"Personally, I don't understand you at all."


"Dying will flames?"

The term was familiar to Asuka, but she didn't exactly know what it was. Was it the flames that Tsuna had somehow concocted using his gloves during the fight with Mukuro? Fon nodded, pushing a steaming bowl of oden towards her. They were currently in the middle of the streets, and Fon was in his strange disguise once more.

"The dying will flames are the embodiment of one's life force. It can be compared to an aura, and different flames have different properties." Seeing her confused expression, Fon tried a more familiar comparison. "It is similar to chi, a strong life force results in a lively and alert mind, while a weak force results in sluggishness."

"Alright, but what does that have to do with the current situation?"

Fon smiled. "It has everything to do with the situation. You see, there are eight different flames, and the ring you wear embodies one of them, the wind flames. You were chosen to become a guardian because of your affinity with the flame, exactly like how Tsunayoshi-kun was chosen to become the Sky."

"The Sky?"

"The flames are based off of the Sky and it's elements. The Storm, Rain, Sun, Lightning, Mist, Cloud, and Wind. In a way, they also reflect one's personality and nature. If you'd like a more detailed explanation, I believe Reborn would be more than happy to indulge you with the history of the flames."

"How about you?"

"I am a Storm."

"Storm? That doesn't seem to fit you.."

"A Storm is relentless and harsh. Would you like me to prove to you that I am?"

"... No, it's alright, I'll pass."


"You're so strange. Always changing whenever I see you."


Asuka was walking home from her tutoring session with Fon with an array of fresh new bruises.

She once said she would never trust babies in suits ever again. And now, it would apply to the robed baby as well. He was small. Barely tall enough to reach her knees, and yet, she had been beaten like a bowl of fresh eggs.

When she neared the park, a small explosion -those seemed to occur a lot more lately- drew her attention and she immediately went towards it. She then deemed it a horrible decision on her behalf, as she was faced with her brother and his friends and a strange group of intimidating individuals dressed in black. The atmosphere was strained and apprehensive, and her skin crawled from the killing intent rolling off of the men.

Though her initial plan was to stay still and step in only when necessary, again, luck was not on her side. One of the people in black noticed her presence right away, and a grin spread on their face. Before she could react, the person -a boy her age- appeared right in front of her. Upon their close proximity, she took in his appearance. His hair was a pale ash brown, and his skin was equally as pale. His light blue eyes were staring challengingly into her own. He would have actually been quite nice to look at if it weren't for the strange red teardrop tattoo under his eye.

Her hands twitched as the boy took a lock of her hair in his hands and smiled.

"You have something I want, bella."

Asuka felt cold metal on her neck, and the boy's smile turned sinister. She could hear Tsuna and the others yell out in alarm, and from the corner of her vision, she could see a man -had she seen him before?- whose hand was ignited with flames. The one second of distraction was enough to pull her attention away from the boy.

"Don't mind if I take it right?"

The moment the blade was about to puncture her skin, the unmistakable, resonating voice of her father halted all movement within the area. The metal left her skin, the flames from his hands dissipated, and her father stepped out into the clearing with some others dressed in suits.

"That's enough, Xanxus. From here on, I'll take charge of things."

Her grip on her cane eased, but the boy in front of her didn't move away. Instead, he turned away from the group and gave her another smile, this time, a jovial and carefree one. If anything, it seemed as if he didn't just attempt to pierce her neck, but as if they were friends. It was unnerving, to say the least. But then, she heard her father explain his involvement in regards to the situation, and a look of surprise appeared on her face when she heard his position in the Vongola. After he had given her the ring, she had expected him to be somewhat important, but her expectations nowhere as close to what he said he was.

"You didn't know, bella? That your papa was part of the Vongola?" The boy next to her glanced at her with a strange look. "He did a lot of things, you know. Good and bad. More bad than good, in my opinion." His hand, the one without the metal claw, came up to his face and stroked his chin. "He's annoying, and always messes with us."

He took her hand into his, and Asuka was unable to pull away from his bruising grip. The eerie smile came back as he traced the ring on her finger, revealing his own. "See, bella? There are two, and they will be mine." His eyes flickered up to look at hers once more. "But I don't want to carve up such a pretty bella, so I'll give you one chance to give it to me, va bene?"

Grimacing at his vice grip, she used all her might to pull her wrist away, before giving him a hard gaze. She was about to reply when her father interrupted.

"Those who wield the same type of ring will fight in a one-on-one battle."

Her eyes widened as she has no idea what was going on due to the boy's constant interruptions. The said boy grinned again and hummed to himself in amusement.

"Hm… Then I'll be fighting the bella? Well, I gave you a merciful chance, but you didn't take it, so it seems fair, yes?"

He started to walk towards the group, who were called the Varia if she remembered correctly. Before he reached them, he turned around and gave a small wave.

"I forgot to introduce myself. Raphael is my name. I'll see you later, bella."


"It's sort of annoying, actually. I can never know whether you're lying or not."


The wind was cool on her burning, sweating skin.

Her hands were wrapped tight around her cane, which was in the form of a glaive. After the fight with Mukuro, she had asked Reborn about the extended blade, in which he replied, "Just a small precaution." So she dismissed it and went along with it. The once unmarred trees and foliage in the forest were now littered with scars from the blade and dents from her kicks.

A thousand times, Fon had told her. A kick and swing practiced a thousand times each would satisfy him. And so ten thousand marks cluttered the trees. Ten thousand indents strewn across the forest.

Then he told her to be at ease, to calm her mind. And so she sat on the grass, closing her eyes and pacifying her heart. While she was resting, he had sat in front of her and told her about her flame.

Similar to lightning flames, wind flames can be used offensively and defensively. Annihilation and cultivation. Total destruction or refining nourishment. A catastrophic gale during a storm or a soft, caressing breeze at midday.

She could be both. She was both.


"Me? Of course I do. Isn't lying what humans love to do the most?"


Her eyes followed the movement of the two men as they fought in the bright ring. They both had beautiful forms, especially the one from the Varia.

It was a rather one-sided and unfair fight, as he had sunglasses while Ryohei did not. The Varia were laughing maniacally at them, spouting nonsense about how he'd never beat them. She grimaced when his fist shattered against the metal knee of the other one. Again, unfair and one-sided, though it was expected from such cruel people.

A sigh left her mouth and she ran her hand through her hair. She looked away, not wanting to watch any longer. She could tell that Tsuna and the others were tense. It was natural that they would be, but was the trust they had in each other so miniscule that it would be like this? Patting her shaken brother on the back, she gave him a small smile and told him that Ryohei wasn't the type to give up.

It'd be wrong if she said that he would be okay, or that they should believe that he would win. It was one thing to encourage people, but it was another to give false hope. But that would make her quite the hypocrite, wouldn't it?

And then she heard the loud shattering of glass, and turned her head towards the significantly dimmed ring. She took off her sunglasses and squinted to see shiny crystal like structures in the air. She was impressed, maybe a bit baffled, that a person like him was able to think of something like that and use it to his advantage. A risky strategy, but a strategy no less.

But it seemed that it would take more than simply strategizing to defeat the Varia. His opponent performed the same feat, and easily crushed his other fist with his knee. A sudden cry took her attention off the match, and she found Sasagawa Kyoko and another girl standing near them. The disapproving, panicked look on the girl's face when she pleaded her brother not to fight caused Asuka's stomach to churn.

The girl shouldn't say such a thing when her brother thrives off of the excitement of fighting. As a sister, she could sympathize, but how could the girl understand their situation as it was? How could she fathom the depth of their circumstances?

She acknowledged herself as a hypocrite, and that would never change, even to the grave.


"But if it's you, then I don't really mind."


He was five.

Five years old.

And now he was being forced into a death match with an experienced assassin.

Asuka had thought that the mafia was disgusting and cruel before, but her contempt increased tenfold at the words of the judges. Perhaps this was why Mukuro had so loathed this world. It was inhuman not only to adults, but to harmless children who did nothing wrong. If this was his reason, then she could, she did, understand his motives. Whatever spurred his intents must have been sickening.

Her fingernails dug into skin as the man kept hitting Lambo like a ragdoll. He was five. Fucking five. A person who would willingly do such abhorring things to a child was lower than vermin. She was tempted to go slaughter the man right then and there, but held back her revulsion as Lambo pulled out a familiar purple weapon and launched it at himself. Smoke filled the arena before revealing an older Lambo, the one she had saw in the future.

But she could tell in one glance that he was still to naive and weak to face that poor excuse of a human being. Her thought was proved correct as multiple parabolas surrounded and shocked him with currents of electricity. Though, she hadn't expected him to pull out the bazooka once more.

Once again, the area filled with purple smoke, and revealed a different man.

This time, she could tell he was not the Lambo she knew. He was not naive, not childish, not carefree. She could see the solemnity of this man. It was one that was caused by the exposure to things bleak and dark.

Her eyes met his downcast eyes. She did not want to understand the sorrow behind them. A small, wistful smile pulled at his lips.

"It's been a while, sorellona."


"Hm? What do I mean? Haha! Nothing, nothing."


He couldn't make it in time.

Time waited for no one, and Lambo was no exception.

Before his attack could hit the man, smoke enveloped him once more and five year old Lambo was back.

Unprecedented rage filled her as the man resumed brutally assaulting the child, with no remorse or guilt, only anger and humiliation. She took one step. One step to decimate the man and feed him to the animals in the sewers. But she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"Now, now, bella, don't be hasty."

Raphael stood next to her, ignoring the glares and looks he was receiving from her father and the rest of the family.

"As much as I don't want to hurt the bella too much, I want to fight you. So don't get your ring confiscated, bene?" A smile appeared on his face. "And your fratellino has already gone to stop Levi, so no need to step in."

As he had said, she saw that Tsuna had disappeared from her side and gone to stop the man from mauling Lambo any further. A bright, orange flame flickered proudly on his forehead, and she was once again reminded of how far her little brother had come.

But that rage flared once again as Tsuna was hurled to the other side of the roof by the man who claimed to be the boss. If not for Raphael, she would have decapitated him with one strike of her glaive. She would have replaced that bloodthirsty smirk with a blood smeared face.

She would force him on his knees and apologize. She would not have mercy on him. He did not deserve such kindness from her.

She was not as kind as one might think. She was not as forgiving as her brother, who held no grudges. She may have forgiven, but she did not forget.


"Anyways, I'll ask you one more time."


"You're leaving already?"

Asuka stood at her parents door, watching her father put on a black tie in front of the mirror. She knew from yesterday why he had to leave. The Ninth, his boss, might be in grave danger because of the man Xanxus, and as the external advisor of the Vongola, he had to go back to Italy to find the Ninth.

She would be lying if she said she wasn't disappointed that he had to leave so soon.

"Yeah. I have to make sure Xanxus didn't do anything to the Ninth."

Only the sound of rustling clothes and papers were heard as Iemitsu placed documents and folders in a small black case.

"When are you coming back?"

She had meant to say, 'Will you come back?'. But it had seemed too desperate for her. ...It was normal, right?

Her father, all dressed and ready to go, came up to her and smiled softly. A large, calloused hand came up to ruffle her hair dotingly.

"Don't worry, I'll be back soon."

He placed a quick kiss on her forehead and left her standing alone.

"...Come home soon, Papa."


"Will you come with me?"


"Fon, can you teach me your style?"

The red clad baby looked at his temporary pupil in mild surprise. He had somewhat expected a request like this, but there was simply no time. It could be her turn to fight tomorrow, and teaching her would be no use. His style was difficult, downright backbreaking and hellish to achieve and perfect. But it return, it was invincible, a masterpiece in its own.

Though, from what he had heard about her opponent from Reborn, her current abilities would prove inefficient against a seasoned fighter.

"... I can. But will you be able to do it in the time that we have?"

"It's alright. I can skip the battles to practice." The word "skip" felt foreign on her tongue, but Reborn said that it would be fine, since Tsuna would also have to skip in order to perfect the technique he was learning.

"It's extremely strenuous on the body. Can you handle it?"

"You never know unless you try, right?"

Fon had to admit, that of all the students he had ever taken under his wing, Asuka was his favorite. Her potential was bottomless, and her natural abilities were remarkable. Her will to learn and process new techniques and forms far exceeded others. She was constantly improving, always striving and taking a step more than anyone else.

She was quite the admirable person.

"We'll start today then. There's no time to waste."

A natural born wind, he supposed.

"Say, have you ever heard about the Arcobaleno?"


"..."


"Sawada Asuka."

When she turned around, she had expected a man in a hideous green uniform holding a trident in his hand. She had not expected a girl who looked strangely identical to him.

"I thought you were a male?"

"Kufufu… As amusing as always." The girl smiled, again it was identical to his. "She is simply my new vessel, as I am occupied in a prison."

The girl sat down on the seat in front of her. "I've come to secure my end of a favor. I'm sure you are aware with the circumstances of your recovery, are you not?"

So, he was the one after all. She had her suspicions after the doctors blabbed to her about the miraculously impossible feats of her regenerated organs and bones, and it seemed that her intuition was correct. She leaned her cheek on her palm, waiting for her/him to speak.

"This girl's name is Nagi, though she'd most likely prefer that you call her Chrome. She became my vessel after an accident that severely damaged her internal organs. I was able to use my illusions to create organs to support her body, but it does not change the fact that she is still physically weak." Her hands clasped together and her chin rested on her fingers. The ring on her finger did not go unnoticed by Asuka. "So I'd like you to make sure nothing happens to her, since I cannot do much in this state. All you have to do is make sure that she is not too badly harmed, and that she is well taken care of. It's quite a fair proposal."

"...Alright."

Chrome, or Mukuro, smiled at her. "Then you have my acknowledgement."

Strange, he couldn't even say 'thanks' or 'gratitude'. "But," Her eyes stared at her in question. "Tell me, why do you want to destroy this world so badly? Is it because they did something to you?" Her eyes hardened, and Asuka knew she hit the nail in the head.

"I never did explain my reasons, did I? Well, since being stuck in a tank of water can be quite the bore, I'll humor myself by telling you then. Though, it's quite the tearjerker if I do say so myself."

Asuka rolled her eyes. "I'll be sure to cry a few tears then." She hummed in response.

"A long time ago, I was taken by a family called the Estraneo. They were rather cruel; human experimentation was their forte, after all. The subjects were mostly, if not all, children. We were tested on each day, given drugs and vaccines to test, and were abused in every way possible. The weak ones died within the first few tests, while the stronger ones were exposed to even more pain and suffering. Strange, isn't it? They say that only the strong will survive, but in reality, they only suffer more." Her hand touched the black eyepatch over her eye. "It was through the experiments that I received this eye, this power. So I swore that I'd destroy the mafia and the rest of the world with this power."

"Why the world? Why not just the mafia?"

"Because they did nothing to stop it. The things that the mafia do are not secrets to the government. And yet, they did nothing to stop the loathsome deeds. Absolutely nothing. Do you think they should be punished? For letting innocent children suffer and die?"

No, they deserved retribution as well.

"Tell me, what would you do?"

She understood him. His actions. Though it did not justify the pain he caused for her brother, it broadened her perception of this world. She saw now, the brutality, the ruthlessness, of humanity.


"That's fine. But if you ever want to leave, I'll be right there, okay?"


At two, he was abandoned.

At four, he was adopted.

At seven, he was kidnapped.

At eight, he was abused.

At nine, he experienced his first kill.

At ten, he found twisted salvation.

At eleven, he met his new family, and he smiled once again.

At thirteen, he was included in a plan.

At fifteen, he was told that he was important.

At sixteen, he wore a ring on his finger. He met another wearing the other half.

At sixteen, he made a new friend.


"I'll see you next time, then."


The wind of freedom blows,

It sends hope and ambition through the skies.

Understanding of the world,

Because it has seen and heard from its travels across the lands

It knows of the joy of the strong

And the suffering of the weak.


after a year i forgot 96% of what the italics were about but i think i remember now.. probably. 8/8