Back at the main dome, the house sitting amidst a garden and a forest, is lightened up. Inside are the members of "Squad 13", consisting of 10 elite pilots who are part of APE's elite division known as 'Parasites' for their FranXX program. The living room is occupied by all of them who are in their uniforms. Two men are on a circular couch, divided into three spaces. Three women are at the table and one man is outside smoking on the balcony overlooking the garden. Etc... The house serves as akin to a college dorm and military barracks.

"Goro Marshall" leans by the wall next to the window and near the couch, crossing his arms. A tall yet fit man with glasses and windswept, spiky yellow hair, his face speaks as if he is thinking of something.

His earpiece starts beeping, telling him he's being called. He taps it to answer.

"Hey, Ichigo," He spoke with a deep yet calm voice.

"Hi, Goro," Ichigo responded. "We're on our way back."

"How things are going?"

"*sigh*..."

"Did Hiro overwhelm Naomi again?"

"More than usual this time. She's sent to the hospital."

"Damn..."

"I'll see you in like 15 minutes, okay?"

"Yeah. Take care."

The call ends...

... "Damn..." Goro uttered to himself as he looked down. Everyone in Squad 13 noticed.

"Zorome Hülkenberg" takes notice of Goro. A young man is sitting on the couch near him. He has very messy, unruly light brown hair, with bangs covering his forehead and almost touching his purple eyes. He looks as if he just woke up or didn't take a shower today, not that he cares.

"What's up, Goro?" His laidback yet concerned voice came, as he grips to his yellow PSP.

"Ichigo and Hiro are coming back from testing. He overwhelmed Naomi again, so she's back at the hospital."

"Man— Again? Just when APE's gonna need Hiro back, he fucking sends her back to the hospital... *sigh*..."

"Ikuno Tsunoda" overhears the conversation from the table followed by everyone else. "I'm not surprised. His mind is extraordinary, but it's unhealthy." Said in her cold, indifferent-like voice.

She wears glasses and has deep purple hair tied into a short ponytail with a blue butterfly clip and bangs on either side of her weary emerald eyes. She writes in her small notebook, portraying herself as smart yet cold.

"No one exhibits the same mindset as Hiro. No one would ever be. Given who he is..." She added.

"Come on man... homeboy just going through a lot of things right now," Zorome replied.

"But... he's always been like even before Squad 13 existed..." Said "Kokoro Bennett" from next to Ikuno in her timid, meek voice. She has wavy hip-length ashen-blonde hair that has long bangs framing her forehead on either side with a lacy blue headband. She looks as if she's shy or reserved.

"Let's all be real. We all are together cuz we signed up for this. I mean— you get what I mean? We're all here for a reason! Gotta understand where Hiro is coming from." Zorome exclaimed.

"Fair point. Using your head for once is such an alien thing if I have to be frank, Zorome." Ikuno nonchalantly responded.

"Yeah! It's a breath of fresh air!" Came from another woman named "Miku Fujita". She has a very energetic and girly voice. Her auburn, red hair is done up in twin tails, with a small cowlick at the top of her head, complimenting it with her sea blue eyes. She's sitting opposite from Ikuno with an energized, chaotic demeanor to herself, along with a grin.

Zorome gets riled up. "Yeah— and I wish the same damn thing for you, Miku! You've been a pain in my ass ever since we met!"

Miku giggles over Zorome's outburst.

"Mitsuru Hayden" steps out from the balcony. He has a thin but also fit body. He sports olive-brown hair which he wore slicked back. He seems clean and proper but his face looks as if he seems the stoic, wise type. He could be easily mistaken as a cocky prick.

"Hey, what did I miss?" Mitsuru asked with a deep, rough, but charismatic voice.

Ikuno coughed from the smoke that lingered from outside. "I think you already knew the answer." She replied.

"Real funny, Tsunoda."

"Ichigo and Hiro are making their way back. Naomi's in the hospital again." Goro answered to Mitsuru as he looked at him.

"Again? It's been months since he was behind a FranXX. Did he push her again?"

"As always." Goro sighed as he replied. "He's too damn strong for any of the women to handle. Yet it stunned the hell out of APE. Now these guys are scrambling around finding him a perfect match."

"Like a chaotic version of a dating app. My guy can't pull himself some bitches." Said Miku.

"Oh yeah? How did you feel when you paired with him the other day? Hm!?" Zorome retorted.

"S-shut up!" Miku stammered for a bit.

Zorome then sighed as he put down his PSP and leaned back. "Man... I knew Hiro for so long, I just wish I knew how to help him out..."

"Futoshi Yoshida" chips in. "You being there for him already counts. Zorome?" Out came his kind voice. He's seen as a portly man, with short auburn-brown hair that hangs lightly over his forehead. His thick, stumpy eyebrows and round, playful eyes gave him an approachable and kind look.

"Yeah, I do. But— I don't know If I'm doing enough really... I knew this guy for years. He's just a damn wall..." Zorome expressed.

"Funny enough, you and Ichigo are close to him. If Hiro is a wall? Then you're the only guys who are breaking it. In a way." Said Mitsuru.

"That's true." Goro agreed.

"Well then? You're a wall that's hard to break too, Mitsuru!" Miku yelled.

Mitsuru sighed through his nose and rolled his eyes. "You're the reason I built mine, " he said to himself.

"Pairing with him was seriously painful. I never had a bigger headache and pain all over myself than anything I had before." Ikuno recalled.

"He ain't called 'Venom' without a reason. He's like poison. Everything he touches dies." Goro added.

"I-I'm glad I came a little late before you all... I couldn't imagine myself pairing with someone like him." Kokoro expressed with a reserved and shy tone to herself.

"Wait— didn't he also test with The Nines last week?" Futoshi asked.

"Yeah. And it came out the same as any other female he paired with." Goro recalled.

"Who is it?" Ikuno asked Goro.

"I think it was... 'Eta'? 'Alessandra Liu' was her name if I recall."

"Hmph... It's as I theorized... Simply put... He just doesn't fear death... its as if it's his only enemy. That's something the Nines can't handle... but one." Said Ikuno.

"One?" Miku questioned.

Ikuno nodded. "Mhm. I studied the members of the Nines and how their mindset dictates a fight... And... I may have found who might stand a chance with Hiro. This might be APE's next subject... and perhaps their last gamble. Theoretically speaking of course."

Everyone focused on Ikuno, all sharing the same question: Who?

Ikuno cleared her throat and fixed her glasses. "Code 002, 'Nine Iota'. 'Leila Lockhart'."

Everyone is taken by surprise, save for Kokoro.

"Lockhart? That half-Klaxosaur? Are you even damn sure, Ikuno?" Mitsuru questioned.

"Code Zero Two? The 'Partner Killer'?" Goro added.

"Ain't that the girl who's partnered with THE 'Alpha'!? or something like that!?" Zorome bafflingly recalled.

Ikuno nodded. "'Alex Hunt', yes. He and Lockhart pilot the legendary 'Murciélago'."

"That's one of the greatest FranXXs of all time! But seriously? Leila? Ain't she the reason her co-pilots pleaded to never pair themselves with her ever again!?" Futoshi asked.

Ikuno nodded again in response. "Yes. That 'Partner Killer' thing was only known because of the mindset she already displayed from the get-go. The first set of partners she had, came out terrified because of her reckless, battle-hungry nature,"

"But over time it got more refined. Her strength was purely because she embodied traits of her Klaxosaur blood and retooled it and the fact she's already Elite material from the start. That built up her rapport and made her an easy candidate for the Nines. It's her greatest strength and asset because she dances with death. Coupled more with an ego." Ikuno recalled.

"I doubt she would even hold that same tenacity. As far as I know, that falls in line with wanting to 'be the best', which still counts as one of the stable things in the standards of the Battle Spirit. No pilot has been able to match that ever since. Given she had many years to her name, she probably perfected it!" Goro deduced.

"But ain't Hiro the same? Pairing up the two of them would be a recipe for destruction!" Said Zorome.

"Lockhart is refined, and Hiro is raw. Her Battle Spirit, while overwhelming, can still be handled. Hiro? He's proved to APE something unprecedented because of his nature. It's that... type of recklessness where it isn't hungry for a fight... but more in wanting to kill. The anomaly here is that Hiro's rawness is just that effective..." Ikuno expressed.

Zorome snaps his fingers before he points his index to Ikuno. "That's good shit though, Ikuno! I never thought of her in the first place."

"Thinking about it... they... actually look cute together. Heehee~" Miku giggled.

"I agree!" Zorome exclaimed. He looks away from Ikuno and expressively thinks to himself. "Hooo boy! Maybe this Leila gal might be the one to soften up my homeboy! Hah!"

"We don't know that. She looks like the type to look down on Hiro." Said Mitsuru.

Zorome turns to Mitsuru. "Hey— she's a crazy gal. But she might at least tick something off from him. Ya ever seen how she looks!? It's like she's from a damn cover of a magazine!"

Kokoro puts her index on her lip as she thinks. "I heard she has pink hair. That's such a vibrant color to have."

"Wish mine was pink!" Miku exclaimed.

"Eh, teal suits you, Miku... haha get it?" Said Zorome.

Miku rolls her eyes.

The front door opens, catching everyone's attention. It's Hiro and Ichigo. The former is not wearing his blazer, as it is over his shoulder, revealing his disheveled white shirt. Goro and Zorome rushed to them.

"Welcome back." Goro greeted as he hugged Ichigo.

"Hi..." Ichigo greeted with a tired tone to herself.

"Hiro!" Zorome called Hiro out. He daps up with him, and even though he looks tired, Hiro cannot resist dapping up with his best friend. It's their "law".

"Zorome."

"You okay?"

Hiro nodded, with his usual, tired expression. "Testing again."

Zorome sighed. "Yeah, I figured. I saved some carbonara in the fridge."

Hiro nods again and walks away. He walks past Ikuno on the table.

"Ikuno."

"Hi, Batman." Said Ikuno, nonchalantly, without looking.

Hiro clicked his tongue out from exasperation. For another time, that woman had unnecessarily gotten under his skin.

He enters the kitchen, opens the fridge, and eats carbonara... cold while standing and gripping his plate.

...

...

Hours later, the Squad 13 are in their respective dorms, located on the second floor of the house. They consist of 5 rooms, housing 2 people each. Each room is a separate unit in the squad.

Hiro enters his. Opening the lights. He carries the same face as ever. Looking at his room, it has a double-decker wooden bed on the left, a bookshelf, and a desk on the right with a lamp. He hangs his blazer near the door, removes his shoes, and approaches his desk. He removed his watch, his iPod and AirPods, and a silver bracelet and then turned to his bed.

Before he could lay down, he looked at the upper deck. It's empty. That's because that's where Naomi is supposed to be. But the bed being empty became a common sight to him.

He then drops to his bed and lets out a sigh from tiredness. He lays his arm on his forehead and shuts his heavy eyes... putting himself to sleep.. without even bothering to change his clothes into something comfortable.

...

The lights shut off... by Ichigo, who's wearing a royal blue sleeping dress. "At least close the lights, Hiro..." Said before a sigh. She closes the door and walks back to her room that's next door to Hiro's.

She enters her room, which is occupied by her and Goro's. It's the same exact copy as Hiro, except with a lot more of her and Goro's personal stuff. Goro is wiping his glasses, as he is wearing a white shirt and a pair of boxers. He notices Ichigo but continues on with what he's doing.

She climbs up to her bed and lays there. Goro finishes what he's doing. "I'm closing the lights." He informed before doing so.

It's now dark. Everywhere in the house is. Nothing but the moon just barely shining through the windows.

"Goodnight, Ichigo."

"Goodnight... Goro..."

Goro falls asleep... but Ichigo doesn't. She stares at her ceiling. Her worries and weariness crept in again. She removes her white hair clip, the rest of her hair now falling along. She looks at it as if something about it speaks to her...

...

...

...