Chapter Text
The first time he caught sight of the brat, he was in the middle of debating whether to threaten the troublemakers he was trailing into leaving town or kicking their asses until they learn.
“My, my,” Gintoki smirked. “What a troublesome kid we have here. ”
Seeing new faces in this place was not uncommon at all. After all, this was Kabuki-chō—the place where people turned to if they wanted to disappear off the grid, start a new life, or maybe cause trouble. Normally, Gintoki wouldn’t bat an eye at any newcomers nor would he take sudden interest but this was a special case. The kid was an Amanto, and clearly not an ordinary one.
Deciding to let go of the troublemakers for now (he’d come back for them next time and have them pay for his pachinko hobbies instead), Gintoki crouched on the roof as he examined the kid further.
The kid blended well with people, to the point that you wouldn’t figure out she was an Amanto at first glance. What stood out was her pale skin and her umbrella acting as a shade even though the sun wasn’t as smoldering as it was. She could very well be a foreigner from a Western country, but Gintoki’s gut was informing him that this kid was a Yato.
It had been years since Gintoki last saw a member of his race, and meeting one on Earth was not what he expected. Let alone an entertainment district of all places. Sure, the Yatos were a slowly dying race but he liked to believe that plenty of them were still out there. Usually not on Earth, though, as this planet wouldn’t even scratch the edge of the Top Relocation Areas Yatos Go To. When summer hits, the sun and heat just became too unbearable for a Yato that they’d be begging on their knees to be shipped down to the gloomy setting of Rakuyou.
This was not the case for Gintoki. He’d been on Earth for a long time now—ever since the bakufu opened its borders to the Amanto. He grew quite attached to this sorry place. And summer seasons were forgiven because that meant he could ignore his sugar rule to buy as many parfaits as he wanted to (as long as his wallet could manage).
Ah, where am I even going with this thought? The entire premise of this fictional work was about him seeing a fellow Yato in the first place, and here he was drooling about sweets again. Anyways, back to a more important topic. The kid might be young but she was still a Yato. Gintoki took Kabuki-chō and its residents under his wings (or umbrella), so it was his responsibility to keep everyone safe.
In the next few days, Gintoki kept an eye on her. She spent most of these times just wandering around the streets of the district, checking in the sights, mingling with the people, and sometimes punching kids for teasing her. On a few occasions, he would see her sitting in an alley, a lonely expression plastered on her face. The Yatos were feared for being one of the mightiest warrior races in the universe, and yet, here we had a little Yato girl who didn’t act as if she was one.
Somewhere along the line, his landlord caught wind of the events and began to spout crazy things about him not being lazy for once — ( Shut it, you old hag, Gin-san deserves some off days after you’re running him dry! ). Otose nagged him about the kid’s condition because no one was taking care of her if she was all alone there. He told Otose that it wasn’t his problem, he was just making sure the kid was harmless. If the kid wanted to survive in Kabuki-chō, she needed to be resourceful.
Gintoki received a beating of a lifetime for his remark because that’s just a little girl, you idiot! (—said little girl was also a Yato, you nutjob!)
“Give this to her, will you?” Otose said, wrapping up a bento and handing it to Gintoki.
Gintoki clicked his tongue and said, “Oi, baba, why is this brat getting some special treatment from you? I’ve lived under your care for years and you’ve never done anything remotely close like this for me.”
“You’re behind in rent for three months and you expect me to spoil you rotten?” she barked at him.
It wasn’t his fault that his funds were running low these past months. He barely got any clients and even if he did, the money he earned was used to pay for accidental property damage. He huffed haughtily and proceeded to her request.
Finding the Yato girl this time proved to be not as easy as the last time. She wasn’t at any usual spots he saw her and the residents who knew her all claimed they didn’t see her that day. Gintoki wondered if Otose would finally evict him if he ate the food for himself. He was hungry, dammit, all these searching had emptied his stomach.
Grumbling to himself, Gintoki went to a snack shop and bought himself food. If the kid wanted to make things harder, he would gladly entertain her antics but only on a full stomach.
While he was fishing his wallet out of his pockets, he couldn’t help but overhear a conversation near him.
“Is she really that much of an asset to our clan?”
“Boss believes so. I mean, you’ve seen the way she moves. With her in our clan, we’d rise above everyone in Kabuki-chō.”
“I don’t know… She’s just one person. Do you think she has a chance against any of the Dev—oof!”
“You bastard! Are you doubting our boss’ decision? Why, I ought to drag you back and beat you up in front of the boss.”
“Calm down, both of you. You’re gonna attract attention. Eijiro, let him go. I’m sure he meant no ill will against the boss. And you, Wataru, I know you have qualms about letting a little girl join our ranks but we know she’s capable. She’s a Yato.”
“Ehem.”
Three pairs of eyes fell upon Gintoki as he approached them, munching on a dango. “Sorry to disturb you, my friends, but do you perhaps know a girl about yay high, has red hair and carries around a purple umbrella?”
Immediately, the man in the middle marched towards Gintoki and sneered. “We have no idea, big guy. Also, you’re barging in on us, I suggest you walk away.”
“Ah, is that so?” Gintoki laughed. “Then, I’m sorry to take up some of your time. I just thought you know her since she’s the only Yato I know that’s in this area.” Well, besides him, but not everyone needs to know that.
At the mention of Yato, the three men — gangsters, his mind supplied as he took in their appearance — tensed up. They looked like they were about to start throwing punches, but Gintoki was Gintoki so he’d amuse himself before reciprocating their hostility.
Interrogating those bastards didn’t take long. All he had to do was let out some bloodlust before they were surrendering themselves. How incredibly nice of them to relay the information on where the Yato kid was as well! Humans were so well-mannered!
Gintoki found the missing Yato by the harbor. She was surrounded by the unconscious bodies of thugs and a man with a perm was looking at the scene with a smug expression. Ah, he now got the gist of the situation.
The kid might be a member of the Yato clan, but she was still very young. It was easy to take advantage of kids who didn’t know how to fit in with the environment they’d suddenly found themselves in. The fact that she was probably desperate to feel like she belonged made it easier to manipulate her, too.
“Kagura-chan, thanks for the hard work!” the perm-headed gangster said, throwing a grin at the girl. “They've been bullying us for quite some time now so I’m glad you took care of them for us. I’ll treat you to some nice tea on rice for dinner, okay?”
The girl — Kagura — didn’t even meet the gangster’s eyes. If Gintoki wasn’t mistaken (and mistakes were not in his vocabulary either!) , he would say that she looked glum there. “It’s… nothing, really.”
“I’ll be counting on you tomorrow again, then?”
Kagura only nodded, keeping her eyes glued to the ground. The perm-headed gangster clapped her on the shoulder and left her alone, probably off to do some disgusting adult stuff.
When he left, Gintoki took this chance to approach her.
“Oi, what’s a brat like you doing business with the local gangs?”
Kagura jumped, not expecting any more company. She fell into a defensive stance, warily examining Gintoki. The silver-haired man raised his hands as a sign of peace, “Relax, kid. I’m not part of any gang. Does a face as handsome as Gin-san look like it can be a member of those hooligan groups?”
“You already look like a hooligan, though, ‘kay.”
Gintoki spluttered. “Have your parents not taught you any manners, you damn brat?”
“My parents told me not to talk to suspicious strangers.” she said.
“Who are you calling a suspicious stranger, huh?” Gintoki raged, offended to his core. The utter nerve of this brat! “And why are you joining gangs if they already gave you that lesson? They’re the ones who are more suspicious than me!”
Kagura winced, “They’re not… they’re not bad, ‘kay? They promised to give me sake chazuke three times a day.”
Goodness, that was all that they were feeding this kid? He was usually penniless so he didn’t have the luxury of enjoying lavish meals, but even he didn’t eat the same meal three times a day for every day. Though, it was mostly thanks to Otose, who—despite all the complaints she had about Gintoki—had a soft heart that was too good for this world. Probably. Eh, he could do better.
“That’s not a proper meal,” he said, picking his nose. “I thought the trend nowadays was all about beauty and other nonsense? Don’t young people like you fuss about your appearance? But I guess you’re an exception.”
She shrugged, kicking an invisible rock. “If I’m not eating a proper meal and still look cute, then what does that say about you? Isn’t white hair usually a sign of aging among humans?”
“Are insults the only thing that comes out of your mouth? If you don’t have anything good to say, then just keep it shut! Gin-san is absolutely dashing, okay? Besides, you already mocked my looks a few paragraphs ago!”
Kagura gave him a flat stare. “You’re a drama queen.”
It was as if a red comical tick appeared on Gintoki’s forehead. At this point, he was tempted enough to just eat the contents of the bento Otose prepared in front of her. It would serve as a good punishment for a snotty brat whose innocent facade didn’t match her sharp tongue. Alas, he didn’t want to suffer the wrath of Otose for the nth time.
He threw her the bento and said, “This is the thanks I get after going through the trouble of looking for you? Tsk, the youth these days. What is the world coming to?”
Kagura caught it, clearly surprised.
“Some old lady got concerned and made you food. It’s way better than what that perm-headed gangster was giving, at least. You can’t trust those types of guys with their kind of hairstyle.”
If Gintoki thought that this act of kindness was enough to render her speechless, then he was wrong. The brat still had the energy to quip back at him, “But don’t you have a perm like them? Are you admitting you’re a bad guy?”
It’s not as if Gin-san had asked to be born with natural wavy hair!
“Can you stop with the attacks on my character? You’re gonna make this fanfiction go stale!” he growled. He gestured at the bento, beckoning her to open it. “Brat, your food’s getting cold.”
Kagura hesitated, the comfortable atmosphere and banter not eliminating all the doubts she had about Gintoki. He didn’t say anything further, just watching her open the bento slowly. “This is…” A nice, loaded meal that was far from what she probably had in her entire stay on this planet.
The red-headed Yato then devoured her meal as if she was possessed. To Gintoki’s horror, he could also see her eyes starting to tear up. “Thank you,” she tried to say, but it came out garbled because of her full mouth.
“If you ever want to leave your gang and eat the good stuff, then you’re welcome to drop by Otose’s Snack Bar,” Gintoki said, pursing his lips. Although he knew he could be a jerk (sometimes), he wasn’t entirely heartless. Yato or not, the kid was still a kid and a gang was not the appropriate environment for her. She could just visit to eat or maybe even help out in the bar. Surely, Otose wouldn’t mind some extra hands. What was one more mouth to feed anyways?
“Oh, and by the way, about that white hair comment you made earlier,” Gintoki heaved his umbrella over his shoulder and waved Kagura goodbye. “I’m no human.”
The girl gasped in realization, reaching out toward him. “Wait! You’re—”
He didn’t even let her finish before he set off.
Gintoki thought he would finish the week without doing anything. He could already imagine Otose getting on his case and nagging him about his rent money again. So, when a client came by his home and asked for help, obviously he would be enthusiastic to earn more money. He was due his weekly parfait intake anyways.
It was a simple job. All he had to do was manage the front in a convenience store. His client was supposed to cover his sick coworker’s shift, but he received an emergency call so he had no choice but to come knocking on Gintoki’s door.
As boring as this job was, Gintoki did promise himself that he would take on any job. He wasn’t particularly good at anything (except fighting but he’d rather die than be some grunt), so he sought to do everything. Well, he couldn’t be picky. He already promoted himself as the jack-of-all-trades Yorozuya Gin-chan to everyone in Kabuki-chō. It would be a taint in his reputation if he failed to comply with his client’s wishes.
He would happily grumble about it all day, though.
By the time he got back home with his hard-earned cash, the sun was already setting. All he wanted to do now was melt into his couch, read his Jump, catch up with his weekly drama reruns, and finally sleep. With his wallet refilled, he had plans to play pachinko early tomorrow. Maybe he could even watch Ketsuno Ana’s segment again, especially since he had been missing them for a while now.
Gintoki set his boots next to a pair of flat shoes as soon as he got in. Letting out a yawn, he headed to the kitchen to heat some food. He saw the empty bowls in the sink and wondered if he forgot to clean up last night. He probably did, seeing as he got drunk.
Once his food was ready, he walked back to his office and turned the TV on. His favorite soap opera was about to air so he had to make sure he got his recorder ready. In the middle of this, loud snoring suddenly came from the closet.
“Shut up!” he yelled at the closet. The noise came to a stop and he went back to setting up his recorder. Then, he froze in his spot.
Wait… snoring from the closet? Now that I thought about it, didn’t I put my boots next to flat shoes? But I only owned boots (and only one pair at that)! And the bowls! I knew something was fishy seeing as I didn’t eat anything earlier but the snacks I stole, but I just chalked it up to my drunk antics. Don’t tell me…
Gintoki laughed at himself, a touch of hysterical. There’s no such thing as ghosts, right? RIGHT?
Another noise came from the closet.
(Later on, he would deny all the accusations of him almost peeing his pants.)
Heart threatening to bust out of his chest, Gintoki slowly approached the closet. His hand was shaking as it came into contact with the closet door. He could do this! He was Yato, for goodness’ sake. He wouldn’t be cowed by something so insignificant as a ghost. He was about to open the closet when—
“Gintoki!” Otose slammed his front door open. She was about to speak when she took in the scene in front of her, then paused. “What are you doing on the floor?”
Said man was currently kneeling on the floor, hand clutching tightly to his chest and forehead dripping with sweat.
She blinked, then shook her head. “Ah, whatever, it doesn’t matter. Oi, Gintoki, the girl came by this morning.”
“Oh, yeah?” Gintoki took a deep breath to calm himself, glaring at that evil, wicked hag. “What about it?”
“You didn’t tell me she had a bottomless pit for a stomach. She barged into my shop and demanded that I feed her,” she said, crossing her arms. “Now, I’m running low on stock so I’ve come for payment.”
“Payment?” Gintoki quickly stood up, an incredulous look plastered on his face.
“She’s basically your charge, no?” Otose raised an eyebrow.
Gintoki exclaimed, “Hell no! I talked to her once!”
She waved him off as if that information didn’t matter. “She’s a young girl with no supervision. I can’t have her paying her tab by working in a bar that’s a haven for old, drunk fools. You’re practically her next of kin, so her tab has to fall on you.”
“That’s almost like extortion, you witch!”
Otose took a drag of her cigarette and rubbed her temples, “Listen. If you can’t afford to pay her food expenses, then the least you could do is let the girl work for your business. I’m certain neither of us wants her running back to those dangerous gangs for money. Think about it, Gintoki. She’s a Yato like you, you can show her the ropes of how life on Earth works.”
If Gintoki wanted to shut the door, no one would blame him, right? But he considered her words and sighed in annoyance, “Fine! If I run out of money providing for her, don’t come blaming me for not paying my rent on time!”
“You don’t pay me on time even when you’re running solo!”
“Is money all you think about, you old hag?” Gintoki shook his head. “Humans really have no shame when it comes to their greed.”
“I don’t want to hear that from you!” she shouted.
“So? Where is she, then?”
“Last I saw her, she said she was heading to your office. You haven’t seen her?”
The unfamiliar pair of shoes by his doorstep, the empty bowls, and the snoring from his closet suddenly made sense. That wasn’t a ghost at all, it was just a little brat. Gintoki would like a word with her about causing him so much panic. He marched to his closet and there she was in her glory—mouth open with drool running down her cheek, hair unkempt.
He flicked his finger on his forehead, casually dodging the incoming fist that would normally bruise his face if he was human. “Mami, Papi, a girl should always have her beauty sleep, ‘kay?” she slurred, turning around.
Oh, great. His life was about to become an absolute pain.