All of them had suffered upon the loss of their friends. Yari, Kenshin, both of them had left holes in their hearts that had only begun to seal. Suto had never thought for a moment Nero had been so deeply effected though, not to the point of becoming invalid in battle. To see his superior like that, completely submissive and ready to die, it was... Unsettling. In away, he reflected, it didn't make sense. Nero had no real personal relationship to either of them, certainly not to the degree Suto and Fitch had to Yari, or Alphard to Kenshin. And yet, when it came time to trade blows he was the only one who couldn't muster the courage to do so. Why was that? What about their deaths had managed to affect this other boy so badly that he just crumpled? Suto didn't know what to do to help, nor had he felt the desire to be compassionate as of late, yet seeing Nero in such a sorry state he had to try something. Going to join his superior he knelt down before Nero, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder and offering what few words of condolences that he could muster. What little meaning they must have, words were hollow and worthless at the end of the day, but he had to at least try.

Whatever his reasons for blaming himself it had to be made clear that Nero couldn't do that. None of this was his fault, to say it was also put the blame on every other person who was there that day. None of them could have prevented it, they couldn't fight against a crooked game like this. That didn't stop Nero however, and the venomous tone that he took with Suto made the younger boy back off slightly, shocked by the response he had gotten. Why... Why was he so set on blaming himself? Their deaths, Yari and Kenshin, they were unavoidable. Seeing Nero so distraught over it only made Suto feel infinitely worse, both for himself and for his friend. Maybe... The others could have been saved, and no one would be suffering now. Or... If someone else had died in their stead. If he had been quicker, maybe he could have thrown Yari out of the way. Then she would be here, and so would Fitch. Yari could have saved Kenshin easily, the only one that would be gone was... No, he couldn't think like that. Those lines of thought were precisely what put Nero in this dark place he was now lost in, he couldn't let himself slip like that. If anything he had to try and be positive, or at the very least attempt to change the other boy's outlook. If Nero continued on this path, Suto thought, then it could only end badly for him.

Not... Their friend? For some reason that comment bit, harder than any blade ever could. Sure, he and Nero hadn't always been exactly close, but he liked to think them friends. In a world like this where faces could come and go in the blink of an eye it was hard to become attached to anyone. With how much time they had spent together though, both as fellow KoB members and just in parties prior he thought they had developed some semblance of friendship. To hear otherwise, that hurt. Lowering his head Suto closed his eyes somberly, biting his lower lip as he felt himself trembling. Anger, sadness, the two emotions were clashing together like massive waves, his insides in turmoil right now. "I'm not going to say I forgive you, don't worry..." he replied, his tone barely above a whisper, "Because there's nothing to forgive!" Suto lifted his head back up, looking at Nero through a blurry gaze as tears welled up in the corners of his eyes. "Don't you get it? None of us blame you for what happened. It was the game that killed Yari, and it was the game that killed Kenshin! None of us could have stopped that! So if you are to blame then so are we, because we didn't do anything to stop it either!"

Suto was again stricken with silence as Nero went on, very determined to putt he blame on himself. No, it was all wrong, none of this was Nero's fault. He hadn't drawn weapons against them, he had no part in making this game. Sure, perhaps he was a bit too focused on making a profit, but Suto knew this boy well enough. No way in hell would Nero have willingly let someone else die to make money, he wasn't that sort of person. To suggest otherwise, well it was akin to blasphemy. Strongly as he may feel about it Suto wasn't sure what could be said, if anything, to make this right. These feelings, it had been so long since Yari and Kenshin were taken from them, so they had been festering for some time now. Nothing that he could say would immediately fix it, he knew that. Having to listen to this, to Nero talking of himself as nothing more than scum, it was sickening. The real people who were like that existed and his superior wasn't one of them. The bastard who took Fitch away, those who killed for personal gain, those were the real monsters. Nero was a good guy, otherwise they wouldn't all be associating with him. If only he could see that for himself, maybe he wouldn't feel so negatively. When addressed directly Suto lifted his head again, his own eyes meeting Nero's as he too rose to his feet. What did he see...?

"A sad, scared boy..." Suto answered, frowning as he spoke. His body gained a bit of slack as his shoulders sagged, his eyes dropping to the floor between himself and Nero somberly. "I see someone who's been trying to be brave, and now its finally all come crashing down on you. And... You don't know how to handle it... You're afraid, and you feel guilty... It's the same way I am..." He had always hid behind parties and other events, anything to numb the pain that this world brought. Before and after the deaths of their friends he always put up a wall or a fake smile on, anything to reassure those around him. While the agony of loss was slowly subsiding there were still those pangs, and the constant 'what-ifs' that raced through his mind. Feeling a few tears slipping out of his eyes Suto shook his head, sniffling before looking back up at Nero. "You have to understand, it's [b]NOT[/b] your fault! I knew Yari better than anyone here, and she wouldn't be blaming you for what happened! She was never the kind of person to hold a grudge, not unless you hurt one of her friends! And... You never hurt any of us Nero! Hell, you've helped us more times than I can count! She's not blaming you, I'm not blaming you, and I'm sure no one else is either!"

Emotion had boiled over and Suto found himself yelling, probably drawing the attention of those around him. He couldn't let someone else slip away though, not while he was there to help it. Nero wasn't his closest friend but he meant something, and that was worth trying to fight for. Even Kazaro, much as he may not like the guy, would have Suto's support in the thick of it. Sniffling again the younger boy raised an arm, wiping his face on his sleeve to dry away some tears. "I'm not going to let any more of my friends die, or be hurt. I swore that after Yari died, but I let Kenshin go too. Well not anymore, I'll do everything in my power to keep the people I care about safe! And that includes you, Nero!" Clenching his hands into fists Suto marched over to the other boy, reaching out and grabbing a fistful of his shirt. Since he was a bit smaller than Nero he pulled his superior down slightly, staring up at him with watery eyes. "So get this idea out of your head that you're the reason they're dead! Or that you deserve to die, got it? Because none of it is due to you, and... And they were your friends too! Do you think they'd want you to just throw yourself away, after everything we've been through? How is that honoring them?"