The Sun battle was interesting, but not as much as Shirou's open reaction to Iemitsu's presence.
The second Shirou saw him bringing Kyoko, his eyes saw red.
"Hey Reborn-sensei, can I borrow Leon for a moment?"
"I'm not letting you shoot Iemitsu, regardless of how much he deserves it," said Reborn without hesitation.
"I'm not going to shoot him. I'm not that kind hearted towards him," said Shirou in a flat voice.
Reborn allowed Leon to crawl onto Shirou's hand...and was hit with an epiphany of what the teen was planning to do to his 'father'. One that would likely hurt worse than being shot.
It was a frying pan.
"Of course the house husband picks a frying pan," muttered Colonello, eyeing the odd choice in weapon.
What happened next made Xanxus revise his opinion of Iemitsu's son.
Because the first thing Shirou does...is clock the man with the frying pan, before proceeding to give Iemitsu a very nasty concussion while berating the man using a very large vocabulary of words that while hurtful, were still safe enough for children to hear.
"Feel better?" asked Reborn, when Iemitsu was reduced into a twitching mess on the ground.
"Much. Too bad Leon isn't a real cast iron skillet or maybe it would stick better," said Shirou darkly.
The chameleon had a rather put out expression on it's face, but doesn't give Shirou a dirty look.
The act stuns the Varia...though it does spark some curiosity in Xanxus that perhaps Iemitsu's son wasn't trash like he automatically assumed. As an assassin, he had an eye for attacks and the kid's blows were powerful, precise, and were made without the hesitation of a civilian unused to real fighting.
This boy attacked with a familiar rage, but with the cool head of someone who was used to fighting. And the open confidence that he could do less damage without a gun but with something as mundane as a freaking frying pan intrigued him.
Then there was the Cloud kid. The brat was definitely a Cloud with that aura, and a particularly violent one Xanxus wouldn't have minded as his own Cloud Officer. He had the right violent aura for it.
And he was looking at the brat not with disdain or as a weaker creature, but as an equal.
And if that wasn't a major tell about the brat, then nothing was.
So Xanxus would see exactly what sort of Guardians the kid attracted.
The Sun kid was nothing special, outside of getting the Rain Arcobelano's attention and having a fixation on boxing.
But then came the Lightning battle.
"There can only be one Guardian per side," said the judge.
"I'm afraid there was a communication error when it came to the Lightning Guardian. The Head of CEDEF gave it to the secondary instead of the Primary without consulting me first," said Reborn.
"...Is the woman acting as proxy for the boy?" asked the Judge.
"For now anyway. Lambo will not be eligible as the official Lightning Guardian until he's at least sixteen," said Reborn calmly.
That was more than enough time to train him up into being able to handle the responsibility without forcing him to give up his childhood.
"Very well, they may both enter the field, but only the woman is allowed to fight on your behalf. Any objections?"
Xanxus smirked. The woman looked like a total civilian and all she had was that wooden sword in her hand that had a cute tiger charm. She'd go down easily.
"In that case, the Lightning Battle may begin," they announced.
And then the kid did something that turned the mere "civilian" into a damn tiger.
"Hey Fuji-nee... if you beat this guy I'll make all your favorites for dinner tonight," said the kid loudly enough that she heard him.
Xanxus blinked. He swore that woman's ear enlarged and swiveled much like a large cat...and then he heard her roar. The tiger comparison was pretty damn strong, especially with that shirt she was wearing.
And then Levi actually flinched. What the fuck?
The Bovino kid freaked when the girl went after Levi, and pulled out a bazooka of all things.
Fortunately for the brat, the kid dropped the weapon and it accidentally exploded hitting the insane woman who reminded him of a tiger.
There was a loud poof of smoke, followed by an older woman who looked enough like the insane one with the wooden sword. Was that the infamous Ten-Year Bazooka?
"Well that's almost unexpected," commented Reborn dryly. It was pretty obvious Iemitsu had been banking on the Ten-Year Bazooka for the fight, though why he thought Lambo would have the ability to take down a trained killer in five minutes or less was beyond him.
Ten Year Later Taiga looked at Shirou and grinned... but what she said next had him face-palming.
"Hi, Xanxus-kun!"
What.
Shirou looked closer at his insane "big sister" and noticed the wedding ring with a very official looking crest.
"Oh kami... I almost feel sorry for him, but he's probably used to the crazy ones at this point..." he muttered.
Kyouya snorted in agreement.
"What are you waiting for, Tiger? Aren't you supposed to be fighting?" Kyouya deliberately called out.
Taiga bristled and the comparison to the large striped cat was impossible to ignore.
She reached to her side and pulled out a sword that had the familiar, if worn charm on the hilt. Except this wasn't some wooden shinai...no, this sword radiated blood lust on a scale that made even Squalo impressed.
The kid choked.
"Who the hell was stupid enough to give you a Muramasa?!" he said horrified. The Tora Shinai was terrifying enough without adding the inherit blood lust of a Muramasa sword!
"The only ones allowed to call me Tiger are Shirou-kun and Xan-kun!" said Taiga fiercely. Lightning struck the sword, because it was basically an oversize lightning rod in this storm.
Behind Taiga was a massive afterimage of a large tiger. With a loud, terrifying roar she charged at Levi-a-Than, the afterimage firmly in place. It almost looked like massive claws striking the Varia officer, and he barely shielded from it with his umbrellas. Not that it helped.
He felt the insane blood lust of the sword, combined with Taiga's natural insanity when it came to Shirou. As if the lightning had supercharged her strikes, she did not let up once as she expertly attacked the man.
It all ends when, as another thicker bolt of lightning hit Taiga, she used it's energy to augment her own Flames and paralyzed him long enough for her to claim the other half of the ring.
"The winner of the Lightning battle is Fujimura Taiga."
"Shirou! Dinner!" cried Taiga with a grin. Without much warning, she switched with her past self who looked at the ring she had dropped once put together and picked it up.
"Looks like I'm going to cooking a massive dinner tonight," said Shirou.
Taiga cheered, and collected Lambo who was quick to hug her. The Lightning ring was hanging around her neck.
Xanxus eyed the woman with an odd expression.
The woman was an interesting one, and he always liked tigers. That, and the fact she went from a crazy civilian teacher with a wooden sword to someone who could channel and use a real sword that made even him pause said volumes of her potential.
Though he was somewhat curious as to why she dared to call him "Xan-kun" when he was in earshot. Most women were either terrified of him, were total sycophants after something, or were just plain trash.
This Taiga however looked like Quality and he highly doubted she would be like the other women he had to be 'nice' around during those damn parties.
Back at the house...
Reborn looked at Shirou with an odd expression.
"What exactly did you see when Taiga was switched out?"
"I'm fairly certain she ends up marrying Xanxus sometime in the future," said Shirou.
Reborn blinked.
"What makes you say that?"
"Because I don't see Xanxus letting someone call him 'Xan-kun' while he's in earshot without being shot at, at the very least. And someone had to have given her a Muramasa sword and show her how to use a real sword. Who better than the Rain Officer?"
Xanxus seemed like the sort of person who would give his girlfriend a sword made by one of the most infamous swordmakers in Japanese history as a gift or to court her. And who better to improve on her skills than the current Sword Emperor of the Varia?
Again, Xanxus was used to crazies like Taiga, so the idea he married her wasn't that far-fetched for Shirou to believe.
Reborn blinked.
"I thought you somehow recognized the Varia crest on the side of the ring," said Reborn.
"No, it was more how she acted and what she had that tipped me off."
Reborn snorted.
It was the Storm battle, and Shirou kept hearing that damn song in his head just looking at the grinning blond.
Finally he couldn't take it anymore.
"Why do I keep hearing the Nightcore song Hide and Seek whenever I look at him?" asked Shirou pointing at Belphegor.
"Shishishi... what song is this?" asked the crowned teenager.
Shirou calmly took out his phone and started playing the song. There was something close to dead silence, before the Ripper Prince openly snickered with obvious delight.
"The Prince demands you share that song with him. He needs a better ringtone."
"...What's your number?" asked Shirou calmly.
Within moments Belphegor has a new favorite ringtone and Xanxus is once again reevaluating Shirou's ability as a Mafia Boss. It took someone with a very big pair of balls to calmly looked at Belphegor and exchange phone numbers with him. Most didn't even want to associate with the psychotic prince brat.
More to the point, the bomber trash shows an actual spine and managed to hold his own until Belphegor's pride forced the brat to forfeit.
"Shishishi... the little lion is very interesting," said Belphegor, already loving his new ringtone. The creepy song suited him so perfectly it wasn't even funny.
Xanxus smirked.
This kid was completely different from the skittish kitten he had been informed of. He had despaired of any child sired by Iemitsu, especially one the idiot had sealed at such a young age, being able to lead the family out of the mire the old man had created with his soft-nature.
Instead the kid kicks Iemitsu out of the Ring Battles, making it impossible for him to stick around especially with that concussion. He motivates his Lightning proxy in a way that is bizarre, but terrifyingly effective. Xanxus' eyes didn't miss the ring on her finger, nor the fact that she was apparently very familiar with him. And then he openly shares his number with Belphegor and gives the Prince brat a new ringtone that suits him perfectly.
So now he was openly eager to see what else he was told wrong about this kid. If he was even half as good a fighter as he was interesting, then Xanxus might concede the Sky Ring to the brat in a fight without a fuss. If not, then his original plan stayed the same.
The Rain battle was surprising, but Yamamoto wins for both himself and his sword style. Now the count is skewed towards Shirou and his team, but Xanxus refuses to acknowledge anything but an absolute defeat. He wanted to fight this kid and see whether or not he was worthy of the title Decimo.
Reborn apparently agrees with the idea, even if it meant they had to fight all the battles.
The Mist battle was a bit surprising... especially considering the fact that when Mukuro arrived, he actually gave Shirou a look of possible respect. Considering the original Mist guardian of the Primo's time turned out to be a traitor, Reborn hoped that he had interpreted that look right.
But it was the Cloud battle that they were all worried about. Kyouya was not known for being lenient when his battle lust was perked.
Kyouya did not like being played, and he trusted Shirou to be honest with him. Which is why he doesn't automatically target the rings. Instead his focus is entirely on cracking open the armor "Gola Mosca" is wearing.
With a loud crash, the armor split open...revealing the missing Nono barely alive.
"Tch. Looks like you were right," said Kyouya, collecting the half-ring. He glared at Xanxus. "I despise being set up with a lie. For that crime and the crime of disrupting the peace of Namimori, I will bite you to death."
"Winner, Hibari Kyouya."
Xanxus had a vicious grin on his face. Shirou sighed.
"You're really not helping the suspicion I have about why the Cradle Affair really happened," said Shirou exasperated.
If he was right and Xanxus was actually adopted, but was never told, then his anger towards Nono was justified to a point. But only to a point.
However since Kyouya did technically beat up Nono, despite the fact he was running on fumes, Shirou had to fight against Xanxus in order to keep his honor intact.
Shirou was in a specially made outfit, courtesy of Leon. Reborn thought it appropriate to have him dressed for the occasion.
He wasn't the only one, even Taiga had gotten a new outfit.
He did wonder why Reborn insisted on giving him the odd outfit in a burnt orange color with the Vongola crest on the back, along with an armored chest plate in deep black.
Then again he never saw the outfit he 'acquired' during the beat down of Mukuro. All he was familiar with were the two swords that he could now create in less than ten seconds.
"The battle between Xanxus and Shirou Emiya will now begin," announced the judge.
Shirou was not pleased with the fact they had poisoned his friends. Especially Lambo!
"Oh? I like that fire you have in your eyes, trash. You're interesting. Too interesting to be Iemitsu's spawn."
"I'm not Iemitsu's son. I refuse any connection to that parasite," said Shirou with his terrifying smile. It sent shivers down Xanxus' spine...a shiver that made him anticipate the fight to come. "My name is Emiya Shirou, son of Kiritsugu the Magus Killer. I don't know why people keep comparing me to that deadbeat, vagrant parasite who should just curl up in an unknown ditch and die."
Xanxus laughed, and it sounded like a real one.
He stared at Shirou and his smiling face and saw something he never expected when he first came here.
This wasn't the smile of an innocent kid about to be slaughtered...this was the smile of a true predator, one that needed no titles to be acknowledged as Quality.
If the brat beat him and won, Xanxus would gladly acknowledge him as the new Decimo.
This boy wouldn't dull and lose his edge like Timeteo did. This boy...no, this man before him was a sword, one that would aim itself at the enemies of the Vongola and cut them down without hesitation if it meant protecting the Familigia.
But first he had to test the boy's Quality for himself. He would never be satisfied by a mere feeling.
Inside the spectator box...
"You're not worried about Shirou?" asked Fon.
"The boy is a Sword. It's not in combat that I need to be worried about him."
"Sempai is kind. Too kind. He hates seeing those he could have Saved die in front of him. He needs those around him to shield him from the world or he will break," said Sakura in a matter of fact voice.
The world was not kind, and those who Saved others selflessly without demanding anything in return rarely lasted long. Humanity was suspicious of those with such altruistic motives, and were always looking for flaws.
The thing was that Shirou didn't Save others for money, fame or prestige.
Reborn had seen the look on Kiritsugu's face when he saved that small child from the blaze. The smile of a Hitman who had lost everything, but found Salvation in the simple act of saving a single life.
He could relate. He became a tutor for similar reasons, but unlike Kiritsugu he wasn't delusional about what he did or why he did it. If Shirou was going to walk the path of Ashura, then Reborn was going to make damn sure the boy lived something close to a full life.
He wouldn't always be happy, and he certainly wouldn't enjoy a peaceful existence, but he could at least go to the afterlife claiming he lived and remember the one who helped him.
"Oh dear. Xanxus dared him to unleash his best. I think Shirou's about to use the Zero Point Breakthrough."
Squalo, who had been trapped inside with them because Dino took his time bringing him, had a horrified look on his face.
He didn't want his Boss to go through that ever again. He couldn't bear the idea of losing him a second time to that cursed technique.
Shirou clashed with Xanxus.
Well, the man wanted his best, but something told him not to use the technique Reborn all but demanded he learn. And there was a well hidden fear in Xanxus' eyes.
He had gone missing for almost eight years. Everyone assumed he was dead...and Timeteo was the last man to see him.
Was it possible he was somehow suspended in time with the technique Reborn wanted him to learn? Those scars were particularly telling. He recognized frost bite.
Besides, Xanxus wanted his best. It would be rude not to give him Shirou's best, instead of the Vongola special technique.
His eyes became like amber, and for a brief moment there was an afterimage of a taller, more tanned male behind him with white hair and tired eyes.
"I am the bone of my sword..."