The Quinx of Change

Despite reuniting with Marude and some of the Quinx Members, Hide is running out of time in order to stop the onslaught of Kaneki's group. Unfortunately, it seems that all of Hide's attempts are in vain, as the dragon has begun roaring and breathing fire upon Tokyo.

The same level of violence that had overtaken Tokyo seemed to have continued past this week and has continued under Furuta's permission. As much as Hide did not want to admit it, Itori and her Clowns were right.

Over the course of much of the time, the number of attacks by humans on ghoul violence and vice versa had increased by quite a margin, that even many within the CCG were questioning it. Of course, it was a minority opinion, and it satisfied many of the core CCG members, especially those who lost loved ones to them.

Of course, as acting head of the CCG, he was the one who was enabling the violence towards Kaneki's group. Hide knew that if he had joined them, he himself would be subject to the same violence as the rest of them.

His only saving grace was the fact that, without his scarecrow costume, and because of his presence alongside the Clowns, Furuta at least didn't recognize Hide as the scarecrow who had previously fought him.

That took quite the stress off of Hide, as he was, at least when he was open, freed of scrutiny from Furuta himself, who was also unaware of Hide's other identity.

It was kind of ironic, if Hide thought about it, as he pondered what could possibly happen. Right now, he was hearing reports that the CCG was planning another assault at the 24th ward, and Hide gulped, knowing exactly that's where Kaneki's group was located at the time.

Hide had very little time left, and suddenly was on the move. Hide was unsure what to do; was he to try and contact the Quinx Squad, excluding Mutsuki, who had clearly gone insane.

As a result, Hide decided on a sort of two-pronged strategy to gather support within the CCG.

The first was the Quinx Squad, though that was uncertain, but the other was more hopeful, and that was searching for Marude. Kind of ironic, the same person who had authorized Hide's Cochlea implant stay was now an ally, hopefully.

Of course, this wasn't guaranteed, as Hide had to be cautious. He didn't know the consequences of being reckless, but he disregarded.

Because of Furuta's ease with Hide, when he wasn't wearing his scarecrow outfit, he was now able to move around freely without much fear from the CCG, at least knowing that Furuta respected him as a part of the Clowns, even though he wasn't.

It was ironic that Furuta had a problem with Hide in a costume, but was fine with Hide in general.

And so, that's when he looked and saw a playground, but specifically two figures on the swings, actually three. This was a complete surprise, as Hide wasn't expecting to meet them right here and now.

They all looked so different. Urie, Saiko and Shirazu, all of them. Still alive, and presumably a part of the Quinx Squad, unless they got kicked out or something that he didn't know.

Hide gulped as he quietly began to approach them.

After months and almost a year of being presumed dead by these people, Hide was now going to surprise them. He couldn't imagine their looks of shock. Especially these three. He had already met Mutsuki when they had briefly fought, but these three were about to see Hide himself. Not scarecrow, like Mutsuki.

It was rather frightening, specifically the significance of this conversation.

Approaching the three, the sounds of new footsteps were clearly alarming to the three, as they looked in the direction from which they were coming.

"We can hear you, so come out?" Urie stated in a typical stoic tone. Hide chuckled silently, as some things never seemed to change.

"Oh, come on, man, it could be a kid just playing around," Shirazu replied to Urie, clearly more laid back and calm compared to Urie's serious nature. Hide chuckled silently as he approached the three, their eyes widening upon realization.

"Some things never change, I guess, huh?" Hide joked after he approached the three, all on separate swings, meaning Hide had to turn around to meet their gaze.

The three immediately stopped their swinging, as they looked at the new figure as if it were a ghost. It couldn't possibly be him…

It was clear that the shock of seeing this individual after so long was clearly there, as the three figures continued to look at Hide like he was not supposed to be there, which they did think.

"Come on, guys, I thought you'd recognize me." Hide spoke out again, and this time, Saiko began to get teary.

"H-Hide?" Shirazu asked, his tone in disbelief, as even he began to shed a bit of tears after seeing Hide nod, confirming their suspicions.

The three looked at Hide, taking in his figure. While it mostly remained the same, although with more muscle and an eyepatch on his right eye he now wore, Hide's hair was brighter. A sunlike yellow colour instead of his typical orange, almost like he bleached it.

"Dude, we thought you died..." Shirazu spoke in a quieter voice, as he lowered his head, "I thought I failed you after sprinting with you, as I gave you to the medic." He continued, and Hide scratched his head.

"Well, believe it or not, I'm not dead." Hide jokingly spoke, and Urie facepalmed slightly.

"Oh, come on, Urie, I thought you would've been excited to see me again."

Urie rolled his eyes. "Of course I am, but we have a lot of questions."

Hide then felt something tug on him, and he looked down to see Saiko hugging onto Hide.

"We all thought you died! Especially after we heard the Aogiri attack on those corpses! Shirazu and Urie even promised to bring your body back to a proper burial!"

Hide looked to the two in shock, Urie in particular looking away, almost like he was embarrassed.

"You guys were willing to do that, even though I was alive?" He asked a bit in shock. It was genuinely nice, in Hide's opinion, as he had always felt a bit off, not just to the CCG generally, but also in the Quinx Squad. He had felt for a time that the only reason they tolerated him was because the reaper Arima himself wanted them to.

So to see them consider him a genuine friend that they missed was really wholesome for Hide. He gave a small smile.

Urie sighed, "Yes, we thought you died, the CCG thought you died, even Arima was saddened, we just gave up until we heard that Aogiri Tree had what we thought was your dead corpse. What did they do to you?"

Hide looked down, his hair blocking his face as he mumbled and quietly spoke, "Not a lot of things that make great memories, that is for sure."

They clearly could tell by the change in tone that it was sensitive, and knowing Aogiri Tree, it could be bad. Whilst Urie in particular wanted to know, as it was in his nature to look over information.

However, they wanted answers, how Hide survived, and everything.

"Do you think you could tell us what happened after that night?" Urie asked, and Hide sighed, taking a seat on the ground, nodding.

"I will, but it's quite the story." Hide explained, but the three nodded in understanding, Saiko in particular excited, but scared to hear what Hide had gone through.

"We're willing to hear, obviously, after everything," Shirazu commented, and Hide nodded.

"I guess we should start with what happened after Noro injured me?" Hide asked, and the three nodded, Urie and Shirazu looking a bit upset and disappointed, remembering what had happened.

"Well, believe it or not, that injury would have killed me if I hadn't eaten a chunk of Noro himself." Hide commented, which made the three look up at him in shock.

"What?" Urie asked, a bit disgusted. Hide knew the group wouldn't like it, nor the idea that he was a ghoul now.

Hide chuckled, "It wasn't ideal, I know, but that actually helped speed up my regeneration for the time, so when I got hit, my regeneration was fast enough to heal the severity of the wound."

It was here Shirazu commented, "I knew you were still alive! I could see your wound regenerating as I ran down. When they said you died, I knew something was up."

Hide shrugged, "Well, regardless, I guess I ended up in one of the transport vehicles that got attacked by Aogiri Tree. Afterwards-" Hide looked down, and the three could clearly see that this was going to be the most difficult part of the story.

"You don't have to explain to us what happened here," Saiko spoke, clearly noticing the uncomfortable tone Hide was giving.

"No, I have to. Essentially, Kanou used me to get a better understanding of the Quinx, so he could improve the survivability of the ghoul surgery he did." Hide started after a bit, though his head was still down, and his face was still covered. To make matters more tense, Hide's voice was relatively low and sorrowful.

"He then removed the frames from my kakuhou. You guys know what happens when a Quinx frames out?" Hide turned his head, turning to the three, who nodded.

"They are treated as an S-rated ghoul," Urie stated.

Hide nodded, "Yeah, Kanou surgically made me frame out, turning my body ghoulish. Because of this, even if I returned to the CCG, I wouldn't be accepted due to that."

He then turned his head down, "Once he finished what he needed from me, he gave me to one of their members, who began to..." Hide stated, his yellow hair purposely in front of his face, covering the looks the three would give him.

They noticed the silence, "Began to what?" Saiko asked, before being tapped by Shirazu and Urie, the two understood.

Saiko clearly was unsure, but eventually realized it, and momentarily cried, "Oh shoot, Hide, I'm sorry!" She exclaimed clearly not wanting to hurt Hide like this.

"It's fine, it's just, I need to gather myself." Hide reassured, "It's the worst part of being stuck by the Aogiri Tree."

Urie and Shirazu nodded, understanding what Hide was getting at. Considering how few Hide's RC cells were due to his prolonged and strained fighting, he did need a way to replenish his RC cell count.

They noticed the silence, so much that the wind was the only thing they could clearly hear, watching as Hide stayed put in that exact position. The only thing moving was his yellow hair to the wind.

"They cut me up." He suddenly spoke, alerting the three. "My fingers and my toes."

"W-what?" Urie asked, his face turning a bit shocked.

"They cut off my fingers and toes, until they grew back." Hide repeated, causing the three to gasp in shock.

"When they tried to get me to eat, I found out that I could no longer eat normal human food. My body had turned ghoulish; either human or ghoul flesh could satisfy my hunger, and the former is what they forced me to eat." Hide stated.

It was a bit shameful to admit to those within the CCG that he was now a ghoul. He knew very well that any quinx that "framed out" would be considered an S-tier ghoul, and thus a danger to the CCG.

Since Hide's body had changed to that of a ghoul, pretty much, he fit the requirement of "framing out."

Of course, Hide survived, and for the most part, managed to save himself, as he relied specifically on ghoul, instead of trying to eat human meat, knowing that once he did that, his dignity would be gone immediately. All Hide could do was hope they would still accept him regarding his change.

It would've been less creepy if Hide had spoken in a sorrowful tone, but he was rather stoic, which made Urie sound rather expressive himself. "They'd repeat this cycle, using a custom quinque. The only reason they couldn't do more was the fact that I was resistant to RC suppressants, so my body couldn't become vulnerable to that of a human."

"That's-" Shirazu wanted to say something, but clearly didn't know. How could one expect him to say something? He knew Hide must have gone through such trauma to come through here now.

Hide nodded in understanding, "Yeah, but they still did what they wanted to. My captor, that torture, the constant sounds of my flesh being torn apart, my mental state broke, and I guess I powered through with, like a new personality, until I managed to escape." Hide finished.

"How did you escape?" Shirazu asked.

"After a week of that, I activated my kagune and rained projectiles on a glass ceiling, which caused the shards to break down the old and worn-out chains they used. Once I did, I escaped by climbing to the very roof I destroyed," Hide explained, and they looked at him.

"After that, I found another one like me, who was turned into a ghoul, and we lived off eating other ghouls. It wasn't great, but it was better than eating human flesh, as we were both still humans in our minds." Hide added, before signing.

"So that's why you couldn't join?" Shirazu asked. "Because you pretty much would be considered a S ghoul?" Hide nodded at the statement.

"Here I am, I couldn't join back because the CCG thought I was dead, and Aogiri Tree was after me, I was wanted and looked at by both organizations, so yeah." Hide answered for Shirazu.

He noticed the silence between the three of them, as they clearly were taking in what Hide had told them, regarding what happened to him during those times he was away. All that time, while they thought he was dead, Shirazu and Urie promised, through a mutual friendship, that they would bring back Hide's dead body to its rightful burial site.

Now, he was here, alive, and walking. Though he was effectively a ghoul, or a framed out Quinx, he was still Hide, and they couldn't be gladder.

Hide was then interrupted by a tight hug from Saiko, "It's great to see you again!" Saiko cried, as Hide smiled.

"Hey guys." Hide stated, causing the three to look up, "What's going on with Mutsuki?" He asked them, clearly knowing something was up when Shirazu and Urie flinched when he referenced their friend.

"Guys?" Hide asked, once they weren't answering.

Urie sighed, "I don't know, but for lack of a better term, he's gone mental."

Shirazu nodded, "Yeah, he had these photos with knives in them, like he was a serial killer, it wasn't what you'd expect from him."

Hide sighed, "Yeah, because I fought him, and his style was a lot more aggressive than usual."

Urie then lowered his head, "I don't know, when I talked to him during the wedding, he revealed that he loved Haise."

That came as a surprise to Hide, "Huh?"

Shirazu chuckled, before coughing to keep himself serious, "Yeah, he seems kind of hellbent on getting Haise to like her."

Hide sighed, "That explains one thing, I guess..." He mumbled to himself before he looked up.

"Is there something wrong?" Hide asked.

"You've heard about the number of attacks against the ghouls?" Shirazu asked, and Hide nodded.

"Yeah, that head leader of the CCG does not seem fond of me, to be quite frank." Hide mentioned.

"And why is that?"

"I fought him briefly, he laughed it off, but knowing him, he probably hates my guts. The only reason I'm on his 'good side' is due to the fact that he saw me with some of his friends."

Urie looked down, "I kind of wish we had the old guy back."

Hide then looked at Urie, remembering something, "Marude?"

"Yeah, him, say what you want, he was better than this new one," Shirazu commented, and Hide pondered.

"Where is he?" Hide asked, and the three shrugged.

"Beats me, he disappeared after everything unfolded," Shirazu commented.

"So are you guys, you know, even Mutsuki, like, not aligned to Furuta's stuff?" Hide asked.

Saiko then spoke up, "Yeah, we aren't. Even we are kind of appalled by the sheer aggression he has taken upon this city. The violence is really noticeable."

Urie then nodded, "Exactly, the CCG is meant to keep the peace, not incite violence."

Shirazu added, "Sure, ghouls are nasty, but even they don't deserve this."

Hide internally smiled, "What about Mutsuki?"

They then again turned their heads down, "We can't really say the same for her." Urie stated.

It was here did Hide turned his head, "Her?"

Urie rolled his eyes. "Mutsuki's a girl."

"Yeah, I knew that, but he told me to refer to him as a boy." Hide remarked.

Urie sighed, "Yeah, it seemed that way, but recently with my talk to her, she actually seemed rather accepting of her feelings, like a girl."

"Does she feel comfortable with you calling her that way?" Hide asked, and Urie shrugged.

"It's complicated, but again, you know what, they seemed to be accepting as a female," Urie stated.

Hide sighed, "Perhaps we should just refer to Mutsuki as a they then, until they give us a defining answer. It's clear it may be a form of gender dysmorphia or maybe even being nonbinary."

"You do make a point," Shirazu commented before looking at the night sky.

"Hey, Hide." Shirazu started, and Hide turned to him, "What's up with the hair colour? Looks a bit brighter."

Hide sighed, "I didn't realize it until I escaped the Aogiri tree, but my hair whitened during my time there."

Shirazu's face whitened in shame, "S-sorry."

Hide put a reaffirming hand on his shoulder, "You don't have to apologize for that, I've learned to cope."

Shirazu gave Hide a smile, showing his shark-like teeth. "Well, anyways, want to go somewhere with us?"

Hide chuckled, "Maybe when this violence is over, we can plan something, after all these times, I still see you all as good friends, even you, Urie."

Urie huffed before crossing his arms, but Hide knew by now this was his way of agreeing. Classic tsundere or what now.

They chuckled as Urie and Shirazu joined in, Saiko not too far behind.

"Okay fine, I guess I'll stay for a bit, but don't expect me to stay the whole course." Hide stated that they decided to have some fun for now.

They had merely gone to a simple restaurant before they forgot that Hide couldn't eat anything normal anymore.

"Sorry, man, if that coffee shop was still here, we would've taken you," Shirazu commented, referring to Touka's.

"It's fine, the one advantage is that I don't have to eat three times a day." Hide chuckled, clearly trying to make a joke about this.

"Hey, Hide, can I ask you something?" Urie then asked, and Hide looked to see that Urie was motioning him to the washroom.

"Um, okay." Hide answered, noticing Shirazu was going with them.

"Are you all just leaving me?!" Saiko asked.

"Unless you want to join as well." Shirazu joked, and Saiko blushed furiously in response, shaking her head vigorously.

Hide chuckled as they went, noticing the serious tone the two had. Maybe for Urie it was normal and expected, but for Shirazu, it was the complete opposite.

"Is there something wrong?" Hide asked.

Urie sighed, "Remember when you asked regarding Marude's whereabouts?"

Hide nodded, and saw that Shirazu scratched his head, "Yeah, we know what he's been doing and the likes."

In that moment, it felt like, just for once, everything was going smoothly for Hide. He had not only managed to notice that even his former coworkers were sick of the new guy, Furuta, but also knew what and where Marude was.

"Well, spill the beans." Hide stated, and Urie nodded.

"In case you haven't been watching any thorough CCG news, Furuta has been trying to increase his power within the CCG." Urie started.

Hide nodded; he kind of figured that any attempt at such a motion would result in such an opposition.

"So, what's going on then?" Hide asked, having an idea where this was going.

"Essentially, many investigators, led by Marude, had defected against Furuta. They still work alongside them, but they clearly are fed up and deeming him a tyrant." Shirazu finished for Urie.

It was at this time did Hide actually noticed the friendship between the two. It wasn't perfect, but it was definitely more positive than before. It made Hide a bit happy, as it reminded him of Kaneki and him.

But he shook his head, he was getting off topic.

"I see, I'm guessing you want me to participate." Hide assumed, and they nodded.

"While we understand your current predicament, with effectively being a ghoul and all, it would still be of help, with you being a former investigator and the likes."

Hide smiled, "I've been looking for people to take down Furuta, and now I have a chance. Of course, I'd participate, it's about time I've seen you all again."

Shirazu chuckled, "Just like old times, huh?" He asked, and Hide nodded.

"It really is." Hide stated, "When is this supposed attack on Furuta?"

"Tomorrow, here's the address and the plan routes and everything, please hide this," Urie stated in his serious tone.

Hide nodded, not wanting to make a joke, considering how classified this information was. If Urie had given it to the wrong person, they'd be in trouble.

"Very well, I'll meet you all there. Is Saiko also coming?" Hide asked.

They shook their heads, "In all honesty, she doesn't know, and we intend to keep it that way."

"Oh." Was all Hide replied with before he began walking off.

"Well, I'll see you all soon!" Hide exclaimed as he left, putting the paper Urie had given him away in his backpack.

This was just his luck; in a day, he had found the correct people to help him.

Hide looked on at the CCG, the building. He had been incredibly careful with everything. He had to be careful, yet again, as to pass by the RC gates.

Regardless, he knew that it would be quite the battle. Even if he snuck in, once the battle commenced, Hide running through the gates wouldn't matter one bit.

"So, how are you going to pass it?" Amber asked.

"I'm not." Hide merely replied.

"What?!" Amber exclaimed, "And why should you just run through it?"

"It is simple, once the attack begins, there will be no need to." Hide stated.

He was currently wearing his scarecrow costume, and with that, Hide knew he was risking his life. He knew that in this costume, he was an A-rated ghoul. Right now, however, Hide was raised as an S-rated ghoul now as a result, he needed to be even more careful.

"Hey, Hide-kun." Amber stated, which caused Hide to momentarily stay where he was.

"What is it, Amber?" Hide asked.

"It's time." Amber replied.

Hide was confused, "What?"

Amber chuckled, "It's time, remember those times when you struggled with your kakuja?"

Hide's eyes widen, "Yes, but you couldn't possible mean-"

"Yes, it's ready. Your kakuja is now full and complete."

That surprised Hide, "But how?"

Amber again laughed, "It's very simple, by eating ghoul flesh, you develop your kakuja. Sure, it's painful at first, but if you continue eating ghoul, then it'll eventually become complete."

Hide scratched his mask, "So then what is the difference?"

"It merely means that your kakuja is more powerful, and you won't deal with the mental stress that it is." Amber explained.

Hide made a huh noise, before smiling, "Well then, if it means I don't have to put up with that again, then I'll be glad about it."

Amber smiled, "Well, you may need it, so if it gets difficult out there, you can use it."

Hide nodded, "Thanks for the advice." Before he entered, hearing the commotion going on.

It was clear that a battle was occurring. When the sound of an explosion and gunfire went off, Hide knew that they were already acting.

"How the hell do they do it so quickly?" Hide asked.

"I smell something strange. A weird mix of human and ghoul." Amber commented.

"That's a one-eyed ghoul smell probably, remembering Furuta is one." Hide reminded Amber as he ran in, ignoring the alarm sound from the rc gates.

With the commotion, Hide was able to get through them with relative ease.

He looked around, slowing his pace as he looked at the damaged building. Chairs on the ground, multiple desks slashed, papers torn, it clearly was a battle. But the clear thing were the bullet holes on the building walls.

Hide could hear what was going on, and knew he had to make it to them before it was too late. If he got rid of Furuta, then the uptick in violence relating to the CCG would be gone.

He was the one, after all, who had fought the tyrant before. And he would do it again. If he had his complete kakuja, then he would be fine.

As a result, when he ran into a fellow investigator, it seemed rather confused, but realizing the scarecrow wasn't attacking, it continued its assault.

Multiple dead bodies littered the area, as it was clear that the internal squabbling wasn't just an unexpected idea, but something brewing in the making. The opposition was growing, and the recent power grab was what caused the grenade to explode.

Hide walked up, spotting Marude. He had managed to speak with him briefly after leaving the restaurant, and he told him to prepare for a scarecrow. As a result, Marude smiled when he spotted Hide.

While you could say Hide was a late and final arrival to Marude's group of insurgences, he was already one from when he fought Furuta.

So when Hide approached with his scarecrow costume, Furuta noticeably gave a crooked smile, while Urie and Shirazu looked baffled at the new individual.

"Who are you?" Urie asked.

Hide chuckled, "You don't recognize me? Urie and Shirazu?" Hide asked, the voice clearly giving it away who was beneath the costume.

From the other side, Hide knew Nishiki would have ignited a fuse, and called him out in front of everyone. Hide chuckled at the imagination.

Shirazu likewise was confused, but smiled, "We thought you weren't coming."

Hide chuckled, "Struggled to get passed the rc gates. I should've disabled them."

It was here did Hide look at Furuta, who had activated his kagune, and already begun attacking Hide.

"It's been a while, scarecrow, I've been yearning for a rematch." Furuta smirked, and Hide looked up.

"Well, it seems that this rematch will be final entertainment."

Furuta chuckled, and watched as Hide activated his kagune, the four orange swings sprouting out of his shoulder blades, as Furuta, continuously barraged Hide with his kagune.

*Pierce Flash*

Hide took the opportunity, once his kagune was activated, to slice back. Crystallizing his wings so that they could slice Furuta's tentacles. Using the blinding light to get an opening.

Of course, they would regrow back, but those time, Hide took the offence once two of them were impaired temporarily.

*Distance Lance*

Using the range he had, whilst he pelted Furuta with his projectiles, he initiated his flames on his hand, as he gripped what appeared to be a flaming lance, that burned his hand a bit.

Using his strength, he threw the lance towards Furuta, who dodged, smirking.

The flames that surrounded the so called lance that pierced the ground began to spread across the area. Using this, he was attempting to surround Furuta, who managed to dodge.

Still, he had limited routes to use, and Hide took advantaged of this.

Hide closed the range, clashing with Furuta's tentacles, as he smirked, "It seems that you have gotten stronger, I'll give you that." He sneered.

"If that's the case and you treat me like I'm below you, then why are it that I'm the one attacking?" Hide taunted, and Furuta smirked.

"You asked for it." Furuta merely kicked Hide away quite the distance.

Hide smiled, "You fool, never fight a ukaku long ranged!" He said as he fired his crystalline projectiles towards Furuta. He merely slices the projectiles apart with his kagune, but he did get pelted by some.

"I guess I'll take the fault for it." Furuta commented, as he brandished his tentacles further.

"Say, isn't that Rize's kagune?" Hide asked, only to be met with something grabbing his feet, holstering him upwards.

*Flame Body*

"Why yes, congrats on finding out." Furuta smiled, before he gasped as Hide fired more projectiles towards Furuta. Of course, he tried waving Hide around, hitting him across the wall yet again, but Hide merely continued his pelting, both taking moderate damage. This damage was amplified by the burns he sustained.

"Please, I already knew whose kagune that was."

Unfortunately for Hide, his scarecrow suit was tearing, and Hide saw no point in covering himself up anymore.

Taking off his scarecrow mask, Furuta gasped at the recognizable figure he had met with the other clowns.

"You!" He said, staring into Hide's single kakugan in his right eye, "You were the one with the Clowns!" he exclaimed, in rage, before laughing maniacally.

"I have to say, you really impress me, let me give you the honourary reward." Furuta stated, before Hide's eyes widened as he watched Furuta into a kakuja.

Hide's eyes noticed the black clad amour, the maniacal teeth, the single red eye, and the four tentacles, striped in red and black. Overall, it looked relatively similar and surprisingly average for a kakuja.

"Come on! This is our rematch! Show me your kakuja!" Furuta bellowed in a more robotic voice.

Hide smirked, "Gladly."

"Here we go Amber..." Hide mumbled quietly.

"With pleasure, Hide-kun!"

With a loud yell, Hide felt his body shifting in ways he didn't even know. His wings became larger and sharper, the red veins going through them, blue blades began to protrude out across his back, and the orange and black armour that seemed to have formed all around Hide. Except, it wasn't really armour, but rather scales. His arms had scales, as his hands had its traditional dragon claws.

But it was the mask that made Furuta gasp in shock. A black and orange dragon mask began to form on Hide, a red dot glowing, representing the one kakugan eye he had.

It was here Furuta gasped in shock, "Oh, so are you the dragon I foretold?"

Hide chuckled, glad he had his mental sanity, "We'll see about that!"

The two charged at each other, titans battling, as the showdown was hitting its peak. Both kakuja's fighting ever so ferociously.

Hide used his dragon claws, and his wings, firing mixed of projectiles, dealing more damage than before, while also temporarily paralyzing Furuta's attacking weapon.

While Hide couldn't puncture through his black clad armour, he was able to deal some significant damage to his main offence, which gave him the advantage.

If he could take out his tentacles, then Hide could stand a chance.

He slashed the armour with his dragon claws, thankful that it was going through, only for a tentacle to strike him on his lower back, but it didn't do too much.

"Come here Scarecrow!" Furuta exclaimed, as he unexpectedly grabbed Hide, using the other tentacles, which were wanning from the paralysis to strike Hide. He had managed to get two strikes at Hide, but it didn't stop his offense.

Regardless, the two kakujas were powerful, clearly evenly matched if Furuta didn't want to admit.

Swiftly changing his wings into blades, Hide charged towards Furuta, his blades going in a circle like form, while Furuta began waving his tentacles like crazy.

With a charge and a yell, Hide managed to puncture through the black armour Furuta had, but at the result of one of his wings being cut off, his left arm being punctured by the tentacle, limiting Hide's use of it until it regenerated.

However, that's was not what stopped their fighting.

A rumbling did. A loud rumble.

"What is that?" Hide asked as his kakuja form dissipated.

"An earthquake?" Shirazu guessed.

Furuta, despite having a hole in his stomach smiled, "Oh how beautiful! Eat up little one!"

"W-What?" Hide asked.

Furuta chuckled, "Oh isn't it obvious? You are too late!"

Hide's eyes widened and his heard stopped a bit. "Kaneki..." He mumbled as Furuta continued on about some weird stuff.

"This is what I meant! By the dragon I foretold! Eat up Kaneki, you'll need to eat for your next quest!" Furuta bellowed in clear insanity, and all Hide could do, was call the others to regroup and escape. It was clear that they weren't safe, with whatever monster was up there.

"Oh my-" Urie could only say in shock as what could best be described as large tentacles terrorized the city. As Hide, Urie, Shirazu and the others looked on, all they could utter.

"We were too late..."

Hide lowered his head, pounding the ground, ignoring the strange and alarmed look the others were giving him, "I failed you Kaneki..." He mumbled, while Amber laughed.

"Oh, it is rather marvelous? The potential of such a ghoul? Even I wish I had my own physical body to look at this."

A.N / Well, the dragon has formed, one way or the other. I actually found this to be a coincidence regarding Hide's kakuja turning into a dragon. I had actually decided that before I got to that chapter, which is up to 145. The other thing I will mention is Mutsuki and her gender issue, is she a boy or girl? Trans or binary? You know, that stuff. It states, and with some information from what I read and the others say, she learned to accept herself, most notably her feelings as a female. There are hints of either them being trans, suffer from gender dysmorphia, or even is binary. However, with what I'm given, I'll say, for now, that Mutsuki is a female with gender dysmorphia, as her past does play a keep role. I do want to explain this as it will answer exactly what Mutsuki is.

Distance Lance: The user grips a lance that is created by flames. Throwing the lance allows it to pierce the ground, which can shortly be ignited to spread flames around in an erratic pattern. The move does not do too much damage, but can limit movement of the foe. The move also utilizes little rc cells to use.

Pierce Flash.

Midnight Bane.

Guard Shroud.

Precise Bullet.

Pyro's Flame Orb.Flaming Arena.Flame Trail.Igniting Storm.Smolly.Red Rain.Flame Body.Shapeshift.X Flames.Flaming Pellets.Fiery Drift.