Hello everyone, I am Dr. Gale and I'm bringing you a new story, Akame ga kill A Time of Change.

If you have any suggestions, comments, constructive criticism, or just want to say something, please do so but remember to be polite.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Akame ga kill.

-{Gale}-

"Are you sure we should do this?"

It was late into the night. The moon was full and the stars shown as specks across the sky as I stood at the edge of a forest with my dearest friend.

"Yes. I've been sure for the past century. This needs to happen," I answered.

"But the Empire-!"

"Will be fine without us," I finished.

My dearest friend looked down in worry. So I placed my hand on her shoulder.

"I created those tools to protect the empire, and even with half of the Imperial Arms destroyed, twenty six is still enough to protect my creation."

"I know, but what if something horrible happens? We wouldn't be there to stop it," she told me.

I looked her in the eye. "Esdeath, I can't afford to have another civil war on my hands. It would ruin the creation I worked so hard to build."

"But-," she started only for the words to die in her throat.

"Come on," I said softly and guided her into the forest. Away from our home.

Looking back on that moment I can't help but feel a sense of pity. If only I had known what would transpire once I left. Someone had been waiting for that very moment. I don't know who and I probably never will. From what I know, they took advantage of my "death" and started a chain reaction of events that put a person known as Prime Minister Honest into power. Oh how I loth him. He's the most rotten man walking this earth. There is corruption running rampant throughout the Empire, and he sits up at the top, using my decedent as a puppet to control it all.

I pity the kid. He's ruling blind and has no idea what's going on.

I guess that even with three thousand years under my belt, I still have some learning to do. But as for now, I'm more interested in the assassins going around and calling themselves…

What was it again?

Oh that's right.

Night Raid.

Akame ga kill: A Time of change

Chapter 1

It was about midday and even though the sun was shining, a small breeze brought comfort to any and all travelers. Like the two driving the cart down the dirt road. The day was utterly peaceful.

"How much further to the rendezvous point?" The one holding the reins asked.

"About ten kilometers down the road, then we go left for two kilometers," his friend replied looking down at his map.

"Twelve kilometers in total, should be there before sundown," the driver said as the ground started to rumble.

"What's that?" The other one asked.

Suddenly a large creature dug its way out of the ground and roared, it's dark brown hulking figure towering over the carriage. From its jaw sprouted two antennas that drooped downward along its brown stone like hide and it's red eyes piercing.

"EARTH DRAGON!" Both of them shouted at the same time.

The beast let out a feral roar as it prepared to crush them with its right claw when out of the tree line dashed a lone figure who severed the beast's limb from it's body in a shower of blood. Landing on the other side, the figure stood up and faced his opponent with a smirk.

"Class A Danger Beast," he said as the Earth Dragon turned to face him.

The monster was enraged that the puny human had cut off its arm and went to smash him with its remaining limb.

"Aww, did I hurt your feelings?" the guy taunted.

The Earth Dragon slammed it's arm down but at the last second the attacker moved. The danger beast had no time to react. The man jumped above him and came down with a fury of slashes. Spinning in mid air he was able to hit many points ranging from veins to organs, finishing his attack when he landed in front of the cart. As he sheathed his sword and the earth dragon bled out in a spray of red, he turned around to face the two stunned men and smirked.

His head sported spiky brown hair with an untamed strand that fell just above his nose between two dark green eyes and over a slightly tanned complexion. He was dressed in a tan sweater vest over a white dress shirt now tinged in red from the beast. His black pants were tucked into a pair of combat boots and a matching pair of leather bracers covering his forearms and hands.

"That was amazing kid," the driver said as him and his friend ran up to him.

"You took down a class A danger beast all by yourself!" The other one said.

"Hehe, It was nothing," The boy said as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Are you kidding, that was awesome!"

"Just doing the right thing," He replied.

"Yeah but," the driver stopped as a thought came to his head. "Say, if you're going somewhere, we might be able to give you a lift."

"Um," the slayer started.

"Think of it as a way of saying thanks."

"Thank you anyway, but I'm good. However if you could point me in the direction of the capital that would be great."

"The capital huh?" The driver asked with a sullen face.

"Yeah. My name's Tatsumi and I'm looking to make it big."

Both of them sighed. "Look kid, the imperial capital isn't some perfect dreamland. While it may be the biggest city, it's been overrun by monsters even more vicious that this one here," the driver said gesturing to the earth dragon.

"I know," Tatsumi said in a downcast manor. "Humans with the hearts of monsters, they are the reason I'm going in the first place."

"Huh?" Both of them asked.

"Never mind, which way to the capital?"

"Alright then. You head down this road for about fourteen kilometers and take a right. Keep going and you'll reach the city," the driver told him.

Tatsumi nodded his head and went to pick up his travel pack.

"Thanks," he said to the two as he walked down the road.

As soon as Tatsumi was out of earshot, the driver spoke to his friend.

"Let's hurry up and get to the rendezvous, Lubbock will be wondering where we are."

-AGK-

Upon entering the city, Tatsumi was taken aback. All the things he had heard about the evil in the empire made him think that the capital would be nothing more than bland and gray with poor people and beggars all around. But here he was, standing in the middle of a cobble stone street, gazing at all the color around him.

There were shops of all kind. A cloths shop, a tools shop, a cafe, a couple taverns and even a blacksmith off in the distance, to list a few. Surprisingly, everyone seemed, fairly happy. Of course, some people did look down. But for the most part, everyone was fairly happy.

"Didn't expect this," Tatsumi said to himself as he looked around. "Well, better head to the barracks," he finished and took off.

What Tatsumi didn't know was that someone was watching him from the cafe. Petting the head of the large orange panther that was curled around the table, she smiled in delight.

After finding the barracks, Tatsumi went inside to enlist. It took an hour or so of waiting in line, but he finally made it to the front desk.

"So you'd like to enlist would you?" The man at the front desk asked in a board tone and sighed. "Alright, just fill out the form and bring it back to me," he handed Tatsumi a sheet of paper with details on the position.

Tatsumi took the form from the man. But when he did a once over, he noticed something.

"Wait a minute. This says that I'll be starting out as a, Private," Tatsumi said in a confused tone.

"You think you're special or something?"

Tatsumi sighed. "No, but I'm not about to waste my talents on something so trivial. Couldn't I at least take the test or something?"

"Well I'm sorry, but I already have more applicants than I can handle. So you can either take the position or leave," the man said looking a little annoyed.

Tatsumi clenched his fist. "Very well then, good day," he finished and walked out the door, slamming it in anger. Taking a breath to calm down, he walked to the edge of the sidewalk and sat down.

"Guess I'll have to find another way to score a good position in the army. Maybe I could stage a kidnapping and save the day or something?" He said to himself. Putting his hand on his chin in while deep in thought he did not notice someone walking up to him.

"You alright?," they asked.

Looking up, Tatsumi was surprised by the closeness of a young woman in her twenties staring down at him with gold eyes and blond hair that framed her tanned skin.

"Not really," Tatsumi replied with a sigh. "I tried to sign up for the army, but they would only give me the rank private."

"They didn't even let you take the test did they."

"No, they didn't," he answered.

"Well who needs to be a soldier anyways. There are plenty of other ways to gain fame and fortune, maybe earn a little coin for their village," she said winking at him on the last part.

"How did you-"

"I've lived here for a long time and almost everyone from the country does the same thing," she said cutting him off. "But, if you want to be in the military so badly, I just might have a friend who can help you."

"Huh?" Tatsumi asked.

"Tell you what. It's about time for lunch and you look a tad bit hungry too. Why don't we get something to eat and I can tell you then?" She suggested.

Tatsumi rubbed his chin in thought. "She seems nice enough. But I'm not so sure, how could she help and why? Perhaps it's a scam?"

"Hey, you still there?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm still here," Tatsumi told her. "Yeah, definitely a scam."

"So what d'ya say?" She asked.

"Well, as much as that offer seems tempting, I'd rather do it myself. Thanks anyway," Tatsumi told her and stood up.

"Alright then. Name's Leone by the way, and if you ever need anything, look me up," she said and gave him a cute wink making him blush.

"Uh y-yeah. I'll do that," Tatsumi answered trying to compose himself.

"Alright, see ya around," she said and walked off, her white scarf catching the air as she turned.

"Yeah, see ya," Tatsumi replied as he slumped against the wall.

In his mind he could imagine his two friends laughing hysterically at him. But it was interrupted by a growl from his stomach.

"I guess I am a little hungry," Tatsumi thought to himself as he looked for some place to eat.

-AGK-

After leaving one of the taverns, Tatsumi found himself just walking around aimlessly. He had no specific destination in mind and didn't need anything at the moment, so he just walked around. There weren't as many people on the streets now as rush hour was over but a few were still walking around. As he kept walking though, he noticed four Wanted posters on one of the stone walls. Nothing new there, so why did they catch his eye.

"Night Raid?" Tatsumi thought to himself as he walked up.

The first wanted poster showed a young woman who was said to be in her mid twenties with silver hair and a single purple eye. How the other one went missing was not explained and he wondered what happened. Najenda the poster said her name was.

The second was of a man also in his mid twenties with black hair and blue eyes. Tatsumi noticed he was very muscular. "That guy must be really strong," he thought. Bulat.

The third one was a young woman in her mid twenties. Purple eyes, purple hair, and a slender build. Sheele it stated.

The final one, up at the top, was a girl in her teens. The poster read of a girl with very long black hair and red eyes. Akame.

"Night Raid," a guard said walking up behind him. "A group of assassins who are notorious for killing at night as the name says."

Tatsumi turned to the guard and raised an eyebrow.

"Their targets usually consist of upper class men and nobles. Nobody knows what their motives are though, but there have been rumors," he finished.

"They attack at random?" Tatsumi asked.

"I don't think so, but that is what other people think," the guard said.

"Huh," Tatsumi said reaching for his chin in thought.

"I have to get going," the guard announced. "Stay safe."

"Alright," Tatsumi said while looking at the posters.

"Night Raid huh?" Tatsumi thought.

While Tatsumi was looking over the posters, the guard slipped into an alley undetected and his eyes glowed a deep blue.

"Everything is as it should be."

-AGK-

"I already told you I'm full enough without some country trash like you staying here!" The old innkeeper shouted as Tatsumi landed on the cobbled street. "So stay, out!" He finished and slammed the door.

Tatsumi got up and brushed himself off and gave the inn a dirty look. "Not going there again."

He sighed and walked away. Tatsumi had tried to get a room for the night, but everywhere else was full, or so they said. He looked back and saw a group of people being warmly accepted by the owner. He sighed again and kept walking.

After a while, he found a nice place to rest by a lone wall at the edge of an intersection. It wasn't a five star hotel, but it would do. He put on his fur lined winter coat and sat against the wall, laying his bag beside him.

"Guess I'll be sleeping outside tonight," he thought and closed his eyes.

He just drifted off to sleep when the low rumbling of a carriage slowly passing by brought him back with a groan.

"Wait," the occupant called out and the carriage stopped.

The two guards on top of the carriage looked around for a few seconds before spotting Tatsumi.

"Are we really doing this again Lady Aria?" One of the guards asked.

"You know I can't help it, it's just who I am," a young girl replied as she got out of the carriage, her soft white boots clicking on the cobble stone as she walked over to the sleeping boy.

"Hey," she said as she stopped in front of Tatsumi.

Tatsumi opened his eyes slowly and lifted them toward the voice calling to him. Standing at his feet was a young teenage girl with chest length blond hair and dressed in expensive clothes.

"You alright there?" She asked with an innocent smile.

Tatsumi raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Relax, I'm not here to hurt you, I just wanted to know if you were alright," she said.

"I could be better, but all the inns are full or won't let me stay," Tatsumi replied.

"Yeah, people tend to be jerks a lot," she said and sat down beside him.

"Alright, what is it?" Tatsumi asked.

The girl was surprised but quickly regained her composure. "Well, I could offer you a place to stay the night."

"What?" Tatsumi asked not expecting that to be the case.

"You'll have to excuse Lady Aria," one of her guards said walking up to him. "She has a tendency to invite poor people to stay the night when they have no place to go."

"Really?" Tatsumi asked.

The guard nodded his head.

"Thank you for the offer but-,"

"Oh won't you please come with us. The nights in the capital are cold and you never know who you might run into. I just couldn't bear thinking that someone died or got hurt when I could have helped them," she pleaded with wide blue eyes.

"W-well when you put it that way, I guess It wouldn't hurt," Tatsumi said and scratched the back of his head.

"Yay!" She cheered and grabbed his arm. "Come on!" She dragged Tatsumi to the carriage as the guard sighed.

-AGK-

"Welcome home dear," Aria's mother said as the two walked into the living room room.

Tatsumi was captivated by the elegant structure of the room. He never would have guessed Aria's parents would be this wealthy. The mansion was huge and the estate was larger than his village.

Aria went to sit down on the couch opposite her mother while her father, and elderly gentleman, was sitting in a green wing back chair sipping tea. Two guards standing behind him.

"I see you've brought home another guest," the father noticed.

"Oh my, so it would seem. How many does this make?" Her mother joked.

"Mother," Aria whined clearly embarrassed.

"T-thank you so much for having me," Tatsumi stuttered.

The father chuckled. "No need to be so nervous young man. Please, have a seat," he gestured to the chair across from him.

"Thank you again so much," Tatsumi replied and took a seat.

Aria's father smiled softly and took another sip of his tea and then lowered it to the table with a soft clink of delicate china. He looked across the table at Tatsumi, " Are you new to the city?"

"Yes. I'm from a village to the north," he answered.

"Is that so? What brings you to our city?"

"Well, sir, I've come to join the army to help my village a little."

"Really? So your village was subject to heavy taxes as well?" Aria interjected.

"Yeah. I figured if I could get the capital to notice me a little then maybe I could secure a good position in the army."

"So, your plan is to make a name for yourself in the imperial capital. Is that correct?" The old gentleman asked.

"Yes sir," he replied.

The father smiled. "Well, as you may know, the capital may be a wonderful place, but it is surrounded by three squabbling tribes. If you enlist, you may be expected to join them in the fight."

Tatsumi nodded. "I know, and I'm prepared to do so."

"That's good to hear. To many youngsters like yourself just throw their life away in hopes of adventure. Some of the people Aria brought home spoke similar words, but they were empty promises," he folded his hands. "You however seem to know what you're doing."

Tatsumi smiled a little at his comment.

"Hey Tatsumi. Did you come to the capital by yourself?" Aria asked.

"No, I'm not alone," Tatsumi started and folded his hands. "I have my two friends with me, Sayo and Ieyasu. Or, did," he replied.

"Oh, what happened?" The mother asked.

"Well, on our way to the capital, we were ambushed by bandits. Because of this, we got separated," he paused. "I haven't seen them since, but both of them are decent fighters, so I'm not to worried about them making it to the capital alive. It's just that Ieyasu can't navigate his way out of a paper bag. But if the two of them didn't get separated, then he should be fine," he finished.

"Then it's settled," the father said. "I have a friend in the military who could help you. I'll just give him their names and ask him to have a look around."

"R-realy?" Tatsumi asked.

""Yes, really," Aria's father confirmed.

"That'd be great!" Tatsumi said with enthusiasm. "Thank you."

The three of them smiled in response but the guards had a solemn look plastered on their faces. Tatsumi however didn't notice.

"I have a good feeling you'll see your friends very soon," Aria said with a smile.

"That'd be great," he responded.

The grandfather clock on the wall suddenly chimed nine o'clock.

The father looked at the clock and sighed. "Well, I think it's time we went to bed, after all, we have very a busy day tomorrow," he turned to one of the guards behind him. "Please take him to one of the guest rooms."

The guard responded by nodding his head with the same solemn look on his face. He walked forward and gestured for Tatsumi to follow him. Tatsumi suddenly felt really tired. It had been a long day and an even longer journey. He followed the guard from the room with the promise of sleep.

"Goodnight Tatsumi," Aria said to him with a smirk as the doors closed.

-AGK-

"Here you are," the deep monotone voice came from the guard as he opened the door to one of the guest rooms.

"Thank you," Tatsumi replied and headed into the room.

The guard nodded as he closed the door leaving Tatsumi by himself. Briefly looking around the room, he walked over to the large window on the wall opposite to the door. The view from his window was more than impressive. In front of him the estate stretched out in a splendid extravagance. He could see most of the capital from his vantage point and The Grand Palace shining, a beacon in the distance.

"Sayo, Ieyasu. Please be safe," Tatsumi thought to himself.

He looked at the king size bed off to the side and walked over to it.

"Better get some sleep," he said as he took off his boots, climbed in, pulled the covers over his head and fell right to sleep.

-AGK-

"Now I can add another entry to my diary, mm-hmm. What an addicting little hobby this is," Aria's mother said to herself as she, accompanied by two guards walked down the moonlit hall towards her room. The large windows casting eerie shadows as they walked through the passage.

The three stopped when a tall figure stepped out of the shadows. Black dress shoes clomped on the wooden floors, his black trench coat fluttered behind him as he moved. As he came forward he tilted his black, wide brimmed fedora slightly to shield his eyes. A belt of chain link went around the outside of the coat covering a white dress shirt and black dress pants. He stopped and faced the three exposing a pink, intricately knotted cravat around his neck as he lifted his chin. Glowing eerily, the moonlight reflected off his pink tinted glasses.

The two guards moved in front of Aria's mother to protect her, only for a blade to slice her in two at the waist from behind. The last thing she saw was a giant pair of scissors with a panda head symbol on the handle.

The guards who were caught off guard, turned and saw a slender woman with purple hair wearing a tight fitted lilac cheongsam, the skin on her bare shoulders catching the moonlight as she cleaned the end of her blade with a swipe across the front of her dress.

What sounded like a clap of thunder striking twice filled the house. The dark man from the shadow stood over the now prone guards, two long black pistols in hand, smoking at the ends. Blood, bone and brain matter scattered on the walls and floor.

"I'm sorry," the woman said with her head bowed.

Tatsumi's eyes snapped open as he heard the two bangs.

"What the?!" He cried as he got up and put his boots on.

He ran over to the door and quickly opened it, almost tearing it off its hinges. Dashing out into the dark hall, he ran towards the noise, intent on helping. His forward motion was suddenly halted when he saw something out one of the windows. Skidding to a halt, he looked out the window and his heart dropped. Standing on a net of wires suspended high above the ground were five individuals. But he only needed to recognize one of them to know who they were.

"It's them," he said to himself.

The first one was a girl with pink hair that was put up into two ponytails on either side of her head. She held what appeared to be a large rifle that was almost as long as she was tall.

The second one he recognized as Akame. She was cloaked in an open black trench coat that hung off her shoulders like a cape.

The third one was in a suit of armor that completely encased his body, he looked to be a very large and imposing male figure. He was standing with his back to Tatsumi. The white cape across the the man's broad shoulders moved slightly as he adjusted a spear that he held in his right hand.

The fourth one was holding some of the wires in his glove covered hand. He was in a crouching position and his long green, fur trimmed hoodie flew in the wind behind him. A pair of goggles adorned his green haired head.

The last one was harder to make out but appeared to have feline features and seemed very familiar. Beside her was an orange panther.

"It's Night Raid," Tatsumi thought out loud. "I can only assume they targeted this family because they're rich." He could not hear what was being said, but he saw the direction the one holding the wires was gesturing.

"Hey Akame, those guards are targets too," the one with green hair said pointing toward the guards pouring from the house.

"I'll take care of it," she said, slightly turning her head to the guy in armor and spoke with a commanding tone. "Bulat, you're with me."

Akame leaned back and fell off the wires only to land with a soft thump on the ground while the man in armor, Bulat, landed creating a small crater. The company of guards moving on their position, ready to stop the siege.

Tatsumi was so entranced with Night Raid that he didn't see the other two assassins walking down the hall just a few yards to his left.

"Stand back," the one in the black trench coat said to the other.

A surprised Tatsumi looked to his left to see the assassin pull out one of his guns and blast at the wall in front of him creating a cloud of dust and a lot of noise. Once the dust cleared, there was a giant hole in the wall.

Battle cries could be heard coming from the tree line as many more guards came onto the scene upon hearing the explosion. The man in the trench coat smirked as he put the gun away and reach his right arm over to his left side. Tatsumi felt a surge of energy as the assassin quickly flung his arm out expelling chains from his sleeve impaling the oncoming guards, in a continuous motion the chains anchoring the victims to the ground below.

Tatsumi's eyes widened at the entire display. Watching the second assassin jump onto the chains and start running across them gave him a thrill.

"Wha?" Tatsumi said clearly stupefied.

"Neat little trick isn't it?" The man in the trench coat asked indirectly to Tatsumi. The woman that was with him Tatsumi recognized as Sheele. She walked through the hole in the wall, jumped onto the makeshift chain bridge and ran. She leaped to the ground soon after and the man retracted the chains with a swift jerk.

"See you around," he said in a casual tone and jumped through the gaping hole in the nearly dark hall.

Tatsumi saw Aria being escorted into the trees. "Guess I'm helping to guard the family then," he said to himself as he dashed off, leaving the other guards to fight the rest of Night Raid.

"Do not let that sword touch you," the lead guard at the front said to the rest, referring to the katana Akame wielded.

A few seconds of tension passed until the lead guard gave the command to go as he charged forward. Akame retaliated, dashing toward the guards faster than the squad moved. She reached the lead guard and before he knew it, she had cut his throat. She came to a stop on the other side of the guard, his body collapsed to the ground.

The guards that were charging behind, came to a halt only to face Akame and her lowered katana. Stone faced, she stared at their stunned faces. Sheele ran up from behind Akame and cut two of the guards in half with one swipe, while the last two guards had charged on Bulat, who was standing back watching the ladies work. Bringing his spear behind his head like a javelin, the armored warrior launched it at the one on his left. The spear entered through his soft belly of the guard pinning him to the ground beneath.

"Who are these monsters," the last guard cried out as he stopped. He tried to run away but only got a few feet when a loud crack of gunfire echoed through the air and a yellow blast of energy went through his skull.

"Not much of a guard if he's just gonna run away," the girl in pink said sounding disappointed as she stood on the net of wires.

"Yeah, I think a lot of people would run from that," the green haired one replied and looked through one of the windows on the top floor seeing a familiar blond holding Aria's father off the ground by his throat, slowly choking him.

"Please, let me go, I, I have a little girl," he pleaded through gasps.

"Alright, I'll let you go," Leone said in a dark tone and threw him on the ground.

He landed on the floor with an audible grunt. Gasping for air he looked back at the assassin, his gaze met the yellow eyes of an orange panther that walked up and sat beside her.

"Leia," she called out. "It's chow time."

"Wait, wait no!" the man cried out as the panther pounced on him and bit his neck, tearing his throat apart, streams of blood sprayed everywhere.

"Good girl Leia," she praised with a smirk.

"Grrrrrr," a hollow sound came in affirmation from the panther's throat. The big cat licked its huge paw rubbing it across the side of her face to wash away the blood on her whiskers.

Leone looked out the window and saw the green head returning her gaze and gave a thumbs up to tell him her part was done.

"Aria! There you are," Tatsumi yelled as he caught up to Aria who was with one of the guards in front of a shed.

"Tatsumi?" She asked.

"Great, you made it," the guard said to him. "I'll hide Lady Aria in the shed and wait for reinforcements. See what you can do to stall the enemy until then, got it?"

Tatsumi was surprised. "You really expect me to take on-," he was interrupted by a woosh of air as Akame landed behind him, sword drawn.

Turning around, Tatsumi drew his sword from its sheath. "Well, I guess it's too late to complain now!"

Akame dashed toward Tatsumi who braced himself for an attack.

"You're not a target," she told him.

"Huh?" Tatsumi questioned as she leaped onto his head in the blink of an eye and spring boarded off of it. Landing behind him she dodged the bullets shot at her from the lone guard and quickly dashed up to him and sliced his abdomen.

"You're done," she said without a hint of emotion as he stumbled back and dropped dead as the poison killed him.

Aria, who was now dead scared, was backed up until she tripped on a rock and fell back with a scream. She looked up in fear as Akame loomed over her, sword at the ready.

"Stop right there!" Tatsumi yelled as he tried to land a hit on her.

Akame jumped a few feet to the right as the blade came down where she was standing.

"I told you you're not a target," she told him again. "You don't have to die."

"Well I'm not about to let you kill an innocent girl," Tatsumi said as he stood in front of Aria.

"So you won't step aside?" she asked.

"Well I'm not going to back down now!"

Akame got into a stance and raised her blade in front of her. "Then you've made your choice."

She dashed towards him and swung her sword horizontally only for him to block it just in time. She immediately swung her katana again forcing Tatsumi to duck and roll out of the way.

As the two swords clashed in a fury of sparks, the cat and Leone walked towards the scene about halfway into the trees.

"Ahhhh, that was easy," the blonde exclaimed while stretching.

"Prrrrrrr," Leia agreed..

The clang of steel on steel reached their ears and they saw Akame fighting someone off in the distance.

"Huh? That's odd," the blonde said to herself. "It's not like Akame to take this long."

She noticed who she was fighting.

"Wait what?" she face palmed. "Gah. Poor guy can't catch a break can he."

The two of them took off at a faster pace to stop Akame before she killed the Tatsumi.

"She's better than me," Tatsumi thought to himself as he barely blocked another hit. "Don't have much of a chance, but I don't have time to think about that. Because if I can't save one girl," the two of them locked swords. "How can I expect to save my entire village."

Tatsumi pushed away and swiped at Akame who jumped over his head and kicked him in the back. Tatsumi stumbled a little and quickly turned around, rolling to the side to dodging a jab from Akame.

Getting out of the roll, he mustered all the strength in his legs and dashed behind her, nicking her right cheek. Both of them stood still as some blood trickled from the cut.

"You actually managed to get me," Akame said in slight surprise.

The two were at a stand still, waiting for the other to make a move. Both of them tensed up. Akame made the first move. She spun and dashed at Tatsumi who turned around in a defensive move. He brought up his sword to block, but Akame had expected this and changed the angle and caught the sword by the bottom of the hand guard, pulling it out of Tatsumi's grasp.

Tatsumi's eyes widened as she brought her katana around and went to stab his heart. The blade cut through the cloth, but it didn't go further and Akame pulled back. Tatsumi fell back with a smirk.

He got up and pulled out a wooden carving a little bigger than his hand. "A parting gift from the elder of my village."

Standing up, he prepared to go hand to hand. Akame narrowed her eyes and charged him so fast he didn't have any time to react.

"Hang on," someone said as they pulled Akame back before her blade could connect.

"What are you doing?" Akame asked unimpressed with the others actions.

"We still have some time left. Besides I kinda know this guy and it seems that he doesn't know what's going on here," she said.

Tatsumi adopted a look of recognition. "Wait a minute, Leone?"

"Good to know you still remember me," she said with a wink and let Akame go.

"Listen," her voice was serious. "You thought that we were here to kill innocent people. That right?" Leone continued.

"Um, yeah," Tatsumi replied as he picked up his sword.

Leone started walking toward the shed with Leia sitting beside Akame. "Well, you might see things differently when you see what's behind that door."

Aria sunk back a little as Leone kicked the door and it splintered into pieces which fell on the other side.

"Here it is," Leone told Tatsumi as he walked up to the door. "Welcome to the capital kid."

Tatsumi's eyes widened in horror. Corpses, corpses everywhere. Belted down to tables, lock behind bars, hanging from the ceiling. Each one of them with deep cuts, bruises, some of them were even cut open. Missing limbs or digits. All of it, covered in blood and rot.

"What?" Tatsumi asked in a shaky voice. The stench caught up in his nostrils and he gagged.

"We found out that this family liked to pick up people from the country and torture them for their own sick pleasure," Leone told him.

Tatsumi walked into the shed a little ways, horrified, covering his nose.

"I knew it was bad. But this is just inhuman," he said looking around the room.

His gaze fell on one particular body hanging from the ceiling and his eyes widened. Her black, blood stained hair was draped in front of her naked form. Cuts of all sizes, gashes, and large bruises covered each inch of her skin. On the top of her head was a faded hair clip in the shape of a flower.

"S-sayo?" Tatsumi asked, his eyes widening. "SAYO!"

He ran forward and sliced the chains around her wrists. Catching her body as it fell, he laid it on the floor and cradled her head in his arms.

"Sayo?" he croaked out.

Aria tried to sneak away but Leone grabbed her by the hair.

"Woopsy, didn't think we'd forget about you did ya?" She asked as Aria adopted a nervous look.

"These people really did this?" Tatsumi asked as he brushed the hair out of Sayo's face.

"Yes, they did. All of them, even the guards are guilty for keeping it a secret," Leone said.

"She's lying!" Aria yelled and Tatsumi looked at her. "I had no idea anything like this was going on! Who would you believe!? These, these murderers? Or the one who was kind enough to give you a place to stay?" She asked in a hysterical tone.

"T-tat-s-sumi?" A weak voice asked.

Tatsumi quickly looked down at Sayo to see her black eyes half open.

"Sayo? Y-you're alive," Tatsumi said, his voice still shaky.

Sayo gave a weak smile. "Y-yeah. B-but, wh-what are y-you do-ing here?"

"I was invited by a girl named Aria to stay the ni-," before he could continue Sayo interrupted him.

"N-no. You need, t-to get, away," Tatsumi's eyes widened. "That girl, sh-she did, th-the same, to us. Gave us, a place, to stay, and, and something, to eat. But we, blacked out," She drew in a shaky breath. "W-when we, woke up, we found our-selves, here. That, girl then, tortured me, but I, I held strong," she slowly raised a shaky arm and pointed to one of the cells. "Ieyasu, wasn't so, lucky."

Akame walked over to the cell and knelt by the body. "The Lubora disease. Once it reaches it's final stages, there is no cure. I'm sorry," She turned to Tatsumi. "The mother liked to poison the people they kept here and record each reaction in her journal."

"Fine, I did do it!" Aria said as she pushed herself away from Leone.

"These kind of people are nothing but livestock, so I can do what I see fit! And that girl, she has beautiful hair that livestock like her doesn't even deserve! Mine is always giving me trouble, so I made sure to give her extra special attention!" She shouted, an aura of killing intent radiating off her body.

Tatsumi didn't know what to think. How could this little girl be so evil? And her family. They were so nice, or so they seemed. How could humans with the hearts of monsters look so innocent? He just couldn't believe it. Maybe it was an act or something? Akame drew her sword and said something about finishing her off.

"Wait. What was it that mentor had said?" Tatsumi thought to himself.

"Wait," Tatsumi said as he remembered. Gently laying Sayo down, he stood up.

"What?! You mean that after all this you still want to protect her?" Leone asked.

"No," Tatsumi said. "I'll do it."

I all became clear to Tatsumi what needed to be done. The three of them had always stuck close like glue since they could walk. But the one thing that brought them together had laughed in their face for the last time. Death. It had taken away almost everything from them and now it had taken Ieyasu. And death was laughing again. He would have no more of it.

Tatsumi walked up to Aria, staring her square in the face and in one fluid motion, slashed horizontally across her chest. She fell on the ground, gasping for air like a fish out of water, drowning in her own blood. Tatsumi stood there with a hardened face as he watched her die.

"Just, like mentor said," Sayo commented weekly. "A rose, may be, beautiful. But beneath, the petals, of some," she drew in a shaky breath. "Is a mess, of jagged thorns," her eyes drooped slightly.

Tatsumi looked over his shoulder toward his friend ."Sayo!" He called out and ran to her side.

He reached his friend and propped her head up. "Hang in there Sayo, I'm going to get you some help."

She shook her head slightly. "Sorry, Tatsumi," Sayo's voice grew quiet. "But I won't make it."

"No, you'll make it Sayo, just stay with me," he picked her up, cradling her in his arms bridal style.

"Tatsumi, stop," Tatsumi looked into her dying eyes. "I've lived, a wonderful life, with my two brothers, in all but blood, by my side."

"Sayo," Tatsumi pleaded.

"And my, only regret, is that I won't be able to take care of you two, any more," a tear appeared in her eye.

"Sayo," he whispered, a few tears running down his face.

"Don't cry, Tatsumi," she reached up and wiped a tear from his face. "I'm going, to be in a, better place. I'll see mentor, Ieyasu. Our parents."

Tatsumi continued to look into the eyes of his dying friend.

"But if I see you there, too soon. I'm going, to kick your butt, for all eternity. You got that?" She scolded.

Tatsumi nodded and tried to blink away the tears that kept welling up.

"Just promise us, you won't die, okay?"

Tatsumi just stood there, holding his dying friend. "I promise," Tatsumi said after a few seconds, his voice cracking.

Sayo smiled even more. "Thank you, Tatsumi. And, take care of yourself," She finished as her eyes closed.

She was still. There was no pulse. There was no breath. There was no life. Sayo was gone, and death continued to laugh.

"Sayo," Tatsumi said one last time and he collapsed on his knees and cried into his dead friend's chest.

By now, all the members of Night Raid had assembled outside the shed and were looking at the scene.

"So, you think he's Night Raid material?" The green head asked Leone.

"Yeah, he even managed to get a hit on Akame," Leone gestured to the cut on Akame's cheek.

"I will admit he is pretty decent," Akame added as she rubbed Leia's head.

"If he got a hit off you he must be," Sheele said.

"He probably just got lucky," the assassin with pink hair said.

"So what do you guys say?" Leone asked.

Tatsumi had finally stopped crying and noticed the rest of Night Raid was gathered around "Why are you all still here?" He asked.

"For you apparently," the pink haired assassin said shrugging her shoulders.

"What?" Tatsumi asked, he furrowed his brow.

"We were wondering if you would like to join Night Raid," Leone said. "After all, it's not every day someone gets a hit off Akame."

Tatsumi's eyebrows went up in surprise as he looked toward the woman he tried to kill to protect a girl. A girl who did not deserve protection. No, she was not a girl, she was a monster. He realized he could not look at Akame. He lowered his head a little. "I, I don't know."

"That's alright. You don't have to decide just yet. We can take you with us and you can think about it," Leone told him.

Tatsumi looked down at Sayo's dead body with a mournful look in his eyes.

"Don't worry, we'll take them with us," Bulat said.

"But, won't I see where your hideout is?" Tatsumi asked.

The assassin in the black trench coat walked forward and pulled out a syringe. "A sedative. This will knock you out until morning. Problem solved."

Tatsumi looked back at Sayo's body and nodded.

The assassin nodded back and walked towards him. "This should knock you out in a minute or so," he injected the short needle into his neck. "So just let it do its thing"

Tatsumi nodded his head as he immediately began to feel drowsy. One of the members of Night Raid came out of the shed with Ieyasu's body and walked up to the group as Leone took Sayo.

"Let's go," Akame said.

Tatsumi's eyes started fluttering as he tried to stay awake a little longer. Bulat saw this and picked him up and placed him over his shoulder. Ash the team of assassins headed off, Tatsumi finally fell asleep, waiting for the same dream he had every time he did so.

-{Gale}-

Okay, so I haven't read the manga, but I do know a few things about it. But basically, this is going to follow the anime (somewhat) with my own spin on things. (May or may not read over the Wild hunt arc as well as a few others)

For instance, Tatsumi isn't completely ignorant, Sayo is the one left alive instead of Ieyasu, I have my own OC in here (I'll introduce him properly next chapter) with more on the way.

Anyway, a huge shout out to [ The Jade Fang Wolf ] for his help and I'll see you guys around.