A Bunch of Lunatics

Chrollo did not take the half-reel of videotape.

He merely looked at Bai Zhu.

"Then where is she?"

The moment those words fell, the people around them visibly changed.

Bai Zhu swept his gaze over them.

Good.

Every last one of them looked ready to start a fight on the spot.

He put away the tape fragment in his hand, and his Zanpakuto slid back into its sheath.

"I'll say this one more time."

Bai Zhu raised a hand, pointing at himself before pointing at the children in the middle of the platform.

"I'm not your enemy. And unless I've got this wrong, Sarasa died years ago, didn't she? Are you sick, or have you all gone mad, asking me whether I've seen Sarasa?"

Uvogin's chest was still heaving.

"They said you saw her!"

"I saw the recording."

Bai Zhu sounded thoroughly impatient.

"If you can't understand that, I can put it in simpler terms."

Uvogin moved to step forward again.

Bai Zhu cut him off directly.

"If you want to fight here, I'm game."

He pointed behind him.

"But if those kids back there get caught up in it, I'll hang every one of you on the wall first."

The hall fell quiet for a moment.

Not a single member of the Phantom Troupe found that funny.

Bai Zhu had just kicked Uvogin flying and cleared this place solo.

Coming from anyone else, those words would have been posturing.

Coming from him, they carried a certain amount of credibility.

Uvogin let out a low growl.

"Try it!"

"Uvogin."

Chrollo finally spoke.

Uvogin did not turn around.

"Boss!"

"Take the children out first."

Chrollo's tone was calm.

Franklin relaxed his grip slightly and added in a low voice.

"Save them first."

Shalnark began moving as well.

He looked at the