A choice had to be made. From his perch on the rooftop, Sonic was able to see everything unfold. The way Ayano defeated the monster and the way she was defended by the pale-haired stranger that appeared out of nowhere. He watched with a frown as the young man slung her arm across his shoulders and began to half-drag her down the sidewalk.

The ninja could either follow after them or he could survey the area for the monsters' handler. He had no doubt that the person was still in the vicinity. Unless they were as quick as he was, he should be able to find either whoever was observing the fight or whatever surveillance equipment they relied on to know how it was progressing.

It was tempting to go after Ayano. After all, she was his student. His girl. Seeing that younger man help her instantly ignited a sense of urgency to get her back. He soon realized, however, that she knew this person. She seemed to trust him, whoever he was, and let the young man drag her away from the area.

Now that he knew she was probably safe with this person, Sonic was able to reach a decision. He could always track them down later. Ayano was losing enough blood that her droplets formed a decent trail he could follow later. His top priority needed to be locating the handler or their camera.

Sonic moved stealthily along the rooftop, keeping his eyes on the abandoned battlefield below. Both of the monsters were definitely dead. One had been stabbed through the throat and the other one's head was just a pile of pulp. So, obviously, there was no sign of movement for quite a while.

When there was movement, Sonic crouched low and locked his gaze onto the figure that came jogging down the sidewalk from the opposite direction Ayano had gone in. This figure was slim and looked to be around the same height as Ayano. They were wearing a pair of faded jeans and a grey sweatshirt with the hood pulled up. A large "G" was on the chest of the sweatshirt, resembling a company log.

As he watched, the figure crouched down beside the monster with the crushed head. A cellphone was pulled from the person's jeans pocket and they pointed the phone at the corpse for a while before moving on to the other monster. When they straightened, they tilted their head and a stray lock of pale grey hair came tumbling from within the hood.

"...massive blood loss…a deep puncture wound to the throat as well as punctures to the shoulder and knee…long brown hair wrapped around the claws…the other one…cause of death is extreme blunt force trauma to the head…a crushing injury…but that second fighter is an unknown…" They bowed their head and lifted their phone to examine something. "What to do…what to do…the second fighter…a good specimen, but the girl would make a good base, too…I doubt we could capture both so which one to target…?"

Sonic was now standing directly behind this person, peering over their shoulder at an image of Ayano. An image that almost seemed to have been taken from the monster's own eye. It showed Ayano glaring upwards, thrusting her sword up with the blade disappearing out of view. The last thing the monster probably saw. So the camera was in the monster's eye? That's interesting.

The figure standing in front of Sonic began to tense and soon turned to face him. Wide dark grey eyes stared up at Sonic from within the hood, a pair of pale grey lips twisting in unease. "…you're…?"

"So you're the handler they were talking about? I didn't expect you to be stupid enough to really be here. What were you hoping to accomplish by sending these monsters after her?"

"Monsters? No, they're…these are art…these are…" The front of their sweatshirt was grabbed by the ninja and they were lifted off their feet. Their back slammed against the brick wall behind them and their eyes narrowed. "You don't…want to do this…"

"Tell me. What were you trying to accomplish?" Sonic leaned in, his face inches away from theirs. This person was sickeningly pale. As if they never saw sunlight. They looked vaguely masculine, but he still had his doubts about what their gender actually was.

A hand lifted and gripped Sonic's wrist as wetness began to sparkle at the corners of their eyes. Their hands had remained within their sleeves before so Sonic had failed to notice how odd their hands looked. The hand was covered in a black glove with metal on the fingertips and palm, little holes drilled into the metal. "You really…shouldn't have touched me. I didn't want to fight. I didn't…want to hurt anyone…but now I have no choice. Tell me…where the girl is…"

A grin spread across Sonic's face. He had expected this person to just beg for him to let them go. The idea of possibly facing a challenging opponent got him excited. Adrenaline rushed through his veins, but his excitement was soon overshadowed by an intense, painful coldness that spread along his right arm.

Shift P.O.V

Ayano faded in and out of consciousness for most of the trip to the abandoned building Garou apparently called home. By the time they reached it, she was being carried on his back because she was too weak to keep walking. He left her on the floor and went to get some rolls of bandage.

Blood was soaking through Ayano's shirt from where the monster had clawed her stomach. It was also running down her neck from the claw marks on her right cheek. She was leaning against the wall, her limbs feeling heavy with fatigue. Her eyes narrowed, squinting, trying to make out the form of Garou moving in the dimly lit space. The only light came from the window to her left. The glass had been busted out of it so there was nothing to filter the faint afternoon sunlight.

Garou sat in front of her and stared for a moment, fixing his gaze on the wounds on her face first. He rummaged in the plastic bag he had carried over with him and wadded up a little gauze before sticking it over the deep scratches. "Hey, hold that for a second. I've gotta tear off some tape."

"…okay…" Ayano obeyed, pressing her fingertips against the gauze and wincing. It stung and the pressure brought so much pain that her vision briefly turned white. She bit her lip to keep from crying out and felt tears slip from the corners of her eyes.

He tore off a few pieces of medical tape and used them to secure the gauze before shifting his attention to the slashes across her stomach. "I think I've still got some alcohol wipes or something. Hang on."

"Ngh. Garou…thanks for helping me."

"Why're you thanking me? We're friends, right? What'd you expect me to do; just leave you out there? Here we go." A packet of alcohol wipes was torn open and he handed them over to her so she could clean her stomach wounds. When she was done, he had her lean toward him so he could wind some bandaging around her midsection.

She leaned back when he was done, resting against the wall and groggily staring at the window. "Garou, you…said you want to become a monster. Like those things. If you did…would you try to kill me?" Fatigue from the fight and blood loss were setting in as she turned to look at her friend.

He tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"You said you want to become a monster and-!"

"Look, I get you're a monster hunter or something. What is it? You're like a monster hitman? You get paid to take them down or you just do it for fun? Whatever it is, you don't have to worry about me."

The young man smirked at the hero sitting in front of him. "Even if I do become a monster, I wouldn't go after you. One, I can't see any way that would benefit me. Two, I like you. So even if it did benefit me somehow, I'd still let you live."

Ayano blinked away tears of fatigue and managed a half-smile. She had never had guy friends in high school and she was unsure if this was what it would have been like, but she still appreciated this weirdly sweet confession. "I…don't think I could kill you, either…if you became a monster, Garou."

His smirk grew and he settled a hand on her shoulder. "I was gonna talk to you about that. Those monsters you went after today were pretty tough for you, right? Even if you've got those swords, you're still built like a fifteen-year-old girl. You need to know your own limitations. At least until you've built up some more muscle so you can defend yourself."

In the dim light of the room, his eyes widened and he leaned down a little. "I'll be your defense until you're stronger. How's that sound? I'll watch your back when you fight and I'll take out the monster if you get too banged up like you did today."

"That…might not work. My boyfriend-"

"He doesn't have to know. Look, it's not like I'm trying to hook up with you. We're friends. I'm just trying to look out for you. Plus, if you have one that's super tough, it'll be good practice for me." His smirk started to fade, his expression turning serious. "Not to mention, I don't like seeing you this way. So if I can do something to stop it from reaching this point again, I'm gonna do it."

Ayano could feel the concern in his tone and caught the way his stare seemed to soften. The way he was looking at her reminded her of the way she once looked at her younger sisters. Like she wanted to protect them, like she wanted nothing but happiness for them. She, in her fatigued and semi-delirious state, leaned forward and hugged him briefly. "Can you…still teach me some self-defense techniques, though? I want to become stronger so you won't have to protect me."

His smirk returned and he ruffled her hair. "Yeah, fine. But you've gotta get better before that. I'm not teaching you when you've got those cuts in your stomach; they'll just reopen."

She nodded and struggled to stand. Leaning against the wall, she tried to steady herself. Garou started to get up, but she lifted a hand to stop him. "I need to go home. M-my boyfriend is probably wondering where I am. If you want to train me…where can I find you?"

The young man stood, ignoring her protests. "I'm gonna follow you to your building to make sure you get home safe. Don't argue with me. It'll make me feel better. And just come back here when you're ready to start training. And bring some food."

Ayano agreed and let him follow her to the building she and Sonic lived in. Thankfully, Garou left without following her inside and she was given some time to think over everything that had happened. Starting with the monsters.

They were sent by the same underground organization Samurai Catgirl worked for, as well as the cyborg she had killed. They looked like monsters, but they bled like humans. They had brought what they referred to as a "handler" with them, but she suspected it was a higher up from the organization. It seemed as if they had been sent to locate her, but had the side mission of collecting specimens for experiments. She knew the handler had probably fled the area after she left with Garou so searching for them now would be meaningless.

Unfortunately, she would need to speak with Genos about this incident since he was already involved. Genos and Sonic. She was sure her teacher would want to know about what happened. If nothing else, he would wonder about her new wounds.

Now, as she trudged upstairs, she thought about what Garou said. The fact that he would let her live, even if he became a monster. It made her question if she would ever have to fight him, but she knew it would be difficult to kill him. He was proving to be a pretty good friend. Even if he apparently thought she was fifteen. It made her wonder how old he was since he kept treating her like she was his younger sibling.

Ayano opened the door and felt her heart drop into her stomach. "S-Sonic?!"

The ninja was slumped against the wall, sitting on the floor in the corner. The right sleeve of his bodysuit looked like it had been torn apart and his skin was covered in lacerations. His fingers bore little cuts and there was a deeper, thicker cut on his upper arm in a ring shape. As if someone had tried to cut his arm off. He had been in the middle of wrapping the limb, but paused when he heard her speak.

Grey eyes lifted to meet her honey-colored ones and he frowned. It was only now that Ayano noticed he was shivering intensely and seemed to struggle to get his words out. "Did you see anyone outside?"

"N-no…um…your arm…?" She closed and locked the door behind her. Quick steps brought her over to where he was sitting and she knelt to take the roll of bandage, wanting to help him. He let her finish wrapping the various wounds for him. "What happened?"

There was a moment of silence as he stared at his arm. When he finally spoke, it was with venom dripping from every word. "I saw your fight today. Normally, I would be angry about your little friend taking you away, but I'm glad that he did. I found the handler the monsters were talking about."

"The…handler did this to you? Or was there another monster?" She was still a little out of it from exhaustion so it was difficult to keep focused.

"The handler. They were wearing gloves that seemed to let them control the air temperature around them and make ice. They tried to take off my arm." Sonic flexed his fingers and tilted his head. "Tell me about your friend. You never introduced us and I don't recognize him as a hero."

"He's just…looking out for me," she explained. "He thinks I'm a teenager so…"

The ninja drew her against his chest, arms wrapping around her. "Good."