The four kids from the future slowly entered Lambo's hospital room, each of them carrying a flower for the comatose boy.
"Oh, Abel-kun, Percy-kun, Belial-chan, Amber-chan, how kind of you to come visit. I'm sure Lambo-chan would be happy too," said Nana smiling at the kids, "And you brought flowers!"
"I brought a Daffodil because they can represent respect," said Abel putting his in a vase.
His sister went next, "I chose a Daisy because it's a cheery flower."
"I…" said Percy blushing slightly adding his, "Chose a lotus flower cause I think they're cool and nice looking…"
"He doesn't want to admit that Lotuses are his favorite flower. As for me I chose the Spider Lily, a tribute to my Japanese ancestors," said Amber adding hers.
"You kids are so sweet," said Nana smiling at them.
As the four left the hospital Belial thought about the first time she met Amber…
FLASHBACK…
Six year old Belial Vizzini sighed, why did she have to attend this stupid Christmas Party. There was no one for her to play with. Sure her brother and cousin as well as her brother's best friend were there but they were all boys. Twelve year old Abel and Percy, and nine year old Damien were playing with actions figures and wouldn't her join in. What's worse she hated the dress she had to wear.
The doors opened again and a couple walked in, the announcer said, "Announcing the 11th Vongola Family outside advisor and his family."
'Family? All I see is a lady with him,' thought the youngest Varia leader's child.
As the two adults came down the stairs into the room, Belial noticed a child peaking out from behind the woman's skirt. As they got closer she noticed the other child was wearing a dress too which meant she was a girl.
"Mommy! I don't wanna stay in the kiddy area...I wanna stay with you and daddy!" the girl whined, tugging on her mother's skirt.
The man smiled at his daughter, knelt down, and said, "But Amber my little kitten, you'll have more fun here with the other kids. You don't wanna listen to us have boring grown up talks do you?"
"Then why don't you stay here too, Daddy?" asked the girl, now known as Amber, blinking her fossilized sap colored eyes at her father making her mother laugh.
"Oh, Sandro! Tayune! You came! And this must be little Amber," Belial watched as her own mother approach the trio.
"Hello Xiana-sama," said the woman named Tayune.
"Good to see you," said Sandro, "Amber, don't you want to greet her?"
Amber shook her head and hid her face in her mother's dress.
"Sorry, Amber's just shy. We did recently move back into this part of Italy," said Tayune.
Xiana knelt down to Amber's level, "You know I have a daughter about your age, would you like to meet her?"
"Uh-huh," Amber nodded letting Xiana lead her to the kiddy area.
"Belial, come here," she called.
"What is it Mama?" asked the young blond.
"I want you to meet Amber, she just moved into this part of Italy," answered the Varia leader.
"Hello, my name's Amber," said Amber.
"Hi, I'm Belial, wanna play with me?"
"Sure!"
END FLASHACK
After that night the two girls became the best of friends.
THAT NIGHT...
Because it was time for Gokudera's battle to start, Reborn called for a time out and Basil escorted Tsuna. Abel, Belial, Percy, Amber and Reborn from the train ride back to Namimori and are on their way to the school.
"It's finally Gokudera's match," said Reborn.
"Then, what's the beef on Gokudera's opponent, Bel, Xanxus called him," asked Tsuna.
"His full name is Belphegor, who is referred to by others as 'Prince the Ripper,'" answered Reborn.
"Like 'Jack the Ripper'?" Belial asked, trying to keep her act up for the sake of Tsuna and Basil.
"He got the name because he loves to rip people apart," added Reborn.
"Yuck!" said Percy who preferred a clean kill.
"You sure it's not like Jack the Ripper, just without the lust part?" Belial asked again.
"Seems like he really has the bloodline of some royalty," Reborn continued, ignoring Belial's question,
"He's uniquely gifted eccentric who joined the Varia because he didn't know what else to do with himself."
"I have heard Master mention this," Basil said, "If one only looked at the battle skills, Belphegor is the most talented in the Varia."
"Then I guess he's a crazy prince, this Belphegor," commented Amber sounding worried.
"You're concerned about whether Gokudera will survive or not?" Reborn asked.
"Yeah..." replied Tsuna as the four from the future nodded.
"Have some faith in Gokudera and it's a nice nick name for Belphagor," commented Reborn.
"Hey. When you're on a team, if you don't trust your friends, you'll all die," snapped Percy.
"Yo," greeted Yamamoto as Tsuna and Basil walked onto school grounds.
"Yamamoto, Ryohei," Tsuna replied, seeing the two at the gates. "But where's Gokudera? Last minute show?"
"Well, I thought he would be coming with you guys," answered Yamamoto as Reborn hopped onto his shoulder.
"He's not here yet," added Ryohei.
"That's doesn't sound like him," said Percy.
"What's going on, Reborn?" asked Tsuna.
"Maybe he was stopped by Shamal," Reborn answered, "It's impossible for Shamal to let his disciple enter a battle without any chance of winning. Probably his new move isn't complete yet."
"Then it's a last minute show-up," concluded Amber, "Let's go."
Abel led the way to where the school was lit up. They saw that the Varia members and the Cervello were
already there.
"Ehh…? Today's match is indoors?" said Tsuna.
"But Gokudera-dono is…" Basil started.
"What is that Octopus Head doing…?" Ryohei wondered.
"He will come for sure, just like what Amber said, a last minute show-up," Yamamoto reassured everyone.
"So what if he runs away?" Belphegor wondered. "He'll be killed away when they all lose the Rings battle."
"When that clock points to 11 o' clock, Gokudera Hayato will be disqualified," answered the Cervello, gesturing towards the clock inside a classroom, "and Belphegor will win by default."
Now almost 10 seconds have passed and Hayato still hasn't shown up. The suspense of waiting for Hayato was suffocating his team as well as the spectators from another time. 9 seconds. 8 seconds. 7 seconds. 6 seconds. 5, 4, 3, 2, Boom! The clock was blasted.
"Sorry for the long wait, Tenth!" exclaimed Gokudera, coming onto the floor behind his team. "Gokudera
Hayato has arrived!" Gokudera has bandages wrapped around his chest, torso and hands. He wore a belt that held his bombs.
And his Vongola Half ring was hung around his neck by a chain, worn like a necklace.
"Gokudera," Tsuna replied.
"Octopus Head!" Ryohei shouted.
"He looks half dead..." said Percy
"Because you arrived before the arranged time," the Cervello said, "we acknowledge your qualification to
participate in this match."
"Good!" commented Ryohei.
"You scared us to death," Yamamoto told Gokudera. "You look well—Did you oversleep?"
"That's impossible!" Gokudera replied. Turning to Tsuna, "Sorry I'm late, Tenth! It took some time to prepare."
Tsuna just nodded while Amber ruffled his hair with both of her hands, "You really scared us."
"I thought you got scared and ran away," said Squalo.
"I think he should have ran, though," argued Marmon. "His opponent is Bel, after all."
"Then, we will now explain the battle field," announced the Cervello. "But before that, please allow me to
report that due to injury, we had no choice but to make a substitution for one of us."
"Nice to meet you," said the other Cervello girl.
"She looks exactly like the one who was hurt," commented Ryohei.
"No, she doesn't; she just dressed like the other one," Belial replied.
"You can tell the difference between this one and the other one, Belial?" asked Yamamoto.
"I'm honored that you can tell the difference between me and the absent judge, young lady," said the Substitute Cervello.
"There are a lot of people who look similar in the Cervello Organization, but there are differences that you can tell," Abel explained.
"Really? I can't tell," Basil replied.
"I can," said Percy.
"It's like the Nurse Joys and Officer Jennys in Pokemon," Amber added.
"Your eyes are better than mine," Reborn said.
"The battle field for tonight," the Cervello went on, "is the entire third floor of the school building. Of course that includes the Eastern Building that is connected with this building as well. Not only the hallway, but all the classrooms on this floor included."
'Good…' Gokudera thought, 'I like a location that has a lot of obstacles.'
"However," the Cervello added. Then rattling noises echoed on the floor. The rattling noise continued until the classroom desks crashed the door and windows, out into the courtyard.
"Just be glad Hibari isn't here to witness this," Percy commented.
"In various places on the field," the Cervello continued, the substitute pushing something on a cart to show everyone what caused the desks to be blown off the floor, "we have installed this hurricane turbine."
"Hurricane turbine?" Gokudera repeated.
"The hurricane turbine has four openings used for producing winds," the Cervello explained. "It's a storm device that can blow a super strong wind randomly from the four openings."
"So it truly is a field of storms," commented Basil.
"If the wind hits you directly, it'd be possible to be blown outside…!" exclaimed Ryohei.
"That's overdoing it…" Yamamoto added.
"Hibari would kill everybody on site for letting this happen to the school," Tsuna commented.
The Cervello went on, "And this battle has a time limit. Unless either of you complete the Ring of Storm and possess it within 15 minutes after the start of the match. The time bomb installed in the hurricane turbines will explode one by one and blow up the entire floor."
"And if the match's result cannot be determined?" Tsuna asked.
"They will probably die," answered the Cervello. "That means neither of them qualified for the position of Guardian of the Storm. I'm sorry, but that's one of the rules for the Storm battle."
The four time travelers sweatdropped.
"Ok...Hibari-san will kill everyone on site and every member in the Cervello," commented Abel.
"In the worst case, they wouldn't even care if the Ring of Storm were destroyed or not," added Reborn,
"The only person that thinks the Rings of the Guardians don't matter…is probably him."
"Who? Xanxus?" asked Tsuna.
"Looks like he became serious," replied Reborn.
"Hiiiiiieeeeee!" cried Tsuna
"A death match…" Gokudera finally said. "Doesn't that sound interesting?"
"Hrm? What was that sound of windows shattering just now?" asked a new voice," Is anyone hurt?" Shamal, the new voice, fondled the two Carville's breasts.
The Cervello slammed their elbows into Shamal's face, making him let go of them and crashing into the
wall, "Ah, they're good. This elasticity is a sign of good health."
"Oh, Doctor Shamal," greeted Tsuna.
"Did that brat say 'Shamal'?" Squalo asked.
"Trident Shamal…"said Marmon. "Rumor is that he was to be recruited by the Varia two generations ago—Varia had meant to gain him, but he refused…"
"Shamal's that old?" asked Abel.
"What the hell are you doing here!" Gokudera demanded.
"And how old are you if the Varia tried to recruit you two generations ago?" Belial asked, overhearing what Marmon had said about Shamal.
"Well…you see, I heard the sounds of windows shattering," answered Shamal, getting up on his feet, "and thought someone might be hurt, so I came. I thought I'd see your match in jest, too."
"Damn," Gokudera replied.
"And so, I'm on this side," Shamal told the Varia, "Don't let me hold up the festivities!"
"Oh? Shamal is on their side," said Marmon.
"Dino, Colonello, plus Shamal…" Squalo listed off the people on the Vongola side. "Why are such skilled people gathered over there…What the hell is going on? Is it because of that Arcobaleno again…?" By that Arcobaleno, he meant Reborn.
"Nevertheless, it looks like we can a little fun," Belphagor finally said after a while, "with today's match opponent."
"Good. Then let's start the usual before the match!" Ryohei exclaimed, getting Gokudera.
"What! Hey, wait!" Gokudera protested as Ryohei grabbed him. "I don't want to! Such embarrassing stuff! I don't need to do that before my match!"
"Gokudera, don't say that," Tsuna told Gokudera. "Let's do this."
"What!" Gokudera asked.
Tsuna replied, "Well, I don't want to lose anyone, so it's better if everyone acted as a group. That's why this huddle shows our teamwork, I think."
"Tenth, you were this considerate for the Family…" Gokudera said. "Why didn't I understand it at all! Let's do it then! Please let me!"
"That's good. Let's do it," Tsuna replied as Gokudera bowed to him.
"Let this join, too," Reborn added, throwing Tsuna something.
Tsuna caught it. "That is the cloth that fell from that dumb cow's tail," Reborn explained, "when he was battling yesterday…"
"Right, Lambo," Tsuna replied.
"Doesn't it remind you of the days when that dumb cow was still around?" he asked.
"Don't jinx him by talking as if he's already dead!" Tsuna demanded.
"But I think it's great," commented Yamamoto. "Let Lambo join the circle too."
"Even though he's a dumb cow, he's still better than nothing," Gokudera put in.
"Even though he's not here, he's with us in spirit," added Ryohei.
"That's right," Tsuna replied.
The four boys formed a circle. Reborn got off Yamamoto's shoulder for this. "Gokudera, Fight! OOOH!" they shouted.
"Oh, oh. These young ones are so embarrassing," commented Shamal, though he meant it as a compliment because they know the definition of a team, as the other four tried to hide their amusement.
"Then the two of you, please come to the middle," the Cervello called the Storm Guardians.
"I will never bring disgrace to the title of Tenth's right hand man!" Gokudera told Tsuna.
Tsuna replied, "Don't force yourself."
Tsuna and the others went off to the bleachers inside the building where the Cervello told them to go. The Varia did the same as their Bel went to the Cervello.
"By the way," the Cervello said, "since this battle area is too enormous, we've installed video cameras in every classroom. You can observe the match at the bleachers beside the school building. At the same time, in order to prevent interference to the match and to keep spectators safe, an infrared ray sensor device is set up between the bleachers and the battle area."
Tsuna saw that the bleachers were just a room with three TVs attached to the ceiling so everyone can see from three different views and the sensors were on.
"Cool!" said Amber pulling out a bag of popcorn while Belial held up a soda cup.
"This isn't a show!" cried Tsuna.
"They were just trying to lighten the mood," Percy told the Tenth putting a hand on the shorter male's shoulder.
"We've confirmed that they both have their halves of the Half Vongola Rings," announced the Cervello, each inspecting the Half Rings.
"Ushishishi, I heard you use bombs?" Belphagor asked. "Well, I guess it's obvious just by looking at you…Don't be so nervous; take a load off your shoulders. Ushishi." Belphagor placed his hand on Hayato's shoulder.
'I definitely won't lose!' Hayato thought. 'I don't care if you're a genius or not…!' Hayato thought back to Tsuna's words after the Thunder fight and before this:
I wanted to say this after yesterday's battle. 'No matter how important they are said to be, the Vongola Rings, the position for the next boss, I will not battle for such things. However, I don't want my friends to be hurt. Well, I really don't want to lose anyone, so it's better if everyone acted as a group. That's why I feel that this act helps prove our teamwork.'
Hayato thought, 'I will win and prove that no one else is more worthy of becoming the boss of Vongola.'
Bel walked away from him.
"Then for the Ring of Storm, Belphagor VS. Gokudera Hayato. Begin the match!" announced the Cervello.
Hayato threw a couple bombs at Belphagor.
"The fuse is so short," Belphagor commented. The bombs blasted, creating a smoke screen between the two.
Hayato jumped back from the smoke. 'I'll observe the situation first. What will he do?' Hayato saw something glitter in the smoke and saw that surrounding him in a circle were knives, floating in midair, aiming to strike him. Hayato quickly dodged all of them.
"I advise you, it's better not to play any tricks," said Belphagor. The smoke screen was fading. "Do you know who your opponent is?"
"They've said it well: 'Varia Quality'," commented Shamal in the spectator room, "There is no time for you to relax."
From the safety of the stands room the group watched the fight.
"Crap…" said Percy looking at his watch, "They're almost out of time."
As he spoke the first of the devices exploded.
"Gokudera-kun!" cried the Vongola family members minus Ryohei.
"Octopus head!" Ryohei cried
"Gokudera-dono!" was what came out of Basil's mouth.
"Gokudera-san!" whined the four from another time.
In the end Gokudera chose life over victory.
"I wanted to see the fireworks again…" he said when he joined the rest of the group.
TBC