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═══ UNSTEADY BUT
STILL GOING ═══

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"AND YOU DECIDED THAT WITHOUT ME?"

Utter disbelieve was displayed on Akiko's features as she stared down the ravenette in front of her. Kazutora was hiding behind Baji's back, while Chifuyu had opted to lean against the wall looking anything but pleased.

"It's not that bad," defended Baji. "When Hohsino thinks you let your guard down, he's more likely to take the bait."

"And this is the only thing you could think of?"

"You don't have to pretend like this is the only thing you hate about the plan."

"When I offered to be the bait, you refused. Now, you suddenly decide to put two people at risk. Do you listen to yourself? This is insane!"

"He agreed to it! You're the only one who's against it!"

"You're the one who's making a plan without my consent! We agreed to do this as a team!"

"Why do you have to be so difficult?!"

"I JUST DON'T WANT TO HAVE SOMEONE'S LIFE ON MY CONSCIENCE!"

Her chest heaved up and down rapidly after yelling at the top of her lungs.

"Kiko," Chifuyu spoke up from the side. He stepped closer and put a hand on her shoulder, only to have her shake it off and step back, signaling him to keep a distance. "I want to be there. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you. That promise I gave you, I intend to keep it. Protecting you is my - our top priority."

"You don't understand, do you?" Akiko laughed dryly. "For the first time in my life I feel like I belong. I found a family who cares about me. I have more than one friend. I finally feel like I could be happy. By putting yourself on the line you risk all of that. I can't bare to lose you so soon."

"You won't," Chifuyu said firmly. "Toman is behind you. All of our captains and vice-captains are on board, Draken and Mikey too. As long as you have us, no one can hurt you."

"You don't know Hoshino Ken in the slightest," Akiko warned them. "He won't fall for some childish play. If he sets himself a goal, he reaches it without wasting any time. Stand in his way, he'll kill you. He's capable of a lot of things. He won't hesitate to kill in cold blood. History proves it."

"But if we're successful, Hoshino will be defeated and you'll be safe," interjected Baji.

"What about the rest of Pandemonium?"

Cautiously, Kazutora stepped beside Baji. "They aren't as powerful as they make everyone believe. Pandemonium itself only has four members, the upper echelons. Everyone else left after Hoshino Junto died. The other gangs only work for them because of the money. That's as far as their influence goes."

Taking the chance to cool down, Akiko forced her mind to focus and process Kazutora's words. Money was a source of influence for Pandemonium, which only had four official members — Ken, Kurayami and two others who were currently still unknown to Toman. Should the money stop flowing, problems would arise. Gangs would break off deals with Pandemonium. They would lose power over Tokyo's underground. And even though it wouldn't stop Ken, it would slow him down.

"I think I have a plan, but you won't like it."

When Akiko faced Kazutora, his sand-colored eyes widened. He had a hunch what that plan would be.

"Take me to Hanma. It's about time we had a talk."

In an instant, Chifuyu blocked her view and stared her down. "Absolutely not. You won't go anywhere near that bastard. Especially after what he did."

"I know how people like Hanma tick. He's not after the money. What he's chasing is an adventure, an adrenaline kick. He likes playing games. But he would hate to be on the losing side. If we tell him the truth about Pandemonium and that they will lose their main source of income, he will hopefully cut ties with them."

"Chances of that happening are pretty low."

"So are the chances of your plan working with zero casualties."

All three boys were equally annoyed with Akiko, for their own respective reasons. They exchanged looks.

"We can't decide anything behind Mikey's back," said Kazutora. "Doing things behind his back tends to end badly."

"If he gets wind of us striking a deal with Moebius, he might think we're traitors and send Muto after us," added Chifuyu thoughtfully.

"Whatever." Baji rolled his eyes. "As long as I get to knock out that zombie."

"Then it's settled," said Akiko. "I'll talk to Mikey."

The brunette was out the door within seconds. Chifuyu jogged after her. He couldn't help feeling nervous about being alone with Akiko. This was the first time they had talked since the almost-kiss in the park. It would be a lie if he denied thinking about it non-stop. He still cursed Shinichiro for calling. But he was too proud to admit that his ego had taken a hit.

"Kiko, are you sure you want to get involved with Moebius?"

Slowing her pace, Akiko let Chifuyu catch up. "No. They're scumbags and I don't want to be anywhere near them. But Hanma is their leader, meaning he makes all the decisions. My plan is to make him call off whatever deal he has with Pandemonium."

"Moebius is Tokyo's second biggest gang, right after Toman. You really think he would listen to what you have to say?"

"If I can make him believe that I will make a new deal with him once I inherit the firm, he might consider it. There's no guarantee. There never is."

"You do realize that he could kidnap you and take you straight to Hoshino, right?" pointed out Chifuyu. "No matter what happens, Hanma will end up on the winning side. He always does somehow."

Fed up with talking back and forth about what to do, Akiko stopped walking abruptly and turned to face Chifuyu.

"I don't care what happens to Hanma or Pandemonium or the firm. I don't care about what Ken made of the Hoshino name. All I care about is protecting the people I love, and that includes you. Junto died trying to save my mother and me. There's no way in hell I will let his death be in vain."

About to walk down the last flight of stairs, Akiko gasped when she was pulled back and pushed up against a wall. She barely registered what was happening when she found herself eye to eye with Chifuyu. Up close his green orbs were captivating. Just as she realized how close they were, he leaned in.

Her eyes closed in the same moment their lips met.

The kiss was unlike anything she had imagined. Admittedly, her idea of a kiss was heavily influenced by the romance movies Hina had forced her to watch. It was neither intense nor passionate.

It was short and sweet, but her heart was pounding and her stomach did somersaults nevertheless.

When they parted after a few seconds, Akiko kept her eyes closed. Her brain seemed to have shut down because her mind was completely blank. She had trouble grasping a clear thought. And when she opened her eyes to be met with Chifuyu's loving gaze, she felt all desire to argue was gone.

"Do you, uhm," she stuttered. "Do you always kiss a girl after mentioning her dead father?"

"Sorry," Chifuyu rushed out, flustered. "It's just, uhm, I couldn't help myself after what you said." His green orbs flickered across her face, their bodies still in close proximity, chests touching. He was leaning against the wall with both hands situated next to her head. Once he noticed that she was caged in, he immediately backed up, but to his surprise Akiko grabbed the front of his shirt to keep him from moving.

"C-can we stay like this for a minute?" Akiko asked after a moment's hesitation. "I like being close to you. It makes me feel safe."

Wordlessly, Chifuyu nodded. He knew it took her a lot of courage to speak openly about the way she felt. He wouldn't push her away. Akiko kept her gaze straight ahead, staring at his chest. One of his hands caressed her cheek. Her body reacted on its own accord, leaning her head into his touch.

"Let's not argue, okay?" she whispered.

"Okay."

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HIS FACED SHOWED NO EMOTION after Akiko had proposed the idea to him. Draken stood by his side, an inseparable duo, and some distance behind them sulked a blond boy whom Akiko recognized from school and Hinata's constant gushing, Takemichi. Baji and Chifuyu, Mitsuya and Hakkai, Smiley and Angry, Pah-chin and Peh-yan, Muto and Sanzu — the captains and vice-captains, were all gathered around them. They might not have been able to see him, but Kazutora was lurking somewhere in the shadows, playing his role as the spy. All eyes were fixed on Mikey as he took his time to consider.

"We don't know if Hanma will take the bait," he said, moving his gaze to Akiko. "It's risky."

"What kind of impression would it leave on all other gangs in Tokyo if Moebius broke off their deal with Pandemonium?" wondered Draken aloud, glancing sideways at Mikey. "Would they follow the lead or seize the opportunity to get on Hoshino's good side?"

"I don't know," said Mikey, truthfully.

"Why haven't they offered us a deal?" questioned Pah, seeming genuinely confused.

Baji chuckled lowly, huskily. "Isn't it obvious? Hoshino hates the Sano family."

"Our families share a past," Akiko explained to Pah. "My guess is that Pandemonium tries to keep Toman out of the loop. Maybe they think that by isolating you, they have a chance of beating you down."

"But if both Toman and Moebius refuse to work with Pandemonium, that will send a message to the other gangs, right?" Takemichi spoke up for the first time. "I-I-I mean, they'll want to know why. And when they hear the truth, they'll abandon Pandemonium, right?"

"That would be our best case scenario," stated Mitsuya, a calculating look in his eyes, his mind jumping from one possible outcome to the next and took all information into consideration. "There are still the four executives. They are strong and they have access to firearms. We mustn't underestimate them."

"And my brother is with them," added Akiko, swallowing hard. "Itachi has always been smart, but he's also big and strong. Now that Seina is back in Tokyo, and clashing with Pandemonium is inevitable, they are going to bring in every man. Not to forget, they won't fight fairly. I wouldn't be surprised if they brought guns to a fist fight."

"Well, I wouldn't mind giving them some kisses with my fist," shouted Smiley, a grin on his face as he clenched his fist and slammed it into the palm of his other hand, recreating the sound of a blow to someone's face.

"We have to be smart about this," Akiko said, returning her gaze to Mikey and Draken, almost pleading. "Knowing Ken, he will want to take care of this by himself. He'll try to lure me away and leave the fighting to everyone else. The executives won't get their hands dirty. They stayed in the background this long, they won't come out all of a sudden."

"Until we have more information, it would be unwise to make a plan of attack," Draken retorted. "Can't you talk to your sister?"

Every cell in her body was against it. Betrayal still had a death grip on Akiko's heart, despite her desire to mend their broken bond. Time was what she needed, and time was what they were lacking. Life was full of ups and downs, with dangers lurking behind every corner and many obstacles on the path, which taught Akiko that waiting around and wasting what precious time she had was not an option.

Reluctantly, she nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

"I'll talk to Shinichiro," decided Mikey, rising from his cross-legged position on the steps. "He might know a thing or two about how Pandemonium operates."

All captains and vice-captains received orders to stay alarmed and prepared for unexpected attacks, and Muto was asked to keep a close eye on Toman's members to ensure none of them turned into traitors. No one knew what was going through Kazutora's head, with the possible exception of Baji. Someone who seemed most worried about Akiko going anywhere near her family was Chifuyu.

At the end of the meeting, he pulled Akiko to the side.

"You don't have to face Seina alone."

As much as Akiko appreciated his concern, she felt like she was already too big of a burden to him. Either way, Seina had become too weary of strangers. The woman didn't know the first thing about Chifuyu. She hadn't even let Baji stay in the same room when Akiko was unconscious. Akiko doubted Seina would reveal any valuable information in his presence.

"I know," she said. "But it's best if her and I talk in private. A lot has happened since she left and the less people know where she is, the safer it'll be for her."

Head already in the game, Akiko turned her back on Chifuyu and descended down the steps at Musashi Shrine. She was almost out of sight when he remembered that she was to be guarded at all times. Wide-eyed, he hurried to catch up to her.

"You're not supposed to go anywhere alone!"