A/N: Finished writing this a week ago. Had difficulty separating the time I needed to proofread this. Gonna be busy the rest of the month. Couldn't postpone this any longer. Please excuse any grammar errors you find (or point them out to me, it helps). I promise to go over this chapter again and fix it up later.

Okay, so this chapter is a tad lengthier than the rest. But that's because I basically compiled the last 8 episodes of the anime into a sole chapter without making it look rushed. What can I say? I didn't want to stop writing until I finished the anime arc. I wanted that to be already over with so I could focus properly on the epilogue.

Anyways this may initially look like a "Sen Chapter" but I promise that it's so much more. Also I'm proud to deliver the Tokine/Gen bonding time that the manga failed to administer to us. And of course the promised GenYoshi.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kekkaishi or anything related to it.

"speech"

'thoughts'

I'll hold your hand when you are feeling mad at me
Yeah when the monsters they won't go and
your windows won't close
I'll pretend to see what you see

...

You know it's funny how freedom can make us feel contained
Yeah when the muscles in our legs aren't used to all the walking,
I know if you could snap both your fingers that you'd escape with me
But in the meantime, I'll just wait here and listen to you when you speak... or scream

...

And every day that you want to change, that you want to change, yeah
I'll help you see it through 'cause I just really want to be with you.
...

'Waste' by Foster the People

Chapter 10: The Never Changing

x-x- (Flashback) -x-x

One night after dinner Sen had felt restless. To tire himself out the blond ayakashi-hybrid decided to take a stroll late in the dark across their base camp. He wasn't necessarily worried about walking alone; after all only a fool would attack the Night Troops Headquarters. Likewise, he wasn't at all surprised to stumble on the sight of Gen bleeding in the middle of an alley while doing so.

Sen however halted his stroll to give the other teen a courtegious glance. Looking heavily bruised up with the right part of his shirt is tatters, Sen would admit to having seen Gen in better shape than the one he was currently displaying.

"Do you want me to call the medics?" asked Sen being polite, but by the monotonous tone of his voice anyone could tell that he wasn't exactly moved by what he was witnessing.

"N-No" refused Gen with difficulty as he leaned against the wall for support as his legs were beginning to buckle under his own weight. Anyone could tell that Gen was having a hard time breathing even if the battered teen was unwilling to acknowledge it. "I just need to rest for a while" he excused.

The blond took two steps closer as he inconspicuously tried to get a better glimpse of the gash Gen was trying to hide. A small frown tugged the left side of Sen's bottom lip because of what he saw. "A normal person would've died from those wounds" he commented as Gen started to cough blood, though the brunet tried covering his mouth with his hand to minimize the red evidence being spilled.

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

Just out of the portal Tokine and Gen found themselves freefalling on rocky yet desolated grounds. Although the female Kekkaishi immediately reacted by casting a kekkai to smooth down their landing, Gen winced in pain upon contact with the ground.

This however went unnoticed by the Yukimura and Gen quickly righted himself intending to conceal it further.

"Is that the Kokubourou?" questioned Tokine aloud to no one in particular as she gazed at a castle in a far away distance. Although she wasn't complaining about getting a free ride to enemy territory, she wasn't exactly thrilled to have been dropped so far from their goal. Still, she would admit that from this distance she could at least calculate the sheer size of the castle. And it was huge.

Even so she wasn't here for a scenery tour.

"What's that?" she questioned again when she noticed the displaced ripples in the space. 'It feels like the entire dimension is falling apart'. Getting perturbed by the increasing occurrence of the ripples, Tokine, with a slight hint of urgency, directed her next sentence toward the night-trooper. "This world is unstable. We better hurry"

Gen nonverbally coincided with her point by nodding and leaping toward the castle with Tokine following in tow. Silently he hoped that their stay would be the least bloody as possible.

x-x- (Flashback #2) -x-x

"I did my job" stated Gen impassively once he got his coughing under control. "… don't tell anyone about this" he commanded forcefully. However, because of the state he was in, Sen hardly found it menacing.

"What's the deal with you?" Sen inquired without raising his voice. He had already decided long ago that Gen simply wasn't worth it. "Do you think you can't die or something?"

Gen stayed quiet for a long time and Sen was beginning to think that the wounded teen wasn't going to answer until-

"…fighting is the only thing I'm good for."

Sen blinked once before nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders. "Oh well, suit yourself" he responded uncaringly before walking away like this was nothing, only a daily routine.

Yet in his head he was seething.

'Who does he think he is? He's such a show-off! But fine by me if he wants to bleed to death! Just know that that's one funeral I won't be attending.'

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

Yoshimori had been freed by Heisuke Matsudo after promising to stay away from an ayakashi leader named Byaku. Subsequently Yoshimori stumbled upon a female ayakashi that curiously enough didn't exude any evil, plus looked like she had lots of class. Like a princess or something.

He momentarily wondered why he felt that such a title should had rang a few warning bells but couldn't quite make the connection. Instead Yoshimori had been more focused on how endless the castle seemed to be. 'Doesn't this place have an elevator?'

Even so the Kekkaishi couldn't help noticing that after his brief encounter with the princessy ayakashi he somehow knew the landscape of the castle; even which path to take in order to get to where Sen was. The Sumimura could only presume that it was some innate talent that suddenly manifested in him.

"Man I really am amazing" boasted Yoshimori aloud after having rescued Sen from the dungeon. The ayakashi-hybrid however didn't feel all that compelled to feed that ego.

"You don't have to act like the big hero" he argued. "I can see you're pretty beaten up already. What, do you think you can't die or something?" Sen asked only to have his eyes widen a nanosecond after uttering it. 'Why did I suddenly get a weird sense of déjà vu because of that?' he questioned himself.

Yoshimori shrugged off the other's sudden silence as he tried concentrating on where they should move next. "I think we go this way" he voiced. However further instructions were interrupted as they heard strange noises approaching from the hall the Kekkaishi had just pointed at. Soon afterward the sounds where replaced by a stampede of bug-type ayakashis retreating from something that was happening at the other side of the castle.

And that's when Sen started screaming.

The Sumimura summoned a kekkai to shield them from the bug stampede as they passed by yet Sen was still freaking out just as much. The blond night-trooper had literally been reduced to encircling his arms around Yoshimori's neck in a choking manner while hysterically expressing his hate for "creepy crawly things" along an incessant mantra of "gross, gross, gross!"

Waiting it out, Yoshimori deadpanned throughout the entire display. That is until Sen professed that he was beginning to feel sick which made the Kekkaishi urgently cast a kekkai below them and have it stretch vertically to lift them to another floor because there was no way he was having someone's puke all over him.

Once landing upon a bug-less floor and with the impending chaos successfully avoided, Sen detached himself from the other teen and plopped down to the wooden floor with a hand clutching his mouth.

"Hey, are you okay?' asked Yoshimori deactivating the kekkai while waiting for the other to pull himself together. A moment of awkward silence passed with Yoshimori being ignored before the Kekkaishi couldn't help himself from voicing an innocent observation. "You know, you're kinda like a little girl"

Somehow Yoshimori should've known that his little comment wasn't going to be favorably received because the reaction had been immediate.

"Yikes!" yelped the Sumimura falling backwards while clutching his bleeding forehead. "You stabbed me!" he exclaimed with mild disbelieve.

"Don't you dare call me girly ever again!" Sen threatened, his sharp nail poised for another attack. "Unless you want another one"

Yoshimori automatically raised his hands in surrender, although not without muttering to himself how the other teen didn't have to get so mad about it. It wasn't like the Kekkaishi had voiced that with any ill intention. He was just making an observation. 'An observation!'

Sen however turned his back to the Sumimura. He, although flustered, was overridden more so by anger. Here he was after having to be rescued from a dungeon like some freaking princess and now he made an even bigger fool of himself by crying over bugs! Why was the world so unfair to him?

"Why did you come for me when I'm such a burden?" Sen questioned in frustration. In his head there was already no doubt that he was already viewed as incompetent by the other.

Said question though only served to confuse Yoshimori. "Why not?" he asked, scratching his head. "Isn't it normal to save a friend?"

"No it's not!" exclaimed/declared Sen resolutely which startled Yoshimori. "And by the way I never said that we were friends"

x-x- (Flashback #3) -x-x

It was closing to three years since Gen had joined the Night Troops and everyone who was around his age or younger were already wary of him. Sen was no exception.

Barely thirteen and Gen was already pulling physical stunts with an ease that even the older teens couldn't. Yet instead of being impressed, most kids took it as a warning to stay even further away from the wolf-type ayakashi-hybrid. Nobody wanted to be on the receiving end of such power.

You see, when Gen had first joined the Night Troops the younger generation wasn't told of the circumstances that led to his admission. They only knew that he had trouble controlling his powers and that Atora was in charge of training him. Yet as time went by a rumor starting circulating that the real reason Gen was here was because he went berserk and tried to kill his family in coldblooded murder.

It was just a rumor started by the older kids and Sen for the most part ignored it. Sure, Sen was already biased against Gen but that was for personal reasons. Primarily the blond just hated how Gen never seemed to care about anything or about what anyone thought of him even though he continued showing off on every mission assigned to them. If anything to Sen the other teen could only be described as the world's biggest hypocrite.

But today, just a week after Sen had also turned thirteen, Gen had challenged Shoki into a duel for his rank within the Organization. That sparked the interest of many because Shoki possessed a rank that allowed him to go on solo missions. So far Gen, like the rest of the members his age, were only given group missions for three or more.

And so everybody the age sixteen or younger crowded together to watch the match.

…It was over in less than five minutes with Gen being the clear victor. Shoki however didn't take his loss with stride and started to verbally assault Gen—calling him a monster and, when that didn't have the desired effect, going as far as bringing up the rumor about how Gen had tried to kill his sister.

That was the first time Sen had seen Gen go berserk on somebody to the point of almost fully transforming. It took four of the older teens to hold him down until Atora arrived to command complete stillness from Gen. That was also the last day any of the kids his age or younger ever spoke to him.

Most of them, if not all of them, feared saying something that might unleash Gen's temper on them. Sen didn't blame them as he was also shaken by the incident. Even so Sen refused to cower and show weakness. He soon become the only one in his age group still capable of looking at Gen in the eyes, even though the other teen started averting his gaze from pretty much everyone after losing his control so publicly.

Clearly a sign of his cowardness at being judged. And so whenever the other kids needed to relay a message to Gen, they mostly approached Sen so that the blond would deliver it instead.

But make no mistake. Even though Sen didn't cut the communication lines between him and Gen, the blond never again extended his hand in friendship.

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

It took sometime before Tokine and Gen were able to set foot in the castle but once inside they simply did not know where to start searching. The place was massive! And as if that wasn't enough it had multiple floors.

Gen had tried tracking Yoshimori's scent but so far no trace of it. Guess his sense of smell wasn't that superior as he was unable to catch anything long-distanced. Nevertheless routing the place was better than standing clueless and waiting for something to happen so Tokine chose a direction and off they went. One thing was for certain in her mind though. And that was that when she finds Yoshimori she was going to smack him upside the head for putting them in this mess in the first place.

On a side note, the Yukimura did take notice of the fact that Gen hadn't taken off on his own like he usually did under these kinds of circumstances. However she didn't get a chance to ponder on that as they soon came across a visibly short ayakashi in human skin. This made both teenagers stop on their tracks.

The ayakashi, after questioning how the teens infiltrated the castle only to get an intentionally vague reply from the female Kekkaishi, was quick to get agitated.

"What nerve!" he spat. "But that impudent attitude won't last for long. You'll soon see what happens to those who dare bring filth into my castle!"

"Your castle?" reputed Gen, his fists ready to sprint forward and strike at the slightest of provocations. "The leader of this castle is you?" he growled.

The ayakashi in human skin didn't look all too fazed with the level of aggression directed his way. Probably accustomed to dealing with hotheads. Instead he just hummed as he cleaned his glasses before answering. "I'm the keeper of this castle" he explained, sounding mighty proud of his proclamation. "My name is Koshu, I'm responsible for maintaining the beauty of this structure"

Gen was about to voice his retort but Tokine stopped him with a hand on his shoulder—the last part of Koshu's statement catching her attention.

"If you're the keeper as you say then that means you know where the Kekkaishi that was taken hostage is being held" she inferred. This made Gen unclench his fists slightly as the thought of interrogating the enemy hadn't occurred to him until now.

"Pff, of course I know where the Kekkaishi is held captive" Koshu blurted as if offended that someone would think that he didn't. "But I'm not going to divulge it"

"Oh well" she waved, fixing Koshu a belittling gaze, "Then I will just have to find him on my own" she said while casually walking away. This not only confused Gen but the enemy as well.

"Hey comeback here!" commanded Koshu not liking the condescending way he had been dismissed. It felt like the girl was demeaning him as inconsequential. Angry, the ayakashi began shedding its human skin and transforming into an enormous octopus-like-demon. "We're not fini-"

Koshu never got to finish his sentence as next thing they knew a five layered kekkai surrounded its head and blasted it out of existence.

"That's what you get for bothering me after I spared you" stated Tokine before parting. "Come on Gen, we can't afford to lose time in this unstable dimension"

As for Gen he just stood there watching the headless body crumbling away before turning his face to stare at the retreating girl. It was now blatantly obvious that he wasn't the only one feeling stressed over being here but damn. That girl was ruthless.

Strangely enough, Gen found it somewhat comforting to be around someone who clearly did not care what others thought of her methods of doing things.

If only he could be like that.

x-x- (Flashback #4) -x-x

This was yet another one of those missions where six of the Night Troops' younger members were tasked with eliminating a monster. It should had been an easy task since prior intel on the monster terrorizing the rocky mountain division that led to the neighboring town classified it as having low intelligence. The success of the mission was only a matter of cornering it before taking it down.

It should've been easy. But it wasn't.

The monster turned out to be a three-headed eel-type ayakashi with the ability to grow in size the more injured it got. It was terribly violent too. Shuu had been unlucky enough to get hit by the enemy and was now gushing blood from the right side of his face.

Even more unfortunate the scent of blood triggered something in the monster that made Shuu its primary target from then on. Sen, who was then partnered with Shuu, jumped in front of his teammate as the enemy launched itself toward him.

There was no doubt in either of their minds that they wouldn't come out unscathed from this. But then, in the last second, and although Sen never asked for it, Gen came into the fray and tore down the enemy like it was nothing.

Sen stood stunned at the sight. Here he was, readying himself to take the blunt of the attack, and Gen just came in with all the confidence in the world, jumping in on every chance he had to strike the target without holding back.

No… Gen probably purposely waited until the very last second just so that he could show off!

"Easy," Gen muttered aloud, wiping the dead ayakashi's blood out his face with the back of his clawed hand. He gave a brief glance backward at the two night-troopers he just saved before leaping away.

Yet that one indifferent glance was all Sen needed to confirm his suspicions. It was now plainly obvious that in Gen's eyes the rest of the team were inferior to him in every aspect. There was no doubt in Sen's mind that Gen felt repulsed by them and considered them dead weight on his shoulders. That was probably the reason why Gen so badly wanted to go on solo missions.

But fine! It wasn't like any of the other kids liked being around Gen in the first place so in a way he was basically doing them a favor by going solo. He could go be an asshole all by his lonesome self if that was what he wanted. Sen didn't care. That's why he didn't bother thanking the brunet for saving them back then.

Gen didn't deserve gratitude.

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

"Hey why are you running all of the sudden?" questioned Sen as he followed Yoshimori who began dashing from roof to roof. When the Kekkaishi didn't answer Sen began to yell louder. "Hey! Hey! Answer me will ya! If you want to leave this dimension I assure you that you're not gonna do it by heading deeper into the castle!" he exclaimed.

"Don't plan on leaving yet" Yoshimori shot back as he kept his pace.

This made Sen blink. "What?" he asked not comprehending thus making Yoshimori skid to a stop before facing the blond.

"I'm looking for Kaguro" he stated determinedly. "And I'm not leaving until I pay him back for what he did to Shishio"

Sen stopped a few steps away from Yoshimori and crossed his arms while acquiring a contemplative look. "Kaguro…" he echoed, trying out the name. "He's an ayakashi, right?"

Upon the Sumimura Heir nodding, the wheels inside the night-trooper's head started turning rapidly until an idea began to formulate. If things played out well this could be the one opportunity Sen needed to prove that he wasn't a burden.

Convincing himself that it was worth giving it a shot, Sen turned around and walked to the edge of the roof. His eyes searched for the perfect hideout. "Then let me find him" he stated before jumping down to a balcony an entering its room. He didn't need to look back to know that the Kekkaishi followed.

"How do you plan on doing that?" asked Yoshimori also curious about why the other teen chose to enter a vacant room. Sen smirked at this, feeling very pleased with having someone's attention on him as he went to explain his abilities in detail.

The blond explained how he had the ability to manipulate all five of his senses into tracking the auras of other living beings. The ayakashi-hybrid was particularly proud of this ability because it was the one area where he far exceeded Gen's capabilities. See Gen only had a superior sense of smell; but Sen could combine all five of his senses in a way that overlapped whatever Gen's nose could do and with an even farther reach.

In fact Sen was so caught up in bragging about his special abilities that he accidentally let slip the fact that he could push his skill far enough to read what people were thinking from their auras. Fortunately for Sen, Yoshimori didn't seem to pay any mind to his blunder.

Explanations over, Sen got down on one knee and started to concentrate, eager to demonstrate his ability. Based on Yoshimori's descriptions, the blond only focused on pinpointing powerful auras that exuded evil. By doing this he was able to identify about half a dozen energies but that wasn't enough. Sen needed more details on the ayakashi he was trying to locate. Anything from its height, shape or method of fighting would be useful. Voicing this to Kekkaishi, Yoshimori tried detailing how Kaguro moved until smacking himself in the head upon remembering that Kaguro had been wearing his human skin when Yoshimori last saw him.

Meaning his aura could not be traced.

"Damn it!" Sen shouted in indignation. "Just when I thought I might be useful!" he complained aloud, hating the fact that he felt incompetent once more before remembering that he wasn't alone in the room. Upon seeing Yoshimori's taken aback expression Sen regretted having lost his composure because if there was one thing he hated more than self-pity it was when other people pitied him. "What?" he snarled if only to stop the other teen from analyzing him.

"N-Nothing!" Yoshimori replied taking a step back and raising his hands in surrender to appease his current comrade. "Sorry for making you do all that for nothing" he apologized, "but I'll be fine on my own"

"Huh?" expressed Sen wrinkling his face incredulously. "You mean you're still going to try picking a fight on your own?"

"Well yeah, that was the plan" answered Yoshimori lost on what the big deal was. Yet to Sen nothing could have sounded more ridiculous.

"Are you insane?" Sen questioned refusing to believe what he was hearing. "Didn't we already have a conversation of how pointless it is for you to try fighting someone even Gen couldn't take down?"

Yoshimori narrowed his eyes at that before replying. "I don't see anything pointless in wanting to avenge a friend"

"I get friendship" Sen shot back even though he didn't agree with that term being used to describe someone like Gen. "But you're taking this to a whole nother level!"

"What, what do you mean?"

Sen took a deep breath trying to compose himself, thinking that there still might be a chance to get through Yoshimori's thick skull and make him see reason. "Look, from what I heard your Grandfather lost a friend not long ago to the Kokubourou but you don't see him rampaging to his death in enemy territory"

"But that doesn't count anymore" the Kekkaishi hastily interjected. "Heisuke is alive. I just saw him a moment ago"

"And so is Gen and you knew that from the start!" countered Sen quickly losing it after getting interrupted. "Face it, you care way more than you should and your actions can't be justified. What you're doing is suicide and I refuse to take any part in it!"

The ayakashi-hybrid stood up and turned away about to leave it at that but then turned back because he felt that he hadn't finished saying his piece.

"And another thing! Do you think Gen is going to thank you for what you're doing? He never cared about anyone before so what makes you think he's going to start now?"

"You don't know that!" Yoshimori shouted back trying to shake the feeling of being cornered. He wasn't ready to have his volatile relationship with Gen questioned.

"Oh and you do?" Sen countered sarcastically. "News flash, I've known him for 4 years. That's way more than you have! If you don't believe me then answer me this. If he really cares then why isn't he here helping you huh?"

"S-Shut up!"

"Yeah that's what I thought!"

x-x- (Flashback #5) -x-x

Sen wouldn't say that his life before the Night Troops was filled with hardships per se. It was mostly bland and monotonous really.

His earliest memory only detailed his life at an Orphanage. Yes, as far as Sen could remember he had been an orphan. So technically since he never knew his parents, Sen hadn't particularly felt any heartache about losing them. And to be honest he never really thought about them much.

What did bother him though was the fact that he was constantly teased by his peers for being the only blond kid in the Orphanage. They even called his hair girly. Yet even back then Sen had the ability to make any kid cry with only a few choice words. At age six Sen had quite a vocabulary and was smart enough to use it in a way that wouldn't get him in trouble with the adults.

Nevertheless this behavior didn't win him many friends. The fact that Sen naively confessed to being able to see things, like paranormal creatures that no one else could see, didn't help his situation either. The reputation he got as the 'coo coo bleach head' inadvertently harmed his chances at getting adopted in the long run.

In short Sen was displeased with his circumstances yet it wasn't something he thought he couldn't handle. He only wished he didn't have to. Maybe start anew so that he could stop himself from blurting about his apparent 'sixth sense'. Maybe that was the reason why when Kei Sazanami found him one day and proposed that Sen follow him to a place called the Shadow Organization, Sen didn't think twice about ditching his life at the Orphanage.

As it turned out, Kei was actually a mind reader who recognized the same potential in Sen upon laying his eyes on him and wanted to take Sen as an apprentice. It was during these times that Sen first manifested signs of being an ayakashi-hybrid which only upped his appeal in Kei's eyes.

By the time Sen turned nine of age, he, along with his sensei, joined a newly formed faction named the Night Troops. This was also the first time Sen had the opportunity to socialize with other gifted youngsters like him. Of course by this time Sen had gotten a whole lot better at figuring out how to make a great first impression and soon enough he made his first batch of friends.

Among them he was closer with another ayakashi-hybrid that was only a year older than him named Shuu Akitsu. Shuu, comically enough, came from a clan governed by women; as in Shuu was a boy born in a Maiden Temple. For this reason Shuu couldn't earn the title of 'Heir' to his clan. Coincidentally that was the number one reason most everyone joined the Shadow Organization in the first place.

Even so Shuu was pretty loved at his home and had a great relationship with his family whom often exchanged letters with him. However, as fate would have it, roughly a year ago Shuu not only showed signs of being an ayakashi-hybrid, but also fully transformed into something that only endangered the female specie. Hence the irony of him being housed in a temple full of maidens.

Not surprisingly Shuu had to be exiled from his home until the day where he could successfully keep his bloodlust in check even while in his transformed state.

And then came Gen.

It would be a lie if Sen said that he hadn't been initially excited with the addition of Gen to the Night Troops. From what little the blond managed to gather about the other, Gen was a feral type ayakashi-hybrid much like Sen, had the same beastly eyes as Sen, shared the same birth year as Sen, and basically had no other place to go to.

Those similarities between them made Sen conclude that they were meant to be friends. Sure, Sen got along with Shuu well enough. But the fact that Shuu came from a loving background, hence his ever cheery personality, did stirred a small amount of envy to be geared his way. With Gen however, who apparently was the most miserable of the three, Sen probably wouldn't have to worry about that little green monster.

Unfortunately though, Gen hadn't been the easiest person to approach.

For the first weeks of Gen's stay, he was basically unreachable. Apparently Atora had decided to keep Gen cooped up until he could learn to follow her orders. Unsurprisingly with Gen being a kid and not exactly one of her pet beasts, Atora was having a hell of a difficult time achieving her goal.

Throughout those weeks all that could be heard whenever anyone walked near Atora's compound was her screaming commands and Gen loudly rebelling against her tactics. Every now and then Sen could feel an incredibly dark aura coming from the place that would banish almost as quickly as it came. Only later would Sen find out that it was caused by Gen losing control of his anger only to be immediately subdued by Hiba's poisoned thorns a second later.

It was a known fact among the youngsters in the Night Troops that Gen was watched by four elder members of the Night Troops at all times; though most viewed it as Gen getting preferential treatment only because he was brought in by their Captain Masamori.

None of them could understand why Gen was never around people from his age group and even began to form some biasness against him. Sen however stayed above it and would always stray toward Atora's place on a day to day basis for the chance of catching even a glimpse of Gen.

Finally in one of those visits Sen stumbled upon Gen in a, well, peculiar manner. You see was Gen just so happened to be tied up upside-down on a tree branch with rope and a piece of paper taped to his forehead that read –punished–. Apparently this was Atora's choice method of rewarding his disobedience. Sen couldn't help cackling at the sight. Nevertheless the narrowed glare that Gen shot him was filled with so much venom that Sen instantly seized all laughter.

The blond, though caught off guard by the shear intensity of the other's glare, was ready with an introductory speech that he had rehearse a handful of times for whenever this occasion happened. So wanting to look confident and not intimidated, Sen did not hesitate on delivering it word for word as he had practiced—beginning with the fact that he also was an ayakashi-hybrid.

Regrettably that did not go over well. Back then Sen still hadn't a clue of the traumatizing events that led Gen to discover he was an ayakashi-hybrid so Sen did not factored in the extreme hatred the brunet harbored for such word. Needless to say that Gen blew up within half a second of the word being uttered and had to be brought in by two of Atora's beasts for more 'discipline'.

At the time Sen was a tad shaken by the full blown antagonism that had been thrown his way. Despite that his mood quickly soured because of it. In his head, just because Gen was receiving special attention from the elder members of the Night Troops did not give him the right to look down on everybody else.

Shaking his head Sen dismissed the idea because he didn't want to jump to early conclusions. Who knows? Maybe all he had to do was to wait until he could catch Gen on a better mood; preferably when Gen wasn't hanging upside-down by a rope.

Yet this 'better mood' never came. Gen was always angry, always scowling, always unsociable and always alone. And Sen didn't want anything to do with that.

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

"I think we reached the lowest part of the castle now" Tokine commented as they arrived to what looked like dungeons. Gen, who up until this point had been trailing behind her, suddenly picked up his pace in an alarming manner.

"There!" Gen voiced as he entered one of the rooms before crouching down to lift some spider webs off the floor. "Sen was here" he informed before another scent hit his nose. "Yoshimori too"

Placing on hand above her chest, Tokine heave a sigh of relief. "Then that means they managed to escape somehow" she said, voicing what they both hoped to be true. She was about to suggest that they hurry out but stopped herself when she saw the condition her teammate was in.

Gen still laid crouched with his hand maintaining a firm, albeit shaky, grip on the webs; yet he had his eyes tightly shut and his jaw clenched as in trying to keep something in. He was even quacking in his posture though he did an impressive job trying to repress it.

If it wasn't because Tokine already knew about Gen's habit of being very guarded toward her she would have asked is something was wrong. Instead she let him quietly compose himself which didn't take very long to achieve. Even so it was long enough for her mind to start conjuring up reasons for his behavior.

When Gen got up to his feet he looked positively embarrassed when he caught on that Tokine had been watching him the whole time. He had barely managed to contain the immense wave of emotion that suddenly overcame him upon figuring out that Yoshimori still breathed somewhere around the castle; and now Gen feared he might had been too revealing in his actions.

So trying to make the moment less awkward for himself, Gen muttered something about tracking the scent and rushed past her and past multiple other rooms in the dungeon until reaching the end of the hall where the path split in two opposite directions.

As he waited there for Tokine to inevitably catch up to him, the ayakashi-hybrid tried distracting his thoughts by testing his limits now that he was alone. If anything at least he was provided with the perfect opportunity to test them without tipping Tokine on his handicap. With moderate concentration to ease the change, Gen focused on slowly transforming his hands into beast claws. Unfortunately he couldn't keep the small hiss from leaving his lips during the process.

'Okay, so it didn't strain my muscles as much as I thought it would when transforming my arms' Gen thought as he successfully kept his partial transformation intact. That was a good sign. However he wasn't sure by how much he could push it. Though before he had a chance to contemplate trying his luck with his legs he caught the sound of Tokine's footsteps steadily approaching him from behind.

The Yukimura took her time walking the rest of the way to stand beside the night-trooper. As she stood at Gen's left she quietly started scanning her surroundings and Gen got the impression that she was just stalling time as she waited for him to say something. Problem was he had no idea how to begin.

Apparently though he didn't have to as Tokine took the initiative.

"You care about what happens to them don't you?" she stated rather than asked as she kept her gaze away from him. She watched with the corner of her eye as Gen stiffened almost imperceptibly before grumpily muttering that he was just doing his job. She had to hold her smile because of the 'tough guy act' he used while answering reminded her of the one Yoshimori always tried to pull around her. Still, it would be nice if they could try to be real with her more often. "I consider you a friend Gen" she stated plainly, if not randomly, as she continued to pretend she wasn't giving him much attention.

"Y-You do?" he questioned as he stared at the side of her face apprehensively. 'Why is she bringing that up all of the sudden?'

"Sure" answered Tokine easily as he turned her head to face the night-trooper. Suddenly feeling flustered, Gen swiftly turned his face away to avoid her gaze.

"…Then we're friends" Gen stated as nonchalantly as he could while trying to hide the way he was affected by how little he got to exchange similar words in his lifetime. The slight crack in his voice probably didn't help him though. Even so he couldn't exactly tell if what he was feeling was embarrassment, lightweightedness or anxiety. Maybe a mixture of all three?

"And friends tell each other what's really bothering them" continued Tokine as her eyes strayed toward Gen's claws with a curious arc of her eyebrow. The ayakashi-hybrid must have felt her gaze traveling because he immediately righted himself with both hands presses at either side of him.

'Should've seen that one coming' Gen grumbled to himself. It was only a matter of time before Tokine started to probe him for answers. He just hadn't expected such an underhanded tactic from her. Talk about a low blow. "Some friends need time" he finally replied, stressing the last word and probably sounding a little grumpier than was justified.

"So there is something you need to talk about" she confirmed. She even sounded a little triumphant about it.

'Damn it' cursed Gen inwardly not believing how easily he fell into that one. Why was it that all big sisters had the ability to make their younger siblings 'fess up with little effort?

Gen's breath stilled when he caught his line of thought. One that didn't make any sense considering that Tokine was an only child to begin with. "…The scent leads this way" he answered instead as he took the path on the right.

A small frown decorated the female Kekkaishi's expression as she followed after her teammate. She was already aware of how irremediably introverted Gen was and how hard it was for him to open up. She was even starting to believe that maybe he simply didn't know how to. Regardless she couldn't shake this terrible foreboding feeling that she was missing out on something important. Tokine honestly did care for him as a friend and therefore wanted to help him.

She just hoped that whatever it was that he would be able to tell her before it was too late.

x-x- (Flashback #6) -x-x

"Well would you look at that. The brat made it back alive after all!" Hiba exclaimed as Gen, bloodied as usual, limped his way toward the barracks after completing his latest solo mission. Unsurprisingly, from Hiba's tone as he made that exclamation, everyone could tell that he wasn't exactly overjoyed with Gen's survival.

In fact he almost sounded disappointed with the fact.

Sen, who happened to be walking past Hiba at that moment, involuntarily stopped on his tracks to follow Hiba's line of vision. Eyes landing on Gen's form in the distance, the blond couldn't keep from automatically glaring at his direction.

Over the years Gen had simmered down and became more apathetic; unfeeling. He still had some anger issues that manifested themselves from time to time, but mostly he acted like nothing in the world mattered. Although Gen was no longer monitored and was allowed to mingle with the other teenagers, he never did. Instead Gen chose to stay out of everybody's way.

That was the one thing that stayed consistent about Gen. He was always alone. Always isolated. Preferred it even. Saying that Gen could not get along with anything that had a pulse was not an exaggeration. By now Sen had come to terms that Gen would never open up to anybody because he cared for no one. That was the one fact that would never change about Gen and it sickened Sen to watch.

Sen couldn't exactly blame the other for his behavior since what else was someone who didn't fit in supposed to do? Sen just hated that someone like that who had no ambitions in life could outclassed him in every way with minimal effort. It wasn't fair that someone so undeserving was so gifted.

To add insult to the injury, there were already talks about the Chief planning on hand-selecting Gen for an indefinite mission that entailed the protection of the Chief's birth land.

No disrespect intended, but who the heck thought it'd be a good idea to send Gen on a mission that would require him to lead a normal school life and to cooperate with others? First of all Gen sucked at mingling with others, much less working with them. And secondly Gen couldn't even blend in with his own kind so how the hell did the Chief expect him to handle himself around normal people at a school?

'There had to be better candidates! Heck even I could pull it off better than him!' Sen thought with disdain as Gen's form finally disappeared from his sight. The blond ayakashi-hybrid could only chalk it up to yet another example of Gen getting undeserved preferential treatment.

Hiba, who had been watching with disguised curiosity at the way Sen's glare intensified the longer he held it, couldn't help but to smirk at this new prospect. Hiba was so intrigued that he decided to uncharacteristically impart some of his wisdom to his juniors.

Who said that he couldn't be a nice guy every once in a while?

"Mindgames" he pronounced aloud to get the other's attention. "That's all you really need. You figure out what makes a guy tick. Once you know that, you can destroy them with minimal effort"

When Sen looked like he didn't have a clue, Hiba smirked and placed his good hand on the blond's shoulder. "You're a smart kid" he said as his way of explaining things. "If there ever comes a day where it's either you or him, remember what I told you and make sure that you're the one who comes back alive"

With that piece of advice out of the way Hiba left Sen to his own devices. Somehow, for some unknown reason, Sen's mind conjured up the memory of the time Gen told him that the 'job' was all he had to live for. The only thing he was good at. Kinda like his only reason to exist.

Sen lips twisted at that memory, feeling like it left a bitter taste in his mouth. 'You're wrong Gen… even with your job you already are nothing'

x-x- (Back to Reality) -x-x

'Idiotic, careless, unwarranted, ludicrous! Of all the absurdities this one takes the cake!'

That was only the most recent of the hundreds of thoughts that ran through Sen's head as he remembered Yoshimori's unreasonable actions. Right after Sen had exploded on the Kekkaishi; the Sumimura turned his back to the blond and exhaled. Then he calmly, as if their discussion had never happened, had the audacity to tell Sen to head home while they were still safe. He suggested that the night-trooper follow the fleeing ayakashi bugs without letting them notice for a way out.

As for Yoshimori? He set off on his own toward his own funeral.

'Suicide. Suicide!' screamed Sen inwardly as he dashed through the outdoor hallways taking the route opposite to the one taken by the Sumimura. 'Shit damn it!' he cursed stopping on his tracks. If it wasn't for the fact that he felt like he had to repay the Kekkaishi for saving him, Sen would've already been out of here. That's why he hated owing someone. 'God! Why am I always stuck with the insane ones?'

Just then the wall before him exploded and out of the dust and rubble stepped out two silhouettes.

"You!" Sen wheezed in shock as he recognized them. "What are you two doing here?"

"Personal business" replied Tokine ready to strike whoever came to oppose her until her eyes also lighted up in recognition. "You" she mouthed, eyes shifting everywhere but not finding who she was searching for. "Where's Yoshimori?" she finally asked.

"Answer my question first!" snapped Sen feeling slightly irritable. It was only his second encounter with the girl and yet again she was more concerned with looking for somebody other than the person standing in front of her.

Tokine blinked back at the tone used on her but decided to answer anyways. "Yoshimori came here on his own. We came here to bring the little dweeb back"

"Heh, so we agree that he's an idiot" said Sen backing off on his antagonism now that he was convinced of their shared perspectives. "But wait" he said suddenly looking bewildered. "You mean to tell me you guys came here alone? Don't you know how dangerous this place is?

"Of course we do" Tokine retorted. "That's why I know he needs our help"

"But what can he do?" Sen countered, now pointing at Gen. "He's been banned from using his powers in battle for the risk of causing permanent damage to himself"

Tokine gasped in shock and turned toward her teammate. "Gen is that true?"

Gen predictably broke eye contact with his interrogator as he tried to sweat out an explanation. However at that very moment the sound of a building collapsing stole their attention and it was Sen who first spotted the source.

"Shit" stressed the blond night-trooper. "Looks like your stupid friend just found that Kaguro guy"

"Kaguro!" Tokine exclaimed in alarmed but Gen was already darting toward the collapsed building. "Gen wait!" she shouted, startling her teammate to a temporary stop just as he was going to leap over the ledge toward the next building.

"Listen to her you moron" Sen assisted. "What do you think you're going to accomplish by-"

"I don't understand, why did you hide it from me?" interjected Tokine, not letting Sen finish.

"That's, not important" replied Gen, remaining still even though he was ready to jump at any minute.

"How can that not be important?" scolded Tokine, one foot on dejected and the other on fuming. "We are friends aren't we?" she proclaimed choosing to ignore the 'tsk' she heard coming from Sen's direction. "That means that we are supposed to tru-"

"I lied!" shouted Gen interrupting her. The silence that followed was almost oppressive. "I… I don't think of you as a friend. At least not only as that" he muttered so low it could almost be considered a whisper. He was also avoiding her gaze at all cost like if his life depended on it. "To me, you're like a big sister… Tokine. One I'm grateful to have"

"Gen" she muttered but it was too late. He already leapt away. "That's the first time I ever heard him say my name" she commented, voicing her thoughts aloud.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" Sen protested, trampling Tokine out of whatever funk she was in. "As rare as seeing Gen acting so meek was, that doesn't distract from the fact that he's practically running toward the same ayakashi that crippled him in the first place!" he shouted in aggravation.

"You're right" Tokine consented, getting battle ready. "I have to assist him"

"Assist him? Are you even listening to yourself?" Sen questioned while stamping his foot down. "I thought you were the rational one! What you're supposed to do is to stop him. And Yoshimori too. Stop them both and get them to escape like they should have done from the very beginning!"

"I can't do that" responded Tokine unyielding in her decision while doing her best to keep her nerves down as she prepared to march forward. "We are a team"

"Argh this crap again" he replied as he dragged both hands down his face in an exasperated manner. "He already had teams before and he never worked with them. What makes you guys think you're so different?"

Tokine glanced at Sen as she suddenly remembered what Shuu had told her about ayakashi-hybrids feeling like outcasts by nature. It seemed that Sen wasn't that much different from Gen after all. They were both incorrigibly insecure and always conflicted. It made her feel bad for Sen. But right now there was a hopelessly introverted ayakashi-hybrid whose solid walls were beginning to give away that needed her help more.

"I have no idea what it was like with you guys so I can't tell. All I know is that we won't ever leave him behind to fend for himself because that's what teammates do"

And with that she broke into a sprint, giving their conversation an abrupt end. Except it wasn't over for Sen.

'What teammates do?' he thought as he ran a shaky hand through his hair. He couldn't help being transported back to the time he and several of his friends in the Night Troops demanded to Vice-Chief Miki Hatori for Gen to be removed from their team because he was impossible to work with. This had happened during the middle of a mission they had all decided to abandon. Well, except for Gen. The blond remembered the brutal scolding they all got from her for leaving a team member alone to his fate.

It was like he was reliving it all over again.

Sen's psyche could no longer cope with all the flashbacks combined with all the back and forth turmoil he had recently been subjected too. He couldn't take it. All that he thought he knew; all his preconceived notions; why were all of them being shaken at the same time? 'I'm in the right aren't I? Course I am! I mean only I gave Gen the benefit of the doubt when everybody else was set on alienating him. I was the one who still spoke to him! I was the one who made an effort and came back empty-handed! Gen's the problem! Things just don't change overnight!'

Legs quaking, Sen's knees buckled and they hit the ground quickly breaking his fall. His hands, his chest; heck his whole frame was shaking so hard that he couldn't keep it from visibly showing. He clutched his head in a tight grip, digging his fingers into his hair, completely aware that he was in the middle of a nervous breakdown yet knowing he could do nothing to stop it. All his thoughts now too focused on the two Kekkaishis.

'I've known Gen longer. What the hell makes them feel so special? I know… they're insane, all of them. They have to be as crazy, if not even more crazy than Gen is to even attempt to pull this off! Why am I the only one who can see the mistake they're making?'

"Why? Just why?" the night-trooper whimpered to himself, forehead now only inches from the ground as he desperately tried to stop the trembling. But just thinking of the illogical actions of the other three kept him in that emotional chokehold. This bringing him to the question he most wanted to ask. "Why… aren't they afraid to die?"

~ 0~0~0~

A swift blow aimed to disable Yoshimori of the use of his right hand was thwarted upon coming in contact with the dark energy engulfing the Kekkaishi's body; the end result being the sound of a sword's blade breaking in two.

"Ha! This black kekkai serves my body like a shield. Anything that touches it will be deflected" Yoshimori boasted with a victorious grin displaying in his lips. "Your sword is nothing to me. I call this move the Super-Strong-Demolishing-Kekkai!"

"How pathetic, your language level is abysmal" mocked Kaguro, no longer in his human skin, as he jumped away to create distance. "In the past I've witnessed a complete kekkai. One much darker than yours. Whoever stepped into its domain would be ripped to shreds immediately. That technique was called a Zekkai. Yours however," said Kaguro with an impossibly wide grin appearing on his face, "is incomplete and pales in comparison"

All the sudden Kaguro threw his remaining blade a Yoshimori in a surprise attack before summoning two extra swords and instantly shortening the distance between them with a frenzy of slashes. The ayakashi managed to push Yoshimori, following it up with a sword strike that managed to cut Yoshimori's left cheek.

Once the first drop of blood was drawn Kaguro stopped his attacks in order to ground his point further. "See? You're not steady enough and are weaken once distracted". He stated before pretending to lament. "I guess you're just half-hearted. No wonder you never did understood Shishio's feelings. You didn't understand his worries at all, did you?" he continued while amusedly noting the way the Kekkaishi's seemed paralyzed with the direction the conversation was taking. "Keh, I could see through him with one glance; because he's similar to me"

"Don't… Don't talk about Shishio" Yoshimori imposed forcefully between gritted teeth. The battle quickly turning into a whole new ball game.

Kaguro however couldn't help his smirk. 'A power increase due to his anger, interesting' he thought, already deciding that he could work with that. "You too must feel it. The difference between you and the world. Because you're special. You give off a feeling that you don't belong; and they hate you for it. That's why I told your friend about a way to leave his struggles behind. To give up on a world that doesn't accept us and free himself. Like I did"

A diabolical grin spread on Kaguro's mummified features at the fun he was sure to have with his provocations. "But in the end he was a weak human" the ayakashi faux lamented in regards to Gen. "He couldn't let go of his humanity and died a meaningless death for a world that never wanted him." Then Kaguro's expression lightened as if a brilliant idea suddenly assaulted him. "You too feel stifled, don't you? Yes, you too have the right to make the decision that he couldn't. So what do you say? Want to be free?" he propositioned.

"Shut up!" Yoshimori shouted; his Zekkai flaring. Those two simple words saturated with so much venom. "I definitely refuse so stop talking like you know Gen at all 'cause you don't! I don't know what bullcrap you're trying to pull but you're wrong! In fact I think you have a mental problem so stop with this 'not belonging' business!"

Even though Yoshimori's power seemed to increase just as Kaguro had planned, the ayakashi had to admit he was left a little stumped with the words coming out of the Kekkaishi's mouth. "You really, don't know anything?" Kaguro questioned with mild intrigue. "A person with such great power. To the world you're a freak. Should you not feel like you don't fit in?"

"Nope!" Yoshimori declared confident in his answer. "And neither does Gen" he stated, thought about it, and then rectified it. "I mean if Gen did feel that way once, he, ah, he doesn't have to feel that way anymore" the Kekkaishi said, well, struggled saying. Suddenly he couldn't help feeling guilty for the way he had been acting around the other teen. Always keeping Gen no closer than arm's length lately.

The verbal battle suddenly turned from a rebuttal of Kaguro's words to a battle with himself to acknowledge his own feeli- stance toward his teammate. "I… Gen isn't weak. Weak are only the people who give up on humanity and themselves. Gen didn't. And guess what!" Yoshimori started more loudly. "Even if Gen was different he's a good person that cares underneath and I accept him for that! And, he accepts me too."

Yoshimori said that last part more to himself and felt comfortingly surprised with how much that little self-revelation assured him. He felt a surge of confidence that affirmed him that his convictions would not be shaken. "He has me, so I guess we do fit together and that makes you wrong again Kaguro! It's you who's not strong at all so you have no right saying that Shishio is weak!"

'Tch, so much for that' Kaguro dismissed as he lost all humor. "Then watch yourself. I won't show mercy" he warned as he summoned another blade. "This sword is different from before. It has a high wield ability. It can cut everything, and leave nothing" he jeered as he leapt straightforward fully prepared to lay a lethal blow on the Kekkaishi. Yet just as Kaguro was ready to strike he suddenly had to somersault to the side in order to evade a claw that went directly to his midsection. "You" he muttered upon laying his eyes on someone who was supposed to already be dead by his own hands weeks ago.

"Gen!" Yoshimori called as he saw his teammate landing in front of him with both his hands and feet transformed.

"Well ain't this a touching reunion" said Kaguro as his eyes glinted with the prospect of further entertainment. "I don't suppose that means- Ah there she is" he stated with obvious amusement in his voice as he avoided the green kekkais that appeared out of nowhere. Yoshimori turned his head but couldn't spot Tokine.

"She'll help us from a safe distance by keeping him distracted" voiced Gen so that only Yoshimori could hear him. When he felt that Yoshimori was going to protest Gen took the vanguard while stating: "We'll fight it out. Together this time. Like a team"

Whatever argument Yoshimori had prepared died at his lips then. Instead only a smile that quickly turned into a smirk appeared there. "You're on!" exclaimed Yoshimori, inching his legs further apart in his fighter's stance and switching his casting hand to the left one. Now that he had both Gen and Tokine with him watching each other's back he felt like he could finally step up his game. "Let's show this loser what real strength is about!"

~ 0~0~0~

An all out battle broke instantly between Kaguro and the three defenders of Karasumori. However it quickly became evident that out of the three of them Kaguro only viewed Yoshimori as the real threat. And so it was on him that the bladed ayakashi focused most of his attacks on.

The other two defenders were aware of this fact also. Tokine, no matter how skilled and precise she was, didn't count with the kind of firepower to eliminate the enemy in one blast. Not to mention that Kaguro easily broke away of whatever kekkai she tried to encase part of him in. So instead she refocused her abilities on providing Gen with the footholds he needed to maintain the speed of his movements; and blocking, or attempting to deflect, any attacks aimed at Gen that got too close for comfort long enough for Gen to get out of the way.

Gen on the other hand never stopped aiming for an opening to claw his enemy into nonexistence. However the teen was well aware that at his current level chances of landing a blow that would significantly damage Kaguro were slim to none. Still he persisted because Gen knew that if he let up then Kaguro would no longer pay attention to him. And Gen needed to do everything he could to keep Kaguro's focus away from Yoshimori.

The problem was that the recovering night-trooper was starting to fatigue. His stamina was steadily depleting and the once dull ache that ran across his transformed ligaments was evolving into an ever-present reminder of the painful strain he was subjecting his body to.

He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep it up without risking permanent damage. One thing was for sure though; full transformation was no longer an option in this battle.

Kaguro… well he was enjoying himself. Few could understand the thrill of having three different opposers viciously vying to do you in the way Kaguro did. And if he had some humanity left in him he was sure he would pity them for missing out on this adrenaline inducing experience.

For whenever Kaguro aimed at the Sumimura, he would only be able to get 2 or 3 blows in before he had to shoot away in order to evade a claw aimed at one of his vital points. Then Kaguro would try to unleash a fury of slashes on the surprisingly-alive-night-trooper which the teen managed to avoid with the help of some cleverly placed green kekkais—from the female Kekkaishi no doubt.

Of course while this went down Kaguro had to double-task by keeping himself light on his feet in order to sidestep any of Yoshimori's pesky attempts to trap him in one of his blue kekkais. And only when things got too risky did Kaguro jump back to square one by trying to make his blades cut through the Sumimura's dark Zekkai up until Gen decided to strike again.

And so the whole pattern restarted again like an endless cycle.

Unfortunately Kaguro was one who easily grew bored of repetition. Getting bored led him to distract himself with other things. That's when he noticed the ever deteriorating speed in Gen's movements. The kid was tiring out. 'Keh, if the runt isn't willing to fully transform then might as well do him a service and put him out of his misery'

With an unexpected twist of his body, Kaguro, instead leaping away from Yoshimori to avoid collision, turned to the opposite direction and landed as surprise kick to Gen's stomach sending the teen flying at rocket speed trough a tremendous distance.

Ignoring the panicked shouts from his target's comrades, Kaguro shot forward fully intent on reducing the numbers of the opposition. It was with a sadistic grin that he sped faster than the kekkais that tried to bind him toward the life that he should've ended over two weeks ago.

Gen was just recovering his bearings from where he landed beside a pillar that didn't give in to the unstoppable force that crashed against it like the other four pillars had done. It was with no small amount of gratitude that he thanked whatever constituted his body's durability against heavy impacts because otherwise that would had seriously fucking hurt.

Yet not a second after Gen managed to get his vision to stop spinning, he was met with the sight of Kaguro suddenly appearing in front of him with his two blades poised to attack. That sudden appearance triggered the memory of what had happened between them on that haunting night on Karasumori. And then the last thing that Gen needed in his current situation happened.

He froze. Just briefly, but it was all that was needed to seal his fate.

Until he got pushed out of the way by a yellow blur.

"Keh" spoke Kaguro sounding more entertained than disappointed. "Well weren't you a quick little fucker. Didn't notice you until after I swung" he said, almost temped to lick the blood of his sword before he had to back-flip out of the way as a number of green kekkais finally caught up to him. "We'll have to do this again sometime" he finished with a mock bow before dashing away.

Gen laid sprawl on the ground with a stunned expression on his face before what happened finally registered in his brain. Then all he felt was a certain panic rising in his chest as his gaze drifted to the one who had tackled him.

"S-S-Sen" he struggled to say, somehow unable to believe his eyes. No other muscle besides his tongue would respond to Gen's commands, still too stunned in horror to move.

"God! What's wrong with you!" the blond cursed as he pushed himself off of Gen's chest until he was no longer on top of him and sat down next to him. "Why the hell didn't you try to evade that!" he criticized, hissing as he clutched his right arm with his left hand.

Gen's eyes widened as he followed Sen's movements. Whatever force kept his muscles paralyzed was gone in an instant as he jerked into a standing position in alarm. "You're blee-"

"So what? Why do you care?" spat Sen interrupting the other teen while fixing him a glare. God, Gen looked to stumped that it almost made Sen's glare falter. So instead the blond night-trooper turned his face away. "Besides" he said at an angry yet lighter tone, "you have more important stuffs to worry about"

Gritting his teeth Sen tried to concentrate on something other than the sharp pain coming from his bleeding arm. He had gotten to where Gen was faster than the Kekkaishis could. Yet Sen hadn't been quick enough to both tackle the brunet out of the way and get himself out of harm's way as well. The end result being the sharp end of the enemy's blade slicing through his arm like it was made of butter.

And freaking damn did it hurt! Sen never imagined the pain would be so excruciating! But hell if he was going to show it! He rather die than show weakness in front of Gen. First dead than without dignity. If anything Sen at least found comfort in the fact that the cut wasn't deep enough to warrant the loss of his arm. No offense to Hiba intended.

"Listen" Sen started, squeezing his eyes shut to keep the pain from showing in his voice. "You gotta get to Yoshimori before that ayakashi does and get him to escape with you. Force him, carry him, heck knock him out if you have to! Just get him to go"

"But"

"I said listen!" Sen yelled, his voice cracking an octave higher as he caused the cut in his arm to sting. He continued at a more leveled tone. "I've been watching the fight and I noticed that for every sword that Yoshimori manages to break with his Zekkai, Kaguro pulls out a stronger one. Don't you get it; he's just playing with you! It won't be long before he pulls out one that can pierce through Yoshimori's defenses with little resistance. You need to go. Now"

"…Why did you save me?"

"What?" Sen asked, snapping his gaze back to Gen only to immediately regret it when he caught the lost look on the brunet's face. 'Stop looking at me like that. You don't get sympathy'

"Why-"

"I don't know! I did it on a whim" 'Because I still owed you for saving me a year ago. Because Tokine said that's what teammates do. Because that's what Yoshimori would've done. Because maybe I don't hate you as much as I thought I did. What the hell is up with all these confusing thoughts? Get out of my head, I don't want you!'

When Gen winced at Sen's tone the blond felt the need to bash his head against the closest wall he could find. But then Gen had the nerve to spare a hesitant glance at Sen's arm the blond wanted to lose it.

"I'll be fine, stop wasting time! With the way Kaguro just went after you it's clear that he's gonna get serious sooner rather than later. Whatever you do you can't let him land another blow on Yoshimori." 'Stop looking at me like you care! Stop feeling responsible for what I chose to do! Can't you see that I'm every bit as confused as you are?' "Go!"

Gen nodded and Sen was finally able to tear his gaze away. Again Sen squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the other teen to leave, which he did. But not without shaking Sen's resolve one more time.

"Thank you"

A weird jolt ran through Sen's spine as he heard those words being muttered. Before he could recollect himself Gen was already gone.

"Not fair" Sen muttered with a curse, hating how the other had tried to be the bigger person. He also hated the sudden high that seemed to numb the pain in his arm. Most of all he hated the irrational exhilaration he felt upon his actions being acknowledged with a simple 'thank you' from Gen of all people.

Yet it was true. For the first time ever Sen had thrown himself in the face of danger without a plan or consideration to himself. Why had he done it he still didn't know. All he knew was that he never felt such a thrill in his life. 'How sick is that?'

Being brave in the face of danger. Giving it your all to save someone's life. The immense relief that consumed you when your efforts were not in vain. The rush Sen felt from doing that overwhelmed him but at the same time was scary enough to make him not want to go through it again.

The experience came with a prize though. And that was an immeasurable amount of remorse because now he knew just how wrongly he had judged Gen in the past when Sen accused him of purposely waiting until the last minute to save them to make himself look cooler.

There's no timing that. You either rush with all your might toward someone or you arrive too late to make a difference. Sen had learned that now. He also learned that it had nothing to do with being suicidal and everything to do with not living to regret an action you did not take for being scared. Hiba was wrong. There was no -either him or Gen- in the equation. What mattered was that they both survive.

Most of all Sen came to realize the terrible disservice he had done to Gen by not thanking him like he deserved to be thanked in the past. No matter how difficult and unapproachable Gen had been throughout the years, no one deserved to be treated that way.

"I'm sorry"

~ 0~0~0~

Gen sped, leaping on rooftops as he tried to reach his destination before Kaguro did. Kaguro himself didn't seem to be putting much effort into outpacing the night-trooper. In fact, as he busied himself with avoiding the never relenting green kekkais that tried to encase him, it became obvious that Gen gaining on him was precisely what Kaguro counted on.

Able to read his enemy's intentions and knowing that chances of staying alive were better if he stayed on the defensive, Gen stopped about 10 meters away from the ayakashi—in high alert for any suspicious movements.

"My" said Kaguro appraisingly, "I never took you as one for caution" he critiqued before grinning and pointing his blade in a skewed fashion to the right as he taunted. "But are you sure you're the one you should be worrying about?"

Gen's eyes carefully followed the direction the sword was pointing at; heart hammering erratically against his ribcage when he spotted Tokine in the far distance. Without further warning Kaguro shot toward her direction, grinning balefully when he felt the night-trooper giving chase.

'Time to raise the stakes higher' Kaguro thought as he threw with all the strength he could muster one of his blades, closely followed by the other, toward the girl. The swords narrowly missed their intended target but the force of the impact was strong enough to make the building Tokine was in collapse. Smoke and debris quickly blocked everything from sight but that didn't stop Kaguro from launching two extra blades toward the girl's direction before stopping.

Just as he expected, though admittedly disappointed that he was right, Gen rushed past him and into the smoke of the demolished building. 'Fool' Kaguro chastised. 'Caring about someone else is what makes you weak. And you just made the largest mistake of them all' he thought, no longer bothered that his plan worked.

Now that the two pawns were out of the picture, Kaguro could focus on teaching the biggest fool of them all—and admittedly the only one who still held his interest—a one-on-one lesson of what true power was really about.

Yoshimori stayed rooted in the very spot he had been for the majority of the battle. By now it was becoming more than clear that applying the same tactics all over again wasn't going to give him that extra edge he needed to take down Kaguro. So now the Kekkaishi refocused his energy on trying to expand the reach of his Zekkai. If only he could concentrate his anger enough he was sure he could charge his dark shield enough to cause some serious mayhem. A real game changer if he said so himself.

All he needed was a little more time to get it just right.

'Shishio, Tokine; hold out a little longer. I'll join you soon'

What he didn't expect was for Kaguro to suddenly appear in front of him, making Yoshimori inadvertently take a step back. His eyes automatically darted at every direction before gritting his teeth and snarling at Kaguro. "What have you done to my friends?"

"No no" Kaguro tooted, "the real question is what I'm about to do to you" he stated with a wicked grin as he summoned two more blades to his disposal. "You'll live to regret turning down my offer. Oh wait, that's right. You won't!"

And with that Kaguro dashed forward and landed two simultaneous blows on the Kekkaishi, eliciting a spark of fear in Yoshimori as the sharp blades seemed to chip away his Zekkai without breaking.

'Crap, I still need more time' Yoshimori thought as he tried to back away from the following strikes on his person while attempting to maintain his focus. He wasn't succeeding.

Kaguro kept his onslaught of slashes like it was nobody's business. As an expert swordmaster he moved in a way that never revealed where he was going to strike next until it was too late to avoid. It was easy to tell that Yoshimori hadn't mastered the art of the Zekkai to the point where he could equally distribute his power on every contour. It was only a matter of time until the teen slipped. And slipped he did.

The ayakashi managed to cut Yoshimori's right shoulder; but before Kaguro could deepen the extend of the damage, Yoshimori's Zekkai flared up and burned Kaguro's hand—making the ayakashi drop one of his swords in the process.

"Not bad" commented Kaguro as he jumped backwards before holding his remaining blade with both hands and flaring up his own dark energy, looking more serious than what's been seen of him before. Even his voice sounded more sinister. "But it ends now"

With that he shot forward and it didn't take a genius to realize that this was meant to be the finishing blow. It sure didn't take Yoshimori any to figure out that he was fucked unless he did something quick. So he shut his eyes tight and tried to squeeze out whatever power reserves he had to save his hide.

But it was too late. He heard the hurling sound of a sword piercing skin and awaited the pain that should follow, ready to face it head on. When he didn't immediately feel it he opened his eyes and froze.

"Well what do we have here, an encore performance!" Kaguro celebrated, attempting to push his weapon of choice further.

In front of him stood Gen, giving his back to Yoshimori as the night-trooper struggled to hold the sword in place by gripping part of its hilt with his shaking clawed hands. An agonized cry escaped his lips as his feet detransformed and the sword advanced further.

All Yoshimori could see was the bloodied sharp end of Kaguro's blade sticking out of Gen's lower back.

Gen had been stabbed through his stomach.

Breath came out slow as panic started to erupt in Yoshimori's own stomach and his mouth grew painfully dry because of the vile he was trying to keep down as he realized that Gen had taken the killing blow that was meant for him.

Kaguro was saying something else but Yoshimori could no longer concentrate to it. It was like all sound became muted with the exception of his own ragged breathing. His mind was no longer present in the now. Instead it was stuck in an endless recollection of the scene where Gen had been stabbed in front of Yoshimori's eyes that night in Karasumori. The night he almost lost him.

He remembered it all in high definition and in slow motion. The night where Yoshimori could do nothing but stand in the rear instead of being there with Gen front and center. The night where he just stood there too stunned to move as Gen lifelessly fell to the ground. That very night was replaying itself right in front of Yoshimori's eyes yet again. The only difference was that now they couldn't count on Karasumori to intervene like it had done last time.

The sound came back again when Kaguro, out of fighter's etiquette, asked Gen if he had any last words. That sentence alone made all of Yoshimori's nerves go haywire. Yet the Kekkaishi never got to hear Gen's answer because at that moment Yoshimori's senses went blank. He could remember flashbacking through every memory he ever shared with the taller teen in the expanse of 5 nanoseconds. The good, the bad and the ugly. But most of all he remembered feeling like his mind, heart and soul would not be able to take it if he lost Gen ever again.

Then all he saw was white.

~ 0~0~0~

"What's going on?" demanded Masamori. "Where's Yoshimori?"

"He's inside that white Zekkai!" shouted Sen pointing at the gigantic glowing white ord. His arm was bandaged with a makeshift tourniquet he made by slicing part of his long-sleeved shirt; and he was kneeling next to Tokine on an airborne kekkai she had created for the two of them. "He killed the enemy with it but now Gen is stuck inside with him!"

"What?" Masamori questioned in alarm. Anything within a Zekkai that wasn't the caster was supposed to disintegrate. How could anybody be inside one without harm coming to them?

"It's as he said" answered Tokine, trying not to sound as disheveled as she felt. "Until a moment ago we were still able to see them but the sphere's density did not stop increasing until they were no longer visible"

Masamori's brows knotted together as he ignored the questions directed at him of what should they do. Instead he tried to establish communication. "Gen, are you there? Can you hear me?" he questioned in a commanding voice. His effort was awarded.

"C-Chief is that you?" came Gen's voice sounding alarmed before quickly reverting to distressed. "Chief, what should I do? Yoshimori has a heartbeat but he's, he isn't breathing!"

'Hmm, it would seem that Yoshimori overreached his boundaries and as a result I'm afraid he entered a state of shock… This concentration of energy, was casted by Yoshimori himself? How is it possible if he's not feeding from Karasumori? And why is it white?' Masamori shook his head, mindful of their current predicament and choosing to ponder on those things later. Now he had to get them out before the whole dimension collapses.

"Alright listen up" started Masamori. "The fact that you can still hear my voice means that Yoshimori's Zekkai isn't completely sealed off. I'll try to negate it from the outside by using my Zekkai. Your mission is to find a way to wake Yoshimori out of his trance and do it quick. Understood?" he asked although he did not wait for an answer as seconds later he was already clashing his Zekkai against Yoshimori's.

Meanwhile on the inner side of the white sphere Gen was doing his best to fight off a mental breakdown. He had never lost it on the job and he wasn't about to do it now. But commanding him to do something about Yoshimori? What could Gen do when all he knew how to do was to destr-

'No! That kind of thinking won't help me now' Gen chided himself, clutching his bleeding side as he struggled to take the few extra steps he need to collapse on his knees next to Yoshimori's head. 'I have changed' Gen reminded himself as he used the hand that wasn't clutching his side to once again check the Kekkaishi's pulse. 'Still there' he thought before his vision swirled because of the lack of blood coursing through his system.

"Shit" Gen muttered as he tried to shake Yoshimori awake by his injured shoulder to get a reaction. There was none. But even though Gen was slowly losing consciousness he would not give up. Yoshimori had been the one that taught Gen that he wasn't a monster. 'If it wasn't for you I probably would have been dead by now.' "Y-You saved me" he whispered. "So please, let me save you"

~ 0~0~0~

Tokine stood there watching besides Sen fighting the urge to chew her nails. When Kaguro had attacked her, Tokine had sealed herself inside a kekkai to protect herself from the parts of the demolished building that crashed on top of her trying to trap her. Then, when she saw Gen rushing toward her, she realized it was all a ploy to separate them from Yoshimori and shouted at Gen to forget about her and help their other teammate out instead.

She could have not predicted things would turn out this way and she felt partly responsible for it. She didn't see what caused Yoshimori to create something like this but she knew it was up to her to fix it. Somehow.

The Yukimura looked at her right hand, wondering if there was something she could do. Technically phasing through someone else's kekkai wasn't unheard of, but it was a skill she had never practiced or used in any way or form. So she doubted she could manage to pull off something she just thought of in a spur of the moment. 'But Yoshimori and Gen wouldn't hesitate over something like this. They would just do it'

So steeling her resolve, Tokine blocked out all who tried to protest against her and without giving it a second thought she jumped toward the white Zekkai with her right hand outstretched forward.

'First I have to read the energy particles' she instructed herself while closing her eyes to concentrate. The moment she felt her hand touching the sphere she moved on to phase two. 'Now feel the waves'

Surprisingly she felt herself slipping through the barrier without much resistance and opened her eyes when she felt like she landed inside. Once she did she saw Yoshimori laying flat of his back just like she had seen him before but now with a twist. The twist being Gen laying sideways right beside the Sumimura but hovering over him. Although all reasoning told her to skid forward and make her presence known—they had no time to waste after all—she stayed rooted. Almost as if she knew she was invading someone else's intimacy.

And that's when she heard it. The confession that would forever changed the way she viewed things, and the words that helped her finally piece together what had been going under her nose all this time.

Gen had been trying all he could think of doing to wake Yoshimori up. From pounding on his chest to slapping his face but none of it seemed to work. What was worst was that Gen no longer had any strength to exert.

His fingers, his hands, his knees, his legs, his chest; heck everything about him was giving up on him. There was nothing holding him together but the person next to him. Gen let his hand rest on Yoshimori's left cheek, thumb brushing under the skin of his eye as it remained open and unfocused. Not able to take it anymore Gen rested his forehead against Yoshimori's and blinked—not letting his eyes reopen as he took in a shaky breath.

Was Gen ready for this? Was this it for him? Did he exist only to fail?

"Yoshimori" he whispered under his breath, feeling how the remains of his consciousness were leaving him. "You're the most important person in my life" he said chocking up. He never had been any good at expressing himself so it was difficult to force his feelings out in words. But for Yoshimori he had done many things he thought impossible to do and this was only another one of them. "I know you probably don't want to hear this from someone like me" he said, his voice already breaking in defeat. "Heck you'll probably be repulsed by this but, but. I… I-I love you. So please, just please…"

The last thing Gen felt before blacking out were arms wrapping around his neck and the pressure of a warm mouth against his own. And he could swear, just barely, that he felt that same mouth pronouncing his name.

~ 0~0~0~

They were already at the Sumimura Household when Yoshimori recovered consciousness. When the legitimate heir first opened his eyes he was initially confused by his surrounding until Toshimori whooped that he was finally awake closely followed by his grandfather scolding him for taking so damn long sleeping when apparently everybody else was already up and about. It was then that Yoshimori realized that he had been staring at the ceiling of his own room.

He sat up and immediately found his room being crowded by multiple members of the Night Troops, all cheering his return to the world of the living and bombarding him with eager questions of how he singlehandedly prompted the collapse of a four century old dimension.

Among them he recognized Shuu and Dai sitting the closest to him with Sen not far behind as he loudly corrected everyone about the improper use of the term 'singlehandedly'. He saw Tokine trying to appease his father as apparently he chose to jump up and down next to her the moment Yoshimori woke up. Lastly, standing far behind other night-troopers whose names Yoshimori couldn't remember, he spotted Gen at the doorway. He wore an open coat that revealed that his bare stomach was bandaged. Gen himself was looking fine in health—probably because he hadn't fully transformed this time around.

Unfortunately seeing him kick-started a heavy case of anxiety inside of Yoshimori and he quickly adverted his gaze; talking to the other night-troopers like he hadn't noticed Gen's presence at all. Refusing to acknowledge him even. He also pretended his insides didn't twist in unbearable pain when Gen retreated from the room.

Tokine had been watching the whole exchange with the corner of her eye. Ever since she saw what happened inside Yoshimori's Zekkai she had been heavily confused about which stance she should be taking. Because she did witness it. Everything from Gen's confession to how Yoshimori broke out of the trace by pulling Gen into him. She saw it all.

When Yoshimori's white Zekkai had started to sizzle out Tokine had automatically, but carefully, rolled Gen away from Yoshimori so the rescue team wouldn't find them in a compromising position. After that she had pushed all the worrying about what any of it meant to the back of her brain as she focused on the recovery of both of her teammates.

Out of the two of them Gen was worse for wear. Fortunately though, it seemed that the moderate use of his abilities had proven enough to trigger his abnormal fast healing once again. It only took some magical kanjis from Mr. Fumiya and white bandages to prevent further irritation and within the hour life came back to Gen's eyes.

As for Yoshimori, beside the shallow cut on his shoulder, it was a case of exhaustion simply because the teen didn't know his own limits. In retrospect Tokine was beginning to wonder if he even had limits. But now that they were both awake, and after witnessing the lack of acknowledgement between them that prompted Gen leaving with a crushed expression on his face; Tokine found herself surprised when the first sentiment she felt was utter disappointment in Yoshimori.

So walking up to him she only delivered a clear message that they "needed to talk" once everyone settled down before leaving the room as well. It wasn't until eight at night that Yoshimori showed up at the front gates of the Yukimura Residence. Tokine was already waiting for him with her back turned to him. Yoshimori had tried to immediately establish conversation but Tokine had shushed him, telling him that she was still in the process of collecting her thoughts.

They stayed quiet and motionless for what seemed like an eternity though it was really only 35 seconds before Tokine let out a long suffering sigh and spoke up. Blunt and direct to the point.

"He's in love with you, you know"

Consequently Yoshimori's immediate response to plead no contest "Wha- Who do you mean? I don't know-"

"You know exactly who I'm talking about" replied Tokine cutting through Yoshimori's stammering.

The Sumimura's shoulders sagged in resignation and exhaled his admission. "I know"

Nodding at this Tokine went to ask what she considered an appropriate following question. "Since when?"

This time around Yoshimori didn't bother to play dumb about the question. "I think ever since we started working as a team. But I didn't realize it until much later."

"That long huh?" Tokine muttered feeling slightly sympathetic at how despondent the boy she was interrogation sounded. Even so she needed to learn more in order to get to the bottom of this. "So what have you done about it?"

"Done about it?" Yoshimori sputtered sounding shocked to whatever she might be suggesting. "Nothing, I done nothing about it! That isn't exactly a situation I had pictured myself in ya know" answered the male Kekkaishi somehow feeling like he had to defend his honor in some way.

"Well according to what I saw earlier today, 'nothing' doesn't really do it justice" she stated more to herself before sighing and tilting her head back to gaze at the stars. "Look, I probably have no say in this—and I know I shouldn't pretend to have any right on it either—but I'm going to anyways so I apologize in advance. It's just that, well, it might sound unorthodox for me to say this but if I was in your shoes and had someone be so devoted to me, well… I don't think I could so easily walk away from it without giving him a fair chance. Or at least I would end it quick. You know it's not exactly fair to keep leading someone on if you already know that you're never going to pick them"

"W-What are you talking about? You're already in that position!" Yoshimori exclaimed unable to stop himself. When Tokine turned to face with a shocked expression in tow it felt like every word dried up inside Yoshimori's throat. 'But this is it' he told himself. There was no turning back. He was finally going to confess to her. "I ah- I mean I- in love- you see-" if only his voice didn't get progressively lowered when he was trying to get something so big off his chest. But before he could force himself to shout it he felt a hand land on top of his head and looked up to see Tokine standing in front of him with a gentle smile on her face.

"I know" she said making Yoshimori's eyes light up in hope. "But it isn't quite the same thing" she added.

"Wait, what?" Yoshimori asked in confusion.

Tokine just giggled at his response. "Silly, I know that you're devoted to me just the same way I'm devoted to you. I admit that we do make a great duo and all but that's because we've been each other best friends for the longest time, kinda like siblings. I actually wouldn't mind you calling me your big sister if it wasn't for the fact that our grandparents would freak out if you did. But that's not what I was talking about earlier. I meant if I had someone romantically interested in me Yoshimori. Don't confuse the two"

"But-"

"Don't worry Yoshimori, if it makes you feel better then I also think about you as a brother" she said with a small blush appearing on her cheeks as she had never vocalized such thoughts to him aloud before. But after everything they had gone through it felt nice to do so. "That's why I'm trying to look out for you okay? Know that whatever you decide to do, I'll have your back. Just promise me that you'll be fair to Gen in whatever you decide, okay?"

And with that she ruffled his hair one last time and headed back to her house, not without wishing Yoshimori a good night of course. Unknown to her she just finished smashing, breaking and bulldozing all the crushed pieces of Yoshimori's dreams with that 'siblings' statement. He dropped to his knees with his mouth agape, still unable to believe how easily he went from being sky high to wishing the ground would swallow him ten feet under.

'She just- How could- Misinterpreted- Why couldn't I- Sister?'

Even though Yoshimori's mind was having difficulty computing what just happened, one thing stood clear about everything else. His feelings were not reciprocated by Tokine; at least not in the way he would've liked.

Not able to stand being anywhere near the place where all his hopes came crashing down, he stood up and went for a long walk.

~ 0~0~0~

Yoshimori suddenly found himself in front of Gen Shishio's apartment. He would like to say that this was his intended destination from the very beginning but the reality of it was that he just walked aimlessly through the majority of it until he realized that he had been subconsciously circling the block next to Gen's apartment for the sixth time in a row now. Then the Sumimura exhaled in resignation and decided that since he was already there that he might as well drop by and pay a visit. You know, to see how his teammate was holding up and stuff.

That had been about twenty minutes ago and yet, as he stood there outside of Gen's front door, he couldn't bring himself to ring the bell. 'Maybe he's already sleeping. It would be kinda rude of me to wake him up if he's resting. Maybe I should just knock and see what happens. If he doesn't answer then I'll take that as my cue to go. Okay, let to this'

And with that in mind Yoshimori raised his right hand and lightly knocked on the wooden door. Gently. Softly. Imperceptibly. And only once. Yet somehow he still found himself being yelled at for it.

"We don't want a newspaper subscription!" yelled a female voice from the inside.

Inevitably Yoshimori couldn't help himself from answering right back. "Does everyone in the Night Troops feel that strongly about it or is this some kind of code I'm not getting?" he deadpanned.

Just like that the door slammed open to reveal an overeager Atora. "Is that you Yoshimori?" she asked as she placed both hands at the back of his head and squished him against her chest. She deliberately overlooked how he was trying to push away from her in need of air and went on to express her joy. "It's so nice of you to pay us a visit. Did you bring any of your cakes this time around? Oh listen to me rambling on and on. Just must have come over to see Gen right? I'll go and get him" she said as she finally liberated Yoshimori from her grip and skipped inside.

Yoshimori was busy trying to bring back air into his lungs while he heard Atora drag a struggling Gen to the front door with her.

"Now now, don't struggle so much while you'll still in recovery. Don't want to cause any complications to your healing process now do we?" she scolded good-humoredly even though she was the one doing the manhandling. Once they arrived at the doorway Atora released Gen and turned back to Yoshimori, stamping her fist into the palm of her other hand as she remembered something.

"Oh that's right, I oughta go check on how my beasts are doing after last night's fight at Karasumori. I guess that with Yoshimori here to keep an eye on you now would be a good time as any. You two won't mind right? Oh what am I saying, of course you won't!" she exclaimed as she left. The extra bounce in her step being comparable to a mother who is relieved that her kid made a friend of the very first day of school. Somehow the sentiment didn't feel so misplaced.

The two teenagers watched in silence as Atora swiftly disappeared from sight, and they stayed quiet long after she did. It was starting to make Yoshimori feel uncomfortable so he slapped a smile on his face and turned toward the ayakashi-hybrid. "So, can I come in?" he asked. Gen stared him down for a minute before moving away from the door and walking further into the room. "I'll take that as a yes then" he said, chuckling nervously and closing the door behind him.

Gen had stopped in the middle of the room and Yoshimori stopped right behind him. The Kekkaishi still wasn't sure what he was doing here but he knew he needed to get something out of his chest. As Tokine had said it wasn't fair to leave Gen without a straight answer. Yoshimori just didn't know how to approach it so instead he talked about meager things. "So nice whether we're having"

"Is there something that you want?" Gen responded acidly making Yoshimori flinch. He guessed he deserved that. Yet strangely enough it also made Yoshimori smile reminiscently because this was the kind of dynamic he found himself familiar and oddly comfortable with.

"Heh heh, you always were a sharp one" Yoshimori stated as he walked to stand in front of Gen, placing both hands on the taller teen's shoulders to keep him there. They had been here plenty of times before and it always ended with at least one of them bolting. One didn't get to spend a lot of time with someone and not learn the quirks of their relationship. "Heh"

"What?" Gen asked roughly, though it didn't come out as believably this time around.

"Nothing, it's just that I said the word relationship in my head and it didn't spook me"

The night-trooper said nothing but even so Yoshimori could feel with the palms of his hands the tension that was seeping out of Gen's skin through the fabric of his shirt. Yoshimori could tell that he was making the other teen nervous. And that in turn made Yoshimori start to feel nervous as well. And so, he began to speak in circles. Eyes looking everywhere but straight ahead.

"Ahem, there's something I wanted to ask ya. You see back at the Kokubourou- I don't exactly remember what happened in the end. Sen tells me I did something white or something. Guess I was lost in a trance. But I do remember, or I think I remember that you did something to get me out of it and- I don't really know exactly but could you- Do you think that maybe you could, ah, you know, do it again to help me remember better?"

The last part of Yoshimori's sentence came out as a low murmur but Gen still heard it. But was the shorter teen really asking what Gen thought he was? When you gotten used to rejection and to the constant feeling of not ever being good enough for anybody like Gen had, hoping to have a good thing can be hard. Even the smallest of things could freak you out. And Gen seriously didn't want to get his hopes up for nothing. And yet he still had to ask. "A-Are you sure?"

Yoshimori felt like that was a loaded question. Was he sure of what he was asking? Up until now he had always felt certain about Tokine and confused about Gen. Now not even that held true. But was he willing to find the answer? "Yeah" he nodded though not sounding particularly sure of himself. "So could you, please remind me, please?"

Just like that, with only a slight moment of wavering, Gen leaned his head down and captured Yoshimori's lips in a desperate kiss. The Kekkaishi froze yet slowly responded; though he did pull away the moment he felt the other's tongue brush against his. The Sumimura bowed his head on Gen's shoulder, letting out a nervous laugh as he shuddered.

"Heh… that actually felt right" he confessed causing the ayakashi-hybrid to also pull away slightly as Yoshimori lifted his head again, smiling awkwardly when his eyes locked with Gen's once more. "Guess I wanted it more than I thought I did"

Unable to contain himself, nor the way his heart fluttered, Gen pulled Yoshimori closer and gave him a bone crushing hug—burying his head between Yoshimori's neck and shoulder. The Sumimura hugged back with all his might and felt his vision starting to blur with the unshed tears that gathered in the corners of his eyes. But it was okay because he already felt a distinctive wetness pressed against the side of his neck.

They stayed like that in silence for short while longer, with Yoshimori's hands soothingly roaming the planes of Gen's upper back and Gen holding Yoshimori for dear life tighter against him. Who would have thought that something like this could have felt so perfect?

Not wanting to break the spell they were in yet knowing that his mind wouldn't be put to rest until he removed all uncertainties from himself; Yoshimori pulled himself away from the embrace and moved both his hands to cup Gen's face in order to make their eyes meet one more time. The night-trooper kept his hands on the Kekkaishi's hips but hesitated before meeting Yoshimori's gaze head on.

And that's when the answer Yoshimori had been waiting for shot through him like a bullet to the skull.

By the darkened lids under Gen's redden eyes, by the tight line his lips had become, by the way his breath was obviously caught in his throat, and by the way he tried to hold his gaze steady even though the rest of his body was practically shaking. Everything about Gen nonverbally screamed just how much he wanted to be with Yoshimori and it made the Kekkaishi's chest ached when being affronted with such unguarded emotions. Gen literally had no more barriers to defend himself with.

It was then that the Sumimura became aware that the other teen had long ago placed his heart in Yoshimori's hands, and that it was up to him to take care of it. And although no more words were needed to convey what was happening between them, Yoshimori couldn't keep it in. Even if he knew that his voice would crack in the end.

"I, I guess this means I love you too"

With the way his mouth was immediately assaulted by the time the last word escaped his lips, Yoshimori was reassured that he would never have to worry about his feelings not being reciprocated by the taller teen. Only then did Yoshimori finally let himself cry about everything he had been put through in these last couple of weeks.

~ 0~0~0~

A/N: Woo (swipes sweat from forehead), that will do for now. Hope it wasn't too fast-paced. Only one more chapter to go! In the next chapter (which is also the epilogue) I'll tie all the loose ends and plot-holes that I might have left behind. Yes, that includes everything from what's happening with their classmates to the letters that Masamori never gave to Gen. I'll also provide some more fun and surprises.

And yes, there will be smut. And yes, it's the GenYoshi kind which shouldn't be a surprise since all my other stories are known for including sexy times in their epilogue. So if that offends you then consider this the last chapter. If not then be sure that I'll be putting the M-Rated tag to good use. (The kind of use that Madarao would surely approve of).