Warning: Excessive swearing and violence.

Roppi stared at the gun listlessly, he made no move to follow the man's order. Shizuo and Celty stepped in front of him, shielding him from the group.

The man sighed, "We also have a rule not to not to involve unrelated civilians in our affairs. I'm going to have to ask you to move. This doesn't concern you."

"Like hell it doesn't concern us. We're standing right here aren't we?" Shizuo bit back.

Roppi was grateful that the two of them would stand up for his sake, even though they thought they were protecting someone else. They didn't know who or what he actually was. Regardless of how touching it felt, but he refused to sit by idly like a damsel in distress. This was his problem to deal with too, he wouldn't burden them to take on his troubles for him. He'd fight with them.

Roppi stepped up to stand next to his newfound allies.

"Get back flea" Shizuo ordered. "You'll get in the way"

"I'm going to help you."

Shizuo looked at him as if he grew another head, "Why…would I need help from a weakling like you?" he said, looking every bit offended.

"I'm twice as strong as you think I am"

"...that's still pretty weak"

It was Roppi's turn to look a little insulted. "Just how weak do you think I am?"

Shizuo actually stopped to think. "Like, a rodent? No, I'd say a bug's level."

Roppi's eyebrow twitched. He tried not to take that personally. After all, it was Orihara Izaya that Shizuo thought he was talking to. And he was not Orihara Izaya.

"Well I'm not going to run and hide whether you like it or not. I'm helping no matter what you say" Roppi stated firmly, and he turned to address the mob "I don't know what you think I stole, but you can search me if you want. I took nothing"

Two shots rang out, startling everyone present. Roppi barely registered the sound before a black shadow sprung up from his feet to shield him. Two bullet pellets hit the floor, if it wasn't for Celty's shadows, those bullets would have been imbedded in his chest right now.

"We ain't here to talk punk!" yelled the youngest looking man in the group, the gun he used to fire still poised to shoot.

"Newbie! What the fuck are you doing?" snarled Ken. The few pedestrians that were in the area screamed and took off in various directions, running for cover.

But there was an ominous sound of bending and creaking metal that overpowered the sounds of frenzied panic.

Shizuo yanked a nearby guardrail off the ground and he brandished his new weapon in the air.

"Oy. That was dangerous" he said in an eerily calm voice for a man of his temperament. "Shooting off your gun in the middle of a street like that. You think you're some hotshot, huh? You say you don't like involving innocent people? What would you have done if that hit someone, huh? What if you missed and hit a kid? HUH?! BASTARD!"

Ken tensed, "Ah, shit"

Shizuo swung the guard rail at the group, and they all scattered. The big chunk of metal crashed into the ground, the sheer force of the impact made the ground shutter, knocking some of the closer yakuza members off balance.

Before any of them could get up or reach for their guns to shoot the enraged blond, black tendrils snaked around their legs and arms. Their eyes widened in shock as they struggled against the ghostly black restraints. Celty advanced on them, her shadows materialized into an imposing shape of a large black scythe. She swung her weapon down, and struck the men on the ground before they could move.

Not that they could have, even without the restraints, their fear had them too paralyzed to react.

The men slumped to the ground, unconscious. Celty had struck them with the dull side of her blade, she was never a big fan of killing her opponents after all.

Besides, it would stir up big trouble for the three of them if any members of the Awakusu-kai were killed.

One member emerged from behind a nearby post and reached for his gun at her after witnessing her stunt. He quietly approached her from behind, and clicked the safety off and aimed it right at her back. She didn't notice him until he cursed when a scalpel seemingly came flying out of nowhere and sliced the side of his cheek. Celty quickly swung her scythe and knocked him out before he could recover his focus.

She turned and nodded a silent thanks to Roppi who threw the projectile at her attacker. He returned the nod, and continued to punch the guy he had by the scruff of his shirt.

Celty paused and took in the number of out-cold men at his feet. There were quite a few of them. She never thought he had it in him, and with his injuries too.

As if her thoughts set off an imaginary signal, Roppi winced and released the unconscious man and clutched his side. He stumbled over and fell to his knees. Celty appeared to his side in an instant.

[Are you alright Izaya?]

Roppi nodded, "Yeah, I'm just tired. I'll be fine"

Celty looked around, Shizuo was keeping most of the group busy, the rest of them were taking cover, probably waiting for an opening. She stood in front of Roppi, shielding him from their sight.

[Don't push yourself. You've helped enough. Shizuo and I can handle it from here.]

Roppi looked like he wanted to argue, but he knew she was right. He didn't have any more energy left, and his body hurt all over. He sighed and nodded. He'd stay down, for now.

Celty nodded and moved ahead to meet the yakuza members who noticed his vulnerable state and charged.

On the other side of the fight Yoshiro Ken was having hell.

Heiwajima Shizuo was way too strong for any of them to handle. It was only playing smart and tactical retreats at opportune timing that kept them in the fight for this long.

Bullets didn't work. He was actually quick on his feet and would dodge a handful of them. But, those few that managed to land a hit hardly fazed him. His arms and thigh was bleeding steadily, yet he continued to swing the sign in his hands and move with no visible discomfort. Several men were hesitant to shoot him; the bullet would catch his attention, and when you are going toe to toe with a beast, the last thing you want is for it to focus on you.

His men were getting mauled over, shots were being fired, and the whole city probably knew about this fight by now.

So much for a quiet operation.

"God damn it. The boss is going to have my head for this. If I die, I swear I'm going to haunt the shit out of that dumbass new guy." Ken grumbled as he peaked out from behind the parked car he was using for cover. He ducked back when a stop sign flew into the windshield.

Another subordinate sitting beside him winced. "It's not really his fault Captain, rookies make mistakes. I admit this was one hellava mistake, but we're all to blame. Nobody told him that we were bringing the kid back to HQ and finishing him there. I guess he got too into it, and got carried away. You know how new guys are."

"Yeah, well…" Ken paused. Something in that sentence didn't sound right. "…nobody told him…?"

"Yeah, you know. Since he's new and all, we sorta thought we should just take the heat off and let him take the backseat for his first assignment. The newbie hasn't even seen a kill yet, I don't think. Even Akabayashi-dono didn't have a kill as his first job, or did he? I don't remember…"

Ken smacked his subordinate upside his head, "Focus Tamaki, Newbie was not there when we got the order. Nobody told him about it either. Then please tell me how did he know that we're supposed to kill the informant kid?"

The subordinate dubbed Tamaki looked puzzled "L-Lucky guess?" he threw his arms up when Ken growled. "I don't know, don't hit me again!"

Ken shook his head and nudged his glasses back up his nose. "I thought something was weird with that text. Shit, I should have double checked earlier." He took out his phone and dialed Akabayashi's number.

"Hello?"

"Akabayashi-dono, it's Yoshiro Ken, Aozaki-dono's subordinate."

"Yeah, I know. Sup, Ken-chan?"

"Sir…I wanted to ask, about Orihara Izaya, did we get any new orders regarding his case?"

"Ah yeah, a while ago, boss said to leave him. We don't need him for now. Sorry I didn't text you the update, I just found out that Aozaki lost his cellphone"

Ken let out a harsh breath, "Thank you Akabayashi-dono. I'll be sure to pass on the message."

"Oi, what's happening?" Akabayashi asked in a concerned tone. "Is everything alright? I hear gunshots."

"Yes sir, we seem to have a rat problem however, I'm about to deal with it. Please excuse me" Ken apologized before he hung up.

He addressed Tamaki as he dialed Aozaki's number. "What do you know about the new guy?" He peeked over the edge of the car again and caught a glimpse of the man in question. He was one of the few who were out in the open and engaging the trio directly. He applauded the bastard's gull if nothing else.

"Huh? Oh uh, his name is Satoshi something, he's been with us for two months now. That's why he only gets grunt work, like looking for the Orihara kid. It was by chance he was with us when we got kill order."

'By chance huh?' Ken pressed the phone against his ear and listen to the dial tone as it connected his call. His eyes never left the Newbie's form. For a split second he saw what he was looking for. Satoshi had a momentary break in concentration, he's eyes darted to his right-side pants pocket, and his hand brushed over the bulging shape of the cellphone inside. It was definitely ringing.

"Mother f-" Ken angrily snapped his own cellphone closed. "We're stopping this fight. Round up whoever you can."

"Sir what-?" Tamaki looked baffled at how angry the usually calm Captain was at the moment.

"We're capturing that Satoshi bastard. I have a few questions for him."

A young blond watching the chaos just around the corner let out a low whistle,

"Man, that escalated fast" he commented as he typed in another text to report to Izaya. It was tedious and annoying to text him every little thing, but he had to do it. He had half the mind to leave out large chunks of information though. He was starting to feel a little bolder as he became more convinced that the man he was currently stalking was not his boss.

He fought differently and he moved differently. Plus, the fact that he didn't ditch the Black Rider and Shizuo during the fight and let them deal with the ruckus was a big tip off. Izaya tended to bolt whenever any situation got too messy.

Whoever was fighting out there fought like an animal. He pummeled anyone he got his hands on with no sense of restraint. As if he didn't care whether his opponent lived or died. Yet, he didn't look like an experienced fighter by any means. His movements weren't fluid, nor did they seem to have any method. It looked as if his determination to beat the crap out of everyone was what got him through the fight so far.

"Yeah, definitely not that Izaya-bastard's style"

He was already down, injured probably, judging by the way he was clutching his side. But he managed to take an impressive amount of people down already.

The Black Rider stayed by his side for a while before he was forced to intercept another pair of yakuza charging at them.

From behind, Kida heard the sound of a speeding vehicle rushing towards him.

He turned around quickly in time to see a familiar van pull up beside him with a loud screeching halt. The side door swung open with flourish.

"Safe! Made it in time!" shouted Walker.

Kadota raised his hand in greeting, "Yo, Kida, where's the party?"

Kida raised his finger to his lips shushing the group, and looked around the corner hoping the commotion didn't grab any unwanted attention.

Luckily, everyone continued to fight without giving them a second glance, either ignoring the distraction or too overwhelmed to care.

But the one person who wasn't fighting did notice the newcomers. Izaya was looking directly at them. Kida locked eyes with him for a brief moment.

Then, nothing. No silent instruction, no smirk, there wasn't even any acknowledgment that he'd seen them. He ignored the group without a word and continued to watch the fight.

His suspicions kept growing the more he watched that guy, he was more confident than not that the man wasn't Izaya. The revelation didn't quell he questions, it only brought more to the surface.

'Why does Izaya want me to follow him? What's the relationship between these two?'

While he was musing, Kadota quietly got out of the van and crouched next to him. "Fill me in" he said.

Kida returned his attention back to the here and now, he shouldn't be so distracted at a time like this. There was plenty of time to figure this whole situation out later.

"Shizuo-san's been taking care of most of them, the Black Rider is taking care of anyone who tries to get by him, and Izaya is down for the count now. But he shockingly took care of a lot of guys before you got here." He gestured to the unconscious men laying nearby the informant.

"I see. So that really was him who took on eleven guys by himself?"

"Seems like it…"

"What about your friend over there?"

"Huh?"

"Your friend, the guy with the air conditioner name, Ryuugamine, I think…" Kadota clarified as he pointed to a spot over Izaya's shoulder across the street. Mikado was crouching behind a post observing the fight. Kida didn't even notice him until Kadota pointed him out.

"Shit!" Kida pressed himself against the wall, hoping he wasn't seen. 'Why is he here?'

He wasn't ready to face him yet. Far from it.

He quickly dashed into the van, "I'm sorry, but can I hide in here for a bit?"

Erika grinned at him knowingly, cocking her head towards Mikado's hiding spot, "Trouble in paradise?"

Kida grinned back easily, "Ah yes, my good lady, my good friend, Moe-kado, has fallen for my smashing good looks, so I must hide from him, for my heart is taken by another!"

Erika snickered excitedly, "Knew it."

"What's happening now?" Togusa muttered as he watched the fight, drawing everyone's attention back outside.

A few of the yakuza were beginning to draw back and regroup. Their captain had his gun out, and was surprisingly pointing it at one of his own men. He was pointing it at the man who fired the first shot earlier.

"That's enough," he called out. "Stop fighting, now."

The rest of the yakuza paused. They exchanged surprised glances, but obediently lowered their weapons. The Black Rider also ceased fighting, and attentively watched the group.

Heiwajima Shizuo, who was engaging the man held at gunpoint, also stopped and lowered the stop sign in his hand.

"What's this now?"

The leader nudged his glasses back to the bridge of his nose with one hand as his gun trained on his subordinate with the other hand, "There seems to be a little misunderstanding, Heiwajima-san. We are no longer pursuing Mister Orihara, nor do we want to cause him harm. We are withdrawing from this fight, peacefully."

"H-Hey now C-Captain…why you pointin' that at me?"

"Shut it Satoshi. I figured your little scheme out. I'll deal with you later"

Satoshi face paled and he snapped his mouth shut.

"I'm not passive enough to let you bastards start a fight and walk away like it was nothing. Take some responsibility for the trouble you caused" Shizuo seethed, gripping the sign in hand tightly.

He snapped his head to the side when he felt a weight on his shoulder. Celty's hand was there stopping him from arguing further. She shook her head.

[Let's stop fighting. We need to get Izaya some help, remember?]

Shizuo's ire slowly evaporated, he acknowledged that they did have more important things to do than stir up even more trouble. Over Celty's shoulder he could see the flea on the ground, looking worse for wear.

…he could let the bastards slide for now.

"Che. Alright." Shizuo nodded, and called out to the remaining thugs. "You all have thirty seconds to get out of my sight before I change my mind."

The leader nodded. "Understood. Thank you very much Heiwajima-san."

With a simple gesture, he signalled the rest of the men to surround the troublemaking man named Satoshi.

Shizuo and Celty both nodded in return. They both turned at headed to Izaya sitting on the ground and helped him stand. He seemed very embarrassed for not being able to lift himself up. He mumbled a thanks.

At that moment nobody seemed to notice that Satoshi still had his gun out. Teeth clenched, body shaking, eyes wide, he was going to do something foolish.

Kida's eyes widened as he shoved the other men out of the way, and yanked himself free. But what made his heart truly lurch was the sight of Mikado jumping out of his hiding spot.

He yelled out a warning to the trio.

Izaya's eye met Mikado's for a brief moment and followed his gaze to Satoshi who was now pointing his gun at them.

The raven quickly shoved his two allies out of the way as two shots rang out.

Tsukumoya: BANG! BANG! Hahahahaha! Woah! Right in the chest!

Sender: Rabisan

Message: They shot him!

Sender: Gaki:

Message: Shot who?

Sender: Rabisan

Message: Izaya!

Sender: Akie

Message: Are you serious?

Sender: Warden

Message: Damn Yakusa, you scary.

Sender: Sakura no Hana

Message: Where did this happen?

Kida Masaomi: [4:17 pm, near Kumanochou junction. Orihara Izaya has been shot in twice in the chest.]

The world seemed to slow down. He saw everything happening in front of him in slow-motion. But he was too late to react. Why couldn't he move? It was like the shock created a buffer between his thoughts and actions.

As soon as the flea shoved him out of the way he heard two shots fired from behind. Izaya's body jerked back from the impact of the bullets. Shizuo felt some specks of blood splatter on the side of his face.

He was vaguely aware that Izaya pushed him out of the way of the bullets. He saved him. Izaya saved him…

His movements finally caught up with his thoughts and he caught Izaya before he hit the ground. His face was contorted in pain as he cried out.

Behind him, the culprit was tackled by his allies. Shizuo was all too ready to join them, but right now…

He returned his attention to the bleeding informant in his arms and growled "Why did you do that?"

Roppi shrugged weakly, "I guess I didn't want you to get hurt."

"Are you stupid or something? Those bullets aren't enough to hurt me, you're the only one here in danger of getting hurt you, idiot!"

Roppi cracked a small smile. "Oh...right…guh.." Roppi's body lurched as he coughed up a mouthful of blood. "…I-I guess I didn't want you guys to get hurt for my sake."

Shizuo closed his eyes, "Shut up. You look pitiful, talking like that."

Celty was kneeling next to him, and wrote a quick message.

[I'll text Shinra. Apply pressure to his wounds, to stop the bleeding. We'll take him to get some help.]

"-ou don't have to- ngh, i-it's o-okay" he gasped out. The wound was bleeding sluggishly. Shizuo ignored him and pressed his hand against it.

Roppi winced. "Ow, careful. I think I have a broken rib too."

"Shut up already, I'm trying."

Despite the pain he was in, Roppi managed to smile, "You really are a nice guy aren't you. I knew it."

Shizuo honestly didn't understand why he was trying to help him. The flea didn't even understand the concept of shutting up. Shizuo ignored him and didn't respond to his blood-loss induced ramblings. He was barely making sense, and it irritated him seeing him like this. Yes, ignoring him was the best option.

"I'm just happy, I got to meet you"

But he couldn't ignore that. Shizuo stared dumbly at him, "Wha?"

"It's nice to k-know I'm not alone."

Shizuo sighed, "Izaya, I will knock you unconscious if I have to" he said, with a lot less anger behind the words than he intended. "I know this might be hard, but be quiet. You can talk all you want after we get you to Shinra's, got it?"

Roppi solemnly nodded. His vision was blurred and fading. He felt cold and his feet were starting to feel numb.

It wasn't a foreign sensation to him.

Sounds of people shouting and footsteps rushing sounded muffled and distant.

Heiwajima's worried face and his voice calling out Izaya's name was the last image he remembered before he fell into the depth of unconsciousness.

[Author's Note] Wow. I'm beyond embarrassed. Missed Christmas, New Years, Shizuo's BIRTHDAY, and Valentine's Day. Believe me when I say I was not loafting on this chapter, I have not had time for myself in a loooong time, and writing is the first thing I do when I get the chance. I'm completely bummed out when I don't get to write. I think I managed to get a good system going, and now more frequent updates. Hopefully work/school/etc will be nice and give me some breathing room.

So here is Chapter 11, the Shizuo/Celty/Roppi vs. Yakuza fight scene. I feel like fight scenes shouldn't last for more than a chapter, but I hope that it wasn't too rushed through either.

Now, everyone has shown up. Kida, Dota-chin's group, and surprise Mikado! What is he doing there? Teeny tiny role, but important. More on that next chapter.

I just hope the last scene didn't end up too corny. After re-reading it several times I felt the need to pick the kernels out of my teeth. That's what happens when read something you write yourself I guess. When you're reading it, you're not reading it to enjoy, your evaluating it and looking for mistakes.

Which is why I turn to the readers for constructive criticism. Please review and let me know what you think, all input is valuable to me! As usual, any spelling/grammar, contextual or continuity errors you find are worth 10 points each, so let me know if you find any :P

Until next time, which is hopefully sooner than later,

SNU