Chapter 3

Touma leaned against his kitchen counter, eyeing Seiji and wondering about the fastest way to get the man out of his apartment.

Korin wasn't taking no for an answer, and he concluded that the easiest way to get Seiji out of his space was to just sign the stupid entry form and show up to the damn competition. Touma eyed the paper sitting innocently on his tiny kitchen table.

"Why is this such a big deal to you?" he groaned, rolling his eyes. "I haven't competed in archery since high school, you know that. And I never took it seriously," he complained. Seiji crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"And yet, you were still the prefectural champion – and probably would have been the nationwide champion if you'd persisted," the blond argued sedately. Touma shrugged, rolling his shoulders uncomfortably. Okay, so he'd been good. He'd also had some serious life or death practice – something that he considered unfair to the other contestants.

And all of that aside, it was still difficult, even after all this time, to separate the sport from the act of battle. Touma had excellent control and impeccable form – even if he saw an endless sea of monsters in front of him every time he closed his eyes or focused down the range at the target. He tried not to shudder and refocused his thoughts on the blond.

"This isn't like kendo, Seiji. I have a seriously unfair advantage over every other person at that competition, and you know it," he growled. When Seiji merely stayed silent, still fixing him with that heavy stare, Touma threw his arms up in disgust.

"I spent almost a decade running around fighting for my life with the Sho Ha Kyu!" he snarled. "I don't need to prove my talent in a stupid competition. I don't need that kind of attention, Seiji. Maybe you enjoy stuff like that, but I don't," he snapped. Seiji nodded, as if he were satisfied with that answer in a self-righteous sort of way.

"Then what do you enjoy Touma? Because from where I'm standing you're turning into a cave-dwelling hermit," he said blandly.

Touma put down his beer and blinked at Seiji. "What?" he said slowly. He hadn't expected Seiji to come at him from his blind spot, and had no idea how to even form the words that might make a decent answer.

Seiji shook his head.

"Look. I'm not going to pretend I understand what you might have going on in that giant brain of yours, but you have been burrowing back inside of yourself for months now. I didn't say anything at first because I figured it was temporary and you'd sort it out– but Touma, you're pulling away from the rest of us completely, and that's not healthy. You're not an island. You need human interaction," the blond insisted.

Touma closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to process the words Seiji had just thrown at him. Had he really been getting that bad? He knew he'd been moody and irritable. He hadn't wanted to drag the rest of them down with him.

He also hadn't wanted them to pick up on his distress over the readings he'd been getting. Readings Nasuti had been confirming. He just wanted to give them a little while longer. Just a little longer for them to not have to carry the burden of saving the world. Again.

They'd know if he spent too much time hanging around them. He wouldn't be able to hide it. As it was, he suspected Korin was here lecturing him because he'd noticed Touma's end of their bond had been off.

Seiji pressed on when he stayed silent. "Did you even know that Ryo was back in town? He's sharing a place with Shin now. He was really looking forward to seeing you tonight."

Korin's words were a blade right through Touma's heart. He'd missed Ryo? Seiji nodded at his surprised expression.

"Shit," Touma sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "Tell him I'm sorry." Korin gave him a nasty glare.

"No, you're going to tell him you're sorry. In person," he rumbled threateningly. Touma wanted to argue but didn't. Seiji was completely right. Maybe he could ignore his colleagues, but he'd been neglecting his teammates – his brothers – and that was unforgivable. He bobbed his head wearily.

"Yeah. You're right. I'll call him," he said tiredly. Seiji nodded, studying him in the silence that followed. Touma kind of hated the understanding, the compassion in his gaze.

Seiji had a family that understood him. Maybe he had to play normal in the world but he had people outside of the Troopers that he could…be himself around. So did Shin and Shuu. Ryo was possibly the only other person who might understand where Touma was coming from, but he spent most of his time halfway around the world, neck deep in jungle undergrowth trying to save the rare spotted something or other, or joining native tribes in their fight to keep their lands.

Ryo's passion was probably the very thing that saved him. Touma…

Well. His only passion was keeping the people he cared about safe. Everything else was just details as far as he was concerned. He didn't have anything else to occupy him, so he'd come up with a bunch of gadgets that could monitor…all sorts of interesting things and had taken up watching over them obsessively.

The only thing that probably rivaled that intense focus was the attraction he felt towards Kino. One of those things he could indulge in to his heart's content. The other…

Kino was better off without him crash landing into her life. Even if it physically hurt him to think about it like that.

Which was something else that had been getting under his skin these days.

Why was he so attracted to his neighbor? He'd met plenty of other cute girls that he probably had way more in common with, so why her?

His apartment door opened without warning, ripping his mind back to reality.

"Did you tell him?" Shin Mouri breathed, breezing into Touma's space.

"Come on in," Touma drawled flatly, crossing his arms and leaning a hip in irritation against his counter edge.

Ignoring him, Shin took in the condition of the apartment with a soft, impressed whistle. "You do need an intervention," Suiko said cheerfully. Touma envisioned punching the smirk off his face.

"Maybe you should just find a new building," Shin went on, oblivious to the temper he was stirring. "Sounds like your neighbors are having a serious row. No way that kind of disharmony is good for your peace of mind," he said offhandedly.

Touma rolled his eyes. Like he cared what kind of people lived in the other apartments? The only neighbor he was remotely interested in was Kino, and she lived a quiet life on her own. So Shin must be talking about…

Well, he couldn't envision the 85 year old Mrs. Kudo on his other side getting in a row with anyone. Maybe across the way? Touma straightened, a small shock of alarm rippling softly through his body.

"What do you mean?" he said sharply. Shin gestured absently in the direction of Kino's apartment, scooping up the competition form from the table and scanning its contents, unaware that the tiny gesture had cranked the tension in Touma's chest infinitely higher.

"Your neighbors. They're having a serious fight," he elaborated. Touma was moving before he even realized it, pausing beside the wall that separated his apartment from Kino's. He held his breath and listened for a moment.

Sure enough, there were raised voices, and he was able to pick Kino out of the din. She sounded distressed.

Touma made a beeline for the door, stopping only when Seiji angled his body in front of the exit. "Do you often settle your neighbor's disagreements?" Korin asked calmly. His expression suggested he thought Touma might be worse-off than he'd previously suspected, but Touma didn't have time to reassure him or even process his annoyance at the sentiment.

"She's single and she lives alone," he growled, shoving the blond to the side. "There shouldn't be anybody in that apartment giving her a hard time." A hand on his shoulder brought him up short.

"Touma, you can't just play the knight in shining armor any time somebody's having a dispute. What the hell has gotten into you? You can't just barge into someone's private living space." Suiko snapped, nonchalant façade utterly gone. Touma twisted his shoulder away angrily, trying to think of the words that would explain the desperate need pounding at him to make sure Kino was ok.

Truthfully, he didn't have the words. It was unexplainable.

Because they were right. He shouldn't be just banging down her door because he'd heard some raised voices. Maybe he really did need to –

His thoughts were interrupted by the heavy crash of an object being thrown into a wall so hard his apartment vibrated, followed by a female cry of pain. Shin tilted his head as Seiji's head snapped up, Korin's gaze sharpening on the connecting wall.

"Okay. Or maybe we need to make sure that things aren't getting too rowdy over there," Shin conceded. Touma was gone before he could finish the sentence, already out in the hallway, heart knocking against his ribs so heavily it almost hurt to breathe.

He reminded himself that this was absolutely a human crisis. There was no reason at all to panic that some masho or monster was behind her door.

Maybe she'd taken up dating some asshole that had decided to get violent with her. He'd never seen her bring anyone home. Wouldn't he have noticed a boyfriend? Especially one who'd been mistreating her? She always seemed so happy. The thought of anyone putting their hands on her made him homicidal. Whoever it was, Touma was more than happy to teach them a lesson.

Heart still hammering violently against his lungs, he raced up to Kino's door, beating on it loudly.

"Kino! Are you okay in there?" he yelled. The sound of shattering glass and another heavy, vibrating thump were the only answer he received.

Shit. Shit. What was going on in there?! Should he break down the door? He hesitated for a heartbeat, unsure if he should wreck her property.

"Excuse me," Shin said cheerfully, as Touma felt himself shoved aside. Suiko lifted a leg and kicked in Kino's door as if it were made of matchsticks instead of metal.

Right. Shin and Shuu were always a little touchy when it came to women in distress. They both had sisters, and very close familial relationships, so that made sense, he supposed.

The door flew open so hard the knob jammed into the wall behind it, but Touma paid that no mind. His gaze swept the apartment, searching for his neighbor.

And landed on something inhuman.

The smell hit him next. Festering carrion. He gagged, pulling an arm over his nose in a vain attempt to block the stench. Something inside of him burst open. He hadn't really been prepared for a supernatural monster. Had spent all his energy talking himself out of thinking about it.

This was his nightmares come to life. And Kino…A small, feminine whimper drew his attention to the side.

Where his sweet, fragile neighbor was trying to loosen the brutal grip the monster held around her neck in vain, pained noises coming out of her throat.

Touma's vision went red.

It didn't matter then. Zombie or run of the mill human asshole, he wasn't going to let anyone or anything hurt Kino. He blinked, and he was in their space, nailing the monster with a right hook that sent it sailing further into the apartment. He put himself between Kino and the creature, fists clenched, breathing heavy, waiting for it to get up.

"Ha-Hashiba?" a female voice rasped softly from behind him.

"Kino," he said in a graveled reply, muscles tense. "Stay behind me." Just the thought of that thing getting its claws around her again made the muscle in his jaw tick. He grit his teeth until he thought they might crack.

"Hashiba don't! It's too dangerous!" she gasped, her small hands tugging on his arm. The feeling of those delicate fingers against his muscles made his body tense further. She was so small and breakable and she could have been hurt goddammit…the red was creeping back around the edges of his vision.

"It's ok Kino. I'll protect you. Trust me, all right?" he replied, voice low, trying to keep his tone calm enough to soothe. Movement stirred deeper in the apartment and Touma braced, feeling Shin and Seiji at his back do the same.

It still didn't prepare him for the sudden blast that blew them all off their feet. Touma hit the wall, sheltering Kino in his arms from the force of the impact. His vision went hazy for a few heartbeats and he tried to shake his head clear of the confusion. He could feel Tenku thrumming in his blood now and realized that his undergear was already up. Subconscious reaction? Or was the armor itself reacting…?

Tenku had recognized a threat. What in the hell was this thing?!

"No!" Kino screamed. He felt her leap from his arms and he struggled to his feet, a sense of urgency driving him. He needed to keep her safe. This thing was a monster and it could do serious damage. He looked around, blinking in the dim lighting, trying to see where she'd gone.

Thankfully, she was still right in front of him as he straightened, focus renewed.

Just in time to watch Kino gesture, a giant bolt of lightning striking the creature dead on. He blinked and turned to find Seiji. The blond shook his head, facial expression hard, and gestured subtly with his chin in Kino's direction.

Touma turned wide eyes back toward his neighbor, but she was already making her way across the apartment. It felt like he was trapped in a horror movie as he watched the monster rise. She was too close to it. And he was too far away to prevent a strike head on.

It lashed out, a motion that Touma could have predicted with unfailing accuracy but still delivered a fresh shock to his system as he watched the monster's claws connect solidly with Kino's front. Blood sprayed, and his sweet little neighbor went flying without so much as a squeak.

Touma dashed forward, maneuvering himself between her body and the wall, catching her as gently as he could, trying to absorb the physical shock.

"Kino!" he called desperately, vaguely aware of Seiji and Shin eating up the distance between themselves and the creature. Both were in full armor, Suiko's yari already out and menacing as he moved with the force and intent of an angry bull.

Touma was almost afraid to look down. In his arms, Makoto stirred with a groan.

"That…was stupid," she muttered, wincing and sucking air through her teeth as she tried to straighten up.

"Take it easy," Touma breathed, gently helping her to stand. "That was a serious hit. Let me see it." He peered around at her front, and felt his skin tighten over his bones when he took in the damage. There was too much blood, five angry crimson gouges that began just under her neck and cut a deep path toward her chest.

She winced, reaching to worry trembling fingers around the jagged edges of the wound – attempting to investigate without touching. Without causing more pain. Touma felt that same black rage welling inside of him, nearly impossible to control now.

Makoto was innocent. She was a sweet woman just trying to live her life. How dare this thing come after her?! Hurt her? He watched as Seiji swung the massive Korin ken, not even wincing at the idea of Korin using such a large weapon in a tiny space. Seiji knew what he was doing. He could probably carve that monster up without so much as a current of air coming in contact with any of Makoto's things.

But it was obvious Korin was pulling his punches out of deference to Touma's neighbor. The monster dodged, turning a fatal blow into a glancing blow. Seiji huffed out a breath of annoyance even as Shin moved in, scoring a serious hit with the business end of the Suiko yari.

The monster snarled, but instead of retaliating, it shifted its focus back toward Makoto.

Hell. No.

Touma growled, stepping in front of her.

If that thing wanted Makoto, it'd have to go through him first.