Page 41 of The Oni's Heart

“The Yakuza will find us. They’re already close. And right now, the last thing I need is to be caught betweenyouand them. They’ll think you’re some kind of threat... and they’ll come for you, for both of us.”

The words left a bitter taste in my mouth, but it was the truth. I had to face the consequences of my choices, and so did he. I didn’t want to backpedal now, not when things had escalated this far, but I had no choice. This—whateverthiswas between us—had to stop before it destroyed us both.

“You think you can protect me? Protect us?” I raised an eyebrow, my heart pounding in my chest. “Then prove it.Because we’re not safe. And you heard the guy earlier; he’s about to sell this little hideout of ours.”

He stared at me, a low growl vibrating in his chest, but for once, I didn’t flinch. I wasn’t afraid of him. Not yet.

“Figure it out, Tatsuya,” I added, my voice softening, but still firm. “You owe me. Now, it’s time to return the favor.”

I stood there, waiting for his next move.

The tension between us hung in the air, thick and suffocating. His yellow eyes burned into me, his chest heaving with every breath, but I could see the internal conflict brewing beneath the surface. The Oni raged, clawing for dominance, but Tatsuya… Tatsuya was still there, still fighting to break free.

“Do you think you can just command me?” he growled, his voice a dangerous mix of Tatsuya’s usual restraint and the raw edge of the demon that had taken over. The Oni’s claws flexed, the knuckles cracking with a bone-chilling sound.

I didn’t flinch, though part of me knew I should. But this wasn’t the time to back down.

“I don’t need to command you,” I snapped, taking a step forward, refusing to let the monster intimidate me. “But if you want to keep me alive—and not just drag us both into your own personal hell—you’ll listen. This mess is bigger than your pride. So fix it.”

His fangs glinted as he bared them, a silent promise of violence. I could feel the weight of his presence, the danger of the situation pushing against me, testing me. But I wasn’t backing down. Not now. We were stuck together, and he, they, knew it.

The Oni stared at me for a long moment, his face a twisted reflection of both rage and something else—something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. But in that flicker of time, I saw a vulnerability buried deep within the beast. And it made something in my chest twist just slightly.

For a moment, the fury seemed to ease.

“Where are we going?” His voice was softer now but still threaded with anger, still dangerous. The demon’s influence wasn’t gone. Not by a long shot. But Tatsuya was trying to take the reins again, just barely.

I swallowed hard, trying to push past the rush of adrenaline that still surged in my veins. “We need to disappear. Lay low until we figure out what the hell to do next. And that means no more running from the Yakuza. No more being caught off guard.”

The anger flared up again, and he shook his head, his claws curling into fists. “I don’t run.”

“You don’t get it, do you?” I shook my head, exasperated. “This isn’t about pride. This is about survival. If you don’t want the Yakuza to find us—and if you want to keep yourself from being hunted—you need to stop fighting your damn self.”

There was a long pause. I could see the battle raging inside him. The Oni wanted to rip everything apart; Tatsuya wanted to protect what little was left. But both of them had their own way of doing things. And neither of them were willing to let go.

“Fine,” he growled after a moment, stepping back. “We lay low. But we’re doing it my way.”

I smirked, feeling a strange mixture of relief and frustration. “Your way. Of course.”

“I don’t like being controlled,” he warned, his voice low and rumbling with that same growl from earlier. But he stepped back further, the fight draining from his form, for now.

“Then get used to it,” I said, my voice almost teasing. “Because whether you like it or not, we’re in this together now.”

The silence that followed was almost suffocating. There was so much I didn’t understand about this situation, him, or us. But for the first time, the monstrous tension that had been coiling between us seemed to relax—just a little.

For now, we had to survive.

“Let’s move,” I said, the first flicker of command in my voice. "You lead, I'll follow."

He turned, moving with the same grace and lethal elegance that I had come to associate with Tatsuya, even if it was now twisted by the presence of the Oni. He was predatory—dangerous—and yet, there was still something…human. Something I couldn’t shake.

Despite everything, despite the monster he had become, I knew he wasn’t gone.

Not yet.

And for the first time in this madness, I wasn’t sure whether that was a blessing or a curse.

But as I followed him out into the shadows, my mind was already racing ahead, trying to figure out the next steps. We weren’t out of danger. Not by a long shot. But for now, I needed to keep us both alive. And that meant trusting him—or at least hoping the demon wouldn’t get the best of him.

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