"Made it on time!"
Viola turned around, startled at the deep voice that was her friend. One look at the fact that she was in her underwear and out of uniform nearly made her drop the vase. "R-Rin-san, what's going on?"
The flame soon disappeared before she could take any further action and Rin just froze at what just happened. "I… I'm gonna… Go to the locker rooms… Get my gym clothes…"
Viola nodded uneasily and set the vase down, not letting an eye off the brunette. "Right… You do that…"
Rin ran as quick as her legs can carry her and slammed the door behind her in the locker room. "T-Too close… What was that all about…? Running in my underwear, was I even thinking?" She sunk down to the floor and hugged her knees. "Now how am I gonna explain this to the people who saw…?" She suddenly heard the sound of fabric being dropped in front of her and looked up.
"Fixed it for you,"
"Reborn-san?" Hey wait a sec, she's still in her underwear… "Oh crap!" She yelped, nearly biting her tongue as she grabbed her uniform.
The hitman smirked and turned around respecting her need for privacy as she put her clothes on. "So how was your first time being Deathperate?" He asked. Rin raised a brow as she buttoned her shirt.
"Deathperate?" she parroted. "What's that?"
Reborn held up a red bullet. "See this bullet right here? It's a Deathperation bullet. It's also known as the dying will bullet. When shot, the target dies then revives if they have a regret, putting them in Dying Will mode."
"Dying will mode? Now you're talking crazy,"
"Then explain your strength. A person in dying will mode has their external limiters removed and is stronger than usual. Now think. Could you really take those guys down with just your school bag alone without the bullet?"
Rin opened her mouth to speak, but then ended up biting her tongue in the end. "I… I really don't know anything about this. I'm going to class, bell's gonna ring soon," She walked out of the locker room and made way to class, leaving a hitman in alone in the dark room.
He smirked and looked in the mirror. "So much like Tsuna yet so different," He commented quietly.
Class lessons were yet another bore. Rin had fallen asleep, Remilia was dozing off occasionally catching herself before hitting the desk and Viola was just staring blankly at her notebook. The teacher even seemed bored by his own lesson simply dragging the chalk on the board. Suddenly the silence was broken by the sound of a door opening. Heads turned and started to whisper across the room, shaking in fear.
"Ne… Why is Murasaki here…?"
"Oh, boy… We're screwed…"
The raven haired teen walked to the teacher, now wide awake and attentive. They spoke quietly, leaving the class in the dark and fear. Nakamura-sensei nodded and pointed to a certain direction. Remilia was now awake and caught eye of this. She looked in the direction where he was heading and saw that Rin was still sleeping in his path. "Shoot!" She quickly leaned and violently shook her awake. "Rinny-chan, wake up or you're napping in dirt!" She whispered harshly.
Rin slowly stirred, hardly looking up with her tired eyes and slowly sat up.
"What…? I was dreaming about tiramisu…" She muttered sleepily.
"Yo, troublemaker,"
In an instant, Rin knew she's as good as gone. She swallowed the saliva that built up in her mouth and nearly broke out in cold sweat. "Y-Yes…? S-Senpai, what's up?" She forced a chuckle.
He slammed a palm on her desk in response, knocking her pencil pouch and notebooks off the desk. "You. Me. Afterschool in the gym."
"W-Why? What'd I do…?" It suddenly clicked in her head. While she was running to school, she just pushed Murasaki away. Crap, she committed suicide while running like her life depended on it. Oh, the irony… "Murasaki-senpai… If it's about this morning…"
"I'm looking forward to see how strong you really are." He added.
"Eh?" "If you have the guts to try and shove me like that surely you have the guts to try and fight me."
Rin nearly fell out of her seat and just kept stammering, trying to find the right thing to say. The others in the room were staring and started whispering about how Rin would just break after two seconds with him. Everyone was in agreement: She's as good as screwed. "But… This morning…"
"If you run, we will hunt you down and you will be punished." He soon walked out of the room and slammed the door behind him, leaving a terrified Rin and a pale classroom behind.
"Rinny-chan…? You okay? You look really pale…"
"Remmy-chan… I'm about to die… Better yet if I'm pale then I'm already dead."
The bell rang, ending the day for teachers and students alike. However Rin can't go home content and ready to rest. No, instead she has to fight against the one person that the police and SWAT team fear altogether. She sat in her desk alone in the room in the shade away from sunlight and let out a slow exhale. Rin can see people going into the gym, shouting and laughing. No duh they're there to watch Rin's death.
"Don't you have a fight to get to?" She slowly turned and sighed.
"What do you want, Reborn?"
"You didn't show up in the gym. Are you running from the fight?"
"I don't know. If I run, I'm screwed. If I fight, I'm freakin' screwed. Either way, I'll end up in a casket,"
"Then go fight." Rin stood up and glared at him.
"You just don't get it do you? Because of you and your bullet, I have to fight Murasaki-senpai." She sat on the floor, hugging her knees. "I should be at home, helping Grandma and Tsuki…"
"… Would you really go back home to them, bringing danger with you? If you run from this fight, Murasaki would hound you like there's no tomorrow."
Rin's lips parted slightly and she bit her lip. "I suppose… But… I really don't want to fight anyone. Every time I come home with an injury, Tsuki gets worried."
"Is that why you quit tai kwon do?"
"Now how do you know about that?" She hissed.
Reborn smirked and flicked his hat up. "You know… Sometimes a man fights for his pride. If not his pride, then it's his loved ones."
The teen stood up and let out a tired sigh. "I guess… Plus if I run…" She looked out the window again and saw Remilia and Viola talking outside with a worried furrow in their brows. "…Remmy-chan would get more grief than she should." She walked out the door and made way to the gym. Anxiety built up in her, making her blood pressure rise.
"Rinny-chan… Are you sure you want to do this?" Remilia asked.
Her eyes are full of worry again. Man… I never thought I'd have to do this again…
"Just do me a favor," She started. Rin took off a silver, round locket and placed it in her hands. "Take good care of it, please. I still don't remember who gave it to me, but I have this feeling it's important,"
Remilia sighed and patted her shoulder. "Look I'm not going to say something like 'I believe in you' or 'You can do it'. All I'll say is this: I'll have an ambulance ready for you."
Rin's brow twitched and she forced a smile. "I see… Nice to see how things work around here,"
"It's always worked like this," Remilia winked. Rin sighed in defeat and smirked.
"I guess. Well, I'm going in,"
"Good luck. Hope you make it out alive."
In the gym, Murasaki's group was prepping the gym for the fight, pushing the crowd of students against the wall and setting out the mats.
"Kyoi-san!"
The teen turned and looked up from shuffling his deck. "What, vice-president?"
"Amano-san has arrived." He stated. Murasaki smirked quietly and slipped his deck into the box on belt. He stepped on the mat, his arms folded across his chest and his eyes piercing into Rin. "I see you decided to show up, troublemaker."
"I'm not doing this because you challenged me." Rin stated, trying to hide the fear in her heart. Murasaki's lips were slightly agape and a brow was raised. "I'm only doing this for my friends so don't get the wrong idea,"
"That doesn't matter to me. I just wanted to know if you were strong or just foolish," He slipped out a hand of four aces and smirked hungrily. "Let's see what you can do,"
Rin sighed and took her boots off, stepping on the mat and readied herself for the fight that might do her in.
"I'll start," Murasaki said quickly. With a flick of the wrist, cards flew past Rin before she could even blink, leaving slits in her clothes and on her cheek.
"What the…?"
"Rin, do something or else you're dead!" Viola shouted.
Rin turned to see a barrage of cards soaring through the air, making a clean path towards her. She screamed, expecting to be killed until she felt a strange warmth on the skin of her forehead and found herself falling and hitting the ground with a heavy thud. The audience of fellow classmates were shouting and screaming in horror as she dropped dead.
"Amano-san!"
"What's happening?"
"Rinny-chan!"
"Someone get the nurse!" Mori shouted.
So I'm gonna die? I can't die here… Tsuki-chan… and Remmy-chan too… If I had just tried to defeat Murasaki-senpai…
"Reborn!" With a new will to live for her friends, she ripped out of her uniform yet again with a bright orange flame burning on her head and heart, her eyes changing from those huge brown pools to savage orange. "I'll take down Murasaki-senpai like my life depends on it!" She swung jabs out at him, catching him off-guard, giving him no room to strike back. He smirked, feeling somewhat satisfied that she's putting up a good fight.
"Hoh~? You seem different. You might be a worthy opponent after all," He commented as he blocked every jab possible. He slipped a hand to his deck and sliced at her swiftly and clean. He didn't waste a movement nor a second. When he pushed her far enough, he threw yet another set of spades and diamonds at her.
"This is nothing!" She yelled as she ran through the storm of cards. She dove and slid between his legs and tried to strike from behind.
"Too slow!" He sneered as he slammed his elbow into her face. Even the students felt the blow in their own faces. Rin fell both out of dying will mode and out of consciousness. Murasaki, satisfied and tired, fixed his tie and slipped his cards back into his deck. "Guess I was wrong." His eyes shifted up to the clock and he let out a relaxed yawn. "Vice-President,"
"Yes sir!" He saluted.
"Clean up the mess here. I'm going to sleep," He ordered.
"Right! You heard the man!"
Meanwhile with Rin, Remilia and Viola loomed over her with worried faces. Her nose was bleeding and she seemed to be developing a black eye.
"Is she gonna be okay?" Viola asked.
"I hope…"
Mori ran over to the girls and knelt down beside her body. "I'll take her to the nurse," He piggy-backed her and slowly made way to the nurse's office. As he walked out the door, he found a student with white hair in a hoody and jeans. Mori turned and flashed a bright smile at him. "You must be the new student! Was everything alright with you?"
"…" The student didn't answer. Instead his eyes were on the sleeping Rin on his back. The teen raised a brow and glanced back at Mori. "Hm? Oh, this is Rin Amano! Don't worry she'll be fine. I hope to see you in Nami-chuu uniform tomorrow!" He grinned as he ran back to the main building.
The white-haired teen stood there and sighed. There was a faint smirk on his face as he watched the two teens. "Mi chiedo se lei si ricorda di me..."
