Chapter 83: Many Pains, One Hope

Drum remained by Gao's side until it was starting to get dark outside. He watched the boy, hoping that Gao would wake up, but his friend didn't.

The red dragon sighed when Tenbu came in, "Drum. We have to go. It's starting to get late and you'll get hungry."

Drum nodded and heard his stomach grunting, he didn't eat that much.

Tenbu flew by his side and pat the red dragon head, Drum ate less lately. It's not good for a dragon... Especially one who isn't an adult yet, "Drum. I know the situation is really painful, but you cannot let it get over your head. Gao has been healed with a spellcard and will eventually wake up."

The two returned home, but before leaving the room, Drum turned around and said, "I'll be back tomorrow."

On their way home, Drum was looking down, his moral pretty low, which was affecting Tenbu's mood.

"I'm sorry if I'm useless Drum, but I don't know what's going on," Tenbu said.

The red dragon sighed once again, "I don't blame you... It's just that the more I think about it, the more I think I should have done something when it happened. I could have held him, maybe transformed and made sure he wouldn't be hurt, but I just felt with him. I'm not a great buddy."

Tenbu pulled Drum's hair and let the dragon painfully whined, "I'm not going to let you beat yourself down like that Drum."

"By pulling my hair?" the red dragon replied.

The green dragon grabbed his pink mustache, "No. I just want to stop you from saying those lies. What happened happened. We cannot change the past Drum, but we can affect the future. Because if you keep doing that, that will make me feel pretty young."

"But-"

"You cannot let the past hold your back and control your thought like that Drum."

The red dragon nodded as they reached home, But I cannot help him. I'm just there watching him and unhurt! I want to help, but I can't! Tenbu... I know that when you are in a coma, there is no certainty to when someone's wake up again. It can be days, months, years or never! What if it's never? He wondered.

Tenbu opened and walked inside while the question Drum asked himself repeated in his mind a few times. When it was time for diner, everyone noticed Drum lack of enthusiasm when he ate one pudding, slowly.

Tasuku and Jackknife entered in their home. Tasuku quietly closed the door while Jackknife closed the door. The green dragon was worried with Tasuku's mood. The boy didn't talk to him after meeting the two supervisors of the Police Force.

Jackknife was upset, just like Tasuku about how everything was turning from bad to worse with them.

"Tasuku. If you have something to say, you can tell me," Jackknife told the boy.

The blue haired boy stopped a few seconds, before he walked toward the kitchen and opened the fridge.

"Tasuku?"

"What do you want to eat Jack?"

"Tasuku," Jackknife asked with a firm tone.

"Maybe I should prepare something simple like eggs or-"

"Tasuku!" Jackknife firmly said.

"I have nothing to tell you Jack," the boy finally replied, hiding his emotions.

Jackknife turned in his real form and walked behind the boy, "I know you have something in your mind Tasuku," he used his tail to close the fridge, "You know you can share it with me."

Tasuku turned toward the green dragon, looking toward the ground and not facing him, "It's fine Jack."

Jackknife crossed his arms, "Fine won't work with me Tasuku," What's bothering you so much that you don't want to talk about it?

The boy put his hand on the dragon stomach, "I'm sorry Jack, but I just don't know how to feel. Those two are troubles and we cannot do anything about it."

"Don't let them get over your head Tasuku. We have to prove to the city that we can protect them and won't fail our mission. Once the situation calm down, we can-"

"But what if it doesn't?" Tasuku asked, "What if it will get worse until the Buddy Police Force is closed."

"I'll still be with you if it happens Tasuku," Jackknife replied.

"We won't be able to help anyone anymore," the boy said with a hint of desperation.

Joining the Buddy Police Force awoke a strong sense of justice in Tasuku, the green dragon thought, "We can, but in other ways."

Tasuku was uncertain, "What after? You know the elections are coming and if Tenchi wins... You will be gone," he hugged the green dragon after he expressed his worst fear.

Jackknife embraced the boy and replied, "We'll make sure it won't happen. I don't know how, but we won't let it happen."

Even that didn't really comfort the boy, but it calmed his fear a little.

Akatsuki was alone in his chamber and watched the Deck Case, the final link with Tsukikage, left by Zanya after he read the letter. The young boy looked at it. Even after a few days, he still didn't believe the content of the letter and was sure that something was up. He searched in his shirt and took out a plastic kunai.

He remembered that this kunai was cut by Tsukikage so he safely could practice with it, He made it just before his match against Drum. I'm still practicing to become a real ninja like him, his thought came back to the letter, I cannot believe what it was written. Zanya. We know Tsukikage. He saved me before even knowing us and stayed with us when he didn't have a reason to stay.

Akatsuki looked outside the window when someone knocked the door. The boy thought it was his big brother and hid the deck case.

Zanya entered in the chamber, he wasn't in a good mood and his lips were partially sealed and pointing toward the ground, "Akatsuki?"

"What is it big bro?" Akatsuki replied, worried for his big brother.

"Are you alright?" Zanya asked his little brother.

Akatsuki remained silent a few seconds before replying, "Yes big bro."

Zanya crossed his arms, "You should forget about Tsukikage. He wants to do what he wants. That bastard can do whatever he wants."

The younger brother frowned as he heard it and it wasn't the first time, "I'm telling you that Tsukikage didn't write the letter! He would never do something like that!"

Zanya frowned, "How can you be so sure? We don't know his writing and could have kept everything in his mind without telling us."

"You can't be sure!" Akatsuki replied.

"You neither," Zanya replied. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down, knowing it wasn't helping anyone. He soften his tone, "Akatsuki. It's just that I cannot forgive what he just did to us. Leaving a letter and giving those insults instead of talking to us about it... That's the worst. I know you like him a lot, but I don't think he likes us the same way if he just leaves like that, without considering who we might feel. That's why I'm furious against him."

Akatsuki turned his back to his brother and held his tears, so he wouldn't cry, "Big brother. I'm sure it's not him. I know he likes us a lot just like we do. I'm sure there something going on and we have to find him. We have to know that the letter wasn't a real one."

Zanya replied, "I think it's the true. Tsukikage left that letter because he won't come back," the boy walked out of the chamber fast.

Akatsuki turned and noticed that Zanya was starting to lose his cool, but not the same way as before, You're... sad, he realised. Akatsuki looked outside with determination, "If no one is looking for him. I'm going to find him and bring him home. Because I believe... I'm sure Tsukikage would never do that," he picked the deck case, "He left his deck case here after all," Tsukikage will come back. I know it.

Tsukikage was on his knee, trapped in a dark room. If he was only trapped in the dark room, he would have escape already, because he was a nanomachine ninja and could change his size, but he was in a cube without any holes where he could escape, holes big enough to be precise. He was simply waiting for whatever the next thing would be. He lowered his head when he thought of Zanya and Akatsuki.

"Still thinking about how we made them hate you right?" a voice told him.

Tsukikage frowned and searched around, not bothering to answer the man talking to him.

"You don't care? I don't care what you are thinking either. Anyway, I've perfected the little gear," the man told him.

Tsukikage gulped behind his mask, looking at the man, still hidden in the shadow of the darkness, "Nun!"

"You won't resist us this time. You will become Tenchi tools," the man said. He grabbed his cellphone when it rang, "What is it Tenchi? I'm testing my gear very soon and see if I can control his mind once and for all!"

"-Gara. Watch your mouth!-" Tenchi warned at the other side of the line.

Gara grumbled and took a lollipop and sucked it, "Alright. You are the one giving me money to do all this. Anyway, I'll see if I can really control Tsukikage's mind this time. When the time comes," he looked at Tsukikage with a grin, "He will start murdering humans... Zanya and Akatsuki will be the number three and four on the list... That will break his soul in pieces," he chuckled.

"-Then test it now. We have a momentum for now and I want to exploit it. If it fails again or you try anything...-" Tenchi hanged up.

Gara flinched as he put his hand on his neck, "That bastard. A bastard that knows what I like to do with science."

He took a small object and opened it, inside, there was a chip. He showed it to the ninja of Katana world and moved it left and right, "You know what's coming right?"

Tsukikage hid his fear, but deep inside, he was afraid. Less afraid of himself, but what he would do if it work.

AC: This is the end of chapter 83. It is shorter than the previous one.

Next Chapter: Welcome Back.