Feel better, for the most part.
Beta-ed by hokkyokusei.
I don't own Bleach or KHR.
26. Battle of the Sun
Rukia couldn't sleep that night. It wasn't because the Varia, but rather because of the hairpin. During the encounter with the Varia, the hairpin had started to glow. Rukia wanted to know: why did that happen? She closed her eyes and called out for Orihime. Orihime appeared in front of Rukia in her spirit form. "What's wrong, Rukia?"
"Something's worrying me."
"What is it?"
"During the encounter with the Varia, your hairpin starting glowing. Is it something to be concerned about?"
"That's strange… since you only have one of the hairpins, the only reason it would glow would be if the lost clip was nearby."
"Are you saying someone had your clip?!"
"I'm… not really sure. Something, or someone, is interfering with my ability to sense these sorts of things."
"Yeah, my senses are going a little haywire, too. Someone is doing this to throw us off during the battles."
"Do you have any idea why? Or who?"
"I sensed a familiar aura, but it can't be… he…"
"Our master? But… but he's dead, isn't he?"
Rukia nodded.
Orhime asked, "But how did he die anyways?"
"It's… a long story… I-I can't tell you."
Rukia stared up at the ceiling, becoming suddenly interested with a small beetle making its way across it. His death was a secret that only three people knew about: Captain Ukitake, her boss, and herself. She had sworn that no one else would know about it, and she forced herself to forget about that day. Orihime looked at Rukia worriedly, but understood her expression.
"It's okay, Rukia, you don't have to tell me. But if it is him, why is he here?"
"I don't know, Orihime… I really don't know."
x-x
Rukia yawned and stretched as she got up the next morning. She stumbled out of bed, groaning and muttering irritably as she put on her school uniform. She straightened her uniform out as she grabbed a piece of toast from the kitchen and walked out the apartment door, heading to school.
As she munched on the plain toast, she thought about the aura from the day before. 'It couldn't have been him… right?'
She gulped down the last bit of crusts and saw Tsuna up ahead of her. It looked like he was trembling violently. As he passed a street, Yamamoto jumped out, calling, "Tsuna!" and leaned on Tsuna's shoulder.
"Yamamoto!" Tsuna cried.
Yamamoto greeted him with a friendly, "Yo!"
Rukia ran to catch up with them. "Good morning, Tsuna-san."
"Ru-Rukia-san! Good morning!"
Yamamoto breathed out and said, "Just as I thought, I couldn't sleep yesterday. Waah, I couldn't calm down, so I figured I should go to school."
'Yamamoto, too…"
Rukia was startled and gaped as Yamamoto cheerfully put his arms behind his head and grinned. He exclaimed, "Man, this is so exciting!!"
The look on Tsuna and Rukia's faces read, 'This guy's mentality is not the same as ours…'
"It'll be alright," Yamamoto grinned, ruffling Tsuna and Rukia's hair.
"What do you mean, Yamamoto-kun?" Rukia asked.
"Well…" Yamamoto sighed, "Initially, the only thing I had in mind was how to beat that long-haired dude but, although I still don't get the situation we're in now…"
'Typical Yamamoto,' Rukia grimaced.
"… With everyone around, I came to this conclusion: This isn't my battle, but it's our battle. You're not alone, Tsuna, Rukia. Let's win this together!"
"Ya-yamamoto…" Tsuna and Rukia both looked up at the tall, grinning boy in awe.
"OBVIOUSLY!!" yelled a voice behind them. "Who can allow those guys to take care of the Vongola?!"
Rukia turned around, knowing already who it was, by their language, ideas, and voice. It was Gokudera, and he carried a large cardboard box in his arms.
"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna cried.
"No matter who it is, I'll get rid of them!" Gokudera said passionately. "The ones who will win will be us."
Rukia and Yamamoto nodded, smiling, and they said together, "Leave it to us!"
"It'll be all good, Tsuna-san! If we believe in each other, then this battle will be a breeze. There's nothing to worry about, Tsuna-san," Rukia smiled at Tsuna. 'And I'll be there to protect you all,' she added in her mind.
Tsuna gaped, forcing a smile. He looked at his hand again. Rukia noticed his trembling had stopped.
Meanwhile, Yamamoto had opened the box in Gokudera's hands, infuriating the said man.
Rukia looked over Gokudera's shoulder.
"Eh? Paper airplanes?" Yamamoto said.
"HEY YOU! DON'T OPEN IT, DAMN IT!"
Rukia grabbed one and held it up disbelievingly. "I never knew you were into these sorts of things, Gokudera. How childish." She snickered.
"Wha--?!? No!" Gokudera said angrily, snatching away the paper airplane.
"What are they for?" Tsuna asked.
"I'm going to use them to train! I still haven't mastered it yet, soo… I'm going to go to the mountains to train now!" Gokudera said cheerfully.
'Y-you train with paper airplanes?!' Rukia thought.
"Oh, by the way, I wonder what the guardian of the mist is doing. He didn't even show up at such an important time."
"I wonder who it is," Yamamoto grinned.
"I just hope that person's better than the dumb cow," Gokudera stated unhappily.
"T-true…"
"I guess he'll show up sooner or later, right?" Rukia said, trying to lift some spirits.
"I-I guess…"
"Hibari wasn't around either," Yamamoto remembered.
"Probably sleeping in the reception room…" Gokudera mumbled.
"But isn't he training with Dino-san?" Tsuna asked.
"Yeah, he should be, on the school roof or something like that."
Just then, the school bell rang.
"Oh, crap!" Rukia looked over to Tsuna, seeing that he was starting to panic.
"I-if he sees us… he's catch us and bite us to deeeeaaathhh!!" Tsuna wailed.
"Let that bastard come," Gokudera grunted through the dynamite between his teeth.
"H-How about we run for out ever loving lives so that we can at least try to live for the next few hours, hmm?" Rukia suggested.
They all started running for the school gates, agreeing this was a good idea.
x-x
"Tsuna, is it true you have a cold?" asked several students.
"Er, um…" Tsuna said, completely confused.
"Weren't you just skipping class?" taunted a boy.
"Yeah, skipping class 'cause you don't like school?"
"He is 'loser Tsuna' after all…"
Rukia grumbled to herself.
"Rukia-kun, good morning!" Kyoko said.
"Oh, Kyoko-chan, good morning!" Rukia greeted.
"Um… can I ask you something?" Kyoko said.
"Sure, ask away!" Rukia smiled, leaning her chin on her hand.
"D-do you know what onii-chan is doing these days?"
Rukia's eyebrows furrowed a fraction. She quickly spun up a lie, saying, "Uh, sorry, Kyoko-chan, I can't tell you, but maybe Tsuna-san can."
"Ah, okay, thanks!"
"Tsuna-kun, good morning!"
Rukia watched as they conversed with each other, Tsuna blushing as he talked. Then he gasped loudly and said, "Sorry, Kyoko-chan, y-your brother is actually-"
"I'm just training since I'm going to be in a sumo-wrestling competition with Gokudera and Yamamoto!" Rhyohei butted in.
"EH?!" Tsuna gaped.
"Sawada's going to come. Colonello likes watching, too!"
Kyoko looked relieved.
'Wh-what is this nonsense onii-chan has cooked up?!' Rukia stared disbelievingly.
"Sawada, let's go practice some sumo-style leg stomps!" Ryohei roared, dragging Tsuna away. As Rukia followed, she heard Hana mutter to Kyoko, "Isn't that suspicious?"
x-x
Rukia arrived at the rooftop a few minutes later, in time to hear the story of Ryohei's scar.
"… There were some junior high kids that hated me, and one day they called me out using Kyoko. When I went to the place, there were a lot of punks waiting for me. Yeah… it was a trap.
"I was beaten up, with a crack on my head."
"EEK!" Tsuna squeaked.
"Kyoko still thinks that was her fault," Ryohei said seriously.
Orihime appeared beside Rukia, looking at Tsuna and Ryohei.
"So sad… Kyoko feels guilty because of that incident. Rukia, we should try to make her feel better after the battles are over."
'I certainly can't tell her about the battles, it'll be dangerous for all of us.'
"Well, it's not a problem even if we keep it a secret from Kyoko!"
Rukia looked up.
"I'll win. Leave it to me!" Ryohei said confidently.
"He sounds sure."
"Yeah… let's hope everything turns out alright…'
x-x
That night, Rukia left the apartment with Grimmjow. Grimmjow had a scowl on his face, rather than the everyday smirk that he had plastered on his face at school. Rukia sighed and looked up at the sky, seeing that the moon was slowly blossoming. She arrived at the school, where Yamamoto, Gokudera, Ryohei, and Basil were already waiting.
"Where's the other brat?" Grimmjow snarled.
"What'd you say, blueberry-head?"
"Oh, you didn't hear me, you deaf octopus-head? I said: Where. Is. The. Vongola. Brat," Grimmjow repeated, saying it slowly.
"Why, I'm gonna…" Gokudera growled, about to take out some dynamite when Tsuna showed up along with Reborn and Lambo.
"Everyone!" Tsuna shouted, breaking into a run.
"Tsuna-san," Rukia said, while Grimmjow grunted.
"Tenth!"
"Yo!"
"Sorry for being late. Lambo started to play hide and seek."
"DUMB COW, CAUSING TROUBLE FOR THE TENTH!!" Gokudera snarled.
"There are those two who haven't even shown up yet…" Yamamoto said.
"And as usual, the mist guy hasn't shown up yet," Ryohei added.
"It's so quiet… have they not arrived yet?"
"Shut up, you morons," Grimmjow smirked. "We have some visitors."
As everyone promptly shut up, Grimmjow roared, "Come out! I know you're here already!"
As if on cue, the Varia and Cervello appeared on the top of the entrance roof.
The Cervello announced, "Upon a strict conference…"
"The battlecards for the scramble have been decided for tonight."
"The first match is…"
The battle between the guardians of the Sun!"
Tsuna and the others looked at Ryohei, worried.
"Ryohei-san is up first… why do I feel like there's something fishy going on here?" Orihime asked.
Rukia thought hurriedly for a moment. What had occupied her mind was that masked man within the Varia. 'Could it be him?'
As Rukia thought, the Varia leaped down from the roof, landing easily.
"Thank you for gathering together," a Cervello said. "We shall begin the battles of the rings for the successors…"
"Please look over there."
One of the Cervello pointed to the side, and the other pressed a switch, revealing a caged boxing ring, with a full set of lights at the top.
"Wh-what is that?!"
"It's a special arena we've prepared for the match between the guardians of the sun," the Cervello started to explain.
"This time, we've put the attributes of the sun guardians into consideration and prepared the arena, although the rest of the matches will be in different locations."
"WHA?!" Tsuna gasped. "PREPARING SOMETHING THAT BIG?!"
"They're spending a lot of money," the boy with the tiara grinned, "But the outcome of the match is obvious, so it's a waste!"
"I think it's a perfect place for sempai!" Yamamoto smiled.
"YEAH! The ring is my territory!" Ryohei roared excitedly.
Rukia looked to the side to see Tsuna starting to have a mental breakdown while Lambo lay beside him, fast asleep.
"T-The matches are really going to start… I'm so nervous…" Tsuna mumbled. "AAAHH!" he shrieked to the sleeping Lambo. "I ENVY YOU, WHO HAS NO IDEA ABOUT ANYTHING!!
"Oh? Where's the boss? It's finally my turn to show myself~!" Ryohei's opponent pouted in a very feminine voice.
"He seems to be absent, Lussuria," tiara boy smiled.
"There's no way that guy will be interested in other people's battles," Squalo added.
The rest stood silent, looking at the kids across from them.
"Besides, he shouldn't have accepted this lame battle and just let me kill them. I would've annihilated those brats in 5 seconds…" Squalo muttered angrily. "AND HEEEEY! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO QUIT THAT GLARE?!"
The man beside Squalo stared coldly at him.
"It seems like there's someone eyeing you, Marmon," tiara boy grinned.
"I know," the baby said grumpily. "He's not even a contestant either… I feel like charging some observation fee."
Reborn and Grimmjow stared at Marmon.
"Well then, will the guardians of the sun…"
"Please step into the center of the ring!" The Cervello announced.
"Will they always be doing that? It's getting kinda creepy," Rukia whispered to Grimmjow.
"Shut it, shrimp, the battle's about to start."
"Well, I'll go and play~!" Lussuria smiled.
"I'll enjoy this," Marmon said, as he floated through the air and landed on the robot's hand.
"Shut up and kill him already!" Squalo said.
"Alright! Just leave it to me!" Ryohei gave Tsuna a thumps-up. He started to walk to the ring, when Yamamoto suggested…
"Hey, Tsuna, We're not going to do a group circle?" Gokudera and Rukia stared at him with hanging jaws.
"Huh?! N-now wait a minute!" Rukia spluttered.
"THAT SOUNDS EXTREME! I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO DO THAT AT LEAST ONCE!" Rhyohei roared, raising his fists to the air.
"YOU MORON! WHY WOULD WE DO SUCH A LAME THING?!" Gokudera spat.
"EEEHHH?" Tsuna gasped.
Rukia backed away, trying to avoid the circle.
But, Yamamoto, laughing and all smiles, grabbed Gokudera and Rukia around the neck and dragged them into it.
"N-Noooo…" Rukia groaned.
"You might as well do it, Rukia, at least for Ryohei-san," Orihime giggled.
Rukia snarled in her head, 'I hate Grimmjow so much right now.'
"RYOHEI, FIGHT!!"
"OH!!" Yamamoto yelled spiritedly.
"Ohh…" Rukia and Tsuna muttered.
Gokudera said nothing.
Once Ryohei and Yamamoto let go of them, Rukia turned around to glare at Grimmjow.
"ALRIGHT! My ultimate power is emerging now!" Ryohei yelled, clenching his fists.
'Sporty guys are always like this,' Gokudera thought.
'He said, 'Ryohei fight' all by himself!' Tsuna gasped.
"Wait, onii-chan!" Rukia called, running to Ryohei. He turned around and Rukia planted a kiss on his forehead.
"WHA--?!" Gokudera gurgled.
"Please be careful," Rukia said. Ryohei gave her a smile.
"Don't worry, Rukia, I'll be fine!" Ryohei assured her, ruffling her hair.
Rukia looked away as Ryohei stepped into the ring. The Cervello approached Ryohei and Lussuria and each examined the ring they had.
"There is no mistake."
"We approve of these being the true half Vongola rings of the sun." Both the Cervello hung the rings on chains, which were then hung on Ryohei and Lussuria's necks. "As a rule, we will have you hang the ring from your neck."
"And upon defeating you opponent and taking the ring, that person will be declared the winner."
Ryohei took off his jacket and got into his boxing stance.
Lussuria squealed, "Oh~! Oh dear! From up close, your body looks mighty fine!! You're like, totally my type~!"
"WHAT?!" Ryohei gasped.
"Wh-what did he just say?!" Gokudera said, aghast.
"I-Is he gay…?" Rukia mumbled.
"I… don't know?" Tsuna said.
"I'm so taking you home!" Lussuria said, smooching up his lips.
"What are you saying?!" Ryohei said, a bit creeped out.
"It's rare for anyone to fit under Lussuria's circumstances," Marmon said.
"That kid… He's unlucky…" Levi muttered.
"I don't get what you're talking about," Ryohei said, taking his boxing stance. "But, I'll just fight fairly, that's all."
"Oh my~! Is that a boxing pose I see?" Lussuria said, throwing off his jacket. "Now isn't that pathetic?"
He got into a strange stance, holding one knee up, and both pinkies above his head.
"I, Lussuria, shall go ahead and play with you with the ultimate standing martial art, muay thai!"
"What?!"
"So the Varia's guardian of the sun was a fighter too, just as I thought," Reborn said.
"Just as you thought…?" Tsuna said.
"Looking back at previous generations, the sun guardian always had a strong fist or foot. Destroying the misfortune that attacks the family with their own body, they become the sun that brightly shines upon an area. That's the purpose of the guardian of the sun."
"Well, the wielders of the ring of the sun, Lussuria vs. Sasagawa Ryohei…"
"Battle start!"
"YOU!! I won't accept any insults towards boxing!"
"Nufufu…"
Suddenly, blinding lights snapped on, causing everyone to shut their eyes tightly.
"The ring is glowing!?"
"Explain," Grimmjow ordered the Cervello.
"This special ring was remodeled for the battle of the guardian of the sun. It's a sun coliseum, lit by a fake sun."
"What's that?! I can't see anything!!" Tsuna cried, squinting into the light.
"I'll lend you my shades," Reborn offered. He wore a pair, and Yamamoto was just putting one on.
Rukia and Grimmjow both accepted the sunglasses from Reborn, hastily putting them on in time to see Ryohei being knee-ed in the stomach by Lussuria.
"AAH!!" Tsuna cried. "The person from the Varia is wearing shades, so he can move freely!! This isn't a fair match, then!"
"Let's give onii-chan some shades too!"
"We will not accept any contact with the guardians during the battle. If you do, then we will consider it a disqualification and take the ring away."
"NO WAY!!" Tsuna cried.
"That's not fair!" Gokudera protested.
"Heh," Grimmjow smirked, adjusting his shades. "It's a good thing that you did that earlier, shrimp."
"Eh?" Tsuna said, turning to Grimmjow and Rukia. The rest followed suit.
"That kiss, then, was that it?" Reborn asked.
Rukia nodded.
"What? What did you do?" Gokudera asked.
"Earlier before the fight started, I gave onii-chan a kiss on his forehead. I had a feeling that we wouldn't be able to do anything during the fight, not that I could do it anyways then."
"What do you mean?" Yamamoto asked.
"That kiss was like a barrier. Protection, I guess. It'll protect him if his life is in danger," Rukia explained.
"Oh?" a girly voice cut in, making them turn back to the ring. "This feeling… your body's nicer than what I thought earlier. You're totally my type~!"
"Damn him!" Gokudera snarled, clenching his fists.
"Where are you?!" Ryohei yelled, punching wildly in front of him.
Lussuria ran up, saying, "This way~!" while punching Ryohei in the face.
Ryohei fell forward, against the ropes around the ring. "GAAAH!!"
"What?!" Rukia gasped.
Steam was rising up from the ropes and his chest where Ryohei's body had made contact. He fell back, his chest steaming.
"With an electrical, metal wire, the rope is heated to several hundred degrees," a Cervello stated.
"No way!!" Tsuna gasped. "That's crazy!"
"That…" Rukia spluttered.
"Mmm~! You're slowly reaching my perfect, ideal body~!" Lussuria sang as Ryohei struggled to get up. "My ultimate sense of beauty for the body is a cold deteriorated, not moving body~!" he finished, licking his lips.
"Wouldn't that be a dead body?!" Gokudera said, grossed out.
"EH…EHH!?" Tsuna shared the same emotion.
"What a creep…" Grimmjow and Rukia muttered.
"QUIT JOKING AROUND!" Ryohei yelled angrily, delivering an uppercut in Lussuria's direction. To the surprise of Tsuna's side, it hit Lussuria squarely on the chin, sending him flying up.
"He hit him!" Tsuna said joyfully.
"What an impressive punch!" Yamamoto exclaimed.
"Heh, not bad," Grimmjow smirked.
"Lussuria… he's really playing," tiara-boy muttered, disappointed.
"He wasn't hit… he got hit on purpose."
"Aww," Lussuria crooned, flipping around in the air. "Don't hurt me~!"
"What?!" Ryohei muttered. "But that sense of touch… he's up in the air!"
As Lussuria came flying down towards Ryohei, Ryohei yelled, "I won't let you escape this time!" He swung his fist up, yelling, "I GOT YOU!"
Lussuria smirked and brought his knee forward, letting it take the impact of Ryohei's punch.
"WHOAA!" Ryohei yelled, as his left arm started bleeding. He fell back against the ropes again, letting out more yells of pain. "GAAH! MY ARM!"
"Like the guardian of the sun, I reflect misfortune back towards you!" Lussuria said smugly. "My left leg is a metal knee and has a plate in it. Your fist is useless now."
"What!!" Gokudera snarled.
"Onii-san's hand!"
"That's not all," Grimmjow said angrily.
"Ryohei is growing weak from all the heat emitted by the light radiation," Reborn continued. "And he's dehydrating."
"No way!" Tsuna cried. "At this rate--!"
"Hey, stand up!!" shouted a new voice.
"Colonello!
"I was caught by Kyoko, so I was late…" Colonello muttered.
"Hey, that shorty is the Arcobaleno, Colonello," Squalo said.
"Why is he here?" Levi squinted through his round shades.
"It's about time," Colonello said. "Go and show him your true strength, Ryohei!"
"No matter who talks, it's useless," Lussuria smirked. "The boy is finished~! I'll have him~!"
"Stand up, onii-chan!" Rukia called.
Ryohei unsteadily got on his feet, gasping for breath. "Master… Colonello! I've been waiting for those words!"
"Onii-san got up!"
"YEAH!" Gokudera cheered
"B-but is he alright?" Tsuna asked, doubtful.
"His sweat is steaming and making sizzling sounds…" Yamamoto noted.
"Not to mention his arms… and burns…" Rukia mumbled.
"The way your body is made is different from mine. I bet you can't last in the scorching light," Lussuria said, holding out a pinky. "Hurry up and die so you can become a part of my corpse collection."
"No! Not yet!"
"Nothing good will happen, even if you stand up," Lussuria mocked, placing his fists on his hips. "Your punches don't affect me at all."
"Yeah… It didn't affect you at all…" Ryohei held up his left fist. "My left one didn't."
"That's right, ever since he saved Fuuta and the others, he's only been punching with his left hand," Reborn said.
"Eh?!"
"That's right," Colonello agreed. "Hey, he never punched with his right!"
"B-but… why?" Tsuna asked.
"One is to give the cells a rest and make sure they're in a perfect condition. Another is because he's the guardian of the sun," Colonello said.
"This right fist," Ryohei said, "Exists only to turn around the extreme disadvantage I have!!"
"Oh my~! That's like, the best! You're so funny!" Lussuria giggled.
"What's so funny!" Ryohei roared indignantly.
"I don't know how great that punch you've been saving up all this time is but, if you can't hit me there's no point."
And as Lussuria finished, his image split, creating many more images of him.
"What an amazing footwork!" Gokudera exclaimed.
"Big brother… and he can barely see right now too!" Tsuna cried.
"Onii-chan, be careful!" Rukia shouted.
Ryohei cried out in pain as Lussuria's fist smashed into his face. He fell back on his back.
"Onii-san!"
"Onii-chan!"
"I'm fine," Ryohei winced, getting back to his feet. He resumed his boxing stance. "Let's go…"
"Oh?" tiara-boy said.
"He's got some aura there," Marmon commented.
"That's his right…" Gokudera muttered.
Tsuna gulped audibly.
"There!" Ryohei shouted, punching straight up. "MAXIMUM CANON!"
His uppercut landed squarely on Lussuia's chin, once more throwing him upwards. His shades shattered.
"He… He did it!" Tsuna cried.
But, again, as before, Lussuria flipped around and landed neatly on his feet.
"Phew! If it was a clean hit, it probably would have been risky," he said, seemingly unharmed.
"No… no way…" Tsuna gasped. "It was only a little more!"
"So close," Rukia moaned.
"No," Ryohei said. "I hit it for sure."
And the lights above the ring shattered and went out.
"The lights…"
"RAAAAAAWWR!!!" Ryohei roared, punching quickly up many times. The rest of the lights shattered and went out as well. "It looks like I can finally fight you in a fair situation… I can open my eyes now!"
"Lawn-head did it!" Gokudera exclaimed, taking off his shades.
"He can see now!"
"It looks like he aimed for the lights from the start," Reborn said.
"Heh, not bad, for a kid," Grimmjow said.
"Go for it, onii-chan!" Rukia cheered.
"Whether you have your eyes opened or not, I don't care. What's unbelievable is that his fist has the power to break the lights."
"Lussuria," tiara-boy said. "Look at his body carefully."
"What?" Lussuria said, peering at Ryohei. "Oh no. That's…!"
"WHAT?! SALT CRYSTALS?!"
"S…Salt?!"
"I see. It's because of the sweat he produced from the dehydration. He put the salt on his fist and shot it like bullets… ookay."
"Even if you notice it now, it's too late!" Ryohei said triumphantly.
"Oh? Ohohohoho! Don't make me laugh too much! My muscles will crack even more," Lussuria laughed.
"What…" Ryohei muttered.
"The reason why I was a little scared was because I thought you cracked the lights with the power of your fists. The only one who was able to release a glowing punch was the first guardian of the sun," Lussuria reasoned. "But a cheap trick like this… Even I can do that."
Lussuria appeared in front of Ryohei and punched, and the lights behind him broke.
"Wha?!"
"He grazed the salt off the lawn-head!" Gokudera cried.
"And used the same trick?!" Tsuna gaped.
"No way!" Rukia cried.
"No, it requires more technique than that," Grimmjow growled.
"He blew the salt crystals off Ryohei's body with the power of his fist," Reborn continued. "That's what you call Varia quality."
"Varia… quality?" Tsuna asked.
"The Varia takes on missions that are said to be impossible for regular humans to do. They are a group of genius assassins that would complete their missions to perfection, regardless of the situation they're placed in. Their so-called demonic works, or their high-leveled skills in killing is considered Varia quality by the people who are astonished," Reborn informed them.
"That's Reborn, you said it well~! Don't you understand that there's such a gap between our skills that this will be a game and not a battle?" Lussuria said.
"Say whether it's a game or not after you accept my right fist first," Ryohei said.
"Geez, get a clue, boy. I just copied that punch of yours, didn't I?"
"If I don't try it…" Ryohei said, determined, getting into his boxing stance. "I won't know!"
"Geez, you just don't give up…" Lussuria tsked.
"Well said, Ryohei. Hey, that's my disciple, alright!" Colonello said.
"No way… Colonello, is that okay?" Tsuna cried.
"Maximum canon is a skill that requires you to release all of the energy in every cell of your body. But your energy wasn't fully transmitted to your fist. If there's a chance of winning, it would be that. Hey! Concentrate more power into your fist!"
"Alright!" Ryohei yelled. "Let's go ultimately!!"
"I'll teach you what a wall you cannot break looks like," Lussuria smirked. His image split, creating more of himself.
Ryohei let out a roar of determination. "Maximum canon!!"
His punch met with Lussuria's metal knee and his right arm burst out in blood.
"Ah! No way! Even his right hand!" Tsuna gasped.
"Onii-chan!" Rukia yelled, stepping forward. Grimmjow grabbed her arm, restraining her.
"Mmm~! That was such a nice cry!" Lussuria crooned.
"HEEEY!" Squalo yelled. "How long do you plan to make us wait?!"
"Oh quit rushing," Lussuria reprimanded. "I'll kill him without you telling me."
"Wh-what should I do?" Tsuna panicked.
"Onii-chan?"
"K-Kyoko-chan?!!"
"What?! Why is she here?" Tsuna wailed.
"The girls were looking for Colonello, so I escorted them here."
"DAD!!" Tsuna gaped at his father.
"This looks troublesome, Kyoko…" Hana said.
"Onii-san…"
Hey, Kyoko!" Hana called.
Kyoko ran up to the ring, saying, "Onii-san, why?! You're covered in wounds!"
'Oh crap, what're we going to do?!' Rukia cursed.
"Oh my, are you this boy's little sister?" Lussuria said. "Your brother is going to lose to a battle against me, and will be killed~!"
"Onii-san, stop!" Kyoko demanded. "You promised you wouldn't fight!"
"Stop it, Kyoko, it looks dangerous!" Hana said.
"…Yeah… when I cracked my forehead…" Ryohei spoke, "I made a promise not to fight…" He struggled to his elbows. "But I also said: But I'm still a man… so there will come a time when when I just have to fight… But if you're going to continue to cry like that…" Ryohei got to his knees, saying, "I won't lose!!"
"He stood!" Tsuna and Rukia cried.
"I'll show you!! This is the true…" Ryohei yelled, rushing at Lussuria.
"Geez, you're so annoying. Let's end this now," Lussuria sighed, doing his crazy footwork.
"MAXIMUM!!"
'His feelings toward Kyoko… have they released the full power of his cells?!' Rukia gaped.
"CANON!!"
Ryohei's right fist connected again with Lussuria's metal knee, but this time the metal shattered.
"Gyaaa!!" Lussuria screamed, falling to the floor of the arena with a loud thump. Everyone stared, disbelievingly.
"Onii-san's punch…"
"GYAAAA!!" Lussuria screamed.
"It worked!!"
"I-it… it can't be!" he whined. "My metal knee can't be crushed!" he wailed as his knee bled.
"Looks like the match is done," tiara-boy smirked.
"Now there's no way for Lussuria to defend himself from that punch," Marmon said.
"That pervert makes me laugh."
"Your right fist appeared to be glowing. Hey, you did well, Ryohei!" Colonello said proudly.
"Well, let's go home, Kyoko!" Colonello said, dragging Kyoko home.
"Wait! Onii-chan is still…"
"It's already finished. Hey, I'm sleepy," the baby yawned.
"It was a good tense battle," Ryohei panted, standing over Lussuria. "Now give me the ring."
"No! I don't want to!" Lussuria shrieked. "I'm part of the Varia. I can win with only this one leg! It's easy! Ohohoho!"
"What amazing persistence," Tsuna murmured.
"That's not it," Reborn disagreed.
Grimmjow snorted as Rukia whispered, "Is he afraid…?"
"Come on!" Lussuria whimpered. "Let's continue! Hurry!"
"What are you in a rush about?" Ryohei questioned.
A tremor ran through Lussuria and his back exploded into shreds of flesh and splatters of blood.
Tsuna's side stood shocked at the scene. Who…?!
"When you guys do it, you really do it, don't you?" Marmon said.
The giant robot's hand smoked and the man beside him tucked something away inside his coat.
'That man!!' Rukia gasped.
"He… his own ally!!" Tsuna said, shocked.
"What's going on…?" Yamamoto said.
"'Erasing the weak'," Grimmjow said grimly. "One of the reasons why the Varia is the strongest."
"Lussuria was scared of that," Reborn said. "That's why he was so anxious to continue."
"Erasing… the weak?" Tsuna breathed. "No way!"
"Hey!" Ryohei shouted. "Wake up!"
"Don't get any closer," the Cervello ordered, stepping between Lussuria's body and Ryohei. "At this moment, Lussuria is unable to continue fighting."
"Therefore, Sasagawa Ryohei is the victor of the scramble for the ring of the sun," the other Cervello stated.
Tsuna's side stared grimly at the Cervello.
"This is the end of tonight's match," one of them said.
"But from now on, we shall announce the next battle's participants.
"We find out already?!"
"HEEEEEY!! Let me go next!" Squallo demanded.
"Please allow me to continue," the Cervello said. "Tomorrow evening's battle will be…"
"The match between the thunder guardians."
"Lambo is the thunder!" Tsuna gasped.
"Can he fight?!" Rukia asked.
"We will meet tomorrow evening," the Cervello informed.
The boxing arena exploded. The robot jumped in and took Lussuria's body and the ring was thrown at Ryohei.
"What kind of guys are they…?" Gokudera stammered.
"I can't believe it," Yamamoto said.
"Despicable," Rukia spat.
"Wait up, Kyoko!" Hana's voice rang out. "This seems troublesome!"
"Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko called. "Tsuna-kun, will you please tell the truth? What's my big brother doing?"
"Eh? Well… umm…"
'Oh, crap…' Rukia mentally groaned.
"Th-that is…" Ryohei stuttered.
"Um…" Tsuna said, starting to sweat as he looked into Kyoko's eyes.
"It's a sumo wrestling match!" Reborn announced. Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Rukia smiled and nodded.
"It's called a hybrid sumo match that's done on a ring," Gokudera said scientifically.
"It's secretly becoming popular. It was a pretty good match today too, wasn't it?"
"Y-yeah…" Rukia laughed. "Ohohoho…"
"Oh… then it's really…" Kyoko sighed.
"I told you it was a sumo match. Let's go home, Kyoko!"
"Yeah!"
'Sh-she bought it…' Rukia sighed.
"Sawada… I'll hand this over to you," Ryohei said, giving the complete ring to Tsuna.
"Tsuna, get the ring box," Reborn said.
"Ah, yeah…" Tsuna said, getting it out. He opened it and inserted the shining ring into one of the velvet slits. "One… is in."
"Yeah! Our first victory!" Gokudera smiled, "Looks like we're doing well so far!"
"Let's keep going like this!" Yamamoto said.
"That's right! Let's go Sawada!" Ryohei cheered.
"We can do this together!" Rukia smiled.
"Eh… ah… yeah…" Tsuna said, not quite as energetically.
"Well, excuse us!" Gokudera said, bowing.
"See ya!" Yamamoto called, walking away.
"Until tomorrow, Tsuna-san!" Rukia said, leaving with Grimmjow.
"What…? What was the ring?" Kyoko asked her brother.
"I prize from the match," he promptly answered.
Hana had a skeptical look on her face.
x-x
Later, as Rukia lay on her bed, her mind kept on flashing back to that man who had shot Lussuria.
"Is something wrong, Rukia? Was it that man?" Orihime asked.
'It's… alright… I need to sleep anyways.' Rukia answered. She turned over on her sheets, shutting her eyes. 'Just… it couldn't have been him, right?'
End of chapter 26
sorry for the wait but I had some things come up...
Anyway a big thanks to hokkyokusei for helping (doing) this chapter, I am so lucky to have such a Beta.
Till next time