Il Cielo dei Tre Regni
by Lunar Wave
Disclaimer: This story borrows the setting and characters of the Koihime†Musou series and borrows multiple elements from Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I own neither series as they both belong to their respective owners. Also, considering Koihime†Musou could be considered a fanfic of the Three Kingdoms, I'd like to say I don't own anything related to the stories of the Three Kingdoms.
-()-
Letting the Pieces Fall in Place
-()-
"Uncle Hayato handles the daily affairs…"
"Yes."
"Uncle Takeshi goes to negotiations with you, and sometimes does it on his own. He usually takes Uncle Lambo when the situation is a bit more difficult."
"Mmhmm."
"Uncle Ryouhei is usually busy in the boxing ring, but he comes along whenever you need a bodyguard and Uncles Hayato, Takeshi, and Lambo aren't there."
"I wish he would at least remember to tell his boxing coach in advance first. Or at least his wife." Tsuna sighed, "The earful that Hana-san has given me for Ryohei-niisan was a bit too much."
"Uncle Hibari spends his time fighting strong people if he's not at Namimori. Uncle Mukuro spends more time out of the Vongola, and Aunt Chrome is the only one who can call him. Aunt Chrome, meanwhile, stays here and helps you out as your secretary?"
"Seems you got it." Tsuna nodded, reaching to rub the boy's head.
"Huh…" Kazuto frowned. "But what do those have to do with their role in Vongola?"
"The Guardian Roles are just guidelines for choosing a Guardian, Kazuto." Tsuna laughed, "They don't have to extend to what they actually end up doing. If anything, the Guardian Roles was written in times of war for the familia."
"War… will we ever end up in war?"
"It's happened. Several times during my reign. Once even when I was fourteen, actually. I guess it's a bit inevitable, with all the changes I want to do to the Vongola." Tsuna smiled before sighing and looking at Kazuto. "Sorry."
"Eh?"
"The reason you lived in Japan for most of your life is because of that. Why you couldn't have a normal childhood with me and your mother."
"It's fine." Kazuto smiled, "I know that Papa is working hard for my sake too, so it's fine!"
"… I guess I raised you up better than my dad did. I hoped so at least." Tsuna smiled, "Thank you, Kazuto." He reached down to hug the boy.
"Hmm?" Kazuto wasn't too sure why his father is hugging him, but he didn't really care and hugged back.
"For still considering me your father, after everything."
"Why won't I? You're my only dad."
"True enough, true enough."
-()-
"So, this is the rest of your family."
In all honesty, Reborn's squeaky voice is still jarring to Kazuto. Nonetheless, he smiled and pointed at each member. "Right. This is Houtou Shigen, one of our advisors. Chiihou, our minstrel/idol. Chouseihei and Sosou, our merchants. They're members of my army that we left behind to manage the territory for a while. "And these are our newly appointed officials, as per the agreement we made before you left. Bijiku Shichuu and Bihou Shihou."
"You're Kazuto-sama's teacher. Like Suikyou-sensei is to us three." Hinari nodded.
"And Fuurin-sensei is to me and Pairen-chan." Touka nodded.
"Unless I hear that your respective teachers routinely shoot you so that you can instinctively learn to dodge bullets, I'd say I have it worse." Kazuto told them. "It doesn't help that he routinely also gets other teachers to help out."
"Bakazuto, run laps."
"I won't do it outside of training time, Reborn." Kazuto replied, "Unlike at home, I can't just throw on a [shower] to take a bath!"
"Consider it part of your training to drag the buckets of water yourself. All else fails, jump into the well yourself."
Kazuto squinted at him before turning back to the rest. "Anyway, let's do job assignments, shall we?"
"Eh?" Everyone asked in confusion.
"Just clarification on what our main roles are. That way everyone can at least be familiar with everyone else's duties."
"Right…" Touka nodded.
"Touka and I have our roles rather clear. We mostly will deal with legislative business." The shorthand for that is lots and lots of paperwork. "But we'll also need to occasionally oversee the other teams. Simply put, that's patrolling and dealing with any problems that any of you find too difficult to deal with."
"I also need to meet with the village elders on occasion." Touka nodded.
"As for me, I also oversee Chiihou's idol business." Kazuto nodded. Chiihou nodded enthusiastically. Reborn raised an eyebrow to that but chose not to comment. He'll get his explanation later. But right now they have a list to go through.
"Aisha-chan?"
"I'm in charge of military affairs for the most part, alongside Rinrin. Protection of the various counties under our jurisdiction."
"Rinrin will do that too, but also help with training soldiers." Rinrin nodded cheerfully.
"Sei, you're in charge of security, as well as soldier training." Kazuto nodded.
Sei waved at him lazily, acknowledging the assignment.
"Shuri and Hinari mostly serve as our advisors and substitute for us whenever we are unable to make it to other tasks." Kazuto told the strategists. "Josho, since you've been serving as one of our informants for a few months, I'm leaving you in charge of the information network that Shuri and Hinari have been building up to."
"""Understood!""" The three nodded.
"Chouseihei will continue to serve as our economic advisor, although Rairai and Denden will help out in that regard."
"That will be of help to me." Chouseihei nodded, "The two have a good head on their shoulders."
""Roger!"" The two Bi siblings saluted.
Rairai then pondered, "But weren't we officials now?"
"Chouseihei still has his business to handle right now. He can't handle holding the Economic Advisor position forever." Kazuto nodded. "Eventually you two will be in charge of it, with Chouseihei simply being the merchant representative. This is just a hand-off phase."
"We'll work to your expectations then!" Rairai grinned.
"The Raiden Siblings will work hard!" Denden nodded.
"Chiihou will continue with her idol activities." Kazuto nodded, "However… please think about what I told you earlier." Chiihou nodded, a bit somber. "Sosou, continue supporting her in her activities."
"But of course!" Sosou grinned.
"Paitan, whenever you aren't resting from the recovery process, you're going to work with me and Touka for the most part, so just shadow us. We'll move a new desk into the office for you to use."
"I won't let you down!" Paitan nodded, determined.
'Is that what the emperor should be saying?' Kazuto privately wondered before smiling at her, "You are still not completely healed so please don't push yourself. We already have more than a few people who will be tackling paperwork." Kazuto shrugged.
"The new girl gets to work with Kazuto-san a lot, huh?" Chiihou off-handedly mentioned.
Kazuto chose to ignore it, after all, he wants to get through this quickly. "Which brings us to our two friends, Yue and Ei."
"Yes." Yue nodded.
"Officially, the two of you are servants." Kazuto prompted, "But whenever you can, please support us with the paperwork, seeing as the two of you have more experience on the matter."
"We'll do what we can." Yue nodded. Ei sighed before nodding herself.
"As long as you do your job." Ei glared, "No pushing off work to everyone else."
"Reborn has a gun to my head now." Kazuto replied.
"Bakazuto's mission is to do more paperwork than any of you combined." Reborn sadistically confirmed. Kazuto softly whimpered. Touka, Shuri, Hinari, Josho, Paitan, Yue, and Ei could only sympathetically wince.
"Awawa, wouldn't it be better for Kazuto-sama if he handled the same work as us?" Hinari asked. "He is the one who is making the most important decisions, and it wouldn't do if he has to work too much and make a mistake because he's forced to do that. We divide the work so that he doesn't have to handle so much in the first place."
"Fine." Reborn acquiesced.
"Thank you, Hinari~" Kazuto told her with tears in his eyes. Reborn never listens if he was the one complaining after all.
"That's not an excuse to slack off." Reborn kicked the boy in the head.
Kazuto ignored it, just happy to not have as much work as he initially thought he'll have, "Anyway! Ren, Nenene, I'll trust the two of you to deal with any banditry in the area." Even with the dying down of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, banditry is still common, although it's been petering off.
"Just us?" Nenene complained.
"Rinrin, Sei, or Aisha will naturally come with you depending on the shift." Kazuto pointed out. "But eventually, we'll trust you to do it yourselves, once you have soldiers who will willingly work with you."
"Un." Ren simply nodded.
"Ah, right… The soldiers here don't necessarily trust Ren yet." Yue looked sadly at the quiet redhead.
"It was war. They'll have to get over it." Ei hardily replied. "None of what Ren did was wrong."
"The soldiers know that." Kazuto nodded, "But that doesn't change anything. She still took the lives of some of their friends. Some of the families in the city are still grieving. All that they know is that Ren has switched sides."
Ren only sadly looked down.
"Bakazuto. Where's your tact?" Reborn kicked him in the head.
"Sorry, Ren." Kazuto sheepishly said, from the ground.
"It's fine." Ren shook her head. "Work as soldier?"
"You want to work as a soldier first?" Kazuto asked, "Perceptions change with time, Ren. You don't need to worry about it. Besides, putting you anywhere lower would just look bad on us in general. You aren't exactly a big secret. I'm sure, that, after a month, people will learn that Ryofu Housen is part of the Ryuubi Army." Kazuto sighed, "The blowback from that little piece of information's going to be difficult."
"No doubt our old comrades in the Coalition will be sending messages to us hoping for clarification on the matter." Sei laughed. "Do your best with that."
"We have our cover story." Kazuto shrugged. "People will be asking why we didn't tell them of the deal beforehand, of course, but then let's just say that we did it because they would've accused us of collusion, which would've delayed us more than anything."
"So we're just going to be piling on more lies to the lie." Touka sighed sadly.
"Leave the lies to me and the strategists." Kazuto told her. "When we need to tell a lie, just smile."
"That doesn't make me feel better, Kazuto-kun."
"Now then… with all that out of the way…" Kazuto stretched, "Let's get back to territory management, alright everyone?"
Everyone in the room cheered.
"What are we calling your group?" Reborn interrupted.
"Hmm?" Kazuto asked.
"Are you going to keep calling yourselves Ryuubi Faction?" Reborn asked.
"Isn't it fine?" Kazuto asked.
"No." Touka shook her head. "Kazuto-kun's name should be in it too!"
"I'm not local, Touka. My name would just confuse people." Kazuto sighed.
"But you've been making all the big decisions so far!" Touka pointed out, "If anything, between the two of us, you've been more the leader of the army than I have."
"It is difficult to refer to you two as both Ryuubi and Hongou Faction." Reborn interrupted, "Everyone would just gravitate to calling you one or the other. Then again, I suppose it's still too early." Reborn nodded, a bit irked. If Kazuto had to guess, he may have wanted them to take up the faction name Shu Han, or Shoku Kan, the name of the Kingdom of Liu Bei. "Now then, before all of you begin your activities, there's something else that needs to be cleared."
Kazuto warily looked at him. "… What?"
Reborn only replied by pulling out a whole stack of books. He quickly jumped on top of it. "A lesson plan." Reborn triumphantly replied.
""""Ehhh!?"""" Everyone could only look in shock at the books.
"I'll naturally skip over unnecessary topics except for Bakazuto, but the bare essentials, such as Mathematics, Reading and Writing, Health, and History will be learned by just about everyone here."
"Mathematics?" Shuri asked, confused by the term.
"Simply put, a catch-all term for everything to do with calculating stuff." Kazuto replied. "Wait, everyone!?"
"Yes, I do mean everyone." Reborn nodded. "If you intend to become a warlord, you'll need intelligent subordinates. The brute force approach will only get you so far."
Reborn then handed out a single piece of paper to each member, "I've laid out a lesson plan for each of you. I've also taken the liberty of accounting for your individual activities. Write it down somewhere, since the paper will disappear when I leave."
"Spartan." Kazuto accused, looking at his schedule. "We still need free time, dammit!"
"Then you just need to finish your tasks faster." Reborn shrugged. "Not my problem. As far as I'm concerned, you had too much free time before."
Kazuto could only resist banging his head against the wall. "… So if everyone is learning all that, what are we individually learning?" Kazuto warily asked.
Reborn shrugged before explaining, "I'm not individually teaching any of you, aside from Bakazuto. It's not an efficient use of my time. Instead, I'll be teaching you in groups."
"… Groups?" Kazuto asked. Reborn sighed before explaining.
-()-
Broadly speaking, the current lineup of officers of the Ryuubi Army can be divided into four groups, although these groups can overlap on occasion. These classifications are Administration, Advisory, Military, Economic.
Administration
Officers: Ryuubi, Sawada Kazuto, Ryuukyou (Kentei), Yue.
Main role: Diplomacy, governance, and general well being of the people. Oversees all other branches.
Advisory
Officers: Shokatsuryou, Houtou, Josho, Ei, Chinkyuu.
Main role: Manage the relay of information. This includes reports from the other branches of the government as well as the information network. Also in charge of keeping records.
Economic
Officers: Bijiku, Bihou, Chiihou, Chouseihei, Sosou.
Main role: Ensure the self-sustainability of the territory, enriching it. Avoid potential economic collapse.
Military
Officers: Kan'u, Chouhi, Chouun, Ryofu.
Main role: Manage the defense of the territory, from within and without.
-()-
"Naturally, each group will have corresponding lessons that are necessary for your role." Reborn smirked, "As an example, logic and history, for the Administration group. Military tactics for the strategists and the military officers. Any questions?"
"You're not going to make us study Political Science, right?" Kazuto warily asked. College Subjects are much too far beyond his ability right now.
"Do you want to?" Reborn smirked.
"No." He's already struggling under the weight of his old workload. He's not adding more to it. He is not aiming to be a modern politician.
"Then you don't need to beyond the barest of basics." Reborn replied. "Most studies in our world can be considered far too advanced for this world in the first place."
"Why am I part of the Administration?" Yue asked, "I'm a servant."
"Kazuto already said that you are helping Ryuubi and him out with their work. While you might disguise as a servant, your job is clearly more an administration officer's than a servant's." Reborn replied.
"I, I see." Yue nodded.
"You separated me and Yue." Ei pointed out.
"What did you say, Strategist Kaku Bunwa?" Reborn asked, smirking. Ei's eyes widened, before turning to Hinari who doesn't look surprised. She turned to the others that she only met today, and while they're eyes widened at the name, they didn't seem to care all that much.
Nonetheless, she looked at the baby before nodding, "… You want me to serve as a strategist."
"Not necessarily." Reborn continued smirking, "Merely a substitute in the case that the other known strategists are incapable of doing so. Like, say, when they are using illusions." Shuri and Hinari looked at their rings and nodded. If another group can perform their role when they're using their illusions, then they can keep concentrating on maintaining said illusions rather than being told to focus on more things at once.
Chiihou raised her hand, "Why am I in the economic group?"
"Your activities are currently the only other source of revenue for this family, other than tax collection." Reborn pointed out. "You are more important to the economics of this territory than Bakazuto."
"Kazuto-san is my manager." Chiihou pouted.
"This is the second time that Bakazuto has been referenced with regards to Chiihou's activities. Explain." Reborn raised his eyebrow at the boy.
"It's fun." Kazuto chuckled. "I didn't think much on it, then I actually started enjoying scheduling performances, and taking care of her."
"Then I suppose I'll have to add a manager course to your lesson plan." Reborn smirked.
Kazuto's posture drooped at that, "… Is this what it feels to actually be in college?" Kazuto asked.
"No," Reborn smirked. "This is worse than that. At least in college, you have a clear goal, or at least should have one. You, on the other hand, are all over the place. Do your best to be a renaissance man, Sawada Kazuto."
Kazuto could only smack his head on the desk in response, and everyone could only look at him in nervous laughter.
"Umm, Reborn-san." Shuri raised her hand.
"Yes?"
"Are those books… can we read them?"
"There should be no problem as long as you're not too far from Bakazuto's communicator." Reborn nodded.
"But didn't Kazuto-sama say that you're not really here?"
"All that means is that I can't damage things or move things around. I'm just solid enough that I can touch things." Reborn shrugged. "Bakazuto clearly can tell that I can kick him around a bit." Kazuto's muffled groan could only be a clear indicator that the pain is very real.
"How far can we read it from Kazuto-sama?" Shuri asked.
"Probably will be good for within the complex." Reborn shrugged. "And maybe a few meters off from it. If the communicator is here, then you can read it under the tree in the courtyard."
"Can we borrow them now?" Shuri asked last.
"You may. But you might have a hard time reading them." Reborn warned. "These are all in Bakazuto's first language."
"First language?" Touka asked.
"Kazuto is quadrilingual. He can read and write four languages."
"Not by choice!" Kazuto forcibly raised his head, angrily interrupting so that no one can get the wrong idea about him. "And quadrilingual is stretching it! I'm trilingual at best. Japanese, Italian, and English. My Chinese is still subpar enough that I have a dictionary on my phone for it! I can't even say the words right."
"Quadrilingual now." Reborn smirked, "You've been writing in the local language, right?"
Certainly, it's basically Japanese, without the syllabary and with some complicated kanji. It technically can be referred to as Chinese, since they're in China. "… I think it's just a different way of writing, though." He absentmindedly stated.
"Hoh? Then I guess I'm adding Chinese to your lesson plan, so that I don't become a liar." Reborn dramatically sighed.
"… Dammit!"
Reborn summarily kicked him for profanity. He turned to the others, "The first order of business is to teach you hiragana and katakana." Reborn tapped, another stack of papers. "When you learn that, you should be able to read these books just fine if you could already read in the first place."
"""We'll do our best, Reborn-san!""" The Suikyou Student Trio saluted. All three were eagerly reading the spines on the books and practically salivating at the knowledge that was just handed to them. It was clear that the trio really liked learning. As for the rest, Rinrin's seems close to screaming, wanting to bolt away, Sei's disinterested, Aisha's accepting. Ei herself, like her fellow strategists, was gleaming at the sight of the books. Nenene, on the other hand, was more content to stick to Ren's side, although she too was looking at the books with some interest. Ren, however, was almost dozing off into her seat, as if the conversation no longer counts. Chiihou looks like a pang of laziness has hit her and is looking away from the books out of spite. Yue also looks at the books with some interest, but not as much as the strategists.
As for Paitan, she was also already eagerly reading the spines of the books, and not even paying much attention to everything else. Seems there's another member of the "I Like Reading" Club in the room.
"Kazuto-kun's language…" Touka looked at the boy, who has once more given up and collapsed on the table. "Reborn-san, will this help us?"
"As with all things that are taught," Reborn shrugged, "whether it's helpful to you, it's more because you made it useful to you. If anything, there's a chance that you'll learn useless pieces of trivia more often than not. I did make sure to trim down all the lessons so that they are, for the most part, helpful to your situation, but that doesn't get rid of all of them. All I'm doing is giving you information. Use them as you will."
"We'll do our best!" Touka nodded. And with that, the task assignments and study assignments were decided.
-()-
The lessons that Reborn wanted to teach them to start with are Kana Reading and Writing, Health, and Mathematics to start. More advanced topics will be added later, but these will do as a starter. As for the less literate members of the group, like Rinrin, Reborn agreed to simply personally teach the girl, while asking one of the student members to help teach her how to read more advanced characters. As for Kazuto, he was being dragged through the dirt as he was being caught up to where his classmates were at this point in time. Time may be slower there, but it's no excuse to slack off. If anything, Reborn considers it the perfect opportunity for Kazuto to surpass all his classmates.
"Enough for today." Kazuto complained, "I've been stuck in remedial school for over three hours, Reborn."
"I suppose that's fine." Reborn nodded. "It's about time for me to go back anyway."
"How is everything back home?"
"Giannini is trying his hardest to recreate the communication device to allow for someone who was not a former Arcobaleno to come, but he's not moving fast enough. This is a mystical force that none of us have encountered before, after all." Reborn shrugged. "Shouichi and Spanner are both helping out with this project, dropping all others as well. However, I doubt that they'll be done before summer in this world, so don't get your hopes up."
"Got it." Kazuto sighed. "Just Arcobaleno, huh…" The Arcobaleno, also known as "The World's Strongest Seven", Il Prescelti Sette (the Chosen Seven), is not to be trifled with. It is a collection of the strongest people in the world, with apparently eight officially known living Arcobaleno. As for why they were eight than seven, none would really give Kazuto an answer. Nevertheless, these eight were impressive people in their own ways. Reborn, the World's Strongest Hitman. Mammon, the Illusionist of Varia. Lal Mirch and Colonello, Retired COMSUBIN Duo. Aunt Uni, the Millefiore Black Spell Leader. Skull, The Immortal Stuntman. Fon, the Martial Artist. Verde, One of Three Inventors of the Box Weapons. Each member is powerful, capable of great things.
"Don't expect anyone aside from Uni and me to come." Reborn scoffed. "They all have their own worries. They don't have time for a boy who might not even make it back home for Tsuna's retirement."
"I'll be back." Kazuto hardily replied.
"Of course you will." Reborn scoffed, "If you do not become the Vongola Family Head, it will be a black mark on my record. My job is to train you to be ready for that role after all."
"And? How am I on your scale?" Kazuto asked.
"Too Reckless. Too Impulsive. Doesn't think things through until halfway in. Relies far too much on intuition. Action first, reason later." Reborn listed off before smirking. "Also, a womanizer. O woe is Kozato Mikoto and Iris."
Kazuto shook off the phantom arrows that has pierced him to give the man in a baby's body a scowl, "Don't bring my friends into this."
"You are not dumb enough to not realize that they like you." Reborn scoffed.
"It will pass, especially when I don't show up for who knows how long back there." Kazuto sighed. "Besides, all of us know that we can't marry each other. Iris is the only child of Aunt Uni. She's the only one who can inherit Millefiore Black Spell. Mikoto's the next head of Shimon. Marrying either of them wouldn't work." Kazuto sighed.
Reborn scoffed. "As the saying goes: when there's a will, there's a way. The opposite of that is: when you don't will it, you make too many reasons. You and I both know that it will not be hard to convince either of their parents to sire a new kid."
"The two of them were trained from birth to succeed their parents." Kazuto argued back. "Wouldn't it be bad for them if they suddenly lose that? I won't take them away from what they have already prepared to do."
"You really are not romantic at all. Maybe I should have had you read more poems and love dramas as a kid." Reborn scoffed. "I wonder how you'll be like when you actually fall in love with someone… no, I suppose I already know what you're like." Reborn chuckled.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Kazuto glared at him.
Reborn looked at the boy before scoffing, "Here, letters." Reborn dumped sheets of paper on top of his head.
Kazuto caught them before looking a bit confused. "So how do you bring things in from that side?"
"Same way I brought my clothes and Leon." Reborn shrugged. "I had them on my person."
"… Thanks. For going this far for me." For the books that he brought. For bringing the letters. He didn't have to, after all. And Reborn hated degrading himself to any other role than that of a teacher.
"It's my job." Reborn smirked. "All I ask is that you continue your studies well, Bakazuto."
Kazuto nodded, looking at the letters. He started by reading his father's letter. "How much of my friends have you told my parents about?" Kazuto asked, amused. "Apparently, mama mentioned me bringing the girls home so that she can meet them."
"I'd say they should just wait till Giannini calibrates the machine on our side so that they could see them for themselves." Reborn scoffed. "By the way, Uni is going to come to say hi soon."
"How soon?"
"In three days our time." Reborn shrugged. "It's the closest date that she is free enough for Gamma to let her sleep in a small box for four hours."
"… So nine days?"
"Possibly, but that is still up for debate." Reborn told him. "While it does appear that time is three times the speed here because of the time you spent here versus the time that passed at home, but that's not necessarily the case all the time."
"So what do you want from me for that?"
"Merely confirm the passage of time on this side compared to the other side." Reborn looked at him. "You have your phone, yes? Every 8 AM on your phone, I want you to consistently turn on the alarm feature of the communicator, then turn it off after fifteen minutes. We'll use that to gauge the passage of time on this side. I already informed Shokatsu Koumei to remind you to do so."
Is Shuri officially his secretary now? Kazuto mused. Shuri does tend to get dragged into dealing with his issues a lot. "How long do I have to do it?" Kazuto asked.
"A week, at least. If we need more data, I'll just ask you to do it for more." Reborn shrugged.
"Got it." Kazuto nodded, pulling out his phone to set the alarm. "Anything for me to pay attention to on my side?"
"We didn't think to put a clock synced with our side for you to reference, so you're on your own." Reborn shrugged. "But we'll make do with what we have. We thought a simple emergency signal was enough so that we can communicate with you when you need it, but the problem is far too complex for us to use."
"And If I want to call you?"
"I'm still coming to teach you as much as I can, Bakazuto. Just tell me then. If I'm not here, well, it's just a week, and everyone's still settling down from the Coalition, Bakazuto. Handle all your emergencies by yourself in that time."
"… Right." Kazuto nodded. "So why is Aunt Uni coming? She doesn't usually get involved with Vongola matters."
"You don't need to worry about that, Bakazuto." Reborn scoffed. "It's simply to test the current theory that only Arcobaleno's can use the current form of the communicator. So far, only I among the former Arcobaleno have tested it after all. We need more data samples."
"And you were confident enough to make that statement that only Arcobaleno can go in?" Kazuto asked, confused.
"I have my reasons why I think so." Reborn nonchalantly replied.
Kazuto nodded, as he finished reading his father's letter. Overall, it's just a report on things on his side, as well as the standard, parental concern. Kazuto only wishes he could pen a response, but this particular method is rather one-way. Unless Reborn is willing to play messenger, of course.
"I'll tell them my interpretation of the events here, Bakazuto. You don't get to dictate anything." And again, Reborn casually seeps into his headspace and guessed what he was thinking.
Kazuto shook his head, before opening his mother's letter. "So what excuse did you make for St. Francesca?" Kazuto asked.
"You had a family emergency that you needed to take care of in Italy." Reborn shrugged.
"… Well, that practically screams 'my backstory doesn't make sense' to every person in my class." Kazuto remarked.
"Then don't get dragged into another world." Reborn scoffed. "Do you know that your entire situation is considered 'impossible' even by Byakuran's standards?"
"… Why does it matter if Uncle Byakuran doesn't think it's possible?" Kazuto warily asked. "And wait? Why is the Millefiore Family involved? Usually something like this would be handled by just the Vongola!"
"We informed your best friends, remember? Naturally, their parents would be involved. But never mind that." Reborn sighed. "Anyway, just finish reading those letters, so that I can go back." Reborn scoffed. Kazuto shallowly nodded and continued reading.
His mother's letter was practically the same as his father's. Of course, there were lots more worry and concern, and making him promise to come back. His godmother also had her own message scribbled onto the bottom of the page. The two are such tight friends.
It's surprising that Uncle Hayato sent him a message as well. He's not exactly close to the Storm Guardian. However, he's grateful for it, as he filled him in on the events of the famiglia, even some things that his parents would've overlooked. Turns out that people found his absence during the Christmas Party to be suspicious. Some have started campaigning for Yoshiko to be the Eleventh Head, but the Tenth Head (his father) had silenced them by claiming that he was on a training trip. That excuse will not last forever. Essentially, it's a warning to him, to live up to his father's expectations and come back strong.
Mikoto's letter is just as concise as Uncle Hayato's, if not for the fact that the other three also pitched in their own little notes on the back. Starting from Mikoto herself, she claimed that there were bugs that kept bugging her into inviting Yoshiko into their friend group. They're holding off on that right now. Damien scribbled a note telling him to take pictures of any cute girls. Iris courteously informed him of Uni's planned visit. And that, if Uni failed to come through, expect Lal Mirch or Collonello. Also that they missed him. Aster spent his note writing something but Kazuto didn't really know since it seems that a scramble for the pen happened midway and a lot of it got scribbled off. In the end, all it said was, "Girls are scary. Don't piss them off. Aster" Kazuto could always try to read the message, anyway. Writing does tend to leave enough of an imprint that there is still something to read. But, out of respect for the girls, he won't.
By the time Reborn had to leave, he had a wide smile, and desperately holding back tears. It's like he never left them.
-()-
Chiihou looked into the night sky, twinkling stars and a bright moon shining in its embrace.
"Thinking hard about it?"
Chiihou suppressed the urge to jump. It seems the month that the woman was gone has made her just as jumpy about the appearance of the girl as when she started. "S-sei…"
Sei nodded, walking forward from the shadows before sitting right next to her. "You always have a choice to stay. Milord will not stop you either way."
"… Kazuto-san is cruel, to give me this choice." Chiihou replied.
"Not niisan anymore?"
Chiihou shook her head. "I… It just feels like he's pushing me away."
"Yeah, we pointed that out to him that too. But rest assured, he's not. He's just showing you that there is a world beyond just him." Sei breathed, "He claimed that you leaving will hurt him. You don't need to worry about it."
"But that's the same as everyone, right?" Chiihou smiled, "I'm more special than most people in the world, but I'm not as special compared to Touka-sama or Aisha-sama."
"We are his precious family. With all that entails." Sei laughed. "But sometimes, the chicks need to leave the nest to spread its wings."
"I know. But I don't have to like it." Chiihou pouted. "I want him to spoil me more, to treat me more, to watch me more."
"You have as much time as you need, Chiihou." Sei laughed, "Didn't Milord say it? Sousou doesn't need to receive a message immediately. And you're busy yourself. You can't just drop everything unless the two sides have agreed."
"Sousou-san won't kill me, right?" Chiihou asked.
"The same deal remains the same. Chouhou is dead. He died the day you joined Kazuto-sama. This visit is merely Chiihou who is searching for answers about her missing siblings, whose last known locations were with Choukaku and Chouryou." Sei chuckled. "Come on, you already know all this."
"I think I spent the entire time just thinking in circles…" Chiihou pouted. "And I'm not as smart as Hinari! And isn't it unfair that I'm the last one of us who learned Kazuto-niisan's True Name!?"
Sei noticed the change in honorific but didn't bother with it much aside from a widening smile. Clearly, Chiihou still considers the boy the same as before. "I don't think a true family name counts? And Sosou, Chouseihei, Denden and Rairai learned it at the same time as you."
"It's not fair!" Chiihou pouted, "I was thinking I would become a Lady Hongou, but then it turned out that I'll be a Lady Sawada."
"Since when were you slated for marriage?" Sei laughed.
"Isn't that what we're mostly aiming for? Touka-sama is crawling in his bed, and Shuri and Hinari aren't even resisting anymore! Aisha-san is being weird about it, but it's obvious if you know where to look!"
"Spoken like a true idol who looks at their fans."
"Knowing which fans are getting a bit weird is important." Chiihou nodded, fingering her knife as a gesture. "But that doesn't change a thing! Anyway, now there's more girls around Kazuto-niisan! Chiihou-chan will be drowned out by all these girls!"
"You're the only one that's an idol." Sei pointed out.
"Y-yeah, but if Kazuto-niisan meets Tenhou-neechan and Renhou, that will change, won't it?" Chiihou sighed.
"Hmm?"
"… Even if I do go away, I won't stop doing this idol business." Chiihou said. "And I'll drag Tenhou-neechan too since she's our center. She's a really amazing singer and dancer, you know? And Renhou could handle the small things that Kazuto-niisan has been struggling with."
"… You really miss those two, don't you?"
"Yes." Chiihou bitterly smiled. "I… I don't want to make this choice. I suppose I just wanted Kazuto-sama to make it for me. To tell me to stay by his side, so that I don't have to think too hard. If he said that, I don't think I'd leave."
"But if he said that, you'll never see your siblings again." Sei replied.
"… Why can't I have a choice that I can have both?" Chiihou bitterly sighed.
"Like it or not, Choukaku and Chouryou are criminals, who led a rebellion. So was Chouhou, for that matter." Sei replied. She almost suggested Chiihou to tell Paitan of the events that led to the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and no doubt Paitan would pardon the trio, but… the only one they told of Paitan's true identity as the emperor is Hinari. Chiihou, Rairai, Denden, and the Merchant Duo only know that she's a distant cousin of Touka. So instead she compromised, "… What will you do if Choukaku and Chouryou could be pardoned?"
"Eh?"
"If the emperor were to say that she pardons the three Chou Siblings?" Sei asked.
"Is that even possible?" Chiihou asked, bemused.
"Hypothetically, of course."
"I'd want to save them from Sousou and bring them here." Chiihou replied.
"Is that so…" Sei nodded, resolving herself to bring up the possibility to Kazuto and Touka soon.
"Anyway, I still have till Sousou contacts us, right?" Chiihou smiled. "I'll think more on this later. I still have a long day tomorrow."
"Of course." Sei nodded, "Take care, Chiihou."
"Thank you, Sei." Chiihou smiled before walking back inside.
Sei nodded, looking at the stars in the sky. Well, no time like the present. She'll just pop in to see Kazuto.
-()-
Sei found Kazuto on his way to his room, having just left Paitan's after doing treatment for her. She told Kazuto of the idea that she thought of, and Kazuto thought about it.
"An official pardon… huh? We'll need to tell Paitan about the circumstances of the trio, but it will work." Kazuto nodded, "This way Sousou at least cannot entrap Chiihou into service."
"Can we use it to save her siblings too?" Sei pressed.
"That depends on Sousou, and whether she'll recognize it." Kazuto replied. "Sousou doesn't strike me as the type to let go of something once she gets her hands on it."
"True enough." Sei nodded with an easy smile. "But you'll do it then? A pardon?"
Kazuto shook his head. "Not yet. Paitan needs to want to do it." Kazuto then smiled, "I'll have Paitan hang out with Chiihou a bit more before that. Maybe when she's a bit healthier that Yue doesn't need to watch over her so much, I'll take her to see one of Chiihou's events."
"That's all I can ask." Sei nodded, satisfied. "Is there something else?"
"You're the one who wanted to talk to me." Kazuto raised his eyebrow at the strange question.
"You seem to have something in mind."
Kazuto nodded quietly, turning to the night sky. "How long do you think this peace will last?"
"… What do you mean?"
"How long will it be till we have to fight a war again?" Kazuto asked.
"Judging by Enshou? Probably sometime in spring." Sei nodded.
"And if it's Sousou?"
"Sousou is not reckless enough to attack with no reason." Sei shrugged. "Or at least, that's not how I saw her. Whether she attacks or not, it will be after Enshou does so. It's not really a secret that Enshou didn't like us."
"I see…" Kazuto nodded, "Then we have until spring to prepare."
"It's still likely that Enshou will be focusing on building up her power base as well." Sei shrugged. "But didn't you say that you don't want to start a war?"
"Yes. But if we want to protect our family, isn't it only right to be prepared?" Kazuto asked. "As much as we would want it, we cannot reinsert Kentei as the emperor fast enough for the warlords to listen. We've no manpower, no resources, and barely any time at all."
"I think you worry too much."
"I can't help it. I was never trained to handle territory." Kazuto shook his head. "If anything, my training is more on personnel, and we're starting to see a decline in recruitment." This is a combination of not having the money to pay for more soldiers and having neighbors who can pay better than they could. "That doesn't even count the number of spies I rooted out from the new recruits."
"Spies?" Sei's eyes widened. Kazuto nodded, before pulling out a scroll.
"Some of the other warlords have sent their spies to join our group as soldiers or servants. Why, I don't know, but… here."
"Me?"
"I'll leave it to you to know how to deal with them." Kazuto smiled. "I can't ask Aisha. She'll fire them on the spot. You're my only choice for this."
Sei looked at the scroll, some of the listed names clear. "So what's my job?"
"Figure out who they're allied to. I could be wrong." Kazuto smiled. "I generally ordered for Aisha to not allow anyone who wasn't part of the Volunteer Army to be allowed in the complex, and so far I haven't seen them try to enter. But that doesn't mean I don't occasionally spy a newcomer peeking around the bushes on occasion."
"If I find them skulking around where they're not, I'll punish them then." Sei coyly nodded. "How did you find them out though?"
"I found their applications suspicious." Kazuto shrugged.
"Intuition?"
"I guess? I still don't fully understand how it works and what triggers it." Kazuto sheepishly shrugged, "All I know is that their applications just felt off. Anyway, I'll leave that to you. I'm just going to bed, Sei. It's been a long day."
"Whose turn is it tonight?"
"I'll know when I get there." Kazuto replied with a yawn, "It's probably Rinrin, though."
"Ah, to make up for the lack of turns during the coalition then?" Sei chuckled.
"Something like that." Kazuto replied.
"I'd have thought Chiihou and Hinari would've gotten some special treatment for not being with you for a while."
"… Hinari's sleeping with Shuri and Josho tonight. Chiihou wanted some alone time." Kazuto rattled off. "But why would you girls even consider sleeping with me special treatment?"
"Good night, Kazuto-sama." Sei laughed.
"Good night, Sei."
-()-
"The boy still lives."
"Your obsession with your rival is getting annoying, Saji."
"For the last time: that boy's not my rival!"
"He's the same age as you, and you spend the entire time moaning about him. If he's not your rival, then I'd say you have a crush on the boy."
"You dare insult me, Ukitsu!?" Saji snarled.
"Then stop misusing the phrase 'for the last time'. How many times will be your 'last time'?"
Saji could only growl with gritted teeth. "Why. Does. The Boy. Continue. To Live. Ukitsu?"
"If you're calling him a boy, then that makes you a boy too, I suppose. You're around the same age."
"UKITSU!"
"Fine. I can tell that your obsession is the real deal." Ukitsu sighed, finally looking up from his work. "Our dear assassin, shall we say, got a bit scared."
"Scared? Of the boy?"
"Not the boy. If anything, she had him dead to rights. But apparently, a well-known killer from the other side scared her off. Reborn, she calls him. The World's Greatest Hitman."
"Where is she now?"
"You may not kill her, Saji. Just because she failed, doesn't change the fact that she's our only Earth Flame user."
"Then let's kill him now." Saji growled, "He is back in his territory. Defenseless. There will be no consequences once we do!"
"And risk Ryuubi not forming Shoku, Saji? Now that the Toutaku Coalition has failed, we now have to pin our hopes on the formation of the Three Kingdoms."
"And what's the difference between killing him during the coalition, and killing him now?"
"The hitman."
"Eh?"
"If what the girl tells me is true, then killing this Reborn will be far too difficult for us. I need to learn who he is, what he's doing, and how exactly he managed to get here in the first place. The mirror on the other side was broken. He should not have been able to come here. And yet here he is." Ukitsu grimaced.
"Then send me. I'll take care of this so-called hitman."
"Even if you manage to do so, we don't know how he managed to get into this world, Saji. Do you not see? If they could send one man, they could send more. If more people are able to come here, then we won't be able to enact our plan. What we need to do is learn how he arrived. And the only way to do that now is to hunt down the traitor Chousen."
"Grrr…" Saji growled, realizing that the man was right. "How many times will that boy be so upsettingly lucky!?" He raised his arm in anger as if prepared to slam it.
Ukitsu did not hesitate to grab the lifted arm, "Do not destroy anything in this room, unless you, of course, want to delay me more." Ukitsu warned. "We have a training room if you want to blow some steam off."
"Use an illusion for me to fight the boy again. I'll cut him to ribbons." Saji snarled, shoving him off.
"I am busy. Find another Desert Flame user to do so."
"You're the only one who knows how he fights." Saji scoffed, "No other illusionist will be able to work with that." Saji simply gave up, "So who's hunting down Chousen?"
"Isn't the answer obvious?" Ukitsu scoffed. "The girl."
"The girl and Chousen are close. Chousen was the one who raised that girl, after all. What makes you think that she won't betray us too?"
"Because she has something she wants enough that she is willing to destroy the world for." Ukitsu laughed. "Isn't that the same for everyone here?"
Saji silently looked at him before nodding. "So what are our plans? If we won't kill the boy, then what are we doing now?"
"We build our numbers." Ukitsu shrugged, "Prepare like everyone else. There may be a few stupid people who stumble upon our base and attack. We need soldiers who can take care of those sorts."
"And Sonken Bundai? Why did she need to die?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"I'm not stupid, Ukitsu." Saji growled, "I know you slipped the info to Kouso that the woman had the Imperial Seal."
"Simply to follow the story, Saji." Ukitsu smirked, "After all, Sonken was supposed to have died around this time. And if someone that strong-willed is the head of Son Go, how would we be able to subvert them? No. Best let one of her more inexperienced children take the reins."
"So we now have the Tiger of Koutou's body?" Saji asked.
"Alas, Kouso apparently ambushed her on her way through a river, and the body was washed down the rapids. I had some of our men search for the body, but they found nothing."
"I see…" Saji frowned. "Is Sonken Bundai truly dead then?"
"I do not know of a human who manages to survive being shot through the heart, Saji." Ukitsu scoffed. "Say what you will of Kouso, her bow skill is impeccable. If she claims that she shot the woman in the heart, then she did. There would need to be some cosmic divine intervention for someone to survive that."
"Fair enough, I suppose. And the seal?"
"It's still with Sonken's eldest." Ukitsu shrugged. "However, with Sonken Bundai out of the picture, there's no reason for us to intervene anymore. Let the story flow on until another anomaly rears its head."
"Doggedly following the story of that book of lies. Why do we not simply ignore it and force our will!? This story would end quicker if we do so and we'll be free!"
"Certainly. Go ahead, unite a kingdom, while being an angry child who hates a boy whose only crime is that he happened to come across you. Face it, Saji. There is not a single member here that is good at building nations, let alone conquering an empire. Our best bet is to allow someone susceptible to us to rise up and aid them in their quest for conquest. Then take their minds. That way, we'll have all that we need."
"Why not just take someone's mind now, then?"
"And why would we waste time and energy building up a kingdom ourselves to do so? The warlords are practically clamoring for the opportunity. By the end of it all, there will only be two to three kingdoms left, and we'll have our chance to take one of their leader's minds and have them eliminate the rest. All we need to do is ensure that at least one of the remaining kingdoms is susceptible to our control."
"There are more direct paths than this." Saji snarled. "Why are you so stubborn that we do this your way!?"
"We tried your way. You ended up destroying the mirror, resulting in the time fluctuations between the other side and this one. Then we also got the problem in the form of Hongou Kazuto." Ukitsu scoffed. "Now, shut up and leave me in peace. I need to research the method that hitman Reborn used to arrive in this world. The direct path that you seek can only be a trap waiting to be sprung."
"That fool of a boy? A trap? What is a mere school kid capable of?" Saji snarled. "Fine! But do not come crying, when it turns out I'm right." Saji stormed out of the room.
"Since when has he been right?" Ukitsu scoffed, returning to tinkering with his equipment. Various tools and weapons were on the table. Some made from the treasures that he collected from the ransacked capital. All of them capable of making use of the Seven Flames of Earth. He simply started making new ones.
By the time the idiot Hongou realizes their plan, there would be an army of Deathperation Flame Users to oppose him. No matter how cute his little flame trick is, he would simply fail in the end.
-()-
Chapter End
-()-
Chapter Release Date: February 7, 2020
Last Edited: August 25, 2020
-()-
Beta Reader: Seraphius
And so, the hiatus begins... in two weeks, two more chapters. Because I'm a wishy-washy author who is afraid of commitments and have just now decided to post the next two chapters. The next two chapters just have... something I consider a really questionable decision. But I think I can safely say that I'm already committed to the path those two chapters took, and once I post this chapter with this Author's Note, I'll be fully committed. So HERE WE GO!
For anyone with questions, I won't be answering questions in reviews unless you label the question with a "Please Answer". This is to avoid me going too far with my spoiler-happy fingers. PMs, however, will always be answered. Be wary. I'll try not to be spoiler-tastic, but I don't trust myself. Also, a reminder that FFN hasn't been sending anyone PM updates via email, so check your PMs if you're actually looking for answers.