Chapter Eight

Truth of Estraneo

"Kufufu, it seems that our guest knows who we are Nagi." Mukuro spoke as he stood up from his couch, twirling a trident in his hands. One eye a sapphire while the other crimson with a symbol in the middle of it, his hair a blue in a pineapple style and wearing a Kokuyo uniform with black gloves.

"So it seems Mukuro-sama." Chrome agreed, clutching to her own trident as she looked at their guest with only one eye. The other was covered by an eye patch with a skull on it. She wore the Kokuyo uniform as well but the girl's style with her midriff bare. Her purple hair was held in a Pineapple style that matched Mukuro's but with a short ponytail.

27's brows furrowed as he took the two appearances in and something floated in his mind, something that seemed familiar and yet unfamiliar at the same time. "Pineapples?" 27 spoke, gaining an amused look from Reborn and surprised looks from the two on the stage.

Mukuro stared with wide eyes before they narrowed and the next thing 27 knew the blue haired teenager was standing in front of him, holding 27's chin so that the experiment could not move away. "Kufufu, what a familiar thing to say to me my dear stranger." Mukuro stated as he looked into the deep orange eyes before he looked over the other with a critical eye. "It seems that the one we were searching for has come before us on his own."

"You were looking for 27 then." Reborn stated as he looked at Mukuro with narrowed eyes. "Why were you looking for him though, what is it that you want from him?"

Mukuro laughed at that as he stepped away from 27, dodging the punch the experiment had aimed at his stomach. "It is not what I want from him but what he wants from me." Mukuro said as he looked at the brunette with glittering eyes.

27 blinked in surprise at that before a sharp pang of pain ran through his head, causing rip his head away from Mukuro and into his own hands, grasping at the soft fluffy hair that he had. "27, what's wrong?" Reborn asked as he moved towards the experiment to look at his crouched over body. "What's happening to him!?" Reborn demanded as he pulled out his gun and held it out at Mukuro.

Mukuro held his hands up in defense and surrender. "I'm not doing anything to him. This is what happens when one is trying to dig up memories." He explained with a smirk on his face. "I believe you've been trying to recover the memories of an experiment that was obtained during a raid on an Estraneo base, have you not?"

Reborn scowled at the illusionist before lowering his gun, coming to stand in front of 27 just in case Mukuro decided to attack. "He's trying to remember then, so he really wasn't created as a test tube experiment." Reborn stated calmly as he looked back towards the girl, only to realize that she was now standing next to Mukuro.

"No…the one you call 27 was never created in a test tube." She spoke softly as she tilted her head at the Arcobaleno. "He will have been…born by a member of Estraneo or…kidnapped." She explained with a small frown on her face.

Mukuro nodded his head in agreement with the girl. "That is what Estraneo has done for decades. Using their own members' children or kidnapping those that would best suit the experiment performed. I and Nagi are both children of the Estraneo members, as are Ken and Chikusa. Your 27 though, he would have been taken from a civilian family or the child of an enemy Famiglia. One of the two either way."

Reborn nodded his head at that before looking at the now shivering experiment behind him. "Will he remember?"

"When he is ready." Chrome stated as she tapped her trident on the floor. "His mind will have most likely been wiped clean, like some of the more hostile subjects were." She paled drastically as she spoke.

Mukuro laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed without looking away from Reborn and 27. "Some of the stronger subjects or ones that would be sold later on, always had their memories erased by competent illusionist. The process took time though and had to be done in stages." He explained as he nodded at 27. "If he was taken as a toddler like I suspect, then there is a chance that some of his memoires still reside within him. They will be difficult to remember on his own and he will experience pain as he does."

Reborn nodded his head at this as he holstered his gun and waited silently for 27 to come out of whatever state he had gone into. "How do you know he is the one that you have been looking for?" Reborn asked as he thought back to what the two pineapple haired teens had spoken about.

Mukuro stared at 27 for a long moment before shaking his head. "Do not worry about that, it is of no concern to one such as yourself Arcobaleno." The Illusionist stated as he finally lowered his trident to tap against 27's head gently.

27 snapped out of whatever he was in before he looked back up at Mukuro with wide chocolate brown eyes. "Where am I?" He questioned as he looked around the theater and then back at Mukuro. "Pineapple."

Mukuro sighed at that before smiling creepily at the teen. "That's right young one, do you know who you are?" He questioned calmly.

Reborn watched the proceedings with a careful eye, wondering what had just happened, though he suspected that Mukuro had been able to dredge up memories due to being an illusionist. He didn't interfere though as he was more interested in seeing if the lost look on 27's face would disappear and reveal some new information.

The brown haired boy shook his head at the illusionist. "No…I…I was playing." He said at last as he placed his hands over his face, obviously trying to remember. "My ball rolled away from me…I was going to go and get it….but…but…I…They…" He trailed off after long moments of stumbling with his mind.

Everything was quiet within the theater. Until the door slammed open and startled all in the room into fighting stances.

27's eyes were once more glowing a neon orange as all systems booted back up.

"Ah, so this is where you've been hiding my lovelies." A female voice spoke and the click of heels sounded around the theater. "I was wondering when I'd find you and look at this, all of you are in the same place as well. Isn't this just perfect."

Mukuro was instantly in front of Chrome with a snarl on his face, trident pointing at the woman that had come through the theater doors. "What are you doing here!?" He growled out as he prepared to fight or flee.

The woman's purple lips smiled as she crossed her arms over her voluptuous chest. She were a simple beige turtleneck sweater with black skinny jeans and black high heels. A white lab coat was laid over everything else. Her hair was a dark purple that waved down her back in long tresses, but the top spiked up rebelliously, looking like pineapple leaves. Sapphire eyes sparkled with malicious intent as she spoke. "Why I've come to pick the five of you up of course." She said with a sparkling white smile that was nothing but cold.

Chrome whimpered behind Mukuro as the woman spoke, already knowing that their fates were not going to end well for them at all. "Mukuro-sama, I don't want to go back." She whispered to the older male fearfully while tugging at the back of his jacket.

Mukuro nodded his head in understanding. "You won't be going back if I have anything to say about it Nagi." He reassured the best he could, though he feared that there would be nothing he would be able to do to stop the woman from doing just that, especially if she brought her pet and controller along with her.

Reborn looked at the woman with narrowed eyes, taking in startling similarities that he had spotted on Chrome and Mukuro. "Who are you?" Reborn asked as he stood in front of the three teenagers. He'd be able to protect them if it came down to it after all.

The woman blinked and frowned when she saw Reborn, but then started smiling again as she clapped her hands together in excitement before stuffing one into her lab coat pocket. "Ah, Reborn of the Arcobaleno! I've always wanted to meet the greatest Hitman in the world!" She exclaimed, but everyone could tell it was nothing but an act. "My name is Malignita Estraneo, but everyone calls me Male (Ma-lay). I'm the boss of Estraneo and five of our children have runaway, we've come to pick them up." She explained as she looked at Mukuro and Chrome and then at 27. "I see that the three have been keeping you company."

Reborn narrowed his eyes as he glanced at the teens behind him and then back at Male. "I can believe that two of them would belong to you but 27 here was rescued from a human experimentation lab, he's been under the protection of Vongola since." He stated in his squeaky voice with his gun back in his hand and ready to use. "If you want these two as well, you'll need to have identification on proof that they are of your Famiglia."

Male didn't even blink as she pulled out several papers from her lab coat pocket and held them out towards Reborn. "Mukuro Rokudo, Nagi Estraneo, and Giotto Prova all ran away not even a year ago. We have been searching for them since." She stated as she handed over all of the records of the children she was after.

Reborn looked at each identification paper and then back up at the strange woman. "I see." The baby said as he looked at the picture of a smiling brown haired boy with bright orange eyes. It was obviously 27 but the paper looked real and would have to be taken as proof. There was no way of hanging onto the three teens at all. "You said there were five, what about the other two?" Reborn asked, even though he already knew who they were.

Male smiled again as she pulled out two more to show Ken and Chikusa. "They are also part of our family." She explained. "My husband is gathering them up as we speak." She explained calmly.

Reborn's frown turned in a smirk as he raised his gun at her. "I'm afraid I can't let you have them yet, you see the Vongola has a tiff with your kids here and wants them brought into our custody. You'll have to argue with Nono for their return." Reborn stated back in a calm tone while his gun was steadily holding itself at the woman's forehead.

Male smirked at the baby as the baby frowned as he realized something. "Ah, feeling it now are we? You really shouldn't take things from people you know nothing about Reborn, after all, they could be laced with a paralysis agent." She stated with a chuckle as she turned towards the three teens, two of which were trying to sneak away under illusions. "I wouldn't leave if I were you Mukuro, Nagi, or I'll activate this little switch that I have." She said just as she pulled out a little white remote with a red switch on it.

Mukuro froze as he recognized the switch, already knowing that if the two of them were trapped indeed. "Why are you coming after us now? After so long?" Mukuro asked as he turned back towards the woman, hiding Chrome behind him.

The woman laughed at that as she pointed towards 27. "He was the really important subject that we wanted back. He was and is our post prized experiment, especially since we plan on selling him to the highest bidder." She stated as she snapped her fingers twice in quick succession. "You are just a bonus to this capture." She explained as she looked over Mukuro's shoulder and out to the hallway of the theater. "Caught them did you?"

A rough and rogued voice spoke just behind the two teens. "Of course. I wouldn't be your second in command for nothing if I couldn't catch a bunch of kids." Said a man carry two bodies under his arms. His brown hair was slicked back and his amber eyes glowed with triumph. Fangs poked from underneath his lips and his build was similar to Iemitsu's along with his height. He wore a black suit with a white undershirt and a black tie. "They were easy to knock out and grab. Though I had to take care of a few punks that were in the way."

Male nodded her head as she looked at Mukuro and Chrome next. "Knock the two of them out while I handle Experiment 027, alright Bestia." She ordered calmly. She missed the wide animalistic smile that Bestia gave the two pineapple haired teens as their friends' bodies fell to the ground.

"Gladly." He growled out as he rushed at the two and threw a clawed hand at Mukuro first. "Time for a little nap little prince." He smirked happily when Mukuro blocked the attack with his trident. "That won't help you."

Mukuro scowled at the older man as he tried to push him away, but it was obvious that Bestia was a stronger individual than even Mukuro could handle. "I won't let you take us back!" Mukuro shouted as the symbol in his eyes changed to the kanji four and then lit up with Mist flames. "I won't let you take them back to that hell hole!" He shouted as he pushed Bestia backwards and away from the two illusionists with more power than before.

Bestia leapt away and grinned at Mukuro with hunger in his eyes. "It seems that you have improved in using those abilities of yours. This fight will be much better than the pitiful ones you've given me before, I'm sure." He stated as he crouched down and then ran at Mukuro at full speed.

Mukuro scowled as he pushed Chrome to the side and out of the way. "Stay out of the way Chrome, I'll handle this." He said as he held his trident in front of him while the Kanji in his eye changed once more, this time to the kanji three. "Attack him." Mukuro ordered the pack of wolves that leapt towards Bestia without a hint of hesitation.

Bestia only grinned as he was attacked by the wolves, easily tossing them off of him and to the ground where they disappeared. "Illusions have improved greatly Mukuro, I'm impressed." He grinned wolfishly as he stood back up on two legs. "But that doesn't mean you'll win."

Mukuro began to panic slightly, he knew that if he lost to Bestia that they were all going to end up back at Estraneo. There were only a few things that he could do to get everyone out of there, or at least some of them. "I won't return there." Mukuro said as he pulled out a gun that he had stuck in his jeans. "I'll die before I return with you." He stated as he pulled the trigger before anything could be done.

Bestia frowned at the crumpled form of Mukuro before huffing out in distain. "I should've known a coward like you would run." Bestia spat as he turned towards Chrome to grab her.

Only she was gone.

"Shit." The brunette growled as he turned back towards Chikusa and Ken to grab them as well.

They were gone as well.

"Damn it!" He growled before shaking his head in irritation. He then calmed as he took a deep breath to try and catch their scents.

He smelled nothing but the blood of Mukuro along with Reborn, 27, and Male though. "They got away." Bestia growled in anger before shaking his head. "Oh well, we'll get what we want anyways." He said as he turned to see how Male was doing with the experiment.

TN

Reborn grunted as he tried to escape the paralysis but was unable to for some reason. He had trained himself against any drug or poison that could potentially limit, stop, or even prevent him from doing whatever needed done. So to be paralyzed like this was surprising if not irritating as hell.

27 hadn't even moved from his battle position since the woman entered the room, even as his systems recognized her as his creator and that he was to obey her. 27 also knew that he had already pledged his allegiance to Vongola and had been programmed to fight for whatever Famiglia he did that to, not matter what his creator wanted from him afterwards. "Madame Estraneo." He finally said as he left his battling stance and bowed to the woman, his left arm crossing over his chest as he did.

Male smiled at her greatest creation. "Experiment 027, activate shutdown sequence and enter sleep mode." She commanded with confidence, assured that the experiment would do as told and shut down entirely so he would be easily transported back to a base for continued programming.

"Command denied Madame, I am under property of Vongola Nono and his heir, my programming has already recognized my new Boss." 27 replied instead as he stood up with his face blank. Any emotions he had been able to gain within the last few months were no longer visible as he reacted to his creator.

The woman sneered in disgust at this before speaking once more. "Experiment 027, you have not been given orders to give any such allegiance to Vongola. Any commitment to the Vongola Famiglia shall be recalled and you will shut down immediately." She commanded coldly while one of her hands slipped into her lab coat, grabbing hold of something.

27's eyebrows furrowed as he felt his programming run to complete the command, but at the same time he didn't want it to. So with difficulty and the power of his flames at his command he overrode his programming while grunting at the woman. "Command….De…deni…denied Madame."

Male sneered in anger as she pulled out a bright orange remote that she pointed at the experiment. "Then I have no choice but to shut you down and reprogram you. It seems that the interruption to your original programming process caused more damage than I anticipated. I'll have that fixed as soon as possible." She said as she clicked the black button on the remote.

Reborn watched in horror as the experiment that had been in his care suddenly stopped moving altogether and became still. His eyes lost the glow of the dying will flame and faded into a dark brown that matched a corpse's. Then he fell to the ground and Reborn could do nothing as the paralysis was still in effect.

"Ah, seems you got him under control then." Bestia said as he came to stand next to his wife's side. "Though it seems you have some work to do on him to get him back to perfect condition again."

Male nodded her head, the sneer still on her face as she turned to her husband. "Did you get Mukuro and Nagi?" She questioned as she looked over his shoulder to see a dead Mukuro and no Nagi, Ken and Chikusa. "Ah, they got away." She sighed before shrugging. "Oh well, we got what we came for."

Bestia nodded his head as he went over and picked up the teenager and then kicked Reborn in the stomach towards Mukuro's body. "Che, some Greatest Hitman you are, frozen by a simple paralysis agent."

Male smiled this time as she turned and looked at the frozen and fallen Reborn. "Ah, don't blame him honey, after all, we made that specifically to kill all the Arcobaleno once we have it perfected." She taunted the Hitman before turning and leaving. "Come, let us go before the paralysis wears off."

Bestia nodded and followed, both disappearing from the room while Reborn struggled to get free.

TN

Nono Vongola sighed as he stared at the Greatest Hitman in the world and the two boys that had gone with the experiment to capture the rogues.

The Boss of Vongola had arrived late that night after he had received word that 27 had been taken while Varia had been assigned to a different mission and Reborn had been affected by a new paralysis apparently meant for the Arcobaleno.

"It seems that many occurrences have happened and that we now must prepare for the future once more." Nono stated as he looked over the group that stood in front of him. Four boys with varying degrees of injuries all stood there looking dejected, or in the black haired and grey eyed teen, pissed. All four had been picked up, the white haired one having been picked up from the Sawada residence along with his opponents. None of them looked like they appreciated being interrogated like they had just been.

"Forgive me Vongola Nono." Gokudera stated as he stepped forward and bowed to his current boss. "I failed in this mission to help protect 27."

Nono smiled sadly at the teen before shaking his head. "It is alright Hayato, there was very little anyone could do to help save him, especially since they seemed to arrive prepared for anything." He explained as the teen stood back up fully. "We will find him though and bring him home."
"How do you plan to do that old man?" Xanxus asked with a sneer on his face. "It took forever to find the one Estraneo Base that you had us crash, how do you plan to find wherever they took him this time?"
"Kufufufu, that's where we come in dear Mafioso." A voice echoed in the room as mist seeped in from the seams of the room and surrounded everyone in the room.

Hibari growled as he whipped out his Tonfas, ready for a rematch even with all of his current injuries. "Herbivore, show yourself." He commanded as he looked all around the room.

Gokudera's eyes narrowed and he pulled out his dynamite while Yamamoto pulled out his sword, ready to attack at any second. Ryohei just prepared his fists to fight against this new opponent.

Xanxus and his crew remained calm but were already to attack if necessary to protect their boss.

Nono though showed no anxiousness nor worry as the mist began to form in front of him into a single entity with a glowing red eye. "I was wondering when you would appear." Nono stated calmly with a smile on his face.

The eye narrowed at him but did nothing else as the shapeless mist began to take form of a teen and then dispersed to leave the figure in view. "I hear you have a bit of a problem at hand…kufufufufu, maybe I can help you with that."

Gokudera growled at the figure as he knew who it was in an instant, even without ever having met the teen. Yamamoto and Ryohei could only stare in surprise and confusion.

Squalo and Lussuria were both forced to grab a hold of Hibari though as the teen tried to leap at the pineapple haired herbivore with a vicious roar of anger.

Nono smiled at the teen with a tilted head. "Oh, and how could you possibly help us? After all, we're the most powerful Famiglia in the world, we could find him on our own."

Mukuro smirked at this as he twirled his trident in front of him before making a statement that impressed Nono. "I can help you by saving you time." A clock appeared behind the teen as it ticked ominously. "Time you don't have if you wish to re-obtain the one known as 27 before he loses his memories."

Here the Vongola Boss's face stiffened and the smile left his face. "Alright, then how can you help us save the time in searching for the boy then?"

Mukuro only smirked as Iemitsu appeared in the room with a similar smirk on his face and a glowing red right eye. "Let me show you where they are."

TN

It was warm. He's been here in this place before, he was sure of it. He wasn't sure how or why but he knew that he had been. It had been safe then and he was sure it was save now. His mind was fuzzy and his body felt heavy and yet weightless at the same time. Orange lights glowed behind his closed eyelids and he knew that that was the light from somewhere.

It was annoying.

The light was bright and it was what had woken him to begin with. All he wanted to do at the moment was sleep and regain his strength. He wasn't sure how he had lost it in the beginning but he needed to get it back because…because…something…something had happened and he needed his strength to fight.

But why was he fighting? He couldn't remember. Something had happened and he had taken responsibility for it but then…he wasn't sure what…it was all blank. He wiggled his nose in frustration at that as he slowly opened his eyes and looked straight ahead through the orange liquid that covered him.

Outside of where he floated he could see two people standing at a console, speaking and tapping away at the buttons. A ring of familiarity ripped through him and he knew that the woman was his Madame, his master at the moment, and the male was her husband. Both were his boss at the moment and he was to follow their orders.

"Do you think he'll be ready this time?" The male asked as he looked up and saw that the experiment was staring at him with clouded eyes.

"He should be soon, we just have to erase all memory files and experiences he's had while out of his tube." She replied as she too looked up and met the glowing orange eyes of the experiment. "I'll have to put him back to sleep for the erasing though."

He knew that being put to sleep meant blankness and he couldn't wait. So with a welcomed sigh he breathe din the sweet smelling scent that entered his mask and soon he was floating off into darkness. No worries and not a care in the world as his body relaxed and his mind blanked. There was nothing to worry about.

TN

It was warm against his chest while it was cool against his back. It was a soothing feeling and he wanted curl up and stay where he was at the moment. He didn't want to go anywhere or get up. He just wanted to stay where he was.

"Ah, so Mukuro-sama was right." A feminine voice spoke, startling him so badly that he jumped up to his feet to stare at the girl that had spoken.

She had long indigo hair that trailed over her shoulders and the top had cow lick that resembled a pineapple. One of her eyes was covered while the other shined sapphire in the sun. She wore a white sundress that swirled around her knees.

He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes, a nagging at the back of his head spoke that he knew this girl somehow somewhere. He wasn't sure though so he didn't say anything.

"We are looking for you." She said as she stepped close enough to lay a hand on his shoulder. "Mukuro-sama and some of your companions are all looking for you. Do not forget and do not give in. Fight them." She stated softly.

He wrinkled his nose at the girl before shrugging and sitting back on the ground, his world already fading as he prepared to sleep and slip away from the girl. "You can't give in! You have to fight them!" She yelled as his eyes began to close. "Don't let them take away you!" was the last thing he heard before he slipped away into oblivion.

TN

"So that's what's been happening." Nono muttered as he looked at the pineapple haired teen in front of him. Everyone else had taken seats in the room, whether it be furniture or the floor, they sat and listened. Reborn had situated himself on the desk in his own chair while he listened to the boy he had almost shot earlier.

"Kufufufu, correct. My acquaintance is quite powerful and will be demanding his new soldier within the day. He has even paid quite the pretty penny for the boy." Mukuro stated with a sadistic smile. "Once the boy is presented to him, he will be rid of the two last Estraneo Famiglia bosses and we will no longer have to worry about them."

Nono nodded his head in understanding as he clasped his hands and settled his chin on them. "What is it you wish in return for this generous amount of help young man?" he questioned.

Mukuro smiled again as he tapped his trident and the doors of the room opened to reveal three other people. "Protection for me and my friends." He stated rather seriously. "We are hunted by Vindice because we were experimented on and should not exist as we are. We are an unknown to them and that frightens not only the Vindice but the Mafia world at large."

Nono nodded his head in understanding. "If you were to join a large and famous Famiglia though, you'd be protected by reputation alone. You'd no longer would be threatened and the mafia will think you are under control." He stated calmly while everyone else began to sneer or scowl or frown at what Mukuro wanted.

"That's right." Mukuro stated with a serious frown on his face. "Protection for the boy, that's all that I ask."

Nono smiled at that before nodding his head. "Welcome to the Family then Mukuro."

The room was silent for a long moment before Reborn spoke up. "What about this acquaintance of yours, what does he want in return for helping you and in turn us?" The look Reborn leveled at the illusionist was not a friendly one.

Mukuro only smiled at the Arcobaleno creepily as he twirled his Trident in his hand. "Kufufufu, who knows?"

TN

A.N. Haha! I got this Chapter done! Finally! Been working on it for a while now but I got it and I'm pretty okay with this chapter. A lot of information and a lot of happenings and little to no fighting. Anyways, who is this acquaintance of Mukuro's and what will he want in turn for helping 27 and the Vongola. Guess we'll just have to find out in the next chapter huh! Review and tell me what you all thought!