- Italicized text in speech are spoken in Italian unless otherwise stated. Italicized text outside of speech remains as inner thoughts, regardless of language.
Kazumi carefully set her glass down on the counter before she could drop it. The voice on the other end of the line was not someone she had been expecting to hear from. Ever. The shock of it all had her holding her breath until she remembered that she actually had to breathe. And answer. She cleared her throat before speaking.
"Father? What has you calling so early?" She asked after looking at the time on her wall clock. With eight hours between them, it was barely noon back in Italy.
"I've been waiting for your report and I have yet to hear anything of your progress." Straight to the point, of course. "You're aware you do have a deadline to meet, Kazumi." The tone he used was cold and cutting, to the point. Kazumi felt her blood turn cold as if the man was standing right in front of her.
"Of course," She answered quickly, formally. "There… There have been complications. I apologise if I've overstepped my bounds, father, but I though it was necessary to inform you if I didn't have to; I didn't want to bother you with troublesome problems if I could sort it out myself." Kazumi explained calmly. She heard her father grumble from the other end of the phone.
"Explain." He ordered, clearly annoyed. Kazumi obeyed.
"Well," She started with a hint of a frustrated sigh. "I believe I have found the Vongola Decimo, although I still haven't been able to confirm that with certainty. That being said, if the Decimo is who I believe it to be, then he has already been able to gather his Guardians, and is surrounded by them nearly constantly. I dare say twenty-four-seven." The line was silent for a moment.
"And you haven't been able to get rid of the Guardians?"
"No." Kazumi confirmed. "There are a couple of reasons for this; the first being is that he is almost always guarded by at least two of the Guardians. In addition to that, and what is probably the biggest complication, is the Arcobaleno named Reborn."
"What?" The response was sudden and sour. The words were practically spit out venomously. "Damn Vongola. I shouldn't have expected anything less. With the success of getting the last three successors out of the picture, it's no question they'd be doing everything they can to protect this one." The line went silent again, but Kazumi knew not to interrupt. "Very well, I'll be sending a team from my own personal unit to you. Use them as you see fit; whether it be to get the Guardians away from the Decimo, or to eliminate them. At this point, I just want the job done." The man grumbled.
"Understood, father." Kazumi complied, biting the inside of her cheek.
"There was one other thing I wanted to remind you of." He added, almost as an afterthought. But with that slight undertone, Kazumi knew it was what he had originally wanted to say in the first place.
"Yes?" She asked, almost hesitantly.
"Your time is limited. You have until the end of next week to complete this mission. Do you understand?" Kazumi could feel a lump closing up her throat.
"Y-yes, father."
"Good. Do not fail me Kazumi. Or you will face severe consequences." The line abruptly ended after that, and Kazumi felt her body go numb. Slowly, she lowered the phone from her ear and placed it by her glass, which was now long forgotten, as her knees buckled beneath her and she collapsed to the floor. Her head fell into her hands as she attempted to regain her composure, and a cold sweat ran down her back.
This isn't good. She thought, as the pressure of her task finally started to weigh down on her. I need to figure out what to do before those reinforcements gets here. And I need to do it fast. Kazumi looked up to her wall calendar, counting the days remaining. "They'll likely be fully prepared and here by the weekend." She started whispering to herself. "That gives me at least three days to put something together."
xXx
Kazumi's entrance into the classroom the following day started with unintentionally slamming the sliding door open. She had been growing increasingly frustrated over her situation, and it just happened to get the best of her as she made her way through the school. But she managed to compose herself and completely ignored all the stares that were followed her to her desk. Not that she could really blame her classmates. She spent quite the bit of time building of the image of Yamashita Kazumi being an easygoing and cheerful person. The fact that she was even a little bit irritated over something really must have come as a shock. But that wasn't what was really bugging her.
"Is everything alright?" Tsuna had been approaching her periodically all day, and she was doing everything she damn well could to avoid direct contact with him. Observe from a distance. Observe from a distance!
"Everything's fine." She managed to answer, a bit more harshly than she actually intended, and it was probably because of that, Kazumi could tell that Tsuna didn't believe a word she said. She huffed out a sigh as she sat back in her chair, trying to calm down just a little bit more. "There's nothing for you to worry about. Something happened back home that made me angry. Sorry." It technically wasn't a complete lie. It's not like she was exactly looking forward to having to meet with some elite personnel, hand-picked by her father, to complete her mission of killing the very person she was talking to! But it would have to do.
"Are you sure? I don't know if-" There he went again, showing endless amounts of concern where it wasn't needed. If only he knew that she was here for the sole purpose of assassinating him. She looked away and out the window, almost feeling guilty for talking with him. "-I'm always willing to listen." She looked back at him from the corner of her eye and a frown on her lips. The look of genuine desire to reach out and help her was damn near overwhelming. And with the way his Sky Flames rolled off of him, like a welcoming, warm cloak of safety…
"Sorry, I have a call to make." Kazumi said as she abruptly raised out of her seat, brushing past Tsuna quickly to exit the classroom. With haste she made her way down the hall, going to wherever it is her feet would take her, and she could be alone for a minute. She needed to clear her head.
xXx
The end of the week was fast approaching, and Kazumi found herself nowhere nearer an answer than she was when she first arrived in Namimori. The whole ordeal was putting her in a fouler mood by the day, and people were definitely starting to notice. She took out her irritation on her notebook; practically smacking the pencil onto the pages. She was surprised no one had basically murdered her yet.
"Are you okay?" And then there was Tsuna and his friends. Constantly bugging her at every possible moment, of every day, asking if she was alright. This time she was pretty sure it wasn't Tsuna asking personally since he was sitting something like five seats behind her, while Takeshi was literately right beside her.
"Yes, I'm fine!" She snapped back quietly. He didn't say anything more after that. Thankfully. There was only so much she could put up with before she really snapped. It didn't help that she was already on edge, what with receiving word that her so called 'back up', would be arriving later tonight, and she would have to meet them almost immediately to discuss a plan of action. Kazumi sighed heavily, and couldn't decide whether she was feeling grateful or disdain for the final bell when it finally came.
xXx
"Good evening, Miss Kazumi." Kazumi stared down a balded man with a cold gaze as he approached her. The man was a typical assassin; black clothing and no distinguishable features, other than that blinding bald head of his. Kazumi couldn't help but glare at it accusingly.
"I'm going to make this nice and simple." She said, not bothering for a greeting. "I didn't actually want you guys to come, but my father has decided he wants this job over with, so I'll provide you with what little information I have."
"Of course. But allow me to reassure you Miss, though you may not want our assistance, we are here and at your disposal. I've brought five capable men with me; we won't let you and your father down." Kazumi's frown deepened as she regarded the man and his pretty, appeasing words.
"Right, then you know the moment I find you useless, I'm sending you right back." She didn't need to make a question out of something they all knew was an obvious statement. "Very good; I'll tell you exactly what I told my father, which is what sent you here to me. The Decimo is definitely here in this town, and he's being protected by the Arcobaleno known as Reborn." She watched as the blood physically drained from the man's face at the mention of the famous hitman's name. "That being said, I have not been able to ascertain the Decimo's actual identity. The Arcobaleno has been very careful to minimalize contact while maintaining a protective presence. That aside, I have been acting solely on the information that puts the Decimo around my age and thus I have entered school as a student, but have yet to find much success, other than a few suspects."
"I see. So we are at the point of narrowing down the suspects and eliminating the one that we determine to be the target."
"Correct. However, your jobs will be strictly limited to keeping away the Guardians out of my way. When that time comes that is. They are the ones I've determined to be the biggest obstacle. I just want it so that no one over steps their bounds and gets in my way. Else I'll make a point of having a repeat of Berlin."
"R-Right. And what of the Arcobaleno?"
"Another problem for another day. If we can escape him. Once I learned he was involved, this essentially became a suicide mission. Just make sure you and your men are prepared to die." The man bowed.
"Always, Miss. We'd give our lives for the Family's success." Right, her famiglia did follow that disgusting motto. Often to the letter.
"Naturally. Then, until I give word, no one is to act outside of the protocols I've addressed. I will keep you informed as the need calls for it." The man nodded and the two of them split ways. It wasn't until early in the morning that Kazumi made it back to her apartment, exhausted and drained. At least she didn't have to worry about this small unit stepping in where they weren't wanted or needed. She could still essentially act on her own.
She flopped down onto her bed, letting out a sigh of relief. One problem down, five million to go. She thought, looking at her night stand clock. Fuck it. I'm sleeping in tomorrow. Kazumi pulled the covers over herself and got comfortable for a long night of tossing and turning.
xXx
She was wide awake again when the morning sun finally met her window and shined right onto her face. Kazumi groaned and rolled away from the light, in a lame attempt to get a few more gracious minutes. She knew it was pointless. She was awake. There was no way she'd get anymore sleep now. Not that she really got any in the first place.
Looking at the time, Kazumi was well aware that classes had already started, but there wasn't any way she was going to rush herself if she was going to be late regardless. She'd just show up after lunch.
With one last regretful huff, Kazumi hoisted herself out of bed and stripped down to get into the shower before fixing herself something to eat. And by the time she finished dressing into her school uniform, it was already well after ten-o-clock. She didn't actually live that far from the school, so it was still a bit early to leave, but if she did, she could stop at the convenience store on her way. Maybe buy something for lunch. Maybe get a few stupid things she'll probably throw out later.
She locked the door behind her after exiting, though not without ensuring her apartment was fully secure, and Kazumi made the short walk to the store. Once inside, she mostly just browsed at anything that caught her interest. She paused when she reached the shelf of magazines and spotted the newest issue of Shonen Jump Weekly. Picking it up and scanning through the pages of new manga, a thoughtful expression came over her.
If I want them to trust me for a bit longer, I should probably get back into their good graces. Kazumi thought. I guess I'll have to apologize for basically being an asshole for the past week. A little present like this will probably be enough, right? Kazumi carried the magazine to the counter, and was prepared to pay for it when something else caught her eyes.
"Oh, that's cute." Assassin or not, she was still a girl that could definitely appreciate cute things! She gingerly took hold of the little lion keychain. It reminds me of Tsuna. She thought, almost berating herself for the stupid thought. She looked again at where she found the chain and spotted a few more that caught her interest. Dammit, these make me think of all of them. Kazumi glared at the cat and dog keychains, practically hating herself for even coming up with the idea of buying gifts. "Throw these in too." She groaned, placing them onto of the magazine, pausing, and then adding a few sweets on top of that. The clerk chuckled lightly, but smartly didn't ask questions. They only gave her total and took her money, which Kazumi was grateful for.
When Kazumi did finally arrive at school, everyone that was still in the classroom for lunch was giving her questioning and concerned looks. Especially Tsuna. Did he have no concept of danger? She's literately been planning his assassination for a month and a half! She sighed irritably and made way to her seat, and waited for the bell, which would be the signal for classes to resume for the day.
"Pst!" Great, Takeshi was calling out to her again. No doubt to ask if she was 'alright'. Oh for the love of…
"Yes, I'm fine! I've just had some things on my mind." She hissed out. Really, this was becoming a chore. Hopefully her gifts would get them off her ass for a while. When the bell rang, Kazumi once again found herself barely able to pay attention.
xXx
"An apology." She offered up the larger gift bag, which the clerk did half a mind to ask if she needed one, to Tsuna as she came up with some half-assed excuse for her behaviour. For Tsuna's part, he looked completely baffled towards the gift bag. None the less, he took the gift and carefully opened it.
"W-wow, thank you. You didn't need to get all this." He said graciously, easily accepting her lame apology while listening to her explain the vague reasoning behind her gifts.
"If you don't like it you don't have to keep it." She added as an afterthought.
"What? No! I actually really like it!" He laughed. "Plus it was a gift from a friend. I'll always cherish it." The smile he gave her then, was enough to surprise her with its inviting warmth, and it was what finally changed Kazumi's mood. There was just something about Tsuna that always managed to stir up something within her, and she found her gaze soften as she looked away, feeling just a little flushed. Damn Skies.
Kazumi returned to her desk, pulling out two smaller gift bags, handing them to Takeshi and Hayato respectively. Needless to say, Takeshi was beside himself in delight at the sudden gift, while Hayato regarded it with an inquisitive stare. Tsuna was still wearing a happy expression, Kazumi noted, as he watched his Guardians admire their gifts.
"You know us really well, Kazumi-san. Somehow you managed to pick out our favourite animals." Tsuna explained, amused. Kazumi froze and openly gawked at him. Seriously? Were they pulling her leg? She asked them as much, and Takeshi went out of his way to confirm, and even asked where he could go to get another. This ended up with her explaining what made her choose these specific gifts, if only to dodge Hayato's critical gaze, as if he was suspicious of her about something. Honestly, what was so suspicious about a couple of animal keychains?
"Thank you, Kazumi-san. These were really thoughtful of you." Kazumi watched as a smiled brightened Tsuna's face, and this time she felt hers starting to burn.
"Don't mention it." She said, looking away and grabbed her bag to leave as quickly as she could, trying to ignore Takeshi's comment about her acting shy as she left the classroom.
