Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or many of the characters in this story. Only a couple of the characters in this story are mine.

"…" – Character talking

'…' – Character thinking

"Italics" – Supernatural voices

Chapter Six: Final Decision Draws Near


Midday – Hinata Sou

The past couple of days for the girls had been rather hectic. After discovering the dark feelings that Keitaro had been hiding from him, they had doubled their search efforts in some vain hope that he was still in Tokyo. Whenever the girls weren't involved in the search effort, most of them sat down to write letters to give Keitaro whenever they saw him again. Each letter was basically the same: it contained an apology to the poor manager and asked for forgiveness. Naru was the only one who didn't write a letter because she wanted to apologize to Keitaro in person for everything.

At this point in the day, most of the girls were lounging in the common room coming up with ideas about what to do next. The girls were soon joined by Naru and Mutsumi, who had just placed some phone calls in search of the missing dorm manager.

"Was he there?" Shinobu asked with a hint of hope in her voice.

"No. Shirai and Haitani haven't seen him either." Naru said in a dejected voice.

"This is ridiculous. The only time his has bothered to contact us was the evening of the second exam, only to tell us not to look for him." Motoko herself was really worried about Keitaro's well-being but put up a good front to hide it from the others.

"If he told us not to look for him, he really must have done badly on the test." Kitsune stated.

"And today is the announcement of the test scores too." Sara added.

'Keitaro. Where could you have gone?' Naru's inner thoughts were eating her alive inside.

"If he fails it again, that would mean he'll have to take it for a fifth …" Mutsumi's words were cut short by Su's entrance into the room.

"Hey everyone! Keitaro just sent us another fax! He also wrote were he was!"

"WHAT!" Everyone crowded around Su and began to read the letter.

To everyone,

I'm in the middle of the Pacific Ocean at a place called Pararakelse Island. I'm doing okay, so please don't worry. - Keitaro

"The middle of the Pacific Ocean!" The girls shouted in unison.

"Is it because his exam didn't go well … that he went on a sad vacation?" Kitsune began to have flashbacks of the previous year when Keitaro and Naru went to Kyoto after they failed. Her thoughts, however, were interrupted by the sound of Naru storming out of the room and heading upstairs.

"Naru, wait! What the hell do you think you're doing!" Kitsune followed her friend into her room and witnessed Naru slamming some clothes into a suitcase and grabbing a passport. "What's with all this! Seriously, you're can't be thinking about going there! Today's the announcement of the Tokyo U. exam scores!"

"Check the scores for me because I'm going to bring that idiot back right now!" Naru scribbled something onto a piece of paper and handed it to Kitsune before grabbing her bags and heading for the exit.

As Naru stormed out of the building and began her quest to bring Keitaro back, a winged figure looked on from the roof with a worried look on his face. 'Oh my, this doesn't look good at all for Derrick's plan. I better go warn him.' Gabriel thought as he took flight and headed back to Pararakelse.


Later On – Tokyo U.

"Hey, we're here!" Su exclaimed as she outdistanced the others and headed into the mob awaiting the posting of the scores. However, the rest of the girls weren't as excited as the energetic foreigner. They had to bear the weight of finding out the test scores of their best friends.

"Oh my God! Nobody made it this year!" The girls looked over to see Mutsumi reading something.

"Uh, Mutsumi, that's a school bulletin board. The scores are over here." Motoko calmly stated as she pulled the Toudai hopeful back toward the mob.

As the girls scrolled the board looking at the names and numbers, Mutsumi's voice caught their attention once more.

"My name's up there! I made it! After four years, I finally did it!" Mutsumi was so overwhelmed by her emotions that she passed out.

As the rest of the girls tried to bring the Okinawan back to her senses, Kitsune and Shinobu looked at the number Naru had given them earlier and frantically searched for it.

"Let's see, A44251. Naru Narusegawa. She made it! Naru made it too!" Kitsune was so overjoyed to see her best friend's name on the list. "Let's go get the party started!"

"Wait! We still haven't checked Sempai's scores."

"But Keitaro ran away with his test I.D. We don't know what his number is?"

"They've posted names also. We can find it!" Shinobu began to panic as looked at the scores once again.

The rest of the girls joined her and, in a little bit, stopped in front of a board with more names posted. The name and number at the top of the board caught their attention.

A35628 – Keitaro Urashima

"Where have I heard that name …" "Wait a minute, if that's …" "It's impossible …"

"OH MY GOD! HE MADE IT! HE FINALLY MADE IT!" The girls' celebration was loud enough to be heard within a five mile radius of the campus.

"Wait a minute. If that idiot passed, then why did he run away?" Sara asked.

"Well, his answers on the English section looked very sloppy. Kind of like they were done in the last few minutes, but if you look closely, he got them all right." Mutsumi explained to the group while holding Keitaro's answer sheet (how she was allowed to get someone else's test answers, I don't know).

"He must have thought that he didn't make it, so he ran away." Motoko stated.

"Who cares? He made it now how do we enroll him?" Kitsune turned to Mutsumi as she finished.

"Let's see, today's March 10th. So we need to mail the testing identification in 5 days and we'll be Toudai students."

"WHAT!Five days! But we don't have his I.D.!" the girls screamed out in unison.

'Oh man, this is going to be a real problem. Naru left me her I.D., so I can take care of her stuff. But Keitaro didn't leave … God I wish I could understand that boy.' Kitsune thought to herself.


The Next Morning - Pararakelse Island

Keitaro was in a dead sprint on his way back to the excavation site. By now, he was absolutely furious with Derrick for lying to him. Keitaro had gone to the mission church to retrieve some items that Derrick had left behind. As he began to search the room, he noticed something sticking out from underneath the bed. As Keitaro examined it, he noticed that it looked like black leather. He knelt down a pulled the object out from underneath the bed. Actually, it ended up being two objects. Keitaro's eyes widened as he recognized the leather trench coat and black hat, the same items that person he met in Japan wore.

As Keitaro made it back to the site, he noticed Derrick talking to some native girl who looked to be about the same age as the Dark Angel. Keitaro didn't take the time to look at her as he grabbed Derrick's arm and pulled him to an area that was isolated.

"Keitaro, what the hell's your problem? Did you get those supplies?"

"Did you expect to hide you're identity from me forever? I found that coat and hat you were hiding underneath your bed! Now, how do you explain that, or do you have some more bullshit lies to give me!"

'Damn, he knows who I am. Mostly.' Derrick knew this wasn't the time or place for Keitaro to know what he really was. "Look, Keitaro. For the most part, you now know who I am. However, there are still some things about me that I can't share with you. However, you will find out eventually."

"I thought you were my friend, Derrick! The least you could do is be truthful to me!"

"I am! In due time, you'll find out what you need to know!"

As Keitaro stormed off and headed back to the dig, Derrick just sat on a nearby rock and began to dwell on his thoughts. However, a quiet voice interrupted the young Saiyan.

"Um … D-Derrick? Are you okay?" He looked up to see Nyamo, the native girl/worker he was talking to earlier.

"Yeah. My friend and I just got into a little argument. He's pretty pissed off at the moment. Hopefully, it will pass."

"I hope so. He looks so much better when he's not mad." Nyamo suddenly began to blush as she realized what she just said.

"Okay, getting a little off topic, aren't we?" Derrick quipped.

"Well, shouldn't we get back to work."

"I'll catch up. If Seta asks where I'm at, just tell him I had to run to town for something. Okay, Nyamo?"

"Okay."

Derrick read the mind of the young girl as she left. 'What? Even she's been checking out Keitaro. The guy's a lady's man and doesn't even know it.' he thought to himself before staring at the ground again.

After Nyamo was out of sight, Gabriel appeared in the clearing to talk. "What's wrong Derrick? Looks like you've had a bad day."

"You could say that."

"Well I doubt that your day is going to get any better." When Derrick gives him a puzzled look, the archangel points in a westward direction toward the sky. "Use you ki sensing abilities and tell me what you can detect."

Derrick does so and, after a few seconds, goes cold with terror. "That's that Naru girl! Even worse, she pissed off at Keitaro! Didn't those girls find out about Keitaro's inner demons already?"

Gabriel nodded his head in response.

"Then why is she mad at him! Damn, this isn't going to help my plans at all!"

"I'm afraid that your plan wasn't going to work to begin with. You were hoping to suppress that dark seed to keep it from overtaking Keitaro, but that was a long shot at best. You're going to have to overcome your fears from that demonic battle that landed you in this predicament and prepare for a fight like no other!"

After Gabriel finished this spill, Derrick stood up and ran with remarkable speed back to the mission church. 'Gabriel's right. I need to get myself ready for the inevitable.' Derrick thought to himself the whole time.


Later on that Day – Lunchtime

Keitaro had just sat down at the restaurant and ordered some lunch. Many thoughts were racing through his head: the argument with Derrick earlier, his time on Pararakerusu working, the Toudai exam results, and (of course) the girls back in Japan. 'I hope that Mutsumi and Naru made it in. Oh no, I'm thinking about them again. I still need some time before I can see them face-to-face.' Keitaro thought to himself as he received his order. The young ex-ronin (as of yesterday) also began to ponder about something else: before he came to the restaurant, Seta had told him that working on the archeology dig seemed to be doing him good. Keitaro couldn't argue with him because he was actually right.

"Perhaps I am better suited for work than study."

"Mew." Was the response from the hot springs turtle sitting beside the unsuspecting ronin.

"Really, you think so?" Keitaro's eyes widened as he soon recognized who he was talking to. "Tama! How did you get here!" It was at that point he heard footsteps stop right behind him and a suitcase drop. Keitaro whipped his head and a look of terror crossed his face when he saw who it was. There stood Naru, wearing a tattered shirt and cut off shorts and covered with dirt and sweat from her journey. If looks could kill, Keitaro would've turned to dust on the spot.

"N-Narusegawa. No … it can be … you." Keitaro's words were cut short as he took off running from the restaurant, with the auburn-haired girl in hot pursuit.

"Stop right there Keitaro!" The young man had no intent of stopping as he began to run across the ruins at the excavation site. Seta, Nyamo, and some of the other workers watched as the Keitaro and Naru sped across the area. "Why won't you quit running!"

"Please just forget about me and leave!" Keitaro pleaded as he headed for the jungle.

"You're not getting off that easy, baka!" Naru screamed as she stopped to pick up a stone artifact and hurdled it at the fleeing boy's head. A couple of seconds and a "Coward!" shout later, the stone object laid Keitaro out long enough for Naru to start dragging him back the other way. "C'mon, let's go!"

"Huh. Go were?" the semi-conscious Urashima asked.

"Back to Toudai to see the results! Now shut up and come with me!"

"But we're in the middle of the ocean! Besides, there's no need for me to see them!" Keitaro shouted.

"First, we can definitely make it back in time! Second, didn't we promise each other that we would make it in together! Now don't jump to conclusions before you see the results!"

Keitaro, by now, had lost all patience. 'Naru still doesn't get it, does she!' The same feeling that caused him to snap at Hinata Sou a few weeks ago overtook him once again. Without thinking, the most damaging thing he could say to Naru left his lips.

"NARUSEGAWA, I WANT TO FORGET YOU AND TOUDAI! SO JUST DROP DEAD AND LEAVE ME ALONE ALREADY!"

Naru came to a dead stop and let go of Keitaro's arm. Those words nearly ripped her heart in two. Suddenly, it hit Keitaro that he just said those words. "Uh … wait … I meant …" Keitaro never found the words to say before the shock overtook Naru and caused her to pass out.

"Narusegawa!" Keitaro went to rush to her side, but tripped over his own feet and landed head first on the stone that Naru had thrown earlier, knocking him out cold.


An Hour or So Later

After what seemed like an eternity to them, Naru and Keitaro woke up in his tent. Naru's chest felt like a dagger was lodged in her heart from the words Keitaro had said to her earlier. Keitaro, on the other hand, felt like a construction crew was hammering away at his head thanks to Naru and his own clumsiness. As both of them began to come to their senses, they noticed a young girl placing cold washcloths on their foreheads.

"Uh … Shinobu?" Keitaro began to sit up and shake out the cobwebs in his head. "It's okay I'm fine."

"Thanks, I think I'm alright now." Naru said as she now sat up and took a look at the young girl. "Uh, Shinobu? When did we get back to Hinata Sou?"

Keitaro took another look at the girl and then at his surroundings and realized what was happening. "She's not Shinobu!" The young native girl paused for a second before bowing to the two and ran out of the tent. "She looked so much like Shinobu." Keitaro chuckled before glancing over at Naru. That, however, was when the good mood left.

"Idiot! It's your fault that I traveled all the way here and exhausted myself!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! But Naru, why did you come here?" Deep inside his head, a small voice said "She's only here to rub your miseries in your face." 'What the hell was …' Keitaro never finished his thought as he noticed Naru looking down at the ground, trying to hide her face from him.

"You really don't understand other people's feelings, do you?"

'Now there's the pot calling the kettle black.' Another one of those snapping impulses caused him to think.

"I was really worried about you Keitaro." Naru said as she lifted a hand to her face to wipe away a tear. Keitaro dropped his head to look at her face, only to get a fist in the face for his troubles. "Idiot, don't look at other people's faces!" Naru's impromptu hissy fit was cut short when Seta entered the tent, accompanied by the girl from earlier.

"Well Naru, I haven't seen you in a while. You two still getting along okay?"

"Ah, Seta-Sempai! What are you doing here?"

Both Keitaro and Naru paused as the young girl poked her head out from behind Seta and then stepped into full view. "Seta, who's that girl?" Keitaro asked.

"Oh, you mean Nyamo. She's a native of this island and one of my part-timers, although she is still fairly young. She wanted to help out so bad, so I hired her. She's also the one who looked after you two."

"Oh. Well, thank you Nyamo." Naru then face-faulted as Nyamo just stood there with a puzzled look on her face.

Seta could help but laugh. "She doesn't understand Japanese, Naru."

"Thank you, Nyamo. You saved us." Keitaro spoke in perfect English. Nyamo's turned bright red as she bowed and exited the tent once again.

"I think she likes you Keitaro. I just now remembered that she was staring at you from a distance yesterday." Seta said, mixing a laugh or two in between words.

"Ah, no wait. I …" Keitaro then remembered that Naru was with them and turned to see a frightening look in her eyes. Unfortunately, Seta had just given Naru something to torment the poor with. 'Oh shit!'

"I see, while I spent all this time looking for you, you go and develop such a good relationship with the native girl. Man, I feel like an idiot." Naru then stood up and headed for the exit, bowing to Seta on the way out. "I'm so sorry to have bothered you Seta-Sempai. I'm leaving."

"Naru, wait!" Keitaro was doing his best to keep his composure. "You see, she doesn't even want one person to have any kind feeling toward you. Just imagine how the rest of them would act." The dark voice said as it once again filled Keitaro's head.

"Uh Keitaro, shouldn't you hurry up and catch her?" Seta asked.

Keitaro rushed out of the tent and took off after Naru, who had hitched a ride on one of the giant turtles that inhabited the island. This one she took was one that Seta used to haul supplies and it was very fast for its size. Keitaro desperately chased after them as they sped across the excavation site. "Naru, wait! You've got the wrong idea! This is the first time that I've ever met her!"

"Leave me alone! After all, didn't you say you wanted to forget about me!" Naru was so busy yelling at Keitaro and trying to get the turtle to go faster that she didn't notice the experimental cave up ahead. Keitaro did, however, and tried to get them to stop.

"Naru, look out! Big Tama, stop!" The giant turtle stopped right at the edge of the hole, but sent Naru flying into it. "Naru!" Keitaro shouted as he hurried to the edge to see if she was okay. About that same time, the turtle decided to kick the hapless ronin and sent him falling down next to her.

As both of them stood up and dusted off, Naru lost control of her temper yet again. "What the hell is a giant hole doing out here!"

"It's an experimental cave that I dug the other day. Seta said that I dug it too deep." Keitaro said with a nervous smile on his face.

"How are we going to get out of here, baka!" Naru shouted as Keitaro shook his head.

"I don't know. Seta can't hear us from down here."

"But there's only one flight to Japan a day from this island! If we don't …!" Naru's words died in her throat as she and Keitaro saw the plane take off.

Some arguing and a failed attempt to climb out of the hole later (which gave Keitaro an eyeful, to say the least), both of them sat at opposite sides of the hole. 'I can't believe that Narusegawa came all the way here for me. And after I said that I wanted to forget her, told her to drop dead,and tried to run away.' Keitaro thought to himself. He then decided to break the silence.

"Hey Naru, did you make it this year?"

"I don't know, but I think that I did very good and …"

"What! You haven't even seen the results yet!"

"It's all your fault! The results are out and you've been here wandering around. I think it's time you tell me now. How did you do, and why did you run away to this place? You didn't do well, did you?"

Keitaro sighed as he knew he had to give in to the inevitable. "Actually, when we started the last section, I looked at the test and knew everything."

"Really? Then what happened?"

Keitaro removed his glasses and closed his eyes to fight back the tears. "I became too relaxed and fell asleep. When I woke up, there was only five minutes left and I didn't have anything on my answer sheet. I tried so hard to answer everything, but my head was so messed up that I don't remember what exactly happened."

"You fell asleep during the test! Are you an idiot!" Naru stopped her verbal abuse tirade as she noticed the tears rolling down Keitaro's face.

"Yes, I am. It's because I'm so useless that I couldn't bring myself to see you guys, so I left."

Now…

What Naru thought: 'So that's why. The poor guy.' She thought with a look of concern and compassion on her face.

What she did 2 seconds later: "Why you … are you still a man or what!" she screamed as she grabbed Keitaro by the shirt collar. She suddenly snapped out of her fury and a smile returned to her face. "Well, let's go back anyway. Everyone else is worried sick about you."

'What? The others are worried about me?' "Don't listen to her! It's all lies, my friend." the dark voice tried to convince Keitaro. 'Shut up, you stupid voice!' Keitaro's thoughts screamed back. Keitaro decided to give his answer, regardless of the consequences, to Naru. "Narusegawa, I …uh …thanks, but I'm definitely not going to make it in. Besides, I have a job to do here. I've felt much better since I started this job." He stated in a calm voice while pointing to the pile of digging tools that he and Derrick left in the hole a couple of days earlier.

'Not what I wanted to hear.' Naru then looked at the pile of tools beside Keitaro. 'Wait a minute …' "Hey! We could use these tools to dig at the side and try to get out!" she shouted as she picked up a shovel and began digging away.

'God, why didn't I think of that!' Keitaro wondered while he grabbed a pick ax. He then noticed that Naru was moving almost at the speed of light as she removed dirt at a massive rate. "Uh, aren't you going a little overboard Naru! Please, slow down! You might damage something!"

"Wow, I never knew digging could be so much fun!" was the response to Keitaro's pleas.

Nyamo noticed all the noise and commotion coming from the hole. She walked over to the edge of the hole to see the two strangers from earlier: the girl was just digging away at the sides of the hole while the boy was trying desperately to get her to slow down. Nyamo was close enough to hear a "Clang!" sound from Naru's shovel echoing off the sides of the cave.

"Keitaro, I think I found something!"

"What! No way!" Keitaro barely had enough time to reply as Naru snatched the pick ax out of his hands and began to hammer away. "Naru, wait! You can't dig that hard! You need to use these smaller tools!"

"This is so cool! It might be a great discovery!" Naru gave one last swing of the pick ax and watched it drive into the ground. That's when she and Keitaro noticed the water trickling out of the ground.

'Uh oh.' 'Oh shit, this won't end well.' Those were the last thoughts Naru and Keitaro had before a torrent of scalding hot water sent the two flying out of the hole. The next thing Keitaro remembered was lying on the ground with a girl in his arms.

"Ow! That hurt like hell. I can't believe you just dug up a hot spring. Naru, are you alright." Keitaro's eyesight cleared up just enough for him to realize that the girl in his arms was Nyamo.

"What are you doing! Get off of her, pervert!" Naru screamed as she sent Keitaro flying courtesy of a Naru Punch. Naru gave an exasperated sigh and turned away from the hole, with Nyamo saying something to her in her native language. Seconds later, Keitaro crash landed into the hole.

"See my friend. She doesn't care for you at all. Why do you still bother?" the dark voice echoed once more. 'Wherever that voice is coming from, I wish it'd stop.' Keitaro thought as he stood up and regained his bearings. It was at this point when he caught first glimpse of the magnificent mural that stood in front of him. "Hey Naru! Nyamo! Check this out!"


A Short Time Later

Almost everyone working at the excavation site was now examining the mural that Keitaro and Naru had discovered. Seta began to tell them about the Turtle Civilization that inhabited the island at one time and how they had found some similar murals. This one, however, was larger than any of the others on the island. This find excited Seta and Keitaro, and they wanted to uncover the remaining secrets about this lost civilization. As Keitaro loaded up the supplies on Seta's van, Naru couldn't help but wonder about how different Keitaro seemed to be. She also tried to be friendly to Nyamo, but the young native girl was terrified of the violent Japanese girl and ran for cover.

"Hey Naru, we're getting ready to leave in search of some ruins in the middle of the island." Keitaro stated.

"We'll take you to the airport on the way. You need to get back to Japan." Seta added.

"What! But what about your scores Keitaro?"

"Well, I'm not going to make it anyway, and Seta really needs my help. You really need to get back to Japan and see the results. I hope you make it in. Goodbye, and say hi to Mutsumi for me." Keitaro told her as he hurried to join Seta, Nyamo, and Big Tama in the van.

"Wait! Seta, please take me with you!" Naru's outburst caught everyone off guard.


The Next Day

It was now March 12th, three days until the deadline for Tokyo U. Naru wondered how she got into this situation. She was stuck in a van traveling a mountainous area in the desert with a group of people dealing with things she had no interest in. When Keitaro or Seta asked if she wanted to return to town, she would vehemently object the idea. She couldn't pull herself away from Keitaro (although you wouldn't get her to admit it) and figured there would be no harm in it since the girls would mail the needed items for her to enroll. She then tried to make friends with Nyamo once again, only for the young girl to hide behind Keitaro.

"I think you're scaring her." Keitaro replied with a chuckle.

As Naru began to coax Nyamo and argue with Keitaro, Seta let out a warning about the awful roads ahead. None of them heard the warning, and as Seta's awful road skills began to mix with the road conditions, everyone was tossed around the back of the van in an awful fashion. Suddenly, the door on the side opened, causing Keitaro, Naru, Nyamo, Tama, Big Tama, and a few of the supplies to fall out and tumble down the mountainside and into the vast desert that awaited beneath. A minute or two later, Seta's van ends up falling down a ravine.

For several hours, the group traveled through the vast desert without any sight of Seta, shade, or water. After a failed attempt to make some shelter and rest, Keitaro and Naru were soon devoid of all energy and clung to Big Tama for dear life. After a few minutes passed, an exhausted Keitaro though he was seeing a mirage of Toudai. Soon, his eyesight began to clear up and he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Naru and Nyamo soon saw the exact same thing: a massive oasis, complete with a waterfall and centered around a huge rock structure. The group, with a newfound surge of energy, hurried to the hidden paradise and began the necessary preparations. Keitaro found some food for the group, while Naru and Nyamo made themselves some leaf bikinis to replace their tattered clothes. After the group ate supper (with proved that Keitaro's cooking skills far surpassed Naru's) and settled in for the night, both Naru and Keitaro found out some things about Nyamo's past. The most important thing they found out about was Nyamo's grandfather and her reasons for helping with the archeology dig. Keitaro promised to help Nyamo in any way possible, which tugged on Naru's heart strings a little bit. After some normal Keitaro/Naru alone time craziness, the entire group went to sleep.


March 13th – Two Days until Deadline

After waking up and having some breakfast, the group began to make preparations for a rescue effort. Keitaro figured that since a trek across the desert would be disastrous, their only hope was to make a giant flag to place on top of the rock structure. However, the only thing he had to use was a blanket from the campsite, which meant the group would be one blanket short. 'Well, I guess I'll do without so that the other two won't have to deal with the harsh cold at night.' he thought to himself. "You should make that Naru bitch go without a blanket for a night. Might do the sorry ice queen some good." Another dark voice said in Keitaro's head. 'Damn, those voices are still there! No matter how hard I try to ignore them, they won't go away.'

A few minutes later, Keitaro had the flag finished and placed it at the top of the rocks. On his way back down for lunch he ran into Naru, who seemed to have something weighing on her mind.

'It really seems that he's changed a lot since he got here. He seems more mature and happy. Also has gotten more handsome in my opinion.' Naru thought to herself as she saw the young man approaching.

"Hey Naru. Everything okay?" Keitaro asked.

"Yeah. I think that Nyamo is off trying to work on something for our rescue effort. Keitaro, do you mind if I tell you something personal."

"Uh, not at all." Keitaro was a little bit worried about what Naru was fixing to tell him.

"Keitaro, I think it's real sweet that you're trying to help Nyamo. After everything we found out about her, she really needs someone to look after her."

"Hold on a sec. You think what I'm doing is sweet? You are you and what have you done with Narusegawa?" Keitaro replied in a joking manner.

"Watch it now, baka." Naru replied while playfully slapping him on arm. "Speaking of Nyamo, we should go see if she needs help. Why don't you go check over in that direction, okay?"

"Alright." The young man answered as the two went their separate ways.

Keitaro made his way to the waterfall after talking to Naru. 'What has gotten into her? She should be worried about being stuck here and the Tokyo U. stuff as I am.' Keitaro was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he almost didn't notice Nyamo washing underneath the waterfall. Almost. He was completely caught off guard by the sight of the young girl naked that he began his usual forgiveness pleas that he mastered at Hinata Sou. He turned away from the waterfall just in time to Naru charging toward him and preparing to deliver another all too familiar punch.

"Pervert!" she screamed as Keitaro was sent flying into a different part of the oasis.

Keitaro began to pick himself up off the ground as Naru approached him again. "You never learn, do you baka!" Naru took a few more steps before Keitaro finally looked up from the ground. His brown eyes, usually filled with care and compassion, now had a look of utter hatred.

"It's always like this, isn't it Naru? You never give me the chance to explain myself or open your eyes and see a situation thoroughly! You make me sick, you selfish bitch!" Keitaro screams at the now-terrified girl.

"How dare you talk to me like that!" Naru shouts back, trying to mask the shock from Keitaro's behavior. She swung another right at him, only for Keitaro to catch it with little effort.

"This ought to be a good show."

"I hate you!" The darkness inside overtook every aspect of Keitaro as his right hand flew up from his side and connected with Naru's face, knocking her down to the ground. Naru, rubbing her cheek in pain and fighting the tears, looked up in terror at the young man.

"Stupid girl. It's about time she got a taste of her own medicine, wouldn't you agree Keitaro?" the dark voices rang out in Keitaro's head. He quit listening to them long enough to come to his senses and realize what happened. "Oh God, what have I done! Narusegawa, are you alright?" Keitaro went to help her up, but Naru backed away and huddled against a nearby tree. The look of terror on her face and the tears in her eyes broke Keitaro's heart. He could even muster any words after that. The only thing he could do was run.

After several hours, Naru and Nyamo returned to the campsite to notice that dinner had already been fixed and a campfire started. Naru looked around to see Keitaro sitting in a nearby clearing. Naru wanted desperately to talk to him, but decided that it would be best to talk about it in the morning. After a few more hours had passed, Naru and Nyamo decided to go to sleep. Keitaro, however, remained sitting in the clearing, oblivious to everything except for the constant barrage of dark thoughts in his head.

'I can't believe I did that to Naru earlier! Adding that to what I said to her yesterday about wanting to forget her, she really must hate me now.'

"She deserved it my friend. She's treated you nothing but scorn and hate. She doesn't care for you at all!"

'Shut up! That's not true at all!'

"Oh, but it's true. And just image what the rest of them will think when Naru tells them about what happened."

'Oh no! If they find out about it, they'll make sure that I never return to Hinata Sou. If that happens, I'll have nowhere to go.' Keitaro hung his head at the thought of that happening.

"True, but I can help you. There's a way out of all of this. A way to escape this pain and sorrow. And them."

'But how…'

"The key to your answers lie in that supply bag at the camp. You can finally have a say in your own life, without those meddlesome girls interfering time."

Keitaro stares at the ground for a few seconds, then slowly gets up and heads for the campsite. He bypasses the sleeping girls and heads for the supply bag that remained with the group after falling out of Seta's van. He reaches in to pull out a pistol that Seta had kept to shoot snakes with in the jungle. Keitaro tucked it into the waistband of his pants before grabbing a notepad and pencil out of the bag as well. He quickly writes a small note on a sheet of paper and goes to place it in Naru's hand. As he wraps Naru's hand around the piece of paper, Keitaro can't help but notice how peaceful and beautiful she looked in her sleep.

"Naru, I'm so sorry for everything. After tonight, you'll never have to worry about me being the cause of your pain ever again." the young man whispered before heading off into the dark confines of the forest.

Derrick, wearing the dark attire and cross chain that he had grown so accustomed to, was kneeling at the altar in the mission church in town. With him was a priest, a member of the missionary team that the Dark Angel had befriended. This priest took it upon himself to provide some spiritual guidance for Derrick after finding out what he was and why he was on Pararakelse. After receiving a blessing from the priest, the Dark Angel stood up and prepared to exit the church. At the doorway, his progress was halted by the sudden appearance of Gabriel.

"I take it you're on the way to save Keitaro?" the archangel asked.

"Yeah. I sensed that his soul had finally caved in to the dark seed inside of him." Derrick responded while placing his sword on his back and putting on his hat.

"Before you go, you might need this." Gabriel held out his hands and created a sphere of blue energy. "Place your hand on it to receive its power."

As Derrick placed his hand on the glowing sphere, a flood of images entered into his head and almost brought him to his knees. "What in the world was that?"

"The images from the girls that you wanted me to collect. Be sure to use them wisely on Keitaro." As Gabriel was saying this, he noticed a slender line of red fur wrapped around Derrick's waist. "What is that around your waist?"

"Since this is a copy of my original body, I found a way to grow the tail that was part of my Saiyan birthrights. Just in case." the Dark Angel stated.

"Good luck with that. The cloud cover's so thick out there that no moonlight whatsoever is making it through. Just be careful in case you do transform, okay?"

"Okay." Derrick responded as he ran past Gabriel out of the church and began his flight to the oasis. Within no time, he entered the vast desert that inhabited Pararakelse. As he surveyed the sandy terrain, he jerked his head to one side at the auras of other people.

'Seems that the rest of the girls made it to the island alright.' Derrick though as he turned his head back toward the direction of his intended target. After a few more seconds, the oasis came into view. 'There's no turning back now. I have to save Keitaro or else both of us are doomed.'


A/N - So, what do ya'll think? Please review!
- OD