Hello, everyone! This is a new chapter! Chapter 17! I hope everyone will enjoy this chapter! Without further ado, let's start!

Normal POV

While the others trained on their stamina again, Aichi and Kai were testing their swords, trying out different sword styles.

" They're so light that it's scary..." Aichi said

" Yeah..."

" You two are destroying boulders left and right..." Miwa said

" Well, we've finally gotten used to them."

" Yeah. I didn't think that my sword was the piercing style."

" That explains why the first rock you used it on could only be shattered. But the blade still seems sharp so maybe it can go either way."

" Yeah."

Aichi was about to sheath his sword when both sensed a hostile presence and looked around, raising their swords.

" Huh? What's wrong?"

" Gather everyone. There's someone here and it doesn't feel friendly."

Miwa quickly called the others as they gathered around with Blade and the others at the ready.

" Kai-kun, this flame presence..."

" Yeah. It's not of the seven elements of the Sky."

" But how can that be?"

" I don't know. We need to find that presence now."

Aichi nodded as the two looked around while trying to sense the presence again. That was when the presence disappeared and they lowered their weapons.

" They're gone..."

" I don't know who it was, but it was a strong flame presence."

" I couldn't smell them, even though dragons have an acute sense of smell."

" Could it be... an assassin...?"

" But why would they want to target you? You're an unimportant Guardian."

" ... I think I need to ask someone about this. Let's head back to the shop, it's not safe here."

Aichi took out his spear and tapped it as they appeared back in the shop.

" Let's move on with training. This time, we're going to do some flame control practice."

The others looked at each other and nodded, although having many questions in their minds. Kai started to oversee their training while Aichi took out the invitation card and took out the mysterious letter. He then looked at his other ring and lit it up as the words in the letter glowed and reacted. Aichi shielded his eyes from the glow as he waited before it dissipated after awhile. That was when he noticed that the words were finally readable.

" H-Huh?"

" Aichi, what did you do?"

Kai had came up to him after seeing the glow as well before picking up the letter and read it. He let out a small gasp as Aichi stood up and read it.

'Danger approaches the Vongola Family. Members will drop one by one and the ceremony shall be where everything happens. The Vongola Rings will become unsalvagable. But you... You might be their last hope in victory. You must tap into the aura within you and release the power.'

Kai looked for a sign off on the letter but there was none as he patted Aichi's head.

" Probably just a prank... Don't worry about it."

" But... that can't be... And what does it mean by tapping into the aura within me?"

" ... We still have time before the ceremony. Let's save this world from Link Joker first, then we'll think about it, okay?"

" ... Yeah."

Aichi then noticed his deck glowing a little as he pulled it out and looked through it.

" This is... Takuto-kun's work?"

His eyes slowly widened as he looked for the mirror Leon brought and used his Psyqualia.

" ... Guys! I can't contact Takuto-kun!"

" What?!"

" What do you mean?!"

" He suddenly added a unit to my deck and went off somewhere! You don't think..."

There was a sudden small earthquake as they ran outside to see the gate near the Tatsunagi building glowing with a strong aura.

" No way..."

" This could only mean one thing... Takuto-kun went after Link Joker, but lost!" Ren exclaimed

" But why?!"

" Maybe he didn't want to keep depending on us and wants to repay us the favour. But no matter how you see it, that's just reckless!" Leon exclaimed

" Hey, look at that!"

They looked at where Naoki was pointing to as they saw Link Joker units flying out from the gates.

" ... We're running out of time. Everyone, just hide in the shop! I'm going to the building!"

" No, Aichi! It's too dangerous! Who knows what else came out of that gate! Even with the help from our units, everyone here aren't ready for battle! Until we can guarantee we can win against Link Joker, then we can set out for the building!"

" We're running out of time already! If we don't go now, we'll never be able to save Earth!"

" Even if we can't defeat the units, we can at least still clear away the Reversed fighters." Misaki said

" Yeah!"

" But who gets to fight Link Joker will be decided once we get there. Even with the new unit, we wouldn't want to risk you getting hurt, Aichi-kun."

" But..."

" ... If that's the case, then as long as I can keep you safe, I'll be following you."

Aichi hesitated but nodded as Blade and the others came to their side as they all nodded and ran off to the building.

" The units can still see us, so I'll have to use some flames."

" Yeah."

Aichi lit up his flames as illusions concealed them until they arrived at the building. However, as soon as they stepped into the entrance of the building, purple needles started shooting out from above them as they quickly dodged.

" That was close!"

" Careful! Those things might not be normal needles!"

Kai helped Aichi up as he checked on him for injuries before trying to locate where the needles were coming from. That was when another barrage of needles fell from the sky again as Kai injected his flames into his box weapon and started deflecting all the needles. Aichi then looked down at his feet after he found some difficulties in moving them as he gasped.

" It's a trap! There's something holding us down!"

" Huh?!"

The entire field glowed purple as they tried to lift their feet up but failed to, as if they were stuck to the ground.

" What is this?!"

" What do you think of our trap?" A voice ask

Everyone gasped as they looked up to see a screen with Reversed Takuto on it.

" You!"

" You all just charge forward without thinking. It's laughable how desperate you all can be. Well, I can't blame you. You guys love this world too much. As for us, we have already attained victory."

" What?!"

That was when they heard Aichi screaming as they turned to see Aichi getting pulled up by a figure into the air while his spear dropped out of his jacket.

" Aichi!"

Kai tried to turn and reach out to him but their fingers barely brushed before Kai lost balance and fell.

" Kai-kun!"

" Damn it! Give Aichi back!"

As the figure floated Aichi up towards the roof, Aichi tried to reach for his white sword but was stopped by black mist restraining his arms.

" Let me go!"

As soon as they arrived at the rooftop, Aichi was shackled to a metal board as his rings and box weapons were immediately removed, along with his sword and set aside.

" What do you want with me?!"

" To secure our invasion. With you on our side, it won't be difficult to drown Earth into nothingness."

" I won't let you do that!"

" ... First, I'll have to clear your body from those parasites who uses your body as a medium of communication. After that, it'll belong to me once I have complete control over you."

" I won't let you!"

" You don't have a choice."

Taking out a vial, the figure forcefully poured the liquid into Aichi's mouth before covering his nose and mouth to force him to swallow it. After confirming that Aichi had swallowed the liquid, he released his hands before Aichi could run out of air as he gasped after that.

" W-What did you-?!"

Aichi screamed in pain as he felt a dark pulse in his body. The green mark on his hand then started to steam up and disappear as Aichi continued to struggle and scream.

" I fed you my essence directly from my own self. If you're curious, I'll tell you my name. You should know my very well by the name... Void."

Aichi's eyes immediately widened after hearing his name as he panted when the pain was replaced by a faint dark aura surrounding him. That was when he coughed out blood as his stomach started to cave in.

" That's good. The removal was a complete success. The only thing left is to reconstruct those missing organs and then... destroying this world."

" That... can't..."

" I can do that. For now, my essence that you just swallowed is keeping you alive even without those organs. I can construct new ones, but at a slightly slow rate. You'll have to put up with the empty feeling and pain until I'm done."

While Void started the process of reconstructing Aichi's missing organs, Kai and the others were still trying to break free from the purple glow that was trapping them in place when Aichi's spear started glowing and the green mark appeared on Kai's hand, sending out a strong volt of electricity and disabled the glow.

" Darkface!"

" Our connection with Aichi has been severed." Mukuro said

" What?!"

" It's Void! The Queen could recognize its presence but was too late!" Darkface added

" By now, his illusionary organs must have disappeared. But knowing that thing, he's not going to let Aichi die and neither is it going to let him go. Hurry to the roof. Use this spear and with even just a tiny scratch, I can form my connection with Aichi again and materialize with his body."

" We have to hurry!"

" Above us!"

Kai looked up at Kamui's shout to see the Link Joker units as they were ready to attack them when spikes hit them and they disappeared.

" Kyu~"

" A hedgehog?!"

" Its spikes are huge though!"

" That's..." Kai exclaimed

" What are you doing?"

Kai turned behind to see Hibari with his tonfas up walking up to them.

" What are you doing here?"

" I thought I could have a spar with Carnivore, but looks like I have a better prey for today."

Roll then multiplied and lowered down to Kai's level as he nodded and jumped onto it while Hibari did the same.

" We'll deal with the Reversed fighters and head up ourselves! That way you won't have any distractions!" Miwa said

" Yeah, I'm counting on you guys."

" Yeah!"

The others ran into the building while Kai and Hibari ascended to the roof with Roll's help. As soon as they arrived, both jumped down from Roll as Void turned to look at them.

" What annoying distractions. I'm busy right now, so I won't be the one entertaining you two."

That was when more Link Joker units appeared from the gate as Kai and Hibari got their weapons ready. Aichi groaned a little as he opened his eyes slightly to see Kai and Hibari fighting the units.

" Kai-kun..."

" Oh? You were still conscious? Quite the strong will you have there."

Void lifted Aichi's chin and wiped the blood on his lips with his finger before licking it off.

" If your blood already tastes this delicious, I can't wait to see how it'll be with your soul. I'll feed off of it bit by bit for my own enjoyment, along with your body and life energy. Everything will belong to me and I'll make sure you submit them yourself to me willingly."

" I won't let you!"

Kai tried to charge at Void when black swords materialized and deflected his sword.

" Why would you try to distract me? Don't you want him to have his organs back? I'm in the middle of reconstructing them, so if you can still hold some patience, I'll personally fight you after I'm done."

" ... I can... live without them..." Aichi muttered while pulling at the shackles, trying to free himself

" Shut up."

Suddenly, the chains of the shackles pulled back and pressed Aichi onto the metal board.

" I've cut you some slack, but your stubborness calls for some reprimanding."

" Aichi!"

" It's almost finished. So hold still."

Kai clenched his fist as he returned his sword into his box weapon before turning to Hibari.

" Can I leave you to watch my back?"

" I won't take any request. I do this for my own entertainment. Roll. Cambio Forma."

Roll glowed as the handcuff landed on Hibari's finger as he threw them while they multiplied and trapped the units. Kai then drew his black sword as he looked at the swords Void materialized and took a deep breath before slashing them apart as they disappeared.

" Oh? That's an interesting weapon you have there."

Void then finished up what he needed to do as Aichi's stomach stopped caving in and turned back to normal.

" And it's finished. It wasn't that hard now, right? Now then... before my essence lose effect over you, I should get rid of these pests."

That was when Aichi's other ring burst into rainbow flames as the flames turned into spiritual serpents and destroyed the shackles before carrying Aichi towards Kai.

" What...?"

" How?! His ring wasn't even near him!"

One of the serpents then sucked in the rest of the dark aura around Aichi before disappearing as the ring's flames stopped while appearing on Aichi's fingers again. The white sword also flew towards them as Kai caught it. Aichi then opened his eyes and looked around as Kai smiled in relief.

" Aichi!"

" Huh...? Kai-kun...?"

" I'm not going to let you get away with him."

Kai started slashing the incoming swords that materialized from black mist.

" Hibari!"

Hibari clicked his tongue as Roll quickly picked them up and flew off while Kai contacted Miwa to tell him to meet up at the shop with the others. Upon landing, they quickly entered the shop and sat Aichi down on a chair while the others ran in.

" You did it, Kai!"

" If Hibari wasn't here, we would've been too late."

" Hmph."

" Thank you, Hibari-san..."

" It's repayment for the handkerchief."

" Huh...? You mean, during the battle with Varia...? That's so long ago..."

" And you returned the handkerchief already." Kai said

Miwa overheard the conversation and looked at both Aichi and Hibari before breaking out in a cheshire grin.

" Oho~"

" What is it, Miwa?" Kai ask

" Nothing~ I guess Aichi is really just dense."

" Huh...?"

" And Kai really can't read the mood."

" What's with you...?" Kai muttered as he sweat dropped

Hibari huffed as he turned to walk to the entrance.

" Oh, are you leaving already...?"

" My job here is done."

" ... Thank you..." Aichi paused as he thought about something before grinning a little, " ... Kyoya-kun."

As they hear the tonfas clicking under Hibari's coat, they waited in suspense before he finally walked out of the door.

" ... You have a death wish, don't you...?" Kai ask

" It's not like he reacted that much... I think he didn't mind..."

" When did you become such a tease?"

" You too, Kai-kun..."

" ... Those two really couldn't read the mood..." Miwa muttered as he shrugged

" Oh, it's obvious now? I thought it was obvious before." Ren added

" They were dense a long time ago. Otherwise, it wouldn't have taken them so long to get together."

" You think they got along because that Hibari-kun is like Kai?"

" I think that's why."

The two snickered before going back to the rest of the group to leave Aichi and Kai alone.

" How do you feel now?"

" The dark aura really weakened me, but I'm getting my strength back a little now... I can really feel them back inside me now..."

" While it is a good thing that your organs were finally restored, it's making me uneasy that Void is coming after you for a different reason now. Plus, Mukuro and Gredora have been removed from you. We can't call for any other help now. Unless... you're willing to use this and let Mukuro connect with your body again."

Kai took out the spear and handed it to Aichi.

" ... I did promise that he could use me since he saved me... I wouldn't want to break that promise, but..."

" Just do it. I don't mind. He did save you countless of times when you needed his illusionary organs."

Aichi nodded as he pricked his finger with the spear and felt his connection with Mukuro forming back.

" Aichi."

" Sorry for making you worry, Mukuro-san..."

" Kufufufu, worry? Nothing of the sort. I just didn't want to lose a vessel to that thing."

" If that's what you say..."

" Be more careful next time."

" I understand..."

Aichi stopped communicating with Mukuro and nodded to Kai.

" But what are we going to do now...? Void will definitely come again..."

" I know. But I have something else I'm worried about... Those serpents appeared twice already from your sword. What are they...?"

" Queen Gredora said that those flowers might have another power hidden. You could say that they might have their own 'personality'. The sword was just trying to protect its master." Darkface communicated

" A sword with a 'personality'?"

" That's what Darkface-san said?"

" Yeah. He said that the swords might have another hidden power or 'personality' to themselves and that your sword was just trying to protect you, its user or master."

" ... I see..."

Aichi looked over to his sword and caressed it.

" Thank you for protecting me..."

His sword glowed a little before stopping as the two became surprised.

" Wow..."

" They must really have a 'personality'." Kai said

" Yeah..."

" ... So what should we do now? Void is powerful. He wouldn't opt for a cardfight to settle things, that's for sure. But..."

" I'm sure Takuto will. He knows that in order to finish things, we will have to cardfight him..."

Aichi's phone rang as he took it out and read the message.

" ... Speak of the devil... He said that we'll make a deal... If we win against him in one cardfight, they'll leave us alone for awhile and remove the black rings around the world... But if we lose..."

" They'll take you."

" Yeah... If we accept, we'll have to sneak over to the building without anyone else, including the units... Just us..."

" ... What do you say?"

" Let's go... This is for everyone's sake..."

Kai nodded as Aichi took out the spear and extended it before tapping it on the floor. Both disappeared without the others knowing.

And that's the end of this chapter! Thank you for reading! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!