Chapter 85: Silver Soul (Earth Arc)

At the outskirts of the imperial capital, weeds grew wild and thick, and few ever came here. Only black crows circled endlessly over the vast, desolate plain.

After realizing he had been fooled by those women, Gintoki sat there for a very long time, still wearing the stunned, world-weary expression he had when the truth first hit him.

Someone brushed through the dead grass and came slowly up behind him, but Gintoki noticed nothing. Okakura Take stepped in front of him, and he merely stared ahead blankly, showing no reaction at all.

Pfft. Looking at him like that, Okakura Take could not help but reach out and pinch his cheek. Gintoki still did not respond.

“This is nice, Gin-san. Come back with me. Come back to our home.” Okakura Take looked at Gintoki and spoke, her gaze pitch-black.

When Gintoki finally came to himself, he was already locked inside Okakura Take’s house.

“Huh? What is this supposed to mean?” Gintoki began to struggle. He was manacled to the wall, with two heavy iron rings fastening him at the waist and neck, making it difficult to break free at once.

He looked around. This was Okakura Take’s house, so why was he chained up like this? Panic welled up in him.

“Take?” Gintoki shouted.

“I’m here.” Okakura Take rose from the sofa in front of him; she had evidently been sleeping there just moments ago.

She walked slowly up to Gintoki and stood before him, staring without a word, without moving. Seeing her like this, Gintoki broke out in a cold sweat. He had a very bad feeling.

Suddenly, Okakura Take moved. She reached out and began undoing Gintoki’s suit piece by piece, then his white shirt, then his trousers, and at last her hand slowly drifted toward his pink strawberry-print underwear.

“Wait!” Gintoki shouted.

“Take, what are you doing? Could you at least let Gin-san down before playing around?” he said in a fluster.

Okakura Take leaned close, resting her head against his shoulder, and her hand began wandering improperly over the bulge in his pants. Gintoki swallowed, and very soon, that bulge had entered a state of readiness.

“Gin-san, do you know? I’m very dissatisfied with how you acted this time. Before anything else, let me apologize. I’m sorry for deceiving you together with them. But...” Okakura Take’s expression darkened, and the movements of her hand suddenly grew heavier. Gintoki let out a muffled groan.

“You were having a grand time flitting among six women, weren’t you? Hiding things from one another, trying to keep everyone in the dark. Planning to build yourself a harem? Gin-san, did you think you were some kind of boundless ladies’ man, or a heartless womanizer? Since you went and did all that, is it all right if I play a little punishment game with you?” Okakura Take said with a faint laugh.

“Wait! Gin-san hasn’t even reached the point of no return beyond the weekly magazine cutoff yet! A punishment game? How about role-play instead? I’m the doctor, you’re the patient. How about that?” Gintoki said in panic.

“I wouldn’t be satisfied with a game like that, Gin-san.”

As she spoke, Okakura Take gently kissed his cheek, and the kiss only stirred him further. Just when Gintoki was hoping for more, Okakura Take stepped away. She picked up a remote and turned on the television. The moans and gasps coming from the screen made Gintoki’s face flush red, and the man and woman engaging in shameless exercise on the TV only made his own weapon grow even more sensitive.

“T-Take, what does this mean?” Gintoki asked, trembling.

Okakura Take yawned. “Sorry, Gin-san. I’m sleepy. You can watch this and take care of things yourself. Oh, and the iron rings on you have bombs installed in them...” A twisted smile spread across her face. “If you force them open—they’ll explode.”

“Huh?!! Take, wait, don’t go! Don’t leave Gin-san all alone! I’m scared! If you leave me by myself I’ll cry! I really will cry!” Gintoki wailed.

“Good night, Gin-san. You should sleep early too.”

“You cram me into this situation and then expect me to sleep?!” Gintoki roared.

Bang! In response, Okakura Take shut the door with cold indifference.

For a time, the living room was left with only the sounds from the television and the ragged breathing of the man and woman on screen. Gintoki had thought that if he simply closed his eyes, he would be fine, but those suggestive sounds tormented him just the same. He still could not cover his ears, and the thing beneath him only stood more proudly, leaving Gintoki feeling as though he were about to burst.

“Take!”

“Take!”

“Take!”

He shouted her name until his voice was raw, but Okakura Take did not answer him once. In the end, his throat was torn to shreds, and still there was no sign of her leaving the room.

His head slowly drooped. Looking at the bulge beneath him straining against his strawberry-print underwear, a faint red glimmer passed through his eyes...

At midnight, Okakura Take slept soundly with a comforter in her arms, dreaming of pinning the curly-haired fool beneath her feet and taking delight in it.

Boom! An explosion from the living room jolted her awake. Okakura Take sprang up at once, opened the bedroom door, and saw the living room filled with smoke. The light switch was on the other side, and she would have to grope her way over there to turn it on.

“Gin-san?” she called into the thick smoke, but the living room remained quiet, with only her own breathing to be heard.

What had happened to that curly-haired fool? Okakura Take felt a little worried.

“Darling, come play a game with me!” Suddenly, a chain looped around from behind Okakura Take and tightened beneath her chest.

It was Sakata Gintoki! Okakura Take spun around quickly, trying to kick the curly-haired fool away, but the floor behind her had suddenly become slick, and before she could keep her footing, she slipped and fell. A heavy body pressed down on her in an instant.

“Damn it!” Just as Okakura Take tried to struggle, Gintoki reached out and touched something to her lips with his finger.

That taste was cream! Okakura Take realized at once. She instinctively stuck out her tongue and licked it. Indeed, it was cream.

“Pretty tasty, isn’t it? I like eating it too.” With that, Gintoki lowered his head and kissed her.

“Mmph, bastard...” Okakura Take was left dizzy by his fierce kiss.

With a sharp crack, Okakura Take finally broke free of the chain and kicked Gintoki away.

“Tsk tsk. So this won’t do after all,” Gintoki said, then vanished once more into the smoke.

Okakura Take hurried to the window, opened it, and let the air circulate. In a short while, the smoke had all drifted out.

Only then did she see the state of her living room: the walls were blackened, the sofa, table, cabinet, and everything else had been knocked over in a heap, making the place look utterly wrecked. She searched and searched, but could not find Gintoki anywhere.

“Did he already escape?” Okakura Take murmured in confusion.

Then she felt a tickle in her throat. She went to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, intending to grab some water, when a hand reached out from behind. Gintoki shoved a bottle of liquor to her lips.

“Mmph...” Too late to react, Okakura Take drank the entire bottle dry.

“This is tequila,” Gintoki said softly at her ear from behind.

Huh? Where had he gotten such a strong drink? Okakura Take wondered. But after a moment, the smell of alcohol had already begun to make her head swim.

“Hic, hic.” She started hiccuping, slowly lowering her head while bracing herself against the refrigerator, her ears beginning to turn red.

Gintoki wrapped his arms around her from behind. He gently poked her cheek and said, “Will you still dare to play tricks on me like that next time? Don’t underestimate Gin-san, hahahaha.” Finished, he laughed smugly.

When he was done laughing, he found that Okakura Take still had not reacted at all.

“I went too far, huh,” Gintoki thought, scratching his head. Looking at her motionless in his arms, he suddenly felt a little awkward.

“Ah, what a hassle. Come on, I’ll carry you back to bed first,” he said, turning her around and preparing to take her to the bedroom.

Smack! His hand was caught. Gintoki looked up in confusion, and what he saw was Okakura Take grinning foolishly at him, her face flushed red.

“Come on, you’re drunk. I’ll take you back to sle—ahhh!” Gintoki did not even finish before Okakura Take punched him clean out of the room.

Clutching his face, Gintoki curled up in a corner and looked at Okakura Take as she came shambling toward him with a dopey grin. Her eyes looked terrifying. The way she stared at him was flashing with a green light, as though she might devour him at any moment...

“No... don’t come any closer!” Gintoki cried, unable to stop himself from clutching at his chest.

But Okakura Take had already reached him. His whole body was swallowed beneath her dark shadow, and Gintoki trembled even harder.

One minute later, Gintoki, stripped down until he was left with only his underwear, was tossed onto Okakura Take’s large bed. Gintoki hurriedly tugged the blanket over himself.

“Stop it! If you really force Gin-san to do something like this, I’ll cry, Shinpachi and Kagura will cry too, Take, stop already!” he shouted in panic.

“Hic, hic.” Tilting her head, Okakura Take looked at the cowering Gintoki on her bed with a smiling gaze. “Hee-hee-hee, so cute. I want him.”

“Huh? Cute? Want me?” Gintoki said in astonishment.

“I want you!” With that, Okakura Take sprang onto the bed and pounced on him. She ripped away Gintoki’s blanket and pinned him beneath her.

“Aaaaaah!” Gintoki let out a shrill scream.

“Don’t pull on my underwear!”

“Don’t touch there!”

“Please be gentle!”

“Ah, I’m about to break a bone!”

“Take, easier!”

“No way!”

Gintoki shouted all through the night. By dawn, his voice finally fell silent. Covered in injuries, he lay rolled-eyed beside the sleeping Okakura Take, both of them naked on the tangled bed, the room left with only the scent of passion.

“Agh, my head hurts. My body hurts too.” A few hours later, Okakura Take slowly opened her eyes. The soreness in her body and the hangover pounding in her skull made her feel miserable.

Then she suddenly felt a chill all over. Her eyes flew wide as she looked down at herself. She was completely bare, with bruises and purple marks over her body, especially between her legs...

Boom! A thunderclap struck above Okakura Take’s head. Her virginal, first, first, first... In short, she could no longer go to the promised land!

And the one who had done this to her—Okakura Take turned her head with a series of crackling sounds and looked at Gintoki, who was sleeping beside her and smacking his lips. He looked miserable enough, but Okakura Take still felt furious.

This bastard! He had actually gotten her drunk and done this to her while she was wasted. Unforgivable!

Under the intensity of Okakura Take’s killing intent, Gintoki shuddered and woke up. Seeing her dark expression, he retreated in fear.

“W-wait! Gin-san was the one who got forced last night! Look, my arm even got dislocated...”

“C-calm down, aaaaah!” Gintoki shrieked as he curled into a ball and rolled under the bed.

In the end, after being ravaged yet again, Gintoki lay face-down on the white covers, his rear stuck up, with a certain part of him still trapped by Okakura Take. Blood trickled down his face, scattering tiny red plum blossoms across the blanket.

“Shinpachi... Kagura... when we get back, make me red-bean rice...” Tears mixed with blood as they slowly fell, becoming a sorrowful stream of wide-band tears...