Chapter 3

Previously…

A small smile played on the face of the tall man opposite her. 'Just like her mother,' He thought and continued to drink in her appearance like a man in a Desert. She was small for her age and her petite figure made her seem even smaller. Long, sunshine-blonde hair fell in gentle waves down to her waist, framing her thin face and curtaining her beautiful features. His heart clenched as he took in her face, a face he instantly recognised from that fateful night many years ago. Her soulful eyes were a deep cerulean blue, a mirror of his own and filled with pain and hope.

His brow creased adding up what he was seeing.

He had hoped after his 'death' Konoha would treat her as a hero, but it seemed that that had not been the case.

His intuition had been right all along it seemed. He had gotten to her just in time.

His thoughts were broken abruptly when he noticed Naruko's eyes on him. She stared unblinkingly at him and he resisted the urge to fidget as his lips twitched upwards. He could see similar expressions on the people around him.

"Welcome Naruko, to the Halls of Succession." He gestured around him.

Naruko gazed from her now visible surroundings to the men and women in front of her and back again. They were in a large hall with gigantic cathedral-style windows on every side, from which daylight shone through giving the room a spacious, airy feel. A hefty solid oak table was laid between them with just the right number of seats for those in the room. Oak chairs with intricate carvings embedded in the back rests, embellished with comfy-looking cushions and elaborate spindly armrests. The flooring, a polished parquet that was a rich cherry wood lead up to a hearth on the right side of the room, where a fire was roaring away merrily. An ornate mantelpiece encapsulated the flames, it was ivory in in colour and had beautiful pearls decorating the framework. All in all, it was a grand room indeed, a far cry from anything she'd grown accustomed to in Konoha.

The masked men and woman had seated themselves at the table leaving the very end seat free, opposite to the blonde man - whom she still felt questionably drawn to. She remained standing a little off to the side while quietly observing those already sat at the table with an inquisitive stare.

All were masked and wore long black mantles over their shoulders held together at the front with a golden clasp which had a shield etched into the metal. All sat poised and straight backed and held their hands either together in front of them or with their chins rested on their arms in a considering pose. Naruko flinched after realising that she was also being observed but settled slightly when her intuition said they weren't a threat.

She haltingly met their eyes and shuffled on her feet wringing her hands in front her nervously, everything seemed so big and intimidating all of a sudden from where she was standing. She was also very aware of just how clean everything was and blushed as she noted how much dirt had accumulated on her person and attempted in vain to smooth some of the creases from her moth-eaten t-shirt, though she stopped this immediately when she noticed the muck from her fingers made even more marks on her clothing.

"Have a seat child." Said the man to her left near the head of the table, making her start - his voice was regal and deep with an undertone of impatience and the small lilt of an accent.

"Oh hush Secondo - don't you scare her now," huffed a woman sat opposite of him and Naruko noted she had rolled her eyes from behind her mask. "I am Daniela, little one or Vongola Ottavo, this grouch is Ricardo." She indicated to the regal sounding man and took off her mask with a flourish of orange Flames.

Her voice had a motherly quality and judging by the twist of her lips and the glint in her eye, she had a slightly mischievous personality. Her choppy fringe framed her face and the length of her smooth black mane was tamed only by the pink tie holding up the high ponytail at the back of her head. She was smooth skinned and tanned denoting of her, no doubt, Italian heritage. Her hazel eyes were friendly and the minor wrinkles at either side of her eyes told Naruko she smiled a lot. Her most eye-catching feature was the pink tattoo covering the left side of her face, a beautiful tree branch and blossoms which ran from her mid-forehand down to her ear and ran along her jawline ending just before her lips.

"Uh…h-hi, n-nice to meet you," Naruko fumbled over her words, she doubted she had ever seen a more gorgeous woman in her life and was in awe of her. "I'm Naruko Uzumaki."

"Well Naruko, it's very nice to finally meet you," she delicately chuckled into her hand, cloak shifting to show the red ladies' suit and black tie beneath. "Come now gentlemen, introductions if you please!"

Muttering under his breath, 'the grouch', cleared his throat.

"Ricardo, Vongola Secondo," he said in a clipped tone, clearly a man of few words. His eyes were angular and a piercing blue in colour. His hair was short black and spiky apart from the hair at the base of his neck, which was wrapped neatly in a tight black material down to his shoulder blades. A suit of pure black could just be made out from under the cloak – he very much looked the powerful business man.

Naruko bobbed her head to him in acknowledgement and when he didn't immediately remove his mask, met his stare with one of her own. Her blue eyes bore unflinchingly into Ricardo's.

*…Stare*

*Stare…* They remained like this in silence for about five minutes before Ricardo's eye began to twitch, 'are her eyes getting bigger?!', a bead of sweat ran down his temple. He could make out Daniela's grin from his peripherals and felt his brow begin to twitch in annoyance.

"Fine!" he growled in exasperation, losing his refined composure and whipped off his mask in a rush of red-orange flames. Naruko could now make out his angular sideburns which cut across his cheekbones like arrows and highlighted his young handsome face.

"He he he…never thought I'd see the day, you're losing your touch Ricardo!" said the bald man from the other side of the table, wiping the tear from his eyes, mask having already been removed. "Naruko, I am Vongola Terzo, but you can call me Stafano!"

His head was mostly bald, she noted, with only two tufts of hair spiked upwards - one at the front and one at the back. He was older than Ricardo and Daniela but much larger in stature. He seemed to have quite a jolly countenance, with green eyes showing his mirth. He waved in Naruko's direction and she swore his hands we bigger than her back. She smiled at Stefano and gave a small wave in return, instantly liking his character.

"I am Quarto or as you may call me – Roberto," the bearded man next to him said. He sat at the same height as Ricardo, but he was not as bulky. As he slowly removed his mask Naruko noticed his eyes were the same dark honey colour as his hair and bushy beard. His eyebrows were thick and curled near the edges with little grey highlights, Naruko rather thought he looked like an old lion.

"Hello Roberto," Naruko said politely and turned to the next in line to introduce himself.

"It is nice to meet you Bambino, I am Luca also known as Vongola Quinto," said a man with long silver hair, who stood and bowed to her right. His voice was smooth, not too deep but not effeminate. He gracefully swept the mask from his face with a flick of his wrist. He looked younger than the last two but older than Ricardo and Daniela, early 30's perhaps. His eyes were a pale blue bordered with silver eyelashes and shapely eyebrows. The man obviously took great care of his hair as it shone in the light. Similarly to Daniela, he also has a facial tattoo. Luca's, however, was a small design in the centre of his forehead and it bore a foreign symbol in red that Naruko didn't recognise - though it didn't detract from him boyish charm. Judging from the attire under his clock, a long white military-style tunic emblazoned with gold buttons, he was the very definition of a what she would call a beautiful gentleman.

"The name's Simora, Sesto, young one," said the older grey-haired man with the monocle nearer to her on the left of the table. His face was thin and sharp looking and as he took off his mask Naruko could see his piercing eyes almost taking her measure. His sly tone of voice suggested that he was quite the devious business man, it was deep and nasally and Naruko got the impression he was the type to look down on people often – much like he was doing right now. The combination of his pewter grey hair curtaining his expression and his monocle that flashed in the light was, she guessed, to make himself more difficult a character to read. The slight downturn to his thin lips gave him away though. Naruko didn't want to have too much to do with this man but nodded her head in response anyway.

She next turned to the one of the remaining three. This man had a calculating gaze despite the slightly ridiculous looking top hat and handlebar moustache - which by the way wouldn't look out of place in a circus. She had felt his brown eyes boring into her as introductions were made and felt a little bit like she was being dissected.

Naruko met his eyes finally as he announced himself, "I am Vongola Settimo or Fabio - as my friends call me. Tell me, my youthful acquaintance, what can you keep after giving it to someone?" he shrewdly asked awaiting her response.

Her intuition expressed he was testing her. So she considered his riddle and replied, "Your word."

"Hmmm, very good Naruko. While a leader cannot shy away from confrontations, it is the promises we make that matter the most and there is nothing more important than 'our word' in this line of work. Perhaps there hope indeed for the Vongola yet," he said mysteriously while primping his moustache. "This old coot next to me is the current leader of the Vongola." He gestured to the aging male sat opposite him.

This man was quite obviously the eldest of the gathering, with combed-back greying hair and a matching bushy moustache that covered his lips. The dark cloak he wore, did nothing to hide his too-thin weary frame, which came further into view as he removed his mask. Cloak slipping up his arms revealing bony fingers and frail-looking wrists and the orange Flames from his façade splintering before petering out – like a sickly cough. However, it was the borderline desperate expression that caught Naruko's attention more than anything else.

"I am Timoteo, child…and I am...responsible for the Vongola Familia's current predicament." He sighed warily, as if the words cost him a great deal. Looking around she could see the others at the table now held solemn expressions and furrowed brows.

"What predicament?" Naruko queried tilting her head cutely, blonde hair tumbling over her shoulder in a golden waterfall. She could see that whatever it was, weighed like the world on his shoulders. Whatever this was, was causing the sombre expressions on everyone's faces and despite not knowing the group more than a few minutes, she wanted to help. She could tell Timoteo was chewing on his words as he stared at her considering, his hazel eyes conflicted.

She moved from her spot for the first time, grasped the free stool and proceeded to drag it closer to Timoteo. The horrible screeching sound it made echoed around the hall making them all wince and rub their ears. She grunted as she wasn't strong enough to move the chair all that smoothly but was determined in her task. They watched as she took turns pushing and shoving and throwing her tiny weight against the chair's solid frame until it was right where she wanted it, all with her tongue at the side of her mouth in concentration. It was such an innocent and endearing sight that it brought smiles to faces in the room.

Once she was satisfied, she gripped the chairs arms and heaved herself onto the much taller cushion. After righting herself, she huffed and swept her now tangled hair from her face - which was slightly pink in exertion and faced Timoteo. Though not at eye level with him, she hoped the closer proximity would ease his distress - if at all.

"What's wrong, Timoteo?" she said quietly, slipping her small warm hands into his thin one.

"…I can see from your eyes…even for one so young…that you know not everything in this life goes the way we want it to," he haltingly began. "From a young age I too knew life would never be as such and due to…extenuating circumstances…mostly of my own doing, I don't believe it ever will."

He squeezed her hands gently as he deliberated his next words carefully.

"…but I suppose the real problems began once I finally took up the mantle. Whereas before, life was beautifully simple; a father of two strong boys and loving wife at my side, I knew, of course, that I would have to assume the title…it was what I had been raised to do after all, but in my naivety, I grew complacent with such a life and all of a sudden - death became a constant in future years."

"I lost my dear wife, Maria, in our sixth year of marriage. She was…smart and kind and gave birth to our two healthy boys, Massimo and Federico. She was an amazing mother - she would fill the mansion with laughter and singing. It was almost possible to forget that we were at the forefront of the largest mafia Famiglia in history. Almost." He said as the light in his eyes dimmed and he became lost in memories. "Until reality came crashing down. An enemy shot down Maria in cold blood while she was outside of the mansion playing with the boys. I – regrettably, was…not home at the time, meeting with the very same Famiglia that had murdered my wife in front of my children." He let out a shaky breath. "I now know that it was all a ruse to destroy me and the meeting was not a plea for aid, but a distraction…I destroyed every last member of that Famiglia, even though I knew it wouldn't bring her back…ah how I miss her laugh…" He blinked as he heard a sniffle, shaken out of his thought trail and looked down to see a teary eyed Naruko at his side. He patted her head and smiled slightly. "Of course, this was all a long time ago now, but after that day I had changed – I was no longer the generous, forgiving leader I was known for being. I grew cynical, jaded and suspicious as I threw myself into the role…and in doing so, my sons were no longer a priority. In my head, it was to protect them, but I loathed the distance I had put between us. At the same time, reflected in their eyes, I could see the wife I had lost and the memories that resurfaced were too painful to deal with. I also couldn't stomach seeing blame in their expressions," he admitted with no small amount of guilt.

He paused and Naruko could tell he was gathering himself after his revelations so she lightly squeezed his hands in support. He heaved a deep shuddering breath before continuing. "…And…as you can see, I am no longer the 'spring chicken' I used to be. At my age all I want to be thinking about is a healthy retirement but alas I must make amends for my mistakes. But how can a man my age with as much blood on my hands as I have, pull the Vongola Famiglia out of the…poisonous deficit it festers within? I fear I am much too late."

He fell into the silence of the room and the faces at the table, Naruko noted, were bowed in grief or lost in memories of their own.

"So…" Naruko began gaining their attention once more, "…you were all once the head of this 'Vongola'? And you're mafia? – which from what I can tell – is similar to how ninja operate, all subterfuge and secret missions?"

"Very good Naruko - you're not wrong, but as you know we began as a vigilante group, in fact it was through good deeds that I and my group gained importance amongst the people. It was then that we came to be named 'Vongola Famiglia' by the very people we had sworn to protect. It was also many years ago - four hundred to be exact - that I became known not as 'Giotto' but as 'Vongola Primo'." The tall blonde man at the opposite end of the table announced. He gently reached a long-fingered gloved hand to remove his mask and with a rush of golden-orange flames deep blue eyes stared back at her from a face that was remarkably similar to her own.

"Once upon a time I was also known under another name, perhaps one that you are more familiar with. My name is Ieyasu Sawada or Giotto to those that knew me best, but not to you Naruko. To you and in another life, my name is Minato Namikaze…and I am your Father."