Author's Note:
The bond of friendship, the will to do good, the rise of a hero, these are what's important for a good shonen manga, or in this case, a good story. Nobody can get sick of watching a character grow, his joys, his pain, and everyone feels for the character as he or she reads it. I hope this chapter can bring about such wonderful feelings!
Chapter 29: I Want To Help.
It was in the afternoon, yet, it felt like the evening, the sun covered by the number of clouds in the sky, sunlight barely touching the ground. I was still in hiding, though my movements have dulled a bit for a while now. I can't believe it. Sergio and Kiera? I guess I was still plenty surprised as I followed the two towards the shoreline. "Uh..." I shivered as another breath of the chill touched my body. I really hate the cold. Still, their actions are rather... strange... for a couple. Sergio nodded to Kiera, who in turn did the same, before they headed for the shoreline. It just feels very business-like.
I find myself hopping between benches and lamp-posts as I tried hard to keep my presence hidden. Of course, I don't expect them to welcome such spying. I know, I really shouldn't be doing this.
So I finally find myself stopping by a bench a few steps away from the two, who are now standing on the beach, looking out at sea. For some reason, Sergio's attire, which reminds me of something you wear when you go to exercise, was really distracting me a lot. Why is he wearing that anyway?
In an instant, out of nowhere, Sergio pulls a pair of chains. Long, black, cold, metallic chains, right in his hands. This feels a lot like Kiera, when she pulls her shield seemingly out of nowhere, the action only surprises me further. What's he doing with those? Looking around, the shoreline looks deserted, with a few contraptions and pieces of metal here and there, at the side, a stone cliff blocks off the rest of the shore. "Wait... I don't think I've ever been here before.. What is this place?" I find myself whispering out.
A click suddenly signal off, and about a dozen rocks, each the size of my head, was flung right at Sergio. I find my eyes widen with surprise as I worry for Sergio's safety.
"Crink! Klank! Kashink!"
The sound of metal clashing against the rocks rang off the quiet surroundings as before I knew, Sergio swung his chains to deflect and knock those rocks out of trajectory. Of course, I didn't expect the guy to just stand there and get hit, but his movement, they were fast, faster than I ever seen him move. "Whoa..." He looked powerful. But, it confuses me even more. Is he under attack? Maybe... looking at his attire.. this is training? Looking at Sergio, his eyes were ones of pure determination. His chains moved so fast they seem to cut the air and push the wind. Seriously, it looked unbelievable, even for mafia standards. The chain seemed to move according to his will.
"Is this... why he's been missing school these few weeks?" I can't help but ask myself. Why is he doing this? I feel as though I'm the reason he's training so hard as I hid behind the bench, as pathetic as it looked.
A metal chain suddenly flies out of control after coming into impact with one of the larger rocks, and the rebound launched it back towards Sergio. In a second, it struck his back with a loud crack, the sound as if his bone had been fractured. "Argh!" Sergio growled out in pain, falling to one knee. Even so, he quickly recovered as the rocks never stopped flying towards him. Sergio! I wanted to shout out his name, but I was so surprised, my voice was delayed. "Ser-"
"I see we've been discovered. Perhaps I should be more aware of your tendency to stalk people, Lord Amato."
The voice made me jump, partly because the words immediately told me it was Kiera. Of course, I know full well my actions was downright wrong, still, I had hoped she wouldn't actually find out. "Um.. I wasn't stalking you..." I turned around and faced her, even if I find myself trying to avoid her gaze. Kiera stood as she always do, calm and poise as ever. "And I certainly wasn't spying on you guys..." I continued. In my mind, I was wondering why I was even saying those words. ".. and your date." I added at the end. Wait, from what I saw, this couldn't be date, so why am I still saying that?
"Date?" Kiera gave out as I see her confused. The sound of metal continues as we spoke, in fact, cries of pain sounded off right after the clashes. "What makes you think I was on a date?" Kiera asks out, looking slightly annoyed amidst her usual seriousness. Her eyes demand an answer, it seems. "You... adjusted your look... before you.. met up.. with Sergio?" Of course, I don't expect that answer to work. I myself find it stupid. After a few seconds, I see Kiera blush just so slightly on her cheeks. " So I can't adjust my look on a daily basis?" Kiera kinda yells it out in a soft, yet angry tone. Oh boy, she sounds mad. Now I'm not sure if her flushed face is because of her blushing or she's just plain angry. "And the whole reason I started to care about my looks is because of you-" Kiera's voice suddenly die off to a whisper, as her cheeks went bright red. As if realizing something, her eyes went wide before she shuts them off, although her eyebrows were still furrowed, in anger, I think.
The sound continued, bursting forth into the surroundings as Kiera calmed herself. "Right, Sergio!" I called out as I turned, planning to help him out as the thought of him being injured return into my mind. "Please refrain from disturbing Mister Sergio's training, Lord Amato." Kiera's words stopped me in my tracks. So he is training, but why? It seems so difficult, so painful. As I watched him endure the pain of getting struck by his own chains as he tries to manipulate their movements, I feel as though I could feel the pain myself. "Why is he doing this to himself?" The question could not be held back.
"He's doing this for you sake, Lord Amato." Those are the words recited by Kiera as I looked to her for answers, though I could say I wished she didn't say them.
It was during the week you fell into your coma. As your mind slipped into your sub-consciousness, Mister Sergio and Miss Regina would come once or twice a week to visit, to see how you were doing. Once in a while, I would catch Mister Sergio in a corner, guilt in his eyes, gritting his teeth. The guilt of landing you in this state, for blocking and saving him and Regina, must be chewing hard on his soul. I believe he felt useless, as he could do nothing for you in that situation. I worried, but refrained myself from any action, for it would indoubtedbly drag him into danger. The decision of such must come from himself. I understood that you would not wish to drag your friend into this.
"Am I correct, Lord Amato?" Kiera asks out to me as I snapped back to the present from the past I imagined.
I find myself nodding at Kiera's words as all kinds of thoughts flooded my mind. I didn't think Sergio would felt that bad. I.. never considered how the two of them would feel when they see me in bed like that.. and to think, they feel it's their fault... Darn it. Darn it! Without a word, Kiera continues her explanation.
The week before you woke up however, he did something I never expected. "I want to help." Those were his exact words as he looked straight into my eyes, this time his guilt is replaced with fiery determination, his will. But, undying will is not enough to survive, as you know well enough, so I said it straight to his face. "You're not strong enough." I declared. There was no point in conforting him with lies. "Then train me." He roared out, as if he was desperate. Maybe he was.
With a few more steps, he was at your bedside. Looking straight at you, I could see how sad he was. "I owe Amato my life.." He said it out in a low, regretful tone. ".. and I intend to pay him back in full." The words were ones of strong sense and powerful will.
"I swear it, by my Bushido Code."
"So don't you die on me, Amato!" He roared out once more. After those words, I... couldn't deny him what he wanted. And so, we started training. He breezed through the basics like it was nothing. I may have missed it, but within his body structure, lies great potential. It was as if he was born to be a hitman. Still, we had to take things step by step.
"So.. He's doing all this just so he could help out with the Mafia stuff?" I ask out according to my thoughts. In my mind, I think of how I may have derailed Sergio from his path in life. He could've gone on and lived as an average guy, get a normal job, marry some girl, have kids. None of it would threaten his life and existence. I watched as Kiera stayed silent, her eyes closed, denying me any hint of what she's thinking. Sergio's routine has now changed to him using his two chains and pulling on a rock about five times his own size. "..." No words could come out of my mouth to express how much I didn't want him to help me, cause I know I cannot be selfish enough to deny his decision. I watched as he pulled, breathless, veins bulging all around his body, as he pushed himself to make sure he completes the course he set for himself.
"Huff... Puff.. Huff.." Sergio's breaths were louder than any sound as I sat there on the bench, and they were just as visible, as hazy, white puffs of clouds. He kneeled on the sands on his two knees, the chains still tied to the rock, left there in the exact same position as when he had completed the course. He didn't say anything when I walked towards him with Kiera, his mind concentrated on the training, while I felt it wasn't the time to be saying anything. His eyes, even as he kneeled there, gasping for air, were those of pure determination, even as tired as he is, he refused to lower his head, his back as straight as it can be.
Just by looking, I could almost see the fire of his will, burning up as he refused to give up, and trained as hard as he could.
But, still. Is it worth risking his life everyday helping me? Is it worth getting into situations where death is just a heart-beat away? Is it worth losing the peace of mind you can have without worrying for your life every second? Without thinking, I was already walking towards him. "Sergio..." I muttered out as I placed my hand on his shoulder. In an instant, I felt extreme shivering and convulsions, coming from his body, signs of exhaustion. "Please, after training..." Finally Sergio acknowledges my presence, though he didn't even shift his eyes to meet mine. "Stop. You're tired. You need to rest." I know, because I went through the same thing before, for a few years, in fact.
"I said stop!" I yelled out at him, pulling his chains off his body and throwing him onto the bench.
After a few minutes of rest, as well as a few bottles of water later, we were finally ready to talk. "Look, Sergio..." I tried, I tried to throw him off his path, to dissuade him from doing all this, but something inside me just held me back. "I know what you want to do.. I understand how you feel... but.." I continued on, stammering at my words. Kiera stood, eyes closed, the same as always, while Sergio's eyes are focused at the sea. "No.. You don't. You don't know how I felt, how me and Regina felt, when we found out it was our fault that you nearly died." His eyes never moved, but he speaks with a tone that felt full of wisdom. "When I tried to hold off Dante, I couldn't do a thing. It felt like he was playing with his food!" He growled out as he gritted his teeth, smashing his fist onto the bench. "If you didn't wake up from that coma, I would've caused my best friend to die, because of my weakness.."
When Sergio said it like that, I couldn't feel the chill of the wind anymore. The fiery passion inside my best friend seems to resonate to the surroundings. "You face peril everyday, and I didn't know anything about it.." Sergio's tone now changed to one of sadness and regret. "Well, I won't just stand by and do nothing anymore. According to the Code, my life now belongs to the man who saved me."
The decision came after a long pause of silence, as the wind blew, the waves crashed. The sunlight is now setting, the deep orange tint now stretched across the sky. "Sigh.." I guess I really shouldn't disagree anymore. I don't think I can change something he feels so strongly for. "All right. You can help." At those words, Sergio finally turned and looked at me. "You still need to train.. Just.. don't push yourself too hard.." I declared my view on this whole thing now, not as his best friend, but as Zanna Decimo, tenth boss of the Zanna Famiglia.
I watched as a cool smile stretched across Sergio's face, as we knocked our elbows together, exactly the same way we did years ago.
The end of another chapter, detailing Sergio's official entry into the Famiglia! How will he hold up? How will he fare in his missions? Is he strong enough now? Keep a lookout for new chapters to find out more!