Kyandi: Hey, guys! Sorry for getting this up so late.
Roksana: She had a commission to do today.
Kyandi: To supplement for an income I no longer have(Thanks Covid19), I've started selling commissions on Twitter.
Roksana: She's had a few, but not a lot.
Kyandi: It'll work out in the end. The point it, I was busy finishing an order, so I didn't finish the chapter until late.
Roksana: And she does mean late. It's four in the morning here.
Kyandi: So we're going to wrap this up so that I can go to bed.
Roksana: Sounds good.
Kyandi: Alright, everyone, enjoy and review. And thank you so much to those of you who do review. The funny and supportive reviews really do make my day and keep me motivated.
Roksana: Kyandi-sama does not own Katekyo Hitman REBORN.
Chapter 38 Begin Training
That night found Roksana, Tsuna, Gokudera, and Yamamoto in the kitchen with Fuuta, Haru, Kyoko, and the children. Fuuta was at the stove, pouring soup into a bowl. It was only after she had returned to the hideout, that Roksana had heard about the past Basil making an appearance while she had been out.
"So, Tsuna-nii and the rest went to the Melone base and dropped off some bentos, then came back." Fuuta remarked.
"Yeah, it seemed like Shouichi and Spanner were very serious about doing their work and didn't seem to be in a talking mood." Tsuna replied, handing Roksana a drink.
"So what? You guys'll be busy working yourselves to death too, so don't worry about it." Reborn retorted, making Tsuna and Gokudera tense up.
"Why are you saying this as we're resting?" Tsuna asked.
"Why you guys are done eating, accompany me for a little while." Reborn told them. "You too, Volkov."
"I don't feel like it." Roksana retorted.
All eyes turned to Roksana, who was pushing food around her plate, the line of her mouth drawn down in a frown.
"You're not still pouting, are you?" Gokudera demanded.
Tsuna let out a squeal, Yamamoto ducking to avoid the bowl of soup Roksana threw before it slammed into Gokudera's face, spilling soup all over the boy. Gokudera sat there for a moment, soup dripping all over the place, before he ripped the bowl away from his face, glaring at Roksana.
"What the hell is your problem!?" he snapped.
Roksana shot a glare in his direction that had him freezing on the spot. Especially when, without breaking eye contact, she rose to her feet and leaned towards him, the look on her face making it look like she could kill something right then and there, and Gokudera just happened to be in her line of sight.
"How about you go and let Hibari bite you and we'll see how long you stay in a bad mood." Roksana snapped. "Leaving marks like this on a girl is like leaving a sign of possession. Hibari doesn't own me. No one owns me! If I see him again, anytime soon, I'm going to...uhh...hey, Ryoka, baby, what are you doing?"
Roksana trailed off, instantly plastering a smile on her face as Ryoka came running into the kitchen with I-pin, the two laughing as they came to a stop next to the table. Ryoka smiled brightly up at her mother before she noticed that Gokudera had soup dripping out of his hair.
"Uncle Hayato, why are you all wet?" Ryoka asked.
"Because your mom is a crazy-"
"Because your Uncle Hayato has a problem with his mouth, sweetie." Roksana told the child, glaring at Gokudera out of the wide of her eyes as she did. "One that's really going to get him in trouble if he isn't careful."
Gokudera instantly snapped his mouth shut. Ryoka looked between the two with a questioning look, but shrugged her shoulders before turning to the food on the table.
"Mama, can I-pin and I take our food to eat while we play?" Ryoka asked.
"As long as you don't make a mess and you bring the plates back to be cleaned. Don't make Haru and Kyoko go searching for them." Roksana told her.
"Okay! Come on, I-pin!" Ryoka said, grabbing the food.
The two girls ran out of the kitchen, already laughing again. Roksana heaved a sigh as she sat back down.
"Fuuta, be a dear and get me some more soup, please." Roksana asked.
"Of course, Roksana-nee." Fuuta told her.
"Thank you."
"So Hibari bit you?" Reborn asked.
"Ugghh!" Roksana dropped her head on the table, wrapping an arm over her head. "Sometimes I really don't get what's going through that boy's head, and he never wants to so much as give me a hint!"
"That is the Cloud Guardian for you." Reborn replied.
Roksana merely made a noise that was somewhere between a snort and a scoff. Fuuta chuckled as he sat Roksana's soup down in front of her. Tsuna was sure that no one understood Hibari. In fact, out of all of them, the one that probably knew Hibari the best was, in fact, Roksana. It was then that Tsuna noticed an empty seat at the table.
"Come to think of it, that seat's been empty for a while. Whose seat is it?" Tsuna asked.
"It's Chrome-san's. She hasn't ate anything since she came back." Haru told him.
"Eh!? But she should've recovered enough to be able to eat! Roksana?" Tsuna asked, turning to look at Roksana as the girl sat up to eat.
"She should be more than capable to eat now. In fact, her poor stomach is probably empty and growling at her." Roksana told him.
"I left some food in front of her door a little while ago." Kyoko assured Tsuna.
"If that's the case, don't worry too much, Tsuna. She'll eat when she gets hungry enough. If it'll make you feel better, I'll go check on her later." Roksana told Tsuna.
"Yeah, thanks."
They finished eating before Reborn dragged them, Roksana included, to a training room where Giannini was already waiting for them.
"What is it, Reborn? Why are you bringing us here?" Tsuna asked. "What kind of room is this, anyway?"
"It was done faster than I thought. The solution to our mobility problem." Reborn replied.
"Yes! I won't lose to Spanner! This is one of the collection rooms of the Tenth of this era! Excuse my rudeness, Tenth." Giannini stepped up to Tsuna with a tape measure and measured his legs. "As I thought, your legs...are short."
"Wha! What was that, just now!?" Tsuna asked.
Giannini ignored that outburst, turning to head back into the room.
"For something around that size, that vintage thing would do nicely." Giannini remarked, making Roksana raise an eyebrow in questioning. "Please wait a moment. It'll be ready shortly."
"I don't get any of this, Reborn!" Tsuna snapped, a little embarrassed to have it pointed out that he was short.
"He's the type of guy to get things done a day early." Reborn replied, Tsuna not really getting what he meant. "To win against Byakuran, boxes and rings aren't enough."
Roksana opened her mouth to ask a question but was forced to close her mouth and plaster her hands over her ears as a loud noise suddenly sounded from the room Giannini had vanished into.
"My eardrums are going to blow! What is that?!" Tsuna yelled over the noise.
The noise in question, turned out to be a motorbike. Stepping into the room, they were all surprised by the motorbike Giannini parked in front of Tsuna.
"This motorbike is a model that I admire for its racing skills. Using new technology, I've modified it. As for fuel, after activating the Dying Will flame, its wheel power will increase. I also used the invisibility power from Mammon's chain to hide the Dying Will from the radar." Giannini told them.
"Listen up! You must learn to drive this and use your box weapons before fighting Byakuran." Reborn told them.
"Huh? How is a motorbike related to fighting Byakuran?" Tsuna demanded.
"According to Shouichi's information, we are now able to understand the conditions for battling Byakuran." Reborn replied.
"That "Choice" thing?" Tsuna asked.
"The battlefield will be 10km wide. A motorbike will be useful." Reborn told them.
"Seriously? That much ground to cover?" Roksana asked.
"So wide!" Yamamoto exclaimed.
"If I think of it as a boxing ring...it's really big to the extreme!" Ryohei added.
"But Reborn-san. If it's for us, it's understandable, but the Tenth already has his own "motor energy"! And Roksana is really mobile with the use of her chain and sickle." Gokudera remarked.
Giannini tsked him for that remark.
"I'm afraid that the Dying Will gloves that the Tenth is using would be detected by radar. We need to find a way to be undetectable. As for the miss...eventually, her physical stamina will run out, and, depending on the type of terrain we end up on, she might not be able to use that mode of mobility." Giannini told Gokudera.
"I see." Gokudera remarked.
"But even if we do, we're still just kids. What if we're caught by police when we're driving that?" Tsuna asked, pointing to the motorbike.
"If it were ten years ago." Reborn replied. "In this era, you add ten more years to your age. You guys already had these."
Reborn gave each of the boys a license that their future selves had had on them.
"Li-license?!" Tsuna exclaimed.
"It's no fake. This is an original and is used by the "you" of this era." Reborn told the boys before turning to Roksana. "As for Volkov, we had to fake yours. I take it you don't have a problem with that."
Reborn handed Roksana a fake license . Roksana took it, looking it over.
"We're mafia, right? I have no problem with it, what so ever. Not to mention that, for a motorbike, back in my country, I can get a license in a little over a year." Roksana replied.
Of course Roksana wouldn't be concerned about using a fake license.
"Don't be a nuisance to others, please practice in the training room. I've constructed a simple driving course there." Giannini told them.
"I don't want to!" Tsuna instantly protested. "No motorbikes! No, no, no, no!"
"You are really no good Tsuna. If it were the others, they would be more than happy to use it. Now practice then talk. Try going up first." Reborn told him.
It only took one attempt, with Reborn teaching Tsuna how to work the bike, for Tsuna throw himself from the bike. Roksana heaved a sigh as the others ran to check up on Tsuna.
"Reborn-san, why did you teach him the wrong method?" Giannini demanded.
"To let him start with the bad parts first. This is my teaching method." Reborn replied.
"I am so glad you have never been my tutor." Roksana remarked, looking down at the stunned Tsuna. "You alright, Tsuna?"
"That...at this time, I should be honest. I-in primary school, before fifth grade, I only knew how to ride a bicycle with training wheels. No matter what happens, I can't drive a motorbike." Tsuna admitted.
"Bicycles and motorbikes are different. And human potential is unpredictable." Reborn told him.
"In other words, you're learning this and he's not letting you back out." Roksana told Tsuna, who groaned in response.
From there on, all of them practiced with the different motorbikes Giannini had for them. To Tsuna's surprise, Gokudera and Basil were naturals, just getting on and going. Seeing Bail sitting on the motorbike, Roksana couldn't help commenting on how cute he was, giving the boy a hug and patting his head.
"You're so cute...sometimes I forget we're the same age." Roksana remarked before releasing him.
"What is that suppose to mean, Roksana-dono?" Basil asked.
"Take it however you want." Roksana told him, patting his shoulder as she walked away.
She wasn't going to hurt the boy's pride by admitting that, most of the time, she though he was younger than her.
Continuing the training, Yamamoto went up next. The boy was a little slow learning at first, but he quickly grasped it, the bike acting as an extension of his arms and legs. He even quickly grasp how to balance the bike on it's back wheel.
Then there was Ryohei.
Watching how many times Ryohei fell trying to pull off dangerous stunts, Roksana had to wonder if the boy had any working brain cells in his head or not. Just learning out to turn had sent the boy skidding across the floor.
Then came Roksana's turn.
Roksana had to let her hair down from its usual pigtails in order to the wear the helmet. Putting it on, she didn't even pause to hear the instructions for operating her particular motorbike.
She just went.
All of the boys stood there, each in a different degree of surprise as the girl raced away. She took turns easily, taking the bike through it's paces. She was even able to handle the bike smoothly through a small jump off a little ramp Giannini had set up. Several of the boys had their jaws on the ground as she pulled the bike to a stop in front of them, pulling the helmet off and giving her hair a shake. Sitting the helmet in front of her, she ran a hand through her hair.
"H-how...!?" Gokudera demanded.
"Hibari drives a motorbike. He gives me rides sometimes and has taught me how to drive it. Though, I'd much rather be the one driving. He handles a bike well enough, but he has a fondness for trying to scare the life out of me." Roksana replied.
"That's not fair!" Gokudera snapped.
"Says the guy who picked it up like he picked up smoking." Roksana retorted. "This isn't a competition, Hayato. So what if I know how to use a motorbike."
"Don't you think you're a little too perfect!?" Gokudera demanded.
"In what way am I perfect?!" Roksana asked.
"You get great grades, you can ride a motorbike, you're a great dancer, and you can kick some serious ass!" Gokudera snapped.
"And that all came with a lot of hard work! How is that perfect!?" Roksana retorted.
Roksana heaved a sigh, waving a hand to keep Gokudera from replying. It was a useless argument and she couldn't believe that she was seriously having it. While Roksana continued to wave off Gokudera's arguments, Tsuna climbed off his motorbike, removing his helmet before collapsing on a bench.
"Even though I can drive without falling...I'm already exhausted!" Tsuna groaned.
"What a surprising improvement, Tenth!" Giannini praised.
"Not bad, Tsuna." Reborn agreed.
"Talking so casually...Yamamoto can already balance on just the back wheel." Tsuna replied.
"That guy has the second best reflexes within the Vongola, the first being Volkov. For him it's too easy. Compared to someone who can ride a bike since fourth grade without falling once...isn't this guy way more awesome?!" Reborn told him.
"Indeed. To improve this much...I've never seen anything like it." Tsuna agreed.
Bianchi arrived then, telling everyone to take a break, they would be throwing a "Welcome Back" party for Basil and Ryohei. The party was full of loud yells and laughter. Roksana had to leave about half way through to put Ryoka and Marc to bed. Deciding she would get a bit of a work out in before heading to bed herself, Roksana headed to her room, changing into a pair of work out shorts and a sports bra-like top. With that done, she headed back over to the other side of the hideout, passing Kusakabe on the way out. She gave him a "good night" over her shoulder as she closed the door.
She was just heading for the elevator when there was a loud crash. Concerned about what it could be, Roksana made a run for the noise. She met up with Yamamoto and Gokudera along the way.
"What was that?" Roksana asked, Basil and Ryohei joining them.
"It came from Sawada-sama's room!" Basil called.
"Tsuna?!"
Before any of the boys could stop her, Roksana turned on her heel and shot off ahead of them, leaving them in her wake. Ryohei took off after her, the others bringing up the rear. Roksana went to round the corner and only saw intense orange flames as they came rocketing towards her. If it wasn't for Ryohei right behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist to pull her back out of the way, Roksana might have had a burnt hair do that even she couldn't pull off.
Ryohei fell back with Roksana, the two landing on their butts. Before them, Tsuna was fighting with some kind of fiery creature.
"What. The hell. Is that?!" Roksana demanded. It was then that Roksana spotted the open Vongola box at Tsuna's feet. "The Vongola box is open! That is Tsuna's box weapon?"
"It looks like some kind of monster!" Gokudera exclaimed.
And it really did.
Tsuna was having a hard time with the creature and, in the end, it took Basil and Yamamoto, with the tranquility characteristic of their box weapons, to coax the creature back into it's box. Roksana jumped to her feet, rushing to Tsuna's side as the boy slumped against the wall. Ignoring the water gushing around them from a busted pipe, Roksana checked on Tsuna.
"Are you okay, Tsuna?" Roksana asked, as the others joined them.
"I'm sorry...everyone." Tsuna told them.
"That was really your box weapon just now, wasn't it?" Basil asked.
"Y-yeah...I was just trying to put my flame in the normal way, but..." Tsuna glanced towards the box laying on the ground. "Suddenly that thing just came out."
"But...that's really strange! Everything that comes out of a box is supposed to be based on animals that actually existed at one point!" Basil told him.
"No way! Did that jerk Irie give you a fake?!" Gokudera asked.
"I doubt that, Hayato." Roksana told him.
"She's right. That was Tsuna's fault just now. That wasn't the true form of your box weapon. Sky boxes in particular are very delicate." Everyone turned, finding Dino literally riding into the destroyed room on top of horse composed of Sky flames. "If you open your box like that again, you might ruin it for good. Are you alright? Little bro."
"Dino-san!" Tsuna cheered, jumping to his feet.
"Oh, you're here." Roksana remarked, turning to look at Dino.
"Roksana! How could you leave me with Kyoya like that after getting him all angry at me!?" Dino insisted as Roksana got to her feet.
"You?! At least he didn't bite you! I don't even know what I did to make him so angry! So suck it up and stop being such a wimp. You're a mafia boss, for crying out loud." Roksana told him.
A hurt looked passed Dino's face, the man hanging his head. He almost looked like a whipped dog in Roksana's eyes. It reminded her of her own dog enough to make her feel a little guilty. Then Dino was stupid enough to make his next comment.
"Maybe he was jealous because of what you said to me."
Dino tensed as Roksana turned a sharp look on him.
"Don't be a moron." she snapped, turning to present him with her back. "Hibari? Jealous? What a ridiculous notion!"
Dino couldn't help but smile at that. As far as he was concerned, but Hibari and Roksana were so awkward and in such denial about their feelings for each other that it just made them perfect for each other. It was adorable to Dino, though he would never admit as much to their faces.
They would kill him.
Reborn and Giannini found them then.
"Exactly what time do you guys think it is anyway? Kids like you should be in bed by now." Reborn remarked.
"So we finally meet again...the young Reborn." Dino greeted.
"What's with that face? Even after ten years you're still a novice." Reborn told him, making Dino chuckle.
"Che. No matter how many years pass, you're still as straightforward as always." Dino replied.
Dino's clumsiness kicked in then, the man falling from the back of his box weapon. Roksana slapped a hand to her face, the other hand going to her hip.
"That's weird...I can't believe I fell off today. I'm such a clutz...I'm usually okay if they're within one kilometre of where I am...we even worked it out three hours ago so I could come here." Dino remarked.
"Um...Dino-san...Do you mean your assistants?" Tsuna asked.
"Huh? Three hours ago Romario and Kusakabe went out drinking." Dino replied.
Just as they thought. Dino was still useless without his men around. Roksana heaved a sigh as she looked down at Dino.
"You and Ray would get along great." Roksana remarked.
"Who's Ray?" Tsuna asked.
"An old friend of mine from Russia." Roksana replied.
"You actually had friends?" Gokudera asked.
Everyone, save for Gokudera, saw the hit coming before it did, the others wincing as Roksana smacked him hard over the head. Giving him a sharp glare, Roksana turned on her heel. Her idea of a work out was out the window as exhaustion washed over her. Her friends managed to wear her out faster than any fight or work out.
"I'm going to bed. Someone make sure to the stallion out to pasture before you go to bed." Roksana called over her shoulder.
"Hey!" Dino whined.
Roksana merely waved a hand over her shoulder before she vanished out of sight. Sometimes there was only so much she could take of her friends before it was just time to call it quits.
Now seemed as good a time as any to bow out.
-0-0-0-0-
The next morning, Roksana came into the kitchen with Ryoka and Marc, only to find Dino sitting at the table with a mess in front of him. Without his men around, Dino was such a messy eater, it was like watching a toddler. Roksana hung her head.
"What's with that look?" Dino asked.
"You're more of a sloppy eater than my eight year old daughter!" Roksana told him.
Ryoka, knowing that Roksana was talking about her, grinned and giggled from her chair as Marc pushed her seat up to the table for her. Roksana grabbed a napkin off the table and tilted Dino's head back to clean his face.
"At least learn to clean your own face properly. How has Romario let this habit of yours continue for ten years?" Roksana demanded.
Dino grinned up at her. Roksana had no doubt in her mind, looking down at his boyish smile, that he would get along great with her friend, Ray. Ray was easily swayed by charming, boyish grins like the one on Dino's face. Roksana, on the other hand, was not. Reaching out, she pinched Dino's nose, making the man call "Mercy!" to get her to let go.
"You're in your thirties now, Dino. At least try not to make such a mess." Roksana told him, turning to get her own food.
After breakfast, Dino gathered Tsuna, Roksana, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, and Chrome in the practice room with two of his men and Reborn watching.
"Alright, let's get started. From today on, you'll be undergoing serious training to learn how to use your new box weapons. As Reborn's number one pupil, I'll be in charge of pairing up everyone with their tutor for training sessions." Dino told them.
"By the way," Reborn said appearing in a fairy costume, hanging from a pair of wires. "This time I've been promoted to the official position of "tutor fairy"." Reborn told them. "Don't worry, whenever Dino gets careless I'll make sure to punish him."
"Cut it out Reborn!" Dino complained as Reborn kicked him in the face. Rubbing at spot, Dino continued. "Well, let's just get started. Before that...Chrome. You have to make up your mind. You're a Vongola guardian as well as a member of Mukuro's group. Can we count you as one of our allies in the fight against the Millefiore?"
All eyes turned to Chrome as the girl thought for a moment.
"I...I want to become...a stronger person. Then...I want to return to the past to be with the people most important to me." Chrome replied.
"Alright, we're counting on you. Also, Lambo needs to have some serious training as well. If we want to defeat Byakuran, we need the power of all the guardians. I asked the Tsuna of this ear to tell me what he knew about the Vongola boxes. After that, I thought about different ways to train each one of you for the best results. I already started my training with Kyoya earlier." Dino told them.
"Huh? With Hibari-san? Really?" Tsuna asked.
"He's still a difficult person to deal with, just like usual." Dino remarked.
"Tell me about it." Roksana agreed.
"So, Sawada Tsunayoshi! Ready for the details of your training?" Dino asked.
"Ah...yeah!" Tsuna agreed.
It was best to just get it out of the way and be done with it. After all, this was a fight to protect his friends and to get them all back home.
"You'll train alone until you can open your box the right way." Dino told Tsuna.
"Huh? Alone? All...alone?" Tsuna asked.
"You have to make sure you and your box weapon are in harmony unless you want more trouble like last time. The user has to always make sure to keep their box at their side. No matter what." Dino told him.
"That's...that's all?" Tsuna asked.
"That just now was your hint." Dino told him simply before moving on. "Next is Gokudera Hayato. Your job is to look after the two people who don't know how to use their boxes yet...Lambo and Sasagawa Ryohei."
It was an order that didn't sit well with Gokudera, but he quickly changed his tune when Tsuna commented on how good he was and how impressive he thought it was that Gokudera could teach someone else. Of course, Ryohei and Lambo didn't agree either, but Gokudera was now determined to teach them and make it stick.
"Next is Chrome Dokuro. To strengthen your box weapon in half the time as usual, we'll use the program that the Arcobaleno Mammon left behind for strengthening illusions. With the remaining time, we'll work on raising the strength of your hand-to-hand combat abilities. Those two over there will help you out." Dino told Chrome, jabbing a thumb towards the door where Bianchi and I-pin stood. "And next there's Yamamoto Takeshi."
"Yep! I've been waiting Dino-san! What is it?" Yamamoto asked, ready for anything Dino could throw at him.
Dino examined him for a moment, thinking silently. Then he grinned.
"I'll pass on you. Standby for now." Dino told them.
"Huh?"
Yamamoto couldn't believe this. Dino could see the confusion on the boy's face.
"In other words, don't do anything for now. If I taught you anything useless, that guy would probably kill me." Dino remarked.
"That guy?" Yamamoto asked.
"Your abilities of understanding the situation around you are second to none. This time when you get your training, Yamamoto Takeshi...you'll become something really special" Dino told him. When Yamamoto didn't say anything else, Dino turned his attention to the last guardian present. "Volkov Roksana."
Dino turned his eyes to Roksana, who raised an eyebrow at him, waiting to hear what he had to say. Roksana was a bit of a...sore spot for Dino. Just like many of those from that era, Dino was reluctant to put Roksana in any possible danger.
None of the future group wanted to lose Roksana for a second time.
From the way Roksana's eyes narrowed, she could guess at his thoughts.
"If you're about to put me on standby, too, Dino, then we're about to have a problem." Roksana told him.
"You have to understand, Roksana...none of us want to lose you a second time." Dino told her.
"Yeah? Well, then answer me this...how the hell am I suppose to defend myself if all you do is coddle me?!" Roksana retorted. "I sure as hell am not going to sit back and allow others to protect me!"
An answer Dino had already seen coming. No one could claim that Roksana was a woman content to sit back and let a man protect her.
"I figured that would be what you would say." Dino replied. "That's why...Reborn is taking over your training."
For a moment, Roksana could only blink back at him, before she turned her eyes to Reborn, the others staring at her, waiting to see what her reaction was going to be. The next thing that left her mouth, pretty much summed it up.
"...Well, shit...I'm fucked."
END
Kyandi: That would be my sentiments exactly.
Roksana: Having Reborn teach you is the equivalent of hell on earth.
Kyandi: Oh, boy. You got that right.
Roksana: And you want to put me through that?
Kyandi: Its for the good of the group?
Roksana: Try saying that like its not a question.
Kyandi: I don't think I can. So, instead, we're going to wrap this up so I can sleep.
Roksana: Fine.
Kyandi: Everyone, enjoy and review!
Roksana: We'll be back tomorrow.
Kyandi: Bye-bye!