I'm back! and you know i'd never be dead before i post a new chapter i always have the next chapter finished so im always motivated to write more.
I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn
Mukuro was surprised. He knew that the Varia were in Namimori for a few weeks but he never expected to meet one of them so soon. No less be willingly visited by the one he had defeated almost a year ago. Of course, he would not have noticed the floating child if one of Fran's many traps - spread across their territory like land mines - didn't go off and create a noise similar to a banshee-hyena cross breed. After the chaos from the trap and declarations of murder - given to their visitor and Fran - had been settled, Rokudo Mukuro had now found himself sitting across the Varia's own Head of Intelligence, drinking water and eating biscuits with his loyal and bad-tempered followers behind him. Civil as the confrontation appeared, the hostile and irritable tension each of the Kokuyo Gang members held was a sign of another violent uproar. So Mukuro decided to speak first, not just because he wanted to avoid another fray that could destroy their already crumbling building, but the calm and collected way the infant controlled himself during the set-off of the illusionary trap was suspicious and irksome. It was as if he had expected the trap.
"What brings you to this part of the neighborhood, Arcobaleno?" His charming and cold attitude presented itself with his signature sly grin.
"Please refrain from calling me by that title. Even if the label was used to describe us as powerful, it was not a memory that we wish to be known by anymore." Mammon held no tolerance for this cocky man, if he wasn't holding crucial information the former Arcobaleno would have never even bothered catching his attention.
"Oya oya, is that any tone to use when you want to ask for something, Arcobaleno." His arrogance in his appeal was another factor that added to his repelling personality. Mammon already regretted his travels here. But he still had a job to do as a high-ranking Varia Officer, 100% success rate was an absolute, even if getting that degree of perfection meant stooping down to the lowest people you could find. Mammon sipped his water before continuing.
"I heard that you and your men-" M.M huffed. "- had just come back from Russia carrying some information the Varia might need." Straight and sharp like Squalo's sword, just the way Mammon liked to handle negotiations.
"Oh? Where did you hear that?" The Varia knew of his travels to Russia? What an interesting twist to his day. And here he thought the most excitement he was going to get was that M.M had figured out how to play her clarinet in a way that made people regurgitate specific contents from their digestive tracts. Ken of course, was not a happy guinea pig, but in hindsight he shouldn't had eaten her leather jacket, no matter how delicious it smelled when the sun was roasting it in its rays.
Mammon almost hesitated telling him that his former disciple had traded this information to him. But he quickly mushed that quiver flat. If Chrome Dokuro did not want feelings of contempt pointed towards her, she should have not given out information so freely.
"Chrome Dokuro sold it to me." His blunt response was carried on with a hint of smugness. It was almost as if Mammon expected Rokudo Mukuro to do something at the mention of Chrome's name. Contrarily, the teenage illusionist kept his cold and knowing composure, never batting an eyelash to the Varia Officer's claim. Anyone else would truly believe that the pineapple-haired man could not care less about his female counterpart. Unfortunately for him, he was not dealing with such gullible imbeciles, Mammon saw it, that tiny contraction the pupil of the teen's blue eye, and the small hesitating shift to the kanji sign for four – the realm of hand-to-hand combat – in his unnatural red eye. Mukuro shifted his position so his chin could rest on his hands, focusing his eyes on the baby in front of him.
"Sold?" What a suspicious word this infant had used. Chrome does not sell information; she is too generous for that. She withholds information, but those are for rare circumstances that ask her to break some of her morals. Mukuro internally chuckled as he thought of the irony of the illusionist who does not like to lie.
"Chrome does not sell information." The man's affirmed tone only reminded Mammon of the intimate bond the two pineapple-haired teens shared. It was a little disappointing that he couldn't use such information to taunt Mukuro – although the claim was not a complete lie- but that was beside the point. What matters now was the info from Russia.
"Heh, I guess that may be so but it is true that you went to Russia to visit some goons associated with the Noviello familiga?"
"What of it?" Mukuro's eyes narrowed as the conversation was getting back on topic.
"I am sure you have heard the rumours on the new Dying-will weapon that has been going around."
"Oh~ and what is that?"
Suddenly, Mukuro felt the air around him turn salty and grimy. Quickly, his trident formed in his hand as his cursed eye shifted to the sign of one in kanji. His gang followed suit, their stance ready to kill anyone who came near, even Fran was looking more alert than usual.
"I did not come here to play your stupid games Rokudo Mukuro." Mammon's calm and straight voice only told the group that this wasn't even a taste of his power. Even after the floors crumbled and shifted as blood-stained blades plunged themselves upward and outward toward the Kokuyo gang.
"Quite impatient, aren't you Arcobaleno." The trident-wielding man held his ground as he was quickly weaving his illusions around the blades.
"I don't get a cent going along your mind games." As quickly as Mammon spoke those words he had made all of Mukuro's illusionary take-over attempts null and void, making his flames retreat back to their master. He did not want a repeat of what happened earlier this evening, especially with him.
"Ku fu… still as avaricious as ever I see." Mukuro began to struggle, attempting to find openings in whatever form he could; unfortunately the Varia Mist Guardian was not being so kind. With the violent way the baby was swatting away his flames Mukuro could only presume that he was agitated.
Hah. To make such an "invincible" being lose his cool… Mukuro would gloat if an illusionary blade wasn't pointed between his legs. What a day to be caught up with the mafia.
Mukuro and Mammon were exchanging glares both either finding way to kill each other quickly or to negotiate in a more civil manner. Their thoughts were interrupted however by a young and monotone voice.
"Uhh… Shishou. I think we have more visitors." Fran's comment made all heads turn towards him. Some people even had to make a double-take seeing as a plethora of illusionary knife-edges were stuck in his apple hat, illusionary fruit nectar dripping from the apple to the metal.
"OY! Can't you sense the situation brat!" Ken roared towards the child, trying not to move too much seeing as he was immobilized by blades as everyone else.
"Who is it, Fran?" Chikusa inquired while adjusting his glasses on his face. It was a wonder how such a lanky teen could maneuver his arm with all those obstacles.
"Well, I don't know but I have a pretty good guess. I couldn't sense it at first but they've been stopping my traps as they're getting closer." Fran shrugged and then began to concentrate on trying to get an image of the intruder through some of his illusions on the outside.
"Stopping?" Rokudo Mukuro knew only one person who had a flame calm enough to do such a thing. Even Mammon was looking to the apple-headed boy with his mouth quirked in questioning form. He didn't like to admit it but Fran's illusions were quite troublesome, which is quite the compliment coming from Mammon. The green-haired boy was a natural illusionist, powerful enough to fool some of the Vindice. And while the boy did not have enough skill to outwit the former Mist Arcobaleno, the fact that he could make him feel anything at all was still quite a feat. He wondered who could stop so many of Fran's traps in one travel-
"VOOOOOOOIIIIII!" The familiar roar sent the entire rooms thoughts jumbling out of their brains. Mammon's illusion shook as well. Superbi Squalo had kicked down the entrance to the Kokuyo land theatre door and was striding his way to a certain floating child.
"VOI! MAMMON WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING HERE YOU FLOATING ASSHOLE!" Squalo's vulgarity made some of the middle schoolers twitch. The transition from serious to ridiculous was shocking.
"Hey chibi! You left the prince bored and stuck with morons. That's a crime punishable by death. Ushishishishi~" Belphegor walked out behind Squalo like he was his shadow, his signature knives were in one hand while another reached out to pinch Mammon's cheek. The baby was extremely displeasured.
"What are you two doing here?" Mammon finally got a grip on the situation and controlled his illusions to become more vivid again.
"Isn't it obvious? We're here as back-up." Bel's knives sparked as his smile reached his ears.
"Back-up?" Mammon never told them about Mukuro's involvement in their mission, nor did he give them a hint to his current location. How suspicious.
"That's right~! Ushishishi" Bel's laugh echoed in the illusion filled room, he even managed to capture the attention of a certain eight-year old illusionist.
"Oh-? Did that Pixie-Prince stop all of my traps? He must have sprinkled all his knife-shaped pixie-dust on all of them and since the dust is so oddly shaped, having them stick out of their forms embarrassed them so much they had to retreat back into their triggers." The familiar monotone of Fran already had the entire Varia's veins pulsing from their temple.
"You already used that gag!" Belphegor swung some knives towards the annoying brat until he saw them cease in their tracks by some unfamiliar vines. They were so pastel and green that an idiot wouldn't believe that Mukuro or Mammon made them.
"Hey! Don't touch my knives with your filthy illusions!" Belphegor was now facing the opposite direction of Fran and looking back at the doorway. His knives were now pointing towards a new person, obviously threatening them with a pissed-off grin.
"Sorry, but I will not allow you to harm Fran." The light voice caught everyone agape. While trying to place the familiar sound, Chrome Dokuro walked into the room, Belphegor still staring her down with a mix of insult and reluctance.
"The prince does not understand your attachment to that annoying rug-rat." He huffed back at the girl, only to be looked at with a soft confusion. While journeying to Kokuyo Belphegor was able to confirm a few things about Chrome Dokuro. Her illusions were different. While immobilizing traps or avoiding people, her illusions played more on the emotions of others than the mental strength or senses. She mostly made everything feel calm and serene, like everyone was safe in her presence. This irked the blonde as it seemed to affect him as well, to a much larger extent. Intelligent and mentally adept as he was, his emotional control was not totally on par; he almost fell asleep the first few times the girls' flames started to linger in the air. This fact also made Chrome very dangerous, especially in the mafia world where almost everyone relied on intelligence and cunning rather than emotional stability. If this girl wanted to, she could play every skilled and powerful player in the underworld like a grass-whistle.
The second thing he found was that, despite her innocence and naivety to danger, she was quite observant. While going to Kokuyo they had to avoid some of Rokudo Mukuro's human puppets. Blank human victims he uses to patrol the outside of the Kokuyo centre to warn him of external threats. Mammon told them about this since the Sun Arcobaleno kept note of them while the Vongola-brat visited the Kokuyo gang. They changed every night as to not be predictable; the eye-patched girl told them she knew how to tell which is which through some of their actions and habits. As much as they're demeanors blended in with crowds of regular people, they copy actions of the people around them as to not strain the pineapple bastard's strength. And they stay only in areas where it is acceptable to stay in one spot for a long time, like parks, in alleyways, or under buildings as homeless people. She was quite skilled in seeing the ones that were most likely Mukuro's drones and was able to fool them or completely block their existence from their eyes.
The third thing Prince the Ripper found interesting about Chrome Dokuro was that no matter how much he prodded, insulted, berated, jeered, or humiliated her, she would look at him with an expression that was so blank yet so soft he wondered if she was reprimanding him or admiring him. He remembered back to when he first met the girl; she was so pathetically weak it was not the slightest fun trying to cut her up. Her panicked expression was the same as anyone else's in the world, but now with her face so emotionless and innocent; Belphegor wondered what it would take to make her get all and scared again.
"HEY WOMAN! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING BRINGING MORE OF THESE GUYS INTO OUR HIDEOUT – BYON!" Ken's voice was furious as he saw Chrome talking so casually with some extremely dangerous people. She was so stupid to let the Varia get her in their clutches.
"Oh?" Chrome's body pivoted towards the sound of the familiar Ken. From his demeanor, he was trying to find a way out of Mammon's illusion as quickly and frantically as possible. Chrome was worried at his circumstance and quickly tried to help her friend. However, she was halted by blades sticking from the ground, all of them made a barricade that stopped Chrome from moving forward.
"Stop Chrome Dokuro, this is a negotiation and any interference will be dealt with severely." Mammon thought now that Chrome was here he could use it to his advantage. He already saw how Rokudo Mukuro stiffened at the girl's presence with Squalo and Bel. She could be a trump card if Mammon pushed far enough.
"Chrome, please step back. This is between me and the Arcobaleno." The blue-haired man could practically feel the sly intentions of the Varia baby, and while Chrome could handle herself, the impatience of Mammon was not something to test at the moment. Unfortunately for Mukuro, Squalo had taken note of his Head of Intelligence's intentions as well and acted swiftly as Chrome attempted to reluctantly move back.
"Don't. Fucking. Move." Squalo's sword was almost a centimetre from Chrome's neck as he towered behind her. While she was incredibly useful and polite throughout the entire excursion to Kokuyo land, Squalo had a job to do and Chrome Dokuro was just a part of it. Besides, he didn't want to let go of the illusionist just yet. He came to the same conclusion as Bel when observing her, as naturally innocent and naïve as she was; she was a true threat in her own right. Having such a being run around so freely was not permitted in their world.
"Stupid woman! Do you not have a sense of danger?" M.M called to her, looking at her face with scrutiny and a stunned amazement. Curious at the red-haired woman's words, Squalo looked to Chrome's face. He was surprised to see a complete blank and emotionless expression in the pineapple-haired teen's face, most people would at least look worried at their circumstance. It was like her entire existence was separated from every danger in the world. It was suspicious yet amazing.
"Ehhh? Long-haired-sword-guy, what's with that dumbfounded face? Have you fallen in love with Chrome? Are you a pervert now?" Fran's voice snapped Squalo out of his awe and every speck of his anger fumed out.
"YOU FUCKING LITTLE BRAT! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT! IF YOU START SPOUTING MORE SHIT LIKE THAT I WILL PERSONALLY STUFF YOUR FACE INTO A TOILET!"
"You didn't deny it." If Squalo wasn't holding the girl back, Fran would already be peeled and sliced on a platter.
"Don't worry commander, I got this one~" Bel had been watching with amusement the whole exchange, and using Chrome as a hostage was simply a wonderful twist. Although, he did question the amount of emotion she showed towards the Kokuyo gang than him. It seems whoever she is close to gets to see more of her emotions than they do; it displeasured the prince that Chrome had been withholding from him the entire time. But that displeasure soon became glee as he once again swung four knives toward the most annoying brat in the world, knowing full well Chrome was not in a position to stop him.
However, four vines stopped those knives once again leaving Bel to gape at Chrome's nerve.
"Ka-ching ~! You lousy peasant!" Bel turned toward Chrome and threw three knives toward her. Squalo had to move back as a knife was about to graze him as well, but since he was used to people taking care of themselves or dying, he didn't have the instinct to take Chrome with him too. The knives pierced through her head, neck, and shoulder.
SHIT! Those brats are gonna be pissed! Squalo thought immediately after the knives entered Chrome's body.
However, as quickly as he realized that Chrome was about to die, he saw the form that was hit begin to break. There was no gushing of blood nor the sound of a knife being plunged into flesh, Squalo only heard…glass? It then dawned upon him that the Chrome that was pierced by Bel's knives was an illusion.
What the hell? How long was that illusion there? How did I not notice it? Jesus Christ I DID! Didn't I? That annoying little runt must've distracted me while…
Squalo realized that when he was examining Chrome's face, he was distracted by Fran's lewd comment and couldn't put the pieces together fast enough, and probably that weird emotional distortion that girl's illusions did made him look like a dumbstruck idiot too.
"HEY MAMMO-"Now Squalo was really dumbstruck. It now seemed that Mammon was wrapped in vines, not Dokuro's vines though, her flames were warmer and much more serene. The flames wrapping around the Arcobaleno seemed much more deceptive than that. While Squalo could see partially through them it was obvious they were strong. And there was only one illusionist who could be strong enough to subdue Mammon.
Squalo turned his head toward the front, the bloodstained blades were now broken and the real Chrome Dokuro was standing behind the now freed Kokuyo gang – with the exception of Fran who seemed to be clinging onto Chrome's side.
"OY YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Squalo yelled at Chrome getting everyone's attention once more. Chrome turned towards him and to his surprise the blank face that he saw from her illusion was literally her expression at the moment, except much colder, and maybe… a little agitated.
"Did I do something wrong Sword-man?" her monotone was as dull as Fran's but her voice echoed and grazed the skin with some sort of chill.
Looks like this brat is getting serious. Squalo smirked, while he did get to see her capabilities coming to Kokuyo, her actual fighting prowess was what he really wanted to know. Better to know how prepare your fish before you cut it up.
"Bel?" Squalo looked to see if his junior officer was still mobile, by the way the teen was slashing through some of the oncoming illusionary vines the white-haired man took that as a major FUCK YES.
"Yeah?" Belphegor was contemplating; he did not appreciate having his knives wasted more than one time. And Dokuro ended up making him waste three throws like they were not the actions of pure-blooded royalty!
"Mammon?" Squalo looked to his other side. While the Arcobaleno was wrapped like a veggie-burrito, the baby was calm and cool, dispersing the illusions like he was not even a part of them. That was enough of an answer to get Squalo back to the situation. God he really has been itching to battle since this mission came up. He really was not one for all this espionage and stealth shit. Swinging his sword was his one true calling in life and he would be damned if he did not get the chance to use it.
As he glanced back at the Kokuyo gang they all seemed to answer to their calling as well. Their predatory smiles were all of crazy killers and assassins just like him. Even Fran's face brightened up as he realized he was going to battle. The only one who did not seem excited at the least was Chrome Dokuro, of course that was not surprising; she belonged with Sawada and his merry band of Guardians. The only thing that did quirk Squalo's eyebrow was how unexpressive she was about this violence, if it were any other Guardian they would all look a little excited or, for Sawada, worried. But she only looked cold and expressionless her gaze willing to battle but at the same time never enjoying nor worrying about it. Like she would kill, but never feel anything towards her actions or the people around her.
Interesting.
So im finishing up this scene in the next chapter and it is going to be really long and informative and i do not know if you are going to like it. But oh well, i hope you do because i felt sorta giddy writing it too.