[lonewolf]

Mark could not believe his luck.

Bakuretsu was someone that was bad for business, and to an extent someone he could respect. Well, mostly. The murder and the mayhem were not his speed, but she was a menace that sooner or later had to be dealt with. Tracking was something he was particularly good at back in the states, but this woman was something else. It was a level of paranoia that he'd expect out of his father. Or his brother. Which made him all the more interested in tracking her down, which was proving to be a Herculean task.

Until he stumbled upon the luckiest break in his life.

He was stopping by a seedy bar on the outskirts of Tokyo to check into a different case, but a motorcycle that was oddly familiar from a report attributed to her caught his attention. All he had to do was run his hand over the handlebar once, sift through some memories, and bingo!

This was big, but also dangerous. Baku had at least one confirmed hero kill under her belt, and it was someone that was experienced. He was unsure if he could win a fair fight, but when did he ever fight fair? After returning to his car to retrieve a small explosive, he placed it where the fuel line lead into the engine, hooking it in a crude manner to the ignition. When detonated, it would in theory cause anything combustible in the engine to go off and cause enough damage so the thing wouldn't go, potentially injuring anyone mounting it in the process. He was winging this plan as he worked, he had one shot to try and bring her in.

Leaving his hat in the car, he entered into the bar and kept his hands in his jacket pockets. He did a scan, and finding her silhouette by the bar made his way over and took a seat next to her, flagging down the bartender. "I'll have what counts as a beer 'round here," he says, his accent shining through. He wasn't sure if he was going to catch her attention, watching her in the peripheral. Though once she tilted her head in his direction, he'd give a smile and a, "Howdy."

Bakiri Retsu

[Bakiri Retsu]

Retsu could not believe her luck.

Just once she wished she could catch a break. Looking at the reflection in her whiskey glass it seemed like that wasn't gonna be today. Much like it wasn't yesterday. Or the day before. Or the day- whatever. The point stood. The reflection did not show much but she could tell from the approaching man's posture and the way he walked that he was armed and knew how to use what he was carrying. It was a skill one picked up when they spent most of their time around crooks and gangsters. Those who didn't, well, they didn't manage to make the right judgement calls and became caution tales for the people that came after them. But she digressed.

The fooker was coming right her way. Because of course he was. He looked like trouble. Where else would he be heading? She chucked the rest of her drink down with a snort, the burn in her throat giving her focus and the way her head threw back letting her take a subtle glance back at the figure. It wasn't anyone she recognized.

Resting one hand on her lap so she could easily reach into her jacket to pull out a 'deterrent' the moment he made any sudden moves Retsu angled her glass so she could keep track of him while she gestured the barkeep for a refill.  

"Yo," Retsu replied while side eyeing him, pretending she wasn't paying him any mind in the slightest. Beneath her thick jacket her muscles tensed, ready to go from zero to one hundred at a moment's notice. "Ain't seen you around 'ere before."

It wasn't a lie. After all, she truly hadn't. She left the fact that it was her first time here as well unspoken.

"What brings ya ta these parts?"

------

Tags: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

He couldn't focus on it, but her hand made him nervous. There was either something about himself that telegraphed his intent to her, or she was just that paranoid about everyone. I guess if every person I ran into was trying to screw me over in some way, shape, or form then I'd be paranoid like her, too. He knew she had an explosive temper, but there wasn't much data elsewhere. In the event things turned to blows and he lived, at the very least he could carry off with some information.

"Passin' through. Was helping a friend with some car trouble on this end of town, figured I'd stop in here for a drink." Speaking off, a bottle was set out in front of him, and after giving a gesture of thanks to the bartender he picked it up. "Still new to Tokyo, and I enjoy exploring places I hadn't been yet. How 'bout you?" He gave her a smile, an innocent one at that. Fishing was going to be a little tricky, but so long as he tried not to force anything it should be smooth sailing.

"Right, I should mention. Name's John. Doooo you do the shake, or prefer the bow?" He held his hand out halfway, looking a little unsure as any ignorant foreigner would.

Bakiri Retsu

[Bakiri Retsu]

"Me? Ah'm waitin' fer a text. Moite as well remind 'em again, gimme a second," Retsu replied before looking down, making sure to keep Lone Wolf in the corner of her eye the entire time. Reaching for her ENKI phone she pulled it out of an inner pocket of her jacket without removing her arm from her lap. It wouldn't be the first time she'd seen someone open fire mid conversation after all, moving her hand away from her 'deterrent' could be the last mistake she ever made. Navigating the inbuilt browser to the ENKI database she typed 'asshole with a pistol' into the search function while making sure to keep the screen angled away from him.

Perhaps if Retsu had known what John Doe meant she'd have caught on to what he was doing but American law enforcement terms weren't exactly something she'd looked into. "Pleasure," she offhandedly replied while looking him straight in the eye to gauge his reaction. "Name's Retsu. Ah dun't do either." Nodding her head towards her occupied hands, one with a whiskey glass and the other with a phone, she made sure he wouldn't insist. Which reminded her.

One hundred seventy-three thousand, four hundred eighty-nine results. That was on her, she'd set the bar too low. Learning from her mistake she added Tokyo to the query before pressing the search button again. If she had the time to do so, of course. Who knew how Lone Wolf would respond to her introduction?

------

Tags: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Mark made a mental note of the behavior; it could point to her paranoia, or maybe she just wasn't a people person. Both were believable.

"Retsu? That's an pretty name. What's it mean?" This was more of Mark trying to keep the conversation going, maybe try to ease what tension existed. He wasn't too hopeful, but it was better than just leaving well enough alone. After all, if he was going to attempt to make an arrest he'd have to figure out a way to get them out of this bar and away from other patrons. The text, though...he wondered if she was trying to meet a contact or whatever.

"Meeting with a friend? Or got a hot date you're trying to get prepare for?" A playful smirk crossed his face, indicating the drink in front of her. "Not blind, I assume. I've found myself roped into plenty of similar situations that need me to lower my standards." He adjusted himself to better keep the door to his peripheral. If she was meeting someone, he couldn't afford to be blindsided. That...and maybe dig a little to see what information she'd cough up. He wasn't hopeful, though.

Bakiri Retsu,

[Bakiri Retsu]

Retsu stared at Mark like he was an idiot. What did 'Retsu' mean? It was a name. Names were what you called someone. They didn't have any meaning outside of that. Was she supposed to explain what her meaning was? Justify her every action and explain why she deserved to live? Her eye narrowed slightly. The very thought of that pissed her off. Who did he think he was to ask her a question like that? God's gift upon this world?

"From what ah recall it roughly translated ta 'naht y'r fookin' business'," Retsu replied in a tone dryer than gypsum. "What about yours, huh? What's that mean?"

She resisted the urge to scowl at his continued prodding. What was it with people and always trying to bother her when she was just trying to go about her business. Couldn't a renowned terrorist just live in peace when she wasn't the one instigating? 

"Both. Jack Daniels and Yamazaki. Couldn't go without 'em," Retsu snorted while gesturing towards the bartender for a refill. As 'John' continued she froze, the smile slipping of her face. Slowly, while keeping her surroundings in mind, she turned to face him so both her normal eye and eyepatch were clearly within his sight. Her turn masked the button presses she made on the phone still angled away from him.

"Blind? Da fook's dat supposed ta mean, asshat?" She asked with a scowl before raising her voice. "You lookin' ta take this outside, huh?!" Waving her phone in front of her she made sure the front-facing camera was aimed at him just long enough that she managed to snap a blurry picture. One that would hopefully be enough for the facial recognition software linked to their database to get a match. She hoped the looks aimed their way at her raised voice would be enough for him to refrain from using the moment her hand was further away from her 'deterrent' to shoot her. 

It'd turn out to be a rather costly mistake if she misjudged him.

------

Tags: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Well, there was the wall. He was hoping in asking simple, ignorant questions he'd make some headway, but that was a pretty closed-off statement. And a little surprising, since names carrying meaning was pretty common. Either she just didn't know, or he was committing a faus pax...or something. He did recognize the names of the brands, though, which was a pretty good opening for him to try and get a little closer! No shame getting in there, using those amazing seduction skills he had to catch her off guard and- Yeah, that wasn't working. When he used the term 'blind' it was a turn of phrase from where he was from and not an ableist comment.

He put both hands up, one with the bottle a little higher, and immediately going on the defensive. "Hey, I didn't mean it like that! I'm just trying to make conversation!" The phone wasn't lost on him. Was she trying to get a picture of him? It was hard to tell, and even harder to know if she was successful. He still gave her his bad side so whatever it was she was trying to do, it'd not result in the best of photos. He got by on being as anonymous as possible, but that didn't mean that people didn't know his name. "It does give you a certain charm, though! A little bit of danger! And if I'm being honest, I like danger.~" He'd flash a smile and a wink, not reaching for his gun just yet. If he could pull this off, he could potentially diffuse the situation and potentially figure a way to get her out of here without too much of a fuss. And then he could arrest her.

Assuming her phone thing wasn't going to give him away.

Bakiri Retsu,

[Bakiri Retsu]

This was getting her nowhere. Retsu clicked her tongue. The damn phone was being about as helpful as an umbrella in a hurricane. She glared down at the screen. What the hells did it mean 'include face in photo'?! It was clearly right there! Blurry, sure, but right there! Looking him in the eye as she passed her ENKI phone to the hand that was holding her glass moments before and raised it once more she turned her anger on 'John'. 

"Lahk danger? Yah, ah ken believe that," she said while leaning forward with a manic grin on her face, her other hand once more resting on her lap, mere inches away from her 'deterrent'. "Let's cut the bullshite, aye? Ah'm sure ya know what this is. Thing is, dere's a neat little application on 'ere that's told me 'xactly who ya are." 

Her eye unfocused, taking in the whole rather than the details. She was watching his posture and immediate reaction to her words far more than the minute changes in his expression. The mind always filled in the parts left unspoken. It tended to make her bluffs far more effective than they had any right to be. Even if rationally some who fell for them knew she was lying fear of the unknown was usually enough to cause a brief moment where instinct was stronger than thought.

There was a fair chance of course that he was just some random flirt with no knowledge of her alias. If that proved to be the case he'd likely assume she was being sarcastic talking about her phone and some kind of facial recognition app. It wouldn't even be entirely wrong. If he knew about ENKI however, if he had the context to truly understand what she was implying, she wagered her threat would land and his reaction would be telling. There was a distinct difference between a playboy that thought he was about to be called out and a trained combatant believing shit was about to go down after all.

The moment Retsu saw that telling change in posture, minute thought it might be, she'd draw and try to put two rounds into his chest while kicking off the counter to land in a roll. She knew better than to assume her first move would instantly put an opponent down and that staying in place was a great way to get yourself killed. 

Should his reaction not tip her off however Retsu would continue the conversation in a direction that'd let her either disengage or continue probing him without risking getting stuck here if he was buying time for reinforcements to arrive.

"Charmed, are ya?" She snorted. "Fook it, why not? Lead the way outta 'ere."

---

Tags: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Well, this wasn't good. Did she pick up on who he was? He tried to spoof the phone, especially since he didn't know exactly what she was planning to use with it, but if that were the case he had to think fast. The changes in his posture was indeed subtle, as he wasn't exactly sure if she got a positive ID on him and he did have to keep in mind the worst.

He hated donning a face in order to get to his prey.

"So...who does the ghost in the machine think I am?" The movement of her arm was his cue; he took his bottle and tossed some of the beer at her good eye (though part of him suspected that her other was perfectly fine), bring the bottle back down on the gun in order to change the angle of the shots. He managed to move in time for both bullets to graze past his leg, shattering against the ground behind him. It didn't stop the fact that they fragmented, but at the very least the likelihood of their lethality went down for any bystanders.

While Mark was proficient in the art of the gunfight, he was also good at the bar brawl as well. The moment she rolled away he threw the remainder of his bottle at her, intending to throw her off her game long enough for him to vault over the counter and look at the bartender. "Might want to get your customers out of here before something bad happens," he says, drawing the Carry from its holster and moving down, knowing that whatever the bar was made of probably wouldn't stop bullets, solid lead or full metal jacket. For now, he was stuck playing defensive.

Bakiri Retsu,

[Bakiri Retsu]

Whoever he was Retsu was glad she'd caught him off guard. He'd nullified her surprise attack without so much as getting hurt -by her standards-, she'd rather not imagine how the fight would have went had he gotten the first move. She would still have won of course but probably not without taking more damage than she'd have liked.

She begun blindly firing in his direction once more even before she finished rolling, blinking rapidly to get the booze out of her right eye before tearing her eyepatch off the left one to see properly. In moments where life and death were at risk Retsu was more than willing to bear a little pain. Unfortunately for Lone Wolf the moment the light hit Retsu's left eye the surge of pain it sent through her enraged her even more. She didn't stop firing until her pistol clicked empty. The moment it did she promptly tossed a frag grenade behind the counter and reloaded while knocking a table over to leap behind. 

Quite literally in fact.

Her arm scraped the ground as she slid to a stop, ears peeled for whatever her opponent was gonna do next and ready to react at a moment's notice.

---

Tag: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

He was happy he did move from his spot, as several shots tore through the wood and slammed into the cabinet behind the bar, though a little further down they'd start hitting one of the kegs that was underneath. Not a good sign, as those were under pressure. And once he heard her gun start clicking he'd make his appearance, rising over the bar to start laying in some stun rounds. Except this was the moment he saw the grenade flying through the air, and his shoulders sagged. "Really?"

He'd run out the end of the bar, avoiding most of the fragmentation as the grenade went off; unbeknownst to him a chunk had embedded in his right calf, causing him to stagger. He got into a kneeling position to start laying hate her way, only to see her to get a table as cover. Damn this modification, he thinks, keeping the Carry in his left hand as he drew the big iron from his jacket, sending a single bullet through the table. He wasn't sure if he hit her or not, but the fact that something punched through had to concern her enough to give it up. "When I said I liked danger, I didn't mean like this. Put the gun down and lets talk?" He was prepared with his other hand to open up with as many stun rounds as he could fire in short order, the entire clip available to him as he waited patiently for Retsu to make her move. A bad idea? Absolutely. But he was more interested in bringing her in alive than dead.

Bakiri Retsu,

[Bakiri Retsu]

Choosing not to stand up immediately proved to be the right decision as a neat little bullet hole formed right above where she'd been laying. A moment of recklessness could have caught her in an awkward position. If she'd been in the process of standing up as that hit...

She'd rather not imagine the words 'insides' no longer being descriptive of the contents of her head.

"So ya ken let loose the second everyone else 'ere gets outta the area 'nd mah deadman's switch is pointless?" Retsu shouted back, mocking him and reminding him of the potential for collateral in the span of a single bluff. She didn't stay still while she talked, silently raising herself into a crouch closer to the edge of the fallen table in case he decided to fire once more at where he'd aimed previously. If his quirk were anything along the lines of echolocation she'd still be fucked depending on where he sat on the allegiance chart but such thoughts were pointless. If his caution didn't win out over his desire to put her six feet under she could only hope his aim was as good as his decision making.

"Why don'tcha put your gun down first, fookhead?" Retsu yelled while she tossed the pin of the grenade she'd used previously sideways so that it'd pass by the bullet hole in the table, reflecting the light for just a moment as it flitted past. The movement should be enough to draw the eye and Retsu wasn't about to waste a chance like that. Kicking herself upright she rushed backwards at the same time while trying to keep as much of the table between herself and the gunslinger. It wouldn't do much to obscure her but it was better than nothing and combined with the suppressive fire she let rip while she made for the exit it might just be enough. With some luck the fact that she wasn't the only one that had the idea of heading for the door would keep him from returning fire long enough for her to get clear.

---

Tag: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Mark slowly made his way forward, keeping both guns trained on the table as he tried to think of a backup plan. Sure, there was his little booby trap outside, but with people filing out at a high rate he couldn't open up as he liked. Well, he could with the Carry as that was nonlethal, but he didn't need the media breathing down his neck. "Yer paranoia is charming," he says, a little of his drawl coming out again. "Ya waste too many bullets, though. I cain't imagine what ammo costs would be with ya."

He stopped a good distance away from the table, a frown on his lips. "I would, but you literally threw a grenade at me. Which, gotta say, is a first. Most women here that I flirt with are more likely to give me the cold shoulder. Still processing that, ain't sure if you like me enough that you don't want another woman to take her shot, or if you despite me enough that you don't want my next of kin to find the pieces." The pin caught his attention, initially thinking she was intending on moving out for a fair fight. This made him spread his arms out to cover either end as his own wily nature told him not to trust it; unfortunately, he as now in a bind. If she had gone left like he saw the pin do, the Carry would be free to let loose and he'd end up pumping several thousand volts into Retsu's body, immobilizing her and not have to worry about hitting anyone else. However, she popped up on the other side where the Wayward Son was, complicating things; 45 caliber was enough to take down a cow in a single shot (that's why it's called ACP; Anti-Cow Projectile), and the hole he'd make in her would be enough to stop the fight right here and now. But like he said earlier, he didn't want to bring her in dead. While she was threat enough to do so, there was one little problem: there were too many people behind her. There was a good shot lined up, but there was no telling if the round would keep going and hit someone else. It was a risk he couldn't take.

That moment of hesitation forced him to dive for cover as she opened up on him. His leg wasn't responding like he wanted, and he felt the wind as several bullets flew past him. It did give him a moment to line up the Carry one good time and squeeze off a shot, one that would zap her good to make her regret her decision to run. Maybe not enough to incapacitate her, but it could slow her down...assuming he didn't screw up his sights.

Bakiri Retsu,

[Bakiri Retsu]

Gods did that man love to hear himself talk. If she didn't have a valid excuse to kill him it might've been enough to piss her off. As it was the yapping was simply another drop in the bucket. What, did he think she was going to believe his flirting? That he actually had an interest in her? What a joke. Besides, even if she did 'John' wasn't her type. He was more the type that got himself killed by mouthing off to the wrong person. Case in point.

"Don't pick foites ya kent win, dumbass!" Retsu shouted right before taking a stun round to the chest. It hit her with enough force to send her barreling back into the crowd while shocks ran through her causing her to drop her pistol. As she fell back one of her arms spasmed and with gritted teeth she forced her muscles to obey, redirecting the spasm to send her arm swinging out. Her elbow hooked around one of the fleeing civilians throats.

"Come with me if ya want ta live." She hissed at him, the threat of what would happen if her tried to wrench her arm loose clear. Unless Lone Wolf was the best shot this side of the Mississippi -which, given that they were in Japan, was a fair distance away- it was highly unlikely he could get a clear shot on her like this until she got out. Not unless he was willing to risk harming civilians and from what she'd seen thus far that didn't seem to be the case. Which likely meant he was either a hero or a vigilante, not a hired assassin. That was something. A little silver lining to keep her spirits up as she was dragged out of the bar like a stubborn sack of potatoes by her hostage.

Ramming her bike key home and turning it the moment she made it outside she forced herself to work through the aftershocks, swinging her leg over the seat and squeezing the throttle to get moving. The moment she did Retsu heard a rattle that was both unfamiliar and very familiar. Unfamiliar in the context of a functional engine. Familiar in different ways. She threw herself to the ground before her eye could even begin to widen, kicking off the side of the bike to get out of the radius of whatever her bike had been rigged with. There would be hell to pay for this.

---

Tag: lonewolf

[lonewolf]

Dammit!

His shot hit home, but things were now more complicated than they were before. Hostage situations were something he wasn't particularly good at, unless his goal was to shoot first and ask questions later. It involved careful planning, forethought, and a great quickdraw to win that over. Retsu was a loose cannon, unpredictable, and liable to do something he didn't want if he didn't back off. While he had a shot on Retsu, it was something he could only take in the best of circumstances. Looking down, he noticed the blood on his leg and the pain began to set in, and to make matters worse he was on the ground. Far from ideal.

So he had no choice but to let her go.

He holstered his weapons, wincing as he reached behind the counter to grab a (presumably) clean rag, and by the time he finished tying it around his leg he heard the explosion outside. "Plan B it is," he muttered, hobbling to a side door to let himself out.

The Carry was once again in his hand, keeping the big iron put away as he began to scan the surroundings. The bike made a pretty decent bang, now all there was left to do was to find Retsu, dead or alive. "Not too late to turn yourself in," he called out, cautiously advancing. He was trying to keep cover within arms distance in case he had to duck behind it. "Last thing either of us want is hole in yer head. Honestly, would ruin the whole, 'badass bitch' look ya got going on."

Bakiri Retsu,