Kyandi: Hello, Kyandiacs!
Roksana: We apologize for not getting this up sooner today. Someone got distracted.
Kyandi: It might have been a distraction, but that movie was hilarious!
Roksana: It was cringy.
Kyandi: Yes, but it was still funny. If some of you haven't seen Isn't It Romantic, then you should.
Roksana: Just be prepared to cringe a lot.
Kyandi: And laugh.
Roksana: But mostly cringe.
Kyandi: Yeah. Might as well get on with this. Everyone, enjoy and review.
Roksana: Kyandi-sama does not own Katekyo Hitman REBORN.
Chapter 23 Guardian of Mist
The next morning, Roksana was reclining in the sun room of her house, a late breakfast and tea set out on the wrought iron table in front of her. She had a file of papers in her lap as she drank her tea, her eyes scanning information. Heaving a sigh, she sat her now empty teacup down on it's saucer.
"Is something wrong with the information, Miss Tsukiko?" Dimitri asked stepping up to pour her some more tea.
"It's not so much the information I have an issue with, as it is the subject of said information." Roksana replied, picking up her teacup once more as she picked up the file and dropped it on the table.
Papers slid out of the file folder, pictures and documents spilling across the table's surface. Roksana reached out, picking up one of the pictures. The boy in the picture was cute, but solemn looking with somewhat messy, ink black hair and serious looking, red eyes. In the picture he looked to be somewhere from eight to ten, maybe.
"He was a cute kid. Too bad he grew up into such an entitled prima dona." Roksana remarked, placing the picture back with all the other pictures of Xanxus taken over the years since he came to be in the care of the current Vongola boss. "This is all the information your connections could get us?"
"Yes, Miss. If there is anything else you feel you need to know, I can always call in a few more favors and do some more digging." Dimitri told her.
"No, I think this gives me a good enough understanding of Xanxus. Growing up in an impoverished region with only a mentally ill mother, and then being taken in by the man you thought was your father, only to find out later on that he wasn't and that take all you have been training and working towards as his son, was going to be denied to you? It's tough to deal with, but I can't say I feel too bad for him as far as the inheirtence thing goes." Roksana remarked.
"But you do feel sympathy for him on some level, Miss?" Dimitri asked, slightly surprised.
"To find out that your adopted in that kind of way...he probably feels betrayed. It only makes it worse to find out that instead of passing on the title of Vongola boss to him, who has worked most of his life with that goal in mind, but to someone who has never known a single thing about his connections to the familia. I mean, the file says it all. He lead a rebellion, only to be frozen in some technique passed down by the first boss for eight years. His anger has to be off the charts." Roksana said, leaning back in her chair. "If there's one thing I can understand, it's wrath. For crying out loud, these days, Reborn is calling me the Vongola's Star of Wrath."
"You can have quite the temper, Miss Tsukiko, but it's usually a righteous wrath." Dimtri told her.
"What makes my anger, in any case, righteous?" Roksana asked.
"Usually, when you are angered to the extent of being so wrathful, it is most often for someone else's sake, not your own. In fact, I do not believe I have ever, not once in the fifteen years I have been watching over you, seen you angered for your own sake. As far as I am concerned, that makes it's righteous. This man, though...his anger is his own and for his own sake. Whether or not he is justified in his anger, to take it to this extent...it is not right."
Roksana only let out a hum. She wasn't so sure. Yes, Xanxus was angry, that much was clear, and yes, she agreed that he had taken it too far and crossed way too many lines, but...she couldn't help but feel like all this anger was deeply rooted in hurt. It had to be. No one found out that the man who raised them, wasn't even their father, and that the man had known it all along, and didn't come out of it feeling hurt.
Xanxus probably felt like the ninth boss, Timoteo, had only adopted him out of pity.
And no one liked to be pitied.
That being said, Xanxus had chosen the wrong group of people to mess with in order to get even with his father. While she empathized with Xanxus on some level, she was going to do her all to see him fail, for the sake of her friends.
They had managed to take the win with Yamamoto's match, but with the match that night being between the Mist guardians and no one on Tsuna's team, save Reborn, knowing who their Mist guardian was, Roksana couldn't really say she had any confidence in the match. Then there was the fact that everyone who had fought so far, herself included, were all in bad shape. Whoever fought as their Mist guardian, Roksana had a feeling that it wasn't going to be an easy win.
"Who fights tonight, Miss?" Maeve asked, walking into the room.
"I don't know. Tonight is the battle between the Mist guardians and Reborn isn't telling us who that is. Which, of course, doesn't bode well with me. If he's not telling us who it is, then it has to mean that the information will cause an uproar of some kind. But with the Mist guardians fighting tonight and the fact that Tsuna already lost the Sky ring, that means that tomorrow's fight will be Hibari's." Roksana remarked.
"Are you going to say that you're actually worried about him, Miss?" Maeve asked, a sly grin on her face.
"Of course not. That boy is harder to kill than a cockroach. I'm more concerned with him not showing up. If he gives me issues with showing up, I'll have to come up with something to offer him in order to bait him into doing it." Roksana replied.
"You sound like you're talking about a naughty dog, rather than a teenage boy." Dimitri remarked.
"When it comes to Hibari...there's very few differences." Roksana retorted.
Dimitri and Maeve laughed, but Roksana had been serious. Sometimes, hanging out with Hibari, was like being around a dog...a very rabid dog. It wouldn't be so bad if she could put him through obedience school like she had with her own dog, but she didn't think there was a trainer alive that would be will to touch Hibari's case.
But a girl could hope, right?
-0-0-0-0-
That night, when Roksana arrived at the school, she was the first one from her group and was directed towards the school gym. Walking into the gym, she found she was the first one period. Taking a seat on a pile of mats sat at one end of the gym, Roksana crossed her leg, pulling a nail file out of her boot to work on her nails while she waited.
That was how Xanxus and his remaining guardians found her. Xanxus walked into the gym, his eyes instantly picking out the girl. She simply sat there, in her short shorts, thigh-high stockings, tank top, and boots, a long, sleeveless hoodie hanging off her shoulders as she filed her nails. Another one of those lollipops was in her mouth. She didn't bother to look up as a throne-like chair was set up for Xanxus, the man taking as seat.
"Get enough sleep?"
There was a small grin on her face as Xanxus' eyes shifted to her. She still wasn't looking up from filing her nails. There were two possible meanings behind her words. Either she was asking if he got a good night's sleep after losing Squalo, or she was making another "old man" comment.
Roksana didn't specify either.
She merely continued to file her nails, not the least concerned with being there on her own. When she finished with her left hand, she reached into her hoodie pocket, digging around for something.
"You know, for such a sour looking man...you were a cute kid." Roksana said, leaning forward on her crossed legs as she held up a single photo of Xanxus as a child between two fingers.
Xanxus sat up straight when he saw the photo, Roksana's duel-colored eyes peeking from around the side of the photo to watch him. Her expression was neutral as she gauged his reaction. There was a weariness in the way his eyes narrowed, his lips pressing into a thinner line.
"Where did you get that?!" Levi demanded.
"Seriously? You have to ask?" Roksana retorted. "I'm a politician's daughter. You'd be amazed by the amount of connections I have in both the political and underground worlds. The moment Squalo showed up and looked like I was going to have to deal the lot of you, I called in a few favors. I have to say, I'm surprised. For a group of assassins, the sheer amount of information that came rolling in was stunning."
Xanxus didn't let it show, though Roksana could tell by the smallest of ticks in his expression, but this revelation actually bothered him. He had no way of knowing what information she had. In any other situation, a person revealing to a group of assassins that she had a whole lot of information on them, would have guaranteed their death, but in this case, Roksana was a different matter, and she knew it.
At the current moment, Roksana was really the only one had could have possession of the Moon ring. Since only one other person had ever had the ring, Xanxus didn't have any way of knowing what kind of power the ring could grant. For now, he wouldn't kill her, and she knew it.
"What do you know, trash?" Xanxus demanded.
"Hmm...I wonder. You know, if you really want to know something, you should start with not calling them things like "trash"." Roksana replied.
Her eyes came up as Xanxus pulled a gun, pointing it at her. Almost instantly the two Cervello women were there and stepping in, telling Xanxus that he would lose his Sky ring if he did anything to hurt Roksana. The corners of Roksana's mouth lifted up then, just enough to hint at an amused grin.
"Really, the question you should be asking isn't what do I know, but what don't I know." Roksana remarked, going back to filing her nails. "You really shouldn't eat so much red meat if you want to live to see forty."
There were so many things in his life that she could have chosen to comment on, and she chose to comment on his diet?
Xanxus didn't think he could ever meet a girl stranger than this one.
Roksana's attention shifted from Xanxus as the doors to the gym opened and Yamamoto, Gokudera and Ryohei walked in, Basil following behind Gokudera with Tsuna on his back. Tsuna was out cold, making Roksana get to her feet and walk over as they laid him down on the floor, Reborn standing by his head.
"Alright, Reborn, what did you do to him this time?" Roksana demanded.
"What makes you think it was me?" Reborn asked.
"Its almost always you. That's like one of the hallmarks of your personality." Roksana retorted. "So what happened?"
Reborn, of course, choose not to answer her. Roksana turned a questioning look on the other boys, but all of them shrugged. Heaving a sigh, Roksana just decided to leave it alone until Tsuna woke up. Instead, she fixed her eyes on Yamamoto. Reaching out, she took hold of his chin, tilting his head to the side to look at the bandages hiding his right eye.
"Please tell me your eye is going to be alright." Roksana remarked.
"Yeah. Romario-ossan said it'll be fine." Yamamoto told her.
"Good." Roksana released his face, her eyes scanning over their whole group. "Just look at all of us. We're a mess."
None of them could disagree with her. All of them were pretty beat up in one way or another. Though Xanxus' Mist guardian didn't look like much, Roksana couldn't help wondering if their Mist guardian, whoever it was, would end up the same as the rest of them.
They didn't have to wait long for Tsuna to finally wake up. Confused as to where he was and what was going on, Tsuna sat up.
"So you've finally woken up?" Reborn asked.
"Reborn...where is this?" Tsuna asked.
"It's the battlefield for the Scramble Battle for the Ring of Mist." Reborn answered.
"That's right! The Scramble Battle!" Tsuna said, finally getting a good look around himself. "The...the gymnasium?!"
"Tenth! How do you feel!?"
Tsuna looked up as Roksana and the others gathered around him.
"You're finally awake, eh." Yamamoto remarked.
"Basil gave you a piggyback ride here." Ryohei added.
"Th-thank you." Tsuna told Basil before turning to Yamamoto. "Yamamoto...is it alright? That eye?"
"Ah. Romario-ossan said not to worry." Yamamoto replied, grinning widely.
"Thank...thank goodness." Tsuna said with a sigh of relief.
"Tenth...that Mist guy...we still haven't seen hide nor hair of them." Gokudera pointed out.
"Do they actually exist?" Ryohei asked.
"If they don't, then we're in for trouble." Roksana added on. "Especially since Xanxus and his group is already here."
Tsuna glanced across the gym to where Xanxus and the remaining members of the Varia were standing. The boy tried to think, but he kept getting the feeling like he had forgotten something important. And then a strange, but familiar feeling swept through Tsuna.
"It's time for our guardian of Mist to come forward." Reborn remarked.
Turning, they were met with the familiar faces of Ken and Chikusa. Gokudera instantly went on guard, Roksana already reaching for her own weapon.
"Calm down, all of you. They've brought the Guardian of Mist with them." Reborn told them.
"What are you saying, Reborn?!" Gokudera demanded.
"Holy hell, Reborn...if you tell me that Rukudo Mukuro is our Mist guardian, it's not going to be pretty." Roksana warned.
The person that stepped forward, though, was a young girl about their age with an eye-patch over her right eye. She called herself Dokuro Chrome. There were several things about the girl that set off red flags for Roksana. The first was the fact that the girl was carrying Mukuro's trident, and the second was the eye-patch. When Mukuro possessed people, the same symbol that appeared in his right iris, would appear in theirs. With the eye-patch, if that was the case, they wouldn't be able to see the symbol.
"The Guardian of Mist...this girl...isn't Rokudou Mukuro?" Tsuna asked.
"Don't be fooled! That's Mukuro alright! She's been possessed by Mukuro! He'll do anything to get what he wants! That's the kind of guy he is!" Gokudera said, stepping between Tsuna and Chrome.
"It looks like you don't believe me." Chrome remarked.
"'Course not! Tenth! Just look at that weapon! Besides that, that eye-patch is hiding that shady eye!" Gokudera snapped.
"Hayato, hush."
Gokudera's mouth snapped up as Roksana told him to be quiet, the girl stepping forward to approach Chrome. Chrome tensed up as Roksana approached, flinching as Roksana reached out to take hold of her chin. Lightly turning Chrome face so that she could peer into the younger girl's eyes, Roksana fixed her eyes on the single eye she could see. Ken and Chikusa stood by, both watching Roksana closely, but the girl merely met Chrome's gaze, holding it for a moment before she let go of Chrome's chin and gave the girl a single pat on the head.
"Mukuro isn't possessing her...at this moment." Roksana said, turning away from Chrome.
"But...!"
"She's right." Tsuna said, cutting off Gokudera. "She's not Rokudo Mukuro."
Gokudera turned to Tsuna.
"No? Do you really think so!?" Gokudera asked.
"It's not...um...but for some reason..."
"Tsuna, think your words through and then speak." Roksana told Tsuna when he couldn't a coherent sentence out.
"You both spoke for me." Tsuna and Roksana turned to look at Chrome as she stepped up to Tsuna. "Thank you, Boss."
Roksana watched in amusement as Chrome gave Tsuna a kiss on the cheek, making him, Gokudera and Ken all three freak out. Chrome turned to Roksana next, standing on her tip toes. To help the girl, and to see how her friends would react, Roksana leaned down, letting Chrome plant a chaste kiss on her cheek.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!? And don't you encourage her, Roksana!" Gokudera snapped.
"It's just a greeting, Hayato." Roksana told him.
Gokudera wasn't about to take that as an explanation, telling Chrome to get away from Tsuna. Roksana shook her head, picking up on a conversation from across the room.
"And I thought we'd get some kind of old man wizard from the mountains, but it's a girl instead." Bel was saying.
"How...how voluptuous...girl on girl..."
All it took was hearing that out of Levi before Roksana was pulling a heavy ended knife out of a holster on her belt, throwing it faster than Levi could react, the heavy hilt slamming into Levi's head, right between his eyes.
"Pervert." Roksana said sourly, when Levi crouched down, pressing a hand to his head, Bel laughing like a loon. Turning back, her friends gave her a questioning look. "Don't ask."
"Well, what should we do? Let her join us?" Ryohei asked, moving on.
"Why should we let her join us? Besides, we don't even know where the hell she popped up from!" Gokudera snapped.
"Naa? Why you...you think I'm gonna let that go, pyon?" Ken demanded.
"You wanna go? Come on, then." Gokudera snapped back, the two boys glaring at each other.
"If either of you try a single thing, I'll knock the crap out of both of you." Roksana told them, both instantly taking a step back from her.
"Ken...Chikusa, calm down. This isn't something for you to decide." Chrome added, turning to Tsuna. "Boss, is it that I'm not worthy of the position as Guardian of Mist? I wish to battle as the Guardian of Mist, but...but if Boss won't allow it no matter what, then I'll abide by his decision."
"Eh...Wai...Eh!? You're asking me to decide just like that!? Such...such an important thing...!" Tsuna demanded.
"However, besides Chrome, there are no others who can battle as the Guardian of Mist." Reborn warned Tsuna from where he sat on Yamamoto's shoulder.
"E-even Reborn is saying things like that!" Gokudera stumbled.
"If that's how it is, then we really might not have a choice, Tsuna." Roksana said, making Tsuna look at her. "We can't afford to let the Varia take another win."
Tsuna knew she was right. Even though Chrome was associated with Mukuro's group, she had been chosen by his dad, just like Yamamoto, Gokudera and Roksana. Tsuna's eyes scanned his friends. Roksana had a point. At the moment, thanks to Yamamoto's win the night before, they were tied. They had won the Sun, Moon and Rain rings, but the Varia had the Sky, Lightning and Storm rings. If they didn't win the next two battles than, at the very best, they would tie.
They didn't have a choice.
"Then...we'll leave it to you." Tsuna said, making up his mind.
"Wha! Is that really alright, Tenth?!" Gokudera asked.
"I don't really know how to put it, but...it seems like it wouldn't work...if it wasn't her." Tsuna replied.
"Thank you." Chrome told him, after heaving a silent sigh of relief.
A loud crash has them turning as Colonello came bursting into the gym, his bird companion carrying him.
"Master Colonello! I thought it was already time for you to go to sleep with Kyoko." Ryohei said, greeting the toddler.
"So I was sleeping, wasn't I, hey!" Colonello replied, turning his eyes to Reborn. "But whether that chibi with the frog on his head is really an Arcobaleno...if we don't make sure of that, there'll be trouble."
"So you were concerned after all." Reborn remarked, both turning to look at Mammon, who was waiting for the battle to start.
"Oh, yeah, where's Dino? Is he not coming today?" Tsuna asked.
"That's right, he isn't here yet." Yamamoto agreed.
"Some urgent business came up last night, and he went to meet with an old friend." Reborn told them.
"Why do I get a bad feeling when you say things like that?" Roksana asked.
"You're too sensitive." Reborn told her.
"Yeah, and it's saved my life more times than I can count." Roksana retorted.
Reborn didn't say anything else. Roksana had noticed he was doing that a lot more lately. Instead of trying to come up with some kind of lie that she would instantly pick out, he just merely didn't say anything.
"Yosh, then, let's make a huddle!" Ryohei proclaimed.
"Eh...that's...that's right." Tsuna said.
"Let's do it." Yamamoto agreed.
"That's alright. I don't need that kind of thing." Chrome told them, merely heading out to meet Mammon.
Roksana watched her walk out to the center of the gym, her hands on her hips.
"You know, I said that Mukuro isn't possessing her, and I really don't sense him in her, but...I still have this strange feeling around her." Roksana remarked.
"What do you mean?" Yamamoto asked, looking at her.
"I don't really know how to explain it. My eyes are telling me that he's not there, but my instincts are screaming at me that that is a temporary thing." Roksana told him.
"What, do you think he'll just suddenly show up?" Gokudera demanded.
"I guess only time will tell." Roksana replied.
Really hoped her instincts were wrong. The last thing she really needed at that time was for Mukuro to make an appearance. Especially after bringing him up a few nights ago got her handcuffed to a bed.
She definitely didn't need a repeat of that.
"This time, the battlefield will be the entirety of the gymnasium. The objects in the building can be used in any way you desire." Cervello One announced.
"Furthermore, this field has not been outfitted with any special installations. There is no need for perplexity." Cervello Two added.
"Eh...? There's nothing?" Tsuna asked.
"The specialty of the Guardian of Mist means they do not need anything extra." Reborn told him. "Creating something from nothing, and nothing from something; thus bewildering the enemy. Rendering the family's true form intangible with visions of deceit. That is the role of the Guardian of Mist."
"The audience area has also been set up in a designated space within the building. As with the Battle of Storm, infrared-triggered lasers have been installed. Please be careful." Cervello One announced.
Roksana and her group moved back to the designated area, Roksana interested to see how this Chrome girl fought. She had to be good if Iemitsu had chosen her.
"Then, the Battle of Mist: Mammon Vs. Dokuro Chrome. Begin the battle!"
Almost instantly, it was like a flash back to the whole fight with Mukuro. Chrome slammed the end of the trident's staff into the floor, the floor breaking up as it did with Mukuro's illusions. While the illusion trapped many from both sides, Roksana, whose vision seemed to split to show her the truth behind the illusions, remained unaffected. Mammon, thinking they were unaffected, attacked, but it was soon revealed that what they had attacked, was nothing more than a basket of basketballs.
"The...the girl turned into a bunch of basketballs!" Ryohei exclaimed.
"How...how did that happen?" Tsuna asked.
"It's an illusion." Roksana told them.
"Both creating illusions without yielding a step, deceiving each other without stopping for breath. This kind of impressive battle is something you won't get to see very often." Reborn added in agreement.
"When you say illusions...it's true that before, too...Mukuro's State of Hell!" Tsuna exclaimed.
"Tenth! She's Mukuro after all!" Gokudera snapped.
"I wouldn't say that. He might have been the one to teach her, though." Roksana mused.
"Roksana...you can see through the illusions, right?" Tsuna asked.
"It's weird, kind of like having double vision. Part of my sight sees the illusion, but the other part sees what's really going on. It was disorienting the first time it happened." Roksana replied.
Mammon, seemingly happy to have a challenge, removed a chain from around something under their clock. The frog on their head then shifted shape, growing longer until it could bite its own tail and form a halo-like form over Mammon's head as a pacifier around their neck began to glow, just like Reborn's and Colonello's. Apparently, Mammon was an Arcobaleno once known by the name Viper.
"This Mammon is an Arcobaleno?" Roksana asked.
"Aa. He is also one of the group of the strongest babies, the Arcobaleno." Colonello replied.
"Viper of the Indigo Pacifier. It's said that he's an illusionist and the only one among the Arcobaleno who possesses psychic abilities." Reborn added.
"Psychic? You mean ESP!?" Gokudera asked. "That kind of occult!"
"This goes against everything I was taught being raised Catholic." Roksana remarked.
"I had heard that he was missing in action, but I didn't think he was still alive." Colonello said, everyone deciding not to brooch on Roksana's comment. "Why didn't the pacifiers light up until now? Hey!"
"I'm not sure, but it seems to have something to do with that chain-like implement; it seems to have sealed the pacifier's powers." Reborn remarked.
"Foolish chibis like you wouldn't understand. It is a by-product of research. Unlike you, I am never negligent of the efforts to lift the curse." Mammon called down to them from where they floated up near the ceiling.
Tsuna tried to ask what Mammon meant, but Colonello and Reborn weren't talking.
"This isn't good. The average illusionist can't stand up to that stupid chibi, hey!" Colonello said.
"Don't be so quick to decided that, Colonello. Dokuro is no ordinary illusionist." Reborn replied.
Roksana hoped so. She watched as the battle continued, the two creating illusion after illusion to attack and counter each other. Chrome showed, again and again, that she was just as capable of using Mukuro's States of Hell, which only made Gokudera sure that she was Mukuro. While a little weary herself, Roksana could see that Chrome's own will was still in completely control. Something wasn't right, and Roksana had a bad feeling that she was going to find out what before the fight was over.
Out of all of those watching, though, the only ones that didn't react to the illusions, were Reborn, Colonello, Roksana, and Xanxus. That being said, when Chrome summoned pillars of fire and Mammon froze them in return, even Colonello and Reborn were drawn into the illusion.
Roksana remained unaffected.
Mammon seized the flow of the fight, freezing first Chrome's legs and then shattering the trident she was carrying. When the trident shattered, blood suddenly spurted from Chrome's nose, the girl passing out on the floor. As they watched, the girls' stomach sank inward, as if all her internal organs suddenly vanished without a trace. As impossible as it seemed, Mammon concluded that Chrome's life had been prolonged with the use of illusionary organs.
Roksana didn't know how that was possible, but she had seen too many weird things to start questioning things like that now.
Then the feeling washed over Roksana...a feeling she hadn't felt since Mukuro had lurked around inside her head. From the look on his face, Tsuna felt it too.
A fog swelled up around Chrome, Tsuna warning his friends that "He's coming!". Roksana, at least, didn't need an explanation. Before their eyes, Chrome transformed into Mukuro.
"It's been a while. I've come back from the other side of the cycle." Mukuro said in greeting, turning to look at Tsuna and his friends. His eyes settled on Roksana. "You still have such a fierce look on your face."
"Kiss it." Roksana retorted.
"Come now, there's no need to be antagonistic." Mukuro told her.
"No need to be antagonistic!? You tried to possess me!" Roksana snapped back.
"That's water under the bridge." Mukuro insisted.
"Only because I'm the only person in existence that you can't possess!"
Mukuro merely shrugged his shoulders in reply.
"Rokudou Mukuro...I was wondering where I'd heard that name before. Now, I remember." Mammon remarked. "About a month ago, someone attempted an escape from the Vendichi prison. The person's name was Rokudou Mukuro."
"He broke out again!?" Tsuna exclaimed.
"But, it should have been over when the attempt failed. I heard that he was thrown back into a prison even more difficult to escape from." Mammon added.
"Kufufufu. The information net of the Vongola's elite special assassination squad Varia isn't that well informed after all. I am right here, aren't I?" Mukuro replied. "If you don't believe me, ask that girl there. No illusionist alive can fool her cursed eyes."
"My eyes aren't cursed!" Roksana retorted sourly, all attention redirecting to her. "A Sectoral Heterochromia is just a genetic mutation. There's nothing cursed about it."
"Keep telling yourself that." Mukuro remarked.
Roksana had the strong urge to slap him, strangle him, and then bury him in a pile of fire ants.
"What a troublesome guy. Alright. Let's clear things up. You are merely an illusion created by that girl, right?" Mammon said, using another illusion to freeze Mukuro's feet into place.
Slowly, the ice worked its way up Mukuro's body, though the guy didn't seem the least bit fazed by that.
"I'm not so good-natured that I would let myself lose to an illusion created by an illusionist." Mukuro said before the ice covered his head.
"He's completely frozen!" Ryohei exclaimed.
"Then, that Mukuro is...an illusion?!" Gokudera asked.
"Well now, looks like you're been unmasked. The one who'll be smashed into pieces should be the body of that girl just now, right?" Mammon said, moving in to attack.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Roksana remarked.
Before Mammon could attack, Mukuro broke free of the illusion on him, turning Mammon's own illusion on them to wrap them in vines of lotus flowers.
"Just who is an illusion?" Mukuro asked.
"What's this power!? Th-the pain...!" Mammon cried out.
"Even that Viper is completely overwhelmed." Colonello remarked.
"That is Tsuna's Mist guardian, Rokudou Mukuro." Reborn replied.
"He's the real thing, after all." Tsuna breathed.
"But...if that's the case, what happened to that girl?" Gokudera asked.
"That's still her." All eyes turned to Roksana, whose eyes were fixed completely on the battle. "It's hard to explain what I see, but...think of it in this way, Mukuro and that girl are pretty much one and the same."
"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked.
"I believe what she means is that you cannot consider Chrome and Mukuro as separate beings. Because there is Chrome, Mukuro can exist. Because there is Mukuro, Chrome can live." Reborn said.
"No...I don't get it." Tsuna said.
"That's all I can explain for now." Reborn replied.
Roksana didn't know how to explain it, so she didn't bother with it. After all, she had no why of knowing how what she could see, came to be. She merely watched as Mukuro and Mammon continued to compete to see which one of them would come out on top as the best illusionist. Of course, as the room seemed to warp around them, Roksana remained unfazed while everyone else on her side where caught up in the illusion. Even with Mammon using their full strength, it wasn't enough to full Roksana's eyes.
Okay, so, if she was being honest, maybe she could, just a little bit, see how her eyes were cursed.
Just a tiny bit.
She would never admit that to someone like Mukuro.
The others, one both sides, were completely swept away in the illusions, Colonello and Reborn looking around at how everyone, save Xanxus and Roksana, were completely wrapped up.
"They're starting to get corrupted by the illusion." Colonello remarked.
"Yeah because these illusions act on the mind directly, and they've been continuously affected since the battle began. Everyone, but for one person." Reborn said.
Both Colonello and Reborn looked down at Roksana, who stood calmly, watching the fight as it carried on, the room around them twisting and turning. No matter what Mammon threw at Mukuro, or how Mukuro countered, it didn't even make the girl blink. And then Roksana perked up, a low "Huh." leaving her. Out of the twisting vortex the room had become, Mukuro stepped forward with both halves of the Mist ring in his possession.
"I just have to rejoin these rings, correct?" Mukuro asked.
"Ye-yes." one of the Cervello replied.
"Not so fast!" Mammon called, appearing before their eyes. "I was just playing with you. Don't get so cocky! I have yet to show you the full extent of my powers!"
"You know this very well, don't you? What it means when your illusionary powers are countered by another's. It means that you have completely lost control over your own perceptions." Mukuro replied, using an illusion to make Mammon believe they were being choked by their own frog. "Come, shall I show you what this thing we call power really is?"
The room fell away, warping as Mukuro twisted Mammon's very form until they exploded. With that, the room returned to normal. With that, the Cervello called the match, name Chrome the victor.
"Eh...wait! How could you...you didn't have to go so far." Tsuna complained.
"Even now, you're still showing such sympathy for the enemy." Mukuro remarked. "Just how naive can you get, Sawada Tsunayoshi? There's no need to worry, I should say. That baby managed to escape. From the start, he had every intention of reserving enough energy to escape. He's a shrewd one, that Acrobaleno."
"You're one to talk." Roksana retorted, Mukuro grinning at her.
"Gola Mosca. After the contest battles are over, eliminate Mammon." Xanxus ordered.
"My, my, you really are the dark side of the mafia, aren't you, Xanxus?" Mukuro asked. "Even I would feel awed at this terrifying scheme you've thought up. But, I have no intention of poking my nose into your business."
"I do."
Mukuro and Xanxus both turned their eyes to Roksana when she butted in, not looking the least bit sorry for it.
"Just one thing, though," Mukuro said, continuing on. "The other candidate for the successor, though smaller and weaker than you, is not really someone you should trifle with, for your own good. Especially not with that girl at his side. She is, after all, Vongola's Star of Wrath."
"My god, don't you start with that name, too." Roksana said sourly, turning to look back at Reborn. "See what you started with that ridiculous title?"
Reborn was not sorry.
Mukuro ignored her comment and turned, heading away from the center of the building and towards Roksana and her friends. Gokudera instantly went on guard, Roksana frowning as he approached.
"It's good to be so vigilant. But, I have no intention of colluding with the mafia either." Mukuro said, holding up the Ring of Mist. "The only reason I have become your Mist guardian is to set myself in a better position to possess your body, Sawada Tsunayoshi."
"Lie to someone else, Mukuro." Roksana told him simply, Mukuro turning his eyes to her as she braced her hands on her hips.
"I-in any case...th-thank you." Tsuna told Mukuro.
Grinning to himself, Mukuro let go of Chrome, his image transforming back into hers as she collapsed to the floor.
"What's going on?" Gokudera demanded. "Was Mukuro an illusion after all? Or, is this girl an illusion?"
"What about the girl's internal organs?" Tsuna asked.
"Don't worry. Chrome's internal organs are functioning properly thanks to Mukuro's powerful illusions." Reborn told them.
Tsuna was just glad to see that Chrome was sleeping peacefully. Leaving the girl passed out on the floor, claiming she could make her own way back once she woke up, Ken and Chikusa left. With the match over, the following night's fight was announced.
The Battle of Cloud.
"It's Hibari's turn." Gokudera remarked.
"Oi, Xanxus," Reborn called out. "What are you going to do? If Hibari wins the next fight, the ring count will firmly be five against three in our favor. Even though you have gained the Sky ring, the decision was that Tsuna's side will win. When the time comes, you better be prepared to admit defeat as promised. You will abdicate all rights to be the successor."
The grin that curled Xanxus' lips didn't bode well with Roksana. She knew he had something up his sleeve. Especially knowing all she knew about him and his past.
"Of course. I have always respected the Vongola spirit. I will honor the promise of the battle. If Mosca really loses the Cloud battle, I will let you people have everything." Xanxus replied.
"That Xanxus dared to say something like that means, he has every confidence that that Mosca guy will win." Reborn remarked.
"No, I don't think that's it." All eyes, even Xanxus', turned to Roksana, whose eyes were fixed on Xanxus' expression. "There's more to this than him just thinking his man will win, because that's not going to happen. Hibari won't lose...Ever. Not to that."
Xanxus' smile faded away in the face of Roksana's intent stare. He, just like everyone else who had to face them, was really starting to hate the girl's eyes.
But she would find out tomorrow just how much she hated being right.
END
Kyandi: Personally, every time I see Xanxus or Mukuro, I really just want to smack them.
Roksana: The urge is real. I'm always tempted to do to them what I do to Hibari.
Kyandi: Take your shoe off and smack them with it?
Roksana: Bingo.
Kyandi: Yeah, I can see being tempted to do that.
Roksana: There's a lot of people I want to smack upon seeing them.
Kyandi: You and me both, but we must control our urges to smack.
Roksana: For now.
Kyandi: Yep. Everyone, enjoy and review.
Roksana: We'll attempt to be back tomorrow.
Kyandi: Bye-bye!