Days passed and there had been no leads yet. None of us were informants after all. I stopped by Shinra's every day. Neither he nor Celty had been able to find anything. There was really no reason for me to check in every day; Shinra said he would call if they found anything out. But dammit, it was my fault Izaya got taken and I would get him back so I can kill him myself.

….

Today as I walked into their apartment I could tell instantly that there was no new news. "Have you talked to his assistant Namie? She might have heard something." I suggested.

"I called her a few days ago. She said she would call me if the gang that took him contacted her."

"So there's nothing any of us can really do right now?"

"Just keep your eyes and ears peeled. I've got Celty doing patrols around the city watching for suspicious behavior, I check my e-mail every little bit, I have my phone on me at all times, and you can keep an eye out while you help Tom."

. . . .

My day went about as usual, only ten times more stressful because of no word about Izaya. He would be okay, right? I mean, he was acting off after the fight with the gang, but he would have recovered. I hate to admit it, but Izaya is smart and can work his way out of any situation. At least, he always has in the past. So, why would this be any different?

Tom had dragged me to the fifth scumbag's house for the day. He was lying about why he didn't have the money; they always do. I was in the middle of persuading him when my phone started ringing. I had to finish this quickly, so I just went with a punch straight to the guy's face.

"Give the money to Tom or you'll get worse than a punch." I gave him a look to show I meant business, and then looked to Tom, "I have to take this phone call."

I stepped outside and looked at the caller ID. Shinra's name and face were on the screen like I had hoped. Swallowing, I flipped it open.

"Hello." There was an awkward pause as Shinra took a breath.

"Yeah… Shizuo…Um, well…" Shinra stuttered out on the other end.

"Shinra, spit it out."

"Well, as you know, a gang whose color marker is green took Izaya. They belong to a gang called Envy." The anxiety in his voice increased toward the end.

"Yeah, did you find them?"

"No. They did contact Namie though. They said they had Izaya… They don't want money… they want to fight you. The want to defeat the beast of Ikebukuro so no one will mess with them and stay out of their way."

"Fighting them is not a problem, but I can't fight them unless I know where they are."

"Well, we'll send word back through Namie if you agree. It's not that simple though."

"Yeah, well it never is, is it?"

"Yeah, anyway…the gang has well over 100 members. They all want to fight you, at once. If you bring anyone else or get back up they will kill Izaya."

"Shinra, I can handle this."

"Listen, I know you are strong. It's just, there will be a lot of people to fight and they will all be coming at you at once. You need to fight your way to Izaya, get him out of whatever they are using to hold him, and let him help you."

"Yeah, like Izaya would help me."

"I know you both hate each other, but neither of you are that stupid. You both will have a common enemy, just like at the pool."

"…"

"Shizuo, promise me you'll get Izaya and get out of there. Don't fight more than you have to."

"… Fine, I promise. Just call Namie and find out where they have him."

"I will. Can you come to my place after work?"

"Yeah." I closed my phone and just stared at it for a moment. I would go in, get Izaya, and get out. The problem was that he may make it easier to get out, or he may throw me under the bus. How have they been able to hold him this long, anyway? I mean, they couldn't kill him, right? I've been trying for years. No, it's impossible for some mere gang members to kill him. But, before I even realized what I was doing, I had flipped my phone back open and called Shinra back.

"Shizuo?"

"Make sure he's alive!"

"I will. They will keep him alive so they can fight you though, don't worry."

"I'm not worried…Just make sure or there is no reason for me to go fight them."

"This gang doesn't go back on their deals. They aren't nice people, but they keep their word."

"Okay, I'll let you call Namie. I'll be there as soon as I'm finished today." I flipped the phone closed. Of course Izaya was alive. It's hard to kill a flea after all.