A/N – Good evening everyone! I bet you didn't expect a new chapter tonight, huh? Well, guess what? This is for you guys! I really hope that by updating this chapter, I manage to grace a smile on someone lips. It makes me happy knowing my story could make someone happy~
First and foremost, I would like to say goodbye to Ramadhan. Hope to meet the season again next year. Not to forget to wish everyone a happy Aidilfitri! Please forgive me for whatever wrong doing that I had caused to you guys. I'm very sorry and I wish a happy life for you guys!
Alright, so let me help clear to those who reviewed me about the latest chapter:
To tarious123: Hold it there pal, Black Rock Shooter will come out as the last opponent XD After all, I have to save the best for last right? Be sure to catch some action between him andBlack Rock Shooter. The next chapter will be about Black Rock Shooter anyway. Yes, you guess it alright, Tsuna and his 'other self' will fuse but I made it different from the anime. I… twist it a little~ I hope you'll enjoy the surprise~
To shimpony: Hey there! Nice to meet a fellow muslim~ thanks for reviewing me. I hope you will enjoy this chapter.
To al ilmo nour: Yeah…. I still can't find a Beta reader so I have to do what I can do…. You should really check out the anime and games if you want a better details. I try to explain in as best as I can 'kay?
Well, I guess that's it. This chapter will be about Chariot but the next will be Black Rock Shooter. So I hope you guys are looking forward to that~
I so do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or Black Rock Shooter!
CHAPTER 7
Macaroons and Fears
Today had been a vexing and aching day for Tsuna, both for his heart and mind. I'll explain the entire ordeal from the beginning, shall I? After having a somewhat cordial tea with the girl known as White Rock Shooter, a rather strange name to call oneself in Tsuna's opinion, he woke up late in the morning gasping for breath. By the time he could calm himself down, he was having a hard time believing that his encounter with the girl wasn't a dream. But then he soon remembers after about his... Black persona. He unconsciously shivers at the thought of his dark counterpart. Somewhere in the back of his was screaming to him that it wasn't a dream. The girl and his counterpart had all been real. The brunette worriedly wonders whether he should do something about him. Based on the white haired girl's explanation, his counterpart was carrying his pain and sadness. Whatever that means. He made a decision to tell his home tutor about this. Reborn always believe him no matter how crazy things seem. Beside, keeping it from him was never a good idea. Reborn has a way of finding out people's secrets anyway.
Heaving a tired sigh, Tsuna stalked to the bathroom, praying that his dark self won't appear in the mirror again. He let out a small smile when he was greeted by his own reflection when he switch on the lights. Though Tsuna could always caught a glimpse of a black figure from the corner of his eyes; now he knows what it was. The cute brunette tries his best to ignore him. That was the first stressful moment, the second was his aching heart when his two best friends call him soon after. While he was cleaning his room, he receives some texts from the both of them.
At first he was over joy; they were asking about his well being and the usual stuff but then they started telling him more about their activities and how fun it was more than him. To make it worst, at the end of their texts, they both stated that it was Reborn who requested them to check up on him. Talk about a heart break! Tsuna thought that if it wasn't for Reborn, both Yamamato and Gokudera couldn't be bother to even text him since they're having so much fun doing their own things without his nuisance. Sad tears roll down his cheeks as he loyally replies to their texts, wishing the best for them. He could never abandon his friends but they were the ones that had abandoned him. His fragile heart was slowly breaking. Even if his family and friends does return, he would still be alone regardless. Just like all those years ago. Looks like he couldn't escape his nightmare no matter how much he willed it. Once his tears were all run out, the brunette tries to busy himself from the pain. He didn't want to feel this. He didn't want to feel so helpless and useless again.
He ran and ran forward. He didn't have much time anymore. Just now his apple had suddenly tainted even more all of the sudden. He could literally fell that his burden had gotten a lot stronger, thus making him stronger than before. If he left it unbothered, his 'human self' would soon succumb with grief. He would be damn if such thing should ever happen!
Unsatisfied with his current speed, he placed some pressure down on his soles and jump high above the spiked cliffs with a grace of a parkour athlete. Only two more he needs to find. Then afterwards, his ambition could finally be fulfilled and his 'human self' would finally be at peace...
Tsuna was despondently raking the leaves on his front yard when the mails arrive. Feeling heavier than ever, Tsuna went to retrieve the mails. He mildly scans it one by one until one blue coupon caught his interest. The rest were all bills. It was a coupon to all-you-can-eat sweets at a sweet shop that was located on the east side of Namimori. The expire day is tomorrow so Tsuna wanted to make use of it today. Cooping inside the quiet house won't do him good anyway. He went back doing his house chores before leaving his home. He had been doing that a lot recently, Tsuna notices. Before, he didn't see the point of going out unless his friends brought him along. As he walks to the sweet shop, he passes by the school. He stops for a moment to reminiscence the days he spends with his friends.
It wasn't like they didn't acknowledge him, no; they were too caught up with their own life. Yamamoto with baseball, Gokudera with his bombs experiments and Ryohei with the boxing club. As for his Mist guardians, he wasn't quite sure what they were doing. All he knows that they've been going on frequent mission based on what Reborn had told him. Hibari was being aloof as usual. His mother was too busy with the kids and Reborn have going on to Italy back and forth on the Ninth's order. Tsuna had never felt so alone in a crowded world before. 'Hibari-san must be napping somewhere as always' Tsuna thought with a sad smile. He tore away his gaze from the school and continues on with his destination. Many people were bustling around on the streets. It kinda reminds him of when he met with Saya. Tsuna wonders if the woman is in good health. He rounded a nearby market and the sweet shop was within his line of vision. It was a small yet humble shop and it wasn't that crowded – just what he needed right now. He faintly remembers Haru and Kyoko telling him that cakes would make any sadness disappear.
Maybe a slice of cake would do but he just had one with Yomi before. Tsuna enters the shop and the sweet aroma immediately fills his nose. It smells truly wonderful. The shop was filled with families, friends and couples. He feels slightly awkward eating here alone but he pushes the feeling away as he head to wide selection of sweets that were display on the counter. There were tiramisus, cakes, ice-creams, parfaits, truffles, pudding and so many more that it would make a girl's heart swoon with happiness. A smiling waitress approaches the brunette with a note pad and a pen in her hands. "Hello there! Can I get you anything?" She asks pleasantly. "I-I like to use this coupon please" Tsuna said with a small smile and handed her the blue paper. "So you're one of lucky customers! Well then, feel free to choose as many treats as you like since it's on the house" She teased, good naturedly. Tsuna felt himself relax because of the waitress warm hospitality. He scans the racks until he saw a line of rather colourful and mouth watering treats known as macaroons. "Ummm... I would like to have some of those..." He said while pointing to the macaroons.
"I see that you've got a nice taste. Please be seated for a moment while your food will be serve shortly" The waitress instructs. Tsuna nodded and went off to find an empty table. As he went away, the waitress couldn't help but saw that the adorable boy was smiling to her sadly. Good thing she has the cure for that! She giggles to herself and head into the kitchen. Meanwhile, Tsuna found a nice spot beside the window that gave him a perfect view outside. A pot of Madagascar Vanilla tea was served to him by a waiter which, at first sip taste simply heavenly and warm. He was never the one to drink any sort of tea until he met with the white haired girl. He now strangely enjoyed a cup of tea every now and then thanks to her. The Madagascar Vanilla also reminds Tsuna of her since it has a charming scent. 'She would definitely love this tea' He muses. The same waitress appears again with a huge bowl of a mountain of macaroons! "Here you go!" She said happily as she placed the giant bowl infront of him. The young Vongola Decimo sweat dropped at the sight of his mountain of sweets. He can't possibly eat all of it by himself! "I-Is this okay? I mean, I don't need these much of sweets..." Tsuna deadpanned. Seriously, he had never seen these much food before! "It's fine. Besides, it seems that you really need it" She reply and gave him a sympathetically smile before leaving him to tend to the other customers. Tsuna gap like a fish and turn to face the food again. Oh well, better get started. If there's still some left he could always pack it home with him. He doesn't like the idea wasting good food. He began to take a huge bite on one of the macaroons and it slowly makes him smile. The texture is so soft! The taste was really out of this world too! One by one, he began to get lost in his wonderful sweets delight.
There were all sort of taste that melted like butter under the hot sun in his mouth – Vanilla heaven, caramel 'fleur de Sel', cassis, cassisviolette, chestnut dream, chocolate coconut cream, chocolate passion fruit, milky coconut, crème brulee, dark chocolate delight, Dulce de Leche, espresso embrace, grapefruit lover, honey lavender, jasmine tea, lemon syrup, lychee rose, mango tango, matcha chestnut, matcha green tea, Mirabelle, mocha twist, strawberry lust, orange blossom, passion fruit sparkle, peanut butter and jelly, pineapple attack, pistachio ratio, pumpkin cinnamon, raisin rum, raspberry date, rhubarb charms, rose forever, seasonal chocolate, seasonal gingerbread, Tahini sesame, violette flower, wedding almond, white chocolate virgin, 4th of July, apricot surprise, cappuccino kiss and so on and so on. There were just so many! The customers of the shop could only watch in awe as the brunette munches away to his treats one by one without stopping. "This is really yummy!" Tsuna said between his bites of the macaroons. It manages to distract him a little. But then... it doesn't feel right. He imagine his friends enjoying the macaroons with him all of the sudden. The image tightens his heart painfully as his eating pace slows down. "Everyone..." He murmurs in disdain. His mind was heavily clouded as he ate the macaroons and fails to notice that he had caught an interest of a girl with beautiful long, gold hair.
He licks his lips as he cautiously enters the new world. His mouth tasted oddly... sweet. How 'bout that? The world's theme was pink-tinted. Many robotic, toy-like things seem to have claws and drills scattered about. There were many coloured blocks around and giant candies surrounding him. At the distance, he could see a house floating in the air, being suspended by strange strings-like objects. This place looks like a broken child's dream world. This world also implies desire and stubbornness. Each world held their resident's characteristic, that he knew. The sound of metal wheel screech echoes throughout the world. without warning He promptly stops and turns around.
Nothing. He relaxes a little and went to the direction of the house. The road to the floating house was clear of any broken toys or candies which alarms him. It gives his opponent a perfect place to attacks or ambushes him. He extends his left claw and a giant black drill materializes out of oblivion. He knew that his opponent was stalking him but he can't do anything unless she shows herself. This is her world, she could morph it to her advantages any time so he can't made a single mistake or it would cost him his life. Just like the time when he fought with Strength.
He stops suddenly at the sudden taste on his tongue. He licks his lips again. Mint? It tasted so awful. What have his 'human self' been eating? The loud sound of metal wheels screeching echoes again, snapping him from his daze, he also noted that only this time, it sounded closer. He turns to the left and saw an oncoming girl skating towards him in such amazing speed. The girl has pale skin and was wearing a dress with black and white tones. She wears a large black spiked crown on her head, as well as black claw-like gloves. Most notable thing is her choice of footwear: she wears black, metallic thigh highs with black and yellow wheels that were obviously her side weapon. Her eyes were circular yellow and her gaze was cold as ice, as if she was piercing right through his heart. She grips on her black and gold broad sword on her left while a gold spiked shield was on her right. He steels himself before dashing off to greet the girl. He ran with his buzzing, rotating drill; eyes were without fear. In a blink of an eye, sword and drill clashes together dramatically.
Tsuna continue to munch on his tasty treats none stop whilst his mind was in hazy disarray. His eyes slowly faded to white and his heart ache even more. There was this one flavour, mint, that startle the brunette badly. He frowns and quickly sips his tea. He hated mints. But then he continues to eat the macaroons lifelessly. He was just so... tired of feeling like this.
"Wow, 50 macaroons in one go? Not a good sign~" A sudden voice chirped amusedly, interrupting the boy's internal pain.
A young girl was suddenly near at his table. She was wearing a school uniform with her long curly blonde hair tied with a pink ribbon in a side ponytail on the right and donned with clips at the back of her hair. "Hey there! Mind if I sit here with you?" She asks, smiling brightly. Not sure at the moment, Tsuna quickly stutter, "S-Sure..." The blonde girl slips onto the vacant chair that was position infront of him. "My name is Izuriha Kagari but don't call me by my family name, kay?" She said childishly, lacing her fingers together and placing her chin on top. "Uuuuhhh..." Tsuna still wasn't quite in reality yet. He was still trying to shake the depression off him. Kagari giggle though Tsuna didn't know what she found worth giggling. Was it something on his face? "You're funny. So what's your name, sad eyes?" Tsuna blink twice because of his obliviousness. "Um... I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi" He introduce himself. Just who is this girl? She got spunk, he gave her that. He seriously didn't expect any pretty girl to suddenly introduce herself much less sitting on the same table with him. "You know, everytime when I'm sad, I always ate some macaroons. The colours always cheer me up. So spill it, Tsunayoshi-kun, what's troubling you for warranting such heaps of macaroons?" She teases but Tsuna could detect the concern in her tone. "A-Ah, actually the waitress gave me this much... I didn't intentionally order it so many" The brunette explain, laughing softly though his heart still ache. "Hmmm... Okay then!" She exclaim. "Excuse me! I'm ready for my order now!" She wave her hand, calling the attention of a random waiter.
Said waiter approach them with a pen and paper. "I would like some macaroons and I want the same amount like my new friend here" Kagari order and slip the waiter a pink piece of paper. Tsuna then realize it was the same coupon that he had used earlier. "I came here because I got a free coupon about this place in my mail box this morning. Although this town is quite far from mine, the macaroons are worth it" Said a rather joyful Kagari. "I see, but why did you order the same portions as me?" Tsuna ask curiously. Did the girl have a gluttonous appetite when it comes to her favourite food? "It's only fun when you share your pain with someone else right?" She replies with a knowing smile. The young caramel eye man flinch at her statement. So she knows that he was upset? Wow, was it that obvious? 'Way to go Tsuna... Because of you a girl got drag into your mess' He mentally scolded himself. Kagari's heaping pile of macaroons arrives and the girl thanks the waiter before munching on her treats happily. "You don't have to tell me your problems if you don't want to. Being with somebody who's willing to stick at your side throughout the ordeal is enough" She explains in between her bites. Tsuna slowly cast his head down and he pushes the bowl of macaroons further infront. Kagari paused her eating and manoeuvre her neck slightly to the left. Her new found friend wasn't eating anymore. This is bad in her book. That means that the macaroons weren't enough to cheer him up.
"Emergency! I need more macaroons over here! Tsunayoshi-kun isn't cheering up!" She shouted in panic. Tsuna immediately raises his head because of the Kagari's sudden outburst. "I-It's fine Kagari-chan! The macaroons are more than enough!" The boy quickly stammers while blushing hard. Everybody is watching them... "But you're still unhappy Tsunayoshi-kun..." She noted, confuse. Tsuna heave a tired sigh. It true. No matter how much he tries to lessen his sadness, it just keeps coming back. "I'm sad because my friends don't need me anymore, Kagari-chan..." Tsuna begin to explain. The blonde girl may be a stranger before but she's now a friend, like she just claimed and she deserve to know why he was unhappy. After all, she plan to enjoy her treats today but she came to sit with him when she saw that he was painfully upset. "I'm useless and a nuisance. Before I met my friends, I was always alone and tend to get bullied often and now I'm back to square one. On the day I met them, I hope every single day that I won't ever be alone again but now... they've left me" Tsuna explain softly, so softly that even he could barely hear it.
It hurts when he said it in his mind but now? It was even more aching. It wasn't like when he first met Saya. At that time, he was struggling not to let her see his tears but now, no matter how painful he feels, his tears refuse to trickle down. It was as if his heart is slowly turning into a beating stone. A pair of slim arms suddenly wraps around his shoulder and pulls him closer to the other's body. "I can understand how hurt Tsunayoshi-kun is now... I used to think that I was alone too... my only childhood friend left me when we were little and because of that, I got into an accident. I was bound to a wheel chair because I deluded myself that I simply cannot survive without her at my side. But then she shows me the outside world and then I realized that you can move on from the past. Because of her, I found lots of new friends. I was happy" Kagari tells him gently. Tsuna blush a nice cherry red when he realized that Kagari had suddenly embrace him. Not to mention that the stares from everyone was seriously embarrassing, but the girl didn't seem to mind it. "I can help Tsunayoshi-kun if he wants. I'll show you that you can be happy with a new friend" Kagari promise soothingly though her eyes were fiery with determination. Loosing himself from her comforting embrace, Tsuna look up to Kagari, noticing her worried expression. He then slowly gave her a sincere smile. "I think I already am..."
Sparks fly as the two weapons collided. Both were pushing extreme force against each other while holding their ground at the same time. The metal wheels screeching even more loudly as he struggle to break her barrier. The 2 beings stare into each other eyes coldly, unwavering yet empty. He had enough of this. He spun his right foot in a clean arc and kicks the girl's face with inhumane strength, ramming her into one of her broken toys. Not wasting anytime, he morphs the drill into a huge explosive firearm. One that is able to shoot powerful explosive orb of flames every 5 second per shoot. He waited for a moving figure; his eye was position behind the sniper scope. His 'human self' may not skills in using various firearms, but he could. The girl burst out into the open and skates dangerously fast towards him. He began to shoot one at a time since the weapon need to reload every 5 seconds. Although he had a good target lock at the girl, she was too agile and quick for him to actually shoot her. The explosions cause the world to quake but even that didn't stop the fight. He shoots straight at the girl and the flames exploded. The explosion was similar to a star burst into tiny particles. It was just that powerful.
Thick black smoke curtains his view of the girl but even so, he refuse to relaxes from his pose. The sound of her wheels result him gripping his claws on the trigger even tightly. The girl shoves the black smoke away with her spiked shield infront of her. It seems she managed to protect herself from his flames just nanoseconds before it could any critical damage to her. Seeing that his previous attacks were barely effective, the explosive firearms disappear as quickly as it appears only to be replaces by a sharp, gleaming katana. Without any hesitation what so ever, he dives towards the girl planning on slashing her and would debilitate her but alas, as they were in a mid of the fierce fight, they were suddenly immobilize unwillingly.
"I can help Tsunayoshi-kun if he wants. I'll show you that you can be happy with a new friend"
"I think I already am..."
The voices echo throughout the hollow world. His eyes widen. That was the voice of his 'human self'. It was clear and smooth. He guessed that the female voice was the girl's 'human self'. He also notices that the burden that was suddenly thrust upon him had lifted albeit a little... so it was her doing. He stood up and offers his claw at the girl. Well, there's no point in fighting anymore since he now know of her intentions. However, the girl did something that he never expected; she hugs him. The hug surprises him slightly but then his shoulder relaxes. The girl, now he knows is Chariot, releases him and draws back. Now is time for the final stage with the final opponent. Like White Rock Shooter warned him, she would prove to be the most powerful opponent that he had ever faced.
A/N - Done and done! Alright! That's it for this chapter! I had to do some research about the flavour of the macaroons. I was so surprise that there was just so MANY! I recently bought some today to try for the first time and I got to say... It isn't half bad~ The colours were very bright and cheerful :)
Urgh, It's already midnight at my place now. I seriously need to go to bed soon. So what do you think of this chapter? I really hope you had fun reading it as much I had fun making it!
Please kindly leave some reviews 'kay? I'll update the new chapter very soon. Since it's a school break, I can at least upload some more new chapters for you guys. That is, if I got some feedback :) I would like to know what you think of this chapter~
That's it for today's show folks! See you real soon~ Goodbye and goodnight! I'm out of here XD
