Long chapter ahead! Test your patience.

It was another plain Sunday morning.

My family was seated around our dining table for breakfast. I was browsing through the local newspapers, frowning at some disturbing articles, and sipping a cup of black coffee. I would occasionally steal some glances at my daughter, who looked so cute with her cheeks puffed up as she munched on her peanut butter bread, and then at my wife, who was blankly stirring her coffee with a spoon.

I sighed inaudibly. Nagi was still feeling down.

Hibird fluttered to rest on the table, and then he dropped a roll of paper from his beak in front of me.

"For me?" I picked it up and scanned through the words.

'Dear Hibari-san,

This is a letter of warning about the upcoming possible home raiding that the Ingotish army officers have secretly planned. I heard rumors of it from some of my relatives who knew it from god-knows-who.

I'm informing you this so that you can protect your family and please take care. The house raiding can occur any time.

P.S. Kyoko-chan has contracted a fever so she won't be able to work for the next two days. Just to let you know so that you won't bite her to death.

Warmest regards,

Sawada Tsunayoshi

Code Vongola'

'Code Vongola' was a code used by the members of our company. It worked just like how my family's '555N' did. But that was not the point.

'Home raiding? Are you kidding me?'

"Kyoya, what's wrong?" Nagi inquired curiously.

I grimaced, showing her and Kuri the herbivorous boss's letter.

Nagi remained expressionless while Kuri tilted her head confusedly.

"What's the meaning of home raiding, Otosan?"

"It means the Ingotish bastards are going to invade our homes and steal our stuff, and probably make unreasonable arrests. If we resist, we die," I replied nonchalantly, not really affected by the news.

"Did Boss inform the others as well?" Nagi asked, drinking her coffee.

I leant back on my chair, "Knowing that herbivore, he probably did".

'That Sawada Tsunayoshi has some kind of intuition that can be quite accurate when determining the possibility of this kind of things. I don't think it is wise of me to ignore his warning. But what should I do to prevent Nagi and Kuri from getting hurt? I rather those bastards loot our house than harm my family. It won't be safe for them to stay at home during the home raiding.'

"Nagi, Kuri," I called for their attention, "You haven't had enough fresh air recently, have you?"

"What do you mean, Kyoya?" Nagi asked, puzzled.

I smirked, "I suggest that the two of you go out and relax. Do something you think is fun. Staying at home all day will be boring".

I stared into Nagi's elegant eyes thoughtfully, as if telling her, 'I won't let you and Kuri be the targets of the Ingotishs. Besides, you should go out and cheer yourself up'.

Nagi understood but seemed worried, "What about you, Kyoya?"

"I'll be fine. Trust me," that was all I told her.

I needed to guard the house and try my best to fend off the Ingotishs, if ever they came, to protect our treasures, so I decided to maintain my position at home.

"Then, Okasan, can we go to the playground?" Kuri inquired hopefully.

Nagi agreed and Kuri eagerly skipped to her room to change her clothes.

"I will send Hibird to follow you. If anything happens, he can inform me," I said, placing my hand over hers.

"Kyoya… You're too selfless," Nagi whimpered.

I smiled, "You know how strong I am. And I always tell you to believe in me, right?"

Nagi reluctantly nodded. I lifted her hand and kissed it tenderly, "Take care of yourself when you're out, okay?"

"Now it's my turn to tell you to believe in me."

"I will."

~Third Person P.O.V.~

"Weeeee!~" Kuri squealed ecstatically as she swung up and down the playground's swing, with Nagi pushing her from behind.

"Okasan, would you like to play?" Kuri glanced back at her mother.

Nagi shook her head, "Iie, daijoubu, Kuri. But are you getting dizzy? Maybe you should rest for a while".

"Hai!" Kuri jumped down from the swing after it slowed down, hopping over to a nearby bench to sit with her mother.

"Ne, Okasan, why didn't Otosan come out with us?" Kuri asked inquisitively.

Nagi sighed, wrapping an arm around Kuri's shoulders, "Your father wants to stay at home to guard our stuff in case the Ingotish soldiers raid us. He doesn't want us to get hurt, so he made us go out".

"Will Otosan be all right?"

Nagi looked at her daughter, who was just as worried as her for Hibari, "We need to trust him, Kuri. But I'm sure he will be fine. He can handle bad guys easily. Remember the time when some gangsters tried to pick on us?"

Kuri giggled when she recalled that particular incident, "Yeah, Otosan beat them to a pulp without breaking out a sweat! Otosan's amazing!"

Thinking of her unduly protective husband made Nagi smile, something she had not done for days ever since Yuni passed away. It felt good to be able to do that again. Besides, she also did not wish to worry her family and friends with her gloomy mood anymore.

"Ne, Kuri," Nagi kissed her daughter's forehead, "Shall we visit the florist shop?"

Kuri's eyes lit up like twinkling stars and beamed happily, "Okay!"

When the mother and child reached the florist shop that was gorgeously decorated, they were greeted by the friendly shop owner, Mai.

"Irashaimase, Chrome-chan, Kuri-chan!" Mai hugged them euphorically, as if she had not seen them for years, "My, you are still as sweet-looking as ever!"

"Mai…" Nagi smiled at her childhood friend who was of the same age as her husband, "How have you been?"

"Good! Very good! My flowers are being sold at a tremendous rate!" Mai said proudly, and then she bent down to squeeze Kuri's cheeks, "Aww… You're so cute, Kuri-chan! I wish I can have a daughter like you! But look at Auntie Mai, still single and I don't think any man wants an overly hyperactive and crazy woman like me!"

Nagi chuckled in amusement, "I'm sure your perfect man is somewhere close, Mai. Maybe he's just waiting for the right moment to confess to you".

"Mou, Chrome-chan…" Mai blushed at her teasing, "But you sure are lucky, having captured a gentleman's heart. Oh! Speaking of him, Kuri-chan, do you know about your parents' love story?"

"M-M-Mai!" Nagi exclaimed in embarrassment.

"Otosan and Okasan's love story?" Kuri's eyes sparkled in fascination.

"That's right! Your mum once told your dad that her greatest wish was to be a mother, so during one of their outings (which Hibari refused to call dates), your dad said this…."

Ignoring Nagi's protests, Mai cleared her throat.

"I can grant your wish. You just have to marry me."

While Mai and Kuri squealed blithely, Nagi was blushing like mad.

"A-Anyway, Mai…" Nagi interjected, trying to switch to another topic, "Can we take a look in your shop?"

"Sure! Come in! Dozo!" Mai pushed open the shop's glass door and led the ladies inside.

~Back to Hibari's P.O.V.~

"Yamamoto Takeshi's sushi restaurant was attacked?" I said in shock as I held the receiver to my ear.

"Y-Yeah. Yamamoto's very upset, but he said at least he managed to evacuate and save his customers," Sawada Tsunayoshi was conversing with me from the other end of the line, "But his restaurant was damaged severely and the Ingotishs had stolen all his valuable items".

"You mean those bastards didn't harm the customers at all? That was so unlike them."

'The raid has begun, huh?'

"Yamamoto stopped them before they could. He offered them to ransack his rooms all they liked without his resistance in exchange for sparing the innocent people's lives."

I scoffed. Well, I guessed we should have expected that from the baseball freak.

"How are things at your end, Hibari-san?" Sawada Tsunayoshi enquired.

"Uneventful," I answered, "Nagi and Kuri are out, so if ever those guys are coming, I shall be their only target and opponent".

"Soka. Please take care, Hibari-san."

"You don't have to keep reminding me that, herbivore."

'Hmm…. I wonder what Nagi and Kuri are doing now?'

~Third Person P.O.V.~

"Please come again soon!" Mai gleefully waved goodbye to Nagi and Kuri who had purchased some artificial violets and hydrangea to beautify their plain home.

"Are you hungry, Kuri?" Nagi asked her daughter as they walked further down the street.

"Not hungry. Thirsty," Kuri replied, holding onto her mother's hand.

"Okay then. Let's find some place to sit down and have a drink—"

"Where are you going, pretty lady?"

Nagi halted abruptly in her tracks and warily turned around to the source of the strange, unfamiliar voice.

There stood a bulky man with unkempt hair and muscular limbs. His bloodshot eyes sent shivers crawling down Nagi and Kuri's spines, and they were disgusted by his undeniable foul odor. He obviously did not brush his teeth well and his clothes were so filthy. He totally resembled a beast.

"W-Who are you?" Nagi stuttered, holding her daughter closer to her.

The man twisted his head in circles as if he wanted to crack his neck. His odd and suspicious behaviour made Kuri scared and she hid behind her mother's leg.

"I am…" the man started to speak again, "…the almighty Toribushima-sama!"

"Tori…what?" Nagi could not understand what this stranger was spouting.

"TORIBUSHIMA-SAMA!" the man bellowed, causing Nagi and Kuri to flinch.

"Don't you know me?" the man took small but intimidating steps toward the two unarmed females, "How could you not hear of me? I AM THE ALMIGHTY TORIBUSHIMA-SAMA! I'VE BEEN BROADCASTED ON THE NEWS SO OFTEN! IT'S SO AWESOME TO BE SO FAMOUS!"

"Nagi, whenever you leave the house for whatever reasons, you have to be very careful," Hibari had once said when he was sitting down at the dining table.

Nagi grinned as she placed a cup of steaming tea in front of him, "I know, Kyoya. I will".

"No, I mean you have to be even more careful than you are now," Hibari emphasized.

Nagi took a seat beside him, resting her arms on the table, "Erm… Care to elaborate, Kyoya?"

Hibari traced the circumference of his tea cup, "You do know of the serial rapist, known as Toribushima, don't you? He's been lurking around and committing crimes more often recently. I don't want you to be his victim, that's why I'm telling you to be more careful".

Nagi smiled at how caring and concerned her husband was to her. He was always looking out for her and biting those who ever dared to hurt her to death. She was just so touched and grateful for everything he did for her that she sometimes did not know how to thank him.

"Besides, no one is supposed to lay a hand on what's mine," Hibari whispered possessively, leaning forward to nip on his wife's ear.

"K-Kyoya!" Nagi blushed, touching her ear. Hibari smirked before he swooped down to capture her lips.

Nagi stood frozen on her spot.

'No way… It can't be….' she covered her mouth with her hand, 'I'm facing the serial rapist, Toribushima?!'

"Recognise me now?" Toribushima snickered, "I sure am lucky to have found a new target to satisfy my ever-growing sexual desires. Hahahaha!"

He stepped even closer to them, and Kuri whimpered in fear.

"S-Stay away from us!" Nagi commanded, but her voice was not firm enough to scare the menacing man.

Her instinct told her to run for safety but before she could order her legs to move, Toribushima drew out an object from his pocket that caused all her thoughts to vanish.

It was a penknife.

Seeing the shiny threatening edge of the knife, Nagi trembled like an aspen in the wind as her hand touched her stomach.

The trauma of having witnessed her best friend dying in front of her, how the knife had pierced into Yuni's body and all the crimson blood that had spilled out onto the ground, made Nagi's mind crumble into blankness and a ghastly whiteness spread over her face.

Clutching her stomach and shaking like a timorous rabbit, Nagi stammered, "D-Don't…. No… Please, d-don't…."

"NOW, I'M GONNA GROPE YOU!"

As if she was electrified with realisation of the danger they were in, Nagi regained her composure in a lightning flash, seized Kuri into her arms and made a mad dash away from the rapist.

"You can't get away, woman!" Toribushima leapt after them with the hungry eyes of a predator aiming for its prey.

"AHHHH!" Kuri screamed in petrification as she saw the man running closer and closer to them, "OKASAN!"

Nagi took a quick glance back, and sure enough, Toribushima was only three metres away!

Without further hesitation, Nagi flung the bag of flowers backward, hitting Toribushima directly on his face.

'I need to find a place to hide! I need to find a place to hide!' Nagi thought frantically.

Then Nagi remembered she had one more companion other than Kuri.

"Hibird!" she yelled up to the sky, to the yellow fluffy bird, "Call for Kyoya! Please!"

She had no time to fish out her cellphone to dial her husband. She needed to escape from the rapist who was laughing like a lunatic as he gave chase.

She had reached the end of the street so she had no choice but to turn into an alley, hoping that it would link to another street. Why was there not a single soul present to help them?

However, luck hated them to the core. The alley ended up at a dead end. She could not run back for that was the direction that Toribushima was coming from.

They were trapped.

"This can't be…" Nagi was on the verge of tears, but Kuri was already wailing in fright, "How…? How are we supposed to escape now? What should we do?"

"Found you," Toribushima's deep scourging voice caused Nagi's heart to pound crazily against her ribcage as she reluctantly turned around to see the man sneering at them from a distance of approximately two metres.

"Do you think you can run away from the almighty Toribushima-sama?" he jeered.

Nagi retreated backward apprehensively, "Don't… Don't come any closer! If it's money you want, take it! Take everything! Just don't harm us!"

Toribushima raised an eyebrow mockingly, "Money? Are you stupid or what? I'm a rapist! What I want is your body! Your virginity! Your cries and moans! Not something as useless as money! I have plenty of that at home!"

His lustful gaze at Nagi switched to one of displeasure at the little girl shivering in Nagi's arms. "Hey, what's that thing doing here?" he scowled, pointing at Kuri with his penknife, "We need her to get lost. We can't have someone else around to interrupt our private moment together".

"IIE! IIE!" Kuri screamed, panic-stricken at the thought of getting killed.

Bitter resentment flashed in Nagi's eyes, "How dare you!"

Putting Kuri down onto the ground, she grabbed a nearby discarded basket and tossed it at Toribushima's chest. Taking advantage of his bemusement, she mustered all her strength and smashed a long wooden pole at his head!

"UGH!" Toribushima fell ungracefully and gripped onto his throbbing head which had bled due to the strong impact.

"I won't let you…" Nagi positioned the pole over her head, ready to strike again, "I won't let you hurt my daughter!"

"Okasan…." Kuri murmured, staring at her brave mother in admiration, yet anxiety. She had never seen her so violent before. Was it the unyielding resolve to protect her child the reason she had changed from her gentle and forgiving personality?

Nagi's guilt of hitting a person was overwhelmed by her determination to ensure that they would go home safely. With another inhalation, she swung the pole down.

But her attack was cut off by Toribushima. Nagi gasped as the man who had caught the pole in his robust hand crushed it until it was broken and slanted. Before she could jump away, he kicked her leg and made her fall with a painful thud.

"Okasan!" Kuri shouted worriedly.

Ignoring the bruise on her leg, Nagi staggered up and scurried away just as Toribushima was about to leap on top of her.

"YOU TROUBLESOME B****!" he roared infuriatedly.

Nagi rushed back to Kuri's side, and their eyes widened in horror when they saw the weapon in Toribushima's hands.

A deadly whip.

The pissed rapist dashed forward and without warning slapped the whip across their bodies!

Kuri, however, was not harmed. Her mother had selflessly protected her whole without a care for herself.

Nagi resisted the urge to cry as she endured the stinging pain from the whip that scratched her body like a bear's claws. With each excruciating strike of the sadistic rapist's whip at her face, her limbs and her torso, Nagi's consciousness began to dissipate.

"OKASAN!" Kuri cried at the terrifying sight of her mother's weakened and bleeding form, "OKASAN! OKASAN! !"

The man smirked evilly, "Now, you won't be able to fight anymore. I can finally get down to business".

Furious at what he had done to her beloved mother, Kuri snapped and bit down hard on Toribushima's left hand!

"GRAAAH! DAMN YOU!" Toribushima yanked his bruised hand away and punched Kuri in a feat of incensement. She screamed in pain and tumbled to the ground.

"Kuri…" Nagi gaped in astonishment, "Kuri!"

She crawled over to her daughter and pulled her into her arms, shielding her protectively. Looking up, she saw Toribushima preparing to attack again.

In her eyes, he was not a rapist.

He was a killer.

Nagi clenched her teeth, bracing herself for the worst.

'KYOYA!'

The next second another man flew in out of nowhere, his foot landing on Toribushima's head and mercilessly slamming him into the wall. Blood smeared on the brick wall as the rapist blacked out and dropped to the ground.

When Nagi caught a glimpse of their saviour, she burst into tears.

~Back to Hibari's P.O.V.~

"How dare you!" lashing out my tonfas, I was about to send a lethal blow to the rapist's back but I was blocked by two of the Japanese policemen whom I had called to assist me in saving my wife and daughter and capturing the criminal.

"Get out of the way, officers!" I ordered, enraged by their interruption in my punishment to the unconscious bastard.

"Mr Hibari, please calm down," Officer Murasara stood in front of me with Officer Juro.

"Calm down…?" I chuckled darkly, raising my tonfas higher, "How do you expect me to calm down?! Look at what that bastard had done to my wife and daughter!"

I was fuming with intense rage and losing my cool.

How dare him… How dare he harm my family! I would never… I would never forgive him!

"I won't forgive you!" I stomped forward with an indescribable killing intent, overpowered by conniption and animosity. I continued shouting harshly at the motionless rascal even as the officers pushed me back, "I won't forgive you!"

"Mr Hibari, please do not attack the rapist, or we would have no choice but to arrest you as well for assault," Officer Akihiko said sternly.

"Che!" I gritted my teeth as I boldly glared at him.

Running over to Nagi and Kuri, I immediately wrapped them into a tight embrace.

"Kyoya...!" Nagi wailed in consternation, pulling at my shirt as if she was going to tear it off, "KYOYA!"

"It's okay. I'm here. You don't have to be scared anymore. I'm here," I whispered as I stroked her back.

I patted my daughter's hair, and then it dawned on me that she was neither making a sound nor moving. As I leant back to take a closer look at her, I was baffled.

She fainted.

"Kuri! Kuri!" I shook her desperately, but there was no response. Nagi cried even more when she could not wake her up either, "KURI!"

Officer Juro called for the ambulance which arrived after five minutes and the paramedics brought them into the vehicle using stretchers. As I was about to board the ambulance, Officer Akihiko expressed his apologies for what my wife and daughter had gone through.

"By the way, Toribushima actually isn't a Japanese," he added.

"What? You mean he's an Ingotish?" I almost exclaimed.

Officer Akihiko sighed, "That's right. When you were comforting your wife and daughter, Toribushima regained consciousness and we tried to interrogate him, but he wouldn't talk. So while Officers Murasara and Juro restrained him, I searched him and found his identity card which stated that he was an Ingotish. My guess is he uses a fake Japanese name as he commits crimes to bring shame to the Japanese".

I growled in exasperation, "That jerk… If you don't give him a death sentence, I'll sue you!"

Officer Akihiko smiled, "Don't worry. We will, since he had killed ten women before".

"Thank you, sir. I owe you one."

I was forced to wait outside the hospital rooms where Nagi and Kuri were receiving treatment. I leant my back on the wall, clenching my fists and punching the wall in frustration.

'Why the heck did this happen?!' I yelled in my mind, 'He almost raped Nagi, he whipped her, he wanted to kill Kuri, he punched her, and he scared the hell out of them! The police better execute him! He's gonna pay for this! I thought they would be safe if they left the house, but who knew about this? They haven't recovered fully from Hinata Yuni's death, and yet another trauma haunts them!'

"Hibari-san," a nurse cut my thoughts as she walked out of Nagi's room.

"How's my wife?" I inquired urgently.

The nurse frowned, "We have treated her wounds, but can't expect them to heal within a few days. She is emotionally stressed out, and she wants to see you badly".

"Kyoya…? Where's Kyoya?" I could hear Nagi's quivering voice behind the ajar door, "Kyoya… I want to see him… Kyoya…."

Without further ado, I rushed into the room and saw Nagi mumbling my name repetitively as she lay on the bed. The nurses scattered out to give us some privacy.

"Nagi…" I squeezed her hand gently. Sensing that I was near, she opened her tired eyes and immediately tears flowed out.

"Kyoya!" Nagi pounced into my arms, raking her nails on my back, "KYOYA! H-He chased me! He tried to grope me! He whipped me! He hit Kuri! He was going to kill us! He was going to kill us!"

With her every scream, my heart lost a part of itself.

I nuzzled my face against her bandaged neck. "Nagi, I'm sorry that I couldn't save you on time," I pressed my forehead on hers, caressing her cheeks, "If I had reached there sooner, you and Kuri wouldn't suffer so much".

Nagi sniffed, "Iie… Kyoya… Please don't apologise… I-I just want you to h-hug me…"

"There's nothing wrong with that…." I hugged her even tighter, proving to her that my warmth was real.

"Kyoya, I'm scared… I'm scared…."

"Don't be. I'm here."

A nurse then knocked and entered the room, informing us that Kuri was awake.

In her allocated room, while we embraced her lovingly and endured the pain of hearing her cries, the doctor explained that she had fainted due to the extreme fright of being chased by an insane rapist and the shock of witnessing her mother being cruelly whipped. The doctor advised us to comfort her until she got control over her twisted emotions.

My cellphone's ring disrupted our talk but instead of hissing in annoyance at the caller, Gokudera Hayato, I jolted at what he said.

"Hibari, come to Namimori Hospital, Room 1011, now. Juudaime's wife is in trouble."