A/N: Thank you to everyone for the suggestions in the comments. Some of them are good and come close to what is planned for the future chapters. I won't say anymore than that because I hate spoilers.

Any mistakes are mine and mine alone.

With that out of the way, let's get going.

Minato poured himself some tea as he watched the sun come up from the roof of Izumo Inn. Watching the light come over the city and being reflected in the windows reminded him of Coruscant when the sun rises on the city planet. Taking a sip of tea Minato looked to the MBI tower in the distance wondering what is going through the Directors head. From what Matsu was able to dig up, the Director's original plan for the tournament has been changed thanks to him. She couldn't find out what changed since it appears that he's keeping it off any computers which caused Matsu to pout.

"Best start making breakfast." Minato said to himself standing and grabbing the cup and kettle. Hearing the gate open Minato turned around to see Homura looking haggard. No doubt from staying up all night after his shift at the club and keeping all the unwinged Sekirei safe as best he could. Taking the ladder back down from the roof Minato went to the kitchen and washed out the kettle and cup before starting breakfast.

"Mornin'." Minato heard the only other male in the Inn say as he entered the kitchen.

"Mornin'." Minato replied looking at the silver haired man pour himself some water and lean against the counter. "Long night?"

"Yeah." Homura answered taking a sip of water. "The ladies at the club can be vicious when they want to be. I'm glad that the bouncers on duty keep them from trying anything."

"Well, you're quite the catch when it comes to the female populace according to Matsu." Minato said taking the pan off of the stove and setting it aside to begin working on the eggs. "Anything?"

"Nothing." Homura said with a sigh and taking another sip of water.

"I wish you luck." Minato said cracking open another egg. "How many?"

Homura gripped the cup he was holding tighter. "Five."

"You can't be everywhere at once. Even with Matsu helping." Minato said beating the eggs before pouring them into the skillet. "You can't save everyone. You can push yourself to try but if you fail. Then you'll end up blaming yourself."

"Sounds like you have experience."

"I was a soldier, I thought I could protect everyone." Minato said removing the eggs from the heat. "Protect those you can." He told Homura before preparing breakfast for the rest of the Inn occupants.

Homura thought about what Minato told him before he left the kitchen with breakfast. He knew that what Minato said was right in that he couldn't protect everyone even with the help of Matsu. Still it wouldn't stop him from trying to protect all of the unwinged. Drinking the water and washing out the cup before joining the others for some much needed breakfast.

After breakfast Homura went back to his room for some sleep but he needed to make a stop first.

"Homura?" Matsu said when she spotted him outside her room leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

"I need help." Homura said and Matsu noticed that his skin is slightly pale and his covered in sweat. Quickly opening the door, Matsu led Homura inside and gestured for him to sit while she got her kit.

Homura examined his surroundings while he waited. The room is larger than he expected with one section of the room being dedicated to her computers, a bed on the other end of the room with rumpled sheets along with her dresser. Homura also noticed something near her computers, it was hidden behind the monitors but he could see the outline.

"Here it is." Matsu said getting his attention, she carried a large trunk and set it down beside him. "Remove your shirt." She said while opening the trunk and pulling out a harness.

Homura removed his shirt and Matsu set the harness around his torso and began hooking up wires to the back of the harness. Hearing the machine inside the trunk come to life Homura relaxed as the harness tightened across his torso and began to glow lightly.

"Your core is unstable." Matsu said reading the scans from Homura. "You need to find an Ashikabi to help stabilize your core."

"I've been looking but nothing." Homura said clenching his fists in frustration.

"It's been two days since you left the tower. You didn't expect to find them right away, did you?" Matsu asked while retrieving a small case and opening it to reveal several injectors. Taking one, Matsu showed the injector to Homura before injecting him in the neck which seemed to stabilize his core based on what Matsu saw. Color returned to his skin and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Matsu." Homura said feeling better.

"It's not a permanent solution but it will help the next time your core is acting up." Matsu said undoing the cables attached to the harness and removing the harness from Homura before handing the case to him. "This is a weeks supply." She told Homura as he put back on his shirt.

"Thank you." Homura said finishing buttoning up his shirt.

"Have you thought about Minato for an Ashikabi?" Matsu asked putting the harness and the cables back into the trunk.

"I prefer a female Ashikabi." Homura said getting to his feet and thanking Matsu once again before leaving and heading back to his room ignoring the gentle burning in his chest at the mention of Minato.

"Did you talk with Homura?" Miya asked Minato while drying a plate.

"He has a lot on his mind." Minato said while washing the dishes. "He's torn between finding his Ashikabi and protecting the unwinged."

"I understand that Matsu is helping him."

"She's doing what she can on her end, but he can't reach them all in time." Minato replied handing Miya the last plate and drying his hands. "It won't be long before we make our move."

"I know." Miya said looking forward to it and also wishing that she could see the Director's face when it happened.

"Uh, morning." A voice said behind them, turning around they saw Uzume with a case of bed head.

"Morning, Uzume. There is a plate in the fridge." Miya told the brunette who nodded in thanks as she headed for the fridge. Minato smiled at Uzume as she took the plate out of the fridge and headed for the microwave.

"I'm going to get in some training, care to join?" Minato asked Miya who agreed wanting to get better at fighting a Force user and sparring with a partner is better than alone. The two left the still sleepy Uzume alone with her food and headed to the sparring room in the basement.

Entering the room Miya and Minato went to the weapon rack and grabbed their weapons before taking their place on opposite sides of the mat. Minato struck first by running at Miya and swinging his bokken at her, Miya blocked it and struck at the opening but Minato avoided it and swiped at Miya's legs. Miya raised her leg avoiding the wooden sword and thrust her sword at him. Minato sidestepped the thrust and grabbed her sword arm and placed his left foot behind hers and pushed her onto the mat.

Miya quickly kicked him in the side allowing her time to get back to her feet in time to avoid a downward strike from Minato that she countered before going for an overhead strike. Blocking the strike Minato Force Pushed Miya back onto the mat, using the Force to enhance his speed Minato charged at Miya and swung his weapon downward but Miya quickly rolled out of the way and got back to her feet to parry a strike from Minato. Blocking another hit Miya got inside Minato's guard and managed to knock his bokken out of his hands but she knew that he's dangerous even without a weapon.

Dodging a swipe from Miya, Minato held up his hand and summoned his bokken back in time to block an attack from Miya and the two soon blade locked. Blade locking wasn't a new thing to Minato since the Sith liked to do it and spout their usual spiel, Miya on the other hand had limited experience since no one besides her fellow sisters back on the Sekirei home world could go toe-to-toe with her in a spar or in a fight.

The two wooden swords didn't budge even with the added pressure from both sides, the wooden blades remained locked until Minato moved to the side and Miya stumbled forward not expecting him to move. Taking advantage of the opening Minato swiped at Miya back throwing her off balance and allowing him to get more hits in before she recovered and began blocking his strikes. Minato used the Force to pull Miya toward him, throwing her off balance but she quickly recovered having gotten used to that particular trick.

Blocking an overhead strike from Minato and running to the other side of the ring to put distance between the two allowing her to gather her thoughts. Minato gave Miya a smile allowing her to catch her breath and recover before they continued. The two continued their spar for another hour before they decided to call it quits.

Miya put her bokken back with the others before leaving to take a shower while Minato stayed to practice more. Putting away the bokken, and grabing his lightsabers that he put aside. Minato steps into the center of the room and takes a deep breath before activating both lightsabers and got into a stance before practicing his forms.

Minato primarily used Form VII otherwise known as the Ferocity Form or Juyo, though his fighting style is different from the traditional form since he incorporates styles and stances from the other Forms that make him a more effective fighter. He actually started incorporating some of the other stances when he fought a Sith that could use both Ataru and Makashi, the way the Sith could use both Forms in combat threw Minato off and that nearly cost him his life.

After that he decided to study the other Forms enough to incorporate some of them into his fighting style. At first he wanted to use Niman like his father but at the time he was full of hate for the Sith and decided to use Form VII to fight. The use of his negative feelings helped, of course afterwards he would feel drained so he trained to fight longer.

Taking a deep breath Minato deactivated his lightsabers and left the basement to take a shower and head to the hospital with Uzume to see her friend. Getting a change of clothes and entering the bath, Minato is met with the sight of Matsu in the bath. Seeing him brought a smile to the redhead as he undressed and entered the bath with her.

"Making Miya sweat again?" Matsu asked moving to him and grabbing the shampoo on the way.

"She's getting better." Minato said taking the shampoo from Matsu and applying a handful to his hair. "In time she'll be able to stand against a Force user."

"Miya is the strongest out of all of us." Matsu said getting around him and applying some soap to his back.

"You're all strong." Minato said rinsing the shampoo from his hair and turning around to face Matsu and bring her onto his lap so she straddled him. "Stronger when it comes to technology." He said with a grin that disappeared when Matsu splashed water on him.

"What are plans for today?"

"Head to the hospital with Uzume and see her friend." Minato answered still holding Matsu.

"Be careful of Higa. He probably has people on the lookout for any Sekirei." Matsu warned him.

"I will be and I'll have Uzume with me." Minato told her making her sigh in relief.

"Just be careful." Matsu said before kissing him and wrapping her arms around him.

"Later." Minato told her breaking the kiss and making her pout briefly before she kissed him again and left the bath, giving him a view of her naked body. Drying herself off and wrapping the towel around herself before going to the shelves and getting dressed and leaving the bathroom.

Finishing his bath Minato left the bathroom and put his clothes in the hamper before heading to the dining room to see Uzume and Miya sharing a pot of tea. Seeing him brought a small smile to their faces as he sat next to Uzume and retrieved a cup, pouring himself some tea and taking a sip.

"When do you want to leave?" He asked Uzume.

"There's no rush. We can leave when you're ready." Uzume replied finishing her tea and setting the cup on the tray next to the tea pot.

"We can leave now." Minato replied finishing his tea and setting the cup on the tray. "Let me grab my jacket and we can go."

Grabbing his leather jacket and attaching his lightsabers to his belt and heading to the entrance to see Uzume putting on her shoes. After putting on his shoes, the two left the Inn and headed for the hospital. Walking through the city with Minato brought a smile to Uzume as she held his hand, she could see this as an actual date between them. It also didn't hurt that tonight is her night to be with Minato and she can't wait for it.

Finally the two made it to the hospital after encountering several unwinged and after convincing them that they weren't going to attack, Uzume warned them about Higa and his methods. The unwinged promised to be cautious before leaving to continue their search for their Ashikabi.

Entering the hospital Uzume led the way to Chiho's room. Entering the room Uzume went to Chiho's bedside who is sleeping. "Chiho?" The girl in the bed opened her eyes and smiled when she saw Uzume.

"You're back." Chiho said with a smile before seeing Minato at the foot of her bed.

"I'm Minato."

"He's my husband." Uzume said proudly and making Chiho's eyes widen at the news.

"Uzume has mentioned you. Pleasure to meet you, Minato." Chiho said holding out her hand to which Minato shook.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well." Minato responded and used the Force while shaking hands with her to see what is wrong with her. "Can I borrow Uzume for a minute?" Minato asked letting go of her hand. Uzume promised to come back and followed Minato out of the room to a secluded area that no one would be able to hear them.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Chiho is beyond my abilities to heal." Minato told her, making her frown at the news.

"Is there anything you can do?"

"Not without using techniques used by the Sith." Minato told her and held up his hand silencing her next sentence. "There is a diagnosis machine on the Ebon Hawk that could help in identifying her illness, and how to help her."

"So, we just need to get to the Hawk?" Uzume said placing a finger on the chin in a thinking motion. "We could ask her if she is able to leave the hospital."

"Does she know about you?" Minato asked curious.

"She saw my veils but hasn't brought it up again. I think we can trust her." Uzume said with conviction.

Minato smiled at Uzume. "I trust you, lead the way." Together the two went back to Chiho's room and saw her reading a book. Chiho lowered the book when she saw them enter her room again and Uzume went to her bedside.

"Chiho, Minato has a friend that has a private practice. Is it OK if we see her?" Uzume asked.

"The doctors say I can't leave the hospital." Chiho said setting the book on the table next to her bed. "Can you bring your friend here?"

Minato shook his head. "She is a very private person. Only takes elite clients, but I can call in a favor."

"How do you know a doctor that serves the elite?" Chiho asked having heard of such doctors.

"I helped her escape from an abusive relationship." Minato told her and Uzume knew that he's talking about Matsu. She wondered how the redhead acting skills were.

Sitting in front of her computers Matsu sneezed. "I wonder who is talking about me?" She said to herself before resuming her work on monitoring MBI.

"Oh." Chiho simply said unsure of what to say.

"She's really good and she has a lot of technology that could help you." Uzume said adding to what Minato said.

"Really?" Chiho asked with a little hope. She had heard the same about MBI regarding medical technology but she couldn't get into their hospital in time.

"She is a skilled doctor." Minato added.

"But the doctors…"

"I'll have her talk to them. That is if you want?" Minato said looking to the bedridden girl.

"Can I think about it?" Chiho asked.

"Of course, Uzume has my number so you can reach me." Minato told her earning a small smile. "I have some business to take care of. I'll see you back home." He told Uzume who nodded from her spot next to the bed. "It was a pleasure meeting you."

"It was nice meeting you too." Chiho said nodding her thanks before Minato left the two alone. "He seems nice." Uzume looked at Chiho with a warm smile and a blush on her face.

"He is, and he has nice ass." Uzume said making Chiho blush, making the brunette laugh and soon Chiho joined in.

The two talked about mundane things such as the weather, TV shows, and fashion. Soon it came time for Uzume to leave when she noticed it was dusk outside. Saying her goodbye to Chiho and left Minato's number with the promise that she would call him with an answer soon, Uzume left her room and walked down the hall to the elevator.

"Uzume?"

Turning around, she saw a man wearing a black suit with a military haircut. "Depends?"

"If you want Chiho to continue treatment here, follow me." The man said before walking to an empty room with Uzume following wondering what is going on and concerned for her friend.

"What is this about?" She asked the moment the door closed, she prepared her veil just in case it was a trap. She hoped that Matsu saw her on the hospital's camera's.

"If you attack me, Chiho will be discharged." The man in the suit told her before pulling out a phone and dialing a number and handed it to her. Taking the phone Uzume saw the screen come to life with the face of Higa Izumi.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Uzume, the Veil Sekirei."

"What do you want?" Uzume asked wanting to end the conversation and go back to Izumo after checking in on Chiho to make sure she's alright.

Higa smiled on the screen. "Straight to the point? I appreciate that." Uzume felt uncomfortable by the compliment. "I want to use your skills in the tournament. And seeing as you're reacting to Chiho, it would be a shame if anything happened to your future Ashikabi."

Uzume formed a fist to contain her anger at Higa for the threat at Chiho's life. 'He doesn't know that I'm already winged?' She thought, internally smiling at the opportunity presented to her. 'He must not be getting updated information about the Sekirei or their Ashikabi's.'

"I need to do the winging in the morning." Uzume said. "I trust you don't want the doctors seeing something they shouldn't."

"Very well, Chiho won't survive long without medical treatment." Higa told her with a smile that irked her. "In case you're thinking about taking her away later in the night."

"I won't, that would be foolish." Uzume said looking to the man in the suit.

"Agreed. Good night, Uzume." Higa said before the screen went black. Uzume handed the phone back to the man who pocketed the phone and left the room. Exiting the room, Uzume went to check in on Chiho and sighed in relief as the girl slept peacefully unaware that her life almost ended. Uzume left the hospital and headed for the inn, when she was a good distance from the hospital her phone rang. Looking at the screen showed it was Matsu calling.

"I'm alright." Uzume said immediately after accepting the call.

"What did Higa want?" Matsu asked.

"I'll explain when I get back to the Inn." Uzume said before hanging up and heading down an ally to jump onto the roof and began running across the rooftops towards the Inn. Soon she made it back to the Inn and breathed more easily when she crossed the door to Izumo Inn. She met Matsu waiting her for and together they went to the dining room where everyone sat except for Homura who is just now waking up.

Uzume told them everything that happened with Higa and his "offer". By the time she finished everyone in the room felt anger towards Higa and how he was willing to condemn an innocent girl to death to blackmail Uzume into working for him.

"So he doesn't know that you're already winged." Miya said calmly which made the rest of the Sekirei in the room shiver as they felt her rage. "How come he didn't try to get at Minato when the both of you went to the hospital?"

"I hacked into the files and changed his photo." Matsu said adjusting her glasses. "Good thing I did. The next day, a researcher downloaded the file and ran from MBI. He was killed a week later."

"That would explain how Higa would know about Uzume and the Sekirei." Minato said before an alarm went off on Matsu's laptop. Opening the computer Matsu looked at the screen and everyone saw anger in her eyes. Showing the screen to them, they saw three men in suits corner a woman before grabbing her and injecting something in her that rendered her unconscious. The men loaded the woman in the back of a car before driving off screen.

"They work for Higa." Matsu said bringing up another screen that showed ID pictures of the three men that showed they worked security for Higa. "They are heading towards Hiyamakai Tower."

"Who is the Sekirei they took?" Minato asked calmly.

"Kochou, Sekirei #22." Matsu brought up another screen with the picture of Kochou. She has grey hair cut short so it stopped at her shoulders, two long stands framed her face and she wore red half-moon glasses. She wore a purple dress similar in design to Matsu's with some differences, such as the frills around the neck and under her breasts. She also had something similar to a corset around her waist that held her dress in place with a belt. She also had a small red dot in the middle of her forehead that reminded them of bindi, a sight still seen in India

"In terms of ability, she is like me but weaker." Matsu said closing all of the screens except for the footage of Kochou being taken.

"Tell Homura to get his battle clothes ready." Minato said rising to his feet and getting the attention of everyone in the room. "Tell him to meet me at the front door, and Matsu get my bike ready." He told them before heading to Miya's room with Miya following him.

Matsu chuckled lightly while adjusting her glasses so the light reflected off them and hid her eyes. "Things are getting interesting." She said in between chuckles making Uzume nervous.

Homura left the bathroom after a quick shower to help him wake in preparation for his night job. Heading for his room, he saw Uzume coming up the stairs and ran towards him.

"Get your battle clothes on, another Sekirei has been taken." Uzume told him and Homura ran towards his room and opened the door quickly and quickly changed into his battle outfit. "Minato said to meet him at the front door." Uzume told him as he put on his jacket, Homura wondered why Minato said to meet him as he put on his black gloves. Once fully dressed Homura exited his room and went to the entrance to see Minato wearing some black robes with armor that he didn't recognize.

"Are you sure about this?" Miya asked and Homura saw that she is holding some type of helmet that looked familiar but he couldn't place where he'd seen it before.

"I'm sure, Miya. I've meet people like Higa before and there is no talking to them." Minato said placing a hand on her shoulder and smiling. "I'll be fine." He said leaning in to kiss her.

"May the Force be with you." Homura heard Miya whisper and wondered what she meant by that as she handed Minato the helmet.

"Ready?" Minato asked looking to Homura who nodded and the two left the Inn. Homura saw a motorcycle in front of the Inn. Minato got on the bike and turned it on, the engine roared to life before setting into a gentle hum. Homura sat behind Minato and saw him put the helmet on. Hearing the engine rev, Homura wrapped his arms around Minato's midsection as they bike took off towards the street.

Soon the two made it to Hiyamakai Tower and Minato parked the bike across the street from the tower. Thankfully it was night, so there weren't many people on the streets. Getting off the bike Homura looked at the tower and wondered where the taken Sekirei is being held and how many security personal there are.

"Let's go."

"Why did you come?" Homura asked who just noticed that Minato is still wearing the strange helmet and now has the hood up. "You could have sent Miya or Uzume."

"I have a message for Higa that requires a-" Minato stopped when they reached the entrance and Homura saw eight guards coming towards them. He noticed that two of them are holding an injector. "-personal touch."

Entering the lobby, Homura saw two of the guards approach Minato and one of them held an injector. Before Homura could act, Minato reached for his belt and grabbed a cylinder object which came to life as a purple blade emerged from the object. Minato slashed at the two guards across their chest leaving behind a glowing orange slash. The remaining guards reached for their weapons but before they could aim, Minato threw the purple blade at them.

The blade spinned in the air as it flew towards the guards, the blade flew in a arc killing the guards. Minato thrust his hand out towards the remaining guards and something knocked them back with enough force to slam them into the walls killing them. The spinning purple blade killed the last guard before returning to Minato who caught it midair and deactivated it.

Homura couldn't believe what just happened, he was prepared to intervene but didn't as Minato just cleared the entire lobby of the guards in a matter of seconds. He saw Minato pick up the injector from one of the bodies and pocketed it before heading to the elevator.

"Are you coming?" Minato asked as the elevator doors opened, his voice now modulated. Homura quickly joined him in the elevator and the doors closed.

Inside the lobby a receptionist peeked over the desk making sure that the two people are gone and saw the bodies all over the lobby. Deciding to find another job, she grabbed her purse and quickly left the building,