Camilla just called me and informed me about this stupid education program you agreed to without approval! We need to talk about this." Raya narrowed her eyes in irritation as she folded her arms in front of her. "Now!"

"It's just 9 AM for fucks sake!" Takashi regretted climbing out of his base. He should have stayed inside. Takashi groaned rubbing his temple as the lecture began.

"God... I need another coffee."

------

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Two weeks ago, Takashi fought what he thought was a losing battle against his mom but he managed to emerge victorious by employing tactics that he wasn't the proudest of, and two days after the first battle he fought yet another war against Saya and managed to win that too, but the price had been too much for him. 

No hugs for him. 

"I have won... But at what cost." Takashi muttered to himself as he stood beside Saya on the rooftop of the school.

"Don't be such a drama queen." Saya scoffed rolling her eyes while Takashi mockingly nursed his broken heart. 

"You just don't understand my plight. You took away my hug privilege from me you monster." Takashi joked as Saya giggled. "Can't I have another hug? Like just one?"

"Nope!" Saya said popping the P in the end. "Why the rush it's not like-"

"I'm leaving tomorrow." Takashi interjected as the light atmosphere around them dissipated in an instant. Saya gripped the railings of the rooftop as she looked straight ahead. 

"Oh... I see." Saya replied calmly. "When... What time?"

"Morning... 11 AM." Takashi replied shortly as Saya nodded letting the silence do the talking for them.

She didn't want him to leave. 

He didn't want to leave. 

But he had to leave. 

She knew he had to leave. 

"When... When will I see you again?" Saya asked, her voice was shaky and her hands trembled as she held on to the railing.

"In three years." Takashi replied as Saya inhaled sharply.

"T-That's a long time." Saya stated the obvious as Takashi nodded slowly. "I... I will miss you-"

"I will be back again for you." Takashi interjected suddenly surprising her. Saya looked at Takashi with tears in her eyes as Takashi gently smiled at her, placing his hands on her. "I will be back for you. And yes... I will miss you too, dearly."

"T-Takashi..." Saya's voice trembled as she felt her vision turn blurry from the tears. 

"I love you." Takashi smiled and Saya just let her pride go and hugged him. She buried her face into his chest, sobbing as she hugged his torso. Takashi wrapped his hands around her back as he kissed her head. 

Sighing to himself, Takashi stared at the view in front of him. 

"I will come back for you... No matter what."

------

"I will wait for you." Saya smiled through the tears as she leaned forward and kissed Takashi. Takashi was surprised but kissed her back nonetheless. The couple enjoyed their first kiss as the bystanders just watched them with a mix of emotions. It was time for Takashi to leave and surprisingly, more people came to see him off than he had expected.

Pulling back, Saya grinned with a flushed face while Takashi smiled gently as he pulled out a thin, simple platinum necklace from his pocket. Saya blinked in surprise as Takashi reached around her, locking the necklace behind her neck, before straightening it. 

Tapping the small diamond Yggdrasil carving, Takashi leaned forward and kissed her cheek. 

"While I'm not here, I hope you look after yourself as well as your parents." Takashi smiled. "Don't eat too many burgers and take care of your health, alright squirrel?"

Saya huffed at the nickname but nodded obediently nonetheless. Kissing her head once again, Takashi and Saya shared another hug before she pulled back. 

Kohta stepped ahead with tears in his eyes as he approached Takashi. 

"S-Senpai! I will miss you!" Kohta was already crying as Takashi shook his head pulling him in for a brotherly hug. 

"I will miss you too, gunner." Takashi smiled pulling back as he patted Kohta's head. "You have to be strong now that I'm not here. While I am gone, I need you to look after and protect Saya and Yuuki from any wannabes, do you understand?"

"Yes, senpai!" Kohta nodded rubbing his teary eyes. 

"Good, good. If I get the chance, I'll bring a special gift for you, okay?" Takashi smiled as Kohta nodded still crying and rubbing his eye. "Good, I will miss you too, little brother."

Kohta hugged Takashi once more crying more than before he was finally pulled back by an annoyed Saya who began to reprimand him for being a crybaby causing Takashi to chuckle. 

"T-Takashi." Hearing the familiar, gentle, and timid voice of Yuuki, Takashi smiled as turning to face her. 

Yuuki brushed her long hair past her ears as she stepped ahead and hugged him out of nowhere surprising him. Blinking, Takashi looked at Saya only to receive an approving and satisfactory nod from her causing him to sigh before hugging Yuuki back. 

Yuuki sniffled into his chest but thankfully she had more restraint than Kohta as she quickly pulled back and wiped her tears. 

"I will w-wait for you too!" Yuuki said with determination as she glanced at Saya from the corner of her eyes. "I won't lose to Saya!"

Blinking once again in surprise, Takashi's brain began to come up with various scenarios that weren't the most appropriate as it tried to connect what must have transpired between Saya and Yuuki that resulted in this statement. Shaking his thoughts to the back of his head for the moment, Takashi nodded patting her cheek before he pulled out a case from his bag. 

Takashi retrieved two silver, rose-themed earings and presented them to Yuuki who was shocked and ready to refuse but one look from Takashi told her that she wouldn't be able to resist him and with reluctantly and a bit of giddiness she allowed Takashi to help her wear the earrings. 

"You look beautiful." Takashi complimented as Yuuki's face flushed in embarrassment. Looking down, she bowed in appreciation for all he had done for her as Takashi chuckled waving it off. "You are welcome. Please wait for me then, I'll be back before you know it."

Sharing a last hug, Yuuki stepped back as Rei and Hisashi stepped forward after spending a long time observing him with mixed feelings from the sidelines. 

The relationship between Takashi and the two in front of him had improved but only by a little. Hisashi was envious of the fact that Takashi was in a better place in every aspect and didn't have to rely on or need him as a friend while Rei became increasingly jealous of Saya and Yuuki as she felt that both of the girls were somehow responsible for losing her chance with Takashi.

Takashi thought they both were delusional in their own rights and wanted nothing to do with them but he managed to keep a non-hostile and even somewhat civil relationship with them nonetheless. 

"I... Be safe out there." Hisashi said as he offered Takashi a handshake which Takashi took with a small smile. 

"Thank you. All the best to you as well." Their friendship was as good as over and Hisashi knew that well so he stepped back without another word. 

"Takashi I... I'm sorry." Rei approached him with an apologetic look as she cradled her arm. "I have a lot to say and a lot to apologize for but sadly... We don't have enough time. I wish... I wish I had done this sooner. Takashi, I'm really sorry for breaking our promise. I was in the wrong, will you please forgive me?"

Takashi stared at Rei's face before sighing. 

"It's alright, it's fine. Don't think much about it. It was a childish promise I guess, I didn't expect it to matter all that much." Takashi replied as Rei visibly winced. "Don't beat yourself too much over it, okay?"

"Y-Yeah!" Rei nodded flashing him a strained smile. Takashi's reply was far more casual than she had expected. She had come in expecting an emotional response and even an angry rant and yet all she got was a shrug. 

Did she mean that little to him? Did she do this to herself? Various thoughts began to plague her mind as Takashi flashed her a smile.

She couldn't allow that.

"Alright then, it's time for me to go." Takashi broke the ice as Rei reluctantly nodded. Sharing a soft emotional look with Saya, Yuuki, and Kohta, Takashi got into his car and rolled the window down.

As soon as the window rolled down, Rei leaned inside the window and kissed Takashi on his cheek. Blinking once again, Takashi rubbed his cheek as Rei pulled back with a coy smile. 

"Once you come back, allow me to make it up to you." Rei said ignoring the glare she was receiving from Saya while Yuuki was panicking inside. "I will be waiting for you too."

Takashi slowly nodded as the car began to move. 

"Bye, everyone. I'll miss you." Takashi waved out of the window as he saw Saya, Yuuki, and Kohta burst into tears as Takashi began to depart. Looking at their sullen faces Takashi clenched his fists. 

It had to be done. 

Takashi leaned back into his seat, exhausted as he stared at the car roof. First, it was Raya and then his friends, he made them cry but it had to be done. 

He had to leave now to get powerful if he wanted to keep them safe but the departure is temporary as-

"I will be back."

Stronger, faster, and better than before.

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