A/N: August 28,2022: Hey all,

Thank you for checking out this month's chapter of Who Knows What Fate May Hold For You. I am sorry that I missed getting a chapter up last month. I was having some health issues and wasn't in the proper mindset to work on this story. I'm sorry I wasn't able to keep to the update schedule, but I am back this month and will do my best to not miss any more months this year. Please let me know what you think of this chapter or of the story as a whole if you have a minute to post a review or send a PM. I always loving hearing your feedback and it really motivates me to continue working on this story. See you all next month.

Spiral of Destiny

Chapter 41: A Different Approach

The last day before the weekend opened to find Hibari standing silently outside the door to Makoto's apartment. Since the last killing two days prior, Hibari had been trying to work out exactly what to say to Makoto. While their target had died, the attack had gone far from smoothly. Setting aside the involvement of Kanone Hilbert, which was an unexpected but ultimately inconsequential point in the overall situation, the media had latched onto this latest killing and was running wild with it. They had connected the third victim to Tsukiomi and were talking about closing the school for the safety of the students. If this happened, things would become infinitely harder. They needed to adjust their plan of attack if they hoped to continue with their mission. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.

A few minutes passed before the sound of shuffling could be heard on the other side of the wall. Taking a step back, Hibari increased the distance between himself and the entryway to the apartment in preparation for whatever mood he might find Makoto in. He was glad he had when the door flew open and Makoto glared with annoyance at him through the doorway.

Though he was standing tall, his hair was hung down around his shoulders in a more natural and less kept way than usual and his shirt seemed to have hastily been thrown on. The shirt hung open low on the chest, only having two buttons fastened to keep the garment closed.

"What do you want?" He demanded as he made eye contact with Hibari. His tone wasn't harsh, but to the point. Hibari straightened his shoulders and met his leader's gaze with the same firmness that Makoto was directing toward him.

"I need to discuss the Blade Children situation with you; and you're not going to like what I have to say." Makoto's jaw set as he leaned momentarily against the door frame, still holding the door handle in his opposite hand.

"I'm sure I won't. Come in." Turning to re-enter the apartment, Hibari gave a silent sigh and followed after.

OOoOoOo

Reports are coming in of a third victim in the mysterious Tsukiomi killer case. Sixteen year old Arakita Suzuya was found early Wednesday morning in xxxxx after an anonymous person made the call to authorities. Arakita was discovered to have defensive wounds on his arms and hands, as well as a stab wound to the left side of the chest. At this time the cause of death has been ruled as suffocation. Authorities are still in search of the anonymous caller who reported the attack, as well as the attackers who perpetrated this crime. The police had this to say…

Eyes switched the tv off before turning to look at the rest of the Blade Children gathered around the table in the abandoned computer club room. Kousuke and Rio were staring thoughtfully at the table surface and Kisame was looking out the window. Kanone stood by the door, his head turned toward the floor; his eyes closed. Hiroshume was watching Eyes from over the top of his computer and Shinu, a rare fixture in these meetings, was reclining back in his chair. His arms were crossed over his chest and a thoughtful look marked his face. All attention turned to Eyes when the audio was cut and the room returned to silence.

"This is getting out of hand." Kousuke was the first to speak, resting his head back to stare wearily at the ceiling. The others nodded as Rio placed a comforting hand on Kousuke's arm.

"Do you think we have to worry about them looking for Kanone?" Hiroshume questioned from the far end of the table. Everyone turned their attention to him.

"It's unlikely that their search will be effective. With the rain, any video they may have been able to find would be rather useless, and there were no other witnesses present to see me enter or leave the scene." Kanone answered calmly. The others nodded.

"The more pressing matter is how we proceed. It is unlikely that these attacks will stop." Eyes rested his arms on the table surface.

"What do you suggest, Rutherford? We don't even know who these "Hunters" are." Kousuke asked, crossing his arms and looking for guidance from the younger teen.

"Kousuke's right. At this point the "Hunters" are an unknown. Even if we could track down the two that killed Arakita, there's no way of knowing how many "Hunters" are after us this time." Kisame interjected, looking at Kanone as he spoke.

"So maybe a different angle, then?" All eyes moved to Shinu, who had so far been silent for the entire meeting.

"Do you have something in mind?" Kanone asked.

"Well, like you said. We don't know what we're up against with the "Hunters". At this point they can come from anywhere and with as many or as few assailants as they like. It's something we can guess at, but there's no certainty in that sort of action. So, let's work with what we do know."

"The other Blade Children." Kisame filled in.

"Exactly." Shinu agreed, sitting forward in his chair to look at the rest of the group. "Right now we don't know who the "Hunters" are or where they're going to be coming from. But we do know where they'll be. We know their targets."

"So what do suggest? We can't just spend all our time protecting other Blade Children. There are too many of them. We can't possibly guard them all." Kousuke stated. Shinu shook his head.

"We don't need to guard them. We need to prepare them." Glances were exchanged with one another and a small smile passed between Kisame and Kanone that was unobserved by the rest of the people at the meeting. "Think about it," Shinu continued, leaning back once more. "Right now the Blade Children are being targeted by the "Hunters". That's old news. It's always been that way. But they don't know that the game has changed. Have any of you told the other Blade Children about these new, more dangerous "Hunters" ?" Another look was shared around the table. "Up to this point the Blade Children have been caught in a fight for survival. But this isn't a fight anymore. This is a war. If we want to minimize the number of Blade Children dying, then we need to let everyone know what they're up against. Then their safety is in their own hands."

"That makes a lot of sense." Rio said with a slow nod. "But how do we go about doing it without alerting the "Hunters"?"

"Rio's got a point. I mean, I'm sure there are "Hunters" on staff here at this school. If the "Watchers" are here then I'm sure the "Hunters" are too." Kousuke stated.

"Kousuke's right." Kisame said, speaking up and drawing the attention to him. "While the "Hunter" presence is minimal here, there are still several staff members who align more with the "Hunters" than the "Watchers". Not enough for them to be purged from staff, but enough that it makes it unsafe to try and inform the others during school."

"So what then? How to we do it? There has to be a way of moving without the "Hunters" finding out." Shinu asked, looking around at the others.

"I could set something up." Everyone turned to look at Hiroshume. "If we can't contact them in person, then let me take care of getting them gathered. If you guys can get me the names of the Blade Children here at Tsukiomi, then I can arrange a meeting somewhere that the "Hunters" won't expect. We can do small groups or one large meeting. It's up to you guys. If you don't think it's safe to do a meeting at all, then I can just contact them completely electronically."

"…That could work." Shinu said with a smirk, looking around at the other members of the group to gauge their receptiveness to the idea.

"It's a good start." Kisame agreed, rising to his feet. "We may need to do more than just making them aware, but for now this is a good first step." He looked back to Hiroshume. "I'll get you a list of names and we'll go from there." The hacker nodded.

"Sounds good. Now," Hiroshume said, settling back in his chair and looking at the people gathered before him. "what do you all want the message to say?"

OOoOoOo

Following Naoki and Yan's departure, Sai spent most of the morning looking into information on Makoto's "Hunters". What he'd received from Ryoko was a good starting point, but it didn't give him a lot to go off of in terms of any sort of productive research. From what he'd been told, it was clear that Makoto wasn't the one who had personally attacked her, but who his soldier was still eluded Sai. He knew Makoto's branch had ties to the police, so he'd started there, but was met with similarly unsatisfactory results. One thing he had been able to find, however, was the cover information for Makoto's group of "Hunters". Looking into the names within this "hunting club's" encrypted registry, Sai could pick out some names he recognized from the Blade Children project years ago, and many others that were unfamiliar to him. Diving further into the backgrounds of each member, he was able to piece together more or less the kind of people that Makoto was recruiting. It was worrying, to say the least.

Sitting back away from his computer, Sai looked with deep concern at the screen.

"We may be in more trouble than I thought."

OOoOoOo

Eyes stood quietly watching the rest of the students filing out of Tsukiomi on their way home for the day. Following their meeting earlier in the morning, the Blade Children had spent the rest of the day playing student without any further interaction. While the others seemed satisfied with the direction they had decided to take for the rest of the Blade Children, Eyes was still uncertain. There was a sense of urgency that just wouldn't leave him be and he wondered if their intended intervention would come too late. The other Blade Children had left some time ago. Rio, Kousuke, and Kanone had headed back to the hospital to check on Ryoko, while Kisame had stayed behind with Hiroshume to work out the details of their correspondence with the other Blade Children. Eyes honestly had no clue where Shinu had gone and couldn't really be bothered to care. He had been with Kisame and Hiroshume until a moment before, but had stepped away to get some air and clear his mind. Now he stood on the empty decking watching the last students filter through the gates. Sighing, he placed his hands in his pockets and leaned wearily against the nearby lockers.

"Students are supposed to be going home." He started slightly at the unexpected voice and spun to face his potential assailant. He relaxed as he recognized the form of Kirie Tsuchiya standing a few feet behind him. A perplexed look marked her face as she observed him. "You're more on edge than usual." Eyes shoulders slumped and he leaned heavily back against the lockers, resting his full back against them. Kirie frowned, taking a few steps forward and leaning in to recapture his gaze. "Hey, what's going on? Are you okay?"

Slowly Eyes pulled his gaze away from Kirie to look at the sky.

"You've seen the news?" Kirie's expression sobered and she sighed heavily, crossing her arms and leaning against the lockers beside the young performer.

"I have." She glanced back at the man beside her. He seemed so much more lost than he had last year during the incident with Kanone. She could see how much everything was weighing on him.

"You know I'm on your side. If you need to talk, I'll listen." She said softly. He let his eyes slip shut for a few moments before opening them again and refocusing on the sky.

"I don't know how to stop this." He said softly. Kirie frowned.

"What do the others say?"

"They feel it is wise to alert the Blade Children to the increasing "Hunter" threat."

"That's a good idea. At least then they'll know what they're up against and can better protect themselves." She noted the worry in the performer's eyes. "But you don't agree?" Eyes shook his head.

"I agree that it's a good first step. I just worry that it will not come soon enough. Three of us have already died and they nearly killed Ryoko as well. How many more of us will need to be sacrificed before this all comes to an end?" Kirie looked thoughtfully up at the ceiling, feeling at a loss for what to say. Even as an impartial observer, this was a hard situation to view. She couldn't imagine having to live through it, especially at such a young age. After a moment she placed a gentle hand on Eyes' shoulder.

"At this point you're all doing what you can. That will have to be enough. Their survival doesn't only depend on you. You can't blame yourselves for things out of your control." She gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. "As a "Watcher" I'm not allowed to interfere, but I'll keep an eye out for anything suspicious regarding these killings. For now, stay strong and keep moving forward. Don't let these people beat you after all this time." Allowing the smallest smile to cross his lips, Eyes nodded and pulled away from the wall. Kirie let her hand fall as he moved, watching him critically as he turned to face her. Placing her hands in her skirt pockets, she straightened as well. "You kids will make it through this." She repeated, watching Eyes' expression slowly convert back into the unreadable mask she hated so much.

"For now we'll just keep fighting, then."

OOoOoOo

Kirie stood at the gate long after Eyes had left to return to the others still within the school. Her conversation with the stoic pianist had been troubling. Not because of the content; the content had been pretty predictable given the current circumstances. What troubled her was how defeated the performer had looked. The last time she had associated heavily with him had been during the Kanone incident a year prior. The stakes had been much higher for all of the Blade Children at that point and Eyes hadn't so much as seemed stressed during the entirety of the ordeal. He was apathetic; cold. It was all so different from what she had seen today. Kirie sighed.

"They need help." She paused a moment as the words left her lips. Now there was an idea. Just because she, as a "Watcher", was bound to stay an observer, didn't mean there were no allies left for the Blade Children.

Withdrawing her phone from her coat pocket, she quickly searched out a number and dialed. It took a few moments for the call to connect.

"Good evening, Miss Tsuchiya."

"Good evening, Ikari. I could use your assistance with something."

"How can I help you, dear?"

"The Blade Children are breaking. All this stress is getting to be too much for them, particularly the small active group at Tsukiomi." She could hear the frown in Ikari's voice.

"I was afraid that this would happen with everything that's been occurring recently." Kirie nodded.

"They need help; allies. Anything. As a "Watcher" my hands are tied, but I figured this sort of thing is why your group exists in the first place." She heard Ikari hum softly on the other end of the line before leaving the air silent for several moments. Kirie didn't attempt to fill the silence, simply waiting for the older woman's decision. Finally she heard a sigh on the other end.

"This isn't really a conversation to be had over the phone. Why don't you come see me and we'll talk in person?" Kirie exhaled softly.

"Alright, I'll be there soon." Getting the address of the meeting location, Kirie ended the call and quickly left the school.

oOoOoOo

Akito walked aimlessly down the busy street, going nowhere in particular. Since his conversation with Kisame the day before, he'd been feeling a strange mix of anxiety and utter confusion. Every meeting he had with the Savage Gun just left him more confused about the Blade Children as a whole. At this point Akito was convinced that Kisame should be the poster child for the Blade Children's saver campaign. The murderous teen was so different from how Akito had expected one of the Blade Children's bloodiest members to be that it completely shattered his perception of what the "Hunters" thought the children were.

Akito sighed. It made no sense. Why were they trying to kill these kids anyway? He'd heard Sai's message and couldn't really fault the logic behind it. But the logic only held up if the children were actually dangerous as the "Hunters" believed them to be. At this point Akito could agree that many of the children were indeed dangerous. Years of fighting for their lives had forced that outcome. But Akito wasn't convinced that they still couldn't be rehabilitated or at the very least moved into a place where their skills could be utilized for something beneficial to the country rather than for killing. He paused along the side of the walkway. Lost in thought, he hadn't really been paying attention to where he was going. Looking around, he was surprised to find himself standing near Sai's apartment, just across the street from the gate for Tsukiomi Academy. He smiled lightly, amused by the fact that his distracted mind had brought him to Sai's apartment out of habit. Looking across the road at Tsukiomi, he frowned as he saw Kirie hurrying away from the campus. She didn't seem distressed, but appeared determined. He watched as she paused a few feet from the gate to check her phone before looking around. Her gaze fell on Akito watching her and she frowned.

"What are you doing here?" She called from across the street. Her tone sounded irritated and Akito frowned. He refrained from calling back as he watched Kirie look quickly down either side of the road before crossing to meet him. Once she stopped in front of him he spoke.

"Just out for a walk. I wasn't really paying attention and ended up here out of habit." He admitted with a placating smile. He let it fall when he saw the suspicion in her eyes.

"Forgive me if I don't immediately believe you." She said coldly. "With everything going on, finding one of Sai's lackey's watching the Blade Children's school is a bit too suspicious."

"That's fair." Akito conceded. "But Sai's not responsible for anything that's been going on. To the best of my knowledge, none of the recent murders where undertaken by him or his "Hunters"." Kirie eyed him skeptically.

"You don't seem very confident in your answers." She noted. Akito lowered his head slightly.

"It's not that. I just don't have very current information I can offer you. I left the "Hunters" some time ago." Kirie's eyes widened.

"Why?"

"I couldn't justify their mission any longer." Kirie nodded thoughtfully before looking back at Akito.

"So you don't know that Sai isn't committing these killings? You're just assuming." He shook his head.

"No, I know he isn't. They're being committed by a different "Hunter" group." Kirie nodded, making to step away from Akito before pausing.

"Tell me," She looked back at the younger man. "Where do you stand now that you've left the "Hunters"?" Akito looked at her thoughtfully.

"I don't want the Blade Children to die." Kirie nodded, as if deciding on something.

"Come with me. I think there's someone you should meet."

"Someone I should meet?" Without answering, Kirie started down the road again. After a moment of confusion, Akito fell curiously into step behind her.

oOoOoOo

Ten minutes passed before Akito and Kirie arrived at their destination.

"Where are we?" Akito asked, looking inquiringly at Kirie.

"Quiet." Kirie scolded, giving three quick knocks to the door surface. A moment later the door opened to reveal Ikari Min smiling at them.

"Who is this?" She asked surprised, looking from Kirie to Akito standing a bit behind her.

"Someone who could also use your help." Kirie replied. A slight bit of confusion melted into Ikari's smile, but she pushed it aside a moment later.

"Alright. Well then, the more the merrier, I suppose. Come in, both of you." Stepping aside, Ikari allowed Akito and Kirie to enter the small apartment before closing the door behind them and making her way ahead of them deeper into the room. "I admit I wasn't expecting you to bring a companion. Shall we postpone our meeting, Miss Tsuchiya?" She asked, offering a seat to both guests.

"It's fine. This young man was a "Hunter"." Kirie dismissed. Akito looked with shock at Kirie before looking with unease at Ikari. A look of mixed concern and apprehension marked her face, but she quickly forced a smile and again gestured for Akito to take a seat beside Kirie.

"My, I can't say that I expected that. But I suppose all viewpoints are welcome." She stuttered, trying to collect her thoughts on the new revelation.

"I can go if my former affiliation makes you uncomfortable. I'm not even sure why Tsuchiya-san brought me here to begin with." Akito offered, uneasy. Ikari quickly shook her head.

"Nonsense, my boy. Although I don't yet know it, I am confident that there was a good reason Miss Tsuchiya brought you here today. Now come. Sit sit." Awkwardly, Akito seated himself beside Kirie and watched as Ikari did the same across from the two visitors. Once seated, she turned her attention back to the two before her. "Well then, I suppose introductions are in order. My name is Ikari Min. I am the head of the "Savers". Who might you be, my boy?" Akito's eyes widened at the revelation and he quickly glanced at Kirie before turning back to Ikari.

"My name is Akito Soichi. I was a member of the "Hunters" until about a month ago." Ikari nodded.

"Why did you quit, if you don't mind me asking?"

"I couldn't agree with their mission anymore." Akito looked at the floor, prompting a curious frown to cross Ikari's face.

"Why do you act ashamed when you say that?" Before Akito could respond, Kirie spoke.

"He served under Sai." A knowing look spread over Ikari's features.

"I see. That makes sense then." Feeling uncomfortable, Akito spoke.

"You said Tsuchiya-san was coming here for a specific reason. What was that?"

"That is a sensitive topic." Ikari said calmly, turning her full attention on Akito. "Before we discuss that, I need to know. Do you still have any affiliation or contact with the "Hunters?" Akito shook his head.

"No, I don't. All my ties to them were severed by the "Hunters". I even got kicked out of my apartment because I lived with another "Hunter". I haven't spoken to any of them since I made my decision." Ikari nodded. "Alright, and where do you stand on the Blade Children?" Akito tensed.

"I'm afraid of some of them due to personal encounters, but I can honestly say that I don't want any more of them to die. They don't deserve to die, regardless of what they might become or what they've been forced to do up to this point." Ikari smiled.

"A good answer. Tell me, Akito. Have you left this fight completely after severing ties with the "Hunters", or are you still involved in some capacity? You arrived here with a "Watcher", but didn't identify yourself as such. Are you looking to remain involved at this point?" Akito looked thoughtfully at his hands clasped loosely in his lap, debating her question.

"I don't think that I could fight the "Hunters". At least not the one's I fought alongside. But I don't want to completely remove myself from this situation either. If possible, I'd like for all this to end without anyone else being hurt or having to die." He laced his hands together more tightly. "I don't know if something like that is possible, though." Above Akito's head, Ikari met Kirie's eye and the two shared a smile before Ikari leaned forward and placed a hand on Akito's knee. He immediately looked up.

"You have a kind heart, Mister Soichi. That will serve you well in life." Leaning back again, she crossed one leg over the other and rested her hands on top of her knee. "Now, Mister Soichi. Where are you living currently? You said you were evicted from your previous dwelling, and the way you spoke made it sound as though it occurred recently." Akito nodded slowly, confused as to why the conversation was being so thoroughly focused on him.

"I'm currently living in a hotel while I look for an apartment." He answered simply. "Why?" He asked uneasily as he saw Ikari nod. She smiled warmly at him.

"Because, my boy, you appear to be someone in need of some guidance about all of this." Her smile warmed as he nodded in silent admission. "That being said, I have an extra room here. If you would be open to it, I'd like to offer you guidance, as well as a place to stay until you can get back on your feet and determine what path you wish to take." Akito's eyes widened as he listened to her words.

"Are you serious?" Ikari nodded.

"I am." Akito shook his head in disbelief.

"You don't even know me."

"I know what I need to. I've made it my business to be able to read people over the years. I'd be happy to do this for you." Akito looked to Kirie, completely at a loss for words. He looked quickly back to Ikari when he heard her speak once more.

"Go now. If you decide you don't want to accept my offer, then you can simply not come back. But if you wish to accept, then go collect your things and return here. My door will be open to you." In a daze, Akito looked quickly to Kirie again, who was silently watching him with amusement, before rising to his feet. Ikari did the same in order to usher him to the door. With a final look back at both Kirie and Ikari, he shook his head in disbelief and left the apartment. Watching him go for a moment, Ikari softly closed the door behind him.

"I didn't expect you to offer him a place to stay." Ikari turned with a smile to regard the remaining guest in her home.

"What did you expect me to do for him?" Kirie shrugged.

"Give him some advice or something. That kid's been struggling for a while now."

"That's precisely why I did what I did." Kirie shrugged indifferently.

"It's your life."

"Indeed." Ikari consented, returning to her seat across from Kirie. "And speaking of young lives struggling, I believe you came here to discuss some rising issues with the Blade Children?" Sighing, Kirie leaned back into the sofa.

"Right."