Disclaimer: The world of Katekyo Hitman Reborn and its characters are not mine. The play The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus belongs to Christopher Marlowe.

Warning: Violence

The Bell Doesn't Toll Thrice

Part IV

The next few days passed by in a whirlwind. The shooting in the residential area of Shinjuku was erroneously attributed to a gang war between rivalling yakuza syndicates who wanted to take control of Shinjuku after the fall of the Yoiyami-kai.

Dark clouds returned on the morning of the funeral, lending a sorrowful note to the final celebration for this fortunate and unfortunate young man - a fortunate life, an unfortunate death. Friends and family were gathered, including his closest associates, the boss of the Cavallone family and the boss of the Bovino family; the Vongola decimo wished to keep it a private affair.

As soon as the earth was sprinkled onto the ebony coffin emblazoned with the Vongola emblem, Hibari turned on his heel and left the cemetery in his usual self-possessing strides. Nevertheless, Kusakabe walked over to Chrome and asked, "Dokuro-san, may we give you a ride?"

After looking once at the decimo's lonely back, then at the hollow on the ground slowly being filled with brown earth, she followed Kusakabe to the car. When she got in, she found Hibari waiting impatiently for her. The Cloud Guardian thrust a cheque at her direction. Without looking once at the amount, she pocketed it and produced from her purse a piece of folded paper, which she gave to Hibari.

Once he had read what was written, those dark eyes of his shot her a sharp look. "What is this? Did Rokudo Mukuro tell you to give this to me?"

"No, he didn't. I did some investigation with the help of your subordinate." At that Hibari threw a cool glance at his right-hand man from the rear view mirror, prompting Kusakabe to swallow nervously. He had known Kusakabe was one of Chrome's sources in Japan, though he had chosen not to interfere.

"What do you want?" The Cloud Guardian scrutinized the faithful companion of his arch-enemy. "Are you trying to manipulate me?"

"The information might be useful to you. That's all." Chrome was admirably unperturbed even as she faced the most dangerous man in the family. "I'm not trying to manipulate you."

Although he did not voice it, Hibari believed her, for unlike Rokudo Mukuro, she had neither a reason to lie nor an interest in twisted mind games. "You expect me to believe the Shinonome-gumi has dealings with the Uccello Rapace?" He waved the slip of paper in emphasis.

"Several months ago, there has been a rumour that the Shinonome-gumi was smuggling a large quantity of firearms into Japan. It was believed at the time that the weapons were prepared in anticipation of a territorial war with the Yoiyami-kai. Soon after, the Yoiyami-kai crossed path with you and suffered major losses. Another rumour began to circulate in the Japanese underworld: You were hired by the Shinonome-gumi to destroy the Yoiyami-kai."

Displeased, Hibari scowled at Chrome's words; nevertheless, he already knew where her train of thought was heading. After a pause, Chrome continued.

"But that rumour was false. Suppose that the rumour about the Shinonome-gumi wanting to wage a war against the Yoiyami-kai was false as well. If the weapons were not purchased for the sake of a gang war, then the only other explanation is that they were goods for a business transaction. The Uccello Rapace has no influence in the Asian underworld. Smuggling such massive weaponry into Japan is not feasible without the assistance of a local organization. For instance, the Shinonome-gumi."

When Chrome finished her narration, Hibari narrowed his eyes and folded his arms before his chest. He had evidently underestimated her resourcefulness. "You have a greater reach than I had imagined."

At that, the faintest of a smile fluttered onto Chrome's lips, accenting the loveliness of her visage. And then, the smile faded away, not even an afterimage remained on her face or in Hibari's mind. "Not soon enough or far enough."

Surmising she was referring to the death of the young one in the family, Hibari turned his gaze outward, where clouds hung low over the Namimori shopping district. The foolish child's decision to die for someone's sake eluded his comprehension. The only thing he understood well was that the boy was dead, a fact neither clinical analysis nor rationalization could alter.

"What do you think of Mukuro-sama?" Chrome suddenly asked.

Hibari sent a sidelong glance at the young woman, who was looking straight ahead. "I don't care what kind of man he is. He infuriates me, and I want to bite him to death. That's all I care about."

Taken aback, she lowered her gaze to stare at her pale, slender hands, which were slightly roughened from the battles she had fought over the years. While she did not receive the answer she sought, Hibari's reply had set her free from the maze she had woven around herself. There was no need to inquire any further.

For a fleeting moment, she felt a sense of kindred spirit towards this brutally honest man before her. When Hibari spoke no more, Chrome fell silent as well. Beneath the stormy sky, the rest of the journey continued on in companionable stillness.

Leaden clouds hovered close to the ground as if about to fall. Whistling wildly across the gloomy graveyard, the wind whipped Tsuna's face and jacket, yet like a statue he moved not an inch from the grave site. Lurking some distance away, Reborn was smoking a cigarette, an age old habit that had always returned to haunt him at the worst of time.

"Tsuna, let's take a walk."

Tsuna turned to see Reborn strolling away from him, and for a tantalizing beat, he merely stared at the retreating figure. For as long as he could remember, he was always chasing after Reborn, hoping one day he would at last catch up to him. And yet, he was not sure if he had the strength left in him to continue running after his former mentor anymore.

After a second of hesitation, he broke into a light jog and caught up with Reborn, who did not once slacken his pace. In silence they walked side by side on the stone path as they had done for the past ten years. Somehow, to take a stroll once more with the hitman filled Tsuna's heart with nostalgia. Too much had changed since his adolescent years that the decimo knew they could no longer return to that innocent time.

When Reborn finished the cigarette, he stubbed it beneath his polished leather shoe. "I was the one who taught the stupid cow how to kill. You know that by now, don't you?"

Bowing his head, Tsuna looked out at the gravestones laid sparingly across the meadow, a luxury in a highly populated country like Japan. "I figured it out when he shot those men."

"He wanted so badly to be your lightning rod, and he got his wish in the end. To me, he would always be a stupid cow though. I don't remember teaching him how to get himself killed." Reproachful though was Reborn's tone, Tsuna detected something closer to wistfulness and exasperated fondness in his low voice.

As they passed by a cherry blossom tree, Reborn continued, "He's an orphan. The boss of the Bovino family adopted him when he was an infant. Not for free, of course. In exchange for accepting him into the family, they trained him to become a hitman. That's usually how it works in the world of mafioso."

Having never heard of Lambo's background before, Tsuna felt a flash of pain stabbing into his chest. He had never asked Lambo about his past, and for whatever reason it might have been, Lambo had never divulged to him. Regret gnawed at him like a ravenous wolf when he remembered Lambo's final words to him, words he would never repeat to another soul.

"When I saw those men aiming for you, I hesitated. I wanted you to be shot, but my body acted on its own. In the end, I just can't imagine a world without you in it. It's too scary."

In that instant, Tsuna understood everything. If he were to pay more attention to Lambo's feeling, would something have changed? He knew there was little point in dwelling on it, yet he could not help pondering about the what-ifs, the terrible, wonderful what-ifs that would remain an unrealized possibility and no more.

"Had Lambo thought about finding out who his real parents were?" Tsuna asked.

"Probably." Stopping on his track, Reborn pulled the rim of the fedora hat over his eyes. The insensitive wind continued to rip through the cemetery, scattering pink petals with its intangible arms. "Then again, perhaps he didn't want to know. It's bad enough to have been abandoned. He probably couldn't stand any more disappointment."

To Tsuna's perceptive ear, it sounded as though Reborn was not merely talking about Lambo's personal history, but possibly a fragment of his own past as well. "Were you like him?" he asked cautiously.

Impregnable dark eyes cast him a sidelong glance. "Let's just say I can relate." There was a pause. "I was planning to return to Italy in the near future."

It took a second for Tsuna to realize what Reborn had meant to say. Dumbstruck by the confession, he could only stare at his advisor and former tutor. "For good?"

"Yeah, I've far prolonged my stay," Reborn calmly replied as he reached into the pocket for his cigarettes. "You've come to rely too much on me, and without knowing it, I've spoiled you too much. At this rate, I'll only drag you down." And then, a curious smile as Tsuna had never beheld before fluttered onto Reborn's face. "You still have a long way to go, but you are getting there."

"Reborn-" Tsuna was about to ask him to stay when Reborn cut him off.

"After what happened though, I'll have to stay, won't I?" Profound dark pupils turned to gaze at him; Tsuna found himself irrevocably drawn into their depths. "You'd probably cry and beg me not to leave like Dino did, wouldn't you?"

And Tsuna shared the smile with this unfathomable hitman, the very architect who shaped him into the Mafia boss he had become. "I'll probably be worse than Dino-san. I'll hug your legs and refuse to let go even when you punch me or point a gun at my face."

After one final quick smile, Reborn's expression became sober. "What are you going to do about the Uccello Rapace?" He did not miss the dark look on Tsuna's face. "You are the boss. Whatever you say, your family will follow."

Looking out at the little islands of tombstones in a sea of green, where the living and the dead reign side by side till the end of time, the decimo did not answer.

The traditional Japanese house where Hibari lived was his sanctuary within a sanctuary. Fashioned in a simple, subdued manner, the room looked out to a subtly elegant garden bedecked with lush greenery, smooth stones, and running water. Sitting in front of a wooden shogi board, Hibari contemplated the pieces when his train of thought was disrupted by his subordinate.

"I apologize for the interruption, Kyou-san." Kusakabe knelt respectfully in the corridor before the open entryway. "Sawada-san is here, and he would like to speak with you."

Letting out a soft sigh, Hibari moved one of the pieces and said, "Let him in."

Half a minute later, Sawada Tsunayoshi was led into the room. His task completed, Kusakabe waited by the door in case there were any further instructions. Moving across the room with a certain grim determination in his bearing, Tsuna sat down on the tatami.

For some time, the Vongola decimo and the head of the Foundation studied each other, searching for weaknesses in the other's armour, pondering about that certain something the other possessed that had attracted the attention of one Rokudo Mukuro.

"Thanks for coming to the funeral, Hibari-san," Tsuna began. "I didn't think you would attend."

Lacking the patience to engage in what he regarded as meaningless small talk, Hibari stared coolly at him. "Just tell me what you want."

Golden eyes flickered like candlelight, Tsuna placed a hand on the ground and looked directly into Hibari's eyes. "The Vongola family has a vendetta against the Uccello Rapace, and the wrong will be avenged. I'm not asking for your help. But in case something was to happen to me, I want your word that you, as the head of the Disciplinary Foundation and the Cloud Guardian of the Vongola family, would lend a hand to the family when such need arises."

Kusakabe looked up at the Vongola decimo with not a small amount of shock. Hibari, on the other hand, remained aloof as he appraised the youthful visage before him. Those large amber eyes of Tsuna's, once overflowed with too much sincerity, were burning with an iron-clad resolve. It seemed he had at last thrown away the last shard of his naivete and embraced that certain something his younger self would not even dare to contemplate.

"You've finally woken from the dream," Hibari remarked, which elicited not a trickle of reaction from Tsuna but for the arching of an eyebrow. After a beat, Hibari continued. "I won't give you my word. I'll only do whatever I think is right."

It was as close to a promise as Hibari was willing to give, and Tsuna apparently realized that. A small smile graced upon his boyish face, the boss of the Vongola family bowed his head to his guardian. "Thank you very much. I shall be going then."

As he watched the Vongola decimo turn to leave, Hibari gave him one final warning. "Sawada Tsunayoshi," Hibari called out in a tone that demanded absolute obedience. "I am the one who will bite Rokudo Mukuro to death. If you stand in my way, I shall bite you to death as well."

Halting for a beat, Tsuna looked to the garden where a small bird took flight into the leaden sky, his profile half shrouded in shadow from Hibari's view. "Can you, Hibari-san?" Tsuna questioned before passing out the room, leaving the Cloud Guardian to his musing.

Shinjuku donned its neon-coloured cloak as dusk gave way to night. People crowded the streets as if the shooting that had happened two weeks ago was no more than a scene from a gangster film.

A man, clad in a tailor-made navy blue suit, strolled leisurely on the street as if savouring the refreshingly rotten air in this urban playground. By Japanese standard he was tall, though his lean physique seemed to make him look taller. A pair of glasses framed his intelligent face, yet his aura suggested he was someone hovering on the fine line between light and dark.

His cell phone rang. As if he had expected the call, he chuckled and pulled out his phone. The caller number came through as unknown, but even that was within his calculation. "Hello?"

"Kannazuki Yutaka of the Shinonome-gumi, is it?" A husky male voice flitted into his ear like a shot of bitter espresso. "Or should I call you Rokudo Mukuro instead?"

"Good evening, Arcobaleno." He greeted his opponent pleasantly as he navigated his way through the moving crowd. "Whichever name is fine."

"You have a great appetite, don't you? Has the Mafia become too small a pond for you to swim in?" Reborn questioned in half-jest. "More to the point, did you have a hand in the business deal between the Shinonome-gumi and the Uccello Rapace?"

Halting his steps for a moment, the man watched the panorama of Tokyo splash across the large TV screen on the other side of the street. "I'm afraid that is not my doing. Still, you are not likely to believe me, are you?"

"Afraid not, but I'll give you a benefit of a doubt," the hitman drawled. "You fed the Uccello Rapace with information about the Vongola family during the time you infiltrated their organization. From what I can tell, you probably lied to them about Tsuna and Chrome being in a relationship, knowing Chrome would be closely monitored."

"If you want to capture the bird of prey, you need to prepare a proper bait."

"And Vongola, along with its current boss, happens to be the prey the Uccello Rapace wanted most," Reborn pointed out. "The Uccello Rapace sent representatives to Japan and made a deal with the Shinonome-gumi. You probably possessed one of the representatives, who later came into contact with Shiina Takahiro and his right-hand man. Taking the opportunity, you made the contract with Kannazuki."

Resuming his pace, the man brushed past a young woman who had a black butterfly tattoo on her neck. "Oh? And how do you suppose I could accomplish that when my trident was in Chrome's possession?"

"Obviously, you persuaded her to give it to you. The one Chrome carried with her during her time in Italy was probably just an illusion. There would be no major battles to be fought in an intelligence game, and you knew that beforehand." There was a pause. "Once the representatives returned to Italy, you gave the trident and the USB flash drive containing information about the Uccello Rapace to Chrome."

"Not bad," the man remarked as a whiff of coffee fluttered into his nostrils from a nearby cafe. "Is there anything else?"

"Around that time, you used Kannazuki to spread the rumour about the Shinonome-gumi smuggling a sizable amount of firearms into Japan. At the same time, Hibari clashed with the Yoiyami-kai. The Yoiyami-kai was nearly wiped out, and its remaining members were absorbed by the Shinonome-gumi. You took advantage of that and leaked information about Chrome being Hibari's woman to the former Yoiyami-kai members through Kannazuki. Still, I don't see why you bother to do that."

"That is because it was not entirely my doing." The sound of bubbly pop music reached both his ears. "You see, I've only leaked the information through Kannazuki Yutaka to Shiina, who did the rest on his own."

"Hmph, Shiina is a sly dog." The hitman's voice held a certain note of admiration. "He persuaded the former Yoiyami-kai members to go after Chrome and take revenge on Hibari, while he himself would warn Hibari in order to gain his favour. I guess the yakuza has finally taken an interest in Hibari and his Foundation."

"They have always been interested in Hibari Kyouya, though they have yet to find a safe way to come into contact with him," the man said mirthfully as he strolled past a chain of high-class restaurants. "When events happen simultaneously in the same setting, you would be predisposed to think they are related, yet that might not always be the case. Each party has its own secret agenda. As do you, I presume?"

The hitman at the other end of the line huffed. "The Uccello Rapace has a thing for decoy as well. They first sent out an assassin to test the water, and the assassin was killed by the stupid cow."

"In accordance to your order, as always," the man interjected sardonically.

Reborn ignored the thorny remark and continued. "After the job was done, he was obviously followed by someone from the Uccello Rapace."

"I see. It probably happened after Chrome ran into the young Thunder Guardian on the street," the man remarked thoughtfully. "Since the Shinonome-gumi had no knowledge of Chrome's tie with the Vongola family, there was no reason for the syndicate to inform the Uccello Rapace of Chrome's place of residence. Hence, the Uccello Rapace most likely found out about it when the young Thunder Guardian was followed."

For some moments, no words were exchanged between the man and the hitman. When the man turned around and retraced his steps, the caller finally broke his silence. "You are a terrible man, and a greedy one at that. Is it fun toying with Hibari and Tsuna at the same time?"

The man chuckled in amusement. "Hibari Kyouya is another matter altogether. As for Sawada Tsunayoshi, I want to see how far he could go. If he exceeds my expectation, I would let him be. If not-"

"-you will make him yours." Reborn finished his sentence for him.

"I will steal him from you." The man corrected him without a hint of sincerity. Those calculating eyes of his, however, were scanning the crowd. "I'm surprised that after all these years, you still haven't confessed to him. It is not for fear of rejection that you maintain your silence, is it?"

It was Reborn's turn to chuckle, albeit wryly. "You are good at playing the villain, aren't you? Just how much of what you have said is true, I wonder. Is it indeed merely for the sake of satisfying your curiosity that you pitted the Uccello Rapace against the Vongola family? You've said so yourself. To catch the bird of prey, you need a bait. The bait is Vongola; the bird of prey is the Uccello Rapace; then who is the hunter?"

The man did not speak; instead he stopped on his track and gazed at the figure in black standing some metres from him. The figure was holding a cell phone in one hand; his other hand was inside the pocket of his black blazer. Like fish in a pond, the crowd moved on around the two men, oblivious to what was taking place.

An unfathomable smile crept onto the man's lips before he spoke into the phone. "What are you going to do? Are you going to tell Sawada Tsunayoshi? Or are you going to shoot me right here in the middle of the street?"

"No, Tsuna would be the one to make the final judgement," Reborn said quietly, not once taking his eyes off the man. "After all, he is the boss, and you are his Mist Guardian."

"A notion I thoroughly resent." As if nothing was at all amiss, the man continued on his way and brushed past the hitman. "Buona serata, Arcobaleno," the man said directly into Reborn's ear before vanishing into the crowd. [1]

In another part of the metropolis where the Shinonome-gumi reigned with a velvet glove, Hibari wielded his tonfa with deadly precision against members of the syndicate inside what appeared to be a legitimate trading company. So lethally fluid was his movement that one could not help but be reminded of the swoop of a bird. His lean arms and metallic tonfa were his wings to the path of Asura. The men who barred his way to the president's office were felled one after another like the sacrifices that they were.

All too soon, the sparsely adorned corridor was littered with bodies, a violent scene of carnage in the most literal sense. Yet Hibari paid these men little heed, for the ones he was looking for were not among them. At the end of the corridor was an ashen grey door leading to the president's office, and Hibari, lowering his tonfa, kicked the door open.

Bullets came sailing towards him like a rain storm, yet to someone who possessed years of experience in hand-to-hand combat, firearms were mere toys. Dodging the bullets with the flexibility of an acrobat and the speed of a sprinter, he was already right in front of the two gunmen before they had exhausted the entirety of their cartridges. Without mercy he slammed the tonfa against the men's necks simultaneously, knocking them down. When all the petty bodyguards had been properly dispatched, Hibari turned to the man who was watching the scene with a faintly amused smile on his face.

Sitting calmly on the black leather chair behind the cherry wood desk was Shiina, who cast a glance at his fallen bodyguards, then at the vicious assailant. His right-hand man Kannazuki was nowhere to be found. "Once again, you surprise me," Shiina said nonchalantly while picking up the cigarette left burning in the granite ashtray. "Then again, I shouldn't be surprised by now, seeing as the Italian Mafia had recruited you into their fold."

The corners of Hibari's lips turned downwards in distaste. "The Mafia has nothing to do with me. I'm only here for one thing." Casually he swung the tonfa in the air, splattering droplets of blood on the carpet. "I'll bite the Shinonome-gumi to death."

Instead of overcome with fear, Shiina smiled crookedly at him and tapped the end of the cigarette against the edge of the ashtray. "You are not the only one who'd tried, Hibari-kun. Still, it is not our intention to make you our enemy." He took out a piece of paper from the inner pocket of his pinstriped suit and placed it on the table. "Consider this a greeting from the Shinonome-gumi to the Vongola family."

Even before his eyes fell upon the text, Hibari could tell what was written on that seemingly innocent piece of paper - the address to the temporary nest of the bird of prey. As he squinted from the folded note to this serpent of a man who would stop at nothing to realize his ambition, he pondered if this contrived, convoluted game of the Mafia and the yakuza was what Rokudo Mukuro sought.

A week later, information surfaced that the remaining presence of the Uccello Rapace in Japan was completely annihilated. A rumour began to circulate in the underworld that the decimo of the Vongola family ordered the coup, and that he personally shot the commander dead. Nevertheless, the family kept a tight lip on the incident. To those outside the family, the incident remained no more than speculation and hearsay.

The air in the office was static as if the room was transformed into a tomb; not even the warm, lively Mediterranean furnishings could chase away the stifling stillness. Sitting on the throne of the great Vongola family, Tsuna held Lambo's Beretta with both hands and pressed it against his forehead. The cool metal quickly warmed up in his palms, giving an illusion that the gun had just been discharged.

When three knocks from the door interrupted his musing, he put the gun into the holster beneath his suit. "Come in."

"Good afternoon, Vongola." Rokudo Mukuro strolled into the room with his usual natural grace. "I see you would like to discuss with me about a certain urgent matter."

"That's right." Tsuna stood up and walked across the room to the window, beyond which was a swiftly darkening stretch of forest green. Somewhere out there, a certain young guardian slept for eternity beneath the earth. "How long have you known the Uccello Rapace was planning a coup against us?"

"A while." Heterochromic eyes contemplated the sombre figure of the decimo. The customary black suit of mafioso was at once the perfect attire for mourning and a constant reminder that death was never far from one.

"You gave us the information about the Uccello Rapace, knowing it would come to this." It was not a question, not even a simple statement; it was an accusation. "You even gave us the exact location of their headquarters. Do you plan on having us raid their base in Italy as well? Do you want us to destroy each other while we are at it? Is that your way of starting the war you've always wanted?"

Mukuro's gaze lingered on the profile of the young decimo, a boyish visage now etched with a biting edge. The rumour concerning the decimo might not have been a rumour after all. "You can think of it however you like."

In one smooth motion, Tsuna whipped out the Beretta and aimed at Mukuro, who did not even bat an eyelash. His face half-concealed in shadow, the decimo blankly released the safety catch and said, "I'm not a crack shot like Reborn, but I can aim pretty well at this distance."

"Is it for revenge?" Mukuro smiled that same patronizing smile of his even though he was staring at the other end of the gun barrel. "Shoot here if you like." He placed a hand on his chest. "You can even storm the Vindice Prison and kill my real self there. To tell you the truth, I'm tired of this charade. Let us bid farewell to this despicable world."

"Sure." And Tsuna pulled the trigger. The bullet whistled past Mukuro's ear and hit the picture frame that was hung on the wall behind him. The glass shattered with a loud crash, yet no one rushed in to see what was going on. "Pity. But I won't miss this time." With that he pointed the gun at his own temple.

Shock flitted across Mukuro's typically nonchalant visage, an expression Tsuna never thought he would see on this man's face. Nevertheless, this tantalizing moment lasted but for seconds before Mukuro narrowed his eyes and scrutinized him.

"Don't ever play that game again," Tsuna whispered quietly as he stared into Mukuro's cursed eyes; those amber pupils of Tsuna's were frozen into impregnable gold. "If you do, I will pull the trigger at myself and let all your effort go to waste."

Smiling thinly, the illusionist approached the decimo and mocked. "Is that a threat? An act of defiance against me? Even if you were to kill yourself, I would not shed a single tear for you."

"I don't expect you to." Tsuna repeated those same words he had said to Mukuro in the hospital, spoken right before Lambo's fallen figure. Heaving a breath, he lowered the gun and gazed upward at the man who had caught him in the poisonous web he could no longer escape from. "You told me I can use you in whatever way I like. I shall accept that offer now."

Chuckling, Mukuro took the gun from Tsuna, who yielded to him without resistance. After clasping the safety catch on, he bowed down on one knee, placed the gun on the floor, and held Tsuna's hand in his. Lightly he brushed his lips against the decimo's ring, a ring stained with phantom blood, sealing the final pact. In the deep recess of his mind, however, he knew the dead had claimed Sawada Tsunayoshi. A fragment of the decimo's soul would forever be buried with that boy who was granted his wish in his death.

"As you wish, capo di famiglia. Allow me, Rokudo Mukuro, to stand witness to your ascension, and I shall see to it that the wrong inflicted upon the Vongola family shall be vindicated."

It was a similar rainy morning as that disorienting day from once upon a time. In the same convenience store at the heart of the metropolis, Chrome shopped for her favourite malt chocolates among other necessities. As she strolled towards the magazine shelf, a familiar figure seeped into her line of sight like a soundless phantom, prompting her to halt her step. The man, who had been flipping through a tabloid, looked up and smiled amiably at her.

After returning the tabloid to the shelf, the man browsed the titles with half-closed eyes. "It seems the Yoiyami-kai will not be bothering you anymore, since Hibari Kyouya has taken matters into his own hand with the information you gave him." The smile upon his lips turned ever so meditative. "How are you, Chrome?"

"My wounds are healed." A note of uncertainty had crept into her glass-like voice. "We will be leaving for Italy soon." Gazing intently at the man, she discovered not the slightest hint of surprise on the man's owlish face. "Is this really all right, Mukuro-sama?" When the man did not immediately answer, she dared herself to push further. "Are you happy?"

Those mismatched eyes beneath the rimless glasses softened. "What does it mean to be happy, I wonder?" he mused aloud as if speaking to himself. "'Why, this is hell, nor am I out of it.'" After he recollected himself, he turned to Chrome. "You are free to do whatever you like. There is no reason to restrain yourself after what I have done." [2]

"Then let me be of use to you, Mukuro-sama," Chrome said without a moment of hesitation. "I shall find a way to the Vindice Prison and rescue you. This is what I have decided to do."

The man gazed deeply into Chrome's violet eye, appraising, wondering. And then, he smiled, not his usual condescending smile, but a self-depreciating curve laced with a hint of wistfulness. Looking outward, he saw the same swamp of crowd moving along the same metropolitan street, a never-ending cycle liken to the snake that eats its own tail. Like these people, his life and death was but an Ouroboros, without beginning and unable to end.

"Chrome," slowly said the man known as Rokudo Mukuro, even though his face and his voice belonged to another man. "If this is the path you have chosen out of your own free will, I shall say no more of it." Reaching out, he gently tucked a loose strand behind Chrome's ear. "Take care of yourself, for this is a merciless world."

With that the man left the convenience store while Chrome watched on in silence. Out on the street, a silver Civic quietly glided by the store and soon disappeared out of sight. Some moments later, the sound of several gunshots penetrated the busy metropolis, followed by the squeak of tires and an explosion of screams.

Snapping her head upward, Chrome instinctively took several quick steps towards the door before she stopped on her track. The shopping basket dangling still from her hand, she tightened her grip on the handle as if it was her sole lifeline in the raging, unforgiving sea of reality. As her liquid eye took in the sight of water streaming down the glass like tears, she thought she could hear a bell tolling solemnly in a distance.

Finis.

[1] Buona serata: Have a nice evening.

[2] "Why, this is hell, nor am I out of it.": A line from Christopher Marlowe's play, The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, spoken by Mephistophilis.

A/N: Thank you very much for reading! And a further thanks to those who've left a comment. As Reborn has said, Mukuro is good at playing the villain, but it's impossible to tell what is truly in his mind. Would a true villain keep reiterating to his target that he's up to no good? As for Tsuna, how far he will fall from now on is a question perhaps not even Mukuro could answer.