Once Hana returned home, she hung up her red jacket on the rack next to the door. She hid her metal pipe behind that and slipped off her shoes for slippers.

She wandered into the house and looked into the living room. The television was on, but Saki wasn't in there. Hana continued into the kitchen and paused. Her brows knit together, seeing the oven was on. Did Saki turn it on? She walked over and opened it up, seeing the fish she had pickled overnight was already cooking inside. She closed it and looked to the timer on the counter.

Hana smiled to herself, feeling a swell of pride. Saki knew what to do without her instructions. Hana continued to pull out a wok and noodles from the fridge. "Saki?" She called, pulling out vegetables as well. "I'm home!" She could hear footsteps running down the hall as she pulled her hair back.

"Welcome home, sis!" Hana glanced over at the threshold and froze. Her eyes widened slightly seeing her little sisters new hair color. Saki smiled and twirled, showing off her new short brown hair. "You like it?"

Hana quickly finished tying back her hair and turned her back on her, busying herself putting on her apron. "Did you just do that?"

"Yep!" Saki walked in and stood by the fridge as Hana got the rice. "I bought the dye on the way home today." Hana moved to the sink to wash her hands and Saki peered around her with a giddy smile. "I wanted to surprise you. It looks like I did a good job doing that!"

Hana closed her eyes and calmed herself as she shut off the water to dry her hands. Hana had dyed her hair brown as a rebellious act. Saki was doing it no doubt to be like her. What could she expect? With her being the closest thing to a parent it was bound to happen. She turned around and smiled down at her sister. "It looks great on you, Saki."

"Thanks!" She grinned, "I thought so, too." As Hana turned back to turn on the stove, Saki went over to the table and sat down, propping her head up with her fist. "So, did I do it right? Is the oven temperature right?"

Hana smiled to herself as she began chopping the vegetables. "It is, thank you, Saki. You set the timer for thirty minutes?"

"Yep!" She sat back in her chair and picked at her nails. "Can I help with anything?"

Hana hummed, thinking for a moment before replying, "I should have everything covered." Glancing back over her shoulder she said, "How about this weekend I show you how to make tonkatsu?"

"Sounds good," she replied. "Can you make some cheesecake, too?"

Hana smiled more to herself. "Why not?"

"Yes!" Saki put her fists up in victory. She dropped them on the table and fiddled with her nails again. She glanced at her big sister, her back to her still. She knew something was off with her, and that didn't help with her own nervousness. "So," being the chattiest of the two, Saki decided to start. "How was the meeting?"

"It was boring, as usual," she replied easily. Saki rolled her eyes to herself. Of course. It was always boring. Hana never gave her any details. Saki sighed heavily and leaned forward, still picking at her nails.

Hana paused, hearing the sigh, and looked back over her shoulder confused. "What's wrong?"

"Huh?" Saki perked up and smiled lightheartedly. "Oh, nothing, just hungry."

"Well, dinner will be ready shortly," Hana replied and turned back to her cooking, dumping the vegetables in the wok. "How was school today?"

"It was boring, as usual," she replied and Hana rolled her eyes to herself amused. She could believe that. "We got assigned a new book to read, but it's incredibly boring."

Hana waited for more, but when none came she asked, "Was that all that happened today?" She dumped in the noodles and sired them around.

Saki fell quiet, staring at her hands. Like with her big sister, there was more to her life that she was letting on. She wanted to tell her about the abusive boy that she finally left, that's what drove her to this drastic change in hair color. She wanted to, but she was suddenly nervous. There was so much that neither of them talked about that it felt strange to open up about things that were kept hidden. "I made a friend today."

"Oh? And who was that?"

"Well, I actually was already friends with him," she explained, "but I met him today in person."

Hana hesitated. She frowned down at the stir fry, but kept her voice light. "An online friend?"

"Yeah," Saki smiled up at her, sensing her unease. "You don't gotta worry, sis. Everybody makes friends online. I made sure to bring my pepper spray, too. He was really friendly."

Hana closed her eyes and tried to calm down again. It's just a new friend. Kids make friends online all the time. As she continued cooking she asked, "How old is he?"

"Umm..." She shrugged a shoulder, "About your age? I asked him, but he wasn't exactly straightforward with his answer." Hana was quiet and Saki giggled. "Come on, I know there's junior high students in your gang." She watched amused as her sisters shoulder's sagged. She got her there! "His name is Orihara Izaya. I promise it's safe."

"I trust you," she replied, and she meant that. Orihara Izaya... She would have to ask Kiba if he knew him. Shaking off her worry she asked, "So, what did you and Izaya do?"

"Just wandered around the plaza, got some ice cream..." Saki's face saddened as she stared at her nails. It was easy to confess to him her troubles. She remembered sitting with him on the playground toys at the park with their ice cream. It was as easy to open up with him in person as it was online. She felt a little guilty, suddenly losing her appetite. Izaya was basically a stranger to her, but it was easier to talk to him than her own sister.

"What's wrong?" She quickly snapped her head up to see Izaya smiling at her. "Not hungry?" He then popped what remained of his cone in his mouth.

Saki smiled back down at her ice cream sadly. "Not really. I'm reflecting on how it's easier to talk to you than my sister."

"Oh?" Izaya turned around on the toy and began rocking back and forth. "That is strange! I would think your sisterly bond would be closer seeing as how it's just you two in the world."

Listening to him talk, Saki would think that his sly voice would set people on edge, but she found herself not bothered by it. She smiled to herself, knowing at that moment that he knew more then he let on. "You must know my sister."

Izaya glanced over at her. "Now what makes you say that?"

"You told me you were an Info Broker," she replied obviously, giving him her usual lighthearted smile. "I know people must have asked to get information on her. She's the leader of a big gang. People are afraid of her."

"Huh," Izaya was slightly impressed. He came to a stop and looked at her with an everlasting smirk. "I don't believe I ever told you I was an Info Broker."

"Oh come on," she nearly scoffed and furrowed her brows up at him. "People hire you as a freelancer? Your hobbies are watching people? Gathering information? I'm not as naive as people think."

Izaya chuckled, turning back on the toy to face her. "You're right. I do know about your sister, everything from her high school life to her gang's status down to her little sister."

Saki continued to smile at him. "I'm willing to bet that being friends with me online to meet me in person is all a part of your scheme to get more information on her."

"Normally, your bet would win you something." Saki frowned, surprised at that. He lifted a finger and wagged it at her. "You have a bad habit of assuming things. Before you assume anything about a person you should ask first."

She smiled, "But if I ask then I give you the chance to lie."

"You are a clever one!" He said in delight, tossing his arms out joyously. "And this is why I love humanity so much!" Saki blinked at him, becoming confused at that point. He calmed down and said, "Rest assured, when I first spoke to you online, I had no idea who you were. I eventually put two and two together, but I came to meet you today only because you asked me to. This would be a perfect opportunity for me to gather more information on your sister, but your relationship with her is useless information for me." He shrugged, "Though I am curious about your sisterly bond. I really did think that you would have spoken to her about everything first."

"Look at that," Saki smiled and laughed a bit. "The great Izaya doesn't know everything."

"Perhaps not," he relented, "but let me take a guess." His eyes narrowed at her, looking more dangerous. "Seeing as how you two only have each other in the world, your big sister took on the role as parent. Since she's also leader of a gang, she has an obsession to keep you from anything dangerous, including hiding from you what's really going on in her life. She's become so protective that she's failed to recognize her baby Saki is growing up. Tell me, am I close?"

In lieu of a reply, Saki smiled down at her melting ice cream sadly again. "I know she hides a lot from me. She treats me as if I'm ten still. I guess I've grown resentment towards her for that. As a way to get back at her I hide things in my life as well."

"And she must be none the wiser," he concluded. Lifting up a hand he added, "Otherwise she'd inquire more into your life. That's her downfall when acting as a parent: she trusts you too much." He dropped his hand and watched Saki for a moment, seeing her mulling around in her own head. He could almost visibly see the seeds being planted into her head. He glanced passed her to see a couple of Blue Squares passing by some Red Stains. There was obvious tension between the two groups. "Let's try something." Saki looked up at him curious. "Talk to your sister tonight. Tell her what's really on your mind. Perhaps if you open up then she'll see you in the way you want her to see you."

"And if that doesn't work?"

"Then you'll always have me to talk to."

And now Saki was here, sitting only a few feet away from her, picking away at her nails as she tried to muster up the courage to talk to her. "Hana..." She wanted to confide in her, and she wanted her sister to help her.

"Yes?" The timer went off and Hana quickly shut it off.

As she pulled the fish out of the oven Saki managed to ask, "You'd kill for me, right?"

Hana set the pan gently on the stove, going still as the stir fry sizzled. When she spoke, her voice was soft. "I would kill for you in a heartbeat, Saki. You know that." She then shut the oven and stove off before looking back at her. "You should also know that violence isn't the answer. Disputes shouldn't have to be resolved that way."

"Well, what if it wasn't a dispute," she asked innocently, focused intently on her nails. "What if it was revenge?"

Hana was reaching into the cupboard when she froze. Her eyes went wide. Revenge? Carefully she took out a couple plates and turned to set them on the table. She then rested her hands on the back of the chair and stared at her sister concerned. "Saki... What's this about?"

Saki took a breath to build her courage, but before she could open her mouth Hana's cell phone went off. Both of them hesitated before Saki looked up to see Hana pull her phone out of her pocket. Flipping it open, her eyes widened slightly when she saw Kiba's name light up the screen. Kiba was calling her? He knew never to call her when she was at home. It had to be important, but... She closed the phone and set it on the table. Saki blinked at the phone. "Who was that?"

"No one important," she replied and sat down with her at the table. "Saki, tell me what's going on."

Saki scowled a little at that, staring at the still lit up phone. "Maybe I would if you'd do the same."

Hana's brows twitched together slightly, having barely heard her. "What was that?" Saki then lunged for the phone, surprising the hell out of her. "S-Saki!"

She reached for her, but Saki quickly sat back out of her reach and flipped it open. She pressed talk and smiled as she spoke, "This is Hana's phone! Little sister speaking."

Hana stood upright so fast the chair was nearly knocked over. Her heart was suddenly pounding, fearful of whatever Kiba would accidentally say to her sister. Saki's smile fell away and Hana was overcome with dread. Saki's eyes widened, color draining a bit from her face. She then looked up to her sister who wore the same expression. Holding the phone out to her she said, "I think he needs your help..."

Hana quickly took the phone and turned from her slightly. "Kiba? What is it?"

"Hana..." He coughed a bit, and it sounded wet.

His weak and raspy voice made Hana's blood run cold. She instinctually knew something was wrong. She demanded, "Kiba, where are you?"

"Outside my apartment..." He coughed a bit more. "I need... Help..."

"Hold on, I'll be there in ten minutes." She hung up, and then paused. Shit. Shit! She had to go, she knew that, Kiba could be bleeding out, but her sister... She turned to Saki apologetically, "Saki, I'm so sorry, but..."

Saki smiled lightheartedly, "You have to go. I understand. " Hana then tore off her apron, bolting out of the kitchen for the front door. She pulled out her hair tie as she put on her normal shoes, then grabbed her jacket and metal pipe before running out the door. Saki continued to sit in place smiling, listening to the front door slam shut. "He sounded pretty hurt. It makes sense that you have to go." Tears welled in her eyes as her nails began to bleed from picking at them so much. "Your gang needs you. You have to leave."

Saki stood and pushed her chair in before heading to her bedroom. The room was dark, but she didn't turn her light on. She just walked over to her desk and turned on her monitor. She went to the usual chat site and saw that Kanra was on.

- Saki has entered the chat room -

[Kanra]: You're on early! Does that mean it went well?

[Saki]: You know it didn't.

[Kanra]: It does get to be boring being right all the time. I wanted to see if I was as lucky being wrong.

[Kanra]: So, want to talk about it?

Saki stared blankly at her screen, tears running down her face. She could hear rain pattering on her windowpane as it grew darker outside.

[Saki]: She left before I could even tell her. Her gang needed her.

[Kanra]: Wait, so she just left? That seems strange.

[Saki]: The guy on the phone sounded hurt. She seemed really worried, so I let her go.

[Kanra]: You probably could have kept her there if you asked her to.

[Saki]: I know that. But that's the problem. I don't want to have to ask her, she should just make the choice. It's a gang, of course they're going to get hurt. I'm her family. If I'm hurt then I should trump them, shouldn't I?

[Kanra]: Perhaps. Unless she sees them just as much as family.

[Saki]: Yeah... Maybe...

[Kanra]: Well, I'm not family, but you can still talk to me.

[Saki]: How much do you charge for information?

[Kanra]: Ah~! Someone wants some information on an ex boyfriend?

[Saki]: I want to get revenge for what he did to me. Hana won't help so I need to do it myself.

[Kanra]: How about I do you one better.

[Kanra]: Give me a name, and I'll deal your revenge personally. Free of charge.

[Kanra]: As a token of our friendship.

!

Hana panted as she ran down the empty walkways. She was getting soaked from the rain and the old blood on her metal pipe washed off and ran down her hand. The sky grew darker from the dense clouds as it grew later in the night. She turned a corner and went wide eyed, seeing Kiba just below his apartment in a heap.

As she neared, she didn't see any Blue Squares. "Kiba," she knelt to him and set her pipe down. She carefully rolled him onto his back and he groaned. She glared as she saw just how messed up he was. "Shit." Not only were there obvious signs of a brawl, there were cuts littering his clothes. They attacked him with knives? Was he stabbed? "I'm taking you to a hospital."

She went to try and lift him up, but he quickly wheezed out, "No... Wait..." She frowned down at him and waited as he struggled to breath. "Maria... Use my phone and call Maria... No hospitals..."

Without questioning him, she grabbed his phone off the ground and looked through his contacts. The only Maria she saw was Tsuruga so she dialed that. Maria picked up and Hana quickly explained the situation. "Give us five minutes!"

Waiting for five minutes was surprisingly difficult. She checked Kiba over for any stab wounds. There were a couple, but she didn't risk moving him. She glared down at his bloody and swollen face, his shades broken next to him. She knew this was the Blue Squares. She also knew Kiba was one of her most loyal comrades. The Blue Squares jumped him unprovoked, and that was their mistake.

Eventually a van came speeding towards them and Hana got to her feet, readying her metal pipe against a vehicle if she needed to. The van braked hard and slid sideways towards them before coming to a stop. Hana relaxed slightly when she saw Ryan behind the wheel. The side door opened up and Maria came jumping out. She gasped at the sight of Kiba, "Who did this?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Coming out behind her was a man with long brown braid and a red scarf around his neck. "The Blue Squares ruffed him up good." He whistled impressed at the sight.

Seeing him, Hana managed to recognize him. "You're Shinozaki Hideji."

"And you're Boss Lady," he smiled at her. "I'm flattered you remember my name."

Maria ran over to Kiba and carefully tired to lift him up. "Well the Blue Squares are gonna be the Black and Blue Squares after this." Hideji and Hana quickly helped her pick him up and he groaned as they placed him into the van.

As they loaded up Hana asked, "Where are we taking him?"

"I know an underground doctor named Kishitani," Maria replied. "He's expensive, but he'll make Kiba good as new again."

Hana frowned as she looked down at her friend. Payment didn't matter so long as he was all right. Ryan drove them into an underground parking lot that was nearly empty. He drove right up to a door in the wall and Hideji hopped out to pound on it. "Ey, we got a patient out here!" The door peeked open and Maria watched anxiously while Hana only stared calmly as Hideji exchanged a few words with the doorman. He then waved them in and the three of them carried Kiba in while Ryan took care of the van.

Hana only met the doctor briefly as they carried Kiba into an operating room. Glancing around this place was certainly an underground hospital. "Oh," the doctor smiled at them carefree. "Red Stain members! I haven't treated any of you before."

After they set him on the stained cot, Hana turned to him and said, "We just need you patch him up. How much will it cost?"

"Well it depends on how much work needs to be done," he replied honestly. He walked over and adjusted his glasses as he examined the groaning Kiba. "Looks like some street brawl. ¥90,350 should cover it, unless I can take a blood sample then I'll discount it to... ¥76,000. Cash."

Hideji then asked, "What if we give you samples of all our blood. Would you discount further?"

The doctor looked up at them with starry eyes. "Would you really!?"

"Eh, why not," Hideji shrugged nonchalantly.

"All right!" He gave them an enthusiastic thumb up. "Then will all your blood samples I'll lower it to ¥45,000!"

"Okay, that's fine," Maria urged him desperately, "Just help him, please!"

"Ah, don't worry," the doctor calmly rummaged through his medical bag. "This is nothing for me."

Hana had to sit and wait in the dank and mildew smelling rundown building with the rest of her companions. She leaned against the wall, arms crossed as she eyed what appeared to be a waiting room. They weren't the only people here. There were thugs of all kinds down here, some bleeding out from bullet wounds, but appeared to be fine as if they were used to it as they sat and waiting. "All right," she looked up as Kishitani approached with a syringe. "Now I just need your blood."

Without protest Hana rolled up her jacket sleeve and exposed her arm to him. He stuck the needle in and as he drew blood, he casually asked, "So, what's your name?"

She eyed him. "Mikajima Hana."

"Oh," he smiled up at her. "You're the leader of the Red Stains! Well, it's an honor."

She narrowed her eyes at him slightly. He was pretty carefree for an underground doctor. "What's your name?"

"My name? I'm Kishitani Shinra, but I'm not all that important." He pulled the needle back out and held it to the dim lighting to examine it. "Wonderful! You're friends already paid, so you're free to go."

"Thank you."

As she left back out to the parking lot, Ryan, Maria and Hideji followed. Maria then asked, "Wait, what about Kiba? Are we just going to leave him in there?"

They stopped outside the door and Hana kept her back to them, sliding her hands into her pockets a she stared across the lot. "That seems to be the safest place for the moment," Ryan replied, crossing his arms. "We can't take him back to his apartment in the state he's in now. They knew where he lived."

"Why the hell did they jump him, anyways?" Hideji wondered. "There's no way he'd go against Hana's orders and pick a fight. They had to have jumped him as a message."

"But what message is that?" Maria wondered.

While Hana listened to them, her eyes narrowed into a menacing look. The Blue Squares beat him into an infirmary. Her friend. They were not going to get away with this. "Excuse me?" She quickly looked back with the rest of them at the door, seeing Shinra poking his head out. "Sorry to interrupt, but your friend wanted me to tell you something. He said, 'The Blue Squares are being led by Izumii, not the kid." He then shrugged with a smile. "Hope that helps!" Then disappeared back behind the door, locking it.

Hana stared after him for a moment. Izumii? Who was that? She glanced over at Maria, seeing the blood hand drained from her face. "Maria." She jumped slightly and turned to her. "What do you know about this Izumii?"

"He's bad," she replied quietly, almost in a shaky voice. "He's the worst kind of guy there is. He's violent, vulgar, sadistic, misogynistic... He never fights alone and is strong enough to fight with a sledge hammer with one hand."

Both the boy's brows went up. Hideji whistled while Ryan questioned, "Seriously?"

"That's not the worst part." Maria huddled to herself a bit as she continued, "I don't have any actual evidence of this, but I heard that he kidnaps and rapes women. With everything else known about him, I'm inclined to believe that."

Hana narrowed her eyes at her. "You said that the leader of the Blue Squares was some junior high student."

"I wasn't lying," she quickly said. "It was true, at some point. Izumii just must have somehow taken control of the gang. That would explain the increase of older members."

Hana stared at her for a moment before looking down at her own feet. "Izumii..." Now it made sense. This guy wasn't going to stop the attacks unless they forfeit to him or beat him. She glared down at the ground, her hands balling into tight fists in her pockets. He's the reason her friend was hurt. He was going to pay dearly for that. "Listen up." They turned their full attention to her. "I want you to contact every Red Stain you can. Get the word out that we're having an emergency meeting. Maria, I don't care how, but figure out where the Blue Squares' hideout is."

They were surprised at that. Ryan asked, "Are we going to fight them?"

"Just do as I say," she snapped, causing Maria and Hideji to flinch. "I'm not wasting another minute on this. We're marching on the Blue Squares tonight."

!

It was close to midnight by the time everyone showed up. The rain didn't let up as they waited outside their warehouse. Once everyone had gathered, Hana's eyes scanned over the crowd. "That's everyone," Maria said next to her.

Hana's eyes narrowed. "There seems to be less of them."

"I can explain that." She looked down as Bunta made his way through the crowd. Hunching in his sweatshirt from the rain he said, "A lot of people were pissed off after the meeting when you said we weren't going to fight back. The Blue Squares had come up to a few of us offering spots in their gang."

Ryan, standing on the other side of Hana, scrunched his face up in rage. "Those traitorous bastards. They left to join them!?"

"Yeah..." Bunta nodded regrettably. "I was one of them they offered the deal to a few days ago. The jump on Haruto and the others was just a warning. So after the meeting, those that knew left to join them. I think others just split."

Hana stared down at him, and her slightly angry gaze made him shy away a bit. "What deal?"

"Well... If we joined them, we wouldn't get attacked. By the sounds of it they were planning some sort of war on us."

Ryan stepped towards him threateningly and Bunta flinched. "You mean you knew about this-!?"

"Enough." Hana's voice cut through his own and he backed down immediately. "Bunta, do you know where their hideout is?" He nodded shyly. "Take us there."

!

Izumii sat back in his couch that acted as his throne. He was grinning to himself, looking over the growing numbers of his gang. Once again a couple handfuls of Red Stain members stood before him. As a rite of passage into the Blue Squares, they took off their colors and set them on fire, tossing them to the ground.

"Congratulations!" Izumii yelled, tossing his hands up in the air. "No longer are you a shitty Red Stain! Now you're a bone-afide Blue Square!"

The members weren't nearly as happy. They kept their eyes to the floor in shame and accepted the shark masks the other members handed to them. "Hey." Haruto, whose face was still swollen and discolored, looked up at Kyohei as he handed him a shark mask. "I'm sorry about what happened to you. I know that was us. But now that your here you don't risk that happening to you again."

Haruto looked down at the shark mask. "Yeah..." He took it from him. "Somehow it all still feels pretty shitty."

Kyohei sighed, tucking his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, I know." Everything was getting pretty screwed now that Izumii was in control. Glancing up at the grinning blonde idiot, he wondered how that managed to happen.

There was a loud banging on the warehouse doors. Izumii frowned as everyone's attention was drawn to the doors. As the banging continued and no one did anything, Izumii stood and shouted, "Well don't just stand around like idiots! Who's knocking!?"

Then a woman's very angry voice sounded through the metal doors like a roar. "Izumii!"

Haruto and the other former Red Stain members went wide eyed in fear. "Oh shit," a few of them backed away and Kyohei looked over at them. "That's the Boss!"

Izumii sneered down at them. "I'm your boss now, morons!" They flinched away from his angry voice. He then grinned wickedly. "Well let's not be rude! Let them in! Don't tear them apart just yet, though."

On Izumii's command, a few Blue Squares pulled open the warehouse doors. Standing at the front was a soaked Hana, and she was glaring directly at Izumii. Izumii nearly giggled in delight as the Blue Squares backed up, gathering on his side of the room to leave plenty of space between the two gangs.

The Red Stains entered behind her until they were all in the warehouse. Kyohei scanned them all, seeing that the numbers were pretty even. If they were here for a fight then the Blue Squares were in a bad position though. The Red Stains closed the warehouse doors behind them and Hana stood imposing at the front, flanked by a punk girl and an intimidating black man. "Wow," he glanced down at his sides to see Erika and Walker next to him, both of them observing as well. Erika had to strain on her tip toes to see over the other people. "Is that their leader?"

Walker frowned, "I'm disappointed. I thought she'd look cooler." Kyohei shushed them.

Izumii grinned at Hana, "Well, well, well. Mikajima Hana, welcome to our humble hideout!" She continued to stare at him with a dark and dangerous glare. That only made Kyohei more worried. A fight was definitely going to happen and they had a disadvantage. Izumii continued unperturbed at her silence, "Let's play a pop quiz. Question one: what brings the famous Red Stain leader to my doorstep? Is it... A: Because I beat the shit out of a few of her members?" Haruto glanced at his friends at his side, the three of them looking conflicted. "B: Because I stole her gang members away from her?" Some of the Red Stains glared across the room at their former friends, whom they avoided eye contact. "Or is it C: the fact that I beat the shit out of her favorite brown nosed lackey?" Hana's glared turned more vicious. Izumii smirked at her reaction. "And it looks like we have our answer!"

Hana breathed out her nose to calm herself down. She couldn't let him get under her skin now. "I'm not going to bother asking why you're doing what you're doing," she said. "Why the random attacks and why you feel the need to start a war. I just came here to bring an end to it."

"Oh?" Izumii sat back down and leaned forward with interest. "You wanna skip the foreplay and get right to the good stuff, huh?" Haruto and the other former Red Stains glanced around nervously as the Blue Squares readied weapons and fists. "I like your style."

The Red Stains readied their own weapons and fists behind her, but before they could charge she put her arm out. "No."

Maria quickly looked to her alarmed. "Boss?"

Hana walked a couple steps forward. "You've hurt enough of my comrades. I'm not going to risk anyone else over this stupid game you insist on playing."

Izumii frowned. "So, you're just going to give up?" He then smirked, "It's no fun when you don't fight back."

Hana closed her eyes. She was going to break his head against the concrete. "One on one. You against me, Izumii." She looked up at him again. "The two leaders are going to settle this before any more destruction happens."

The Red Stains glanced at her while the former members stared at her in surprise. Kyohei was wide eyed as well. Her against Izumii alone? There's no way she'd win against him. "You? Against me?" Izumii threw his head back and laughed. "Oh, sweetheart," he stood back up and picked up his sledge hammer, resting it on his shoulder. "I really don't think you want to do that."

"Ryan." Ryan stepped forward, holding her metal pipe. He walked in front of her and turned to face her. He furrowed his brows up, questioning if she wanted to do this. She merely stared up at him. He sighed before rearing his fist back and punching her in the face. Kyohei, along with his friends and other members on both sides stared in shock. Her head tilted back slightly from the impact and blood rushed from her nose. She quickly leaned forward, letting the blood splatter on the floor as she accepted her metal pipe from him and he went back to his spot.

Izumii stared at her annoyed. "What is that, some kind of stupid ritual you do? Leaving a red stain to claim your victory?"

"No. I just decided to do you a favor." She lifted her head and wiped her nose with her red sleeve. "That's the only blood you're going to draw from me tonight."

Kyohei glanced over at Walker as he whispered in excitement, "She's becoming cooler...!"

Izumii smirked and jumped off the platform, walking to meet her at the center of the room. "All right, you think you're tough shit? I'll fight you. Don't think I'll give you the courtesy of sending you to the hospital though." His smirk grew into a wicked grin as he aimed his sledge hammer at her. "I'm going to use this to crack that skull of yours wide open. Then after that I'll beat the shit out of the rest of your gang. All that's left of the Red Stains will be just that: red stains."

Instead of amusing him with banter, Hana ran forward with her metal pipe ready. She swung with both arms while he swung with one, and the metal clashed with a sharp harsh sound. Hana felt the power behind his swing and quickly ducked, moving forward as his swing continued. She moved behind him, but he was fast, too. He spun around and brought his hammer down with a shout, but she used her pipe to guide his momentum away and the hammer slammed into the concrete next to her. She brought her leg up and kicked him in the gut, and while he bent forward in pain, he used his other hand to grab her ankle. He grinned while she stared calmly. As he lifted his sledge hammer back up, she twirled her metal pipe and caught him across the face. She managed to catch the side of his mouth and his lips split open. It wasn't much, but enough for him to loosen his grip on her.

Now he was good and mad. She escaped his hold and he brought his hammer down with another shout, but she rolled away. The concrete broke as he missed again, and he decided that she was too clear headed for this. Smirking again, he calmly dislodged his hammer from the floor. He watched as she circled around him with her weapon ready. "You know you're not going to beat me." He ran at her with a yell and swung. This time Hana stood her ground and swung back, and both attacks cancelled each other out. She was matching him blow for blow, and while she focused he continued, "You think the Red Stains mean anything anymore? Your gang is old. It's time has run up!" He swung hard and knocked her pipe away.

Hana was quick to back away, dodging another bone crushing swing. She circled around him and managed to dig the butt of her pipe into his back, forcing him to lurch forward. She went to swing again, but he spun around and blocked it. He grinned close to her face, "You Red Stains think you're hot shit leaving red stains everywhere you go. You know why we wear shark masks? Because we're at the top of the food chain!"

He shoved her back and her eyes widened. She stumbled back and he brought his hammer down with another yell. She put her pipe up to block, but the force brought her down to her knee and the pipe groaned a little as it bent slightly. Her eyes narrowed and she forced herself up, grunting as she shoved him back. "You have no idea why we're called the Red Stains." She jabbed her pipe low and caught him in the knee. His face scrunched up with yelp, nearly falling to his knee. "We're not called the Red Stains because it's some stupid name someone thought sounded cool." She moved fast and ran passed his side, catching him in the head and shoving him further back. "We're not called the Red Stains because of the blood we leave on brick walls and sidewalks." She moved behind him and slammed her pipe into his lower back. He howled in pain. "We're called the Red Stains because that is who we are."

She moved away before he swung his hammer around, seething with rage from the pain. She bent her knees slightly and readied for him to charge. "We know we're nothing special. We didn't ban together to amount to anything, we banned together because we while we were worthless we were worth something to each other. We found comfort in each other knowing we weren't the only lowlifes around." He yelled as he charged and she easily side stepped and guided his momentum forward, letting him stumble. "We're delinquents, troublemakers, and lowlifes that can't fit in anywhere. We're called the Red Stains because we know what we are. We're just an ugly stain on society."

"How cute." Izumii stood upright and faced her again. Her eyes narrowed slightly at how calm he suddenly was. "If you know you're not worth shit then why even bother fighting back!?" He ran at her and swung his hammer hard. Hana was forced to back pedal as she matched him blow for blow again, struggling to keep her arms up from how hard he was hitting. He grinned as he bared down on her, "You're not going to go down as a hero, you know. You're going to go down in a puddle of your own blood!" He caught her by surprise and swept her feet out from under her. She gasped as she fell back, but as he brought his hammer down she quickly rolled away again. The hammer broke the concrete where her head was. "You call them your friends and your comrades, but your nothing more than a high and mighty show off!" Before she could try and get up, he kicked her away. While he definitely hurt her ribs, he only succeeded in sending her further away from him. As he walked over to her, he dropped his sledge hammer. "I can see right through your bullshit talk about you all being lowlifes." As he neared, she tried to catch him by surprise and swung her pipe at his head, but he caught it and grinned. He yanked her up to her feet and socked her in the gut, forcing her forward and to release her weapon. He tossed the metal pipe to the side and grabbed the front of her clothes and lifted her up to his eye level. "You think you're better than everyone else. And let me tell you something, sweetheart, everyone here can see it!"

She glared at him, her own anger rising. "You think I'm fighting you to be a hero? Oh no, I'm far more selfish than that." She then snapped her head forward and head-butted him. He shouted in pain as his blue shades broke and released her. They both stumbled back, but as he held his face she rush forward and socked him in the stomach with more strength than anyone anticipated. "I'm fighting you purely because I wanted you to myself!" While he was bent forward from her first hit, she then uppercutted him and his head snapped back. She was already drawing blood from his face. He quickly swung his own fists and she leaned to the side to dodge. "I don't give a shit about gangs and turfs, I give a shit about my comrades!" She nailed him in the kidney and he doubled forward. Instead of striking again she backed away. She gave him time to recover as she yelled at him, her anger becoming well known. "I told my sister earlier today that disputes shouldn't be resolved by violence. And I believed my own words, until you made the mistake of jumping Kiba. I then realized that this wasn't some stupid dispute over power and territories, this was some little shit having too much fun with his newfound power, and the only way for him to learn is by me kicking his ass!" While he was still bent over, she grabbed his shoulders and kneed him in his sternum.

He coughed and spit mixed with blood flew from his mouth, but he forced himself to stand up and punched her across the face. She stumbled back and despite the pain he felt he forced a grin at her. "I get it, you want revenge for your poor little brown nosed pet, is that it?"

She recovered and glared at him viciously. "I dare you to call him that one more time."

"Should I tell you all about it? How his ribs broke under my fist? How he cried like a little bitch?" She was practically bristling. He smirked as he saw he was getting under her skin. "The dumbass didn't even put up a fight. He just bent over and took it like the bitch he is." Having heard enough, she ran for her metal pipe and snagged it from the ground. He backed up for his sledge hammer and as she ran for him he could easily predict her movements now. "It's cute how hard you're trying to avenge him. The only problem is," he easily blocked her swings a couple times before be brought his hammer down. She put her pipe up to block again, but went wide eyed as it bent sharply under his strength. He grinned, "While you think you can take on the world, in reality you ain't strong enough to do shit!" She quickly backed away, but when he swung he managed to clip her in the right shoulder.

There was the sound of bones breaking clearly being heard. She cried out as the strength of his swung along sent her flying a bit. She hit the ground hard, losing her grip on her metal pipe. She bared her teeth as she struggled to get back up, but a Blue Square kicked her in her bad shoulder and she cried out again, easily crumpling back down. "Hey!" Kyohei quickly grabbed the guys shoulder and pulled him back. Horada glared back at him, but Kyohei stared him down. "It's not a one on one fight if you join in."

"Screw off, Kadota," he said and shrugged him off.

"Boss!" One of the Red Stains yelled across the room.

"Let us tear them apart!"

"Let us help!"

"No!" She shouted through clenched teeth. "All of you, stay back!"

Horada laughed, "The chicks barely got enough strength to stand anymore." She managed to lift her head and eyed the Blue Squares standing over her. She made eye contact with Horada who was grinning down at her. "The Leader of the Red Stains is pathetic." He then spat on her, spit landing in her hair. Kyohei glared at him while Erika and Walker watched her in anticipation.

She hung her head again. "I don't care... I don't care what you do to me, because I'm not going to lose this." Her shoulder was screaming in throbbing pain, but slowly she managed to pick herself up. "My comrades make me strong... If I'm fighting for those I care about, then I don't care what happens to my body." With one shoulder sagging lower than the other, she staggered to her feet and made for her bent metal pipe. His hammer seriously did a number on her. She knew if he hits her full on with that then she's done. "You hurt Kiba... And sent him to the hospital... I don't care what you say about me, or to me, or how you break this body." She picked up her weapon with her good arm, the dominant one hanging limp and useless, and glared at Izumii. "All I need is to beat you and protect my comrades. As long as I have the strength to do that, I don't care if I'm weaker and more pathetic than everyone in the world."

Kyohei glanced at his friends confused as they gasped. Walker stared in awe and whispered, "She's just like Titania!"

"Better than that!" Erika whispered back with sparkling eyes. "She is Titania!"

Saburo whispered behind them, "What the Hell are you two talking about?"

Kyohei forced himself to ignore them and watched as Hana charged for Izumii again. She had to be insane. Izumii swung his sledge hammer, but she didn't lose any speed. She refused to. She dodged his swing and slammed the corner of her pipe into his side. He grunted and whirled around in another swing. She rolled to dodge, but cried out and struggled to get to her feet, her shoulder bringing her down. Izumii grinned and went to bring his hammer down. She glanced and forced herself to lunge away. Baring her teeth through the pain, she rolled to her feet and swung her pipe in a flurry, beating on his back a few times before he could spin around and swing again. She ran by him and swung her arm back, managing to hit him in the back of the head. While the force sent him forward, he swung back blindly and missed as she ran off. He got his footing and spun around, glaring at her while panting a little. She stood away from him, panting harder than him and in obviously more pain.

With a shout Hana charged at Izumii, raising her bent pipe. Izumii grinned cockily and swung his hammer up from below, ready to catch her in the jaw. His grin fell away when she spun around, dodging his swing, and crouched low to catch his knee in her bent pipe. It hooked his leg and she pulled with a grunting shout. With hammer going up and leg going out Izumii found himself falling back. He yelped as the hammer slipped out of his grasp from momentum, and it aimed to come back down on her. With an animalistic scream ripping from her throat, she put all her rage into her swing and knocked his large sledge hammer away to the side. With a war cry she brought her pipe down on his face. She repeated that a few times until he went still.

She then stopped, huffing, watching as blood leaked from his head and pooled on the floor. Like she said: Ryan's punch was the only red stain she'd leave here. The room was tense, the gangs still glaring at each other. Maria watched her concerned, "Is... Is he dead?"

"No..." She tossed her bent pipe aside and it landed with a loud clatter. "He's still alive." Hana then glared over her shoulder at the rest of the Blue Squares. "The Blue Squares will no longer be randomly attacking us." She turned away from them. "And to those of you that left us; don't bother coming back."

She walked towards her gang with a slight limp and Maria was quick to move forward to help her. Once she helped carried Hana's weight, she suddenly felt so tired. She sagged down and another woman ran forward to catch her other side. "Boss, are you sure it's a good idea to leave Izumii alive?"

She didn't have the strength to lift her head as the adrenaline and rage faded away. "I'm not a murderer," she replied. "Trust me, a man like him won't be forgetting this for a while." The Blue Squares watched and did nothing as the Red Stains opened the doors back up and parted for their leader to leave first.

That was Hana's second mistake.