Asia stared down her tiger cub familiar...or what looked like a tiger cub. Mukkuru was super cuddly to those who respected him as a predator, though he could eat through an entire cow's worth of beef if given the chance. And yes, she did spoil her familiars.
The problem was Mukkuru wasn't a tiger cub. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, she loved her familiar after all.
Her 'tiger cub' was in fact a fragment of the fire god Kagutsuchi who had been greatly weakened during the Great War. He had apparently gotten involved as yet another dispute between someone and Ddraig. He had gone into hiding because he was greatly weakened and a number of powerful people (like the Phenex clan for instance) wanted his powers for themselves.
No one would suspect a tiger cub of being the original fire god Kagutsuchi. And he had taken a liking to Asia for reasons known only to him...and after her display against Kokabiel, he wanted to pass on his powers to her the same way Suzaku had.
The reason she kicked Azazel repeatedly was because he had found this out by accident and hadn't said a damn thing for over a month.
As it was she was going to need to practice with her potential new abilities before she felt remotely comfortable using it in a serious fight.
So far the most she gained out of the deal was a pair of spinning bracelets around her wrists and ankles. She found it could create a rudimentary shield made of her flames, and could loosely create a whip of some sorts, but whips were Dino's thing and not hers. However the shield could prove useful later.
She could also fly with them, but since she could already do that she barely paid any mind to that.
Azazel was overly amused by the entire thing, but he had some news that made her perk up.
"So your son agreed to act as part of the guard around the school during the oncoming peace summit in exchange for your help finding some missing heiress he will likely be hired to train?" said Asia trying not to laugh.
Azazel was equally amused, mostly because he was so going to blindside Reborn with this.
"Apparently some big name mafia family is in dire need of a new head, but the kid he was sent to train turned out to be the wrong fit so he has to find the kid's missing older sister."
Asia snorted derisively.
"And that big name happens to be Vongola?"
Azazel smirked at her.
"Right, help me get a DNA test for when he figures it out later. Either way I am so claiming 'not my fucking problem' when it comes to leading that band of screaming howler monkeys. Worst case scenario I have Xanxus act as the 'steward' and hold the rings so they can't bitch," said Asia flatly.
Azazel snorted. Considering all the big favors she had been earning recently, the odds of the Vongola successfully forcing the matter were next to nill. And even if they managed to pull it off, they'd have the Church on their ass very quickly because they were openly putting the 'false holy woman' as their new Donna and considering how Catholic the Italian mafia was, it would raise a ton of red flags the famiglia really couldn't afford with how shaky their current leadership was.
So yeah, once his son understood the full situation, he would likely drop this particular client and tell them to clean up their own damn mess.
Azazel couldn't wait to see that particular piece of fall out, since there was zero chance of it affecting him.
Despite not being part of any of the three major factions, Asia was given special permission to be there along with Xenovia who would act as her Lightning Guardian. Officially, Asia had two of them and Verde had no issues with sharing the spot as he wasn't exactly combat oriented to begin with. Xenovia could handle any bodyguarding needed as she was a female and combat-trained by the Church.
The former Exorcist had gravitated towards Asia as she understood the dilemma of having to reconcile her battered faith in god on top of having to survive without the Church as her support. The fact Asia was a Sky didn't hurt either, and she had slid naturally into the position of 'combat lightning'.
Asia, mostly to help Xenovia come to terms with her new situation slowly and adjust, told her that she would help fund the restoration of the lone Catholic church in Kuoh and that Xenovia would act as the overseer. She would make sure all the rites and prayers were said so that it was sanctified properly, but Asia would insure they didn't get scammed and that the contractors did their job properly.
Originally she didn't care one way or another as it was just another building to her, but it would help the excommunicated nun settle into her new situation without overloading her.
Xenovia felt better sleeping in the Church anyway, though there wouldn't be a dedicated priest to oversee it for a long while unless Micheal set something up.
Asia, on the other hand, opted to move out of Issei's home since she didn't want to accidentally get roped into his fledgling harem. Vali nearly had a heart attack upon learning she was going to be his new neighbor.
Since she had very little to do before the summit...outside of practicing her new toys...she opted to listen in to the conversation Azazel was having with his son. Who was already in Japan, with his soon-to-be former student.
She honestly didn't know she had a younger brother, but from the sound of things Iemitsu's stupidity apparently ran true.
This was going to be hilarious. Just not for Reborn or the Vongola when they found out the truth.
Reborn did not like talking about his father. It had little to do with the fact that his father wasn't human and everything to do with the fact he wanted to make a name for himself and not have it constantly reflected back as being natural because he was Azazel's son.
That being said, Iemitsu's useless child Ieyasu was not a good fit to lead the Vongola. Not only was he a mere Sunny-Mist, but his personality would lead the famiglia to ruin in short order.
Which was why he had gotten reluctant permission from Timoteo to use his resources to track down the missing heiress. For reasons unknown to them, the eldest daughter of Iemitsu had suddenly disappeared before she was three. No one had declared a ransom or showed up with someone who bore even a hint of Vongola blood, and there were no leads since the fruitless search the moment Iemitsu got the panicked call from his wife.
All they could find was that she disappeared somewhere in Rome, and there the trail ended.
However Reborn was all too aware that there were other factions in the mire of the Underworld...factions that viewed the mafia and their counterparts as "quaint and not worthy of note". It was entirely possible young Sayuri had been taken by one of the Three Factions.
Which was why he reluctantly called his father for assistance, mostly to borrow his contacts for a while. Azazel had seemed entirely smug about the request and made his own in return. He could live playing guard dog for a major meeting between the Three Factions in exchange for using Azazel's many, many contacts.
The moment he came to Kuoh, having dumped the spoiled brat on to Iemitsu's inept care, he knew something was up.
However nothing would have prepared him for the headache he was about to receive. And not because he was forced to use his father's contacts to find his missing Sky.
He didn't know what Dame-Sayuri had done this time, but she had somehow turned time backwards on itself to the point that things had been altered in subtle but unmistakable ways.
Somehow he had the feeling a lot of things would change by the end of this summit.
"Asia-sama, why are you tor...training those boys?" asked Xenovia. The summit was tonight and she was already laying low so Reborn was unlikely to run into her too early.
No one dared to comment that even someone as stoic as Xenovia Quarta considered this torture.
"These poor lost lambs refuse to understand that there are such things as boundaries and they insist on peeping on the young women of this school despite multiple warnings. So I was given special permission to...discipline... them until they learn their lesson. I am doing this in hopes of leading them back to God's divine grace," said Asia with a straight face.
Everyone who heard this looked at Asia and had the exact same thought... and that was "Bullshit".
The expression on her face did not help.
"I see," said Xenovia.
"If it helps, this is their internet search history. If you don't understand what the terms means, Hiryu-san will be more than happy to tell you," said Asia.
Xenovia left for a moment, then came back about thirty minutes later.
"Asia-sama, would you be adverse to me assisting you in...disciplining...these lost lambs?"
Asia's beaming smile was the stuff of nightmares for the perverted duo.
"If you ask politely the kendo club would be more than happy to supply you a bokken so that you may discipline them properly," said Asia.
(Xenovia would end up becoming the new vice captain of the kendo club after they saw the way she used a sword on the two perverts.)
Unnoticed by everyone save Asia, Reborn watched the whole thing with an odd expression on his face. He had come early to scope the place so he would have a general idea of what the layout was like.
At the peace summit...
"Where did you get that outfit?" asked Rias approvingly. Asia usually either wore the girl's uniform, a slightly more mobile version of a nun's habit, or very conservative clothing.
The outfit she wore now was comfortable, combat ready, and looked more stylish than what Asia normally wore. Even Xenovia had a new outfit on, but hers looked like a less strict version of her former exorcist's gear.
"I thought it was about time for her to change into something better suited to meeting important people," said Azazel smirking.
"The fact you cheerfully handed over a black credit card to Vali's girlfriend and told her to have fun had nothing to do with it, I'm sure," deadpanned Asia. "Or that Verde used his new toys and knowledge to turn it into armor once he had a design to use."
Azazel smirked at that.
Micheal was giving her a rather odd look. He knew of Asia Argento, but she was nothing like what his reports told him of the current Twilight Burning. He expected to find a submissive, quiet young woman.
Instead he had a Queen who had power and backing and damn well knew it. She radiated competence and the sort of self-assurance from someone who knew how to handle themselves in a real fight.
Micheal observed the way the former exorcist stood next to her and understood. This was a Sky flame who had attracted the lost nun into her harmony...he was actually somewhat glad Xenovia hadn't fallen into the devil's camp.
Asia for the most part only chimed in when Azazel nodded for her to speak. While technically she had claimed sanctuary from Sirzechs and his group, the fact that the Fallen had all but adopted her was pretty clear. Either way it meant she had somewhere to crash and not have to worry about the Vongola demanding she take up the mantle of Decimo because of their screw-ups.
Once the summit was well underway, Micheal brought up something that bothered him.
"Is the situation really so bad that you required your son to attend as well?" asked Micheal.
Asia blinked, then looked at Azazel.
"Wait...how many people actually know that the world's greatest hitman is your son?" she asked baffled.
Azazel snorted at that.
"To be fair, we tend to keep tabs on progeny mostly to avoid accidentally pissing off the wrong person and in case they start to show strength akin to their parent."
"The fact those same kids also have an annoying habit of causing hell because of some sense of false entitlement...?" said Asia with a raised eyebrow.
Azazel grimaced, as he really didn't need to explain that.
He then turned to Micheal.
"Reborn is here for a separate matter. I mostly asked him to be here as extra assurance in case something comes up, especially since an outside party seems deadset on causing trouble and keeps targeting Sirzechs' sister for some reason."
Sirzechs frowned at that, as he hadn't thought it odd that his sister had gotten caught up three times already into major issues. Riser was one thing, but having to deal with the Fallen twice was a bit odd. Especially high level ones like Kokabiel.
Asia gave Vali a Look when it came time for the two Dragon Emperors to voice their opinion. He hid his wince well, but a silent moment of understanding passed between him and Issei.
For all the bickering Albion and Ddraig did, neither dragon was inclined to piss off the Phoenix Queen to the point she got serious.
Vali reluctantly agreed to a truce, if only so she didn't come after his ass again.
Naturally it was this moment everything went to hell, simply because it could.