Chapter 13

"Takeshi, let's go play!"

As they rustled through the Melone base, Yamamoto sighed at the old, unforgotten memory. He subconsciously rubbed the back of his neck, as Reborn and Colonello looked back and frowned. "Yamamoto, you alright?" The boy looked up, startled, and then laughed lightly. "Yeah, just… yeah, I'm fine." The two adults glanced at one another, mystified by Yamamoto's reaction. "Well, be careful, since this Melone base is famous for being able to shift and move itself, based on the controls of Irie Shoichi." "Now that I think of it, that guy…" Yamamoto's concentration trailed off as he sighed.

"Class, today we will be going to the playground – be careful not to push eachother around too much…"

"Takeshi, it's my turn soon…"

"TAKESHI!"

"KYOKO!"

He involuntarily gasped, inhaling the dusty metallic air in the atmosphere of the base. The boy was stopped by the swift hand blocking his way, which happened to be Colonello. Yamamoto snapped back into reality that very second, and habitually stuck his back to the nearest wall. Reborn was doing the very same thing, carefully peeking behind to see the situation behind them. Colonello was crouching on the floor, his left hand on his shotgun, and his right hand grasping Yamamoto's wrist.

"It's Ginger Bread." Reborn whispered to both of them, even though Yamamoto didn't know who that was supposed to be. Colonello spat on the floor. "The most irritating enemy to deal with… how did Byakuran even manage to make that guy one of his subordinates?" He grumbled under his breath, and then looked up to meet his eyes with Reborn. "Is he alone, or with his men?" "He's with about ten more men… they'll be easy to beat. The problem is-"

The sun Arcobaleno was cut off by the low rumble heard beneath them. Yamamoto yelped as the floor started splitting into equal squares, moving in separate directions. Colonello pulled him towards the cube he was standing on, which was moving downward. "Reborn, I'll leave Ginger Bread to you!" Reborn didn't respond and disappeared from sight.

As they continued to move elsewhere, Yamamoto looked up, holding onto Colonello's jeans. "Are you sure you didn't need to support him in the fight?" The blonde shrugged. "Reborn is strong. If me, him, and this other guy named Fon fought against one another, the one with the highest percentage of victory would be him." The younger one's eyes widened in surprise. "He's that strong?" Colonello was silent for a while.

"During the times when Vongola was actually the most powerful Famiglia on Earth, us, the Arcobaleno were known for being the strongest babies elected around the whole world. We were babies then, but now the curse is broken thanks to Luce… anyways, at that time, Reborn was called Hitman Reborn, the Strongest Man of the 21st century. That kind of explains his strength alone, independently." More than that, my worries lay on the next enemy we are about to encounter… hopefully it isn't someone as irritating as Ginger Bread.

Meanwhile, as the cube started descending slowly, Yamamoto let go of Yamamoto's jeans, and lowered his body, resuming to his expression showing deep thought.

"Everyone, today I am here to pass on a very depressing message. Our beloved classmate, Sasagawa Kyoko-san has passed away." The whole class was dead silent. None of them, being the age level they were, didn't understand the true meaning of to have someone pass away – the definition of death itself. Yamamoto sat in his seat with a blank expression, staring at the empty desk next to him. He felt as if he was alone in the whole room along with that wooden desk his previous partner – previous dead partner, if he had to add.

"I killed her." He thought in much fear. "I killed Kyoko. If only that time, I wasn't standing next to her… if only I could withstand the pushing…"

"Kyoko is dead, Takeshi."

"Darling, Takeshi isn't coming out of his room after that…"

"Leave him alone, Aoko. He'll recover someday."

You killed her, Yamamoto Takeshi.

"No, I didn't…"

MEANWHILE…

"Byakuran-sama, it's Iris Hepburn reporting."

The white haired teen popped some marshmallows into his mouth, and responded in a muffled voice. "Speak up, Iris." "Yes sir." Iris cleared her throat and spoke a little louder. "Dendro Chillum has been defeated by the Cloud Arcobaleno, Skull, who had brought in two kids with the blood of Vongola – according to what has been saved in our cameras, would be specimen 69 Rokudo Mukuro, and Yamamoto Takeshi."

"Hm… and?" Iris looked back down as she flipped a few more pages. "Irie started to make his move with his box weapons. As a result, several troops of ours were separated as well. Ginger Bread is currently fighting with Reborn, the sun Arcobaleno in Area 28, and the rest of the groups are yet to be known. End of report, Byakuran-sama." The latter hummed, as he tapped the edge of his lip. "Send reinforcements to the officers that are fighting. Do not allow a single ant to enter this base… it'll be annoying if the boss of that lot actually enters."

Iris frowned. "If you're talking about Luce, she's already-" "No not her. The boss of the first generation Vongola Famiglia… Sawada Ieyasu Giotto. If that person decides to interfere… wait, Iris, who else is in the base right now, among them?" The female looked down and scanned the papers on her clipboard. "G, Daemon Spade, Asari Ugetsu, Knuckle, and Lampo Bovino, sir." "Hm… more the reason to increase the main forces of defense." Iris tilted her head to the side. "May I ask why, Byakuran-sama?"

"Because, the ones left from the Famiglia itself should be this woman, who isn't exactly strong… but anyways, there's that Sawada Ieyasu Giotto left, and furthermore, the man known as the most powerful Mafioso in history, Alaude is still out there… now that is a nightmare you don't want to experience, I swear." Byakuran chuckled. "Well, even if he comes in, I should be able to win him easily enough…"

"Of course, sir." Iris replied. "But Byakuran-sama, if you are the son of Timoteo-" "Iris." Byakuran raised his eyebrows as his pale eyes turned into a dangerous shade of grey. The female officer's shoulders rose in fear. "M-my apologies sir, I swear I didn't mean any bad-" Byakuran smiled. "I bet you didn't. But that's not really the point of me calling your name. I just wanted to make sure to… ah, spread the information."

Iris tilted her head to the side, trying her best not get on the man's nerves again. "What information, if I may ask, Byakuran-sama?" Byakuran stared out his window, into the tall buildings surrounding his base. He rubbed his chin with the side of his index finger, and closed his eyes, as if in deep thought. When he opened them again, on his expressionless face was a light smile.

"I'm not Vongola Nono's son, Iris." The woman with her afro frowned. "Of course you aren't sir, you are now the boss of this Millefiore-" "No, no, I didn't mean it that way…"

"I mean, I'm literally not Vongola Nono's blood related son."

Silence engulfed the room, as Iris' eyes widened. "Byakuran-sama-" "Iris, isn't it about time you go take care of your troops? Area 28 seems crowded… ah, Gingerbread is defeated, I see. How unfortunate." The female standing behind him dropped her clipboard and rushed to the screen attached to Byakuran's desk. While other screens looked normal, one screen showed a doll that looked like Gingerbread, torn into pieces. "Ginger… defeated? Impossible. Who-"

"Iris." Byakuran smiled. "I order you as the boss of the Millefiore Famiglia, to go back to work. Now." Iris Hepburn looked rather hesitant, but she turned away, obeying her superior. The door closed behind Byakuran, as he picked up his phone, clicking a button. Someone picked up on the other side almost immediately.

"Byakuran-sama."

"Ah, Sho-chan! It's me – how's it going over there?"

"It's not what you can call a major emergency sir, but Vongola is sure making bold movements. As you might've seen, Area 45, nearing our 7th secret entrance has been invaded by Skull, the cloud Arcobaleno, who has beaten Dendro Chillum quite mercilessly. They are currently making their way through – and it seems like they defeated Cappuccino in Area 40 as well, approximately three minutes ago.

"Colonello, the rain Arcobaleno is entering Area 21, and just started fighting with Baishana – which I am expecting a rather one-sided battle, as Baishana isn't very powerful as a lone officer. I do see Verde, the lightning Arcobaleno swarming through the Laboratory of the Estraneo, along with Mammon the mist Arcobaleno and two more individuals. Area 28, Reborn the sun Arcobaleno has defeated officer Gingerbread, Luce, Knuckle, Lampo, and Lal Mirch are all separated."

Byakuran internally sighed at the long explanation he was required to process. "Let's make this sound a little easier, Sho-chan. So, who are the remaining officers left from our side, Funeral Wraths and normal workers?"

"Including me, there is Rasiel, Glo Xinia, Gamma, Iris, and Genkishi sir. Gingerbread, Dendro Chillum, Cappuccino, oh, and Baishana was defeated by Colonello just now."

"That's not a lot, is it? And compared to the Vongola they are considered pretty weak… maybe except Genkishi, I suppose. Of course, you're pretty strong too, Sho-chan. It's a disappointment that Spanner betrayed us. His inventions would help very much right now." Byakuran paused, and suddenly stood up. "Sho-chan… where is Spanner right now?"

"Spanner, Byakuran-sama? Please wait a minute sir… uh… he's in Area 3… Entrance 4, Byakuran-sama… that's weird… there should be troops guarding that area as well… Spanner can't be that strong to defeat all those-" Irie stopped, making Byakuran frown. "I think… this is quite an emergency, Byakuran-sama." The white haired male could feel the base shake, and realized that the base was shifting again. His own office was moving upward as well, as Byakuran furrowed his eyebrows.

"Outside, guarded by Officer Rasiel, Iris, and Glo Xinia… has been invaded."

"By who, now." It wasn't a question – rather, a statement.

"They're all here sir. Giotto, Alaude, a woman not in the records, Fon, the storm Arcobaleno, Sawada Tsunayoshi, and furthermore…"

"It's the Varia, sir."

IN THE ESTRANEO LABORATORY…

"Was that all of them?" G grunted, holding up his gun. "I can't believe this place though. They are storing the bodies of kids in gigantic tubes of water… is this what Mukuro and Kyoya were talking about, when they were implying to the 'Lab'?" Verde shook his head, his crocodile crawling around his feet. "Precisely, this whole thing is the Lab. Those are called specimens – kids brought from the streets, or bought from slave centers. Well – slave center is an old thing too – it's basically similar to human trafficking."

Daemon put his scythe down and smirked. "I don't really know what that is, but it sounds pretty cruel. And I don't enjoy this idea of a Lab, either. I do like it when adults are being tortured in tubes, but not when children are." G rolled his eyes. Mammon was spacing about, as if she was looking for something. "Mammon, isn't it about time we go already?" Verde glanced at his clock. "The Varia should be arriving soon – and Xanxus said that he would explode this whole base in twenty minutes after their arrival."

"I know." Mammon's eyes busily scanned the vicinity. "But I need to find Chrome." The face of Lambo popped into Verde's head, as he clucked his tongue. "There is a high percentage of about ninety, Viper, that Chrome would've been taken away by Byakuran's men already." Mammon glared at the lightning Arcobaleno underneath her hood. "Then I will stick with the other low percentage of ten. And besides, their memory should be stored here as well."

Verde heaved a sigh, as he looked at his watch with a scowl. "If the Varia arrived now, which I'm assuming they did, including the time we have to escape this base, we have a total of twelve minutes we can spare here. Therefore, after twelve minutes, whether you have any objections or not, I am taking you out of here." Mammon didn't say anything, and Verde took that as a yes. G and Daemon glanced at one another, as if secretly trying to communicate something.

Out of sudden, Verde's pocket started buzzing – due to the vibrations of his phone. The scientist looked rather confused once he read the Caller ID, but picker up anyways. "Fon. What is it?" There was a pause. "Yes, we know that the Varia is here. I have predicted much-" Verde stopped talking. "… What now?" The said Arcobaleno sat down on the spot and took out his laptop. He rapidly started to tap on his keyboard with both hands, supporting the phone between his cheek and shoulder.

"Yeah… I'm trying. Yeah, yeah, I know… but Mammon's been making a fuss about how she needs to find Chrome and… Kyoya? I don't know, I am thinking he escaped already, seeing how the situation is going right now, but I can't be so sure. Lambo… no, I can't track him, unfortunately. Yeah. Meet you in twenty minutes." He hung up, and his phone dropped to ground, making a small crack on the edge.

"Who was that?" G frowned, as he went through bottles of rather questionable looking chemicals. "Ah, it was Fon. He was saying that they lost track of Tsuna… those useless bunch of barbarians. Vongola's Private Assassination Squad my serious shit. What are they telling me to do – to find the boy in ten minutes?" Daemon hummed. Fon… the advisor guy, eh.

"I found her." Mammon's voice echoed in the dark, as the three froze almost instantly. Verde was the first one to stand up and rush to her side. "… Along with someone rather unexpected." The mist Arcobaleno was staring at two shadowy figures that were still as unmoving rocks. One was Chrome, who lost her consciousness. The other was Kyoya, who looked battered, but was at least awake.

"Oh, look who it is." Verde grunted. "Someone who kidnapped my precious nephew, isn't it. He's not exactly precious, but regardless." Kyoya didn't say anything, but just held up his tonfas. "Calm down. It's not like we're going to do something harmful to you. If we do so, Fon will be quite frustrated, and it's not really nice when Fon is in his distasteful mood." The scientist fixed the position of his glasses and approached Chrome. He held her up in his own arms, and threw her carelessly towards Daemon. Daemon, startled at the certain move, dropped his scythe and caught her.

"Sometimes warnings are necessary, mind you." Daemon grumbled, picking up his weapon again. Verde didn't respond, as he stared down at Kyoya. "You. Would you rather die and rot here with the base, or will you rather be interrogated by a kind lady for about ten minutes and live?" The boy didn't really reply, but stood up nevertheless. "At least you're quite shrewd." Verde grunted, and turned around. He glanced at his wristwatch again.

"Exactly twelve minutes." Mumbling, he trudged forward as he packed his laptop and phone. "Let's go." G's eyes rounded a little. "Hey, didn't you say a while ago that Tsuna was-" "Yeah, yeah, he's lost in the base somewhere – but I doubt he'll die, even if he encounters Byakuran. How can I sound so definite, your expression seems to say. That's because, based on my database, Byakuran and Tsuna…" He trailed off, as he looked up to see dust falling from the ceiling.

"Actually, this can come later. Escaping is our top priority right now. The Varia never really says lies about their plans, after all." They ran out of the Estraneo Lab, following Verde and Mammon. Kyoya knew the way too, but he decided in didn't really matter in who led the way then. Daemon was taking peeks at how Chrome was doing – she was rather pale, and her body was covered in wounds. He was pretty sure she would need treatment from Knuckle, once they gathered together again.

They pushed past a few Millefiore men, with G shooting them down in one blast. Outside stood a group of the Vongola and Varia getting ready to crush the base down in a few minutes. "Hey." Mammon called, and was greeted by a strawberry blonde male. "Mammon… it's been a while. I was thinking we would have to kill you along with the people inside, because you weren't coming out, shishishi…" It was Belphegor, the storm guardian of the Varia. Mammon ignored him casually. "Hello, Xanxus." She nodded towards a scarred man who was looking quite impatient. In Daemon's opinion, he looked quite broad and brash – and pretty charismatic, as well.

"Trash." Xanxus acknowledged the Arcobaleno's presence. G spotted Giotto, and brushed past the crowd without a single second of hesitation. Giotto looked rather demoralized, staring at the Millefiore base nervously, drumming his fingers against his legs. And Giotto only did that when he felt really anxious. "Gio." G called the blonde with his shortened nickname – how he used to call them before they created the Vongola.

"G? Great, never knew you got out safely…" The volume of his voice turned down a notch every single time he said another word. "What's wrong?" "Tsuna's not coming out." "Then go find him." "My Hyper Intuition is telling me that he'll arrive before the explosion, but there are times where I have to be dubious about certain topics. And also question the limits of my Hyper Intuition, if I have to say. I am getting old, and I can't exactly assure its accuracy-"

"Giotto. Firstly, we are 22. That's not very old. Secondly, your Hyper Intuition was never wrong so far. I consider it very unlikely that it'll malfunction at this moment, so suddenly. Lastly, Tsuna has your blood in his vessels. He'll make it out. You're good at running away." Giotto stared at G's eyes that were filled with certainty, and finally reminded himself of the reason he had elected G as his right hand man – not only because he could trust him the most – but because G trusted his abilities more than he did himself. It was rather reassuring.

"… I understand." Giotto inhaled a deep breath of the moist air.

4 minutes left till the Melone Base explosion.

MEANWHILE…

"Byakuran-sama, we have evacuated the remaining troops. All 50 Areas are clear – we have 982 wounded officers, 102 dead officers, and around 2000 men alive without any major injuries. For A class workers, there is Irie Shoichi, Gamma, and Genkishi alive – but it seems like Gamma and Genkishi made their way out of the base – presumably an unnoticed betrayal. We couldn't locate any dead Vongola men, but we have safely transported the body of Lambo Bovino and Sasagawa Ryohei. I am pretty sure Hibari Kyoya and specimen 96, Chrome "Nagi" Dokuro has escaped."

"I see – thanks for the report, Kikyo." Byakuran smiled.

"No big deal, Byakuran-sama. However, what are you going to do with Irie Shoichi?"

"It's not my business, really. Sho-chan is nice, but he is no use for battle. His inventions are exceptional, though. May I ask where he is right now?"

"Right away, Byakuran-sama. Hm… it seems like he is taking care of three troops in Area B of our emergency base. Would you mind if I tell Bluebell or Torikabuto to take care of him?"

"No, I wouldn't mind. Thank you for your support, Kikyo. Tell Bluebell I said hi." The man on the other line – Kikyo chuckled, and hung up. Byakuran stood up, and stared down at the group of people – the Varia and the Vongola, he could see – standing in front of the Melone base. Byakuran supposed it was plan thought through quite long ago – as it was obvious that the bombs or explosion material was planted beforehand.

"Maybe I underestimated them too much… no, was it a miscalculation of their strength? Who ever knew that Varia would come for support? In a pinch, the Vongola is always one… huh." He turned around and exited his office, his hands in his pockets. He walked down the emptied corridors, expressionless.

Until he heard a small whimper from the side.

Byakuran blinked. He never knew Kikyo could leave someone behind – for him to make such a mistake was quite rare. His inquisitive mind perking up in excitement, Byakuran looked sideways – and was actually quite amazed at the sight that unfolded in front of him. Tsuna was weeping very silently, covering his head. He was calling for someone – Byakuran was pretty sure it was something like "Yamamoto", but he couldn't be so sure. He approached the curled brunette, and kneeled down.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi." He spoke up, as Tsuna shrieked, sticking his back to the cold metal wall instinctively. "W-who are you?" Byakuran smiled and sat down in front of the boy. "My name is Tsukiyoshi." Tsuna hiccupped and tilted his head to the side. "Tsuki- yoshi?" "That's right. The shortened version of it is 'Tsuki'. It means moon." The brunette in front of him managed to grin as well. "T-that's a pretty name."

Byakuran realized that the base was starting to shake. Tsuna looked fearful, but the white haired male held him and put him on his shoulder. "We need to get out of here." He mumbled. Seen by the average human eye, Byakuran must've looked like he was there – and not there the next glance, as he moved so fast. In a span lesser than ten seconds, Byakuran was out of the base, still carrying Tsuna. The little boy looked amazed. "H-how-"

Before Tsuna could finish talking, a loud explosion occurred behind them. A gush of hot wind hit their bodies, as balls of fire erupted, resulting the scent of burnt metal travel through the air in a fast motion. Ash surrounded them, as Tsuna coughed a little. Byakuran glanced back at his base and shrugged, walking away from it. As soon as he put Tsuna down – we heard voices – just like he expected.

"Tsu-kun!" Elena cried, as she embraced Tsuna tightly. She rubbed her face against his, and wept. "I thought you- oh god, Daemon, he's alive…" The male illusionist patted her back, as Giotto wiped the cold sweat on his forehead away. The Varia was gone – it seemed like they had decided to vanish after they completed their job. Byakuran just stared at the scenery, his eyes nostalgic as he just clenched and unclenched his hands.

"Byakuran?" Luce called his name, and Byakuran stopped in his tracks, just about to walk away. "Did you… save Tsunayoshi-kun?" He rubbed the back of his neck and faced the sky Arcobaleno. "What if I did?" He grinned in a quite mysterious manner, causing Reborn and Colonello to subconsciously land their fingers on their weapons. However, Luce sent them a look – as if communicating a signal to stop. The two males lowered their own respective guns, but continued to glare at Byakuran anyways.

"Nothing special… just curious if you have done any harm to Tsunayoshi-kun." It was the first time that Giotto had seen the cherubic female put on such a disparaging expression. It was an expression of pure disgust, as if she was looking at the epitome of a human imbecile. Surprisingly it was Tsuna that spoke up to Byakuran's defense – not Byakuran himself. "That's not true, um, nee-san. Tsukiyoshi-san was really nice to me." The Arcobalenos exchanged confused glances.

Tsukiyoshi-san?" Skull's left eyebrow rose. Mukuro and Gokudera were standing next to him, used to the presence of the male. "Tsuna, are you talking about that man over there?" The boy nodded. "Tsukiyoshi-san moved really fast… like…" He seemed to be searching his small dictionary of words. "A cheetah?" He suggested in the very end. Byakuran chuckled. "I'm a nice cheetah, according to Tsunayoshi-kun."

"It must've been a misunderstanding. And Tsuna is too young to be sure of anything." Reborn retorted, as Byakuran shrugged slightly. "Think what you want to think… but I really didn't harm him." He then looked up at the dark, pitch black sky. "It's about time I leave…" He whispered, and turned his back on them and stepped away. "Byakuran, I don't know what your true intentions are… but we will kill you. For sure." Lal Mirch growled under her breath, pulling down the urge to rip off Byakuran's throat.

The male smiled – but Giotto felt awkwardly peculiar at that particular smile. It was not Byakuran's usual sly one, but he seemed to be quite thoughtful, as he opened his eyes, revealing his purple orbs.

"If you can."

AT THE SECOND BASE…

"It's rather unexpected that you guys had a spare base." Lampo said lazily, glancing around the place. All the kids were in their assigned bedrooms, though Giotto doubted any of them were sleeping comfortably, after today's incidents. Kyoya was being interviewed in the interrogation room by Luce, and Chrome was going through a treatment session with Knuckle.

"It's not exactly our base. In the past, it was the spare base for the CEDEF group, but was abandoned a few years ago, after Byakuran took over. Right now, Talbot is taking care of it-" "WHO?" The Vongola Famiglia exclaimed in surprise, as Colonello stopped his explaining. "Talbot. The man who was alive since the creation of the first generation of the Vongola." Giotto's mouth was hanging in the air. "He's still alive? That's really creepy, in a sense."

Reborn stood up from the couch he was sitting on. "Colonello, tell Luce that we need to be going soon." Colonello rolled his eyes. "Can't you see I'm trying to be nice person and give an explanation about this unknown mansion we are in? And Luce should be done by now – she said it's only going to take ten minutes." As if to confirm this comment, Luce stepped out of the Interrogation room with Kyoya.

"You guys actually have a place to go?" Daemon frowned. "Yes. I helped them make another one, just in case." Spanner replied in the corner of the room, screwing some nails into a machine he was tinkering with. "Well, we'll be moving out now. We have something to discuss privately, too." Reborn paused. "Talbot should be coming back tomorrow, according to his weekly schedule. Make sure to get enough rest – even if the Millefiore has infinite men, they'll not be able to recover for about three more days."

With that the Arcobalenos stepped out, and started to walk through the forest. Colonello leaned back a little, putting his hands in his pockets. "Tsukiyoshi… you think it's Byakuran's real name?" Silence was present for the next few seconds, until Verde responded quite curtly. "Most likely, yes. I do not trust his words fully, but I see no point in Byakuran lying to Tsuna. I doubt Tsuna even knows who Byakuran really is, after all."

Fon was the one to continue. "Tsukiyoshi is his real name actually. It was recorded so in the Private Information Center of CEDEF." Lal Mirch seemed impressed. "You broke the passcode? That's something to boast about. Well, it's rather questionable that they still left that place open, though." The storm Arcobaleno seemed hesitant to share the next part of what he was about to say. "I had a chance to properly go through the biography and files of Byakuran, Vongola Nono, and our previous boss, Sawada Iemitsu. The result of what I found and analyzed was quite… petrifying, in a sense. It sent chills down my spine."

Verde fixed the position of his glasses, as if the information interested him – in which, it probably did. "Continue." Fon obeyed. "Byakuran. Real name being Yasui Tsukiyoshi. His father is unknown, but his mother is named Yasui Tsukiko. It seemed like she died during the session of her pregnancy – and Vongola Nono adopted him, afterwards." Luce listened, while others questioned.

"Why would out of all people, Vongola Nono volunteer to adopt Byakuran – or Tsukiyoshi, whatever." Skull frowned, as Fon shook his head. "At this point, I don't know. Such information wasn't recorded in the files as well – the accessible files, at least. Other files were deleted by an external being. Vongola Nono on the other hand, did had a wife, but she died through their second year of marriage. Timoteo used that as a cover to pretend that Byakuran really was his son."

"So it was all planned… legit." Reborn grunted, and then blinked. "Wait, Luce, in the Interrogation room, what did Kyoya say?" Luce hummed a little, and started talking. "Nothing special. I just asked basic information, after all. He was sold by his parents apparently, for survival – to the Millefiore. Something interesting might be that… well, remember, when Gokudera-kun invaded a family that was living in a small village?"

"Oh, that family of three? I heard Gokudera only killed the kid's parents… but the kid died later anyways." Colonello noted, and Luce nodded. "It seems like that place was called the Hibari Residence." All the eight walking Arcobalenos paused in their tracks and stared at Luce. The female looked rational and calm. "Then that means the family that Gokudera killed-" "Was Kyoya-kun's family, yes. Kyoya-kun already knew this, so it wasn't very… surprising." Skull grunted.

"Do you think we should tell Hayato or in that case, anyone?" Reborn responded to that question. "No. At least… not yet. Kyoya might say it himself anyways. But Fon, I apologize that I bothered your talk. Please continue." Fon nodded. "I was almost done, so it's no big deal. I didn't talk about Sawada Iemitsu yet, did I? Well anyways, Sawada Iemitsu… married Sawada Nana at a pretty old age, and had his son in the average records, the original Vongola Decimo Sawada Tsunayoshi." He paused.

"But it the private files I read, there was something different. Sure, the basic information about his late marriage was the same… but…"

"Sawada Iemitsu had two wives."

End of Chapter.

Sorry for the late update again, guys. I was suffering an author's block… and stuff. In return, I reduced all the battle scenes and went straight to the point for this chapter.

Yamamoto's past is completed here. For those who didn't understand the short flashback, basically – Yamamoto is the classmate that accidentally pushed her off the slide – resulting in the death of Kyoko. The reason Ryohei and Yamamoto don't know eachother is because at that time, Kyoko and Yamamoto were just classmates – they weren't exactly best friends. Ryohei's past isn't over yet, so you'll need to keep reading that…

Secondly, Byakuran and Tsuna's past are finally revealing it's true surface. Some of you guys assumed that Tsuna and Hayato were related, but no, as you saw, Hayato is related with Kyoya. I think it's really easy to guess the connection between Tsuna and Byakuran with the hints I've given you today… the problem is the process.

Next chapter will be Kyoya's flashback about his past – as I kind of explained it here.

Replies:

Yura – Tsuna will play an important role from now on, till the end of this story. Thank you for enjoying Mending Hearts.

O – Tsuna does have quite an uneventful story that will be revealed in the future as well. Thanks for the review.

Natsu Yuuki – Lambo's past isn't connected with anyone, and Hayato's past is related to Kyoya. Thanks for the constant reviews every chapter.

Giotto27 – I hope it gets more exciting from now on.

Thanks for everyone else who favorited or followed. I was really surprised that I got more than 250 followers, even after my long break.

Until my next update,

~Meiko~