ChApTeR oNe – The harbinger of destruction
Disclaimer: Totally forgot to add it in in the prologue so here it is. PS: I also don't own the image used.
"Never tell the truth to people who are not worthy of it."
―Mark Twain
When Tsuna had finally gotten a hold of himself, he had managed to reach home. Since Kyoko lived some streets away from him, they said their goodbyes to each other in front of his house. He could see that she was worried about him, but he reassured her that he was alright. "I think it's just the stress" he kept telling her, but not even he could believe such a blatant lie. The fear he felt was too real to be just 'stress'. Not even his mind could conjure up something as ominous as that masked man. As Kyoko finally left, though not convinced, he slipped his key into the lock and with a click, he heard when the door opened. "Tuna-kun!" he heard an energetic voice call out to him as he stepped into the house. As he was in the process of taking off his shoes, his jacket and his scarf, his little sister ran into the hallway. She was still too young to call him Tsuna and so had settled on Tuna. The tiny girl glopped him, and she laughed as they fell to the ground. He yelped a little as his head made contact with the genkan*. The blonde haired girl, something she inherited from their father, grinned down at him, from her spot on his chest.
"It's nice to see you too, Teruko-chan" Tsuna greeted his little sister. She giggled as Tsuna tickled her a little when he sat up. He gently placed her on her feet while he struggled to stand on his own.
"Ne, ne, Tuna-kun, did you bring back anything for me?" she asked, her blue eyes sparkling up at him. She tugged at his clothes and beamed as he took out a few candies from his pocket. It was sort of their tradition every time he got home from school. She would ask him the same question, and he would represent to her, little candies that would forever make him her favourite person in the world. "Thank you, Tuna-kun!" she said as she hugged his leg. No matter what, she was the one person he could never hate. He gave her head a good ruffle and she looked up at him, unadulterated admiration in her eyes.
"Teruko-chan!" a voice broke through their brother-sister moment. The carefree smile that was on Tsuna's face snapped to a million pieces as their father raced into the hallway. Teruko, ever the observant child, frowned at her brother's reaction. Their father who had finally noticed his son, forced a smile his way, something that Tsuna mirrored. "Hello Tsuna" their father greeted as he picked up Teruko.
"Father" Tsuna said as he bowed. The word alone was bitter in his mouth but he didn't show it.
"You're late" Iemitsu said, though he hoped it didn't come out too reprimanding. Tsuna just nodded as he placed his shoes in the corner. Teruko placed a hand on his cheek and he cooed over his little princess, momentarily forgetting his oldest child as he lavished the little girl with all his love. "Oh, right. Your grandfather is here" he added as an afterthought as he stopped placing kisses on Teruko's cheek. Tsuna straightened his back at the man's words. "He's in the kitchen with your mother" he said, and even Tsuna could hear the barely veiled aversion in his father's voice. It was a known fact that Iemitsu did not like his mother's father. Maybe it was because his grandfather never approved of his father…and every time he visited, the older man held no qualms in making such a fact known. On some level, Tsuna liked that about his grandfather. Every insult directed at Iemitsu left the boy smirking into his sleeve. "Go greet him" he said and left with Teruko on his arm. Tsuna nearly snorted before listening to what his father said. When he did enter the kitchen, his mother, just like his sister, threw herself on him.
"Tsuna-kun, why are you so late?" she asked as she pulled away from him. Tsuna nervously chuckled at her. He knew that she was angry without even showing it.
"We stopped a little to pick up some candy for Teruko-chan" he lied, a little surprised that it came out so easily. His mother nodded, blissfully unaware as always before she turned to the man sitting near the table. Tsuna unconsciously gulped. His grandfather was a rather imposing man. Even as he sat down on the wooden chair, in a modest kitchen, the man somehow made it seem like he was sitting on a throne. He held himself with a dignity that would make even the Queen of England proud, and held a composure that reminded Tsuna of those samurai he often saw on television. His entire head was white, resembling that of the snow that fell outside, and his face was a little tanned, though it was not wrinkly. There were fine lines like hairline cracks running across the corner of his eyes, as though time itself had carved them there itself. His grandfather who had black eyes, watched him carefully as he bowed. He always felt that in the man's presence, he was like a mouse presented to a large python. He knew that a certain danger lurked behind his grandfather, though there was no evidence to support such a claim. Even on his short visits to the Sawada home, his grandfather always treated Tsuna and Teruko gently. Yet, that never fooled Tsuna. "Good evening, Grandfather" Tsuna said.
"Hello, Tsuna-kun" his grandfather said. His voice was never loud like his father's. In fact, it was always almost above a whisper, serving for others to lean in to listen to him. The man wore a moss green kimono with a black haori on his shoulders. His hands were clasped over each other on his plain brown cane. "Have a seat" he told him and Nana nodded at Tsuna who didn't even know when he had turned to his mother for confirmation. When Tsuna sat down opposite from the man, his mother moved back to the stove, humming a little. Tsuna felt awkward as they stared at each other. "How have you been?" his grandfather asked when three minutes of silence had passed.
"I've been fine" Tsuna said. He didn't know why but he always waited for the man to speak up first and made sure to always reply to whatever questions positioned his way.
"Good. That's good" his grandfather said as he took in the appearance of his oldest grandson. He was both short and skinny for his age. He had a round face like his daughter's, fluffy brown hair and honest brown eyes. Interesting, he thought to himself. It had been nearly a year since he last visited and it seemed like in his absence, the boy had grown a bit in spirit. The boy may fool others with his simple appearance, but he could see that in the boy's eyes held a certain resilience that he took favour of. "I brought something for you" the man said and placed a little parcel on the table. He watched as the boy just looked at it without making a move to take it up. Interesting indeed. "Go ahead" the man said as he nudged his head up a little. Tsuna brought his hands from his lap and with hesitance, he carefully grabbed it up. Tsuna slowly unwrapped the present (which he assumed it was) and his eyes widened at the sight of three daifuku* on a pretty plate. Quite the presentation, Tsuna found himself thinking. As though reading his thoughts, his grandfather smirked. "I thought you would enjoy them" he explained.
"They're all mine?" Tsuna questioned and his grandfather would've laughed if not for the silence in the room. Nana had stopped humming and he knew that was a bad sign. Well, he had told her that this was the beginning, and as such, she had no right to stop him. It was the boy's test after all.
"Yes, Tsuna-kun. They're all yours" he said to the boy. His grandson turned to his daughter, another question on his lips.
"Mama, can I really?" Tsuna asked and Nana nodded without turning his way. He knew how hard this was going to be for his daughter, but they all had to undergo such a trial.
"Go ahead, Tsuna-kun" he said and he watched as the boy tentatively took up a single daifuku. The boy held it to his mouth before his eyebrows knitted together. Hmm…did he know?
"This smells a little funny" Tsuna said and the man nearly lost it. The boy was by far the best he had seen so far. Such raw potential….Kami….
"There's nothing wrong with the daifuku, Tsuna-kun" he said and with that, he watched as the boy placed the sweet in his mouth. As his grandson chewed, Nana's shoulders grew tenser. When he swallowed, he picked up another daifuku. "How is it?" he asked, and the boy smiled back at him.
"It's tasty" Tsuna replied as he continued to wolf down the remaining two. When he was finished, he had noticed the pleased look on his grandfather's face. Though the gesture was debatable, he remained silent. If his mother said it was fine, then it was fine. Besides, it was just a treat…his grandfather would never purposefully harm him. "Thank you, grandfather" Tsuna said as he bowed his head, licking his lips at the remaining crumbs.
"You're most certainly welcome, Tsuna-kun" the man said and before Tsuna could dissect what the smile on his face meant, his head lolled to the side. "Mama…." The boy whispered before he was knocked unconscious. Before his forehead could make contact with the wooden table, a hand stopped him.
"He had better survive this" she snarled at him, but the corners of the man's eyes just creased in delight.
"That's up to Tsuna-kun" was all he replied as a knife was hurled his way. His head swerved just as the tip of the blade could lodge its way into his skull and listened rather than watched as it slammed into the wall behind him. Without another word, he got up and quickly hid it in his sleeve as Iemitsu entered with Teruko.
"What happened to Tuna-kun?" Teruko asked as Nana's mask was fastened back on her face. It was rather amusing to see his daughter pretend to be a fool.
"Tsuna-kun fainted a little. Iemitsu-kun, can you carry him upstairs?" Nana laughed and Iemitsu placed Teruko on the floor so he could take up his son. "Thank you, honey" she kissed the man's cheek, dangerously near his lips. He watched as the man turned red before he walked out the room with Teruko on his heels. What an idiot, he thought to himself….to be bamboozled and manipulated by such a…Nana glanced at him and the fury that she felt were conveyed in brown eyes tinted by red.
"No need for that, Nana-chan. Remember the code" he whispered and her wrath was swallowed up by her usual smile. She may not like what was happening, but she held enough honour and respect for the code, that she obeyed.
"I should finish dinner~" she sang and got back behind the stove while he continued to smile.
"Let's see what is stronger, his will to survive or his cowardice" he whispered and he had to dodge yet another knife that was directed his way.
*Please note that the genkan is the traditional entryway where people often take off their shoes. Google it if you still don't understand.
*Daifuku is a traditional Japanese sweet. Look it up.
A/N: Can you all even imagine an assassin Nana?
This assassin story is not like the others. It's based on the gritty, down right disgusting side of killing people, you know, the real story of what it means to be a murderer. Yes, it's not always about showing off how strong you are, rather how much courage it takes to actually do what I know I could never do in real life.
To Zoela: XD, I'm glad
To Ryuu and Natsu: O.o that's a lot of questions, my good sir. All of which will be answered in the near future. I don't want to spoil too much of the plot. And thank you for your review.
To Sydney Jane Dale: Of course, it would be my pleasure.
