Page 42 of The Oni's Heart

The Yakuza were still out there. And they were coming for us.

24

Flesh and Fury

TATSUYA

The Oni thrummed through my veins, pulling at the very essence of who I was, clawing for control. Inside, Tatsuya and the demon fought tooth and nail—one trying to regain humanity, the other reveling in destruction.

I could hear Tatsuya’s voice in my head, strained, frustrated. "We can’t just tear through the Yakuza without thinking. We need to plan, Oni. Plan." His words felt distant, as if they were coming through thick fog.

I felt the demon's grin stretch across my face, savage, wild. "Plan?" I growled. "We’veneverneeded a plan. We just need to take what's ours."

Tatsuya’s voice surged again, sharper, more desperate. "We can’t keep doing this. Not this way. You’re going to get us both killed."

But I was beyond caring. The blood boiled in me, rage clouding my vision. It wasn’t about survival anymore. It wasn’t even about the Yakuza. It was abouther. The pull of her—the heat of her touch, the fire of her defiance—it was everything I wanted.

"She’s mine," I hissed, ignoring Tatsuya’s protests. "She wants this."

The argument raged inside me, a storm tearing at the fabric of my mind, but I wasn’t listening. The Oni wanted nothing but chaos, destruction, and Momoi. Nothing else mattered.

In the distance, there was a rustling, faint but unmistakable. Footsteps. My senses locked onto them, a predator with a fresh scent. I could feel the shift in the air, a tangible thrill running down my spine.Finally, something to rip through. Something to destroy.

Tatsuya’s voice was strained, panicked. "Don’t. Don’t let the rage take over. We need to think. We need to be smart, or we’ll lose everything."

But it was too late. The Oni wasn’t listening. It was always too late. It was a hunger, a need that burned too bright to be ignored.

I surged forward, my body moving with a mind of its own. There was no hesitation. The door of the building ahead creaked, swinging open just as the figure emerged. A man, casual in his walk, unaware of the beast about to pounce.

I couldn’t stop myself. The rage was too much.

The Oni roared inside me, demanding release.

Before Tatsuya could say another word, I was already upon him. The world around me blurred as my claws reached out, tearing into the man’s flesh, rending him apart without a second thought. The blood sprayed across the floor, a hot, thick spray that soaked my skin. The satisfaction was immediate, primal, and absolute.

But even as the life drained from the man’s eyes, there was a flicker—a small voice in the back of my mind. Tatsuya.

"What have you done?" His voice was shaking now, full of disbelief and disgust. "We were trying to control this, trying to stop."

I wiped the blood from my claws, my grin stretching wider. "This is control."

I could feel Tatsuya retreating further, his words growing weaker as the Oni pushed him back. And for the first time, I felt the demon in me fully in charge. There was no trace of humanity left.

But as the blood pooled at my feet, something inside me—the small part of Tatsuya that still existed—shifted. I felt it. The doubt. The confusion.

"This isn’t us,"Tatsuya whispered, and I wanted to ignore him, but his words gnawed at me."This isn't what you promised me you would be."

But the Oni didn’t care about promises. It cared about hunger, desire, and rage. And right now, the only thing it wanted was her.

The moment I thought about Momoi, a twinge of hesitation ran through me. The battle between Tatsuya and the Oni shifted again, both of us struggling for control. But I wasn’t ready to let go. Not yet.

"We need to go to her," I growled.

"Not like this," Tatsuya shot back, but it didn’t matter. The Oni had already decided.

I didn’t give him a chance to argue. I was already moving. I needed her.

As I stalked through the streets, the bloodstains still dripping from my claws, I could feel the tension building, the pull of the demon’s rage swirling in the air. Each step was heavy, the weight of the world bearing down on me.

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