Bite To Death

"Chairman," Enma greets when they get closer. "We're here to replace your first group."

"Like hell you are!" Hayato snaps before he can stop himself. The word 'replace' makes him pissed off, because it sounds like he can't handle it. He sits up from the torso and sees the rest straighten as well.

Takeshi chuckles. "I'm perfectly content right here," he says with a sharp smile.

They were told about the groups switching, of course, and they've even met each other before this. This is technically a trial run so Kyouya can determine if he allows others to join him regularly, or even so one of the groups can move to the other side of Namimori and do chopper runs there.

As it is, the other side of the safe zone is almost touching the sea, but a group could spread out along the border this side and take some of the infected so Kyouya doesn't have to. However, because of the Chairman's dislike for crowds, for the trial run's duration two groups were made and the infected mob has been cut into two sections as well.

If they went according to plan, Hayato and his group should be getting back into the jeep and driving for Namimori to let these new people have a go.

"That isn't up to you," snaps Adelheid. "You all look exhausted anyway, so just get back into the car before you get eaten."

"We can extremely go another round!" Ryohei chimes in with his usual bellow, voice not muffled anymore because Lambo helped him turn on the helmet's speaker.

Julie rolls his eyes from behind Enma and suddenly both groups are arguing.

"Skylark," Mukuro calls out, voice cutting through the insults being hurled and stopping the rest. "What do you think? Shall we fight to the death?"

Kyouya, who had been watching silently, nods in agreement.

Before anyone can really register that, faint helicopter sounds reach them.

"Oh," Lambo breaths out, standing on top of the car to give himself a better vantage point. "If that's for us, then we don't have time for fighting each other."

"Not with that attitude, we don't," Mukuro comments.

Hayato scrambles to his feet, the rest following quickly, only to see yet another chopper leading infected towards them. This hoard is at least twice the size of the one they just took down, if not triple.

"I thought there would be more," Kyouya says as the chopper pulls closer, still a few streets away but already most of the zombies are running towards them.

"More?" Enma splutters. "How many do you usually get?"

"About five times both of these put together," Kyouya answers easily. "Sometimes it takes a whole day and my herbivores get fussy."

"I keep forgetting how huge Japan's population was before," Enma murmurs.

Hayato blinks, still rather taken aback because he struggled with the group they had just taken down. Only a little bit, but still enough that what Kyouya is describing seems like a sure fire way to get eaten.

No wonder Tetsuya is always so concerned if Kyouya does this every fortnight. Not to mention, they haven't even reached Tokyo. That city is going to be painful to clean.

He rolls his shoulders and grips his dynamite tighter. He'll have to plan better next time – maybe just bring a backpack full of explosives.

...

When the fight ends, it takes another half an hour before any of the recruits can move. The second set are better off but they don't want to get up either. While Kyouya waits, he just settles down on top of the truck for a nap.

"Hey," Mukuro calls out in glee. "I found Charlie's angles."

Hayato doesn't want to look, but it's automatic to glance over. Set on the trident spikes are three females - a blond, a red head and one with black hair.

"That looks nothing like-" Enma starts.

"Don't," Adelheid cuts in. "It'll just encourage him."

"Speaking of encourage," Mukuro begins, tossing the heads over his shoulder with a flick of the trident. "Look, Skylark, I made you a flower."

Kyouya rolls so he can peek over the edge of the truck to where Mukuro is gesturing. Bodies are arranged in a curved fashion to make a pollen filled centre, while others are in straight spokes out from the circle, like petals.

Kyouya just rolls away again.

"Did you do that as we were fighting?" Lambo gapes, and since he's looking around, his eyes catch on something else. "And what on God's green earth is that?"

They look over to see only bodies with yellow or gold on them arranged oddly. It takes a moment since Hayato is lower to the ground than Lambo but eventually he sees it.

The corpses spell 'discipline' like the DC armbands. Not only that, but the bodies have been ripped apart so only the half wearing those colours is on the pile.

It's very obvious who did that.

"You're all freaks," Hayato declares, and wonders if he should join the second group for next time - they seem relatively sane at least.

A snore cuts in then and they look over to find Ryohei on a makeshift nest of bodies.

"All of you," Hayato grumbles.

"What did I do?" Takeshi laughs. "I totally behaved myself."

"So you weren't the one laughing like a maniac when I got hit in the face with a flying hand?" Lambo contests.

Takeshi says nothing but his smile grows.