Disclaimer: I do not own KHR. If I did Tsuna would be a true super uke and smarter, sorry as much as I love and will write about the lovable idiot, Goku and Naruto have made it so too many main characters are idiots.
Summary: What if Tsuna was smart, like genius hacker smart, but decided to hide it behind an average student exterior.
Chapter 29: Mist Match
6 O'clock Hibari Residence
Kyoya's house was a more like a manor, large and imposing. The guest rooms he'd given Tsuna and the kids were equally large and luxurious, so it wasn't hard to get comfortable. So Tsuna should be able to relax as he reclined on the cushy bed.
*Ring… ring… ring…*
Tsuna's eyebrow twitched as he read the name that flashed on his caller ID.
Don't Answer
It may be childish, but he made sure to program his phone to remind him never to answer Iemitsu's calls, under any circumstances. The problem was, Iemitsu had been calling him every five minutes for the last hour, and he couldn't even turn off his phone! Oh, he'd thought about it, and would have done it if the Ring Conflict was going on, but sadly it wasn't an option.
"Omnivore…" Tsuna winced and looked up to see a very irritated Hibari Kyoya. "Answer it."
"But-"
"Tsunayoshi!"
Tsuna winced as the phone finally stopped ringing.
"Sorry… I just…"
Kyoya growled and grabbed Tsuna's arm, pulling him to feet so Tsuna was forced to meet his eyes.
"When did you become a coward?"
Tsuna barely held back a snarl as he gave his best friend his most vicious glare before he faltered. He knew what Kyoya meant and couldn't deny it, but…
"I don't know what to do."
"He leaves the day after tomorrow, correct?"
"Yeah…"
"You still have time to decide, but…" Tsuna winced at the pause. "If you hesitate for too long, you'll miss your chance to say what you really want to. Don't let him leave like this."
"I'll ask Reborn to make sure he's at tomorrow's match."
KHRKHRKHRKHR
11 O'clock Namimori Middle School, Gymnasium
Mukuro's late. Tsuna tapped his foot impatiently as his group plus Colonello waited on the arrival of to Kokuyoland gang, considering everyone else was present. I think he's bringing Nagi… Chrome, so she might be slowing them down a bit.
"Tsuna."
"Hmm?" Tsuna gave Reborn a questioning look.
"Iemitsu wants to speak with you…" Tsuna glared. "…and Nana."
"I see…"
Tsuna turned his gaze back to the opposite side of the gymnasium. Xanxus was sitting on a throne like chair, with Gola Mosca and Marmon on his left and Bel and Levi on his right. He tried to clear his head by focusing his attention on the humanoid Gola Mosca, but it only served to distract him further.
Something was off about the subtle amount of flames leaking from the Mosca's core. It didn't have quite the ferocity of Xanxus' flames, but it was possible the battery changed them. Somehow… somehow that didn't seem right though. It was almost as if Xanxus wasn't the flame donor…
"Tsuna."
Tsuna snapped his attention back to the impatient Arcobaleno.
"If he wants to talk, he needs to come to the match tomorrow night." Tsuna held up his hand so Reborn couldn't interrupt. "If he's serious about this, I want him to come to me and not take the cowards' way out and wait for me to go to him. Normally I'd want to set the pace, but I'm not going to let Iemitsu have an excuse to back out."
"Do you want him to bring Mama?"
"No… I just want him to prove he face me." Tsuna sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm starting to feel old."
The door to the gym creeped open, admitting four new occupants. Tsuna had been right; Mukuro brought all of them, including the newly christened Chrome.
"Are any of you the Guardian of Mist for Sawada Tsunayoshi?"
One of the Cervello stepped forward and examined the Kokuyoland gang and recognized Mukuro from the previous matches as he stepped forward, trident in hand.
"Kufufu. That would be me, lady Cervello."
Tsuna stifled a laugh at the look on the Cervello's face; Mukuro could have that affect on people when he says something unexpected.
"Then we shall begin. If all spectators would be so kind as to step within the taped line that will be considered out of bounds for the duration of the match, I can explain the rules." Almost everyone was within the taped line anyway, so she only waited for Ken, Chikusa, and Chrome to join Tsuna and the others. "The Mist match will have no special arena and no time limit. The duty of the Mist Guardian is to create something out of nothing, to bewitch ones enemies like a thick mist blanketing the land."
"Hey! It's time for the EXTREME circle."
"Sasagawa, I don't…"
Mukuro trailed off and sighed at the sight of Tsuna glaring at him. He and Kyoya really needed to work out a way to say no to their chibi boss.
"Mukuro fight! Oh!"
Mukuro and Marmon moved to the center of the gym and waited.
"Kufufu." Mukuro chuckled. "I am honored to be facing the legendary Viper."
"I see." Reborn's eyes narrowed, so he and Colonello had been right. "But why haven't our pacifiers reacted?"
"Good question, Kora!"
Marmon floated gently in the air and smirked before allowing the chain binding his Arcobaleno pacifier to fall. The color immediately went from a black to a vibrant, glowing indigo. The other Arcobaleno pacifiers glowed in response. The frog on his head also underwent a transformation, as it elongated and circled over his head until it was biting its own tail.
"I'm surprised you were able to see through Fantasma and me." He floated a bit closer. "You must have some talent."
Mukuro and Marmon just smirked and stared at each other and waited. This would be a match to remember.
"Are both contenders ready?" The Cervello received two nods. "This is the fourth battle in the Ring Conflict. Rokudo Mukuro vs. Marmon, Battle Start!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, the gym began to spin and the walls and floor seemed to melt. All but Tsuna, Kyoya, Reborn, Colonello, Chrome, and Xanxus became unstable, being unable to hold off the effects of the illusions.
Mukuro spun his trident around his head and slammed the base into the floor. Flames erupted from the unstable ground, but were quickly frozen. Mukuro only grinned, the illusion had been made week on purpose.
"I'll end this quickly."
What little one could see of Marmon's face seemed to disappear as an ice cold wind encompassed the building. Ice slowly began to build up around Mukuro's feet, rising quickly.
"Oya." Mukuro grinned as the ice creeped higher, seemingly not affected by the cold. "Oya oya."
Soon his entire body was encased in ice, but only the Varia seemed to think it was working.
"So, Kyoya-san."
"Yes Omnivore?"
"How long do you give it?"
Kyoya gave Tsuna a sardonic grin as his gaze was fixed on the frozen Mukuro. Neither of them was concerned for the Mist Guardians' well being.
"That herbivore will have this done in less than ten minutes."
"Really? I think he'll be done in less than five."
The others in the group showed varying degrees of amusement, but didn't get a chance to join in on the betting pool.
"Your Mist Guardian has already failed." Marmon addressed Tsuna. "The art of illusion seizes control of the person's perception. That is to say, it infiltrates the brain that governs their five senses. The stronger the illusionist's abilities, the more complete the infiltration." His seemingly expressionless face looked to be grinning. "Their illusion's rate of success is also heightened and its hold over reality stronger. Thus, in the illusionist's case, if their illusion is successfully counted with illusion, it means that control of their own perception will be completely snatched away." Marmon's face transformed into a large mallet, and he prepared to shatter the ice encasing Mukuro. "His mind is so convinced this is real the impact will surely kill him."
Marmon charged the frozen teenager, expecting to make impact without effort, but was stopped just in front of his prey.
Erupting from the ground now was not flames or ice, but tangles of lotus flowers that created a vice like grip on the Arcobaleno. The ice surrounding Mukuro melted away, revealing him to be completely unharmed and unconcerned.
"Arg!" Marmon struggled against the lotus vines. "It feels so real!"
"Kufufu. Now that I have seen a small demonstration of your powers." Mukuro tightened his grip on the trident. "I shall demonstrate a taste of my own." His grin gained a shark like edge. "After all, a weakling like you requires no more than a taste."
The kanji in Mukuro's eye changed from a one to a four, and a small indigo flame surrounded his eye.
"Don't get cocky!"
Marmon blasted the vines off his person and a hundred illusionary copies of himself appeared. They quickly surrounded Mukuro and tentacles came spewing out of his face, attempting to trap Mukuro.
"Kufufu." Mukuro spun his trident and struck down the copies as they got close. "Childs play."
It didn't take long before Mukuro destroyed all of the copies. Once they were gone he attacked Marmon directly, but hit an illusion that turned into toilet paper.
"An illusionist who can use martial arts?" Marmon gritted his teeth. "It's like blasphemy."
"My abilities are the product of nature." Mukuro's eye switched to a one again. "Being reincarnated six times has given me the power over the six paths of hell." Mukuro's pillars of flames returned, hotter and more realistic, he was done playing games. "One such as you should know the truth of this."
"Heresy!" Marmon shouted as the flames caused scorch marks to appear where one of the pillars grazed his side. "Humans are reincarnated endlessly, the cycle does not affect ones physical abilities. That is why I collect money!"
The ground seemed to lose complete stability as Marmon's powers exploded outward. The floor seemed to become circular and disjointed as planks from the gym could be seen floating all around. The empty space in between the section of the floor was an endless blackness that seemed to try and swallow them.
Even Tsuna was having trouble staying stable on his feet. It seemed that only the illusionist could control themselves completely at this point.
"I feel sick!"
"My head!"
Hayato had his hand over his mouth, his face green, and Takeshi and Ryohei were clutching their heads. Likewise, most of the others seemed to be in varying degrees of pain as the illusions began poisoning their minds.
"If this goes on much longer," Reborn muttered as he and Colonello hung from Colonello's animal partner, a white hawk named Falco. "Those who aren't accustomed to the strain could be damaged irreparably."
Tsuna's eyebrow twitched as he tried not to look worried. He knew illusions could be dangerous to the brain if introduced in massive amounts, and with two masters going at it… things could get messy if the fight lasts much longer.
"Kufufu... Kuhahahahaha!" Mukuro burst out laughing, distracting everyone from their discomfort. "An avaricious Arcobaleno? How interesting!"
Lotus flowers and vines wrapped around the flame pillars, giving them farther reach they surrounded Marmon, who was now sweating.
"Such power… where did you get it?"
"From hell."
"Stop that nonsense!"
Another blast of cold air froze the flames and lotus flowers, but Mukuro used the now frozen pillars to propel himself around the gym, weaving in and out as he dodged all of Marmon's attempts to attack.
"Damn you!"
Marmon seemed to inflate like a balloon and encircle Mukuro, trapping him within. Fantasma enlarged and spikes formed on the inside of his circle body before it shrank once more and the spikes became imbedded in the balloon.
In less than a second, lotus flowers burst out from within the bubble, effectively destroying the trap and revealing Mukuro to be unharmed.
"I believe I have achieved my objective."
Mukuro held up the two ring halves for all to see.
"No!" Marmon's body reformed. "You haven't even begun to see my true power!"
Mukuro seemed to be standing horizontally as he smirked down at the weakened Arcobaleno.
"You know this very well don't you?" Marmon back up a few feet. "If your illusion has been countered by another's, than it means you have lost control of your own perception."
Suddenly Fantasma began choking its own master.
"What! No… Fantasma stop!"
"Kuhahaha!" Reality seemed to completely break apart and Mukuro fell toward the plummeting Marmon. "How does it feel Arcobaleno?" Even Tsuna couldn't help but wince at the slight madness on Mukuro's face. "This is my world!"
Mukuro's body melted and forced its way into Marmon's body. Marmon began to swell and bubble, his entire being threatening to explode.
"No! I'll die!"
"You lost for one reason and one reason only." Mukuro's voice drifted from nowhere. "I was your opponent."
Marmon's body finally gave out and exploded, leaving Mukuro to drift gracefully down to the restored gym floor. Everything was normal again, with the gym completely unharmed.
"Is this enough?"
Mukuro held up the completed Ring of Mist.
"The Vongola Ring of Mist is in the hands of Rokudo Mukuro, therefore Rokudo Mukuro is the victor."
Mukuro gave a gentler smile and slipped the ring onto his middle finger before walking back to the group.
"Three to one." Mukuro said as he approached Tsuna. "One more and we win."
"That's good… but Marmon escaped."
The Varia looked over in interest at that.
"Correct. He always intended to escape if it became necessary."
Xanxus sneered at that.
"Gola Mosca." The robot released some steam from its facial vents in response. "When the conflict is over, kill Marmon."
Tsuna glared at Xanxus, he couldn't stand the thought of someone treating their Guardians' like disposable tools.
"As the count is now three to one, in favor of Sawada Tsunayoshi, tomorrow's conflict may be the end." The Cervello stepped forward. "The next to fight will be those holding the rings of…"
Cloud… cloud… cloud… Please be cloud! Tsuna chanted in his mind.
"Thunder."
"Fuck!"
(A.N. I know it's practically the same as the manga and anime, but I saw no reason to change it. The canon Mist battle between Mukuro and Marmon was completely one-sided from its beginning, so I saw no need to tweak it too much. After all, Mukuro is the type to play games and draw things out. Please review and tell me what you think, ja ne.)
