[[UNLOCK ALERT!]]

Hard characters: Belphegor, Xanxus and Squalo.

The last riddle thing has been solved: "In the old well"

I now have to wait for the right time to unlock the characters, so when it comes, the characters will be officially unlocked.

REMEMBER, ONLY THOSE WHO HAVE READ MY RULES TO COMPLETION MAY JOIN THIS GAME. IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE RULES, I WON'T TAKE YOUR CHOICES INTO CONSIDERATION.

IT'S ONLY FAIR THAT I WORKED THIS HARD FOR THIS PROJECT THAT YOU READ MY RULES.

Day 2- To the Pier

Haru groggily woke up and looked up at the clock to see that it was the morning time.

It seemed that every time she put clothes in the hamper, they would be washed, folded, and then put back into her closet for her to take out for the next time she needed them.

Very convenient this world was.

Pulling out a pair of clothes, she walked herself over to the bathroom to perform her daily routine—that is, as close to her daily routine as she could get now that she was in a completely new world.

Once she was finished with that, she walked all the way down to the kitchen area to see that she was the only one there.

She ordered a morning omelet along with a few pieces of toast.

While she was munching on her toast, absentmindedly cutting her omelet with her fork, she was deciding which place she wanted to visit.

"Sure, Cap'n Kaipen will be waiting for ya lass!" "Yeah! Ye better come back n' visit! He gets lonely easily, ye hear?" The voices of the pirate crew echoed through her mind.

That's when she decided that she wanted to go and visit Kaipan and his crew once more.

Finishing up her food and watching as her plates floated off to clean themselves off with Rebo's magic, she set off towards the pier.

It was another lovely day out, and it made Haru wonder whether or not she would ever encounter a bad day. She hadn't been there for very long, so it wasn't like she could say that they always have good weather here or not.

She could see just a few clouds flying high in the air, but they were small in number.

It was odd to see the sky looking so empty compared to how the skies would look in her world. Sometimes there could be so many clouds that the sky would look whiter than it did blue.

Approaching the pier, she saw a familiar silhouette drinking milk from a mug once more.

Before she could even raise a hand and call out to him, she could hear loud voices cheering already.

"Hyuu hyuu! Cap'n yer lass has come to visit ye already!" "Cap'n sure is popular with the lassies as usual!"

In surprise, he almost dropped his mug, but with his great reflexes, he caught it before it fell. Unfortunately he had spilled out most of the contents of his mug onto the ground however.

With a pitiful pout, he cast his vision towards Haru's way and a bright smile was reeled onto his face.

"Haha! You've come back already? What is it? You've got another item you're looking for?" Kaipan asked, tilting his head to the side curiously.

This was a pleasant surprise for Haru to see that no matter which world they were in, Yamamoto was always that friendly guy who was always willing to help others out.

Perhaps this is one reason why she wanted to visit him again so soon, seeing as he felt the most familiar to her.

With a smile, she shook her head, "I just wanted to visit you again and talk." She said as the pirates around them burst into an excited frenzy once more.

Unable to really concentrate on (or hear) Haru's words, he beckoned her over to the deck of the ship, and then onwards to his room.

When the cheers wouldn't stop, he pulled out the baseball bat from his waist and look at his crew, "So which one of ye land lubbers wanna take yer cap'n on fer a few of em swings, eh? I'll go easy on ye."

With this, all of the cheering stopped and all of the crew members walked away to do their own thing.

Haru giggled to herself as she saw everyone disperse and cease their cheering.

It seemed that even in this world, Yamamoto was a force to be reckoned with if he had a baseball bat or a baseball in his hands.

Satisfied with the quiet, he led Haru into the Captain's room.

Once inside, he closed the door behind her and led her over to a hammock that was hanging from the ceiling. Placing his hands on her waist, he hoisted her up to the hammock and had her sit on it.

She at first struggled a bit because she wasn't expected to be picked up, but she relaxed when she realized he was just hoisting her up to the hammock.

'He could have at least said something.' Haru mentally muttered to herself begrudgingly. What kind of person wouldn't get shocked if he or she were to suddenly get picked up by someone that they barely knew?

"Hope you can make yourself comfortable up there." Kaipan grinned as he sat himself down on a barrel. "So what is it that you needed again?" He questioned her.

Seeing his friendly smile melted away any of the discontent feelings that Haru may have felt in regards to Kaipan.

Letting out the smallest of little sighs, "Haru merely wanted to talk to you is all. She had no business with Kaipan in particular." She repeated what she was trying to tell him earlier.

His mouth opened in an 'o' shape to show that he finally understood what she was trying to tell him earlier but he couldn't hear her due to his crew members going wild with their teasing.

It made him happy that one would go out of their way just to visit him and talk to him again.

"Haha! That makes me really happy! Thanks! Ah, tell me more about this guy who looks like me in your world." Kaipan seemed oddly interested in what this Yamamoto fellow was like.

They looked the same, and they both seemed to have a love for baseball. What other similarities would the two of them have? He wanted to know.

Haru tapped her chin with her finger, thinking hard about what Yamamoto was like.

Staring at the male before her, she could see the many similarities between the two, especially their boy-ish smiles.

"Mmm… well, where to start?" Haru started to rock herself back and forth a little bit on the hammock. "Yamamoto is a friendly guy who is always looking out for his friends, trying to stop any fights between them. He's really easy to get along with and to talk to. He can come off as a bit slow at times, but he's not stupid. Oh! He's harmless until… you put a baseball bat or a baseball in his hands." Haru laughed nervously at the last bit of information.

Kaipan was listening to her words attentively, trying to understand what this guy was like.

He may never have met this fellow, but he could believe that he's met this person before- in the mirror.

This 'Yamamoto' seemed like the spitting image and persona of himself.

Now only one important question remained:

"Were you dating him?" He asked nonchalantly.

With the sudden question, HAru went red in the face from the shock. "Ha-hahi! That's so direct-desu! Ha-Haru wa-wasn't dating Yamamoto." Haru stammered her reply nervously, twiddling her hair around her fingers.

Kaipan didn't say anything but watched her every move. He found it more interesting to watch her rather than to speak up and ask another question.

With the unbearably embarrassing silence, Haru covered her face with the pillow that lay next to her on the hammock to get a whiff of a familiar scent.

It was hard to describe it, but it was Yamamoto's smell.

The vague smell of grass, sweat, and that crisp smell of the outdoors you smell when you take the first step through the park. Something about it also smelled floral. Essentially, it was the smell of a guy who liked to play outside, practicing hard to get better at the sport that he loves so much.

The floral smell, was something that she asked Yamamoto about one time, and he said that it was the spring detergent that his mother loved to use, and his father kept using it ever since.

However, while the smell was very similar, it had its own difference.

Instead of the smell that one could find from the park, she could smell the sea. Not that disgusting fishy smell, but the slight smell of the salt in the air that danced on the winds of the vast open sky.

"Hm, the smell is different." Haru absentmindedly commented on the difference that she noticed, briefly forgetting the company that she had sitting across from her.

With a grin, Kaipan rested his chin on his open palm. "Heh… is that so? You may not have been dating, but you were close enough to recognize his scent that's different from mine." He chuckled, right before dodging the pillow that Haru chucked at him.

"Don't tease me, Kaipan!" She crossed her arms over her chest and puffed out her cheeks with displeasure.

He just chuckled once more and held up his hands in defeat. Reaching down next to the barrel, he picked something up and tossed it over at Haru.

She quickly scrambled her hands in order to pick up the object, fearing that it may break if she missed it.

Luckily for her (and the item) she managed to catch it before it fell to its doom. She wasn't really sure what she was looking at.

"It's salt water taffy. I figured you liked sweets. Eat that and forgive me? I didn't mean you tease you so much." He apologized.

Shifting the air in her mouth to her right cheek, her right cheek was puffed out. She then quickly turned her head to the left with a bitter 'hmph.'

Still, seeing his regretful pout on his face, she couldn't stay mad at him for too long. He kind of looked like a puppy that was just scolded for tearing up a flower garden.

He also just gave her candy so she couldn't stay mad at him forever, right?

Staring down at the candy in her hand, she unraveled it from its wrapper and popped it into her mouth. It was really sweat and had a very slight salty taste to it.

As she chewed on it, she felt more of her displeasure wash away with every bite. She forgave him.

Swallowing, "Haru will forgive you this time, but that doesn't mean that candy will always work for you." Haru warned him.

A large smile replaced the pout that Kaipan had on his face.

It simply wouldn't do if a cute girl was mad at you forever, right? It would mean that she wouldn't visit you again. This would make things rather boring and lonely.

Yamamoto reached down and grabbed another salt water taffy candy and tossed it over to Haru, who caught it with ease compared to the first time.

"Is that all you wanted to know about Yamamoto?"

He was rocking back and forth on the barrel that he was sitting on with his eyebrows furrowed inwards. He was thinking about something pretty hard.

Something about what she has told him thus far about Yamamoto seemed off to him. It didn't add up and there had to be a lie in there somewhere.

"So you said you aren't dating him. Did he ever confess to you?" Kaipan asked, tilting his head to the side like a confused puppy.

Immediately, Haru's cheeks reddened before shouting, "Ha-hahi! No he hadn't! Yamamoto had never showed interest in me before!" She argued.

A dubious look spread out on his face, highly doubting the validity of her words.

If it were true, Kaipan would have to reject the idea that this Yamamoto fella was anything like him.

"I dunno if there was something that prevented him from telling you that he liked you or not, but I don't think it's true to say that he wasn't interested in you at all. If he's anything like me, I'm sure it's safe to say that he liked you. In fact, probably a lot." Kaipan had his arms crossed over his chest and he nodded resolutely.

Surely there is no way that he in any other world would fail to fall for Haru's charm. He was sure of that much.

Haru felt a bit of unease as she was trying to register what he was telling her. Her heart was beating hard in her chest, and her hands felt a little bit clammy at the mere thought that Yamamoto had feelings for her. Did Yamamoto really have such feelings for her? Why hadn't he said anything? Was it the fact that she was always so over Tsuna that he felt uneasy telling her the fact that he liked her?

Maybe he was waiting for the right time? Was there anyone else who secretly liked Haru?

She WAS quite popular, but she wasn't sure if she could believe Kaipan's words so easily. Yamamoto was a nice guy who was kind to everyone and got along with anyone he came to meet (even Gokudera).

Wait a minute.

Haru, there is something very important that you are ignoring right now.

"Ha…Hahi! You mean to tell Haru that you like her?!" She squeaked in surprise when she finally the meaning behind his words. She was flabbergasted, and the look of surprise on Kaipan's face followed by his playful, boyish smile somehow made her stomach boil with the slightest bit of irritation.

It was like she was being mocked for finally reading between the lines.

Perhaps, choosing to ignore the slightly bitter look on her face, Kaipan laughed at loud with how slow Haru was.

For all they both knew, Yamamoto had made it quite clear that he liked Haru, but she was just too slow to see through his intentions.

If that were the case, Kaipan wanted to tip his hat to his other-worldly counterpart.

He saw as she puffed out her cheeks for the nth time already, and with each and every time, he found it cuter than the last time. He couldn't help but see her as a cute little chipmunk or something.

"Haha, I'll stop asking you about him." At this, Haru felt relieved until he continued. "Instead, I'll ask about you. Do you think that you liked him?"

Haru had wanted to screech out loud enough so the heavens could hear her voice, but she didn't. She settled for screaming internally instead.

What was with this guy and his incessant questions about her relationship with Yamamoto? Was he really that interested?

This was super embarrassing! She's never really put much thought into this before, and now she was getting really conscious about it.

What if… she managed to find her way back home and… she couldn't face Yamamoto anymore because Kaipan put all of these weird ideas in her head!?

That would be terrible! It would make everyone so suspicious and she'd actually have to go and explain to everyone that she didn't hate Yamamoto, but she was overly conscious of Yamamoto because of this dream-like world!

Since she had already chucked the pillow at him, she took a handful of the blanket that was bunched up to the side, and she hid her face into its fluffy warmth.

How does one answer such a question on such short notice, anyways? Was Yamamoto like this in real life? Was he this blunt?

"Hey, Haru. I just thought you'd want to know that your shirt is a bit see-through. Want to borrow my jacket for the day?" "Haru! Osu! You here to watch me play? Thanks for coming to cheer on the team! Now we gotta win if you're watching, right?" "Seeing as you have a whole cake in that box, it must be Haru appreciation day, huh? Afterwards, want to go on a jog with me? AH! I'm not calling you fat! Wait, Haru! Stop!"

Recalling a few instances in the past, Haru realized that Yamamoto has always been on the blunt side.

Not so much was he blunt in a flirty way, but more so in a, 'I will honestly say what I think without always thinking about the consequences' kind of way.

Though, one could also think of the things he said to be his attempt at flirting?

Maybe Haru wasn't thinking too much into the things he was saying or doing around her? Why was that? Perhaps she was still too infatuated with Tsuna at the time? What was it exactly that made her so oblivious?

Perhaps it was simply in her nature to be a bit slow.

"I'm just messing with you, Haru. I don't expect an answer. I just find it cute when you blush." Kaipan laughed once again, much to Haru's displeasure.

'He is such a jerk!' Was a simple thought that started parading across Haru's mind.

She hadn't lifted her head from the blanket just yet as she could still feel that her cheeks and the very tips of her ears being hot, and most possibly red in color. After a good minute of two, she finally felt composed enough to lift her head up from the blanket once more.

She noticed the shadow on the floor, and cast a quick look outside to see that it was now the afternoon time. A timezone had finally gone by. Since the flow of time was so weird here, she couldn't tell whether or not she had been talking to Kaipan alone for a long time or not.

Was it possible that she had overstayed her welcome yet? Should she leave, or talking with Kaipan a little bit longer before she leaves to either go back 'home' or visit another place?

"hile she was deep in thought, Kaipan wanted to talk to Haru about soemthign that has been on his mind for a while. "Hey Haru… I guess this would be a weird question for me to be asking you, but would you be willing to hear me out on this one little favor of mine? I was hoping that whenever you and I are alone that you refer to me as Kai." He started to rub the back of his neck nervously.

Curious, Haru lifted her head from the blanket to stare at him, wondering if he was going to offer up an explanation as to why he would want for her to refer to him as his real name if she was recalled properly from their last encounter.

"I don't really think much of anyone on the ship knows my real name, so I'm always being referred to as 'Captain' or 'Kaipan'. I guess it gets a little bit sad if no one calls me by the name that my Pops gave me, ya know? I was hoping that since you know my real name and all… would you mind calling me by my actual name if we're together alone?" He asked her this sheepishly, looking away from her as his hand had reached over and pulled a baseball out of who knew where and he mindlessly started to play with it in his hands.

Haru was astonished by this question that she was suddenly asked by him and gave it some thought.

After thinking about it, she came up with the answer:

a.) "Sure thing!"

b.) "Let me think about it."

c.) "Can't you just tell your crew your real name then?"

Whew~ We finally get our first encounter with a love interest asking you a question that can either increase, decrease, or have no effect on your relationship progress with him!

So then, please choose either a, b, or c. Afterwards, you may then choose the next destination you wish Haru to visit next (or choose to stay put).

[[Question: Do you want to stay here or move somewhere else?]]

[*] Let me stay with this occupationally confused pirate hood!

.

[*] To the town!

a.) Hang out in town

b.) Visit one of the mansions (tell me which)

c.) Time to challenge the rose maze.

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[*] Let's go to the forest!

a.) Visit Emani

b.) That middle path still needs to be investigated.

c.) Let's try that right path again.

.

[*] I'd rather go back to the tower and talk to Rebo.

I really hope y'all are enjoying this project as much as I am! I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I really hope that it went well with you all. QuQ Tell me what you think, please~

Note: Lol so I know that Haru adds 'san' after most of the people's names, but I figured that after a few years of knowing them, she'd stop the 'san' because they got friendly enough. (is also just lazy to add on the honorifics every time /ming)

Ahhh I regret setting up the hard characters the way I did. I really didn't think that we'd solve through everything and venture through all the places so quickly. Whoops.

It's a shame that one of the characters is going on for a long journey soon. Good bye, friend.

UNTIL NEXT TIME, FOLKS!

-Neospice12