You remembered that night in the forest when you snuck out to meet up with your brother. It was that night when he told you the plan you've been hiding for over a week.

"–That's really sweet of you, (Y/N)." (B/N) gives you another pat on the head. "But you don't have to go that far. In fact, I have something else I'd like you to do," he smiles.

You tilted your head. "Will it make Ryu and Senka stop chasing after you?"

(B/N) chuckles. "That, and more."

He explains his plans to you, the amused smile never leaving his face. By the end of it, however, your eyes were wide with horror, a stark contrast to his expression.

"Nii-chan... isn't this holding Alluka hostage?!"

"Oh, don't say it like that! I'm going to keep her safe, and I'm giving her back as soon as they agree to quit hunting me down, okay?"

You look down at the ground. This was seriously giving you a bad feeling. "Are you sure it's gonna work? Why does it have to be Alluka?" You look back up at him with worry. "...Can't it be me instead?"

Your brother's eyes widened for a split second. Strange how you would rather put yourself in that position. "...It'll work better this way. Just make sure they never find out that we've been talking."

"Nii-chan... are you sure about this? I'm not sure Killua would want that..." You take a step back, showing signs of hesitation.

(B/N) glared at you for one second, before chuckling softly. "Come on, (Y/N). Just trust me, okay? Everything will work out better this way," he says, giving you a reassuring smile.

You hesitated a bit, before nodding slowly. "Okay..."

_ _ _

"I'm...I'm sorry, Alluka." A tear rolls down your cheek as you take a deep breath, steeling yourself for what you're about to do. Suddenly, you grab her hand rather forcefully, dragging her closer to your brother.

Alluka immediately starts resisting. "Onee-chan! What are you doing?!"

You stay silent, looking ahead as Sanguis slowly approaches the both of you.

He stops in front of you with a smile. "You did so well, (Y/N)," he leans forward, whispering into your ear.

But before Sanguis could even lay a finger on Alluka, something exploded on his shoulder, and it was no ordinary explosion. It had a small, crackling sound followed by a pale yellow light. The impact was enough to even make Sanguis flinch, and for you to step back on instinct.

Meanwhile, Alluka acted on it immediately. Using the hand that held yours, she dragged you back with her, creating some distance between you and Sanguis.

"Wh-What?!"

Alluka grabs your face with both hands. "Onee-chan! You need to snap out of it!!" she yells, staring at you straight in the eye.

You gazed back at her panic-stricken eyes, trying to conjure up something to say. But in your peripheral vision, you notice Ryu and Senka emerge from the bushes.

Your eyes widen in horror. "W-What?! Why are they here?!" Your eyes were on them now.

Hovering above Senka's finger was a ball of her Nen. Its pale yellow light matched the one that exploded from Sanguis' shoulder, which was now partly exposed due to the attack.

Sanguis scoffs, glaring at the two hunters with a crooked smile. "You two again," he seethes.

"Finally caught up to you, bastard." Senka narrows her eyes, nearly about to pounce on Sanguis if not for Ryu's hand on her shoulder.

You felt your breath hitch when Ryu looked right at you, his brows and lips curling upwards in an apologetic smile.

"They... they knew. They were following us..." you mumble, looking down as you slumped your shoulders in defeat.

Even after making absolutely sure you were cleared of suspicion, they still managed to find out. You clutched your head with your hands. If Killua also finds out, you weren't sure if you could look him in the eye ever again, much less stand next to him.

Alluka sat you down on the grass, far from where the others were. Sanguis noted this as he watched you and Alluka retreat into the edge of the forest clearing.

Only then did you start shaking uncontrollably, unsure what to feel. A part of you was terrified that you failed to execute the plan and that your brother felt nothing but disappointment for you. However, another part felt... relieved? There was a small sliver of hope within you that maybe, maybe their finding out would finally take away the weight from your chest.

"Onee-chan..." Alluka rubbed your back in an attempt to calm you down.

That didn't last long, though, as an intense and malicious aura began to engulf the area. It was your brother's, that's for sure. You looked up ahead in a panic, only to see him getting ready to face off against Ryu and Senka.

"W-Wait!" You tried calling out to them. They didn't hear you.

You tried to get up, but your body wouldn't move. It wasn't due to the force of the Nen, though. You were simply... frozen in place, held back by your very own being.

It left you with no choice but to watch the battle unfold.

_ _ _

Killua touched his shoulder wound from the tranquilizer dart. Strangely, the bleeding still hasn't stopped. In fact, the little puncture on his skin seemed a lot bigger than before.

"Why does it look like it's getting worse?" Killua grumbled, feeling the blood between his fingers. If this keeps going, things could get seriously bad.

Killua scoffed and wiped the blood off. He'll just deal with that later.

"That bastard snake had the nerve to release Nen like that." He smirks, looking hundreds of meters ahead into the forest, where Sanguis' malicious aura is. He only sensed it recently, but who knows how long that has been going on?

"Does he know I'm coming? Or..." Killua paused in thought, letting the eerie silence take over for a bit.

Gradually, his eyes widened in realization as he thought of the worst possible scenario. 'If I don't make it over quickly, things could get bad. And if Ryu and Senka are fighting that snake right now, then (Y/N) and Alluka are there, too!'

Now was not the time to remain quiet and stealthy. He quickly switched to Godspeed, letting blue sparks of electricity course through him as he made his way to the source of Sanguis' aura.

_ _ _

"...Just when I thought you couldn't stoop down any lower, you somehow manage to go beyond." Senka narrows her eyes at Sanguis, watching the corner of his bloody lip curl upwards into a smirk.

Impressively, Ryu and Senka barely sustained any injuries. In fact, Sanguis was the one badly injured. Crimson blood dripped from his lip and cheek, and the rest of his body was significantly bruised. It was clear that Ryu and Senka had the upper hand.

Well... had.

Sanguis had his arm around two people: You and Alluka. Despite his state, he managed to grab both of you amidst the raging battle, effectively stopping Ryu and Senka from going any further.

"N-Nii-chan!" You tried calling out to your brother. "What are you doing? This isn't part of the plan!"

Sanguis looked down at you. The look he gave you was no longer his gentle, friendly gaze. In fact, you could see the lack of remorse reflected in his eyes, reminding you of that day in Heavens Arena.

"Plan? (Y/N), you've followed my plan perfectly up to this point!" He smiles.

'...Huh?'

Your eyes widened. "What?! No! I was only supposed to bring Alluka here! You even reminded me multiple times to keep things a secret!"

"You know, (Y/N), I've noticed something from you since we were kids." He began. "The harder you try to hide something, the more obvious it becomes. Have you noticed?"

"...What?"

"Honestly, I was a bit nervous that those three wouldn't show up. Thank god they did!" Sanguis chuckles.

'Those three? Who could the third person b–'

"You... not only did you force (Y/N) to keep secrets from us, but you also manipulated her into fulfilling your hidden agenda?! Your own sister?! What on earth is wrong with you?!" Senka was pretty much screaming at this point. Her face was red with fury, and her Nen was starting to spiral out of control.

Ryu immediately tried to keep her in place. "Senka, calm down."

However, Senka ignored him as she dashed straight into Sanguis with her clenched fist.

"SENKA!!"

Sanguis only smirks at the sudden attack. "Too close," he mumbles.

The last thing Senka felt was the overwhelming pressure of Sanguis' aura, a stinging sensation across her torso, and then darkness.

You and Alluka watch in horror as a deep cut materializes across Senka's chest. Seemingly out of nowhere.

"SENKA!"

Eventually, Senka blacks out and falls to the ground. If it weren't for Ryu catching her in time, she might have hit her head pretty hard.

Everything seemed to pass by in a blur. Alluka was screaming Senka's name, struggling to break free from your brother's iron grip. Ryu's usual laid-back demeanor was shattered as he desperately shook Senka awake, to no avail.

You stood frozen in your spot. Your eyes went wide as they slowly gazed at Senka's lifeless figure. Her condition was way worse than last time. Way, way worse.

"Senka... i-is she...?"

"We're done here." Your brother's voice managed to cut through the chaos in your head. "Let's go." He demanded, pulling you and Alluka along.

Alluka screamed and thrashed even harder. "NO!! WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?!"

Sanguis ignored her and kept going. That is, until he senses a very familiar presence.

You and Alluka stopped, immediately turning back to see a familiar figure emerging from the bushes.

"Oh, it's you. I was wondering when you would show up." Sanguis narrows his eyes.

"–ONII-CHAN!!"

Your eyes widened. "K-Killua?!"

Killua was clutching his head. His face was deathly pale, even more pale than he already is. And every time he stepped forward, it seemed like he would go off balance and topple over at any moment.

Sanguis scoffs. "So even a Zoldyck could collapse from blood loss, huh? Good to know," he smirks.

"(Y-Y/N)...." Killua mumbles.

"Killua!!" Your body moved on instinct, managing to break free from your brother's grip. You scrambled towards Killua, about to touch his hand until–

"(Y/N)!" Your brother's voice calls for you. It froze you in place once again.

As you slowly looked back at Sanguis, he held out his free hand for you to take. "(Y/N), come back here. We're leaving."

"N-No, but..." you pause looking at Killua's face, then at Senka's and Ryu's. "Nii-chan. This wasn't supposed to happen. We need to help them!"

(B/N) smirks. "Oh? And you'd prioritize them over me? Your brother?"

"N-No! I was just–"

"Come here, now." Sanguis shot you a deadly glare, cutting you off completely.

Your thoughts started spiraling, and you felt like you were about to be ripped in half. That is... until you felt something touch your hand.

"(Y/N)... you stupid idiot. Stop listening to that snake..." Killua mumbles, holding your hand gently. "Come back to me, please..."

You tensed up. His hand was ice-cold, a complete opposite to the warmth you've grown accustomed to.

"Killua... I'm–"

Just before you could finish your sentence, Sanguis comes over and grabs you by your other hand. He forcefully drags you away from the scene, all the while ignoring Alluka's loud protests.

The last thing you saw was Killua swaying back and forth unsteadily, before falling forward and collapsing on the ground. Only then do you see the huge puncture on the back of his shoulder, blood continuously leaking out of it.

____________________