A/N: I just wanted to once again thank everyone who has read, reviewed, followed, or favorited this story. :)

Really, Killua realized how foolish the scenario was. The fact that he could, at first sight of a simple umbrella, recognize it as Misaki's without any real distinguishing features made him feel slightly mad. Nonetheless he was positive of this, and from the shift he felt in his companion at his side, he was certain that Gon had noticed, too. Either way, the boy was aware that there were clear implications of the missing girl's fate, and that his friend was the type to take it poorly and engage in combat with this unpredictable mess of a girl proudly displaying her "trophy" before them.

The shift in the air was almost tangible. It was thick and heated with the spark of anger and the desire to avenge. The paler boy clenched his fists from the sheer power of it, knowing well simply by the sensations shooting through his own body now that Gon was hurt and confused and disturbed by the probable death of their former acquaintance.

It was then that his own aura spiked, if only slightly. Albeit, it was enough of a jolt that Killua scrambled to distract himself from the understanding that these previous feelings had not truly been passed on solely by his comrade, but rather felt honestly by himself. That alone was far too much of a distraction for him to entertain at the moment.

'The priority is getting Gon out of here,' he reminded himself, swallowing down any and all of his reeling emotions.

The brunette drew a pace forward, snapping the other boy back to reality all too quickly.

"Why do you have Misaki-san's umbrella?"

His tone was authoritative with a very subtle, easily discreditable, drop of poison. There was a focus in the boy's eyes that patiently grew with each passing second, building itself gradually into an unbreakable fixation.

He had been unable to save Taiki, Haku, or Miu. Killua knew that it wouldn't take much now for Gon to work himself into a frenzy over the fourth death of a perceived "comrade", and of someone they had spent more time with, no less.

Hoshii appeared to have no trouble shrugging off the intensity of the question, and simply smiled wider. The brown eyed boy coiled his fingers into tightly wound fists and increased the number of shadowy, sharp angles to his face with the simple narrowing of a few choice muscles.

"I think it suits me better, don't you?"

"That doesn't belong to you. Return it."

"This again? Oh, but I'm afraid the owner doesn't have much use for it now!"

Reaching out a bronzed arm, he commanded in a voice that was deceivingly controlled, "Give it to me."

"Hmm... what will you do with it?"

"I'll give it back to Misaki-san myself."

Rather than oblige, the girl rested her free palm over her heart and brought her opposing arm down to rest along her side, as unshaken as ever.

"Oh my, you're really serious about this."

"Give it to me. Now."

Sliding a hand along her cheek, the girl gushed, "You're so cute when you say it like that! I have goosebumps all over! I'd like so much to just give this to you, but I'm sorry! I can't do that!"

"I'll take it, then."

"Wow, what a great idea! If you win it by defeating me, that's a whole other story!"

Bending at the elbow, Hoshii forced her yellow-clad arm stiffly back out at her side. With a flick of the wrist, the umbrella turned itself inside out, allowing each separate unit of the spine to meet at a fine, intimidating point.

"If I win, I'll take your life as my prize, 'kay?"

Killua, who had nearly devised a reasonable means for escape, narrowed his eyes at the declaration. He forced the lurch in his core down to his stomach. Yet, while his resolve was practically screaming inside his ears, there was a detail he especially did not like in regards to Hoshii that Gon seemed to be overlooking; the ease in which she'd adapted the use of the umbrella. Such a thing was unlikely unless she...

"Start!"

Without hesitation, the girl dived forward toward Gon, weapon at the ready. However, the boy was not the least bit rattled by her movement and thrust a nen enhanced fist upwards to block the attack. The apex of the inverted parasol was effortlessly hindered by the aura surrounding the hand and forearm, though the girl came off as completely unconcerned and moreover, unsurprised.

Now that the battle had commenced, Killua understood more than ever that time was a factor. He had even more of a restriction on how long he could take to come up with a reasonable method of retreat that would both keep Gon unscathed and lose Hoshii from their trail. As things progressed, Gon would allow his stubborn nature to overcome him. Finding a way to lure him away from battle would prove far more difficult and perhaps even impossible once he had surpassed a specific point.

'There has to be a way to divert Gon's attention and stun Hoshii at the same time...'

"Amazing! You're an enhancer for sure!"

The spiky haired boy had taken to delivering constant blows toward the girl, one after another. His aura was strong, smooth and even, refusing to dim in vigor or consistency despite the energy he was expending. The girl however, remained entirely untouched. She had taken to dexterously obstructing each swing with a simple rotation of the umbrella in her hand and simply skipping a pace backward with each thrust.

"This is fun! I sure hope you'll try to do me in soon!"

"I won't try..."

Skidding back with purpose, Gon dutifully charged his attack. Hoshii had managed to reach a position where her back was nearly cradled by a large slit through a massive slate of rock.

"...I'm gonna do it! I'll take that back from you!"

The girl's wide, midnight eyes shimmered at the sight of his power. By the time he was chanting, she was amidst curling a piece of her pink hair around her ring finger and weaving a coy smile onto her lips.

"Make sure to do your best!" she insisted sweetly.

At the release of his fist, the formation of rock shattered helplessly, dusting the forest around it in the fragments of its powdery remains. The sound of the contact was akin to that of dynamite exploding, and the cloud that initially rose from the site billowed for a few good seconds before the first signs of clearing could at all be detected.

Violently spinning, Gon opened his grip just in time to catch the umbrella spearing towards him from the rear. Slowly, the girl's face appeared within the the haze, still clutching onto the handle.

"Oh, it was a trick?"

Tightening his hold to a degree that would undeniably have crushed a typical umbrella, the brunette drew the weapon in his direction slightly. He held his firm gaze in line with her unperturbed one, silently sending her the message of his resolve.

"Let go."

"What will happen if I don't?"

"I don't want more people to die... but if I have to kill you to return Misaki-san's property, I will," he warned, his voice untouchable.

"Wow, that's so bold!"

Without further cautioning, the tanned boy lifted the umbrella above his head rapidly, Hoshii still attached to the opposing end. As though she were feather light, the pink haired girl jolted upside down, her limbs swaying clumsily at the suddenness of the motion.

"Amazing, amazing! But you forget that I have a few tricks up my sleeve, too!"

As if on cue, the umbrella spine collapsed back into its proper arrangement. The occurrence however, was too quick to elicit a defensive reaction and as the peaked ends reversed, Gon's hand (which had held a formidable grip over the frame) suffered some respectable damage while his body was hurled abruptly upwards. Droplets of blood and skin tissue painted the soil and the fallen leaves below.

"This is it!"

Gon hadn't time enough to wholly collect his bearings by the time Hoshii had executed a spring step from the ground. In no time flat, she was propelled upwards, prepared to expertly deliver her finishing move as gravity played her accomplice against the now falling boy...

...But Killua was not about to have it end this way. His mind raced as his body simply took control of itself, launching towards the unarmed side of the assailant. There was no more time to work out the fine details of his plan; action was imperative now. Forcing himself to accept whatever consequences would come his way, the boy stabbed at the enemy's exposed region with his clawed hand.

He wasn't particularly surprised when Hoshii readjusted herself in order to dodge his attack. In fact, he had been banking on it. The shift in her posture immediately caused a decreased damage load to her own offensive manoeuvre, and Gon was able to, in this time, collect his arms in a cross pattern over his chest in order to defend. The assault therefore was only a shallow victory, serving to administer a moderate slice up the arm of the boy's already impaired side but failing to be anywhere near fatal.

As the three finally landed, the girl grinned widely as a small trickle of blood ran down the left half of her cheek; a result of Killua's effort. Close up, Gon's hand looked quite ghastly, but the paler boy knew that he would be able to heal quickly. He took a defensive stance a few strides ahead of his injured friend.

"That was great! I thought I had you there, but Killu-tan pulled a fast one! I sure felt for it! If you're ready to play, t-..."

The girl halted unexpectedly, her expression frozen mid-word. Tilting her chin down, she inspected the patch of dirt just below her. There were two hardly visible, crimson dots. For the first time, her hand was trembling as she touched the wound on her cheek with the length of her index finger. Once the hand was lowered and she was inspecting the tiny bout of transferred blood on her flesh, her aura darkened considerably. Her eyelids retreated until they were virtually undetectable as her intense black eyes turned to the boys.

"You..."

Perhaps Gon would have gladly continued his battle. In fact, had he been in a more clear state of mind, Killua would have known it were true. However, he swung a sudden punch at his friend's skull rendering him unconscious, inherently and without thought or reasoning. This change in Hoshii...

Allowing his senses to lead him without protest, the blue eyed boy dashed into the trees away from the enemy, his friend lying like a babe in his arms. He knew only that he must run. There was danger, and he could not hope to win. Despite the odd shift in that girl's demeanour, there was no mistaking that aura.

Perhaps had he more time to rely on his rationality as opposed to his flight trigger, Killua would not have so quickly jumped to what he assumed was the only possible conclusion:

'Illumi has found me again.'