"So, Danchou? These kids are great, aren't they?" Nobunaga turned and smiled at Chrollo. "Don't you think they have the same 'jump in head first' personality that Uvo had?"

"That's because they're only kids. They don't know the meaning of fear." Machi rolled her eyes. "Ask 'What does the chain guy look like?'"

Chrollo thought for a moment.

"Before that... Paku! Check them once more."

"Okay." Pakunoda looked down at them. "What should I ask them?"

"I want to know... What they're hiding." A twisted smirk came over Chrollo's face.

As Pakunoda reached out to touch the white-haired boy, he spoke.

"It's useless! You can read the memories of those you touch, right? We aren't hiding anything, we don't know anything. And even if we knew something--"

Pakunoda's hand grasped the boy's jaw aggressively.

"I'll find out soon. So shut up."

"Even if we knew something, we would deliberately think of something else to fool you!" The black-haired boy spoke up again as the serious woman grabbed him as well.

"E-Exactly!" The other boy mention as the radio blasted around you all. You tightened your grip on Chrollo, feeling edgy now.

"You're mistaken on something." Pakunoda kept speaking. "I'm reading the memory from its deepest place, in its origin. There's no risk that I would read thoughts you voluntarily have. It's impossible to fool me. So I'll ask you my question. What are you hiding?"

Then, the lights went out.

"Hana." Chrollo turned to hold you tightly, sheltering you from whatever was about to happen. But it only took a few more seconds before you felt searing hot chains cut through your abdomen and your lover being ripped away from you silently.

"Ah... Ah..." Your mouth opened and shut as you felt your stomach become very cold. You weren't some nen master and losing blood was deadly to you. So you sat down and applied pressure to your wounds.

You listened to what was happening around you. Mostly, it just sounded like flesh connecting to flesh.

"I've got you." Machi's voice rang to your ears. "Even if I can't see anything, I won't let you go. When you deploy your energy to kill, I deploy my guard. And darkness is useless to you in that case. If you really want to cut, aim for the neck... Anyways, I have myself protected."

Then, Nobunaga's voice floated around you.

"Even if I can't see... I still know where everyone is." He was calm. You tried to steady your breath and just listen to what was happening around you. "It was a nice try."

A swoosh cut through the air, landing above your hair.

"It came from the entrance. Throwing your last arrows? C'mon, show yourself!" Nobunaga called out.

"The guy at the radio was also involved. I doubt he's still there but..." Shizuku's voice penetrated the darkness.

"The knife that was him, but that's not important. We have what is most esesntial in our hands. Plus, our eyes are becoming used to the dark now." He continued speaking

"Yes, that's true... Err..." Shizuku looked over at you. "Danchou?"

"Shizuku, take care of him."  Nobunaga handed off the kid he was holding to her and Machi dislodged the other boy's hand from her chest.

"Paku, are you okay?" Machi asked.

"My left arm is broken, and one of my molars is gone. Other than that, I'm fine." She responded.

"Same here, a few broken ribs. We underestimated them a little." Machi turned to look at you in the dark. "Hana?"