Disclaimer - I don't own Love Hina. (figure this disclaimer should last another couple years...)

Chapter 17 – Wolves at the Gate

In a spacious, darkened room located in the basement of the famed Nippon Budokan stadium, the sound of clashing metal and heavy breaths echoed. Grunts, a curse here and there, followed by more clinks and swipes as two shadowed figures engaged in what looked to be a vicious bout of mortal combat. The taller figure made to stab the smaller, nimbler opponent but overreached, a mistake that resulted in falling victim to an over the shoulder throw and slamming hard onto their back.

"Law-kun, how many times do I have to tell you not to over-commit to a lunge unless you know the enemy is cornered?" Kimiko stared blankly at the downed Lawliet, the hacker still groaning from the throbbing pain of being tossed onto the floor.

"Ugh, thought I had that one for sure…that's what I get for misjudging the distance by a few inches" he chuckled humorlessly before gingerly sitting up, his dulled practice knife still grasped in his hand. Kimiko knelt down and channeled a bit of ki into her hand, "Here, this should help with the pain."

Lawliet hummed in content as he felt the mystical energies seeping into his skin, massaging his sore muscles and alleviating the aches, "Have I ever told you how much I love the fact you're one of the few of those bastards that actually can harness ki naturally?"

"I don't know how I feel about you calling me a bastard, but I'll take the compliment for what it is," Kimiko smirked before cutting the flow of energy to her hand, "I am one of the lucky ones to escape that little curse in my clan, though considering the type of people the majority of them are, maybe that curse is actually a blessing."

"Yeah, for everyone else," Lawliet smirked before getting back to his feet and assuming a combative stance, "I think I'm ready for another round. Can't start slacking off now with the chance to take out another pillar hanging right around the corner, now can I? Kid might think I'm being lazy just sticking to the hacking jobs."

The red-headed assassin nodded and assumed her own stance, "I still have a hard time believing a bunch of children and an old goat from the sub-branch actually managed to plan an attempt on Minato's life. I mean it was only a matter of time with how that pig treats them, but still…"

"You said they're almost done assembling a bomb of some kind," Lawliet mused while dashing forward and attempting to box his lover in with several swipes of his blade. Kimiko dodged easily however, using as little movement as possible to conserve energy before countering with a strike that left Lawliet's side wide open. Undaunted, the hacker used the force of the block to swing his knife back around with twice the speed. Kimiko blocked with her kunai and the two entered a stalemate, neither able to bully the other with their strength.

"Two bombs. One looks like it's meant to be placed under a vehicle, while the other will be a decoy in a room on one of the upper floors," the lovely assassin scrunched her nose as she tried recalling the finer details of what she'd seen on Takeshi's workbench, "At least that's what I think that kid wrote down in their plans. We'll have to review the tapes."

"True. Either way, this could be the opening we needed," Lawliet broke the stalemate by jumping back, but instead of capitalizing on the opening he sheathed his knife in a holster clipped on his lower back, "We'll have to let the kid know."

Seeing that their spar had ended for the moment, Kimiko slipped her kunai back into the sleeve of her kimono, "You'll have some explaining to do when you see boya again after what happened last time. Are you prepared for that?"

Lawliet cringed a bit as he recalled his outburst and behavior from Keitaro's last visit and his slip of the tongue. It hadn't been one of his best moments, "I don't think I have a choice. Honestly, this was inevitable from the moment we started working together. I'll answer any questions he has though."

"Good, better to get that out of the way sooner than later," the elder woman nodded before posing a question that had been niggling at her, "So what is your take on these ambitious little birds and their assassination plan?"

"If I'm being honest, I think it's too flimsy," Lawliet replied after contemplating his answer for a moment, "They have the conviction, a good deal of technical knowledge too if they could construct bombs like that with the supplies they were able to get their hands on under the radar. Unfortunately, it's obvious that they're green as hell with planning something like this when you see the mistakes: no system of redundancy, very little overwatch, and too many openings where things can go wrong."

The plan that the sub-branch rebels had come up with was sound up to a point, but there were some pretty glaring holes that Lawliet had spotted immediately that could spell catastrophe for them all.

"If their plan flops, then not only are they all dead, but Minato-teme will start putting more extreme measures in place to protect himself and his family. We may have to wait months for another chance," he grunted, taking a seat against the wall.

Kimiko walked over and sat next to him, laying her head on his shoulder as she mused over his observations, "Well, what if we worked with them? It wouldn't have to be directly, maybe just some clandestine aid here and there? They could end up taking out Minato and Ichimaru for us."

The hacker shot his lover's suggestion down quickly, "No dice. Too many chances those bombs don't blow or someone gets found out. Plus, I know for a fact the kid's gonna want a piece of Minato personally. Every pillar he's killed, he did it face to face. No way in hell he would let some sub-branchers take that away from him."

"No, I suppose he wouldn't with his damnable pride," Kimiko sighed, her emerald eyes dimming as she recalled days past with the vengeful Mononobe heir, "We can discuss this more at length when we meet with him again."

Lawliet shook his head, garnering a confused look on the lovely assassin's face, "It's not pride. Trust me, I would know. This is about resolution, or more importantly closure. If he let someone else do it for him, sure he might be able to live a regular life. But he would never be able to completely let it go. He was present and saw each of his family members butchered, from the kids to the elderly. Keitaro needs to see the faces of his family's killers as he returns the favor. He needs to see the light go out in their eyes and know they're burning in hell at last."

Standing back on her feet, Kimiko patted her butt down a bit to get rid of any dust before offering a hand to Lawliet, "I'll take your word for it Law-kun. As for now though, you still have training to do if you want to get good enough to kill Ichimaru."

Lawliet's eyes hardened, becoming two icy chips of steel blue as he took the assassin's hand and got up himself, "Back to work then. Can't let the kid's benevolence go to waste with an opportunity like this. Minato is all his, but his last brat…that one is MINE."

Kimiko smirked at the hint of rage in her lover's voice, and the two made their way back to the center of the padded training room, both taking their respective weapons out and assuming their stances. Before he started his attack, Lawliet threw a curveball at the unsuspecting Kimiko, "Random question Kimi-chan…think we should come up with a code name for our little squad?"

"…come again?"

That slight moment of shock earned Kimiko a one-way trip across the room. She made doubly sure to keep her guard up for the rest of the session afterwards.

"Well look at you two working so hard," Eri teased as she sauntered into the hidden workshop. Takeshi acknowledged her with a quick nod, while Sakura didn't even offer so much as a glance as she continued soldering the cover of one of the bombs into place. Both teens were covered in sweat from their efforts, but from the smirks on their faces it was easy to see they enjoyed every minute of it.

"We're just about done with them, only putting on finishing touches," the young man stated as he affixed a piece of hosing to the outside of the larger explosive, "This one has to blend with the parts under the vehicle so it'll be nearly impossible to pick it out when they inspect it. Thankfully I checked out the underbelly of the limo they want to use, so I know exactly how to camouflage the explosives."

"Bastards won't know what hit em," Sakura growled before finishing the soldering job and placed her equipment down. The bomb in front of her was smaller, more crude-looking in its boxy design. She looked at the busty interloper with a neutral expression, "So why are you bugging us now you cow? The teme try to feel you up again?"

Eri smirked nastily at the younger girl, "No need to be so rude munyuu-chan. I just wanted to check on my cute little kouhai-conspirators and make sure Takkun wasn't suffering from your incessant screeching."

Sakura immediately saw red from the nickname and it took Takeshi grabbing her in a full-nelson hold to keep her from murdering the older woman, "YOU TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW! FUCKING DAIRY COW! THINK YOU'RE SO MUCH BETTER THAN ME CUZ OF YOUR STUPID SWEATER STUFFERS! LEGGO OF ME TAKESHI, I'M MURDERING THIS BITCH TODAY!"

"Unfortunately, you can't kill her yet imouto." Takeshi sighed, finding little humor in a song and dance that had long since gotten old. Turning his deadpan gaze to the giggling Eri he asked, "Could you please try not to set off my little sister, Eri-san? I'd rather she not do something in her anger that could set off the several grams of explosives next to us."

Having had her bit of fun, Eri calmed down and pulled one of the chairs closer to take a seat, "If Takkun insists, then how I can I possibly refuse?"

Nodding his thanks Takeshi let Sakura go, giving her a warning look when she appeared to be gearing up to assault Eri again. With a feral growl she stalked off to the other side of the room to start clearing up the work place, giving Takeshi and Eri a moment to speak, "So was the conference date finalized Eri-san?"

Eri nodded, "The twenty-fourth of June, a little more than two weeks from now. There was some talk of pushing the meeting date up a few days, but the Americans flat out refused to change their timetable."

"Guess we should be thankful that the Americans are so predictable, gives us a little more time to check over the explosives and make sure they'll work," Takeshi mused. Despite his confidence in his bomb-making skills, he knew very well that the components they were using were highly suspect at best. Every extra minute he had to inspect them was worth their weight in gold to their plot.

Seeing the young man begin to doubt himself, Eri placed a hand on his head and playfully ruffled his hair, "Have more faith in your abilities Takkun. You and Sakura-chan are the best inventors and engineers in Minato's sect of the sub-branch. I know your babies will work just fine."

Takeshi did his best to hide the blush forming on his cheeks, "Th-Thanks for the vote of confidence Eri-san. Oh! Were you able to get those assignments taken care of?"

The older brunette looked confused for a moment before remembering what Takeshi had asked her to do days ago, "Yep! Sakura and I are on the manifest as attendants and cleaning service. You owe me one for the hassle I had to go through to get Yuko switched with Sakura for this. The asshole Minato put in charge of making the staff assignments was particularly set on her for some reason…"

Taskeshi started to look sick, "You didn't have to…do anything to make the switch…did you?"

To his relief she shook her head, "I might have implied a few things here and there, but thankfully that snake never touched me. It's a good thing Yuko wanted to be near Ruumari…she'll be much safer with him."

"So long as he never finds out she had a role in this," the bomb-maker's heart went out to the demure woman he looked up to like an older sister. Despite the love she held for their venerable cousin, and despite knowing the pain she would cause him by aiding in the death of his father, Yuko had still thrown her lot in with them. He would forever be in her debt for that.

'I swore that no matter what happens to us as a result of this, Yuko-nee and Sakura-chan are the ones that must escape punishment at all costs. The rest of us are prepared to die for this, but those two must live!'

"Well, that was my update for the day," Eri rose from her seat and stretched her arms, heedless to what that caused her chest to do and the effect it had on Takeshi, "How about we all go get dinner?"

"S-Sounds good to me," Takeshi winced at his stuttering as he cleared up the workbench a bit and began making his way out, 'Think clean thoughts…she's my cousin for Kami's sake! This isn't some hentai doujinshi for crying out loud!'

"Munyuu-chaaan~ time to go eat, let's go!" Eri called out with a foxy grin. The smile grew when she received a curse-laden reply. Glancing back at the table, she raised an eyebrow as she noticed a little visitor.

"How do these dragonflies keep getting in here? Shoo! Shoo!" she waved a hand at it, the oddly colored insect quickly flying off to escape getting squashed. Eri turned to a huffing Sakura as she walked by, "Don't those bugs hate being underground like this or something?"

"Beats me, but that one seems to like us for some reason. It's not the first time it's been down here the past few days…"

Eri narrowed her eyes at the comment, suddenly possessed by a powerful sense of unease.

'I've never seen a dragonfly like that in this region…something's fishy here…'

Keitaro knocked gently on the worn wooden door of Lawliet's apartment, slightly shifting his weight from one foot to the next. After what happened during his last visit, along with the information his aunt had unwittingly given him, the avenger felt a small bit of awkwardness at the prospect of being in the hacker's presence. However, his steadfastness and desire for revenge quickly quashed whatever discomfort he was experiencing. There were far more important things afoot than stumbling upon Haruka's ex.

Besides, there was a chance that this situation could open the door to some interesting opportunities should certain situations arise in the future. If nothing else, he now had someone else to hate Seta with.

"One second Kei-kun," a slightly breathless, yet sultry voice echoed from behind the door before it opened to reveal Kimiko, her hair damp and dressed only in a yukata that was clearly several sizes too small. Any other man would have died of blood loss…and they would've claimed it was a good death.

"…Kimiko," Keitaro greeted with a slow nod before calmly walking past her into the apartment. The assassin shook her head in slight disbelief, "Y'know, most men would've turned into dribbling, slobbering messes if I greeted them at the door like this. Almost makes me wonder if I'm losing my charm."

"You're not, however it was you that trained me to resist seduction tactics," the landlord countered, shifting the bokken at his waist to take a seat on the ratty couch in the cramped living room, "Wouldn't it be insulting to you if I feel for your feminine wiles?"

Kimiko giggled as she sauntered to Lawliet's bedroom, "You really do make your master proud, apprentice."

"Don't call me that."

"I see someone has never watched Star Wars before," the underdressed assassin sighed as she shook her head, "Such a shame…and here I thought you were a man of culture."

The flat stare she received from the younger man sent a rather uncomfortable chill down her spine. Keitaro was not amused, and he seemed to be putting every iota of that statement into the look on his face.

Realizing she might be treading on thin ice, the redhaired woman awkwardly cleared her throat and turned around to gently knocked on her lover's door, "Law-kun, boya's back to grace us with his frigid presence. I think you have business to discuss?"

Moments later the door opened, revealing a slightly more put together Lawliet. Giving Kimiko a quick kiss on the cheek in thanks, he made his way into the common room and took a seat on the recliner facing the couch, sharp blue eyes locked onto twin orbs of reddish brown. For several minutes neither man said a word, the tension growing to the point Kimiko thought she could cut it with a kunai. Suddenly, Keitaro narrowed his gaze at his elder comrade, "So I heard an interesting tale yesterday from my aunt while she was holding a vigil for someone who was once very dear to her."

Lawliet perked up slightly, "…is that right?"

"Indeed, she said he was the first man she ever loved," the avenger continued, taking note of the subtle changes that came over his partner's face, "Even told me all of the highs and lows…especially the lows. It explained quite a bit actually."

The hacker froze, his initial plans to explain things to Keitaro suddenly fizzling away as the younger man continued to gaze at him with unflinching eyes. Lawliet had never thought the avenger would learn his true identity or his link to the Urashima clan so quickly. At some point in the future, without question, but nowhere near this soon.

Realizing he had caught the hacker fully off guard, Keitaro eased up on the tension he knew he was adding to the situation, "Then Haru told me his name. You have the same name as my father, and if I'm being honest…"

Keitaro paused, giving Lawliet a chance to look back up and see the focused stare from the bokken-wielding young man turn into a light, playful smirk, "…I think I would have liked having you as an uncle."

The hacker's eyebrows went up minutely before a deep chuckled echoed in the room, "I would've been proud as hell to have you as a nephew. I knew I liked you for a reason kid, and not just because you're so good at killing those crappy crimsons."

With the water seemingly under the bridge, Kimiko let out a sigh of relief and gladly sat in her favorite spot on Lawliet's lap, "So does this mean I can call you Kazu-kun in front of him now?"

"Do whatever you want, I'll still address you as Lawliet. Makes things easier for now," Keitaro said as he pointed his gaze at the older woman, "In any case, you said you had some new information for me. Is there a new obstacle in the way?"

"Potentially, however it's not what you're thinking," the assassin offered before reaching over and picking up a folder. With a flick of her wrist, she sent it flying to the avenger who lazily caught it and opened it up. As the young avenger perused the information before him, Kimiko began to fill him in, "Apparently there are those in the sub-branch who've finally grown a pair and decided they don't want to stay under Minato-teme's thumb anymore. They want him gone, and they're planning on bombing him straight to hell's doorstep."

The photos she had taken with her dragonfly drone were crystal clear and captured everything: instructions and schematics for building the bombs, the floor plans Eri had managed to pilfer, a list of names for the security detail, all of it subject to Keitaro's pinpoint attention.

After ten minutes of going through the pictures and reading the renegade sub-branch members' plans, Keitaro looked back up at his cohorts, "It's clear they've put quite a bit of work into this. Unfortunately for them, it'll never work. If they are allowed to go through with this half-baked scheme, any chance to get to Minato will disappear."

"That's the same conclusion I came to," Lawliet drawled as he got more comfortable in his chair, "The explosives they got their hands on are pretty strong and the devices look like they can blend pretty well onto whatever surface they plant them on, but they underestimate the Americans…they'll sniff those out in a heartbeat before anyone even takes a seat at the table. Their bomb squads have ridiculous amounts of experience and they mean business."

Keitaro nodded, "Then it looks like we are in agreement that we cannot allow their plan to go through. It is destined for failure, and it will drag us down with them."

"…maybe…but then again, isn't there a chance it can be our opening?"

Both men looked at Kimiko (in Lawliet's case, up), the wily woman smirking as she began to present her point, "Sure their bombs will more than likely be discovered if left to blow on their timetable, and it will send everyone in that room scurrying like rats. The Americans will split off to protect their delegates, and Minato and his ilk will run back to their cars and make for his hidey-hole back at the royal palace."

"I thought that was obvious Kimiko," Keitaro growled with an irritated glare at the deadly siren, "We still haven't found a way around that panic room. Once he gets in there, it's game over."

"…so why not get him while he's en route?"

The question stopped Lawliet and Keitaro cold for a moment. It was true that the Imperial Palace wasn't all that far from Akasuisei HQ, but that was still a good distance between him and his safe room.

"…technically, he would still have to drive several blocks in a limo caravan, and there's mid-day traffic to consider," Lawliet mused as he began working on the particulars of such an option. Keitaro however, put an immediate halt to the idea, "There's no way we'd be able to get to him with that protection detail. He'd be out in the open, nowhere to ambush him from, and while I'm pretty confident in Terukaeshi (Glare), I'd rather not test it against that many guns."

His shield was strong enough to weather some of the fiercest ki-based attacks in existence, but even the powerful avenger would be hard-pressed against concentrated fire from automatic weapons and he knew it.

"So there's the real monkey wrench in the plan," Lawliet mumbled with a sigh of resignation, "Despite all our abilities, it's just the three of us and this time we're up against what's probably the second most fortified of the pillar families. Unless we're willing to hire mercs, I can't really think of a way around Minato-teme's security detail right now."

The mood in the room fell as the realization dawned on the others. Kimiko sank into Lawliet's chest, pawing at it like a bored kitten. Keitaro's eyes dulled as he gripped his hakama pants in his hands, fists tightening so much his knuckles cracked from the strain.

"…we did not come this far in our mission to be stopped cold like this," the younger man growled, stubborn determination gleaming in his now-crimson eyes, "This is merely another obstacle to be overcome, nothing more."

With that, he stood and packed up the photos and diagrams Kimiko had given to him back into their manila folder, "I'll take these plans to Director Arata at Nagareboshi HQ, see if he can fashion something to interfere with the detonation signal from afar and make them invisible to the American security's detection measures. As for the issue of the security detail, I will ascertain an appropriate countermeasure myself."

Giving the two a final nod, Keitaro adjusted his bokken and calmly left the apartment. When the door closed, Kimiko threw a small pebble at the latch on it to seal the lock before turning and straddling Lawliet's lap, "Well, he's determined at least. I don't think we'll have to worry too much about these little hurdles now that the boya's all fired up."

"I dunno," Lawliet replied doubtfully as he began gently rubbing the gorgeous assassin's thighs, eliciting a pleasant purr from her throat, "My father was in the Spec Ops, and his training is still with me even after all this time. I know how the Americans work, how they think. It'll take something pretty drastic to get past their senses…and they're nothing if not paranoid.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, the redheaded woman leaned in until their foreheads touched, "You may know how the Americans work, but I know how Kyoshiro-kun works. He's always had a penchant for getting the job done by any means necessary. Just give him a day or two," the predatory smirk that formed on her face sent chills down the hacker's spine…the good and bad kind, "He just might surprise you in a way you never expected."

"…I'll look forward to it…"

"Good. Now give your superior officer some love."

"Heh, ma'am, yes ma'am."

"Kei-kun, are you ok?"

Keitaro looked up from his textbook and glanced across the table to see a look of concern on Naru's face. A bit confused at her concern he nodded, "Yes, I'm fine Naru-chan. Why, does my face look bad?"

"Pft, like that could ever happen pretty boy," she joked before the slight worry wormed its way back onto her face, "You've just been quiet lately, as in quieter than normal. It's like you've had something huge on your mind the past couple days. The others have been picking up on it too, but no one wanted to say anything in case we were just overreacting…"

The landlord silently cursed himself at the apparent slipping of his emotional mask. It had been about three days since his meeting with Lawliet and Kimiko, and while Arata had assured him that he would be able to siphon up a device to interfere with the bombs as well as render them undetectable from American scanners, there was still no forthcoming solution to the grave threat of the security detail surrounding Minato and his clients.

He may or may not have cleared part of the bamboo clearing out back in his frustration.

'That was fun explaining to Mo-chan yesterday,' he thought to himself wryly before returning his attention to the lovely brunette sitting across from him, "It's nothing major really, just some issues with the business that I have been trying to take care of. Maybe the stress is getting to me a little bit."

Naru shook her head with a small giggle, "Sheesh Kei-kun, you really just don't know how to a break once in a while, huh?"

Keitaro chuckled, earning a grin from the gorgeous brunette. Naru crawled from her spot across the table until she was right next to the landlord, her arms going under his and wrapping around his back in a firm, gentle hug. Keitaro in turn wrapped a single arm around her lithe waist and brought her in closer, using his other arm to balance them on the floor as he pressed his face into her hair. Kissing the top of her head, he felt her tighten her arms a bit, "I'll admit it's not one of my strong suits. It's a good thing I have you here to motivate me to do better with that."

"Damn right mister," she said into his chest before pulling back a bit and looking up into his warm brown eyes, "So how about we ditch the books and have a date night?"

The landlord raised an eyebrow in suspicion, "Am I hearing this right? Narusegawa Naru, the number one highest scoring student in Tokyo, the one declared most studious by our previous high school class…is proposing to skip studying for a night? Young lady, who are you and what have you done with my beloved girlfriend?"

Naru playfully beat him on the chest, "Jerk. I'm serious though, we've spent a good chunk of the spring and this month preparing for the mock exams, and personally I feel like my brain is going to turn into jelly. Even us geniuses like us need some downtime. Besides, when was the last time you took me out to do something fun?"

Keitaro's forehead scrunched up as he tried to recall the most recent outing with the lovely brunette, "Didn't we go bowling last week?"

"That was two weeks ago."

"…What about that time we went for ice cream after you met up with me at Nagareboshi?"

"It was a quick stop at the most, and we didn't even get to spend the evening together because Motoko went postal over those cops that came to visit."

The landlord tilted his head down ashamedly, "…So it's been quite a while then. I'm sorry Naru-chan. I thought I was getting better with prioritizing more time to spend together, but clearly I haven't improved with that as much as I believed."

Instead of the reaming he had been expecting, Naru gently cupped his cheek and moved his head back up so she could look him in the eyes. With an understanding smile, she started rubbing his cheek soothingly, "You don't have to apologize. We had this talk before and you have been trying to be there for me more, and I really am happy you have. I also know that you're kind of a big deal around here and have to handle way more than anyone our age would ever dream of."

Leaning up, she planted her lips on his in a tender kiss that he damn near melted into, only pulling back when she felt she'd gotten her message across, "But that's exactly why I think a date night would be perfect for both of us. You get some time to relax, and I get my Kei-kun quota filled up without the others around. Sound good?"

"I have no objections whatsoever," Keitaro replied with a small grin, "Any suggestions as to where you'd like to go?"

"Karaoke!"

"Why am I surprised," he chuckled, earning the wrath of Naru in the form of several punches to the ribs. This caused him to lose his balance on his arm and fall back, bringing a squealing Naru down with him on top of his chest. Once more, the landlord found himself staring up at the beautiful young woman who had somehow brought light into his darkened soul, a light blush and a mischievous smirk blossoming on her face, "Careful Kei-kun…if we keep this up, we'll never leave."

"I suppose you're right," he agreed, though noted Naru was slow to rise as she tantalizingly ran her hands down his chest and stomach while she got into a sitting position, "Yet you tease me so brazenly."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she denied with an impish grin, stealing a quick kiss from his lips before standing up and patting her skirt down. Reaching down, she held Keitaro's hand and hoisted him up onto his feet, once again surprising the young swordsman with her strength, "C'mon, let's go tell Shinobu-chan and Kitsune that we'll be taking off for the night so they don't set up extra places at the table."

"Right behind you," Keitaro replied, still in a slight state of bewilderment, 'I swear, one of these days I need to meditate with her and find out if she's subconsciously enforcing her body with ki…no regular girl should be that strong!'

As the two exited the landlord's room and reached the steps, a perky voice stopped them in their tracks, "Heyas Keitaro! Check out the new toy I just made to play with!"

The two teens halted and looked behind them, only for Keitaro to grab Naru and hit the floor as a wave of light passed over them and slammed into the ceiling. As the dust cleared, the landlord noticed a deep slice had been cut into the wood, 'What the…was that a ki attack? Don't tell me she's finally figured out how to artificially channel ki through technology!'

Slowly craning his head back around, Keitaro spotted the impish youngster standing slightly behind what looked like a samurai who appeared to have been plucked out from the Edo period. Adorned in dark armor, he stood nearly a meter and a half tall, wielding a nodachi that seemed to have several thin slits running down the blade that didn't seem to compromise its integrity. A draconic mask hid his face from view, lending the stranger a menacing countenance.

The fact he didn't make a single sound didn't help his creep factor one bit.

"Su! Who did you let into the house now?!" Naru shrieked as she pointed accusingly at the ominous warrior, "D-Didn't I tell you not to welcome just anybody into Hinata-sou?!"

"I didn't let him in, I made him!" the foreign girl beamed proudly, "This is my Keitaro Training Drone 9000! I used the data from the other drones to make this one waaayyyyy better! He can't use those cool energy attack thingies, so I gave him a sword that uses special laser refractors and micromirrors to mimic the effect!"

'So, it's not actually using ki. Thank Kami for that much. Still, to have been able to replicate my Hinode so accurately with just her inventions…'

Taking a closer look at the robot, Keitaro noticed the smooth, silver skin on its fingers, "I can't believe it. Su that drone of yours looks almost completely human!"

"Mmhmm! And he fights like a human too!" she exclaimed just as the drone assumed an attack stance. Seeing where this was headed, Keitaro guided Naru behind him and pulled out his bokken, "Alright then, you've piqued my curiosity. Just know this is the only time I'm allowing you to play in the hallways. If anything breaks, you're helping me fix it understood?"

The grin on Suu's face at the prospect of finally getting some playtime with the most intriguing person she'd ever met nearly split her face in two, "AWESOME! I'll set the difficulty level to super hard mode!"

"Y-You sure this is a good idea Kei?" Naru asked with no small amount of apprehension, "You two could completely wreck this floor! And what about our date?!"

"Don't worry about the hallway, these walls are pretty sturdy and we won't go near the bedrooms," he reassured the slightly frightened brunette, "We'll head out as soon as I'm done and get cleaned up. Something tells me I won't escape this unscathed."

Naru was about to object when she noticed the look in her boyfriend's eyes. The past few days, they had been dimmed by frustration and anger. However, at that moment, something had changed.

'He looks…happy? Like he just got inspired by something? Ugh, I'll never understand what goes through this dummy's head sometimes…'

"Fine, but you owe me TWO hours at the karaoke bar now."

"I'll buy out the entire building for the night if you want," Keitaro offered easily, missing the stars that appeared in Naru's eyes due to his focus on the drone, "Now I think you better head downstairs and tell the others not to come up here for a few minutes."

Without further pause, Keitaro and the drone rushed each other and met at the middle of the hallway, the clang of their blades ringing throughout the area.

"Your drone has a great deal of power in those arms," Keitaro complimented with a grunt as he tried to get the upper hand in a test of power, "It's a good thing I was using my steel bokken today for strength training. That strike would've cleaved my other one easily."

"The data I took from the other drones included your average power rating, which meant I had to make this drone double that!" Suu explained as she observed the duel, "To be honest, it should have flung you into the stairs by now, so the fact you're evenly matched means you got even stronger since the last time! You're so cool Keitaro!"

'Have I really becoming that much stronger in the past few weeks? I guess the curse is working its magic,' the landlord noted before finally slipping back from the contest and launching a blistering offensive. The drone did not disappoint, managing to dodge or parry each strike without breaking its rhythm. Going for a slash to the legs, Keitaro was surprised to see the drone somersault over the blow and land at his back. Inhuman reflexes were all that saved the manager from a savage blow to the chest, the ring of the blades echoing down the hall and even to the first floor.

'If I had been anyone else, that would've killed me!'

He could feel his blood pumping faster, his senses becoming sharper as the exhibition duel drew on longer. The call to use his dark ki beat in tune with his erratic heart, growing stronger and stronger, 'No! This fight doesn't need to go there, and like hell would I show Suu or anyone else that I can even access such a thing in the first place!'

Taking a few calming breaths, he silenced the call from his heart to summon the blood curse and refocused his attention on his opponent. The drone still appeared to be in good condition, minus several tears in its kimono and the nicks in its armor courtesy of the landlord. Throughout their exchanges so far, he'd spotted very few obvious openings in the combat drone's form. It wasn't perfect by any means, but Suu's construct was so well balanced that it was able to cover its weaknesses pretty well.

In other words, it seemed to be the perfect assault apparatus.

The missing key that he had been searching for.

'Just one more test,' he thought as he summoned his blazing orange ki to his blade, 'let's see how it's imitated ki attack compares to the real thing!'

The drone picked up the use of ki on its sensors and immediately channeled power into it's integrated sword, the cracks in the blade emitting a haunting yellow glow as it raised its blade into the air.

"Suu, go take cover one of the rooms!" Keitaro ordered before raising his bokken into the air, "Let's see if you can stack up! Hinode (Daybreak)!"

Swinging down with all his strength, the landlord launched the arc of focused, orange ki at the same time the drone fired its own arc of laser energy. The two attacks swiftly met at the middle between the two warriors and clashed with the sound of several bombs going off. Both attacks pushed at the other, random sparks and lances of ki and laser flying off and carving small divots into the walls, floor and ceiling. Keitaro could only watch in amazement as his attack struggled but slowly began canceling out the drone's laser arc. After a few more nail-biting seconds, the laser arc finally blew apart, sending Keitaro's ki attack screaming toward the drone. The technological warrior stood no chance as the wave sliced into its armor at the waist, cutting through like a hot knife into butter. It stood only a few moments longer before everything above the torso slid back and fell to the floor with a final 'thump'.

Peeking out of the doorway she had taken refuge in, Suu pouted a bit at what was left of her prized invention, "Oh poo, it still can't take those cool energy attacks that well. But now I have even more data to make it even stronger next time!"

Panting a bit, Keitaro made his way over to the still cheerful young girl and gently rubbed his hand in her wild blonde hair, "You really outdid yourself with this one Suu. I felt as if I was on edge the entire time in that short duel. This could really be a boon to my training."

Hearing the compliment and noticing how good it felt to have him rub his hand in her hair sent wonderous chills down the young girl's spine, the permanent blush on her cheeks becoming even redder, "You mean you really liked fighting the drone Suu made?! Really really?!"

"Really really," he smiled in reply, causing the younger girl's heart to flutter, "in fact, the next time you have one ready, let me know and I'll make sure to set some time aside to fight with it. Outside of course."

"Awesome! I'll start working on the new model right now!" the excitable girl jumped and bear hugged the landlord, a gesture he returned with a laugh, before grabbing up the remains of the drone and dashing back to her room. After making sure she was out of sight, a dark grin slowly formed on Keitaro's face. Heading to the stairs to go and take Naru out for their date, he pulled out his phone and sent a quick text message to his co-conspirators.

'Need to talk soon. Might have a solution to our little problem.'

Minato's mansion was abuzz with activity as the sub-branch servants attacked their chores at a frenzied pace. The day of the vaunted conference between Akasuisei and their new American clients was fast approaching, and at the last-minute Minato had decided that after the meeting he would host their esteemed visitors at his home for refreshments.

This caught the majority of the fearful house staff off guard, but a few not-so-subtle threats from the tyrannical Fifth Pillar had them moving quickly enough.

Up in his private office, Minato looked out the window leading to the courtyard and grinned as he watched several servants sweeping the cobblestone walkway leading up to the elaborate home, "The dregs aren't doing half bad. Looks like my 'encouragement' lit a fire under their asses."

"It sounds like you have things under control on your end brother," the voice of Heihachi echoed in the room from the speaker phone, "Though I still question the wisdom of bringing outsiders into your home during such dangerous times."

"They have all been properly vetted by our people, 'Hachi. We know everything about those delegates and their security detail down to who cheated on their wife in the past three months."

The clan head sighed on his end, but opted to let the matter go. Minato was not his sons, and he trusted his younger brother to do everything he could to ensure his family's safety, "Very well. Regardless, I will assign some of my own mercenaries to provide extra security."

"You worry too much brother, but the extra eyes will be welcome," Minato replied before walking back to his desk and taking a seat in the plush office chair, "So enough about business, how's our little future head doing with his training?"

Heihachi chuckled at the inquiry about his eldest son, "Kurotora is an avid learner, a welcome change from his younger days. After our recent stretch of tragedies, he has been putting forward even greater efforts into his classes. It is my belief that Tora aims to complete enough of his curriculum to allow him to return to Tokyo and finish his education from there."

The bearish Fifth Pillar leaned back in his seat a bit, causing the gears to creak at the shift of his sizable weight, "As much as I'd love to see my nephew again, would it not also be dangerous for him to be here? Especially since he's your successor?"

"While that is a concern, he has also improved vastly in his control of the cursed energy of the Juuchi Yosamu," Minato could almost hear the prideful grin on his brother's face, "I will never admit it to him, but he has long since surpassed me in his ability to control its ki. That sword has completely erased from him the curse that the rest of us pure-blooded members suffer from. I have no doubts of his ability to look after himself."

"Such praise from our esteemed leader…I hope you're not getting soft on me brother," the two shared a chuckle between them before the sound of approaching footsteps garnered the large man's attention, "Sounds like my next appointments are coming now, 'Hachi. Give my regards to Tora-kun."

A grunt of affirmation was all Minato received before the line cut, just as Ruumari and Akisora walked into the office, "Oh, it's you two. I thought you were someone else for a moment. How can I help you?"

"Just wanted to review the security protocols you have in place for the meeting Dad," Ruumari replied as he approached the desk. Akisora remained a step behind and took in the ostentatiously decorated office.

'Sheesh, and here I thought father had the obsession with gold…'

"There's nothing you need to worry about son. Ichimaru-kun took care of everything, including hiring another PMC from mainland Asia to help bolster our numbers," Minato reassured, thinking back to the group his youngest son had introduced him to that morning. Judging by their uniforms and the numerous scars and tattoos, he could tell the fox-like boy had procured a rather colorful, but experienced bunch of soldiers for their detail.

Ruumari however was not as convinced, "I don't really think mercenaries from the underground make for the most reliable protection detail. Their loyalty belongs to the highest bidder. If our little assassin friend happens to have deep enough pockets, that could put you and Ichi-kun in a vulnerable position."

Minato frowned, "We have no evidence thus far that this assassin rat has that kind of financial support. A tech wiz or two in his pocket maybe, an insider in our clan definitely, but other than that I doubt he has pockets anywhere near as deep as ours."

"That's what we thought too, but then I'm sure you saw the results of the testing done on the debris left from Ran's club," Akisora chimed in, amber eyes narrowed as he mentally went through the findings, "White phosphorus of that grade cannot be obtained from just anywhere. It's illegal for use in most first-world countries including Japan. A seemingly random assassin getting their hands on even that small amount used in Ran's murder on their own defies all logic."

Ruumari sensed his father beginning to get frustrated by the facts presented, if his face slowly reddening wasn't indication enough, "We've talked about this before Dad. You can't afford to underestimate this assassin out of arrogance and misplaced pride. They have proven for the past several years that our clan's prestige, deep coffers, connections, and reputation mean nothing to them.

"Fine, fine, you've made your points!" Minato blustered before rummaging through a drawer to find a set of files he'd been meaning to hand over to his son and nephew, "I'll have Ichimaru reach out to more reputable PMCs nearby and procure their services. In the meantime, you two should start helping to consolidate our other allies. It's about time we start thinking of going on the offensive against that cowardly trash ourselves!"

Taking the file from his uncle, Akisora flipped through a few pages full of minor clans who still held power in the country. Some had already been assimilated into the Tachibana clan to bolster the number of warriors they had on hand, along with their respective industrial contributions to the economy. One clan name in particular stuck out, "Uh, I believe this one may give us some trouble, Uncle."

Minato looked down at the clan Akisora pointed out and scoffed, "Hah! How do you figure that when their elder council have been kissing our asses since our clan took on the Imperial Guardianship? We already have an arrangement with them, don't we?"

"Yeeaahh, about that," Akisora began, but when he hesitated to explain Ruumari continued in his stead, "We paid a little visit to the Hinata dorms a few days ago to ask the landlord a couple questions regarding the incident with Ranmaru and the younger sister of one of his residents. He wasn't there, but we found the that clan's heiress and…well let's just say she didn't take too kindly to our presence."

"Tch…that's one way to word her reaction. She damn near took our heads off." the younger Tachibana muttered under his breath.

The Fifth Pillar growled, "That girl has been a very annoying hurdle to the unification of our clans. Looks like it's time to play hardball for real now," he glared out the window to his side as he mulled over an idea in his head, "Alright then, you two will go to Kyoto in the next few days and visit with the Aoyama elder council. You make them understand that we're done being patient and that they have a month to get EVERYONE in the clan to get on board with us, or else we might reconsider our generous offer to them."

"Wait, you want us to go all the way to Kyoto this close to the conference?!" Ruumari couldn't believe it. His father was actually sending him away at such a critical juncture, especially with an assassin still running loose.

"I have faith in the forces Ichimaru has gathered here to look after your mother and I, and with the additional protection services I'll be reaching out to, we'll have a small army at our beck and call," Minato reassured, though he knew both his son and nephew were far from convinced, "Look at it this way, the sooner you make this trip and get those old fools to pull their act together, the sooner you can return with some of their warriors in tow to add to our forces. It'll be the least they could do to make up for their delay."

It was a very weak argument, and Ruumari could think of several ways to dismantle it. However, he also knew just how stubborn his father could be. It would be extremely risky, and his family would be left vulnerable in the time he was gone, but if he and his cousin could somehow force the Aoyama to heel quickly enough…

"We'll leave the day before the conference," Ruumari spoke in a near whisper, but the other occupants in the room heard him easily enough, "It'll give me a chance to examine these security forces for myself. If anything happens while I'm gone, and I mean anything-"

"I'll let you give me the tongue-lashing you've always wanted to and then some if it comes to that," Minato promised with a large grin, "I really appreciate you doing me this favor son."

Akisora could only nod, having quickly realized what Ruumari was trying to do, "I'll go start packing for the trip. I doubt we'll be there longer than a couple days."

"You do that," Ruumari replied. Akisora swiftly left the room, leaving father and son alone. Ruumari gave his father a stern glare before holding his hand out, "You and Ichimaru stay safe until I get back. The kids would never stop crying if anything happened to their favorite grandpa."

Minato gripped his son's hand in a hearty farewell shake. Ruumari then followed after Akisora, leaving his father to ruminate over the meeting and the actions he'd promised to take to reinforce their protection. Reaching over to the intercom, he pressed the buzzer and called for his other son. Within minutes, Ichimaru was standing at attention in front of his father's desk, his usual foxy smirk in place on his lips, "You asked for me, pops?"

"I did Ichi-kun," Minato slowly rose from his seat and walked around the desk to stand before his youngest, "I'll need you to contact the other protection details in the legal circuit. Whatever amount they ask for their services, we'll pay double."

"Got it. Anything else?"

The giant of a man grinned, "Yes son. For the next several days before this conference, I'll be doubling down on our training. It's faint, but the warrior in me has a feeling that an old friend will be paying us a visit, and we'll need to be ready to give him a nice, warm welcome."

"We're gonna have to work on your timing for calls kid, Kimi-chan and I were just getting ready to settle in if you know what I mean."

Keitaro blushed at the insinuation as he held his cell to his ear, "I didn't have much of a choice! Suu ran us ragged today and I had to wait for the girls to fall asleep before I could even think of calling!"

It was close to midnight, and everyone at the dorms were currently in bed. After the experience of fighting Suu's new android the day before, the landlord had been forced to be the test subject of the resident mad genius' subsequent upgrades. Between "playing" with her, studying, and getting teased/tortured by Kitsune about the date night he'd had with Naru, Keitaro just barely had anytime to call and elaborate on his newest idea to his cohorts.

In the back of his mind, Lawliet knew the assassin had his hands full with those girls. He would not let it stop him from poking fun at his young new friend however. Not when he made it so easy.

"I know, I'm just messing with ya," the hacker replied coolly, smirking when he heard the landlord growl, "So what's this solution to our problems that you mentioned before?"

"A new robot made by one of the residents. She is a genius-level intellectual from MolMol, though looking at her you would never believe it," Keitaro began, getting a bit more comfortable in his futon, "Her designs have usually been more on the cartoonish side, but this one…if I had not known any better, I would have sworn it was a real person. Seasoned tactics, body language, it could even imitate ki attacks."

Lawliet whistled on the other end, "That does sound a little farfetched. Was anyone able to take photos?"

"I have better than photos. Naru-chan managed to catch this part on video," Keitaro replied before locating the video file his girlfriend had messaged him and texting it to Lawliet, "It is not that long, maybe a minute or two."

"Watching it now…damn, I was starting to forget what it was like to see you in action. This robot isn't a slouch either…"

Keitaro couldn't see his facial expression, but as the footage played Lawliet's eyes were growing wider. He had to manually close his mouth a couple times when the energy attacks began to fly between the two combatants.

"…Kid, you weren't kidding. I don't think ANYONE would be able to tell this thing wasn't a real warrior. You might just be onto something."

"True, however I have no idea how we could get our hands on the design," Keitaro sighed. His computer expertise extended to using laptops and smartphones for the basics and that was it. Breaking into someone's computer, let alone the computer of a mad genius, was far above his current abilities.

Luckily, the same could not be said for Lawliet, "Don't you worry about that. I can handle that part myself. Just give me a few hours and we'll have those designs. Real question is, do you have people that can build a few of them quickly? This thing looks like it'll need some top-notch stuff to function."

"I can send the schematics to the head of the robotics division at Nagareboshi," Keitaro replied, barely able to keep the excitement from his voice, "Suzuki-san is more than capable of replicating this design, if not improving it outright."

"Can Suzuki-san be trusted?" the hacker began hesitantly, but marched onward with his inquiry, "I know Arata-san came through for you and sounds like he'd follow you into the fire, but can the same be said for this other director, or any of the remaining board members besides the big man? What we're doing isn't for everyone, and they can get into some serious legal and physical trouble if this goes sideways…"

It was one of the many elephants in the room when it came to Keitaro's quest for vengeance that Lawliet wanted to address. No one among the three of them was delusional about what they had done and what they aimed to do. Lives had been taken, gruesomely in most cases. It was nothing short of a miracle that they hadn't been caught yet, preparations and precautions be damned. So far, Keitaro had done well to keep the circle of trust small, but as more people became involved, the chances of discovery became much greater.

It was a risk Lawliet was extremely hesitant to take.

Keitaro understood this however, and had an answer ready, "I understand your concern, and I know the risks. Not too long after my family was murdered and Genji-jiji was sworn in as CEO, we held a private meeting with just him, myself, and the directors. It was meant to both let them know I was still alive, as well as to let them know my plans."

He could still remember that day, the boardroom being sealed off to everyone except the highest-level personnel on threat of termination and legal action. The young avenger, just a fourteen-year-old boy, was still recovering from his wounds and lung damage from smoke inhalation. The directors had been shocked, but overjoyed at his survival.

The happy feelings didn't last long.

"I told them everything: the attack on my family, how I survived thanks to the curse…and what I had pledged to do from that day onward," even several years removed from that fateful meeting, Keitaro's voice was thick with emotion despite his best attempts to suppress them, "I told them if any of them wanted no part, they were more than welcome to leave as long as they took a vow of silence. They had each been vetted long before they gained their positions so I knew I could take their word."

Lawliet gave the younger man a moment to pause, knowing he had to be reliving that day again and the trauma that came with it, "What happened?"

"No one left that room," there was still a small bit of astonishment in Keitaro's voice as he replied in almost a whisper, "Everyone not only agreed to remain silent, but they vowed to help me with my mission regardless of what the outcome would be. They loved my parents, and they adored my little sister. After hearing how they were killed, let me just say it was more than enough to ensure that if I was not already planning to do something, they would."

Lawliet didn't need any further assurances from the landlord, "Then that's good enough for me kid. I'll need a secured email account to send the schematics to Suzuki-san once I get my hands on them."

Keitaro nodded, "I'll get you an address in the morning. Just don't get caught-"

The sound of something moving on his ceiling froze the landlord on the spot. Up above, the wood plank that covered the hole between his room and Naru's was slowly moved to the side, "mmm…Keitaro? What are you…yaaawwwnnn…still doing up?"

"Just having a late-night chat with a friend Naru-chan," Keitaro whispered, holding his hand against the speaker to block out any noise, "I'm sorry if I woke you up."

"You didn't…" she replied sleepily, though her wits were slowly returning, "What are you talking about at one in the morning?"

"…Guy stuff…"

The snort of laughter he received as a reply gave Keitaro a good idea of what she thought of his reasoning, "Whatever…I'm gonna go get some water, you want any?"

"Sure thing, thanks!"

With that, Naru slid the plank back into place and left for the kitchen. Keitaro waited for her footsteps to get lighter before he went back to his phone, "Sorry about that. We will have to continue this tomorrow."

"No problem kid, I gotta get to work on this anyway," the hacker responded, though he refused to let Keitaro go without ribbing him a bit, "That was a smooth deflection by the way. You're a natural at deception."

Keitaro frowned, "It is not something I take pride in. Lying to Naru and the others…I get that it is necessary, but still…"

"I can imagine kid…but better they be kept in the dark. I don't know your lady friend at all, but if she's like any other normal person, I doubt she'd take too kindly to the idea of her boyfriend being an assassin."

There was no refuting that one. When the day came that he would be outed, and Keitaro knew that day would come eventually, he was sure the others would not react kindly. However, that was for future-Keitaro to deal with. For now, he had an assassination to finish planning out.

"She would not…none of them will. But I will cross that bridge when I get to it," he replied before his ears picked up Naru's returning footsteps, "Anyway, we will continue this tomorrow. Good luck with the plans."

"Thanks kid. We'll chat tomorrow. G'night."

Keitaro hung up just as the door to his room slid open, revealing Naru dressed in only a small tank-top and very short shorts holding two plastic bottles of water, "Hope I didn't interrupt your super-secret 'guy-stuff' talk."

"Not at all, I just finished actually," the landlord replied before gratefully accepting the bottle of water and lifting the covers over the large futon enough to give Naru space to get in. With a small cheeky grin, the brunette dove into the open space and snuggled into Keitaro's chest as she opened her bottle and took a sip, "So who were you talking to anyway? And what 'guy-stuff' was so important to chat about that it couldn't wait until normal hours?"

"It was my friend that you met at the convention a couple months ago," the landlord replied as he drank from his own bottle, "He's been tutoring me in computers a bit as something of a side hobby for me."

"You've been on the phone for hours…over computers?" Naru's raised eyebrow put Keitaro a little on edge. For the first time, he didn't have a better story ready to alleviate his girlfriend's suspicions. Luckily, he managed to catch a break as the girl gave him a teasing smirk, "Pfft, nerd."

"I accept that title with honor."

Naru giggled before cuddling up closer to her man under the covers, sliding one of her legs between his and wrapping her arms around his chest. The more primal side of Keitaro was very glad he'd only dressed in a pair of shorts to sleep as he was able to feel everything directly, including Naru's very ample chest squishing against his own, only separated by a single layer of fabric. The landlord embraced the girl with one arm, his hand landing on the small of her back. The sensation of warmth sent a tingle up the brunette girl's spine.

"G'night, you goof," she whispered before giving him a quick peck on the lips before succumbing to the sandman. Keitaro smiled as he too began to feel the pull to sleep.

'Good night Naru-chan. Good luck to you Lawliet.'

Lawliet eased himself into the seat before his beloved computer terminal and booted up his systems. After his phone call with Keitaro, he had quickly returned to the bedroom to let Kimiko know he had work to take care of, only to find the gorgeous assassin already fast asleep.

'She's been burning the midnight candle a lot lately getting things set up for the big show…guess I can let her off this time.'

Shaking his head amusedly, he went over and kissed her forehead before quietly leaving the room and going to his office. Now, as he waited for his screens to come on, the hacker mentally tried to dredge up what little details Keitaro had told him about his Molmolian tenant.

'Aside from the fact she's from MolMol, the only thing the kid's let me know about her is that she's a genius. If she really made something like that combat android in such a short time, then genius might be too light a term for her. I should expect some pretty stiff resistance trying to get into her drives.'

When the bootup sequence was complete, Lawliet immediately set to work. Using the IP address given by Keitaro, he was easily able to get into the network at Hinata-sou undetected. Sifting through the data streams, Lawliet searched for a few minutes before finally reaching his intended target.

He froze when he was able to make out the bulk of the firewall, 'Hold on a damn minute…I KNOW that code…'

As soon as he virtually nudged the firewall, a screen came up with a hauntingly familiar symbol: three eyes in an upside-down triangle formation.

'I'll be damned, that's the sigil of the royal family from the Kingdom of MolMol. The kid's living with royalty and probably has no idea,' he smirked before a crease in his brow formed on his forehead, 'Which means this job just got trickier. Molmolilans play no games when it comes to cybersecurity, and stealing data from a member of the royal family could definitely get us into some hot water. I'll have to be extra careful here…'

Setting to work, Lawliet quickly bypassed the firewall and dove into the lattice of security measures protecting Suu's data. Hours flew by as the hacker disabled one measure after another while doing his best not to alert the other cyber defenses of his presence. Several times he had to double back after activating an unseen trap, but the forces that be seemed to favor him as he continued forward to his objective.

'Ok, I think I just have one more wall to breach…aaaaaand there!' he fought the urge to pump his fists in the air in triumph, acquiescing to simply wipe the rivers of sweat from his forehead, 'This girl really is no joke, apparently her smarts extend to cyber-defense as well as robotics. Now, let's find those schematics.'

Over the next few minutes, Lawliet skimmed through dozens, if not hundreds of different schematics and plans that over time left him bug-eyed and slack-jawed. Suu didn't just make robots apparently: there were plans for armored vehicles, hover drones, body armor, guns, even blades that seemed able to produce limited amounts of energy to enhance their cutting power. The girl had a veritable armory in her head, and from the look of it she was only getting started.

'All of this…from the mind of a 13-year-old girl,' the hacker was at a loss for words, but his mind was spinning a mile a minute, 'As wrong as it would be, if we took even a quarter of these diagrams and schematics, we could tear down those shitty red-headed bastards in no time…'

Eventually he was able to find the files directly related to the very robot Keitaro had fought against. Slapping in an encrypted USB, he downloaded the plans onto the drive. After a few moments of internal conflict, he also downloaded a few other plans as well. An immense feeling of guilt began to pool in his heart over the act, knowing full well he was stealing the intelligence of an innocent youth to push forward his and his cohorts' agenda of vengeance. Only remembering his motivation for his cruel actions tempered the guilt.

'I'll show these to the kid first. Let him decide what to do with them. If he says use em, we'll use em, but I'll make damn sure to make it up to this girl somehow,' he swore as he finally backed out of her drive and covered his tracks as he exited the network, 'She's no run of the mill genius. Kaolla Suu is a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy.'

Entering the email address also given to him by Keitaro, Lawliet quickly sent the schematics of the combat droid to Nagareboshi's head of robotics along with a message to expedite construction. With a sigh of relief, the hacker shut down his systems and noticed the small stream of sunlight that penetrated the room. Between breaking through Suu's cyber defenses, searching all of her inventions, and covertly backing out, he had been up the entire night and well into the late morning.

'Well so much for getting a good night's rest, but at least now we have the final piece,' he mused as he carefully got into bed, Kimiko instantly rolling over and cuddling him in her sleep, 'In just a few more days, another pillar bites the dust.'

'I can't wait.'

The days seemed to fly by as the date of the conference drew closer, and those who would be directly involved in what would become another infamous moment in history could feel a subtle tension in the air begin to thicken. Minato and Ichimaru's training stepped up considerably, not only sharpening the young assassin's budding abilities but also reawakening the fierce warrior instincts Minato had possessed before administrative work started to dull his senses. Thoughts of the lurking shadows out to get him and his family drove him to fully release his inner beast, and it was now frothing at the mouth for the blood of his enemies, and revenge for his slain sons.

However, he was not the only Tachibana set on finalizing preparations. The rebel sub-branch cell had secretly finalized the groundwork for their roles in the upcoming attempt on the Fifth Pillar's life, from memorizing the layout of the conference room and placing the bombs, to how to distract the guards and throw off their search methods. Yuko had still had a reservation or two about her role in the plan, but the memory of her younger brother gave her the resolve she needed to commit. She would be leaving with Ruumari and Akisora the day before the conference and attempt to run interference in the event they finished their business early and made to return to Tokyo before the others had the chance to carry out their scheme.

Despite her resolution, the demure young woman still found sleep difficult those last few nights.

With all their precautions however, the rebel sub-branchers had no idea they were simply pawns in a much larger plan. Thanks to Lawliet's theft, the robotics division at Nagareboshi was hard at work constructing the secret weapons of the three co-conspirators that would ensure their own plans bore fruit. The process was expedited far more than normal, but thanks to the level of detail in the schematics and the set of notes the hacker also found regarding previous testing, confidence was high that the final product would perform per expectations.

Kimiko and Lawliet continued their own preparations as well, bringing the hacker's combat ability up bit by bit. While it was clear he would still enter his bout with Ichimaru at a disadvantage skill-wise, the Tachibana assassin had ensured he could at least hold his own in a straight fight thanks to the three fighting styles he had learned over the years between his father, Haruka, and Kimiko's teachings.

Not that he planned on giving Ichimaru a straight fight in the first place.

For Keitaro the final days seemed to move much slower, giving his inner rage time to grow and fester once again. Spending more time with Naru and the other tenants during that time was pleasant and all, but deep down he knew the time was slowly drawing near to unleash his wrath upon his enemies. The landlord diligently continued his final preparations, from continuing to meditate and practice drawing out more of his cursed ki to checking in regularly with his company on the progress of their newly acquired tools. The timing between the completion of the special droids to the beginning of the assault on Akasuisei would be very close, but Keitaro had faith in his robotics director. He knew he would not be disappointed.

It was the second-to-last night before the conference, and the landlord found himself comfortably situated in his futon, with Naru cuddling with him as she peacefully slept. Keitaro gently stroked the beautiful girl's long hair, marveling in how silky it felt. It had a powerful calming effect on his raging emotions, and while normally he would be discomforted by such a thing so close to going on another assassination, in that moment he cherished it. Better to have a measure of internal peace before going to battle after all.

"Mmm," Naru moaned in content in her sleep from Keitaro's ministrations, unconsciously pulling his body even closer despite how warm it was that night. The landlord chuckled and kissed her forehead before closing his eyes and drifting off.

'Good night Naru-chan. I swear I'll make tomorrow one of the best you've had, to help make up for what will come after.'

With that final thought, Keitaro finally fell into slumber…

…never once noticing the wisps of dark red ki that wafted off his body like a gathering of crimson ghosts.

Author's Note: What. A. Year.

First off, I hope everyone has been able to manage ok with this crazy pandemic. 2020 will be a year for the history books for sure, and hopefully not too many of you suffered any tragedies because of it.

Second, this chapter drained me a bit more than normal (though that's probably more due to the isolation than anything). I will say this, this arc is about 2 chapters away from finally ending. I never intended it to drag this long, but I think it worked out for the better. So for all of you who have been more patient than I deserve, I hope you enjoy this one and that it takes you away from reality temporarily.

2021 will see a renewing for us all in one way or another, and I for one can't wait. The Fifth Pillar is about to come crumbling down in a sea of flames...though it may have some unexpected consequences. Maybe.

Another major thank you shout out to my beta reader, Cloud Link Zero. He just posted some fire stuff himself on his profile so check him out when you get the chance.

That's all from me. Hope y'all had a good Christmas and I'll see you in the new year if the zombies don't come.

Take care and thanks again.

- Ciph signin' off