Chapter 76:
Even reach into Hell for power
It was the dead of the night, pitch black outside and silent inside. A figure creeps into the room where a mother and a child are sleeping peacefully. The figure, a man blending perfectly into the midnight shadows, looks at the scene with a lip raised in annoyance and disgust. His partner is shaking, letting out silent growls, hating the scene as much as the first. It wasn't right, that child should never be in the bed with that woman.
That was not the right child.
His partner understands him well, pressing a gun into his hand. The figure stalks over, looming over the pair sleeping in the bed. He aims a gun at the child tucked into the woman's arms. He would remove this child. His aim is perfect as usual, his hand not even shaking a millimetre. Pulling back the hammer, the gun clicks loudly in the dead silence as he lowers the gun towards the child's head.
This was not His child. His would have reacted by now.
But instead the woman reacts. And before the killer can move, he's suddenly got a gun aimed at him too. One wrong move would destroy everything.
"Welcome home dear," she smiles, her gun not moving an inch.
"Why didn't you tell me it was today?" he replies, ignoring her welcome. His gun too remains on target.
"Because you didn't need to know." The mother replies, looking down at the child still encircled by one of her arms. "We have discussed this after all."
"But still-" starts the villain, looking down at the child too. He considered continuing with his plan, pressing the barrel to the child's temple, scaring the life out of him. But the damn woman still had that gun aimed at him. But knowing her, the gun could either be filled with real bullets, or with pink permanent paint. In the dark, he couldn't tell which one it was. And with his partner as he was, he wouldn't be able to move quick enough to protect him from either attack, nor would the assassin be able to dodge at this close range. This lady may not be as good as him, but she was pretty damn good with a gun.
"I'm serious." The mother gives him a look, that look. The one that makes him remember that she is his boss, a woman with the future at her fingertips. With an ability like that, it was hard to argue with her, for she really did know what was best. "I will not have you destroy the only chance these children have at a happy end."
"How am I supposed to believe something like that? If the brat wanted them out of there then he could have asked me. One night would be all I needed and no one would have to be bothered by those slimy rats ever again."
"And do you think anyone would like the ending afterwards?" His Boss asks. She wondered whether she was going to have to repeat the conversation they had a week ago. "Believe me dear, when I say that this gives the best outcome for everyone, not just those four."
The subordinate looks down again and still considered going through with his plan anyway. What if this hurt His child? What if he could never come back?
The assassin looks up quickly when the mother giggles. This was not the time for giggling! "You're so sweet, dear. Our boy would be pleased to know you care about him this much." She gives him a sweet smile, happy at the killer's odd show of affection. Although if anyone knew just how much he cared for their Precious, it was the child himself.
The room is lit by an iridescent glowing sphere for a few seconds before his partner jumps out of the killer's hand and onto the bed. He crawls over to the sleeping child before giving him a lick on the cheek. The Boss pets the familiar before returning the small shadow to the assassin's sleeve.
The shadowed figure returns his hand to his side, balls it into a fist and strides out of the room.
Tsunayoshi wakes up and stretches. That might have been the best night's sleep he had ever gotten. There was no screaming, no sounds of experiments, no sounds of gun practice, absolutely nothing. He had slept on an actual bed rather than the pile of covers he had in his cell, had a pillow and fresh fluffy covers that smelt of flowers. He could get used to that.
And he was still being hugged.
He looks up and realises that Luce is watching him. "Good morning sweetie," She smiles. "Are you ready for some breakfast? I think I hear Skull making American-styled pancakes downstairs."
All Tsunayoshi could hear downstairs was a lot of shouting between Skull and Colonnello. But he nods his head anyway. He had heard of these 'pancakes', apparently they were very yummy. So he follows Luce, still in his cow print pyjamas, down to the ground floor and into the kitchen area. Although he is surprised by what he sees. He had noticed that Colonnello had stopped shouting but hadn't thought about it. However, he had not expected to enter the room and find Colonnello tied and gagged to a chair by Bermuda's chains.
Luce, nor the others, seem to care. Reborn looked pretty good about it.
"He was annoying Skull. And I don't want to eat burnt pancakes." Bermuda explains, sitting next to his victim.
"Maybe we should feed him the burnt ones since they are his fault." Smirks Reborn, sending a challenging look at Colonnello. The soldier glares back.
"I see nothing scientifically wrong with feeding him burnt food, especially since his actions have jeopardised our own nourishment." Verde agrees, sipping at his coffee with one hand whilst writing with the other.
Colonnello looks over to Lal, hoping that she would save him. But she doesn't. Soldiers had to be prepared to eat anything since provisions were often in low supply, even at the COMSUBIN.
"Tsunayoshi, your pancakes are done. I made sure that they are perfectly done for you!" Skull shouts out above the argument going on. "Where are you sitting today?" Tsunayoshi looks around, wondering where to sit. Maybe he should sit on the Professor since he seemed rather involved in his work and wasn't that dangerous compared to the others.
'Martial artists often use other senses than sight which may throw an illusion off. Scientists too can be hard to handle because of their strong grasp of reality.' Hmm, maybe not then, nor on Fon either.
Eventually Tsunayoshi decides to sit in Skull's empty chair instead. Skull was busy cooking anyway. The stuntman grins, happy to add two points to his score (one for winning an argument against Colonnello-sempai and one for getting Tsunayoshi), and it was still early in the day!
"Oi brat." Tsunayoshi looks up to the other end of the table where Reborn was, newspaper spread out infront of him. "How did you get those bandages?" He had to think for a moment which bandages Reborn was talking about, before remembering the one Luce had placed on his cheek.
Tsunayoshi looks down and away, sheepish. He knew that Reborn didn't like it when he got hurt, especially when it was his own fault. Although… this time it wasn't exactly his own fault. "Umm… It was… one of the Estraneo." He mumbles. Tsunayoshi was supposed to be able to defend himself.
The lights in the room flicker once again as Verde gets angry once more. Skull is quick to place the next set of pancakes infront of the scientist to appease him.
The newspaper still covers Reborn's face, so no one can see his expression. "How did that happen?"
"Umm…" He had better come up with a reason quick. "He… thought I was one of their experiments." Yes, that worked and went with what Verde thinks happened too. "They think any children there are their experiments, and if they are naughty then they beat them up. At least that's what Ken told me."
"And had you done something wrong?" Reborn asks.
Tsunayoshi shakes his head. "Nu-uh. He thought that I was out of my cell. He didn't know that I wasn't one of their experiments, even if they want me to be. BUT they shouldn't beat the children like that anyway. Mukuro and Chrome and Ken and Chikusa are never naughty enough to deserve getting hurt as much as they do. It's not right!" He starts to whimper, bringing back the sad face he had made the yesterday. "N-no one on the Island likes the Estraneo anyway because of how mean and naughty and horrible they are. That's why my friends are being experimented on in the first place. They shouldn't be allowed to do that! Someone should stop them from doing bad things."
None of the Arcobaleno look at each other, all silently agreeing with Tsunayoshi's statement. The Estraneo were being hunted due to some of their creations. It might actually be a good idea of they were destroyed.
Tsunayoshi looks around the room, noticing how no one will make eye contact with him. "Fine then!" He says, standing up and stomping his foot. "If you won't save them, then I will!" He shouts. He runs under the table dodging grabbing hands- it was amazing how fast Tsunayoshi's body could actually move- and through the house to the front door. He doesn't waste time putting shoes on, especially when he was still being chased, instead slamming the door open and running outside. He quickly heaves the gate open before speeding down the street.
The Arcobaleno stop when the gate slams shut behind the defiant boy.
"Che, let's just get this over with." Reborn growls, walking into the armoury to restock his bullets and to strap on a few extra guns.
"Bermuda, we understand if you can't get involved in this," Fon says, watching the others gather their equipment. Bermuda nods as he unchains Colonnello.
"I will be waiting." Bermuda says, "Bring Tsunayoshi back safe." The other Arcobaleno all nod before parading out of the front door and the gate.
Nebbia watches as Mukuro runs out of the Arcobaleno house and towards the Estraneo gate. He wondered what the boy's plans were.
"Nebbia-sama," says Kiri, also watching the boy. "Are you sure that this is alright." She hadn't been expecting her trip to turn out like this.
"Kufufu~ Of course it will be fine, my dear Kiri. Everything has gone perfectly to plan. I made sure that the boy had easy access to the Possession bullets and even stopped Chibi seeing Sky's memories of our first meeting. The child didn't suspect a thing so the contract went smoothly. I am quite proud of my other self. Even now, I have not managed the feat of possessing out precious Sky. I'm sure the world would be a better place without the Mafia, although Sky has done a good job on his own." Nebbia explains. This world was so entertaining. It was a shame that there were limits on how long one could spend in another world, although his own time was extended by Kiri's- she was capable of spending longer in other worlds than he was.
"I shall return, Nebbia-sama." Kiri says, before covering herself in Mist Flames.
Mukuro pouted and nearly punched the small black box that was stopping him from returning to the Estraneo. He didn't have a card or a code to get in! No one told experiments these numbers, and Tsunayoshi didn't know either. He spins around when he suddenly hears the clacking of heels against the pavement. He had been concentrating so hard on the box he had forgotten to watch his surroundings.
A lady in a white lab coat walks up to the gate and leans over him to swipe her card along the slot in the black security box. The gate beeps and there is a clunk as the door unlocks itself. She walks over and opens the door. "Well, are you coming in or aren't you?" She asks. Mukuro looks at her suspiciously. Why was she doing this? "You're Verde-sama's pet right? You want to see those four experiments he has been attending to?" Tsunayoshi nods and follows the lady inside.
The lady doesn't ask any more questions, or say anything else for that matter, as they walk through the corridors of the house and down the stairs into the main laboratories. She escorts him all the way to the room where the others are. "The code to get back out is 1095."
Before Tsunayoshi can ask why she's given him that number, she had walked away.
Whilst still suspicious, Tsunayoshi enters the room. He places a box in the way of the door before trying the number she had given him. The lights on top of the box changed from red to green and a quiet click was heard- with the door still open it didn't actually do anything. He leaves the box in the doorway just in case. Next, he climbs a different box to jump and grab the keys to the other's cells.
"You're back." Chikusa says when Tsunayoshi finally turns around.
Tsunayoshi smirks as he unlocks the other boy's cell. "Kufufufu~ Of course I am. I couldn't leave you all here while I had some fun." He says happily.
"So we're really gonna do it?" asks Ken, bouncing up and down excitedly.
"Yes. Today is the day that the Estraneo is destroyed." Tsunayoshi announces, his voice sounding very different from usual. "I suspect that the Arcobaleno shall be along shortly to help us. Even if they only come to protect their dear little angel, the results shall be the same."
"YIPPEE! FREEDOM!" Ken shouts loudly, throwing his hands into the air. It was high time they got out of here. "Lion Channel!" He inserts the pair of teeth containing the Lion DNA and shivers as the change takes place. The Lion face appears on his cheek, his hands gain claws and his fangs grow longer. With the change compete, he lets out a roar. "GRROOOAAWWW!"
The last cell to be unlocked is Chrome's. Tsunayoshi picks her and the Mukuowl plushie up and carries her into his own cell, placing her next to his real body. "Chrome, you have a very important job. I want you to stay here and protect my body. I'd imagine that this will be the first place the Arcobaleno look, so someone should come and look after you soon. But do you think you can handle it until they get here?" He asks her gently. She hadn't mastered walking yet, so there was no way she could run around the laboratories to help them. It wasn't fair nor very safe to make her crawl around.
"Yes. Stay safe. Come back." She says, looking at him in the eyes.
Tsunayoshi smiles and ruffles her hair. "Of course my lovely Chrome. I will make sure that we come back to you." He promises. He then turns to the two males. "Come then. Let us begin.
"I have finished Nebbia-sama." Kiri says, finding him in the main foyer of the underground laboratories.
Nebbia laughs. "Oya oya, that was your plan? Although I suppose it shall suffice for now."
In fact, all Kiri had done was let the boy in, tell him the code to get back out and then open every door in the facility. This way the children would have no problems getting from place to place… or person to person.
"Are you staying here?" She asks. He had sat down on an office chair, legs crossed, looking comfortable.
"Yes, I am. I am here merely to lend a small helping hand, and to observe the proceedings. I wouldn't miss the chance to see the Estraneo pounded into a bloody pulp again. And I don't want to ruin my alternate self's fun now." Here he laughs once again, a satisfied laugh that Kiri doesn't like the sound of. She would have said something about Nebbia-sama's wish to see the destruction again, but after actually seeing the Family, she didn't think she could anymore. "It is not a lot different from what you were planning is it?" He asks her.
Kiri shakes her head. "No. All I had planned was to help them escape during whatever plan they had created. I had hoped to lessen the bloodshed and killing that way. But it seems that this is not possible. I did not realise that your other self would choose a path of murder too. But I shall not interfere, Sky said that we shouldn't do anything to change this world too drastically if we ever did come here with him. So if this is the destined form of your escape then I cannot stop it. I believe it makes you who you are today."
Nebbia makes an agreeing sound. It seemed that Sky's words and philosophies had entered her head more than he thought they had. Her desire to not kill, like Sky, was one of the main things stopping her from becoming his perfect solider.
A scream cuts through the newly formed silence. Both adults turn their heads towards the source of the noise.
"Oya, seems like the fun has begun."
When the Arcobaleno finally enter the scene, it is to the sound of guns, screams, shouts and animalistic roars. The Arcobaleno could imagine what was going on further inside. Mukuro would be using his illusions to scare his victims, to make them faint or freeze before finishing them off. Ken, the source of the animalistic roars, would be using… the lion channel if the roar was anything to go by, to attack in a more direct manner. The final one, Chikusa, would be slowly poisoning his targets, according to Verde. Verde had not had time to make a cure to this poison yet, never having gotten his hands on a sample.
"Luce, go and find Chrome and look after her. Viper said she can't walk yet and I doubt that Mukuro would be burdened down by carrying her." Reborn orders, his gun shooting at the Mafioso flooding in from the upstairs house. "Luce? Luce?" He shouts when he doesn't get an answer.
He takes a look around him- still shooting, the doorway wasn't that big after all- to see if he can find the errant woman.
"I haven't seen Luce since we left the house." Lal comments, taking the pin out of a grenade before rolling it into an empty laboratory.
Reborn clicks his tongue, annoyed that she had gone off by herself again. It was dangerous for her to be alone in this type of environment. Reborn didn't deny that she could protect herself, but if she happened to get a vision right in the middle of it all, she was a sitting duck.
"Fine then." He would send Viper since the girl already knew Viper and wouldn't get scared by her, but since Viper was off with the Varia at the moment, she wasn't here either. "Skull, you go and find her. Take her out of here and back to the house." Skull looked at Reborn indignantly, sure that Reborn was just trying to get him out of the way. He could fight just as well as any of them, thank you very much. "She's Tsunayoshi's friend. He wouldn't be happy if she got hurt." Reborn finally says.
"Haha! There's no one better at protecting than me!" Skull shouts, before running off down a corridor. The rest couldn't deny that statement. Verde sighs and shouts directions after the enthusiastic stuntman.
"Hey Verde, don't worry about that idiot, kora! Come here and tell me if I can blow this one up to smithereens." Colonnello shouts from down a different corridor.
The Arcobaleno were going through the place systematically, destroying the Estraneo laboratories and experiment rooms to stop the Family from ever repeating their mistakes, and to stop anyone else finding them. Of course, some chemicals were very explosive, so Verde had to check everything to make sure that the Arcobaleno weren't going to kill themselves first.
Verde went through the room, idly taking a look at the papers to see what other insane things the Estraneo were planning. This room seemed to be one dedicated to human experimentation due to the equipment in the room. Verde lifted one bottle, turning it to read it's label. Nope, nothing explosive. As he puts the bottle down he looks at the paper it was sat on. What was…
The lights in the room and the surrounding area dim, glow painfully bright, and then explode altogether. This surprises the others.
"Is everyone unharmed?" asks Fon, wiping broken glass from his robes. There is a chorus of 'yes' from the others. "Does anyone know the cause? Did the children hit the electric box or something?"
"No." says Verde, voice calm and even. "It was me." The others look at him weirdly in the dim lighting of touches. Why had Verde done that? He looked and sounded fine and there hadn't been any people in that room. "Get Bermuda in here." He orders, throwing the file at Reborn. Now the others are really interested in what Verde found.
Reborn opens the file, Leon turning into a lamp for him to read with.
'He didn't know that I wasn't one of their experiments, even if they want me to be.'
Reborn had found that sentence odd when Tsunayoshi had spoken it earlier, but he had never asked the boy what he had meant. But now he knew. The file contained the plans for an experiment with Tsunayoshi as its subject. The Estraneo must truly be mad to even consider using Tsunayoshi as a lab rat. Before, their attack on the Estraneo had been because it would make Tsunayoshi feel better. But now, now, it was personal. Reborn hadn't changed diapers, been vomited on and been ordered around by a brat for 5 years for him to be used and most likely die by the hands of scum like these.
Reborn threw the file at the others, giving Leon time to change form and dial Bermuda's number. Bermuda is standing next to Reborn in less than a second after the call ends.
"They have finally broken one of the Mafia Rules." He says in his haughty tone. "After extensive research, it had been decided that the Estraneo are too powerful and are playing unfairly. They must be eliminated." Which basically meant that he wasn't breaking one of his own rules- he was quite a stickler for rules.
Colonnello grins, pulling the pin out of a grenade with his teeth before destroying the room that file had just come out of. Oh the Estraneo had picked the wrong people to even consider messing with.
Mukuro laughed and laughed and laughed. He didn't care that it sounded insane, especially in Tsunayoshi's voice. He didn't care about the voice screaming at him in the back of his head. He didn't care about anything of it. The scientists of the Estraneo were falling like flies under his power. Most of them were scientists, and therefore unarmed. The actual Mafioso, the assassins and killers, were all in Italy, doing their missions, destroying the enemies of the Family, conducting trades and other deplorable activities. Mafia Row was a safe place with no violence, there was no need of fighters here, just those smart scientists that needed protecting. Even the ones who had weapons, or took them from fallen comrades were no match to him and his power. The very power these scientists themselves had given him.
"St-p… M-k-r, s-o-… K-ll-ng is b-d… Mu-ro!"
It was so ironic that Mukuro couldn't stop laughing as he swung his trident once more, his cow print pyjamas becoming redder and redder by the second.
"Kufufu, so Father, do you like how Experiment Number 69 has turned out? Was it to your expectations? Better? Do you regret throwing me in with the rest of the children? Or maybe you are proud of me? Maybe this example of my power makes you glad to be the father of the strongest killer the Estraneo has ever seen." Another slash, another swipe, another splatter of blood.
More screams and shouts can be heard, along with another roar from Ken. "Aren't you proud of the three of us? Your pet projects, the Salvation of the Estraneo. Well, kufufufu, find your salvation in death." There is one final spray of red before Mukuro turns and walks away.
"How troublesome." Chikusa says, flicking his yo-yo in the direction of the door way. After a few seconds, a corpse falls into the room covered in the poisonous needles Chikusa used.
Mukuro nods in his direction before walking away and down a different corridor, Chikusa following behind. He encounters a room with some of the scientists in it, all huddling in the corner.
"Oya oya, what do we have here? We can't let you miss out on all the fun, kufufufu." He laughs, spinning his trident in his hand. He recognised a few of these faces, some of them had had a hand in his own experiments. "First Path: Path of Hell." The Scientists scream as zombie corpses walk towards them. Mukuro didn't know what they were scared of, he knew for a fact that some of the children here had ended up in similar states.
He would send every last member of the Estraneo to Hell. He'd make sure of it.
Now I know that it seems that I might have taken this too far. But remember that Mukuro really did kill all of the Estraneo in a single night, by himself, when he was roughly this age. I'm just making up the details; we are never told what actually happens there since we see it from Ken and Chikusa's POV when Mukuro saves them.
Join me next time where we see more from Tsunayoshi (err… the real one).
Phantom Hitman 1412
First Published: 03 February 2013