Well, it looks like Rokudo Mukuro's up. (Once again, Ryohei took second place TO THE EXTREME.)
And the somewhat regular schedule…ness remains! Hooray!
These are much, much more entertaining to write than they should be. Just so you know.
As always, thank you reviewers! You're awesome!
(To ThreeWayDart and Emily Sinclair: it's true, and I'm sorry. I tried! Mukuro, I am fairly certain, has gone better?)
Rokudo Mukuro
1.
Mukuro has a closeted obsession with birds, culminating in his long-term possession of Glo Xinia's box weapon.
His continued interest in Hibari Kyouya, therefore, has as much to do with Hibird as it does with the boy himself.
2.
Rokudo Mukuro is not his real name. He's not entirely sure he even remembers what it is.
Chikusa, in fact, is the only one of the three of them who is using his true name, as he was the only one in any condition to remember it after Mukuro butchered their way out of Estraneo family's testing facilities. The Japanese-born yo-yo slinger had been subjected to the least experimentation of the three—it was several days before Ken remembered how to talk, and Mukuro, while horribly coherent, spent the majority of his time coming to terms with the memories of several past lives that were quite possibly not even his.
Ken has always been the stronger of the two, but Mukuro keeps Chikusa around because one never forgets the person who names them.
3.
While Mukuro originally began pursuing Sawada Tsunayoshi in order to possess his body, he continues to do so after his crushing defeat in an effort to corrupt the boy's disgustingly pure soul.
(Or at least, he's been telling himself this for ten years straight and isn't about to change his answer.)
4.
Mukuro gets his distinctive laugh from the man responsible for teaching him the Six Paths in a previous life. After mastering the technique, Mukuro killed his teacher using the very abilities the man had given him, but to this day every time that laugh escapes his lips he's not entirely sure he won.
5.
Mukuro considers Lancia a kindred spirit from the moment he's adopted into the Mafioso's family. He only possesses Lancia and murders his family in order to give his fellow orphan the same gift of freedom he had so recently earned for himself.
He goes on to make Lancia his personal scapegoat as punishment for how ungrateful the man had been about Mukuro's generosity.
6.
While Mukuro is sadistic, invasive, and downright disrespectful of others' personal space, he hates physical contact with a fiery passion. He specifically designed his trident to put as much distance as possible between he and his opponent, and when the occasion calls for close combat, well, there's a reason he makes a habit of materializing gloves.
Mukuro has absolutely no problem violating others and stealing their secrets, but he is desperately afraid of what people might find if they start learning his.
7.
There is no one in the world Mukuro hates more than Byakuran. It's true they have their similarities—even Mukuro himself must admit that Byakuran's ultimate goal as a god of ruin is not far off from his own genocidal dreams, and the first thing any member of the Vongola family compares Byakuran's empty smile to is Mukuro's own poisonous façade.
The real reason Mukuro loathes Byakuran beyond comprehension is because of the Millefiore boss's power. Mukuro has long come to terms with the fact that he is probably incurably insane, but one thing he will thank the Estraneo family for is the endless possibilities his Six Paths eye has given him. Byakuran's abilities manage to render the majority of Mukuro's completely useless with little to no effort, and he only gained them due to the stupidity of a time-traveling middle school student.
Mukuro may be just as ruthless, power-hungry, manipulative, deranged, and gleefully creative with his abilities as his opponent, but of the two of them he's damn well certain that he's the only one who's earned that right.
8.
Mukuro refuses to admit he even knows the meaning of the word 'otaku', but the man responsible for smuggling himself and his fellow escapees into Japan most certainly fit the bill. The first few days of Mukuro's hard-earned freedom were spent hidden away in a van with nothing to do but plan out his revenge and watch a nonstop anime marathon. Part of him honestly hopes that the Vendicare prison never finds out about this particular experience, as he's pretty sure it qualifies as a ruthlessly effective torture technique. The only reason the smuggler didn't die a horrible death after they finally arrived at their destination is because Mukuro wanted to avoid detection before launching his plan into action.
He will admit that the school uniforms were very stylish, though.
(Incidentally, this is the only thing he and Hibari Kyouya have ever been able to agree on.)
9.
Meeting sad, lost, damaged little Nagi when he did was a stroke of luck, and Mukuro believes the extra energy required to keep his host alive is a small price to pay for a selflessly loyal pawn that literally cannot live without him.
Getting to know her, naturally, is vital to keeping a semblance of familiarity and kinship with his young charge, and her alias both necessary (can't risk having a dead girl walking around, after all) and a wonderful way of taunting the Vongola family with his return. She is, quite literally, his Chrome—both his creation and his willing host, until the day he's able to free himself and no longer needs her.
If as time goes on, he starts wasting a little more energy than is wise having casual conversations with her, it's only because his sole alternative is wasting away in the hellish tank that Vendicare has stuck him in. Whatever protective measures he takes on her he does simply because a damaged body is more difficult to control. He only teaches her how to materialize her own organs and gain that much more independence because it means he can conserve his own strength for when he really needs it. And if he passes over stronger, more powerful vessels (his charming student Fran comes to mind) in favor of that weak, uncertain little girl, it's only because he's already put so much time and energy molding her into the perfect host.
Mukuro considers Nagi every bit as expendable as the day he met her.
Really.
10.
Mukuro is incredibly proud of the fact that he is a sociopathic mass-murdering monster with only the faintest glimmers of humanity. That thought alone is what enabled him to rebuild himself after years of experimentation and the massive identity crisis he suffered when the Estraneo family crammed the memories of over half a dozen other lives (and deaths) into his head in an effort to create the perfect weapon. It gives him a purpose, however bloodthirsty, and quite frankly he's not sure it's even possible to recover whoever the hell he was before his loving family made him that way. Turning back has never been an option.
Sawada Tsunayoshi absolutely terrifies Mukuro because for some reason the boy is the only person alive who actually thinks he can be redeemed.
So…in total honesty? There's not a single character in KHR that I actively dislike (even if some of them I enjoy in a 'love to hate them' sort of way), and I absolutely love all the leads, but Mukuro's one of my favorites. (As is Chrome.)
I really hope the bias doesn't show. Or that there is any bias at all, actually. If there is, I apologize now and shall try to put just as much effort into all who follow.
Thematically, Chrome seems like she should go next, but if you'd absolutely die if it wasn't Ryohei or Lambo instead, just say the word!
(But everyone will get their turn. I swear. Hopefully.)