Chapter 2:

Hiruma looked at his team members and said "All of you, get on the helicopter! You'll go to the destination I planned and start the training. Kurita and I will stay here and wait for the chibi"

"I'm staying too" said Mamori which caused everyone else to say the same thing

"We don't abandon our teammate" added Monta firmly

"Ah-Ha-Ha" shouted Taki while twirling around in circles "There is a greater success rate when I'm around"

Hiruma smirked and took out his stash of guns. While shooting them at his team, he said " This is an order. Now get your butts on the helicopter before I make the Death Marathon into a Death Ultra Marathon."

Everyone walked slowly and unwillingly into the helicopter except for Mamori. Hiruma looked at her and sighed. This woman has too strong of a resolve. It's not attractive when it is directed at me, thought Hiruma. He walked up to her and whispered "I need you to be with the team. You're the only one I can rely on to make sure they are well behaved and safe" and in an even lower voice, almost barely audible, he whispered "I love you. I'll make sure they both get back safe and sound."

Mamori stared into Hiruma's eyes and felt her worries subsiding "Okay, I'll do as you say. I hope you'll find them soon"

The Deimon Devil Bats and the Sebu Wild Gunmen piled into the small helicopter and it took off. Hiruma and Kurita stayed for Sena while on the other side, Kid and Tetsuma stayed for Riku. The two team quarterbacks devised a plan, they would split the area into two and each pair would tackle one during the daytime and come back to camp at night to avoid danger. Hiruma looked up at the sky and saw that the sun was about the set. It was going to be dark soon and that meant, the temperature will drop and they will need to set up camp soon. Hiruma did not believe in god or gods, but if he did, he would be praying at this moment because he knew how protective Mamori was over Sena and this time, it was not only Sena, but Riku too. He unconsciously shivered thinking of Mamori's "punishment" and reaction if he returned empty-handed. A week ago, Cerberus stole one of Mamori's precious cream puffs and when he was caught, even Hiruma couldn't save him. His favorite pet was dyed pink and forced wore pastel colored outfits for the rest of the week, looking more like a cotton candy puff than a scary training dog. Everytime Hiruma saw him, he had to look away because he could see the sadness and the master-why-did-you-let-this-happen-to-me look in his eyes. He sincerely hope that the chibi was not injured, that he knows what to do to be safe at night.

Deep in the forest, Sena and Riku was walking quietly together. They were tasked with scavenging for fruits and edible plants. Once in a while, one of them would stop and dug out some root vegetables or pick some berries to put in their bags. But most of their attention and glances were given to each other than to their surrounding environment. Each time one of them would look away, the other person would take that time to look at them. More than once, they would catch the other person staring at them and both of them would look away embarrassed. The silence between the two of them grew the farther they walked and before they knew it, they were lost. Riku wanted to start a conversation, anything to make this less awkward, but he was afraid he would say something inappropriate again.

*An Hour earlier*

After everyone got a task to deal with, Sena started walking into the forest to fulfil his task. Riku saw him and ran after him shouting "Sena!".

"Hey, are you also gathering fruits and vegetables?" asked Riku

"Yeah, do you want to go with me?" replied Sena smiling

"Okay" said Riku with a goofy grin.

The two of them walked and casually talked about whatever was on their mind.

"Do you think we will leave soon?

"I hope so"

"It's good that our teams landed together. It's better to have more people and we were lucky no one was injured in the crash."

"Where were you guys going?"

"We were headed to Texas for our Death Marathon training"

As they headed deeper into the forest and saw that no one was around, the two childhood friends revealed their true nature and started gossiping.

"I can't believe it, but I found out that Mamori-neechan and Hiruma-kun are dating" whispered Sena while double checking that Hiruma won't pop out of the bushes

"Really?! The two of them are polar opposites!" cried Riku "How did you figure it out?"

"I went by Mamori-neechan's house to return a few of her study materials and heard from her parents that she moved in with her boyfriend!" said Sena "I was so shocked that I ran to the clubhouse to see if she was there so I can ask her about it. She wasn't there so I went to meet up with Monta and the others for lunch. As I walk by the park, I saw Mamori-neechan holding hand with a tall blond haired guy. As I got closer, I realized it was Hiruma-kun! He looked so different with a casual black outfit, slicked back hair, and a bouquet of roses on the other hand"

"Hiruma with roses?" cried Riku "He really liked Mamori-san!"

"Anything exciting on your side?" asked Sena

"Just the usual. Tetsuma-san and Kid making out thinking that no one will catch them. Buffalo-san and the head cheerleader getting together, breaking up, and getting back together. They also make out all the time thinking no one would know their secret" said Riku "All very boring now"

"Oh, you know what. I did see Monta and Suzanne walking into a restaurant together. It looked like they were on a date" added Riku

"Haha. Really? They make a nice couple" said Sena "When will you get a girlfriend, Riku?"

"I'm waiting for someone" said Riku, looking straight at Sena while he said it

Sena looked away first. He didn't know why Riku was staring so intently at him, it made him feel embarrassed. At the same time, Riku's answer made him feel strange. He was upset knowing that RIku had a girl that he liked. Sena didn't understand his own feelings. He should be happy for his friend, but his heart felt otherwise.

"I'm happy for you" said Sena after a long pause. Sena looked over at Riku and tripped on a tree root. Riku reached out and caught Sena in his arms.

Riku looked down at the figure in his arms. The sunlight had filtered through the leaves and landed on Sena's face making him look more innocent than usual, it elevated him to being almost angelic. Sena was biting his lips, drawing Riku's attention to them and he unconsciously blurted out "I've been waiting for you, Sena"

As Sena's eyes widened in shock, Riku realized what he said and muttered to himself "Shit".

*Back to present*

"Ahem...Ryoma...You see..." started Riku looking off to the side, talking to the trees, but before he could finish, he heard a 'thud' sound. He turned around to see Sena sprawled on the ground.

"Sena!" cried Riku, bending down to help lift up Sena, but Sena wasn't responding back. He had bumped his head on the way down and became unconscious. Riku tried shaking Sena and taking out his water bottle to splash water on Sena's face, but Sena did not move or wake up. Riku looked up and noticed it was getting dark. They were in the middle of the forest and lost. Riku could try carrying Sena and figure his way out of the forest, but he didn't want to risk it in this new environment. He didn't know if there were any dangerous animals that came out at night or if they would even be able to see/figure out how to get out. It was better to be safe than sorry. Riku carried Sena to a nearby cave. It was clean and it didn't look like any animals inhabited it for a while. He laid Sena down at the back of the cave and left to gather some dried branches to start a fire and to get some more water for the both of them to drink. When he got back, it was already pitched dark. He started the fire, ate some berries, and drank some water before laying down next to Sena. Even with the fire, it was still a bit chilly so Riku hugged Sena tightly before falling asleep.