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One night had it been since Tsuna fed her and then she fell asleep afterwards. He could never forget the cute face she put as he fed her, the blush on her cheeks; it was like he really saw her being Haru back then. The doctors were on standby in the mansion, in case if anything happened to her. Medical equipment fell in line on both side of the bed.

It was a cold December, even when it was daily bright outside, as if the sun opened itself to earth, but as dusk would reach the time soon, no matter how hard the sun tried to melt the cold, it was still getting colder.

He was always there by her side, even though she fell in slumber and didn't awake her consciousness yet. Seeing her peaceful face as she slept, it calmed his mind, it soothed his heart. He might say to himself about it rather overly described, but he wouldn't lie about what he felt.

With her breathing smoothly with the help oxygen mask, relaxation came upon his uneasy heart.

…

Inside the very soul and heart of the unconscious woman, there was a field of black and white flowers. The sky was piercing black, and the only thing that could be seen was the flower petals that danced flowingly through the air as one black-haired girl settled on the field.

"Anna-san" the eyepatch woman approached the girl. Anna turned around to her in slow motion. "Neve?"

"Just you, please call me Haru. 'Neve' is only meant for anyone outside this place" she said with a slight smile. "Are you still crying?" her question flinched Anna and she shook her head. "I'm alright"

"You know what seems funny, but logical, Anna-san?" she voiced.

"What?"

"You're my ancestor and we're alike. You can't hide your tears from me"

Having heard that, Anna wiped the rest of the tears that stuck in her eyes and said "Yes, we both have tendency of hiding our sorrow and tears, don't we?"

Haru nodded with no trace of smile, but rather in serious face. "Where is 'she'?"

"'She'? You mean…"

"I know you're there. You have no rights to invade Anna-san's heart. You've already made her life on earth miserable, so don't make it worst for her. Show yourself or I'll force you to get out" she said with menacing tone and eye that glared at the confused-looking girl.

But afterwards, Anna's lost eyes suddenly sharpened with glare and her confused face reversed totally. "What do you want? If you're here to say sorry, think twice before you recklessly infiltrated bunch of high-skilled assassins" 'Haru' in Anna's body said as she rose up.

"Get out of her body" Haru glared. "Leave her and come into me. She's done with her suffering"

"Everything will be messed up if I do that. If you want me so much, wait. You'll have your turn later. Besides…" suddenly, vines came up from the ground and strangled Haru, caught her off guard. "I won't let myself be killed because of your sacrifice for that guy"

Haru kept struggling to get out, but the vines just got tighter every time she struggled. She winced as the vines almost crushed her body, although it was a mere dream or something below her conscious.

"My naïve Haru. You don't get it, do you? What you're doing now is called 'resisting', and the more you resist me, the sooner you'll taint your hands with your friends' blood. You know you can't disobey me, so why?"

"Because… I'm a monster. And a monster won't listen to anyone but itself" 'Haru' winced as she saw her eye. It was like Tsuna's eyes; how he stared at her that night, how unwavering, persistent, and gentle. 'Haru' didn't like that stare.

"Admit that you're a monster, but don't want to hurt your so-called friends" she paused briefly and then sent a piercing glare at her.

"Listen, Haru. You never had any friends, you never experienced love. The friends and love you have is nothing but a mere false emotion. You were born as a monster, you were born to kill people. Accept your fate and me! If you admit it, but you keep blabbering about saving your friends that doesn't even exist… I'll teach you the hard way"

…

The peace broke like shattered glass. All of the sudden, the medical monitors beeped continuously as Neve blood pressure, heart, and pulse began to go unsteady and fast. She sweated, she coughed, she heavily breathed. Tsuna's peaceful heart had turned chaotic as he saw her face that seemingly in so much pain.

"Neve!" he screamed as a loud siren near the bed was ringing deafeningly. The siren and his scream mingled together in a way that told dire situation. "Neve! Stay with me! Don't die on me!" he held her hand as he continued calling her name desperately. But instead of getting better, the beeping sound on the monitors went hazardous.

"Haru!" he screamed again.

Not a moment after, group of doctors gathered inside and one of them tried to separate Tsuna away from her. "Please let us handle this, Tsunayoshi-sama!"

At that moment of hazardous situation, where life and death clashed to take away her soul and to keep it inside her body, with wide-eyed and pale-faced, he never averted his eyes away from her, until he politely got sent out of the room.

"Tsuna!" Yamamoto, Gokudera, Chrome, Lambo, and Ryohei scampered heading towards Tsuna, but he was frozen and immobilized, he didn't even look at them, as if he couldn't hear them due to the myriad of anxiety and worries overran his mind.

"What just happened, Ju…" Gokudera paused in surprise as he saw his frozen face. "Sawada, are you there?" when Ryohei voiced, Tsuna snapped.

"…Haru, she…" even without Tsuna to complete his sentence, just by looking at the devastation on his pale face, they were already shocked by it.

"W-Will she be okay?" Chrome asked in worries, yet Tsuna didn't answer for he was too overwhelmed.

"Since when are you going to act pitiful, Tsuna? You're still a Dame-Tsuna, after all" all of the sudden, Reborn walked his tiny feet from the direction where the guardians came from. "Leave her to the experts. Vel's here"

In the lounge

"Ne, Reborn-san. Why's he here?" Gokudera sent a steady glare towards Vel who seemingly calm. "I wouldn't come to your place if it wasn't for Neve and her condition" he said coldly, not fiery like usual. "If you do know, then how come you're calm and collected? I thought she's important to you" Gokudera inquired.

"Because I know something that you don't" he said irksomely, much to Gokudera's annoyance. "But how did you know about this? No one has told you yet" Lambo asked.

"As her right-hand-man and storm guardian, I know almost anything about her situation" he simply answered.

"…You're saying that your mind and hers are somehow connected?" Tsuna muttered in low and deep tone, only to grab his collar afterwards and sent a glare of rage. "Don't give me that crap! You're just her guardian, her right-hand-man. You have no place for saying such babble! Where were you when she infiltrated Sicario Family? You said your mind is connected? Don't joke with me! You could've stopped her!"

"Stop this, Tsuna. We don't need any conflict here, so does Vel" said Reborn.

"How could you make me stop... when you don't even know what I see?" Tsuna recalled every odd sight that he saw in her, when at Nami middle she looked like she was in pain, when she strangely called him like what she called him years ago, and the terror inside his dream.

"What do you know, Vongola?" Vel voiced. "You've been with her for only 3 years and in those years, what did you do? You neglected her. You made her suffer. You keep blabbering about protecting everyone, but there's one person you can't protect" he paused.

"You can't protect her. While in your middle-school years you have this puppy love for Sasagawa Kyoko, you ignored the one who cares for you bigger than anyone. You can't see the true face behind her cheerful smile. How does that make you feel now?"

"How… How did you know about that?" Tsuna asked in surprise.

"I know she's Miura Haru, but she doesn't remember it"

Looking at Vel's demeanor, both Gokudera and Reborn got suspicious of his unusual calm demeanor. Although Tsuna usually could spot that oddness, his mind was overwhelmed by Neve's condition. He couldn't set his mind properly.

"Anyway, did she really get that wound from attacking Sicario Family? You didn't tell us about it, Tsuna. And you too, Hibari" Reborn said as he looked at the aloof man who few meters away from everyone and while resting his back against the wall.

"…Sorry, Reborn" Tsuna's hung his head low, wistful eyes on the carpet. "No, it's good. She's a step closer to be Haru" Reborn said.

"I know, but still…"

"Ah, I almost forgot. Tsuna, we—"

All of the sudden, they heard the same loud siren again. Tsuna stated that the siren couldn't possibly ring again unless it was operated manually or Neve's condition turned worse, but it couldn't be because of her condition because the doctors were there. His tingling intuition brought him instinctively to head straight to her room along with Reborn on his shoulder and Vel.

But what was brought to their eyes was the unwanted sight of the worst thing they feared; the bed was plain empty. The doctors were incapacitated and one of them put his hand on the red button near the bed. With Reborn jumped down, Tsuna hastily approached the one who pressed the button.

"Don't worry" Reborn's voice stopped him. "They're just unconscious"

"…Tsunayoshi…-sama…" the doctor Tsuna wanted to approach spoke in heavy voice, making them turning their heads to him. "B-Blonde… Wounds…" after he muttered the confusing words, he lost his consciousness.

Vel's eyes immediately grew wide in horror as he heard those two words. Without further ado, he rushed towards outside. Seeing that, Tsuna was going to follow him.

"Wait a moment" Reborn made him stop and turned to his direction. "Tsuna, there's something you need to know" he paused, which made Tsuna stiffen. "You don't know this, but I've asked Mukuro to search a clue about the person who saved you. And he found a quite helpful clue"

Tsuna bulged in surprise. "But this clue will lose before it reaches your grip if you choose to save Haru. So, what will it be? You don't have much time to think, Tsuna. Either her or the clue"

"Would you choose your savior whom you've been hoping to see… or Haru who once hurt you, left you, and now she's here as a different person?" Reborn added.

He was standing still at first and face on the floor as shadow covered partial of his face, but then he lifted his head with conviction and without a word to explain, he ran away from Reborn. As expected of Tsuna, Reborn thought with content smile.

Tsuna ran in the midst of the forest nearby, following the temperamental man in front of him. Every time he asked Vel, he was shouted to shut his mouth in harsh words. But that explained how dire the situation could be and the fact the Vel might know who took Neve.

Looking through the path Vel took, Tsuna went in state of shock. He recognized the pathway. He feared the worst.

And his fear manifested into reality.

One pale-faced young woman with bandages, whose hands were tied to her back was kneeling and someone with bloody figure pointed a gun to the back of her head. But the fear that weighed heavily in his mind was the place they were at; a dead end, but with an opened metal door that was attached to the bottom of the hill.

"Neve… so you really did attack Sicario without my consent?" Vel's voice was shaky, as if he was holding something that about to burst.

"It's pointless" the man leaned downwards to her shoulder. "She can't talk for the time being"

"I don't get it" Vel said. "If she attacked Sicario, no one should be alive"

"Rivo, why are you doing this? She retracted her intention to kill you, so why…" Tsuna voiced.

"She… what?" Vel who knew Neve very well was in so much shock, hearing that she let her prey lived.

"I don't have much time to live with these wounds and I planned on using my last hours to eradicate disruption"

"What… do you mean, Rivo?"

"Can't you see her true color, Vongola? A monster like her should disappear from this world. You ma—"

"…A monster?" Tsuna cut his words. "A girl who always pray for her friends' safety… a girl who had awaken her flame for the sake of protecting others… to let the darkness to invade her life for that purpose… she's a human with a heart to me!"

Neve was stunned by his remark. That Tsuna didn't see her as a monster, it softened her pale expression. As the boss of Sicario was about to hurl insult, suddenly he fell on his knees, much to their confusion.

"Tch! Not… yet…" he looked like he was in pain like Neve. Looking at Tsuna and Vel, a smirk curved on his lips. "Well, whatever" to their surprise, he pulled Neve to stand and threw her inside the dark cave behind the metal doors, which made Tsuna and Vel rushed towards her and then untied her.

As they were too concern about Neve, they were too late to realize that the metal door was closing. Outside, Rivo pressed the switch with pale face. "Hope you'll survive, Vongola!" he shouted with smirk and then instantly collapsed. With his last grin, he shut his eyes and life.

With the door had been firmly closed, there wasn't much they could do. Vel kept trying to open the door and find a possible switch, but the switch to open the door from inside was too worn-out to be used.

"It's useless" Tsuna voiced, holding Neve in his arms. "Then, what do you suggest? We can't stay still like this" he replied as he looked at Neve. "There's an emergency exit if we follow the path, but…"

"Just… go…" Neve's soft voice said. Responding to her demand, Tsuna rose up and carried her bridal-style. "Oi, you're also injured, remember? Let me carry her" said Vel. "The Sicario Family had been my problem before we met. Therefore, I'll take the responsibility of what happened" Tsuna answered without looking back at Vel and then walked forward.

As Vel himself followed Tsuna, he kept eyeing on the brunette. Amorously hugging Neve despite she called him with his name, declaring that she wasn't a monster, it recalled him. He sensed a faint—almost unseen beautiful relationship between them, even though as of this point, they were limited as acquaintance and allies.

"Earlier, the boss of Sicario screamed 'hope you'll survive, Vongola'; what's that supposed to mean?" Vel asked.

"You won't be very fond of this place soon" Tsuna answered simply.

"Ha?"

"Rivo was targeting Haru, after all. But why? If he was, then…" Tsuna shook his head. "There must be some sort of mistake"

"Oi, Vongola!"

"Huh, what?"

"I asked you, what is this place? To our left and right is nothing but weapon parts"

"Weapon parts?" Tsuna looked to his left and right, and he just realized they were already in deeper part of the tunnel. Many worn-out and old weapon parts lined up, filling each side. The place wasn't really dark, therefore they could still see the path.

"What is this place, Vongola?" Vel demanded. Tsuna hesitated at first, but afterwards, he answered "It was used to be Vongola's underground facility to create an army of invincible Mafioso. It was a hidden mass production- hidden from us, until ninth and I found out about it through the failure they made and closed the facility permanently"

"How could they create an invincible Mafioso let alone an army?"

"It's an outrageous idea, honestly. It's started from gathering all homeless people, including children as guinea pigs. They who have been tested— most of them died and some became something that wasn't human, though they died afterwards. Out of 1.693 people, only one who survived"

"Who?"

"A 3 year-old girl. She survived the test, but has been missing ever since it was a success— it was 7 years ago. There was this one more person, but…"

"What? Say it"

All of the sudden, they were hit by a tremor and a loud noise that appeared to be like something was there beyond the tunnel. Vel was surprised, but Tsuna seemed calm.

"You got your answer" he said.

"Wait, so you're saying whoever beyond that path is a living superhuman?"

"No" he paused. "A living monster" Vel flinched over that last word.

"So, I say he's guarding the exit. Well, then…" Vel immediately dashed forward, much to Tsuna's surprise. "H-Hey! Don't be reckless! He's something you can't defeat alone!" he rushed following Vel.

He ignored the warning. What weighed in his mind was more complex than just getting them out of the tunnel. And he lived to his reputation as Neve's right-hand-man; to put her needs in priority.

But they only encountered empty spacious room with its unique dome ceiling structural and to their northwest was the only double door that had a sign of emergency exit. The ruckus on that room was no longer heard, instantly setting their suspicion as they cautiously walked towards the door.

Tsuna recalled the 'thing' capabilities when all of the sudden, he sensed a dying will flame from above and hastily looked up.

"Vel! Watch out!"

Without a question, Vel's instinct followed the warning and instantly jumped forward at the same time something jumped down behind him, which caused a brief quake.

As he looked back, he was shocked by a 2.5 meter man with unnatural body sculptor and crescent-shape sun flame on forehead, separating him from Tsuna and Neve, also had building material as weapon on both hands: a rebar and an I-beam.

"What kind of man who has lizard tail and two horns?" Vel furrowed his brows.

"He's the fail outcome I referred to" Tsuna replied with eyes on the 'thing' as he put her down to lean against the wall. Then, the 'thing' whirled to Tsuna and stared at him, which he knew it after him, so he set his hyper mode on action.

"Vel, when I run, you take her out of here" Tsuna said as he kept eyeing on the monster's movement.

"Now!" with the help of his flame, he dashed away from Neve, giving Vel enough time to run to her side and was about to carry her out.

"…Don't…" her voice surprised and stopped him. "We can't get out yet. Vongola… needs help" she said while heavily breathing.

"But—"

"This is an order" she interrupted his dispute with sharp stare. Seeing that unfettered sharp eye, he conceded to his boss. "I understand. I'll help him with everything I have" he was about to stand up, but her hand on his shirt stopped him and she out of the blue hosed down his face with a teleportation liquid from a vial on her hand.

His body began disintegrating and he could feel that he was slowly disappearing from the place. "You need to go… and call for help" she spoke. "Why… why wouldn't let me help?" he asked in confusion. With a painful smile, she replied "Your safety is… my responsibility"

He twitched of hearing her remark. Again, it was always her who gave it all for everyone, it was always her who ended up hurt, and she still thought about Vel's safety in spite of the difference between her condition and his. He was too mesmerized and froze until he completely teleported.

As the struggle continued, Tsuna managed to stone and then cut off its arm. Had seconds to look forward, he rushed towards her, surprised she was still there, seemingly trying to stand up.

"Why are you still here? And where's Vel?" he looked around, trying to find Vel. "He's… calling for help" she replied. "What? No, he wouldn't leave you here in this state. What did you do to him?" he demanded.

"It's alright… taking care of subordinates is a boss's responsibility"

Similar to Vel's reaction, Tsuna was also stunned by her remark, yet he kind of predicted that. It was very like Haru to concern about others' safety, he thought.

But he wasn't relaxed yet. The 'thing' slowly approached them as his arm gradually forming another renewed arm. While both injured and his wounds began to open up, he had to hurry defeat the giant or both would be in grave danger.

Meanwhile in Vongola HQ…

"Kufufufu… I see. As expected from him. He's really amusing to no end. Well, there goes away the only clue" Mukuro's voice was heard from Leon who transformed into a phone.

"As of this point, I'm not sure if he still thinks about his savior, now that his attention focuses on Haru" Reborn spoke.

"Really? Well, not like it's my problem. In any case, why didn't you send reinforcement to help him?"

"He's not weak and Vel's with him. And I'm sure this is what he wants. By the way, are you still at France?" Reborn asked.

"I already told Chrome I can't go back for few days. Besides, I think my absence will bring peace to your cloud guardian, am I right?"

"I get it. Then, thank you for your cooperation Mukuro. See you few days later" he hung up.

A moment after, a knock on the door was heard. "Come in" Reborn voiced and Hibari came inside with a folder on his hand.

"I have the information you want" he approached him and handed over the folder. "Ah, thanks" Reborn immediately read the content. As he was reading thoroughly, he was surprised by the whole content about each profile.

"This…"

A/N: I'll be on hiatus for a week or more.

Feel free to review.