Chapter Ten: The Monster Inside
That night, Renji prowled through Shinjuku. The city's neon lights blurred as he drifted invisible among the rooftops. His body still throbbed with the power of the serpent he had devoured.
But the hunger had changed. It wasn't just for flesh anymore. It was for recognition. For her.
On a quiet street, he saw two boys dragging a girl into an alley. Their laughter was cruel, their eyes predatory.
Renji's vision went red.
He dropped from above, landing in silence.
「やめろ.」 his voice growled, deep and guttural.
("Stop.")
The boys spun. "Who the hell—"
They didn't finish. Renji's claws flashed, his teeth sank deep, and their screams vanished into the night.
When it was over, the girl stumbled free, seeing nothing but shadows.
Renji licked blood from his lips, his chest heaving. His reflection flickered faintly in a rain puddle — half-boy, half-beast, eyes glowing.
「ユナ…お前のために戦ってる.」 he whispered, voice breaking.
("Yuna… I'm fighting for you.")
Chapter Eleven: The Girl Who Sees
The city was still smoking from the Ueno battle. News anchors on every screen screamed of a "terrorist attack," of "gas explosions," of anything but the truth.
But Yuna knew what she saw.
From her window, she had watched a shadow — human, yet monstrous — tearing through the beast in the rain. The outline, the way it moved… the way it laughed.
Her heart whispered his name.
"Renji…"
The next day at school, the rumors only grew worse. Mei smirked, boys pressed their luck, teachers whispered behind their hands. Yuna endured it all, her mask unbroken.
But her mind wasn't on them.
It was on the figure in the rain.
That night, she walked alone through Shinjuku, past glowing signs and crowded streets, her heels tapping steadily against the wet pavement.
"Are you out of your mind?" her friend had begged earlier.
But Yuna didn't care. She was following instinct — a pull in her chest.
And then… she saw him.
At the end of a narrow alley, half-shrouded in darkness, stood a figure. His outline blurred, shifting between visible and invisible, like mist struggling to take shape. His shoulders were broad, his hair wild, his eyes glowing faintly.
Her breath caught.
"…Renji?"
The figure froze.
For a moment, silence. Only the dripping of rain.
Then his voice, low, raw, in Japanese:
「ユナ...近づくな.」
("Yuna… don't come closer.")
Her heart raced. Tears stung her eyes.
"I knew it," she whispered in English. "It's you."
He stepped back, his body flickering, veins pulsing with an otherworldly glow. His claws flexed, the hunger gnawed. He wanted to reach for her — to hold her — but the beast inside screamed to devour.
「俺はもう人間じゃない...」
("I'm not human anymore…")
Yuna shook her head, her voice trembling but fierce.
"You're Renji. That's all that matters."
Their eyes locked — her love against his curse, beauty against horror.
And above them, in the skyscraper shadows, something else stirred. Another monster. Watching. Waiting.
The night wasn't done with them yet.
Chapter Twelve: The First Touch
The alley was thick with silence. Rain dripped down neon signs, pooling at their feet.
Renji stood half-visible, body flickering like a broken reflection. His claws trembled, his breath ragged.
「ユナ,帰れ.」
("Yuna… go home.")
But Yuna shook her head. Her heels clicked against the wet pavement as she walked toward him, steady despite the fear clawing at her chest.
"I'm not leaving you again."
His chest tightened. His claws curled until they cut his palm, black ichor dripping into the puddles.
「俺は怪物だ.人を喰った.」
("I'm a monster. I've eaten people.")
Yuna's lips trembled. But she didn't stop.
"If that's true… then you only eat the ones who deserve it. Right?"
His eyes widened. He hadn't told her that.
She reached him. Close enough to see his distorted reflection in her tears. Slowly, trembling, she raised her hand — and touched his chest.
Her palm met his burning skin. His body flickered violently, struggling between visibility and nothingness.
"Renji…" she whispered. "You're still you."
For the first time in weeks, he felt warmth that wasn't hunger.
Then the ground shook.
From the rooftop, a shape dropped into the alley. A creature, twisted and ancient — a three-eyed oni with bone-white horns and a jaw unhinged too wide. Its roar split the night, shaking glass from windows.
Yuna stumbled back, gasping.
Renji's head snapped toward the beast. His glow intensified, claws lengthening. His voice dropped into a guttural growl, pure Japanese:
「邪魔すんな.」
("Don't interrupt.")
The oni lunged.
Renji roared back, his body flashing into full monstrous form for the first time before Yuna's eyes. Invisible flesh peeling to reveal the predator within.
Yuna pressed her hand to her mouth, torn between terror and awe.
But in her chest, one truth burned: This is still Renji.
The alley exploded into chaos as steel, claws, and blood clashed under Tokyo's neon rain.
Chapter Thirteen: Blood in the Rain
The oni lunged, claws like rusted blades tearing through the alley.
Renji met it head-on. His body flickered, phasing in and out of sight, claws carving sparks across the beast's hide. Neon lights shattered, showering the street in glass.
「遅い…!」 he growled in Japanese, vanishing mid-swing.
("Too slow…!")
He reappeared behind the oni, raking its back open in a spray of black blood. The monster howled, tail whipping, smashing him into a wall. Bricks exploded.
Yuna screamed.
"Renji!"
Through the dust, he emerged, grinning, teeth sharp, eyes glowing like twin embers. His breath came heavy, wild, but his voice was steady:
「まだ終わらねぇ.」
("It's not over yet.")
He leapt again. His claws sank into the oni's throat. The beast shrieked, slamming him into the pavement — but he didn't let go. His jaws opened, and for the first time in front of Yuna, she saw him feed.
He tore into its flesh, drinking the ichor, the glow spreading across his veins. The oni writhed, weakening, until its final roar died into silence.
The alley stank of blood and smoke.
Renji staggered to his feet, his body steaming, his claws dripping black. He turned — and froze.
Yuna stood there, trembling, tears streaking down her face. She had seen it all.
His voice cracked in Japanese.
「見ただろ...?これが俺だ.」
("You saw it, didn't you…? This is what I am.")
Her lips trembled. Her heart pounded. Every instinct screamed at her to run.
But she didn't.
Instead, she stepped closer, her voice breaking but clear:
"You're Renji. You saved me. That's all that matters."
His claws shook. His hunger burned. The beast inside howled for her blood — but her voice cut through it like light in the dark.
For the first time, he turned his face away from prey.
Above them, hidden in the rooftops, Mei watched. Her eyes wide, lips parted in shock.
She had followed Yuna out of jealousy, hoping to catch her in some scandal. Instead, she had seen the impossible.
And she smiled slowly.
"So… this is your secret, Arisaka Yuna."
Chapter Fourteen: Between Beauty and the Beast
The alley was quiet now, save for the hiss of rain. The oni's body dissolved into black ash, scattered by the wind.
Renji stood there, trembling, his chest heaving, his claws still dripping. His eyes flickered between glowing beast and fading human.
Yuna took a step closer.
"Renji…" Her voice was soft, but it carried against the storm. "You're hurt."
He laughed bitterly in Japanese.
「怪物は傷つかない.」
("Monsters don't get hurt.")
But when her hand touched his arm, he flinched — not from pain, but from the warmth.
Her fingers trailed across his skin, tracing the lines of glowing veins, ignoring the claws, the teeth, the danger. She looked at him not with fear, but with sorrow… and love.
"I don't care what you are," she whispered. "You're still you."
For a moment, the beast inside him went silent.
Renji leaned closer, their foreheads almost touching. His breath shook, his claws hovered at her waist, not daring to touch. The hunger roared — but her heartbeat drowned it out.
And then, for the first time since his death, he allowed himself to feel human.
Their lips met, trembling, desperate, rain sliding down their faces.
It wasn't gentle. It was survival. A kiss to prove he was still alive.
High above, Mei crouched on the rooftop, hidden behind the neon glow. Her phone camera glimmered in the dark. She lowered it slowly, a wicked smile spreading across her face.
"So it's true," she whispered in English. "The dead boy lives… and Yuna belongs to him."
She slipped away into the night, her mind already turning. This secret was worth gold.
Chapter Fifteen: Threads of Desire, Threads of Schemes
The storm followed them.
Renji led Yuna through backstreets until the city lights faded into silence. They stopped beneath an abandoned train overpass, the rain dripping steadily through cracks above.
His body flickered in and out of sight — the ghost inside struggling against the man he once was.
"You shouldn't be here," he said, voice raw in Japanese.
「ここに来るべきじゃない.」
("You shouldn't have come here.")
Yuna shook her head, her voice fierce in English.
"I told you — I'm not leaving you."
She stepped closer, her uniform soaked, her breath trembling. Her hands rose, brushing against his chest, tracing the scars and glowing veins. He shivered, his claws twitching at his sides.
"You're burning," she whispered.
His eyes darkened. Hunger and desire twisted together inside him, unbearable. He pinned his hand against the wall beside her, his body close enough to feel her heartbeat through the rain.
「ユナ...俺は危ない.」
("Yuna… I'm dangerous.")
She lifted her chin, her lips inches from his.
"Then be dangerous with me."
The kiss that followed was fire in the rain — urgent, forbidden, the collision of love and monstrosity. His claws grazed her waist, careful not to pierce, while her fingers curled in his wet hair, pulling him closer.
For one moment, they weren't ghost and girl, beast and beauty. They were just two souls clinging to each other against the storm.
But across town, in a luxury apartment overlooking Shinjuku's glow, Takashiro Mei sat with her phone in hand.
On the screen: the blurred footage of Renji, his monstrous outline, his kiss with Yuna.
Her smile curved like a blade.
"So the rumors were true," she murmured. "Arisaka Yuna, perfect queen of the school… in love with a monster."
She poured herself wine, the glass catching neon light.
"Let's see how long you can keep that crown."
Chapter Sixteen: Flames in the Dark
The week passed in a blur.
By day, Yuna walked the halls of Shinjuku Academy with her usual grace — flawless hair, perfect smile, the kind of beauty that stopped conversations. But whispers followed her now.
"She looks… distracted."
"Don't you think she sneaks out at night?"
"Maybe she's hiding a boyfriend."
Yuna ignored them all, but inside her chest, her secret burned hotter than the rumors.
Because every night, when the city's neon drowned in rain, she met him.
Renji's hideout was a forgotten warehouse at the city's edge. Rusted beams, broken windows, the smell of dust and oil. A place where ghosts belonged.
And yet, when Yuna pushed open the door, it felt more like sanctuary.
Renji stood waiting, half-shrouded in shadow, shirtless, his skin laced with glowing veins. His eyes softened the instant he saw her.
「また来たか.」
("You came again.")
"I'll always come," she whispered.
They collided — lips, hands, desperate touches. His claws pressed into the wall beside her head, caging her in without harming her. Her fingers traced the muscles of his chest, the strange energy burning beneath his skin.
The kiss deepened until breath was an afterthought, her body pressed against his, the warehouse echoing with their heartbeat.
When his lips broke from hers, he buried his face in her neck, his voice trembling.
「…喰いたい.」
("…I want to eat you.")
Her breath caught. Fear flickered — but she tilted her head, baring her throat.
"Then take me," she whispered.
His fangs grazed her skin, his hunger roaring — but he stopped, shuddering, pulling away.
「ダメだ…お前だけは…」
("No… not you… never you.")
Their eyes met. And in that denial, in that restraint, their bond grew sharper than any kiss.
But across the city, Mei moved her pieces.
At school, she leaned against lockers, her smile dripping venom as she whispered to Yuna's rivals.
"Don't you think it's strange? Yuna sneaking out every night?"
In a dim classroom, she showed a select group of students a blurred frame from her phone — Renji's monstrous silhouette against the rain.
"Tell me," she purred. "Wouldn't the school love to know who our perfect queen has been hiding?"
The whispers became daggers. The eyes turned sharper. Yuna's throne at school was beginning to tremble.
And Mei, sipping her victory, whispered to herself:
"Soon… everyone will know."
Chapter Seventeen: Hunger and Rumors
The night was heavy with heat.
Inside the warehouse, Yuna lay against Renji's chest, the sound of his heartbeat a wild, uneven drum. His claws traced her arm carefully, never pressing too deep, though every nerve in him screamed to tear.
Her lips brushed his ear.
"Renji…" she whispered. "Don't hold back."
His breath hitched. His hands slid to her waist, pulling her onto his lap. Their mouths collided again — hungry, unrestrained. Her fingers tugged at his hair, his lips burned against her skin.
When his fangs grazed her collarbone, she gasped, arching toward him.
「俺は...止まれない...」
("I can't… stop…")
"You don't have to," she murmured, eyes glazed with need.
For one terrifying, beautiful second, he opened his mouth wide, fangs bared against her throat — the line between a kiss and a kill razor-thin.
But then he froze. His body trembled violently. He slammed his claws into the wall beside them, shattering rusted steel instead of her flesh.
「ダメだ!お前は...俺の人間だ!」
("No! You… you're my human!")
Tears stung her eyes. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him as if she could bind the beast inside with nothing but love.
The next morning at school was a different battlefield.
When Yuna walked through the gates, silence rippled through the courtyard. Students stared. Phones glowed.
On every screen — a blurry video of her silhouette in the rain. Her lips against a shadow's. A monster's claws framing her waist.
Her breath caught. Mei's trap had been sprung.
"She's dating someone?"
"No… look at that shape… is that even human?"
"Arisaka Yuna, with a monster?"
The queen of the school was suddenly a scandal.
From across the courtyard, Mei stood with a sweet smile, feigning innocence.
"Poor Yuna," she whispered loud enough for her circle to hear. "Such a shame… her perfect image ruined."
Yuna clenched her fists, rage and fear twisting together. The world was turning against her — and only one person could stand with her.
But that person was supposed to be dead.