That's correct. As a demon slayer, I've devoted my life to killing demons.
[ kind of what it says on the tin? also he's not missing how ironic it would be if he survived all of this and just went back to die. it'd just be how it goes but— ]
Ah, I'm sure if I ask you'll say you have to because people are counting on you to defeat that monster? That's what you get for connecting yourself with others, Tomioka.
Oh? I suppose if you're not going to be good at anything else, you might as well be the best at one thing, hm?
[And then, after a beat, there's a memory. It's from high up, a watchtower overlooking Abashiri Prison. A large fire burns brightly in one of the prison blocks, but Ogata isn't focused on that. His eyes are trained on a cluster of people closer, three standing on a rooftop, their attention trained in turn on two people on the ground a ways away. Asirpa stands on the lip of the roof, binoculars in hand. She needs to confirm Nopperabou, the faceless man on the ground who's been found by Sugimoto, is in fact her father.
Sugimoto and the man are talking. Looking up at Asirpa with binoculars in turn. Ogata can't make out what's being said, but he raises his own binoculars to peer at the people. He simply has to watch for the signal from the man on the roof. His instructions were simple. "If I put my arm up, that means Asirpa's father is Nopperabou. I need you to shoot him."
After a minute, the man raises his hand. Ogata lingers in Asirpa, standing there, crying pitifully. She had wanted so badly to believe this wasn't the truth. That her father wasn't a murderer. Ogata trades his binoculars for his rifle and lines up his shot for Nopperabou's head. It's a long one, but he can make it fairly comfortably since the men aren't moving around. He breathes out. Pulls the trigger. Nopperabou falls limply to the ground like his strings have been cut. Asirpa's father is dead. He wonders if she will hate him for this. if she'll never turn those expectant hopeful eyes on him again.
And then there's Sugimoto. Who already hates him, looks at him with nothing but scorn and agitation, taking every chance he gets to snipe at him. Ogata doesn't hate him. He thinks he's fascinating, this man who treats Asirpa with such gentleness and respect, but will snap a man's neck without a second thought. Like a monster. It's grotesque. It's transfixing. It's distracting.
Sugimoto grabs the dead man's body and Ogata shoots him in the head. Even from this far away, he can hear Asirpa crying out the man's name in despair. That's fine. This way she'll have no choice but to hate him.]
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Haha. So even if we manage to come back to life here and go home, you might die back there anyway?
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[ kind of what it says on the tin? also he's not missing how ironic it would be if he survived all of this and just went back to die. it'd just be how it goes but— ]
I have no intentions of dying, however.
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You say that, but you don't exactly have a good track record, here, you know.
[OGATA NEITHER DO YOU.]
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[ just. putting that out there because of he did almost win. ]
However, it matter if I just go back there to die. I still need to go back.
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[ or die trying. so, not really people counting on him, but he is duty bound. ]
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A pillar?
[anyway that seems like circular reasoning to Ogata. he has to do it because he swore he'd do it? Dumb.]
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It's the title that's given to the top demon slayers of my world.
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[And then, after a beat, there's a memory. It's from high up, a watchtower overlooking Abashiri Prison. A large fire burns brightly in one of the prison blocks, but Ogata isn't focused on that. His eyes are trained on a cluster of people closer, three standing on a rooftop, their attention trained in turn on two people on the ground a ways away. Asirpa stands on the lip of the roof, binoculars in hand. She needs to confirm Nopperabou, the faceless man on the ground who's been found by Sugimoto, is in fact her father.
Sugimoto and the man are talking. Looking up at Asirpa with binoculars in turn. Ogata can't make out what's being said, but he raises his own binoculars to peer at the people. He simply has to watch for the signal from the man on the roof. His instructions were simple. "If I put my arm up, that means Asirpa's father is Nopperabou. I need you to shoot him."
After a minute, the man raises his hand. Ogata lingers in Asirpa, standing there, crying pitifully. She had wanted so badly to believe this wasn't the truth. That her father wasn't a murderer. Ogata trades his binoculars for his rifle and lines up his shot for Nopperabou's head. It's a long one, but he can make it fairly comfortably since the men aren't moving around. He breathes out. Pulls the trigger. Nopperabou falls limply to the ground like his strings have been cut. Asirpa's father is dead. He wonders if she will hate him for this. if she'll never turn those expectant hopeful eyes on him again.
And then there's Sugimoto. Who already hates him, looks at him with nothing but scorn and agitation, taking every chance he gets to snipe at him. Ogata doesn't hate him. He thinks he's fascinating, this man who treats Asirpa with such gentleness and respect, but will snap a man's neck without a second thought. Like a monster. It's grotesque. It's transfixing. It's distracting.
Sugimoto grabs the dead man's body and Ogata shoots him in the head. Even from this far away, he can hear Asirpa crying out the man's name in despair. That's fine. This way she'll have no choice but to hate him.]