Chapter Text
“Bring him in.”
Hijikata is shoved onto the dojo floor, bruises coloring his body but his eyes remain with fierce intent. These Bakufu dogs, they were crowding him just a while ago. No matter how thorny his strikes had been, in the end he was easily outnumbered. The outcome was predictable. Hijikata glares at everyone in the dojo room. He’d thought they’d lump him in the jail cell or something immediately, but here he is, on the very place that he’s been sneaking into for a week now.
“So, this the culprit?”
A man with silver hair, a permy one at that too, enters the dojo with another person beside him. Instantly, copious amount of Shinsengumi troops calling ‘Fukucho’ in unison. Suddenly the crowd makes a distance, creating a circle with him in the middle. Suddenly Hijikata becomes very aware of where he’s kneeling.
“Souichirou-kun?”
“It’s Sougo. Anyway, this is the one that’s been trespassing our grounds for the last week. There’s no reports of stolen goods, we found him snooping the dojo, he usually escapes whenever anyone notices him. He’s got a thorny side, Sakata-san.”
That perm head bastard looks so disinterest with the entire thing, how the hell is he the White Demon of Shinsengumi? Hijikata directs his glare to said man, only receiving the same dead-eye look.
“So, ponytail-kun, care to explain yourself? I’m really not in the mood to do reports today, you know.” (Somewhere beside him, Sougo mumbling “As if you ever do our reports, Fukucho.”)
“Who you calling ponytail, perm head!”
“Pot, kettle. Why are you here, hmm? What’s the saying, isn’t it a hundred years too fast for you to snoop around the Shinsengumi ground? Or something like that.” Hijikata grits his teeth. That, he can’t really fire back. Hell, but it really frustrates him, the way this man treating his action like this. The Vice-chief is mocking him, rather than intimidating. If it’s the usual intimidation tactic, Hijikata can endure it. He’ll rot in jail for all that he cares, but this apathetic bastard—it pisses the hell out of him.
It’s humiliating.
“Oi, Oogushi-kun? You’re still with us?” He really hates it.
“Who the hell is Oogushi!”
The man scratches the back of his permy head and sighs, exasperatedly, annoyingly. He approaches Hijikata. “This is getting nowhere.”
In a swift motion, Hijikata is dragged on the floor by the back collar of his yukata.
“Oi! Hell—Let go!! Bastard!!!” Hijikata trashes in the Vice-chief’s grip but the man just easily drags him out of the dojo.
“As expected of a true sadist.” Sougo makes room for the Vice-chief and his baggage to pass.
“The rest of you, return to your post, or else.” His tone remains monotonous but the reaction of the Shinsengumi is something to behold. Everyone instantly snaps then scatters. That sight makes Hijikata’s stomach churns. He’s heard of the man, of course he has. The infamous White Demon of Shinsengumi, their Vice-commander. His swordsmanship is said to be unparalleled. No terrorists, be it human or Amanto, stands when facing him.
There are rumors of him being the Shiroyasha back during the Joui war. A proper demon on the battlefield. Same description as the Vice-commander of the Shinsengumi. It is said that his eyes alone could kill. If you ask Hijikata, he’d snort. Come on, even a toddler can put that two together. Of course they’re the same person. It’s just logic, even Hijikata is willing to admit to that.
Hijikata is now in the presence of a legendary samurai. He’s being dragged by said legend to a private room.
Hijikata trashes all the way to said room, yelling at the sadist of a Vice-chief, profanities and such. It’s his own fault, in hindsight, that he’s added more scuff marks on his skin by using the friction to impede the other’s walk. He can’t complain about getting more scratches because that’s his own fault, moron.
“Let me go! It hurts, dammit!” Hijikata hisses, hand grabbing at the one on his back trying to pry it off.
“Be grateful I’m not dragging with your ponytail.”
Many thoughts run through Hijikata’s mind. Before his train of thoughts could land into unsavory territory, he’s dropped on the tatami. The Vice-chief takes a couple steps more before dropping down as well, facing Hijikata.
“Alright. Let’s restart from the beginning.” Hijikata blinks at the change of posture from the man. “I am Sakata Gintoki, Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi.”
What’s with that serious air, what the hell—
“I’ve seen you around here myself, and frankly, I already know what, who you’re looking for. So, if you don’t mind telling me about yourself, that’ll speed this up.” Hijikata suppresses a shudder. What the hell—how..
“Hijikata Toushirou.” He answers with a glare, refusing to budge from his churning stomach.
“Right, so, Oogushi-kun,”
“I just told you my name!”
“I’m not in the mood to call your name. So, Oogushi-kun,” Gintoki repeats with a dismissive hand wave. His other hand flips open his phone and he scrolls through it, attention now casted on the screen. Never have Hijikata wanted to strangle a man alive as badly as right now.
“let’s see, trespassing, trespassing... Ah, here it is. Trespassing government property, ten years in jail, or ten million yen.” Hijikata jolts. “Disrespecting civil servants, two years of public duty. Annoying hairstyle, bad temper, that’s twenty years—”
“Like hell that is! You just made those last ones up!” Hijikata snaps, anger boiling his very being. From the face, the voice, the posture, the everything of this man, infuriates the living daylight out of Hijikata. How the hell can someone be this insufferable? No wonder everyone calls him a demon, it’s not just his skill, he’s evil incarnate, for sure.
“That’s an additional three years of public duty, Hijikata-kun.” Gintoki looks at him with the same dead-eye look. Do his eyes ever look anything else?
“I know you’re looking for Kondo Isao.”
Hijikata freezes. Nothing is given from the Vice-commander’s face, nothing changes. But the air becomes instantaneously drops a point or two. Or maybe it’s just his skin, there’s cold-sweat?
Like being poured ice water, all that fiery anger washed away with that single statement. Hijikata doesn’t say anything, doesn’t know what to. For all that he currently know, Vice-Chief Sakata probably already knows him.
“He’s with the Commissioner for a week trip. You arrived here just in time when he left.” Hijikata tries his best to maintain that level gaze with this man, both hands clenched on his lap, anything to stop them from shuddering. “I know it’s bad timing, but regardless, what you’re doing is clearly trespassing.”
Gintoki flips close his phone.
“I’ll make you a deal.”
Hijikata can feel sweat trickle down his neck. He swallows. “W-what deal?”
“Join the Shinsengumi. I’ll erase your charges.” The man grins wide, knowingly. It makes Hijikata wants to boil again.
“Like I said, I’m not in the mood to do reports today. Think about it, you don’t have anywhere to go, right? It’s not so bad here, you get three meals a day, you have a place to sleep. Isn’t it a good deal?” Hijikata wants to scream. There are so many questions in his head. All jumbling into one mess that tangle even more with each tries to separate them from one another. Too many thoughts running at the same time. Stirred into one concoction in a pot boiled with rage. How the hell is this Sakata Gintoki the Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi?!
“You can meet Kondo if you join the Shinsengumi.”
Ah. That’s the line, isn’t it? Just like that.
Hijikata feels blood from his nails digging his palms. He hisses the agreement through gritted teeth. “Fine.”
Gintoki pats his legs once before standing up. He walks towards Hijikata and extends a hand.
“Shake on it?”
Hijikata glares instead.
“Fine, suit yourself. I have your words, anyway.” Gintoki rolls his eyes, then he goes for the door.
It takes every ounce of him to speak again. “W-Wait!”
The Vice-chief stops, gives Hijikata the same uninterested look. Hijikata gives him a frustrated look.
“Do you know me?”
What the hell is that look? Gintoki’s brows are knitted at the center, his eyes no longer dead, but his lips tugged at the corner like a smirk. It’s a split-second expression unreadable by Hijikata. What the hell—
“Go find Harada for your uniform and stuff.”
There goes Sakata Fukucho.
