A/N: I feel like the chapters are getting shorter and shorter each time I upload... I know it will go back up but I think the next chapter should be longer than this one. Oh, well. Enjoy this week's chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Super Sentai. I only own my original characters and the story.

Akane turned at the call but stopped when she realized it was Tomoko. "T-Tomoko..." She quickly threw a hoodie over her shoulders before going to her sister's side, only to find her shaking.

"H-how did you...? When did...? Why...?" Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she tried to find the right words. "I-I-I thought..."

"Tomoko. Tomoko, breathe. It's just a scar," Akane said in hopes of soothing her sister.

"Wh-why do you have one...? Wh-when did you...?" She tightly held onto Akane's arms in fear. Her eyes started to glow orange as she saw visions of her sister on the floor hurt, blood staining her clothes and the floor.

Akane noticed the amount of panic in her sister and quickly cupped her face. "Tomoko. Hey. Look at me. Look at me, okay?"

Tomoko shakily lifted her head to look at her sisters. "Why...?"

"I'm fine. I'm right here and I'm fine, Tomoko. It was an accident long before we started fighting. It's nothing to worry about."

"But-"

"But nothing. It's really nothing." She felt the small girl slowly calming, her grip loosening.

"O... okay..." Her voice faded as she spoke before she collapsed.

"Tomoko!" Akane quickly caught the small girl before she could hit the floor. She rested a hand on her sister's forehead to find it burning up. She looked out the door. "Shichi!"

Shichi carefully rested a cooling patch onto Tomoko's forehead as the girl slept. "I did a check and it's just a fever," he said before looking at the MoriRed. "Akane-sama. What happened that made her collapse?"

Akane hesitated as she reached for her scar, shocking him. "Sh-she couldn't have-!"

"It's fine, Shichi. She just... She was just surprised to see it since we can heal quickly. Not as fast as her, but fast enough to not scar."

"That's true, but you know how she is. You know how you got it in the first place and why it won't heal. If she realizes that she-"

"She won't, Shichi," Akane said sternly," Not now, not ever. I just have to find a way to explain to her how I got this so she wouldn't freak out."

"But-"

"Shichi."

The robot winced at her tone, seeing how she's really serious about keeping it a secret. "O-okay..."

Alarms rang through the shopping district as a few men ran out of a store, stuffed bags in their hands. They stopped when they found two figures landing in their path.

"Isn't it a little cliché to be robbing jewelry stores late at night?" the taller one teased as he rested his spear on his shoulder.

"Get out of the way!" one of the robbers shouted as he pulled out a dagger.

"Nii-san. We have to go easy on them since they're humans," the shorter one said.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's get this over with." He twirled his weapon before the two charged.

Akane looked at the clock on the stove as she made breakfast. She gently transferred the egg onto the prepped plate, turning off the stove and placing the breakfast onto the table. Just as the plate hit the table, Kiku walked in with a yawn. "Morning..." she greeted sleepily, rubbing her eyes. She went to the fridge to grab some juice. "Nee-chan. Apple or orange?"

"Apple is fine." Akane closed the rice cooker, bringing the three filled bowls with her to the table. The two said their thanks before starting to eat.

Kiku looked at the empty blue chair in between them. "Did Ji-nee leave early?" she asked after swallowing a bite.

"I'm letting her sleep in today. She saw my scar yesterday and had a minor panic attack."

Kiku nearly choked on the cherry tomato she had in her mouth and coughed, quickly downing her juice. "What?! And you didn't tell me?! So her sleeping through dinner wasn't just fatigue?!"

"You can say that. I'm going to have a talk with her today so she could understand what happened."

Kiku's eyes narrowed. "You're going to come up with some random story, aren't you?"

"Well I can't really tell her the truth. She'll have nightmares for weeks."

"If you say so."

"In other news, two masked heroes stopped a group of robbers in the central shopping district. According to the robbers when they were apprehended, the two claimed to be a part of the Super Sentai team, Doubutsu Sentai Moriranger."

The two looked at the TV when they heard the name. "Eh?"

"Seems like they're helping out in the neighborhood as well when they're not fighting monsters."

"According to what they said during the fight, they want to keep the peace in the city even if the risk isn't as big. But there's no doubt they'll be helping the Morirangers with their future battles."

"No way…"

"Guess the Spirits chose their partners already…" Akane heard her phone ringing and answered. "Hello?"

"Akane. Remember when I told you about Kuu and Jou's Cuffs?"

"Guess they found new owners. I'll be right over." She hung up before grabbing her hoodie.

"Hiro-ji?" Kiku asked, receiving a small nod.

"We're going to find out who the Cuffs went to."

"Can I-?"

"You're not following me," Akane said sternly, making her sister pout.

"I was going to ask to stay with Ji-nee if you're going to be investigating."

This made the eldest sister hesitate, unsure if she could trust the girl with that kind of responsibility. Kiku took notice of her worry and stood up, placing her emptied dishes into the sink. She grabbed her bag. "Guess I shouldn't be late, then…" She opened the front door when Akane spoke up.

"Sorry… She'll just be too unpredictable for you… We don't want you to get caught up in this mess…"

Kiku smiled at her sister, knowing they always wanted her to feel normal as the youngest. "It's a little too late for that, Nee-chan. But if you want me to stay away from her, I'll manage. Just know I'll be right over if anything happens." She closed the door behind her, leaving Akane to herself.

The MoriRed took in a shaky breath before looking at Shichi, the small robot having seen everything after making their lunches. "Look after her, okay? Call me if anything happens."

"O-okay. I'll call as soon as she wakes up so you know how she's feeling."

Kiku gently fiddled with her charm bracelet, running a finger over the small bunny that was close to the hook. She then took hold of the mouse and dog that were close, recalling what she overheard not too long ago.

"I really don't know how to talk to her. She grew up way too differently from us so it's hard to get through to her."

"We always wanted her to be the most normal out of the three of us... It's no surprise that she would act like this..."

Her lips nervously pressed together as she sighed. "We're anything but normal…"

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard someone calling her name. She looked up to find another girl with her hair pulled to the side and was wearing a cotton pink vest over her sailor uniform.

"Ah. Kimi. Did you need something?"

The girl pouted. "Mou. You've been spacing out ever since class started. I've been calling you the last two minutes and you've been in some kind of daze."

"S-sorry. I just have a lot on my mind right now. You know. Family troubles."

"Did something happen with your sisters again?" She put her hands on her hips. "Those bullies should really calm down. Teach her some of that combat training you went through when we were little."

Kiku couldn't help but to laugh at her friend's suggestion. "She's too nice for that. Besides, she has a few friends looking out for her."

"Well that's good. You always complained how she doesn't have enough friends. Ah. That reminds me. Have you've seen Ueno-kun on your way over today? He hasn't been showing to classes and we've been getting worried something might have happened."

"Shota? I've been busy yesterday so I wasn't sure." She took out her phone to see if she can text him.

"He's still small since he hasn't had his growth spurt yet. I'm worried he might have gotten into some kind of trouble."

Kiku gently snorted at the idea. "He's too careful to get into trouble, Kimi. Just last week, he was helping the Student Council President with the paperwork because he didn't want them to spill when they left the copy room."

The girl let out a worried hum. "That's true… But that makes it even more worrying."

"I'm surprised you're so worried. Don't tell me…" Her eyes narrowed in amusement as she looked away from her phone towards her friend. "You like Shota?"

At this, her friend blushed at the accusation. "D-don't be silly, Kiku! He's just one of those guys you can't help but to look out for! You know all of the girls like that side of him!"

"Hmm… I wonder if he'll respond back if I tell him that you have a crush on him." She started to type again, only to hold her phone away when Kimi reached for it.

"Anything but that!"

Kiku laughed as she held her phone away from the girl. She heard her phone ringing and opened the text message. She smiled before holding it out to her friend. "He just caught a cold so he'll be out of school for a bit."

Kimi pouted at the tease. "At least you didn't actually tell him."

"Yeah, yeah." The MoriYellow pushed her friend off from on top of her as the bell rang for their next class to start.

Dorgon casually flipped through the battles, trying to find a hint in the situation. He pulled out the book, flipping over to the information on the girls. He skimmed his finger over the scratched-out line, curious of what is missing. "Harpy."

The general looked up from inspecting her nails. "You need something?" she asked, albiet annoyed.

"Those Ooteshitas you sent out in your last mission. Mind if I borrow them for a little while? There's something I'm rather curious about."

"Not sure what you mean by that, but go ahead. I haven't found use to them just yet."

"Just a little distraction for the children. I want to investigate a little more."

"So you still have your eyes on that one?"

"As always."

Akane sighed as the computer gave her another "Lost Signal" warning. She found a cup of coffee held out to her, only to be her uncle. She gently took hold of it. "Thanks…" She took a sip, only to grimace at the taste.

"Just thought you might want the caffeine for today," Hiro said before looking at the computer. "Guess those two really want to keep their partners a secret from us."

"They're more rebellious from what Obaa-chan told me. They tend to cause some mischief from time to time, so it's no surprise they'd want to surprise us with who we'll be fighting with."

"Do you think you'll trust them?"

"Not sure… It's a big responsibility to use these powers. We'll just have to wait and see what happens."

Hiro slowly nodded, knowing the weight held in the Cuffs. He was about to say something when Akane's phone rang. She quickly answered when she saw the Caller ID.

"Shichi?…Yeah. Yeah, I'll be right over. …She's fine, right? …Okay. Just give me a few minutes and I'll be right over." She stood up. "I have a checkup to do at home. Call me if you get something." She was about to leave when Hiro stopped her.

"Akane."

She looked back at him, only to find a black metallic box held out to her. It was rather small and barely covered his palm. She looked at him, unsure if she should take it.

"Just in case you get home to something you don't want to see."

She took in a deep breath before accepting it. "Thanks."

Akane rushed into the house, taking the stairs two steps at a time before reaching Tomoko's room. She found Shichi leaning against the door, his face worrisome. "Shichi." She went to his side, making him look at her. "How bad was it?"

The small robot hesitated, twiddling his fingers as he tried to find the right words. "She… She asked for her book…" he said, his voice lowering with each word.

The MoriRed took in a shaky breath at his words, unwilling to believe them. She took in a few more deep breaths before looking at the robot. "Let me talk to her. Hopefully she'll end up fine."

"O-okay…" He stepped away from the door, allowing her to knock.

"Tomoko? It's just me. I'm going to come in, okay?" She reached for the doorknob, only to feel a small yet harmless jolt.

"Akane-sama?" Shichi noticed the girl freezing from the sudden jolt and reached out to her, only to have her hold up her hand.

"It's nothing." She turned the doorknob before opening the door a little, only to find the lights off except for her sister's lamp. She opened it wider to get in, only to step on a few crumpled up pieces of paper. She looked down to find dark scratches on them. A few of them made words while others were of shadow-like monsters reminiscent of the Teshitas they fight.

She looked back at the house robot. "Stay here. If you hear something that might go wrong, get Hiro." When she saw him nod, she stepped into the room, carefully closing the door behind her. She looked over towards the bed to find her sister curled up in the corner, her head buried in her arms and knees as if to shield herself. The sight made the red warrior's heart ache, recalling how often she has stepped into this scenery for the last few years to see how much her little sister suffered from the trauma.

Her gaze fell towards the open sketchbook at the foot of Tomoko's bed. She slowly made her way towards it, picking it up before going through what her sister drew. She gently flipped through the pages of monsters and glowing eyes. She stopped when she saw a drawing of herself on the ground bleeding, a girl standing over her with a scythe in hand. Her face was scribbled over with dark lines to mask her identity, one that Tomoko wasn't sure of if it wasn't drawn in detail.

She quickly closed the book, unable to bear seeing that memory resurface. She tightly hugged it against her chest, knowing a lot of pain went into it.

"It's better to forget…"

"It's better to forget…" she softly said to herself. She stepped over more crumpled up paper before opening up the bottom drawer of the desk, burying the book towards the bottom so it wouldn't be seen. She closed the drawer and stood up to face her sister, a hint of determination in her eyes.

She took a seat on the bed, gently dipping it so it wouldn't disturb the girl. She made sure to be careful when she scooted over, unsure how close she can be before her sister breaks down. She carefully reached her hand out, resting it on her sister's head as she hummed a soft lullaby to keep her calm from the contact.

Tomoko started to relax as she heard her sister hum. She shakily turned her head towards the MoriRed who managed to softly smile for her. "Onee…chan…?" Her voice was barely above a whisper but just the idea of her talking made the college student scoot closer.

"Hey, lil sis. Sorry for being so late."

Tears started to fall before she wrapped her arms around her older sister, softly sobbing into her chest. "I… I did something bad… I… I don't know what happened…" she murmured between sobs.

"Shh… It's okay… I'm right here…" Akane cooed to comfort her sister. "I'm right here…"

The two stayed in that position, unwilling to move as Tomoko continued to cry in her sister's arms. Once she was able to calm down, they were now laying down on the bed, holding onto each other for comfort.

"You okay?"

Tomoko shook her head. "I… I did that to you, Onee-chan… I… I don't know how, but I know it was me… I made myself forget so everything would be okay but… but it's not… I… I saw you hurt and I was over you…"

"Hey. Look at me." Akane gently cupped her sister's face so she could look at the MoriRed. "You didn't do anything. You're too nice to do that."

"But-"

"But nothing. You wouldn't hurt a fly, Tomoko. The one who hurt me is too different to be you. Okay?"

"But I-"

"Tomoko. I don't want to hear another 'but' from you. You shouldn't blame yourself for something you're too nice to do. Would I hurt you?"

"No…"

"Would Kiku hurt us?"

"No… Not like that…"

Akane had to hold back a laugh at that answer, knowing their sister can often give them playful smacks or punches without really holding back. "Would you hurt us?"

Tomoko hesitated at this, seeing how her sister wants a positive answer. This didn't go unnoticed by the MoriRed. "The answer is 'no', Tomoko. Do you know why?"

"Because I'm too nice…?"

"Yes, but also because we're family. Family wouldn't hurt each other like that. Besides. If you really did hurt me, I wouldn't always be here for you whenever you needed help. We wouldn't be doting on you if you hurt us back then."

Tomoko was about to say something but stopped herself, knowing her sister would cut her off. She looked down, her hands balled up into fists and tugging on Akane's sleeves. "…Are you sure you don't hate me…?"

"Why should we?"

"Because… I'm broken… I have these powers I can't control… I have nightmares every now and then because of what happened… I can't look at most people in the eye because of it… Everyone hates us because we have these powers…"

"We don't hate you, Tomoko. We never did. Sure, we say mean things, sometimes, but we know how sensitive you are. We can't really lose each other after losing our parents." She felt the small girl's grip tightening.

"I… I overheard you talking to Kiku-chan… About using yourselves as bait to protect me."

Akane looked at her sister, worried of how much she's heard. She took in a deep breath to recompose herself. "We just want to protect you, Tomoko."

"When can you tell me the truth about me…? About my powers and why you'll use yourselves as bait to keep the enemy away…?"

Akane hesitated, trying to think of the proper date to tell. She tried to think of today's date before figuring out the prediction she's always been told. "Soon… It should be soon…"

Tomoko curled up closer to her sister. "I'm scared…"

"I know… But just know we're here for you."

"Okay…"

Akane pulled her sister close, wrapping her arms around the girl's small frame to make her feel protected. "We'll be okay. I promise."

Kiku looked at her Cuff to read the message she got from her sister.

Tomoko's awake, but will need some time to heal. Think you can buy groceries for dinner today?

She sighed, knowing the usual routine. She pulled up a keyboard before typing.

Okay. But she needs something in her stomach so we're making my famous Hamburger steak. No questions.

Okay, okay. I already sent money to your phone, but don't splurge, okay? Just the necessities.

She rolled her eyes at the reminder before making her way to the supermarket, shooting her sister a remark to confirm reading the message. She entered the market and grabbed a basket before looking around for the ingredients. She looked at her Cuff.

"Shichi. Do we have any onions or garlic at home?" she asked.

"We have some onions but they'll be spoiled in a few days. Do you want me to check anything else?"

"That's fine. Thanks." She hung up before looking through the rest of the vegetables, picking a few that would work on the side. She then made her way to the meat section, taking in the varieties and determining which ones looked best for dinner. She reached for a packet, only to have another hand grab it at the same time.

She pulled away and looked to find a young man around Akane's age with long spiky brown hair combed up as if the wind has been hitting his face the whole day. He had a casual outfit on consisting of a grey t-shirt under a dark orange hoodie and loose jeans. He seemed to be just as surprised to see the youngest of the Tanaka sisters.

"Ah. Kiku, right? You're a lot taller than I remember seeing you," he said.

"Just a growth spurt. It was about last year, but we haven't seen each other since… you know…" Her voice started to falter at the mention of the incident.

The young man nervously reached for the back of his neck, scratching it. "Y-yeah… Your sister still refuses to talk to me… Sorry about that. Just know I'm going to make it up to her one day."

"Good luck with that. Our schedules have been pretty packed lately. Well. Not that it would make too much of a difference." She looked back at the packets, trying to find a new one to buy. "How's Shota? I texted him and he said he has the cold."

"He's doing okay. Should be able to get back to school tomorrow. But thanks for still being able to watch over my little brother, Kiku."

"Well he hasn't really done anything that would lead to a grudge. Should probably take some advice from your little brother, Ryouta." She grabbed a packet before taking her leave.

Ryouta looked at her leave before sighing. "Guess even she has that grudge against me…"

Akane wrapped the lunchboxes as her sisters ate breakfast. She placed them on the table. "Since there were leftovers yesterday, lunch will be hamburgers."

Kiku pouted. "Please don't tell me that you mixed peppers in them like last time…"

"Nope. But they're on the side and I expect you to eat it all."

The MoriYellow grimaced at the order, showing distaste for the vegetable. "That's torture on every level…"

"You'll get used to the taste."

The two heard dishes being placed into the sink and looked up to find Tomoko grabbing her schoolbag and lunch. "I'm going to go to practice…" she said quietly.

"Do you want me to come with?" Kiku asked, knowing they take the same route.

Tomoko shook her head. "Kyo-chan said she'll meet me near the station. I should be fine, Kiku-chan."

"If you say so."

"Call us if you need anything, okay?" Akane said, receiving a small nod.

"Okay." Tomoko took her leave, closing the door behind her.

Kiku rested her chin on her palm before looking at her sister. "You think she'll be okay?"

Akane pursed her lips. "I'm not sure. But we should at least let her breathe. She's pretty terrified of everything right now."

Kiku tightly clenched her fists, unwilling to believe her sister's behavior. "Why is it that she always looks down on herself...? It's not right."

"It can't be helped, Kiku. She's still healing. You know how scared she is of everything. It makes her believe things she doesn't want to believe."

"Even then, it feels like we can't do anything to help..."

"I know... but we'll figure it out." She placed the wrapped lunch in front of her sister. "Get to school safe, okay?"

"Yeah. Sure." Kiku put her dishes into the sink before grabbing her bag. She was about to leave but stopped at the kitchen doorway. She sighed before going to her sister and pulling her into a hug. "I'm here so you don't shoulder everything, Nee-chan," she said quietly, catching the MoriRed by surprise. She pulled away before taking her leave, leaving Akane in the house.

She let out a small sigh and her lips softly quirked into a smile. "That girl…" She went to the sink to wash the dishes until her Cuff rang. "Hm?"

"Mou. You really got us worried yesterday, Tomoko," Kyoko whined as the two walked to school, Satoshi following close behind. "You should have called us yesterday if you needed help."

"S-sorry... It was just unavoidable... It brought back a lot of bad memories... I didn't want to drag you into it."

"You're not, and you shouldn't be worried about if we'll get hurt. We're your friends. Right, Takahashi-kun?"

The boy offered a small smile to the girl. "Yeah. Just let us know if you have any problems. I'm always here to help, Tomoko."

"But what if you get hurt? Last ti-"

"We promised to protect you. You might be a superhero, but even then, you need people helping you. Well. We could have dodged that thing, but we weren't fast enough." She firmly rested a hand on her friend's head. "Don't blame yourself for that again, okay?"

"O-okay..." The three continued walking until Tomoko's eyes turned violet, making her stop.

Satoshi walked to her side, seeing how she suddenly froze. "You okay?"

Tomoko didn't answer and instead grabbed his arm and pushed him away with Kyoko. "Tomoko?!"

Her eyes glowed blue and she summoned her sword, blocking the claws of the Ooteshita attacking them. She pressed her forearm against the flat side of the blade, keeping the claws back. She pushed the monster off and looked at her friends. "Run! Hurry!"

"But-!"

They heard growls and turned to find themselves surrounded. Satoshi quickly took hold of Kyoko to shield her as they went to Tomoko's side.

The small girl looked at the monsters, her eyes letting out a pulsing orange glow. "There's too many of them..." She looked back at her friends. "I can't fight if they're this close..."

Her eyes glowed brown and green, making her look up to find two figures in the air, one of them holding a spear. "Eh?"

"Chibi! Stay back!" the figure shouted before readying his spear. "Sho!"

"Green Bind!" The second figure took hold of the end of his spear before they dug it into the ground. Large vines emerged from the concrete, wrapping around the Teshitas. "Nii-san!"

The blade of the spear glowed as the taller figure smirked behind his helmet. "Ground Breaker!" He swung his weapon in a swift and fluent motion, destroying the Ooteshitas. He rested his weapon on his shoulder while his other hand was on his hip. "That should do it. Guess that plan we worked on last night worked, Sho."

Tomoko looked at the two in shock, recognizing the uniform. The two seemed to have been matching as their helmets had matching snouts resembling bears except the taller one's were open like Akane's. Small slits were at the top of their helmets to form bear ears folded back flush against the headgear. The taller of the two had his visor in the shape of an arrowhead pointing down while his comrade had it pointing up, creating different expressions.

Their suits were similar to the girls' except they lacked the skirts, leaving only the pants with the same design of the inside being a lighter shade than the outer halves. The older had a mix of two shades of orange and the younger had two shades of green. Both have chest plates in the shape of the profile of bears but the younger of the two had a rounder chest plate to show a bear cub and the hears were on his right shoulder instead of his left. Clasped to both sides of his belt were a pair of tonfas.

The one in orange looked at the small girl and held his hand up in a wave. "Yo, Chibi. You okay?"

Tomoko's eyes turned violet when she recognized his voice. She stepped back as her hand grabbed Kyoko's, making the taller girl hold onto her for support. "Tomoko?" She noticed the smaller girl's breathing became heavy and quickly wrapped her arms around the MoriBlue. "Shh... It's okay. I'm right here."

"Tomoko!" Akane and Kiku jumped off their hoverboards and stopped when they saw the two heroes. Akane took a step forward. "Show yourselves," she ordered, her eyes turning red behind her glasses.

The one in orange looked at her before scratching the back of his neck. "This is going to be awkward..." he muttered. Bright light surrounded the two of them before letting their transformations disappear, revealing Ryouta and a young boy around Kiku's age.

Unlike his brother, his hair was well kept in a short style and his face was a little round for someone going through puberty. He gave a nervous wave as he hid his left hand behind his back. "H-hey, Kiku-chan..." he greeted with a sheepish laugh.

The two sisters looked at the two in shock, surprised to see them taking the mantle of their new comrades. "Ryouta..." "Shota..."

A/N: So what do you think? I have a thing for cliffhangers for some odd reason. I hate them when it comes to watching shows but I do understand there's a time limit and the need for suspense so HAH! Next chapter will focus primarily on Akane and Ryouta as well as a little bit more of the Tomoko story.

To GoseiKnight: Understandable when it comes to the view and review rates. I guess my biggest concern at the moment is the exponential decrease in viewers per chapter... But I am definitely glad that I have some dedicated readers and that you like how the story is going so far.

I know it's really early to be including new members but remember that I'm trying to not include filler episodes and focus primarily on the main storyline. I may deviate one in a while with subarcs but I also make sure it coincides with the actual story (Chapter 6 for example). But here is some information on the two new characters.

Ryouta and Shota are the Ueno Brothers. I originally wanted their last names to be "Kobayashi" (small forest) but that seemed a bit too on the nose. I decided that "Ueno" would be a good fit as it means "upper field" or "upper wilderness". Bears are big compared to wolves and they live in the wilderness so that's all I have to say. As for the color scheme, I decided to make the colors to be part of the complimentary color group (orange, green and purple). Although their colors aren't the actual compliments of the girls they're the same age as, I figured I could use the ones that are close in color, element and personality. And no, I did not copy SasoriOrange for an orange ranger with a spear. When I first thought of Ryouta 7 years ago, he had a spear so I am so not copying.

And that's about it. I will be having a 6th Ranger joining the team soon so look forward to that.

Thank you and until then, じゃね～！