Naru opened her eyes as she laid on the floor. She couldn't tell where the heck she was, because it was too dark. A small ray of light shone down upon her, but she had no idea where this light originated. Then Naru began to panic. They often say when someone died, they could see a light at the end of a long tunnel. Was she dead? Was she dreaming? Was she trapped in an illusion? What was going on? The girl lifted her heavy body into a sitting position. She tried her best to stand up, but an invisible weight kept her pinned to the floor.

"Naru", Someone called out to her.

This somewhat familiar voice found her in the dark. Naru turned her head to slowly glimpse behind her. Standing in another ray of light was the ERT sniper Angel. His attire was a white suit with so signs of any other color. However, this calming color didn't match the worried expression on his face.

"Angel", Naru asked. "Angel is that you?"

Angel responded, "Yes, it's me Naru."

She began to stammer, "But I saw you...With Masuke...And Keitaro...Keitaro! Keitaro!"

"I know, I know", Angel said as he squatted down to her eye level. "That's what I'm here to talk to you about. Naru, it's up to you to save Keitaro. He's strong, but he's not strong enough to beat Masuka. He needs you Naru. He needs you to beat Masuka."

"But how", Naru said. I can't beat Masuka, she's too powerful."

"You CAN beat her Naru", Angel reassured her.

"But how? Please, tell me how Angel!"

"There three things you'll need", Angel said as he reached for the cross and chain around Naru's neck. "You'll need this. This will be a key to winning against Masuka."

"What is this cross going to do against Masuka?"

"It will make you stronger, but not as strong as this", Angel pointed to Naru's heart. "The second most important thing you'll need...Is your heart. If you put your heart into saving Keitaro, you can do it. You want to save Keitaro, right?"

"Yes...Of course I want to save Keitaro", Naru answered, almost pleading.

"Good", Angel told her. "Now, close your eyes."

"What?"

"Close your eyes", Angel told her. "The last thing you need is to wake up. When you wake up, you'll be back at the dorms."

"Wait, what about you?"

"Don't worry about me Naru. I'll still be watching over you guys."

"But Angel, I saw what happened to you! I saw what Masuka made you do", Naru continued.

"Don't worry about me Naru", Angel said as he reached for her eyes.

"Angel no! Wait", Naru pleaded as Angel slowly closed her eyes for her.

As much as she wanted to fight back, the heavy feeling around her body still prevented her from stopping Angel's hands.

"Please save Keitaro", Angel said. "Tell everyone goodbye, and give my love to Kitsune for me."

At last, Naru's vision was gently shut off by Angel's finger tips.

There were voices, many voices. Naru's vision began to slowly make a come back, and figures around her began to appear in sight.

"Everyone, she's beginning to come around", Tokui called to the others.

Naru was now fully aware of her surroundings. She was in the training room on a tama mat. Surrounding her were Tokui, Shinobu, Motoko, and Nentou.

"Naru, are you alright? Can you hear me", Motoko asked.

Naru shook her head yes in confirmation.

"Is she alright", Tokui asked.

"Well I'm no doctor", Nentou told his captain, "But she looks okay. She's responding to us, her breathing is good, motor functions seem alright."

Shinobu threw her arms around Naru.

"I was so scared Naru", Shinobu cried. "I thought you weren't gonna wake up!"

Naru patted her back to calm the young girl down.

"It's okay Shinobu, I'm fine."

They stayed like that for a while. However, Naru would have to pull away to get some words in with Tokui.

"Tokui, they took Keitaro", Naru said to them.

"I know", Tokui said as he helped Crenjer, Skinny, Shirai, Haitani, and Han on their laptops. "We're searching as far and fast as we can."

Nentou grunted in frustration as his computer screen suddenly blackened out.

"Dammit! It's no good! Darius's files are locked too tight! Every freakin time we open something up, we get napalmed with firewalls!"

"Keep trying", Tokui ordered. "We're not leaving this room until we get something!"

"Captain, we're not getting anywhere with this", Nentou replied.

"Keep trying soldier", Tokui repeated in frustration.

"Man why are we still followin this guy's orders?! What have any of his plans ever done besides ding my rear", Shirai snapped.

Nentou defended, "He took on Zeus and Neon!"

"And look, they BOTH escaped", Haitani continued.

"Zeus is a hard opponent to fight", Han said.

"Shut up Han", Yelled Shirai. "Zeus was supposed to be your fight, and you couldn't even take him out!"

"So, Keitaro was YOUR close friend, you should have his back 24/7", Tokui pointed out.

The three girls watched as the remaining ERT began to tear themselves apart. Motoko and Shinobu helped Naru stay on her feet as she prepared to talk to all of them. However, it was going to be hard to get anything across to them now. By this time, the soldiers were neck in neck in the argument, as well as in each other's faces.

"I say if you had a spine for once, Irie would still be alive", Nentou crossed the line with Han.

"Don't you dare drag Irie into this", Han roared. "He deserved to live more than you!"

Tokui cut in this time, "At least Irie didn't smoke like a chimney!"

"Its your fault that he's dead now Tokui! All that training and you couldn't take out Draconian because you're sissy over lizards", Shirai pointed out.

"You will keep your mouth shut", Tokui yelled a he repeatedly and harshly jabbed his finger against Shirai's chest.

"Hey, leave him alone", Haitani threatened.

"You stay in line an don't worry about what I tell your boyfriend", Tokui said as he began to crack.

Haitani shoved Tokui in anger as he got in the captain's face.

"You think I'm scared of what you say to me Tokui?!"

"Don't speak to the captain like that Haitani", Han fumed.

"Han, quit acting like your the Captain's lap dog and grow a pair", Nentou burst. "You can't even talk to a girl without stumbling!"

"He couldn't even save his own cousin! What makes you think he can save anyone else", Shirai said to him.

That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Han roughly grabbed Shirai by the back of the neck and tossed him to the ceiling. Shirai hit the top before falling back to the floor. Haitani rushed to check on his wingman before he was grabbed by the shoulder.

"Hey I'm not finished talking to you yet", Tokui started.

The captain didn't finish speaking as Haitani threw a strong punch at Tokui. The fist connected with the swordsman's cheek. Tokui stumbled, but returned the punch with one of his own. In a matter of seconds, Tokui and Haitani were going at it like they really meant it. Just as Han was about to break it up, Shirai returned Han's toss by raking his animal claws against Han's face.

Han roared from the pain as he covered his face. In his blinded state, Han took rapid swing in the air, hoping to hit Shirai. By accident, he ended up hitting Nentou as he tried to spark up another cigarette. The swing missed Nentou, but it knocked the smoke out of his fingers. To top it all off, Han stepped on the cigarette, crushing it completely. With power Nentou didn't think he still had, Nentou landed a strong Falcon Kick to Han's jaw that would have made even Keitaro proud.

Fist were flying, and kicks were landing as Naru watched the remaining ERT tear themselves apart. Naru pulled on Motoko's arm and weakly asked her, "Motoko, get their attention." Motoko responded by surrounding the sheath of her sword with ki, and wacking it onto the floor. The noise was loud enough to scare a monster, and the kinetic force from the channeled attack knocked the boys flat on their backs.

"Enough, all of you", Naru shouted.

All fighting ceased. Shirai on the other hand, didn't let things go quite as easily. He landed one more punch to Han's ribs, making the big man cringe from the critical hit.

"That's enough", Naru continued. "Keitaro needs our help, and you're all fighting like a bunch of brats! Keitaro nor Angel wouldn't have wanted you act like this!"

Angel's memory sparked up another concern for Naru. She turned to her female comrades before asking, "Motoko, Shinobu, where's Kitsune?" The look on their faces transformed to a sorrowful expression as they looked towards the entrance.

Sitting just outside the training room porch, Kitsune cried her eyes out into a jacket. Surrounding her were Mutsumi, Sarah, Kanako, and Su as they tried to calm her down. Their words and touch did next to nothing in terms of relieving Kitsune. As they did their best, Naru made an appearance.

"Naru, you're awake", Said Mutsumi. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes Mutsumi", Naru assured the girl from Okinawa. "Here, I'll take care of Kitsune."

The girls were reluctant to leave their weeping friend. After one reassuring smile from Naru, they knew that Kitsune was in good hands. Kanako, Mutsumi, Su, and Sarah walked into Keitaro's training room to assist the ERT in any way they could. Naru knelt down by Kitsune to be at her level.

"Kitsune, Kitsune it's me, Naru."

The thin eyes girl lifted her face from her jacket. Kitsune's eyes were bloodshot and teary with sadness. Seeing her usually cheerful friend like this really hurt Naru's heart. What could she say to Kitsune? The girl may have very well lost the love of her life. He wasn't going to come back the next day, or next week, or even next year. The sad fact was that Angel was gone...Forever. Naru fidgeted with her fingers as she tried to find the words to speak.

"I'm sorry Kitsune", At least she managed that out.

Kitsune sniveled as she tried to gain her composure. She held out the jacket for Naru to see. It was dark green, with many pockets. There was clear evidence that it had been roughly used, such as a few snags and tears. Some sewing had been applied, and the color looked like it had been fading away for a while.

"This was Angels", Kitsune said through hiccups and whimpers. "He gave it to me before we broke up the first time. When he packed up his things to leave...I, I thought he left it by accident..."

Naru put her hand on Kitsune's shoulder, "He left it on purpose Kitsune. Angel knew he was going to see you again. He loved you too much to leave you completely behind."

"But Naru..He's, he's dead Naru! He left for good...And, and I didn't get to say goodbye, and I didn't get to tell him how much he meant to me!"

Kitsune buried her face into the safety of Angel's jacket as she continued to cry her soul out.

"He already knew Kitsune."

With those words, Kitsune halted her sobs.

"W-What?"

"He already knew you loved him", Naru continued, "And you know why? He knew for two reasons." Naru pointed to Kitsune's heart. "The most important way he knew...Was through your heart. If you truly loved Angel with all your heart, then Angel knew that you loved him just as much as he loved you. Finally, Angel knew you loved him because he's still watching over us. More importantly, he's watching over you right now, Kitsune."

Kitsune became entranced by Naru'a speech. It was calming, and almost en exact replica of what Angel would've said to her. It seemed like an illusion to Kitsune, but she could have sworn she saw a white silhouette of Angel right behind Naru, like a pure white shadow. However it was only for an instant, as Kitsune's eyes began to well up again in waterfall tears.

"Angel...N-Naruuuu", Kitsune cried again as she threw her arms around her best friend.

"He's still watching over us Kitsune, he's still watching over you", Naru began to cry herself.

As their tears were shed, and their cries released in the courtyard, the small cross around Naru's neck slowly glowed a shiny white light.

Back inside Keitaro's training room, Crenjer, Skinny, Su, Tokui, and Nentou focused their attention on the different files of the ERT projects.

"It doesn't make sense", Crenjer told them. "Project Thundebolt, project Dragon, project Blaster, project Venom, project Tower, project Medical Net, project Racer, project Cyber, and the storage unit from the car company?...It doesn't make any sense! They're all random projects with barely any relationship with one another! What is Darius's end game?!"

"Projects Dragon, Thunderbolt, Blaster, and Venom are clearly used as super powered henchman", Skinny said, "What I'm more concerned about is why he needs Tower, Medical Net, Cyber, Racer, and the storage unit."

"What about Keitaro", Su asked as she helped them in any way she could. "What are they going to do to Keitaro?"

"He's a personal item for them", Another voice said.

At the front of the room stood Naru and Kitsune. The fox eyed girl looked like she had calmed down a bit, and Naru was now wide awake with determination burning in her face.

"He's a personal trophy for Masuka", Naru blurted.

The ERT suddenly froze up.

"What", Han choked. "That can't be, Masuka is dead."

Naru shook her head, "No, she's not. She's been working with Darius since the beginning. She faked her death during the incident with Draconian."

The soldiers had to pause and take a seat to fully digest this new plot twist.

Tokui ran his hands through his hair as he puzzled together, "That explains how Draconian was able to take us by surprise on that day."

Kanako took note of how Han balled his hands into fist.

"And how she was able to find out so much about the projects without being detected", Said Shirai.

"She played us all to get Keitaro", Han fumed. "She helped murder all those people, including Irie!"

"Naru", Haitani started, "What else did you find out?"

"I know about Keitaro's special abilities..."

The ERT suddenly became worried that Naru knew about this. He told the rest of the soldiers once before to never tell the girls about this, especially Naru. Naru quickly spoke before any of the ERT could deny it.

"I saw it first hand. I don't know what it does or how it works though."

"It's an adrenaline booster", Entered another voice.

Despite two Shinmei-Ryū warriors being present in the room, Taka of the Oni-Zakuradojo kept his composure.

"It enhances his strength, speed, reflexes, and tolerance of pain. In this mode, he's almost next to the same level as a demon."

Motoko came up with a new hypothesis, "Do you think they'll try to use Keitaro and his abilities against us?"

"Boss is too strong willed", Skinny defended. "He'd never turn against us, willingly or unwillingly!"

"He has will power", Taka said, "But he has a delicate psychie. It wouldn't take much to hurt him, or to bend his will."

"No that's not true. He wouldn't turn his back on us", Shinobu added to Skinny's argument.

"Even if he did put up a big NO sign against them, they could use project Medical Net to physically tamper with his brain."

"And doing so his demon powers could awaken and run wild", Taka added.

"That's enough", Kitsune suddenly spat. "I don't care what all the possibilities are, Keitaro ain't gonna turn against us! I know that for a fact! I already lost someone close to me, I ain't gonna lose anotha!"

Wow, this was unexpected from Kitsune. Most of them thought shed still be crying after losing Angel, and the rest simply didn't think she'd step up in a situation like this.

Tokui regained his motivation like a captain should, "You're right. Boys let's start digging! Crenjer, scan the area within a one hundred mile radius using energy finders. I want to know the kind of every light bulb Watt is being used! Crenjer, satellite the area for any suspicious signals and radio wave! Haitani, Shirai, keep at that firewall until you get me every little dirty secret about Darius! Han..."

The captain got one look at Han, and saw just how angry the larger man was. He didn't have to be a student to detect all the negative energy flowing from Han. The captain placed a hand on Han's arm.

"Han, walk away", The captain ordered. "You're very angry, and I can see that. Any angrier and you're gonna start turning green. Take a walk, and come back when you're feeling better."

"Yes captain", Han obeyed as he trudged through the door.

Tokui looked back to Naru, Kanako, and Sarah for any support.

"I will go keep him company", Kanako offered.

"Yeah, me too", Sarah followed behind.

Before Tokui could return to his search for Keitaro, Naru halted him.

"Tokui, I'm sorry about all this. I should have been there for Keitaro. If I hadn't been there, maybe Keitaro could have gotten away."

"Naru, just stop", Tokui said. "It wasn't your fault, Keitaro wouldn't have run away wether you were there or not."

Naru sheepishly looked away. Even with Tokui'a comforting words, it didn't help Naru take the guilt off of her. The captain out both hands on her shoulders, and look Naru dead in the eye.

"Naru, listen to me, don't start filling your head or heart with doubt. Understand? I don't know why, but I get a strong feeling that you may be the key to getting Keitaro back."

This felt like something straight from the Twilight Zone. First Angel, a person who was now dead, spoke of Naru playing a key role in beating Masuka. Now Tokui said she was going to play a big part in Keitaro's rescue.

"W-What makes you say that?"

"I don't know", Tokui said. "It's just a hunch I kinda sensed with my Ki...My Ki has also been getting flustered when I wonder if Keitaro is alright..."

Naru herself became worried about Keitaro. She didn't doubt that he was alive. However, the aching pain that he was alone, scared, and in pain, sent shivered through her core.

"Hang on Keitaro", Naru begged in her heart as she held the necklace Angel gave her. "Please hang on."

Hello, Hello! It's been a while since I posted, but I haven't disappeared off the face of the earth. I hope this makes up for my long absence. No major events have occurred, just some aftershock and puzzling together. I hope I didn't disappoint too much. Explaining one part, Tokui isn't spiritually connected to Naru and Keitaro, it's just the sensation of a bad omen and what's to come later. Next chapter, what has happened to Keitaro, and what new secrets will he discover? Hope I haven't lost any fans yet, and those still staying, I hope you stick around some more.