Mafia Affairs

S.O.S

   The next day, Tanjiro awoke staring at the dark, stone wall next to him. He had hoped that this was all just a bad dream and that he'd wake up at the butterfly mansion. That, however, was not the case. Tanjiro knew that he didn't have much time and he had to think of something before it was too late. That's when a bulb clicked in his head and he quickly sat up. He looked around the room and noticed a small camera hidden in one of the corners.
   Perfect. He thought to himself.
   He stood up and walked over to the camera. Satsu noticed this and sat up in his chair.
   He found a camera already? Tsunaka was right, he is perceptive. Satsu thought to himself.
   "I know you can hear me so I'm just gonna cut to the chase." Tanjiro said through the camera. "I have a request for your boss. I'd like for you to tell him that and have him get back to me as soon as he can."
   Does this kid really think he's in the right position to be making requests?  Satsu thought to himself.
   Tanjiro retreated back to his spot on the mattress, hoping that whoever was behind the camera would listen to him.

   A few hours later, Tanjiro heard the faint, distant clicking sound from earlier and sat up. Tsunaka walked into the room with the same creepy smile on his face. Tanjiro scowled and stood up. Tsunaka walked over to him and the two just stood there in silence for a few moments.
   "I heard you had a request for me?" Tsunaka asked, finally breaking the silence.
   "That's right." Tanjiro replied.
   "Well, what is it?"
   Tanjiro hesitated to answer, unsure whether or not this was a good idea. Still, he knew it was the only chance he had at the moment.
   "I want to write a letter."
   "Excuse me?" Tsunaka questioned.
   "Please. I just want to write a letter to my friends letting them know that I'm okay and that I won't be returning for a while." Tanjiro continued.
   "You won't be returning at all." Tsunaka chuckled.
   "I know that." Tanjiro grumbled. "But do you really want me telling them that?"
   Tsunaka didn't respond at first and just stared at Tanjiro who was looking at him angrily.
   "You can even proofread it when I'm done so you can see I'm not trying to tell them anything." Tanjiro said after Tsunaka continued to stand there in silence.
   "Well..." Tsunaka finally said. "I'll allow it as long as you have someone supervise you."
   Tanjiro smiled a bit in relief, happy he got approval.
   "But...if I find you tried to sneak any form of an S.O.S signal into it, there will be severe consequences. Understood?" Tsunaka said sternly.
   "I understand." Tanjiro responded, determined to get his signal out without being caught.
   "Alright, I'll send in one of my men to supervise you while you write." Tsunaka said as he turned to leave.
   "Thank you sir." Tanjiro said quietly, making Tsunaka stop in his tracks for a moment.
   "You're welcome."
   Tanjiro took a deep breath and began to relax. So far, his plan seemed to be working. He just needed to stay calm and act natural.
   A few moments later, a man entered the room with a piece of paper, a pencil, and a wooden board.
   "Here, knock yourself out." The man stated as he threw the objects down next to Tanjiro.
   Thank you sir." Tanjiro said as he picked the objects up.
   He spent the next hour carefully deciding what words to write down that would be easy for the hashira to decode but hard for the mafia to notice right away. Tanjiro had already come to terms with the fact that they would eventually find out after he gave the paper to them. He was just trying to be subtle to the point that, if they did find out, it wouldn't be until after the letter was delivered. He was determined to keep it as secret and subtle as possible.
   "There, I'm finished." Tanjiro said after a long hour of silence.
   "Finally." The man next to him said under his breath. "He's finished." He then said into a walkie talkie that was attached to his right shoulder.
   A few minutes passed before Tsunaka entered the room and began making his way toward Tanjiro. Tanjiro took a deep breath and stood up. He handed the paper over to Tsunaka who took it and began to read it over. Tanjiro held his breath slightly in anticipation, praying he wouldn't notice his secret message.
   "What's with the random capital letters?" Tsunaka asked after a few minutes.
   Tanjiro shuddered a bit as he tried to find a quick and simple excuse.
   "That's just how I write." He said hesitantly.
   "That's just how you write?" Tsunaka questioned.
   "Yes sir." Tanjiro replied, hoping he wouldn't realize the capital letters were a part of his secret message.
   "Hmm...I gotta say, I've never seen anyone write like that. It's interesting." Tsunaka said after a long, suspenseful period of silence.
   Tanjiro let out a slow deep breath, relieved Tsunaka didn't catch on to his plan.
   I'll give this to Satsu and make sure it gets delivered."
   Tanjiro nodded his head and the two men left, leaving Tanjiro alone once again.

   "Here's the letter Satsu. Make sure it gets delivered." Tsunaka said as he handed over Tanjiro's letter.
   Satsu took it and began looking it over. "What are the random capital letters for?" He asked quizzically.
   "That's just how the boy writes." Tsunaka incited.
   "Just the way he writes, huh?" Satsu questioned as he looked at Tsunaka then back at the paper.
   "Yep. Now don't wait too long. I want that paper delivered as soon as possible." Tsunaka responded as he began to walk away.
   "Yes sir." Satsu said slowly as he continued looking at the paper.
   Then he walked over to his desk, pulled out an envelope and attached it to his messenger crow. He released the crow outside and stood there watching it until it was no longer in his line of sight. He then turned and went inside, carrying a hand-made copy of Tanjiro's letter in his hand.