A/N: So sorry this chapter took quite a while to post, work has been busy lately haha.

So, this "peaceful" chapter was meant to be quite short, but as usual, I got engrossed in my writing hehe.

Didn't think I could write a somewhat peaceful chapter where Gantz is concerned.

Hope you enjoy!

It was serene, more than Kurono expected a person like Sei would ever take him. He had kept to his word, and they had gone for a driver somewhere in the countryside. It was Sei's choice, and Kurono was merely happy to be by her side.

In some way, Kurono felt as though Nishi had expressed genuine concern for their future's fate, not for them personally, but more so in general, like his last words before they parted ways yesterday outside the Gantz apartment, were meant to be words of advice, or, given the type of person Nishi was, they were probably a warning: Enjoy the peace while you can. Nishi had been more cryptic than that, and although it took Kurono a while to figure out just what they truly meant, he understood now.

"Enjoy the Halcyon period while you can."

Kurono never thought he'd ever experience a peaceful moment such as this, especially since Gantz controlled his life, but here he was, enjoying the scenery with someone who was, technically, now his girlfriend; and hey, he was no longer a virgin, and that was always a bonus in Kurono's book.

Up until now, Kurono didn't see himself as a peace-loving person; in fact, it was probably one of the only things he and Nishi had in common aside from one other that Kurono didn't dare ever admit to. Kurono always felt the excitement from living life on the edge, more when he was younger, but still, it was just the type of person he was.

Kurono glanced at Sei for a moment; then again, the occasion such as this wasn't wholly unacceptable, and Kurono would always indulge someone like Sei if it meant he'd get sex after; oh, and the fact that he promised her.

"You're probably thinking, 'what's a girl like me taking someone like you to a place like this."

Kurono looked at Sei and was surprised to see her smiling, but her words did cross his mind when they first arrived, even though he wouldn't tell her that. Kurono smiled as he looked into the distance. They both sat on a large hillside, the flowers were blooming, and petals fell from the sakura tree above them. There was nothing ahead of them except landscape, and the Fuji Mountain in the far distance completed the picture. "Not at all," Kurono finally replied.

Sei laughed. "Oh come on. I may not know you all that well, but I know enough that you're probably bored outta your mind, right?" Sei looked at Kurono with a slight grin when he hunched his shoulders sheepishly.

"It's not that I'm not having a good time or anything… it's - just - that…." Kurono didn't know how to say what he felt. Most girls always claimed him to be a perv, and to some extent, they were probably right. But truthfully, circumstances like this always made him feel awkward, and he became aphonic.

Sei shrugged. "It's honestly okay. You're allowed to express your opinions. This is our first date."

Kurono chuckled. "Not sure, might be our second since we've already screwed and all."

Sei nodded with a smile. "As boring as it maybe, I much prefer this date than when we were fighting for our lives."

Kurono smiled in agreement.

"Truth is, I used to come here as a kid, contemplating life's mysteries. Who knew life would turn out like this…? So I thought it might be good to get away for a day and pretend like Gantz didn't exist. Do you think others used to do the same?"

Kurono shrugged. "Maybe." Kurono looked down the hill. As a kid huh? He had been thinking about his childhood a lot since meeting up with Kato again: he missed those days.

A sudden idea popped into his head. "Hey, wanna roll down the hill just for the fun of it?"

Sei blinked at him. "Seriously?"

"Why not." Kurono held his hand out.

Sei smiled and grabbed Kurono's hand. "Okay."

…

Sei breathed heavily as she turned on her back, Kurono mimicking her. They both now lay fully naked with their clothes strewn around them. "You know," Sei began breathlessly, "when I used to roll down the hill as a kid, the end was always boring because the initial excitement was over. Now I think the end is my favorite part."

Kurono chuckled and looked down at Sei when he sat up. "Me too."

Sei sat up and pulled Kurono in to kiss him again. "If we ever get out of the hell that we're in, let's move in together."

Kurono stammered back slightly. "Err… that's – I mean, I'm just a high school kid, and we haven't been-"

Sei tilted her head with a smile. "It's not like you haven't lived with a girl before."

Kurono sighed and looked away. "That was different, she had nowhere else to go, and we weren't really dating, so I think it'll mean something if we do, and I don't think I'm ready to take that kind of step." Kurono cringed and prepared himself for the repercussions. Crap, I just wanted to get laid, and now I've got a girlfriend, and she wants to move in together. This is becoming way too much pressure. Goddammit, I'm just a high schooler!

Sei suddenly laughed. "Relax, I'm just kidding. I'm not ready to have a boy living with me, least of all someone in high school."

Kurono blinked at her and then sighed in relief, and although he had a feeling she wasn't kidding, he played along with her joke. "Heh, you really had me going there."

Sei smiled and inclined her head to the sky. "Didn't you say that when we get a hundred points, we can go free?"

Kurono frowned slightly when he was reminded of Nishi's unfathomable decision to stay and get a weapon. "Yeah…"

"And when we do, our memories get erased?"

Kurono's eyes widened slightly as though he had forgotten that particular perception. That's right, and the more we all get attached, the harder it will be to leave, I guess. Kurono then remembered something Nishi had told them about his girlfriend before.

"Nishi, has anyone ever reached a hundred points?" Kurono asked with slight hesitation, attempting to defuse the situation.

Nishi frowned and looked at the ball before pointing somewhere in the second middle row. "Her," he stated calmly.

"Wait, I thought you said if you reach a hundred points, you can go free, so why is she there?" Kato asked with suspicion.

Nishi turned to face Kato, his face void of emotion, but anger was in his eyes. "Because she preferred to die than be free and forget about me."

Kurono chewed his lip; while he didn't think that was Nishi's reason for staying, he wondered if Kishimoto and Kato might choose a different option. Kurono hadn't thought about what he'd do with a hundred points because, at the time, it all seemed far away, but since Nishi used his points, he now had the highest score. Would Kurono choose to go free? The answer would have probably been yes, but now he couldn't help questioning that decision, though the reason was a lot less sentimental than Kishimoto's or Kato's might be. Kurono had been dwelling on Nishi's rationale to use option 2 ever since it happened. Maybe he discovered something important about Gantz that made him want to stick around. Kurono huffed. Here I am on a date with a hot girl, and I'm sitting here depicting Nishi's decision like a puzzle.

"When the time comes, and I get one hundred points, if you're not there yet, or if you choose to stay like that kid, I'm going to stay too."

Kurono gasped, not expecting those words to come from Sei. "No way, I will not let you do that." Kurono grabbed her by the arms to force her to face him. "Do you hear me? You'll go free no matter what, that's what we're all gunning for, to get the hell out of Gantz for good. All of us." What am I saying? Wasn't I just thinking about staying too?

Sei placed her hands on Kurono's shoulders. "Then – you'll go free?"

Kurono looked at Sei and hesitated in his answer. While his decision to leave or not wasn't final, he couldn't allow her to doubt her own. "Of course," he replied with a smile convincing enough, at least he hoped so.

Sei sighed in relief. "Good, I'm glad. Even if we forget, I'm holding onto hope that we'll end up together anyway."

Kurono smiled. "Maybe." As if someone like you would even think twice about a relationship with me. If it weren't for Gantz and our shared situation, she probably wouldn't look twice at me, let alone fuck a high school kid.

Sei and Kurono glanced up at the sky to see grey clouds forming and heard thunder rolling in the distance. "I guess we better go," Kurono suggested, but before he stood up, Sei pushed him down on his back. Kurono laughed. "We'll get wet."

Sei grinned. "I don't mind. But we could have sex in the rain?"

Kurono's eyes widened with excitement. Sooner or later, my luck will probably run out, but who cares when I get to have lots of sex! All-important thoughts disappeared from Kurono's mind when Sei suddenly took his newly hardened cock in her mouth. Holy shit! It's raining heavily, and I don't even care!

Sei took Kurono deeper and increased her speed, sucking him hard. Kurono couldn't help but lay his hand on top of her head and bucked every so often as she went down. "Oh, shit…Sei, I'm gonna…."

Before Kurono came in her mouth, Sei pulled away and grabbed him to pull him down on top of her. "So fuck me now."

…

Kato leaned over to gently kiss Kishimoto as he slowly thrust in and out of her. "Kishimoto… are you okay?" he asked breathlessly with a blush on his face.

"Yes, I'm – I'm okay," Kishimoto replied equally as breathless and wrapped her legs around Kato's waist to bring him closer.

The rain loudly beating down against the window helped to drown out their moans of pleasure.

…

Kurono thrust inside fast and shouted, "Coming!"

Sei threw back her head and gripped the wet blades of grass beneath as lightning flashed brightly in the sky. "Yes!"

…

"Kishimoto… I'm close," Kato told her, and she kissed him desperately with tears appearing at the corners of her eyes.

"I love you…Kato…"

…

Sei panted heavily as Kurono sped up. "Oh god, yes, yes! I love you…Kei." Another flash of lightning lit up the sky as Kurono pulled out, and they both cried out as they came.

…

Kato gritted his teeth to muffle his moan of ecstasy as he came, followed by Kishimoto's cry of pleasure drowned out by a loud clap of thunder. There was no real need to volumize their voices since Ayumu was still at school; perhaps they did it out of politeness encase the neighbors heard. Kato gently pulled his protected member out and caressed Kishimoto's cheek before kissing her worried-looking face. Kato knew the reason for her worries; she was afraid her feelings wouldn't be returned. Kato kissed her again and said, "I love you too."

…

Grabbing their clothes, Kurono and Sei ran to the car parked on the road's side below the hill. Silence ensued except for the heavy downpour clattering on the windows and roof of the vehicle. "You don't have to worry about saying it back or anything. I know you loved Kishimoto, and love doesn't go away easily, so I'm prepared to wait," Sei said with a confident smile.

Kurono nodded. Crap! Why do things have to be so fricking awkward? Is this what it will feel like without Gantz? Is this how an ordinary life feels? If that's the case, then maybe I'd be better off having Gantz in my life just to balance it all out. Kurono frowned. No, I guess not. Kurono reminded himself of all those that died to escape Gantz and those he lost previously. I can't jeopardize my second chance just because I'm worried about normality. They're all depending on me, and I'm gonna make sure we survive and escape together. "Maybe I'm too young to worry about things like love, so how would I know whether I loved Kishimoto or not," Kurono replied earnestly. Who knows, I probably just really wanted to nail her. "I guess what I'm saying is, if I say it, I probably won't mean it."

The rain slowly subsided, and Sei watched the droplets roll down the windshield. "Thanks for your honesty. If you don't mind, I still wanna continue dating you, for however long we might have together."

Kurono blinked at her in shock and grinned. I have the coolest girlfriend! "Works for me."

…

Nishi stood beside his mother's hospital bed, hair slightly dripping from the rain outside, hands in his jacket and hood pulled over his head. Nishi had heard on the news that she had awoken from her coma the night before, the night he almost died fighting that Buddha alien, and now was resting more comfortably, but it was likely that her risk assessment was on high alert due to her suicide attempt. Did his father honestly believe he wouldn't find out the truth? Or did Eiichiro just say those things out of spite simply for revenge for the fact Nishi hadn't been home in over a year? There was nothing Nishi wanted more than to take his own revenge, but until he was able to return to his mother's side properly, he had to hold back; otherwise, she would be alone.

Nishi stood in stealth mode for fear of his mother seeing him. I finally did it, mom. I got a hundred points… but I couldn't come home after all… I'm so sorry. Nishi leaned over and lightly kissed the top of his mother's forehead before equally as lightly placing his hand in hers for a moment. "I'll find a way home, I promise…." Nishi chewed on his lip when his heart ached as he left the room, barely looking up when two nurses unknowingly passed him by.

Nishi turned to face the sky, letting the now light rain wash away the few tears that fell from his eyes.

…

Eiichiro was surprised to find his wife awake when he returned to her room. Although she was awake, she made no attempts to sit up, and her eyes were damp with tears. Eiichiro sighed when he saw her tears; he thought she would have accepted it since she'd had well over a year to grieve. "Emiko…" Eiichiro watched her clench a fist and walked forward to grasp it.

"You said he was dead," she whispered, her eyes glistening with anger.

Eiichiro blinked. "What?"

Emiko shuddered. "You told me that he died in the attack you showed me on the news."

Eiichiro had seen the incident which took place at his son's school, and although it was still unclear what had happened, several students had been killed, and Eiichiro took advantage of it and told Emiko that he'd gotten a phone call to identify a body that might be his son's. Eiichiro told Emiko he had gone there when she was in a coma and identified the body to be Joichiro Nishi. "Yes – that's right." Eiichiro stroked a hand over her face. "Sweetheart, it's okay, isn't it better that we finally know what's happened to him so we can grieve for him properly?"

Emiko suddenly sat up and looked at him with a mixture of anger and heartache. "You told me you saw his body!"

Eiichiro was taken aback by Emiko's sudden anger, not fully understanding why. Eiichiro was almost sure Nishi would have seen the news and learned of his mother's survival - but had he come here to visit? Surely the doctors would have told him, wouldn't they? Play dumb; she can't have seen him. "I did, of course I did… are you – are you angry at me for not waiting for you to see him? I'm sure once they've taken him to the chapel of rest, you can-"

Emiko slapped her husband across the face. "You bastard!"

Eiichiro swallowed his anger, not wanting to blame Emiko in her time of grief. "Sweetheart-"

Emiko's tears fell from her face. "If my son is dead, then how do you explain this!" Emiko threw a balled-up paper at him, and he caught it before slightly staggering back.

Eiichiro's hands shook when he straightened out the paper ball to reveal words that were written clearly in his son's handwriting. Eiichiro didn't know a lot about Nishi, but he knew his kanji style.

Mom, I'm okay. I love you.

Joichiro Nishi.

Eiichiro lowered his arms, and the paper fell on the bed. The man could barely look his wife in the eyes; what the hell was he supposed to say? He's ruined everything! She'll never forgive me!

"Get out!" Emiko screamed.

Eiichiro looked up with a gasp. "But – Emiko, let me explain."

Emiko grabbed her pillow and threw it at him. "I said get out! Get out, get out, get out!"

Eiichiro turned angrily, stormed out of the room, down three flights of stairs, and out of the hospital.

A young man desperately fought against the strong current of the river he'd jumped into to save a child. He reached his hand out to the child's mother for help. "Come on lady, give me a hand!" The mother ignored the man's plea for help and continued to hug her child. The blond male turned and was swept away with the current when a log struck him.

A young woman cried out when a male viciously grabbed her hair and threw her to the ground. She quickly got back up and fearfully turned to see her attacker coming at her with a knife. "No!" Suddenly, the male was struck hard upside the head and hit the wall before passing out, the knife clattering to the floor. The young woman's eyes fell upon her savior and widened. "It's you – from the bookstore, you're the one who gave me the book…."

Sei smiled with a slight shrug. "I had a feeling we'd meet again. I stopped at the traffic lights, and that's when I saw someone chasing you."

The woman nodded and looked at the unconscious man shakily.

"So, is that the stalker?"

"Yes… he was trying to kill me…."

Sei suddenly felt her hair move and had a feeling Gantz was calling her; Kurono had told them all it would be tonight. "Get to safety and call the police," she said quickly and then ran from the alley.

"Wait!" Sei was gone from sight before the woman had a chance to thank her.

…

A middle-aged man chased the thief from his shop toward a crossing and yelled to him when the light turned red. "Hey, lookout! Hey, come back here!"

Eiichiro stumbled forward, holding a bottle of whisky in his hand, already opened. That little shit! Wait until I get a hold of him! He's ruined my life!

Eiichiro bumped into the store owner with an angry growl, causing the thief to escape. "Watch where you're going, old man!" The man stumbled backward and shouted a warning before a car raced toward Eiichiro and knocked him off his feet. The driver continued after realizing what happened and left the victim bleeding on the road; the whisky bottle shattered beside him.

A man hastily made his way through the train station, looking behind him to find his chasers in hot pursuit. He backed up against the wall and realized he was trapped.

"You little shit," one of the men chasing him said as the two walked toward him.

"You're not getting away this time," said the other.

The man glanced left and saw his only way out rushing toward him, so he jumped in front of the train with a scream.

A/N: I really hoped you liked the slight twists toward the end, and what effects some of the characters being alive had caused.

See ya soon for a new mission!