The next day, everyone in Squad Thirteen was informed by Nana and Hachi that they would work with the other squads from each plantation alongside Zero Two's old team, the 9s. Their task was to eliminate the Klaxosaurs inhabiting the Gran Crevasse, a region filled with a significant amount of life-giving magma energy, but also a tidal wave of Klaxosaurs that hoarded this energy source.

"Now, does everyone understand their role," Hatchi said, looking at squad 13. Everyone was engaged in the conversation except for Zero Two, who had her back to the group as she knawed on her damaged fingernails

Ichigo raised her hand.

"Yes, Ichigo, what is it?" Hatchi said, his face as unchanging as a marble statue.

"Before the operation can commence, please Remove Zero Two from squad 13."

This response caused Zero Two to stop knawing on her nails and turn her head to the side to listen to the conversation, a fanged snarl on her face, which was noticed by Futoshi, who had turned to see the pin haired teen's reaction, which as soon as he saw her enlarged fangs caused him to turn back swiftly to face Hatchi and Nana, with a fearful look in his eyes.

"That would not be possible..." Hatchi tried to explain the problems with this request but was swiftly interrupted by Ichigo

"If this request is not accepted, then we have no choice but to refuse to participate in this operation. We as a squad came to this agreement, and given current circumstances, we cannot work alongside Zero Two..." Ichigo stated calmly, befitting someone many years her senior, the rest of the squad, while silent, did not look away from Nana and Hatchi as Ichigo spoke. However, upon hearing this request, Zero Two growled, and with an angered bite, she cracked her fingernail, which was heard in the brief silence, causing a few people to wince at the sound.

"As it happens, as part of this mission, Zero Two was to be transferred to the Nines..." Nana said, causing the squad's eyes to open wide in shock, except for Zero Two, who, in response, turned to face her challengers and yelled.

"Wait for a second! Where the hell did this decision come from?! You cannot make decisions for me!" Zero Two pointed in a hostile manner towards the two adults.

This decision has already been the green light by HQ. Their decision is final." Nana stated coldly. This was a standard protocol that was sent by those above her station. All she could do was accept and accommodate the command.

This response left Zero Two silent as her anger washed away and fear filled its place.

"But, what about my Darling..." Zero Two said, trying to stop her lips from trembling, but Nana, in response, shook her head.

In mere seconds Zero Two knew what she had to do.

"I cannot leave, my Darling..." Zero Two ran towards the door at full speed, too fast to be stopped by Futoshi, who was knocked on the floor when he tried to catch her.

"She cannot enter Hiro's room!" Ichigo yelled as the squad sprinted to stop the pink-haired pilot.

"Get back here!" Nana and Hatchi yelled to the teens, but this fell on deaf ears.

Zero Two was heading toward Hiro's room in a full sprint.

"I'm almost there, Darling..." Zero two said happily in her head, only to stop when she saw that Ichigo, Mitsuru, Ikuno and Zoromi were running down the hallway in front of her, causing her to stop

"I told you! You will not see Hiro." Ichigo said as Goro, Kokoro, Miku, Kokoro, and Futoshi caught up with Zero Two and blocked her escape

Ichigo and her group were just a few steps in front of Hiro's room, with their potion acting like a wall.

"Move out of the way." Zero Two growled, her fang-like teeth showing as she spoke, which, when backed by crimson horns and piercing green eyes, the usually beautiful teenager, instead resembled a monster from an old folk tale.

"Make me," Ichigo said as she walked over to Zero Two to stare the monstrous teen down. Her voice was cold and without fear, which pushed Zero Two over the edge, as her anger and fear boiled over, causing her to roar with rage and grab Ichigo by the hair and the two began to wrestle, with the rest of the group attempting to pull the pair apart.

"That's enough! Goro yelled as he tried to push his arms between them, only to receive an elbow to his nose knocking him back and dropping him to the ground, causing his nose to bleed.

"Are you okay?" Ikuno said as she helped Goro to his feet, pulling a handkerchief from her jacket to help stop the bleeding,

"Is your nose broken?

I... don't think so." Goro said in a disgruntled tone, touching his nose and noticing the blood on his fingers, which was slightly hazy from the shock of being hit on his nose."

"Was it Zero Two that did that to you? She's a menace." Futoshi said

"I don't know... it was too quick for me to notice; besides, both are so angry that it could have been either of them," Goro grumbled, his eyes leaking tears which, when mixed with the stinging of his freshly injured nose, made it even harder to think about what had just happened mere moments ago.

As this happened, Hiro, who was in his hospital bed, was trying to think what he could say the next time he saw Zero Two.

"How do I even begin to talk to her about what happened between us? I don't want to hurt her...what is that noise?" Hiro sighed to himself, pausing for a moment when he heard muffled yelling coming from outside of his room,

"Get off her Zero Two!"

"What's going on? Hiro said as he leaned forward in his bed, removing his breathing mask to reduce the noise around him.

Thump! Thump! Thump!"

Hiro hearing this moved himself to the side of his bed and dropped to his feet, which given his still weakened state, meant his legs were shakey. Before walking, he took his IV stand and used it like a walking aid.

"Ichigo! Break it up, or we will all get in trouble! "

"Goro? What's going on?" Hiro thought, his hands trembling out of worry, imaging several scenarios that could account for the commotion, with the most notable being a Klaxasaur invasion

"Ichigo...is she fighting someone?" Hiro slowly trudged towards his room door, and with every step, the thumps and yells grew louder,

"I told you, Zero Two! You will not see Hiro!"

"I don't care what you say! No one can stop me from seeing my Darling!"

Hiro hearing this stopped in his tracks, causing his legs to shake even more as they strained to hold him up.

"I have to do something," Hiro thought as he took a deep breath and started walking again, heading towards his room door, which he managed to get to, and with great effort, he shoved the door open, using the handle of the door to brace himself further up. As he turned to see what was going on, he saw Ichigo and Zero Two in a brawl; the pair latched onto one another, trying to tear each other apart, as they bumped into the walls; all the while, the rest of squad 13 tried their best to break the pair apart using verbal and physical means but to no avail. Seeing this, Hiro decided to end this.

"Stop fighting! The pair of you!" Hiro attempted a yell, but it turned into a hoarse scream, which caused the entire group to turn to face Hiro, stopping the brawling teens in their tracks as they looked to see Hiro in his hospital gown, with his IV rest latched in his hand like an old man's cane.

"Hiro..." The group said in shock, but none were as surprised as Zero Two. It had been a few days since she had last seen her Darling, and now that he was in front of her, she could see how much she had hurt him. Simply standing and talking caused him visible distress, and the dark purple of his bruise only reinforced this."

I can't stand it. Seeing you both fight...please stop." Hiro said as his body and voice grew weaker, causing his grip to loosen on both the door handle and his IV stand, which was noticed by Zero Two, who, while tired from her tussle with Ichigo, was still fast enough to dart to her Darling.

"Do not touch him!" Ichigo yelled as she attempted to grab Zero Two's jacket, only to be stopped suddenly, allowing Zero Two to catch Hiro, resting his head on her shoulder and holding him with a tenderness that could only be seen by parents with their children or with two lovers.

"Ive got you, Darling." Zero two whispered into Hiro's ear. Her heart warmed at being so close to Hiro, taking in his warmth and the sound of his breath.

As this happened, Ichigo turned to see what had stopped her from moving.

"Goro. Why did you do that?! I promised to protect Hiro! We promised to protect Hiro."

"I can't stand seeing this, Ichigo. I know that what Zero Two did hurt Hiro, but look at her." Goro said in a pleading with Ichigo pointing to Zero Two, the pair seeing Zero Two crying as she held Hiro.

"But how can you accept that?! She nearly killed him, and yet your fine to have her near him." Ichigo yelled, trying to escape Goros grasp, but he fired back sternly.

"Because it's plain to see that she is in pain. Did you not see her the days after Hiro was placed here? Look at her hands. Her nails. They are scarred by her worry. Would someone who wants to hurt Hiro really do this to themselves?"

This statement left Ichigo speechless as she tried to find an answer o Goro's question, which was answered by other voices.

"Yeah, you've got a point, Goro."

"Worry is a complex thing; everyone is affected by it differently. Some people turn to anger, and others turn to pain to deal with it."

"I know ive felt terrible with worry...sometimes I feel like ill never eat again."

After a moment of silence, Ichigo turned to see who had spoken, that being Miko, Ikuno and Futoshi, before she responded.

Alright." Goro let go of Ichigo, allowing her to face Hiro and Zero Two and walked over to the pair. Hiro was starting to regain strength when he saw that Ichigo had walked over to him and Zero Two and knelt to speak to them.

I can't stop both of you from seeing each other, and no matter how I feel, it would only cause you more harm.

"Ichigo." Hiro sighed weakly as he saw the emotions welling in Ichigo's eyes, but before he could comment, Ichigo wiped her eyes, tightened her lips to stop them shuddering and took a breath.

"Let's get you back into your bed. You and Zero Two can have some time together without us watching over...however, if I hear any commotion, I'm breaking this up. Agreed?" Ichigo, after saying this helped Zero Two, who, rather than speak, silently nodded as the pair took one of Hiro's arms. They carefully placed them over their shoulders as they lifted him, which upon being seen, was then backed by Goro and Futoshi, who each took a leg and carried Hiro to his room, which given the strange angle, caused a unified laugh, cutting through the layers of tension that had been there since the encounter.