Sorry for the delay! Work has been getting on top of me -_- Also this chapter is a bit longer than usual. Thank you for reviewing, those of you who are still around with me :D
Sayuki gripped the paper cup containing the coffee she had just purchased with a bit too much force as she headed back to where she'd parked the motorcycle. She had driven into town, not knowing really where to go or what to do, just that she wanted to get away. She leaned against the side of the bike as she sipped the scalding liquid, at the same time replaying events from the last hour in her head. Why had Hibari come to get her? Why was he even talking to her? Even though she initially hypothesized it was for the motorbike, that didn't explain why he wanted to take her with him. Unless he wanted to punish me somehow... She shuddered but shook her head. If he wanted to bite her to death he would have done it right there. Also he hadn't seemed so indifferent like the last time she'd seen him, when he told her he didn't love her. The way her held her arm and the way he had tangled his hand into her hair - it was more intimate, it was familiar. How I know him really to be. She shook her head again, this time as though telling herself not to be so foolish. She didn't want to cling to any stupid hope that things would return to how they were before, that it was all a misunderstanding and he really did love her and they would live happily ever after forever and ever.
But again, Sayuki's thoughts went to Mukuro, and how Hibari had responded to his provocation. She'd felt the desire to somehow make Hibari jealous in the back of her mind all this time, but she never would have expected it to happen in such a way, least of all with Rokudo Mukuro. Though when she thought about it, Mukuro was the perfect person - someone who Hibari hated more than anyone for defeating him and humiliating him yet still remaining as a constant presence in the Vongola family. Even better, Mukuro really knew how to incite Hibari's rage; he knew just what to say and how to interact with her. Sayuki had always thought it would make her feel much better to get the upper hand on Hibari this way. She wanted to show him he had made a grave mistake letting her go. But, she didn't feel that way now. Perhaps it was because she hadn't expected any of it but either way, now she just felt confused. If these things still made him angry, did that mean he still cared about her?
No... She told herself again. It's just the anger towards Mukuro he feels. He cares more about the fight, that's clear...
Sayuki sighed, crumpling the coffee cup in her fist. It was painful and exhausting to think about. She didn't like to admit it to herself but it was clear she still loved him as much as she ever did. Just feeling his hand on her arm sent jolts of electricity through her body and sent her heart into overdrive. Too bad it was now breaking all over again.
"Kikuchi Sayuki?" She heard an unfamiliar voice in front of her.
"Yes?" Sayuki looked up to find she was staring down the barrel of a gun.
"Tsuna!" Yamamoto entered the conference room where Tsuna and Gokudera were convening and the pair looked up at him hopefully. "I've got Haru, Kyoko and Kurokawa Hana. They're waiting in the room down the hall. Ryohei should be back with Sayuki's brother in a minute."
Tsuna smiled with relief. "Thanks Yamamoto."
"Sawada!" Sasagawa Ryohei joined the group. "I've retrieved Kikuchi Kaito to the extreme! Is there anyone else missing?"
"Lambo just brought Fuuta. Other than that it's just..." Tsuna looked worried. "Hibari left to fetch Sayuki an hour ago and he hasn't returned. I assumed she'd be with Mukuro but I can't get through to him either..."
Gokudera ran his hand roughly through his hair as he did when he was anxious. "What the fuck is that idiot prefect up to..."
Yamamoto smiled and waved his hands in a calming manner. "Nah this Hibari right? They'll definitely be back in a bit, he can handle any trouble they run into."
"I hope you're right... but if he isn't back soon I think we'll have to send someone else to find her. It's too dangerous for her to be on her own right now."
Sayuki stared at the weapon pointing directly between her eyes. Her breaths were heavy and her body was frozen solid. Sudden movements were bad in this sort of situation right? It occurred to her that she had absolutely no idea how to deal with what was happening.
"Don't move." The man holding the gun rasped He was short, with greasy brown hair that hung limply around his ears. His eyes seemed a little too bright and wide for a person with a sane disposition.
"What do you want?" Sayuki tried to keep the fear from her voice but it wavered. Despite the tough act she had been trying to put on in recent times her actions didn't live up to it particularly well.
The man ignored her, adjusting his grip on the gun. Sayuki felt a flash of hot fear as his forefinger curled around the trigger right in front of her.
"This might hurt a bit." He rasped. She squeezed her eyes shut in terror as his finger tightened on the trigger.
There was a loud cracking sound and Sayuki screamed, assuming she'd been shot in the head. A few seconds later however she began to realise she was still alive and opened her eyes just in time to see a whip wrapped around the gun, throwing it into the air.
"Romario! Disable him!"
There was a scuffle and Sayuki felt someone grab her by the shoulders and pull her out of the commotion. A blond-haired man spun her around and put his hands on her shoulders, examining her with concern.
"...Dino?"
"Are you alright?"
Sayuki was speechless for a few seconds as the fear and shock ebbed away. "I-I'm fine... he didn't do anything... it all happened so fast I..."
"Seems like we got here just in time." He turned to his henchmen who had restrained the assailant. "Can you guys take care of things here?"
"Yeah boss. We'll take him back for questioning."
"Dino, what's going on?" Sayuki could read the atmosphere; something bad was happening.
Dino had other questions on his mind. "Where's Kyoya? He was supposed to pick you up over an hour ago."
"He was?" Sayuki frowned. "He came to Kokuyo land and tried to take me with him but he started fighting Mukuro and I left..."
"He started fighting Mukuro?" Dino slapped his palm to his forehead in exasperation. "That guy... Well it's a good thing we found you in time."
"Why? Who was that?"
Dino ran a hand through his hair with a troubled expression. "The others will explain once we get back to the Vongola headquarters, but the gist of it is that it seems you're being targeted by someone who opposed the Vongola."
"...Targeted?" Sayuki wanted to ask more questions but it was clear Dino was anxious to return so she held her tongue. "Let's go then. We can take the motorbike. I'll drive."
"Motorbike?" Dino looked around her and saw Hibari's treasured vehicle. "Sayuki! Is that... did you steal Kyoya's motorcycle?"
Sayuki hopped over to it and swung her leg over the seat, gesturing for Dino to do the same. "I didn't steal it. I just borrowed it without his permission."
Dino looked exasperated again but climbed on the seat behind her. "Are you sure you know how to drive this thing...?"
"Yeah I'm an expert now- whoops!" As she kicked the bike into gear the front wheel reared forwards and lifted off the ground by almost ninety degrees. "Sorry!" She grinned apologetically as the wheel hit the ground again. "You're heavier than Fran, I just need to get used to the weight distribution..."
"Please don't kill us before we get back to the mansion..." Dino muttered as they shot off down the road.
The look of relief on Tsuna's face when they returned was almost painful, but he soon looked worried again as Dino recounted the events.
"It was a good thing we arrived when we did," The Chiavarone boss told him. "We caught the guy - Romario's holding him right now. We might be able to get some information about him."
"I hope so, thanks Dino. Do you have any idea what happened to Kyoya?"
"Well... Sayuki said he was fighting Mukuro..."
Tsuna looked exasperated but didn't persue the matter further as the remaining Vongola guardians excluding Hibari and Mukuto had entered the room. However, Kusakabe was there to represent the head prefect at least, and Chrome could pass the information on to Mukuro. They all took a seat at the large conference table while Tsuna stood at the head with a grave look on his face.
"As you may know we've all been dealing with some strange events recently," He began, "These seemed to be unrelated matters but we've had a recent revelation that suggests they're all connected."
Sayuki had no idea about that the trouble the Vongola had been having recently; she hadn't got the impression from the Kokuyo gang that there was anything wrong at all but it did explain why Hibari had been traveling so much and why the Varia were in town. Tsuna continued to summarise the situation and what they'd discovered so far. It seemed each of the Vongola guardians were being targeted in some way, each led on their own chase to find out who was provoking them. Tsuna and a few of the others had managed to raid a suspected hideout and had uncovered a lot of information about the plans of these people, whoever they were, revealing that targeting the guardians was all part of a bigger plan.
Tsuna continued. "It seems also that quite a few of us have had threats towards certain people close to the Vongola. This was more meaningful than we realised."
A set of photos and names appeared on the wide screen at the end of the room. Sayuki jumped when she noticed one was of her. It wasn't a photo of her she'd seen before; it was recent, but appeared to be taken when she wasn't looking. Haru and Kyoko were also amongst the pictures on the screen, as well as Yamamoto's father and Sayuki's brother among others.
Why is my brother involved in this?! Sayuki thought worriedly. However, she didn't have time to dwell on it before Tsuna continued.
"We found these pictures in the hideout along with detail information on the whereabouts, routines and habits of these people. We have strong reasons to believe that our enemy is planning to target our loved ones as a strategy to take down the Vongola."
Sayuki's thoughts were ringing in her ears. They're targeting the guardians loved ones? My brother must be... because of Chrome... She felt fear strike her heart. She didn't know how to defend herself. Since she'd moved into negotiations she didn't have as much time or reason to focus on self defense - if she was targeted by one of these people how would she stop them?
I won't be a weakness to the Vongola. She thought with defiance.
Tsuna seemed to read her thoughts. "Obviously not everyone can look after themselves, especially against an enemy that has succeeded in evading us for so long; they are obviously no fools. Our priority is protect our loved ones." He pressed a button on the controller he was holding and the screen changed again. "We've established a 24 hour protection scheme. All of the people pictured previously will be in the presence of at least one strong member of the Vongola every hour of every day. Dino and the rest of the Chiavarone family will help out. Those participating will rotate as we also need an offensive strategy to find the enemy as quickly as possible."
Tsuna continued to explain their strategy for the rest of the meeting and handed out schedules to the guardians strong enough to protect the vulnerable. Sayuki briefly wondered who would be looking after her; would they also be there at night when she was sleeping? This is all because I can't protect myself. She thought once more. If I don't want to be a burden to Tsuna and the others I'll have to do something about it.
At the end of the meeting, Sayuki hurried out to catch hold of a certain mechanic.
"Spanner!" She accosted the blond-haired man as he was leaving the conference room.
"A female Vongola." Spanner scratched the back of his head lazily. "What can I do for you?"
"I was wondering... if you could make me a weapon."
"A weapon?" He raised his eyebrows, looking intrigued. "What kind of weapon?"
"Well... I was hoping you could help me with that." Sayuki responded looking thoughtful. "I don't know what type of weapon would be best for me." She sighed. "I just... I just want to be able to protect myself and stop being a burden to Tsuna and the others."
"Good a reason as any." Spanner unwrapped a lollipop and stuck it in his mouth. "How have you fought in the past? How much physical strength do you have?"
"I'm not particularly strong..." Sayuki admitted. "My martial arts teacher always told me I'm weak and clumsy but I'm quick." She said. "Though he usually just said that meant I could run away if I got into a real fight..."
"Clumsy...Nothing pointy or sharp then..." Spanner noted to himself. "No whips, or you'll trip over yourself. Let me see your hand span." He grabbed her right hand and held it in front of his face, squinting as though measuring something. "Ok I think I have something in mind." Spanner discarded the already-finished lollipop into a nearby bin. "I'll get back to you soon Female Vongola."
Why does he keep calling me 'Female Vongola'...? Sayuki wondered as Spanner walked away.
"Sayuki, can I have a quick word?" Tsuna stuck his head around the door.
"Sure boss." Sayuki replied, reentering the room.
"Regarding the protection scheme..." Tsuna started. He looked uncomfortable about what he was about to say. "Kyoya agreed to take part but on the condition that you would be his only responsibility."
"... I see." Sayuki wasn't sure how to reply. It sort of made sense that Hibari wouldn't want to look after or spend extended time with anybody else but she thought he'd been feeling that way about her too.
Tsuna continued tentatively. "...In order to give the other guardians the most flexibility, we've decided Hibari will be the only guardian to protect you - though Kusakabe will take over for certain hours as necessary."
Sayuki was still letting the information sink in. "So... I have to be with Hibari... every day?"
Tsuna looked sympathetic. "Yes. This is the best solution for us. However I understand that you and Kyoya have not been on the best terms recently, so it may not be the best solution for you." He put a hand on her shoulder and gave her an understanding smile. "If you're unhappy with this we will think of something else."
Sayuki frowned. She didn't understand what was going on any more - surely it would be more about Hibari being unhappy about this than her? She couldn't say she wasn't uncomfortable with the idea but if this was the best solution, she had to agree. She didn't want to be more of a hindrance to the Vongola than she already had been.
"No, it's fine." She nodded in assurance. "If this is the best way I'm fine with it."
Tsuna smiled again. "Thank you Sayuki. This is a big help." He gestured for her to exit first and followed. "Also, I need you working on core Vongola stuff again, I want you on intelligence for this case - we need to find these people as soon as possible."
"Of course, will do."
"Anyway you'll have to excuse me; I need to go and explain the situation to Kyoyo, Haru and the others."
"Ok." Sayuki gave Tsuna a reassuring smile, masking any bad thoughts she was having about the situation. "I'm sure everything is going to be fine boss, the Vongola will come on top like they always do."
As Tsuna took leave Sayuki heard a second set of footsteps approaching. She turned.
"Oh Kusakabe it's you." She let out a breath she didn't realise she'd been holding.
"Just me." Kusakbe looked amused, as if sensing her relief that it wasn't a certain other prefect. "Are you ready to go?"
"...Go?"
"To Kyoya's place of course. I'm here to escort you."
Everything is now set up for chapters of pure Hibari :D Please leave a review if you liked it~ :)
