Note: The italics after the line break is a flashback.

The stream of bodies had no perceivable beginning, though its flow was constant and always pursuing as Misaki continued to move, thrust, and dodge here and there. Often she found herself fortunate enough to avoid any fighters of particular skill and rendered herself grateful, if not challenging luck against all-consuming time. As she made a point to sway her blood-bathed limbs in an almost poetic fashion that she both appreciated on an "ease of movement" and aesthetic level, her successes came in great, almost effortless numbers... at first.

It was then that, to seemingly the last of her waning karma, a powerful attack came rushing toward her least defended side and some far less lucky L.I.G.H.T. member found himself within the radius of the deadly attack. In a bluish blaze, the unintended victim's spine both realigned itself toward the opposite side of the strike and then detached and snapped into two separate pieces entirely from the force of the impact. His grey eyes were wide and stunned and his lips slightly agape as the two halves tumbled to the ground, rolling away from each other driven by the vibrations of all the others' clamorous footfalls. Misaki caught the boy's dumbfounded, dying gaze just in time to see the skull crack against the hard floor and the evidence wash away beneath the crowd of scurrying feet.

Had she been given more time to consider the scene, the girl might have reacted with panic at the prospect of not knowing where or from whom the barrage had launched. However, this was rapidly becoming more and more a test of survival. Despite her lack of experience with exact social etiquette and having to mimic her own understanding more than anything, survival was one thing Misaki knew. Amber eyes scanned the immediate crowd with quiet precision.

'There is no chance at defence,' she acknowledged, trying to avoid moving too much in any one direction while picking off some simpler assailants. Her mind ghosted the incredible intensity of nen erupting from the point of collision. 'One hit from a move like that and it's all over.'

Several moments passed without much further event. The downside to this, Misaki realized, was that the aggressor was biding their time carefully, waiting until she was caught up for an extra moment with any one of the lesser troops. Inevitably there would come an occasion that demanded some extra effort and should she be seized inside that hatsu during the process, her life would already have a claim on it.

As low as the downside proved the bright side was equally as brilliant. During this period where her adversary did not emerge, waiting for the perfect moment of distraction, Misaki was granted exactly that; a period of time in which to analyze the situation. She realized that her enemy, in order to execute a manoeuvre so omnipotent, would need to have space to charge up first. This also meant that likely the person she was looking for would not be nearest in proximity, but still only far enough away to prepare their move and be able to freely observe her. Also, being the bearer of such an unstoppable attack surely meant that there were weaknesses available to exploit. Likely the person had an "Achilles heel" of sorts that might be proportionally as fatal to the assailant as their hatsu was to the defendant during its administration.

'That probably means if I can find that weak spot and hit it while they're attacking, I can finish them off in one blow,' she mused, casually stabbing the handle of the umbrella into an approaching man's chest behind her and hooking out his heart (flicking it nonchalantly into the eyes of the next member rushing her from the front).

How best to commence action? Knowing that the aggressor could likely be only a certain distance away could give her the opportunity to expand her own weapon's size many times over and simply destroy everyone within a specific diameter. It would benefit her also in the sense that all nearby enemies would fall.

'The question is whether or not they're expecting me to react that way at some point. I could potentially be digging my own grave.' She broke her thought to offer a few more deflective shots. 'My other option is risky too, but it might be the better choice...'

Wielding a large cleaver-like weapon above his head, an oncoming L.I.G.H.T. associate leapt from behind the girl and brought down his might without restraint. In order to defend in time, Misaki spun on her heel to face him, applying a generous portion of nen into her parasol to impede his intent. Without warning, a blast of nen erupted at the girl's right. Almost too fast to see precisely, a brunette female wearing a blue helmet of pure aura came streaking from within the crowd, parallel to the floor. Meanwhile, rather than simply resisting the initial enemy's strike, Misaki turned the concussion of their two armaments into a parry, redirecting his cleaver and throwing the man off balance.

Thankfully, the sensitive timing was superb. The now disoriented man fell clean into the path of the powerful female, putting himself between her impressive skull bash and Misaki. Continuing along the natural path of movement, the plum haired girl rotated her umbrella back around and plunged downward just as the weight of the man, already dead from the force of the blow, tossed her painfully backwards in the opposite direction. This gave her less than a second to enjoy the delicious feeling of the parasol puncturing through delicate flesh and organs before the handle slipped out from her grasp. When she landed, the lower half of the amputated carcass dropped away while the upper region collapsed into her lap, eyes staring directly at her and through her. She hesitated for a half second longer than usual (as a forgotten hunger and pride welled up inside her) before tossing the corpse aside and dashing back toward her weapon...

...But things did not remain in the state they were left in. Instead of finding her umbrella lodged through an expired mound of flesh, it was held tauntingly in the fingers of another figure that had been carefully observing her from just far enough away to evade her constant flow of onslaught. The girl stopped dead in her tracks, holding an intense gaze with two shining, black eyes that reflected back her blood and gore covered image. Long, pale fingers traced the length of the rested parasol, staining themselves with fresh crimson in the process. It was only then that Misaki realized with surprise, in the unearthly glow of a room surrounded by that familiar lure of endless death, that the face was badly scarred (though the flesh was so pallid that even the evidence of trauma was difficult to make out). A rare, knowing smile stretched across the lips.

It was only then that Misaki remembered the conversation she and Illumi had had before that fated night she had awoken in the bath house.

'He knows!' she recalled in fear, praying her eyes did not sell him her secret panic.

"I have a theory," Illumi announced, eyeing the panting girl before him as she seemed to quietly welcome the break from battle.

"I don't want to hear it," she replied coldly, securing the grip upon her weapon.

"I have a feeling that you will," he urged, soaking in the tangle of loathing and resolve that danced passionately together in her narrowed eyes.

"We have no truce in effect. If you want to waste time talking, prepare to die."

True to her word, no sooner than she had uttered out the last syllable Misaki dove forward, driving Illumi back and towards a large, half dead tree. Her eyes turned simplistic and murderous as she executed the next strike, reflecting all the lack of humanity and affinity for the kill she had so willingly surrendered her life to up until now. While evading her was eminently easy for a man of his lifelong, refined skill-set, there was something that hindered the Zoldyck from retaliating. Often he found Misaki generally dull and uninteresting aside from their occasional intimate encounter, though those were hardly binding and more of convenience than anything. He had surmised from their earliest meetings that she was, while outwardly stoic, inwardly very emotional. So long ago had he been trained to tune out of such basic and preventative feelings that he found her quite common compared to himself. Beyond the fact that she could be useful to his cause, easily manipulated, and served as a mere vessel for his primary urges, Misaki Tanoh did not stand out to him any more than a random passerby or even his victims...

...Until this moment. It was true that he couldn't relate to her on a human level enough to even consider her worthy of being one, but that didn't matter anymore. The look in her eyes spoke to him, telling the story of an empty girl that desired, more than anything, the kill. Moreover, her glare insisted that his life was her utmost desire to take. This, unlike anything else, he could understand... and it not only demonstrated perhaps the only connection he supposed they could ever conceivably share, but the fact that she wanted him so badly that even her lust to deliver him to death could give him a chance to exploit her once more.

After all, he initially despised her when they first had met, and had managed those pesky feelings by dominating her physically in a different way. This could only mean she was still available for his influence, so long as she was so motivated to destroy him. Obsession was obsession, regardless of the cause.

"I believe I know how your nen works," he declared plainly, his voice masking all emotion flawlessly.

Misaki's attempt to damage an unguarded spot failed miserably. She realized too late that he had been welcoming this in order to once again distract her from their skirmish.

"I do not care what you have to say. Be silent and fight me."

"Correct me if I'm wrong. All this time you've been able to use categories in your ability that shouldn't flow together naturally. That should mean that your effectiveness should be less than typical at your level, no matter the experience."

The girl lined her foot with his ribs just in time to be stalled yet again as Illumi knocked her kick away with ease. While this was her plan, the punch she launched at his opposite side also failed to land and instead the man grasped her wrist firmly in his icy grasp, simply holding her in place.

"This will not save you," she warned.

"I've studied this from all angles," he continued on, as though she had not spoken, "and conceivably the only way you could make this work the way you have is to form some kind of... contract." He breathed deep the scent of fear as her muscles tensed in his hold. "That is the key word, isn't it? A young girl, who learns about vows and contracts, becomes a Contract Hunter. Let's assume that's hardly a coincidence, or possibly just enough of one to work. So that girl, who makes her living by completing contracts, ties her hopes and dreams into them... her whole life into them... her nen into them..."

Taking advantage of the noticeable change in the girl's posture, Illumi rapidly yanked her toward him, pivoting just enough to sandwich her body between his own and the tree trunk, towering dangerously over her figure. Using his free hand, he coiled each of his fingers individually around her neck just strongly enough to feel her pulse against his palm and her increasingly anxious swallowing as he spoke.

"So that is my guess," he whispered, nearly touching his nose to hers and challenging her with his dark, shining eyes. "You have gained an incredible amount of power because you pride yourself on the only thing you always thought you could do... the one thing you invested your whole life in... completing contracts." Placing his lips almost right against the stunned girl's ear, he murmured, "And now there's one that you don't think you can finish. What will happen to all your power then? Everything has changed, hasn't it? Now I know your secret... and that means I'm the one with all the power, doesn't it?"

Feeling the lump in her throat drew out a smirk from his lips, and the girl shuddered slightly against him at the feel of his lips brushing against her lobe.

"Yet I see you haven't suffered any consequences," he stated as he brought himself back down to eye level. "That must mean that you still want to kill him, despite what you told me before, don't you?"

The cringe in her amber eyes couldn't have been more perfect if he'd illustrated it himself. Tightening his grip and restricting her from escape, he watched as her struggle to physically oppose him and to likewise stay conscious began to wane.

"I wanted to kill you the first night, you know," Illumi reminisced. "That's why I fucked you," he explained as he watched her eyes close and her body fall into helpless slumber before releasing her frame entirely.

Glancing at the ungraceful array of sleeping limbs at his feet, he mentally added to himself, 'But I've always known that when it's time for your life to end, I'll be the one to decide when and where.'

A/N: A quick thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed, and/or favorited. I appreciate it! Also, I hope this chapter wasn't too confusing. -_- Oh, and thank you RedVoid for pushing me to get off my lazy butt and write. XD I probably wouldn't have set aside time to do so otherwise.