Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters. Original characters, not mentioned in the manga or anime, are my creation.

In Niou's opinion, what transpired in the past two hours was obviously criminal in nature therefore falling under his jurisdiction, so to speak. And because of this, he was not going to leave Ryuzaki Sakuno's side during the interrogation.

"Ryuzaki, we need to understand what occurred in that room last night to proceed. Again, what happened?"

Tezuka asked gently. Across from him sat a very shocked, dejected and frightened Ryuzaki Sakuno. She didn't make a sound but instead, was looking at the table. It was unclear whether or not she was listening to anyone at all.

Niou and Tezuka exchanged glances. They needed to know how three bullets, two square in the chest and one just a few centimeters away from her spinal cord, had gotten into Yamamoto. They were waiting for an affirmation if those fingerprints on the pistol were Ryuzaki's and whether or not that was the weapon used to injure Yamamoto.

The main problem was if Ryuzaki pulled the trigger, there was more than one bullet indicating that it wasn't just self-defence and if Yamamoto did not survive the surgery, then it would be considered a murder.

Niou's hopes were in favour of the wench's death although that would mean consequences for the woman sitting next to him. The obstacle in moving forward was that she refused to speak to anyone about anything. The paramedics worked on her quickly after Tezuka brought her out of the building and crime scene investigators were quick to take her blood stained shirt away from her for evidence.

If they were going to help her, she needed to talk. As things were now, they wouldn't get anything from her and they'd have to rely on the evidence and analysis of experts. He'd rather have a testimonial, in this particular case.

But even though Niou wanted answers, he understood they couldn't be forced out. Ryuzaki needed to see a counsellor or psychiatrist as soon as possible but now, it was time to leave.

"Tezuka, we'll end this for today. She needs her rest." Niou said, standing up from his seat. There wasn't solid evidence against her so they couldn't hold her here.

"Alright. Ryuzaki, please don't leave the city and always be available for contact. This case is urgent."

Tezuka said and left the two alone.

"Let's go Ryuzaki. I'll take you home."

He said but he didn't think she heard. Gently, he pulled her up from the seat and directed her out the room with a hand on her shoulder. While guiding her out of the station, he noted Fuji sitting at Tezuka's desk, probably dealing with paperwork that didn't need Ryuzaki's signature and presence.

Eventually, after taking a cab, they arrived at Ryuzaki's home and he opened the door with the key given by Tezuka. They stood in the doorway awkwardly until five minutes later, when Ryuzaki decided to walk inside. She removed her shoes and went straight upstairs.

Niou followed shortly after and found a door open at the end of the hall. Clearly, it was Ryuzaki's room and she was huddled under the covers of her bed. He watched her for some time, creating a plan of action in his mind. Finally, he had the day planned and closed the door in order to let her rest.

While there were many things to do, right now he needed sleep. He loosened his tie and took off his jacket and placed them on the kitchen chair. Then he made himself comfortable on the living room couch and drifted to a much needed sleep.

In the duration of the six hours of 'downtime', Niou had been awakened thrice by Ryuzaki's screams. The first time, he ran upstairs, woke her up and pulled her close to him, stroking her hair as she calmed from the panic attack. He waited until she slept again then returned downstairs. The second time she screamed, he held her again and the third time, he slept on her room floor while holding her hand.

At two in the afternoon, Niou woke to the annoying buzz of the doorbell. He was stiff and it was painful to move. After washing up, he made his way downstairs, stopping by Ryuzaki's room beforehand. It was almost difficult to comprehend it had been a little more than twenty-four hours since he last saw her.

And so much had happened in those hours. Niou quietly entered the room and brushed her bangs away from her closed eyes. It was an illusion, he thought, her peaceful expression. As soon as she returned to reality, any peace felt would disappear.

Eventually, the doorbell became hard to ignore and Niou left Ryuzaki to attend to the guest. It wasn't a surprise to see Fuji standing on the other side. Niou stood aside to let the blue eyed man in and felt almost rude to be letting a stranger into a home he himself was a guest in.

"How is she?" Fuji asked, seating himself at the kitchen table.

"Asleep." Niou answered, taking a seat across from him.

"Did she say anything?" Fuji questioned and opened his eyes. Niou debated whether or not to tell him about the panic attacks and decided it was best Fuji knew, considering the situation.

"She's probably having vivid nightmares, leading to panic attacks or having night terrors, one of the two." Niou said and leaned back into the chair with crossed arms. Fuji frowned.

"…I think it's best to get her the best professional help possible."

"Fuji, I wanted to do the same thing earlier but you know they'll just put her on drugs. That's not going to solve any problems, just prolong it."

Niou knew this firsthand as he sought mental care, not caring about the social stigma prevalent in their society, after Yamamoto had broken into his apartment. Instead of working through the problems, they prescribed medication after medication and it took him more than a year to fully recover.

"I'm not sure what else to do, Niou. Yamamoto currently in a coma and chances are she won't survive. Personally, I don't feel pity for her but the circumstances are problematic for Sakuno-chan. I would feel better if she attained the services of a professional."

Fuji said, clearly thinking out loud. Niou almost raised an eyebrow at Fuji's transparency and opted not to say a word about it, in case it discouraged him to share any future thoughts.

"She'll be charged with homicide, not self-defense, if Yamamoto dies." Niou said, changing the topic and settling into the zone he was the most comfortable in. "The public would be in Ryuzaki's favour but the judge will be neutral, they'll have to be. If it was just one bullet in her, then it wouldn't be an issue, it would be self-defense. We need to know if Yamamoto continued to attack Ryuzaki after the first bullet to the chest."

"And why there was a bullet in Yamamoto's back? There are many things we need to know." Fuji added.

Both stayed silent and considered what they had to work with. Later in the afternoon, they received confirmation from Tezuka that the pistol had indeed been used by Ryuzaki. The forensics team was working on compiling evidence and so far, it was working in Yamamoto's favour. It was an unfortunate situation since Ryuzaki had attacked a mass murderer yet at the end of the day, she still attempted murder of a human being.

"Tezuka has been doing us a favour up until this point." Fuji said and Niou understood. Tezuka's position could be compromised as Niou declared himself Ryuzaki's defence attorney, so information couldn't be shared anymore. Everything Tezuka received would go to the prosecuting attorney.

Niou needed to clear his head. "I'm going to get something to eat."

"I'd like ramen." Fuji said with a smile and Niou rolled his eyes. He left both the house and Fuji behind, never once thinking about how Sakuno might react to having Fuji in her home. Hell, the conversation he had on the phone with her last night was completely forgotten, perhaps due to ck of proper sleep.

After Niou left, Fuji retrieved his tablet from his suitcase and began work. There were civil cases he was behind on because of the recent events. An hour later, he took a break from a divorce report, researching reputable psychiatrists and that was when he heard the water running upstairs, indicating Sakuno was awake.

He genuinely smiled; it was awhile since he last saw her in a stable condition and although the circumstances weren't ideal, it was a good feeling to be able to converse with her. True, it would take some time for her to recover but he had faith in her – she would survive this entire ordeal.

He would help her through it.

Usually, Fuji would always completely assess a situation but he slackened this time. When Sakuno softly walked down the stairs, he wasn't expecting to see her be so shocked upon seeing him.

"Sakuno-chan, you look so much better now." Fuji said and smiled at her.

"…Why are you here?" She said quietly, so quietly that Fuji had to strain to hear. For once, he wasn't sure what to say.

"…I'm concerned for your wellbeing, Sakuno-chan." He watched her carefully, having an idea what the conclusion of this conversation would be.

"Concerned? Liar." She hissed and at this point, Niou returned from the nearest bakery although his presence wasn't noticed by either Fuji or Sakuno. "Where was your concern in the last few days when you used me as bait?"

Silence.

Niou felt the atmosphere change to one he couldn't fathom – Ryuzaki's negativity was so strong and it was the first time he experienced…this.

"Sakuno, that was a mistake and something I can never forgive myself for doing." Fuji stood and walked to her, confidently and gently caressing her cheek. "I put you in harm's way and I am so, so sorry. I hope you can one day forgive my foolishness."

"…Forgive?" She scoffed and slapped Fuji's hand away. "How can I forgive you? You…you used me! You put me with her!"

Her voice became louder, her eyes angrier, she took a step back then she whispered. "Do you know what happened in there…? Did you know she was capable of it...?"

Niou watched as Ryuzaki slowly undid the top buttons of her blouse. A first, he was stunned at her boldness then his resentment of Yamamoto spiked to a level he thought not possible when an infected and deep gash right above her heart was revealed. Tears ran down her cheeks uncontrollably and she tore off her blouse altogether.

Her chest, upper arms, waist and hips were covered in deep cuts and bruises – some were healing fine and others were not. She was shaking. His anger shifted to Fuji but it disintegrated when he saw the obvious disturbance on his face – Fuji's eyes and mouth were open wide.

Fuji did not expect this.

Ryuzaki crumpled to the ground, sobbing at the memories she had been trying to come to terms with in the past hours. Niou reached for his jacket and covered her, holding her side against his chest in a comforting hug. It was an awkward position but he didn't care.

Niou listened to her cries, to her anguish. She had only been with Yamamoto for less than eight hours and this was what happened. More than ever, Niou wanted that woman to die in the hospital while in coma.

It wouldn't matter if she died because Niou Masaharu was one of the best lawyers in this city and he would use every skill possible without rest to win Ryuzaki's case. The prosecutor could bring anything his way – nothing was going to stop him.

"…Leave…"

What? Niou frowned.

"…Leave my home."

He hesitated.

"Leave!" She pushed him away. He wanted to reach for her again but restrained. Instead, he guided Fuji, who awed by her injuries, out of the Ryuzaki household. Maybe if Fuji handled that situation in a different manner, then maybe it wouldn't be years before Fuji would set foot in Sakuno's home once again.

Maybe.

After they left, Sakuno slowed her breathing and inched her way upstairs to her room. Day turned to night then day again and Sakuno never left her bedroom. She wasn't hungry or concerned about anything occurring in reality.

Her mind was elsewhere, in a realm where she wasn't harmed. The calls and text messages were ignored. She didn't particularly care that Tezuka had come into her home and dressed her wounds properly. She didn't care for the gentle lecturing he gave her about health.

No, Sakuno was just too tired of everything and the only safe place was her home. Yamamoto would never get her here.

Never.

A/N: Short chapter! Thanks for all those lovely reviews - they definitely help with writing future chapters!