Word Count: 7539

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or stuff. Just my terrible sense of humor.

Part 79: Falling In

Natsume closed her eyes, leaning against the wall as she breathed in deeply and tried not to let her sudden light headedness get to her.

(Nor the need to black out.)

"I may have over done it," she muttered to herself, bringing herself to sit down on the floor, letting her head rest against her knees. "Great job Tsume."

"Nina it's her!"

"Hey wait a sec–"

The barrier was up before she could stop it, a crisp buzz sounding as it was taken down had Natsume glaring up at the people and then she realized who it was, "Hana, oh fu – I'm so sorry."

Hana shook her head, strands of hair falling out of the awkward pony tail she had her short hair up in. Malana was pouting. She was held off to Hana's side, having been picked up before she could crash face first into the barrier that Natsume had put up without much thought. Hana's other hand was coming down, fingers crackling with green light, before it faded.

"Don't worry about it," Hana took that moment to give her goddaughter a look. "How many times, Malana?"

The little girl pouted, lower lip jutting out and light brown eyes tearing up, "It's still mama."

"You have to be better about that Malana," Natsume intoned, letting her head fall back, giving the girl a tired smile. "Even if it is your mama."

Malana's brow furrowed in confusion, head tilting to the side, "But mama is always safe."

A lump formed in Natsume's throat and she blinked rapidly as she held out her arms, gesturing for Malana. Hana put the girl down and this time the four year old approached slowly, her confusion going away to be replaced with worry, "…are you okay?"

Natsume nodded, watching how easily Malana grasped the middle of her fingers and stepped forward to her and rested her forehead against hers, "I'm okay."

Malana pulled back, mouth pursed and her eyes staring her down as if trying to figure out if she was lying or not, "You better be."

"Always am."

Hana knelt down on her other side, putting a hand on her shoulder and Natsume could tell that she already knew that she wasn't being entirely truthful. The sudden ping and what felt like getting zapped when two people created static, Natsume felt as if her head was clearer.

"Oh, thanks doc."

Hana narrowed her eyes, "Malana we have to go."

It seemed like she wanted to say something, but Malana didn't, instead sniffing and staring angrily off to the side. Hana shook her head, clucking her tongue, "We're heading out and yes we'll be safe where we're going."

"How did –"

"Kawahira called."

"….he has a phone?"

"He has a phone in the shop, Natsume," Hana deadpanned, eyeing the teen as if questioning if she was really okay. "Go back and rest, honestly, you push yourself too hard sometimes."

"What are you, my mother?" With the help of Hana, Natsume stood up, dusting off whatever dirt got on her pants and jacket. She adjusted her jacket, giving Hana a snooty glare, which made Hana roll her eyes. "I'm fine."

"You're such a teenager," Hana shook her head, reaching for Malana and picking the girl up. Said girl leaned forward in Hana's arms, her own hand patting Natsume's head. "We'll see you later, alright?"

"Alright," Natsume murmured, watching the pair leave. She wiggled her fingers to Malana, who waved her hand back at her and it wasn't until they turned a corner that Natsume brought her hand up to run her fingers through her messed up bangs, lightly scratching at her head as she did. "Alright….time to go…"

She trailed off at the sudden surge of power she felt, her head whipping around to stare at the sky. She felt sick, a guilty feeling twisting in her stomach as she realized what this could mean, "Mukuro…."

He was a tricky bastard….he should be fine…right?

/ | \

The image of Natsume flickered and Ryohei felt lucky that Kyoko and Haru were in the living room, looking at the curious trinkets and pictures about the room.

"They're here," Natsume murmured, eyes glancing towards the kitchen window. "….it'd be best if you found the others now."

"How?"

"I'm not going to be here after this," she said, holding out her hand as if she was going to give him something. "I honestly don't know if this will work….but I can only hope." She closed her eyes and Ryohei watched the way she lost form, her legs becoming like actual mist and moving up her body, until it was just a detached hand left. A bright flare and he felt something drop into his hand.

The white device was similar to the ear piece he saw the others wearing when they were fighting , picking it up and looking it over, he didn't see any buttons to turn it on and he was left briefly stumped on how to fix this.

"She could have told me what she was giving me," he murmured, his other hand coming up to scratch at his left brow, lightly rubbing his scar as he did. "Dammit."

There was a loud exclamation of surprise and he headed over to the other room, not knowing what to think of Kyoko's sudden, Oh my goodness, no way! When he walked in, the girls looked like deer in headlights, scrambling to hide whatever it was they found.

"What's up –"

"Nothing! It's nothing! Natsume said no spoilers!" Haru exclaimed, eyes shining in a way that he didn't know how to feel about.

Was she about to start crying?

She was also blushing.

"Are you two okay?"

"Fine, yes, fine! Did something happen Onii-san?"

Now he was confused, but Ryohei wasn't going to ask anymore and instead held up the blue tooth, "Natsume brought this before she left, but I have no idea how to turn it on."

Haru stood up, lips pursed in thought as she came over to inspect it, "Did Natsume not say how it works? Have you asked her?"

"She used up her flames to bring it here," he answered, rubbing the back of his head, eyeing the low table drawer that Kyoko had shut before she too stood up and walked over to them.

"Flames?"

"Is it the fire magic the others were using?" Kyoko asked, hands laced behind her back as she looked at the device, before tilting her head curiously at her brother.

"It's not magic its willpower!"

There was a shine to Ryohei that both girls blinked at as he said that, the pair sharing a look before shrugging and handing the blue tooth back to him. "What do you use this willpower for?"

"I've been using it to open my animal box and light my ring," and he demonstrated lighting his Vongola ring, a brilliant yellow flame flaring to life on his ring finger.

"Hmm, could it be used to turn things on?" Haru asked, eyeing the pretty fire that didn't seem to be hurting the older teen and then at the white thing in his hand.

"Good suggestion, let's try!"

/ | \

"We're at the school Romario," Dino answered without being asked, already knowing that the man would want to know where he was. "So far we're okay, but that flare doesn't mean anything good for us."

'We'll be there soon.'

"See you then."

Squalo had left over ten minutes ago, leaving Dino with Hibari. The teen hadn't moved away from the spot he had arrived in, merely taking a seat on the floor. He hadn't even made an effort to bother the clone of Natsume, which made Dino curious.

"Giannini is going to call you to patch you in," Natsume spoke up, musing with the ends of her hair which she had pulled out of the pony tail it had been in. As she said that, his phone rang again and Dino answered, hearing the young mechanic on the other side. "There's something he wants me to bring over, but I think it's okay, you don't need it."

"Text me any updates, or if we're all meeting up," Dino told Giannini, 'of course,' and the call ended, a few seconds later Dino received a text that showed a map of everyone's location. He pinched at the screen, spreading his fingers to zoom in on a location, looking at Natsume. "I don't know this place, is this the market place?"

The clone merely raised her brows, eyes wide as she briefly raised her shoulders in an I don't know kind of motion, "There was a pull there."

"I swear," Dino muttered, clicking the side of his phone so that the screen went black. "I forget how much of a brat you are."

"Me~ A brat?~" Dino gave the girl a flat look, who looked entirely too amused, "I'm just being myself, Dino."

"Don't think I've forgotten about the Ring Battles," he said, crossing his arms against his chest, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "Or what happened because of my beliefs."

Natsume's cutesy smile fell away, a more somber look on her face. She licked her lips as shrugged with one shoulder, "It happens."

"Pfft, you can't say that, you held a grudge against me for a while because of it," he let his head fall back, closing his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun for the moment. "I'd like to say I'm sorry for that, I shouldn't have doubted it, but you have to understand why I thought that way."

"I do understand, I know we all believe in different things," she murmured softly, bringing her hands together in front of her. "…so you're good Dino."

He had realized over the Ring Battles, especially after the Rain battle and watching Natsume work that Dino had perhaps really messed up something. He didn't get to apologize after the affair, Natsume avoiding him and it had taken over a year later for him to be able to do so.

Comparing her younger self to her older self wasn't fair, but if there was one thing the two would always hold strongly too, it was their belief. Very few people knew of who had taught Natsume, but it seemed whoever it was had passed on a strong, almost stubborn belief that wouldn't be swayed no matter who had tried to convince her otherwise.

(Though he did get the feeling he knew who it was already, but the name always seemed to elude him when he tried to think of it.)

He knew others were the same and though some people did want to know, the fact that those closest to Natsume knew and weren't worried, made Dino think that whoever it was, was a good person.

"You know –" Dino stopped, whipping his head around to stare in the direction of the sudden influx of power. "Shit, I thought we would have more time."

Natsume caught Hibari's eye, her looking confused at the smirk he gave her, before she realized what he was about to do, "Hibari no!"

The Cloud flared his flames and they watched as a streak of yellow light flew by, crash landing near the gates of the school. Hibari merely flicked out his tonfa's, holding them down at his side as he waited for the figure to come closer.

"You wouldn't happen to know where Uni-sama is?" Daisy asked once he was close enough, straightening the sleeve of his jacket as if he didn't care that it might be three against one. "Byakuran-sama needs her."

Hibari merely sniffed, narrowing his eyes as he brought up his weapons, his left foot sliding back as he turned sideways, "I don't care."

Daisy stared at the teen, nodding slowly, "I guess I'll just kill you then."

"I'll bite you to death first."

Dino heard Natsume sigh, her hand coming to grasp his arm to hold him back, "Let's watch him first and we'll tag team him."

"You saw Yamamoto fighting him; Kyoya's going to need help."

"No," Dino turned to look at the girl, her eyes glowing amber. "Not yet."

Dino felt when she spread out her Sky fames, calling out to whoever and seeing who would unknowingly respond under it. It was similar to what Tsuna did when he needed to find someone or something.

Daisy looked over at them, raising his hand in their direction, the tips of his fingers sparking with yellow flames only for him to have to bring it up to defend against Hibari's strike.

"He'll talk," Natsume murmured, the amber glow fading, her eyes returning to their natural hazel hue. She squeezed his arm before she let go, "Be at the ready Dino."

/ | \

The others had already left and Squalo grit his teeth feeling the pressure from the man grow stronger even as he used Alo to help provide a defense.

Thick purple tendrils erupted from the ground, wrapping around Zakuro. Squalo didn't look over his shoulder to see that the idiot girl was there, using her power to help suppress the Funeral Wreath.

"Byakuran-sama didn't really say what to do with you," Zakuro let up on his storm flames, his head twisted to the side as one of the tendrils waved over his face, before attempting to cover it in hopes of smothering him.

The man's body twitched in a way, head falling back as if he was laughing, the laughter escaping him as red flakes left his mouth, destroying Natsume's attempt to keep him quiet. "Really man, I was hoping it'd be easy."

Another flare and Natsume's tendrils were burned, thin lines of Storm flames circling around Zakuro, before they dissipated, "You're not like the others, you're weak girl, and you should give it up, run like the other cowards."

Squalo stayed quiet, Alo floating above his head as he waited for an opening.

"Don't tell me what to do," Natsume said, staying crouched on the ground, her hands splayed out, fingers curling into the debris that littered the floor. She knew she wouldn't last much longer, but it seemed the man believed that she was actually here.

"Not my problem when you die then," the man answered, raising his right hand, the ring on his finger glinting.

"Che," Squalo recognized what she was doing and he waited for the moment. When her Sky flames flared, spreading across the room, Squalo let his loose, his box animal surging forward as he headed straight for Zakuro who looked slightly taken back.

Squalo's sword ran down his front, Zakuro noticing that his movements were much more sluggish than before. Not even flaring his Storm flames disrupted the spreading Sky and Rain flames, which kept reverberating around the room.

"Attacco di Squalo!"

"Fuck," Zakuro uttered when Squalo took advantage yet again. He fell back, his body tingling and shaking in a way that made it feel as if it would let him down at any moment.

"Voi! Don't fuck with Vongola!"

Natsume's clone had lost her form, a small cloud of Mist hanging above the floor, glowing with odd little strikes of amber light as the remaining Sky flames in the room came back to the origin point.

"How about you don't fuck with me?"

Zakuro's rage came forward, an inhuman yell leaving him as he refused to be bested by them. Squalo didn't feel the pain when Zakuro slashed at him as he was bringing down his sword for the final blow. The Varia assassin only heard the clatter of his sword and the growl from his box animal as it moved forward, jaws wide to chomp down on the man.

His sword arm felt hot, the amount of flames that left Zakuro made it feel as if he would melt.

"What the – "

/ | \

"We should go ba –"

They lost their footing at the following explosion, Tsuna moving the quickest to help Uni up and leading them away to where Natsume's clone had told him to go.

(Of all places why the Antique Store?)

"No turning back now," Reborn said, hopping up on Takeshi's shoulder and smacking the teen upside the head. "Keep moving, that's what Squalo would want."

"We're close," Giannini said, holding tightly onto the bag he had managed to get.

"Wait we forgot about Lal and the others –"

"They received a message long before we arrived," Giannini interrupted Hayato, who had come to the realization about the other people on the base. "They've already made their way out and towards better safety."

"Let's go, we're close," Tsuna's voice called out to them, even as another explosion happened, this one farther away than the first one, but not sitting well with him either way. At least it seemed like the Funeral Wreath was going in the opposite direction as them.

Another blast that was much closer had them all running, adrenaline at an all-time high, "How is he moving so fast?"

Uni looked over her shoulder, dread creeping in her belly even as they approached what seemed to be a plaza. Zakuro was capable of anything, she had felt more than seen how far his anger went and it burned hotter than anything she knew.

The door to the shop they were approaching opened, a tall man with short white hair and glasses curiously looking over them. They all moved to him, crowding around the entrance as he looked over them, a brow raising as another burst of power was felt.

"Go beyond the beaded curtain and hide."

"…you know already?"

The knowing smile the man offered them gave them the chills. He raised his shoulders in a semi shrug, moving his head at an angle that made the sun glint off of his glasses, "I know my student well enough…now go in if you want to live past this."

It felt as if an unseen force was pushing them forward, the shop door staying open as Kawahira stood in the entrance of it, folding his arms within the wide sleeve of his yukata. He didn't let a single thought show on his face as he felt a chill, the minute grasp of wrongness that he could sense from the outside world.

He didn't dwell on it as he flexed his hand, knowing that on his right hand a ring was taking shape. With little thought he filled the plaza and made it look busy, quickly bringing out his hands from within his sleeves and procuring a fan to air himself with.

His flames spreading and twisting the illusion let him know that his student was nearly there and with an amused twist, he changed her appearance. A little nudge for her to pick up the ramen he had ordered earlier wasn't amiss.

A stronger flare of power than the earlier ones was nearby and Kawahira wasn't surprised when Zakuro landed a ways away from his shop, brow creased as he looked through the crowd for the children within his shop.

(Not that he would know they were in there.)

"You, old man."

Kawahira blinked, pointing at himself with his fan, "Me?"

"Have you seen a bunch of kids running through here?"

"No, not that I –"

"Ojii-chan…" a white haired teenager walked up, the tips of her hair dyed black, reaching just above her shoulders. She looked hesitant to interrupt, but she gave him an annoyed pout as she held up his food. "I thought I've told you that this was bad for your health."

"Nonsense," Kawahira sniffed, enjoying the annoyance coming off of the red haired man.

"That you can't what? See or think? I don't mind blowing this joint up if it gets them caught up in it."

"I've already said no, what more do you want –"

Zakuro suddenly cut off, his head whipping round, staring off into the distance before he took off. The pair stood at the doorway as the man's figure became smaller and smaller until they couldn't see him. The young girl looked at Kawahira unimpressed, "what a malevolent presence," she deadpanned.

"He might find a priestess that can cleanse him where he's going."

Kawahira smacked her with his fan, not at all minding the way the way she thrust his food at him, "These better not have gotten soggy."

He heard her move through the front of the store, the illusion he had placed on her falling away, the curtained beads being pushed aside as she said, "The only soggy thing here is – oi what the fuck?"

Entirely amused, Kawahira took his time to catch up to his student, the door to the shop closing with a snap, "Your telephone game needs better work student of mine."

He couldn't actually see her glare at him, but he did see the gobsmacked look on her face when her brother and friends started popping out from their hiding places. He shouldn't feel as amused as he did, but honestly, he hadn't had this much amusement in a while.

(The fact that two of the arcobaleno were currently here and well, did not make him giddy. No, nope, it did not.

Okay so maybe it was nice to see Uni.

Not that she would know exactly who he was.)

Part 80: New Details

The illusion of the couches had faded away, showing Shoichi and Spanner in the middle of the room, with Chrome sitting off to the side. Natsume was standing near the entry way, the tall white haired man giving them a good natured smile

"Student, huh?" Reborn uttered, not knowing if he should feel angry, annoyed, or be a mixture of the two as well as beyond pissed.

(He had checked the man numerous times….just how did he miss this?)

Natsume made a noise as she shrugged off her jacket, throwing it off towards one of the couches pushed up against the wall, "Yes student, that's my teacher, and now I have responsibilities." She strode towards the kitchen, opening cupboards in search of whatever it was she needed.

"How safe are we here?" Reborn asked, looking at Kawahira who had created a recliner and lap table, so that he could sit and eat his food.

"As safe as I want you to be," Kawahira answered after he slurped some noodles. "I wouldn't be so upset right now, Reborn, there are bigger things to worry about." The glare Reborn levelled at him would have probably made others cringe away, but Kawahira easily ignored it by picking up another mouthful of noodles with his chopsticks, "I would take this time to regain your energy and heal any injuries you all may have."

The whistling of a kettle had everyone turning their head to the kitchen, Natsume looking over her shoulder and giving them a dirty look as she lined up some cups on a tray, "This tea will be good for you."

Chrome hummed as Natsume began to make her way over to them, while Uni seemed to have come to a conclusion, "You're the one he mentioned for making good tea."

Natsume paused beside Takeshi, giving Uni a confused look, before she lightly kicked Takeshi for him to grab a cup off the tray, "I don't think it's me, but I guess it might." She moved over to Hayato and Tsuna, her brother jokingly gagging as he grabbed two cups. Natsume only stuck her tongue out at him, before gesturing with her chin towards the door by the kitchen "Hayato you can go wash your face in the bathroom over there."

The teen nodded, taking a sip from the cup Tsuna handed him, "Not bad," he muttered as he stood up and headed to the bathroom.

"Reborn –"

"I don't want any."

Natsume sighed, walking over to where Shoichi, Spanner and Giannini were, taking a seat beside Chrome and Uni after she handed them their cups, "There's not much healing we can do here."

"The Mosca did enough," Spanner commented after taking a sip of his tea, surprised by the flavorful taste. "If anything some bandages and ointments to make sure it doesn't get infected."

"Infection should be the least of your worries," Kawahira spoke up, standing up from his seat and heading to the kitchen, pouring himself his own cup of tea his student had brewed. "Your flames were literally extinguished, were they not?"

"He should be dead then," Natsume said, looking at the wound on Shoichi's chest, brow furrowed in thought. "How can you even tell that happened to him, sensei?"

"I have been at this longer than any of you have," he answered before he took a sip from his cup. "It seems the one who tried to end you, didn't take into account your will to live."

"…but…I don't have that."

Shoichi didn't like the smile the man gave him, it seemed sincere to the others, but he felt the pinpricks of ice once again. His breath hitched, caught off guard when the man handed Spanner a first aid kit, "Then be thankful for whatever has kept you alive, I hope you seek to end all the havoc the world has fallen under."

With that said Kawahira headed upfront, the beads clicking together as he passed through the entryway.

Uni put her cup aside, reaching up to take off the hat she was wearing before she held out her hands to Spanner who was pulling out some ointment and bandages, "If I may help."

"O-oh don't bother yourself, Uni-sama," Shoichi stammered, wincing as he moved a certain way that made the wound in his chest feel much worse. "No n-need, Spanner has this."

"No, I want to help," she said, hand still held out. Spanner waivered underneath her steady gaze, handing over the roll of bandages, while he brought out some wipes to clean around the wound.

"While they do that, I believe we have things to talk about."

Natsume sucked in air through her teeth as she moved over to where the others were, Chrome following along.

"This," Reborn gestured to the area around them, "Can be dealt with later, we have to figure out what to do now."

"We haven't heard anything from Ryohei, since we sent him the ear piece," Giannini spoke from where he was sitting beside Spanner, having pulled out something that looked bigger than a phone, but not big enough to be a laptop. "He's managed to activate it at least, so one of you three might want to communicate with him."

"Uh, has he been brought into the same line we're using?" Tsuna asked, having taken off his torn jacket and was in the middle of rolling up his sleeves.

"Give me one second….done, just turn on your device and call his name, he should be able to respond."

While Tsuna did that, Hayato had returned from the restroom, his hair wet and brushed back, the cut on his face a bright red mark, but no longer bleeding, "Dino-san has contacted Romario, they are at Nami-chuu, it seems Daisy has found them."

"Natsume did your clone give any feedback of what happened to Squalo?" Giannini ask, looking up to see the girl shake her head.

"The clone lost its last bit of power before it fell apart," she took a drink from her cup, liking the way the warmth of the tea filled her. "There's not much I can do at this point either, I've exhausted my flames getting us here and using the clones."

"Understandable."

"Ryohei-nii, thank goodness," seeing Tsuna nearly fold over in relief was a sight and while he talked to Ryohei, Natsume nudged Takeshi, noting that he hadn't taken a drink from his cup.

Reborn merely observed them all, having already put out what he wanted them to do now. He didn't know how much time they had until Zakuro returned, or another Funeral Wreath found them, but he would like for them to have a thing or two figured out before they were forced to move.

"Lussuria has contacted me, the Varia is making their way, they will be here in four hours."

"From Italy?" Shoichi gasped, which earned him a funny look from Giannini.

"They've been on their way, they were supposed to be here for Choice, but somethings set them back, but they'll be here nonetheless."

"Natsume," Reborn called to the girl, who turned her head, bringing her hand down onto her lap, which had been reaching towards Takeshi's ear. "How long can your teacher hide us here?"

"However long he wants, though," she turned to look back at Takeshi, who was just staring down at his tea. "He's not exactly the same from ten years ago, but definitely a few hours."

Reborn wouldn't doubt Natsume's teacher, the man having had the power to easily fool off one of the Funeral Wreaths. Not only that, he had seen Natsume's ability grow in the last year and the advice she would give the others when they were struggling, or even helping Fuuta to lessen his outbursts when he would connect to the ranking planet.

An unknown he may be, but definitely someone who was strong.

"Shoichi," Tsuna called out to the redhead, who was looking pretty flustered at having Uni help in bandaging him up. "Is there anything you know about the Funeral Wreaths?"

Shoichi shook his head, "I was as blindsided about them as you were when Byakuran introduced them, I even tried hacking into the Millefiore system back in Italy and nothing."

"Damn."

"What did lawn head say?" Hayato asked, ignoring how Natsume finally reached and pulled Takeshi's ear. The furious whispering that proceeded also ignored, though Tsuna did face palm.

"They'll be staying put where they are for now."

"Where Ryohei-san's group and Fuuta-kun's group are right now, are possibly the second and third safest locations," Giannini scratched the side of his head as he received a notification on his tablet. "Ah, Natsume you sent a clone with Dino and Hibari, yes?"

"Yes."

"Have you not been informed that they are fighting one of the Funeral Wreaths."

"Her telephone game is horrible when she's tired," Kawahira's voice said loudly from the front, earning a scoff from Natsume, who was holding Takeshi in a headlock.

"You are not heading over there," she whispered heatedly to Takeshi, who made to get up. "Sit down and stay put."

The way the Rain froze and then proceeded to slump over onto Natsume would have been concerning if Tsuna and Hayato hadn't looked up and saw Natsume's eyes glowing amber. The glow faded away, but her glare was still in place, mouth pursed in a way that they knew they weren't going to win any argument.

"Hibari is fresh and ready to fight as is Dino, you," she lightly shook Takeshi, who huffed at the way he was being handled, "Need to clear your head."

"I failed –"

"Not necessarily," Spanner spoke up, who had stretched out, with his arms propped behind him to hold him up. "You did everything you could, Daisy literally called himself the living dead."

"You all did everything you could possibly do and the fact that you're still alive and fighting on, means there is still a chance," Shoichi winced as he moved, giving Uni a pained smile when she put a hand on his shoulder in worry. "We now have the ability to come at them in numbers and overwhelm them, so," here he held up his tea cup, "Let's rest and regain our strength and come at them better than ever."

/ | \

"Y'know, that's kind of gross," Natsume's clone said, her mouth twisted down in disgust at Daisy's final form.

"Yeah, I think we find different things gross," Dino muttered, grossed out by what exactly had to be done to Daisy's body for it to reach this level of twisted.

Dino sported a few cuts and bruises, having been pulled back at the last second by Natsume's clone when Daisy nearly ran him through. It was a good enough distraction for Kyoya to land a blow that had knocked the Sun user hard enough to reveal his 'ultimate form.'

"I mean, it's kinda gnarly looking," Natsume continued, crouching down and putting her hands on the floor. A barrier rose up just in time to block Daisy's attack, though there were cracks that quickly started spreading from the impact point.

"Oh, if you could have seen what we did to that Mist," Daisy's eyes were wide, his eyes having turned completely white, with a black slit down the middle for his pupil.

"Mukuro's like a cockroach," Natsume said, giving the man a wooden smile as she flexed her fingers, her barrier stretching forward and wrapping around Daisy. "You think you got him, but you don't."

"He's mine, Sawada," came Hibari's voice from behind Daisy.

"You were in the bushes Hibari," Natsume said, bringing up her hands and tightening them slowly, the mist construct following the movement of her hand.

"I know how to deal with them," Daisy quietly muttered to himself as he tried to get out. "Why didn't Byakuran-sama tell me about this?"

"Do you need to be told how to fight someone?" Dino asked, readying his whip to strike at Daisy.

Natsume squeezed tighter and Daisy whined, "No, no, no, you can't kill me anyways."

"Probably not by normal means," Dino said, lashing his whip out at Daisy's tail which hadn't been caught in Natsume's construct. "He mentioned his ring earlier."

Hibari didn't say anything as he once again struck at Daisy, taking advantage of him being held down. He focused his blow to the left side of the man's back, his right hand glowing purple.

(As long as I wear this ring, no one can stop me. I'll just keep coming back. It doesn't matter how strong you are, I'm still stronger!)

Hibari didn't know exactly what Sawada did to get him to let loose that detail earlier, but it would make sense to dislodge him of any extra things he carried on himself. The wet, squelching sound that was made when he punched through Daisy's back and cracked the Carnage box was disgusting.

Daisy's form changed when the box split in half, being half the size he was before, but still not receding to his normal human self.

"No!" Daisy yelled, a burst of energy leaving him and getting him out of Natsume's construct. He landed on his feet, falling down onto one knee as he clutched his chest, pushing the box that had been coming out back in. "You're going to regret –"

"Define regret," Hibari asked, having stayed crouched low nearby after landing his previous hit on Daisy and striking out once more against the man. The prefect's eyes were bright, his tonfa crunching Daisy's left wrist which he had brought up to block.

Dino and Natsume watched as Hibari proceeded to not give Daisy a chance to recuperate, landing blow after blow on the man, who had only been able to start dodging when one of Hibari's hits had thrust him back.

"Use your box Kyoya," Dino muttered watching how calmly Hibari strode over to the downed man who was struggling to get up. "End this now."

The green haired man spat a glob of saliva and blood at Hibari, the prefect stopping and staring at the way it burned a hole into the ground, "Is that it?"

Daisy grit his teeth as he tried to stand, wondering why it was taking his body so long to regenerate. It was when he glanced down at his left hand, his wrist still broken and hand dangling did he notice the crack along the Mare ring.

"Roll," Hibari murmured, bringing up a simply decorated box and pressing his ring into it. "Change form." The tiny squeak of the animal that came out of the box made Daisy flare his fames, his ring lighting up, but cracking further as it did.

His wounds healed and he lunged himself at Hibari, who merely smirked, holding up his left arm in defense as his right hand spun a pair of handcuffs around his pointer finger.

Dino held his breath, Natsume turned her head to look in a direction where there was a familiar flare of power, missing Hibari end the fight with the Sun Funeral Wreath.

"Boss!" Romario came running up to Dino, "The others have been spotted coming back to this area."

"We move out then," Dino said, turning to look at Natsume who had turned back to look at the mess that had become of Daisy. The girl's nose wrinkled, her entire form flickering. "Let go, Natsume."

"Hm, don't tell me what to do," the girl snipped, moving forward and heading towards Hibari, who was nudging the pile of human before him. Roll chirped at her approach and she lightly stroked the hedgehog, "I'm going to go, please, don't head straight into another fight."

Hibari ignored her, walking away from her even as Roll made a sad trill.

"Kusakabe…"

The man nodded his head, before following after Hibari.

Natsume closed her eyes, a last thought running through her head, hoping that it would reach the original as she dispersed.

Che…o…Squ..

/ | \

"Shi, shi are you excited froggy?"

The teal haired young man didn't react to the way the blond rested against the ridiculous frog hat he wore, even if it made his neck slightly hurt.

Bel would just make it worse if he complained.

"Senpai you should be getting your beauty sleep," he said instead of answering the question. "The fight with your brother really messed you up," there was a brief sting, but he continued. "You need to get all the rest you need."

"You little –"

"Fran! Bel! Get those seatbelts on," Lussuria's voice came from further upfront, when the lights came on and the plane started briefly shaking.

Bel was about to say something about being told what to do, only for the plane to shake worse, before suddenly dropping..

"Shit," Bel sadly buckled up next to him, but at least the blond was distracted by the violent turbulence they had hit.

Fran stared out the window into the clear, sunny sky.

"The froggy looks sad," Bel commented, not at all phased by the bumps they were suffering through, not unlike Levi who was sitting in front of them, clutching the hell out of the armrests.

"Yeah, you're still next to me."

Fran's stoic façade didn't break, not even as Belphegor twirled a knife in his hand. He couldn't wait to get off this plane; maybe he'd be able to avoid the blond for a while, or maybe something would happen to him.

From the last update they received from Squalo they had escaped whatever place Choice had taken the Vongola too.

He wondered what the younger Vongola were like.

Probably still as nice as their older counterparts and better to put up with than most of the Varia.

(Not that he would ever admit that.)

"If you keep breathing on me, I'm going to pass out from the smell," Fran commented when Bel once again got too close, the blond's knife nicking his cheek.

"Whoops~"

Only a few more hours to go.

/ | \

When Giannini fell back they had assumed the worst, but no the young man just raised his arms up cheering, "They did it!"

Takeshi shot up from where he lay, having long ago slid off Natsume's lap and was laying on the floor, "How?"

With the help of Spanner, Giannini sat up again, quickly tapping away at his tablet, brow scrunching as he read over what was being sent, "Their rings are important and the boxes on their chest…Carnage boxes it seems Daisy called it. It grants them more power."

"So all we have to do is slice their hands with the ring and stab them in the chest?" Natsume asked quietly, blinking her eyes open slowly as she came out the meditative state she had entered awhile ago.

She wasn't fazed by the questionable stares she got, though she did sigh heavily when Tsuna threw one of the small dynamite Hayato had been checking over at her, "What? It's logical isn't it?" she asked, picking up the tiny explosive.

Her eyes flicked to the entryway, lips pursing before she threw the dynamite back at Tsuna, which bounced off his head. Hayato merely picked it up and put it back in the belt of ammo he had pulled out from his storm box, shaking his head at the casual treatment of his dynamite.

"That it is," Spanner agreed, looking over Giannini's shoulder who was now trying to see if he could get into the Vongola base system to see if anything was still up and functioning.

"Logical, yes, plausible, yes, a pain in the ass to try and pull off, definitely," Shoichi added, running his hand through his hair as he felt a chill pass him. Uni put a hand on his arm and he tried to give her a comforting smile, though he wasn't sure it worked as it was meant too.

"What do you suggest then?"

Reborn didn't offer any suggestions, letting them form their own strategies and come to their own conclusions on how to deal. It wasn't as if there was a specific way to deal with the situation. Natsume's suggestion at the moment was the only plausible one.

Giannini took that moment to pull aside Reborn, quietly mentioning to him that the only one who hadn't gotten back to them was Squalo.

"Is there anyone you can delegate to check on that?"

"….possibly….I'll keep trying to connect something that could possibly be standing at the base if not," Giannini eyed Spanner, who looked over at them for a second. "…well there are a few people who haven't exactly been found out as being Vongola."

Oh.

That was interesting.

With that conversation over, the hour ticked away, Giannini and Spanner tinkering over certain electronics that they managed to bribe Kawahira to give them (thanks to Natsume's help.)

"It won't work."

"I was afraid of that," Giannini lamented, "Alright….let's see who I can send then."

One person responded and when they got there and sent a picture of what remained of the base, Giannini felt his heart sink.

He didn't have much time to do much else when a loud crack came from outside, the discussion coming to an end as they all held their breath at what that could mean.

"Natsume!"

Another loud crack, this time it shook the whole shop and Natsume stumbled as she bolted over to where Kawahira was out front. A loud screech and an oppressive air that felt as if they had been submerged underwater had Tsuna moving over to where Uni and Shoichi were.

There was a click from Hayato as he holstered his weapon with the chain of dynamite, Reborn moving beside him, Leon already transforming into a submachine gun.

They could feel the flare as Natsume and Kawahira put up a barrier, keeping whoever was trying to come in out for as long as possible. It was Kawahira who came through the beaded entryway, hair slightly mused though Reborn could tell that the man was drained.

"Chrome, to the forest," Kawahira said, gesturing with his chin to the empty wall across from them, which took on a an odd reflective light. "You all must go –" another loud crack cut him off, looking over his shoulder. "Now!"

"But the others how are we –" Tsuna asked as he helped Shoichi up, the red headed man slightly leaning on him.

"They will find you, now go."

Kawahira didn't wait to see if they would go, turning back and heading to the front where he stood beside Natsume. He took a second to observe his student, knowing that she had regained some of her energy, but could tell that keeping the one trying to get in would take that all away.

"Go with the others, Natsume."

She grit her teeth, eyes closed, head turning slightly away from him as she felt the pressure from outside get worse, "But sensei."

He put a hand on her shoulder, the ring on his finger lighting up, mist swirling around them. His hair lifted as he felt the teasing breeze and he lightly squeezed Natsume's shoulder, "Go."

His power solidified, shooting off like an arrow to the target outside. The pressure eased, feeling thrown off and Kawahira literally forced her through another portal that appeared. Natsume reacted too slow, eyes wide as she watched the portal close as she fell through, Kawahira smiling at her, glasses glinting as he was entirely consumed by his flames.

"No, no, no," she yelled as she fell onto the grass. She tried to run towards the shrinking portal, but someone grabbed her, holding her back.

She didn't notice the others that had been gathered, only staring at the spot where the portal had been. It felt as if a part of her was weakening and then it felt as if she'd been sucker punched in the stomach when she felt the snap.

Natsume screamed.

Author Note:

Hello, hello.

I...have nothing much to say for this chapter, other than I can't believe I wrote that ending and I am still upset with myself over it.

I would like to thank ADDbaby for putting up with me all these years and dealing with my screeching, my nonsense, and my absolute goofiness.

Uhm.

I promsie the future arc will end the next chapter (...probably a lie), or definitely by the second chapter (...not a lie...but probably still a lie).

i hope you al enjoyed~

If there is an issue with grammer, spelling, a sentence written weird or whatever, let me know. I tried to edit, i really did. If you follow me on tumblr, you probably saw my text posts.

Okay, but foreal.

Until Next time~

Sorugao