THE RAINBOW FLAME WAR – MAFIA OR YAKUZA
Enma vs Lucy
Enma looks on in confusion, as he sees Yaru ready himself for combat against Lucy. 'Isn't this man one of the leaders of the Yakuza. Yet someone of such cruelty, someone who dared ruin Tsuna's wedding is actively preparing to fight them'.
Sakura approaches Enma, she doesn't wear a smile on her face but it could also clearly be seen there is no malice in her expression. Is their intention really to help him, as Yaru implied from his statement?
"What are you doing" the bloodied mafia boss asks, "All those years ago, weren't you my enemy".
"I won't be pitied while trying to get revenge for Mr Reborn, his death is partly your fault as well".
"I was just a kid" Yaru begins, "I had no idea what the old man was doing to my sister". Yaru reflects on the kindness that Honda showed him initially and how it gradually turned to cruelty. He was forced to torture his own sister, was he too eventually supposed to end up that way.
"But, this whole thing has become much greater since then" he continues. Back at the start this all seemed like a territory war to the youngster. That's how it was presented, the first contact was made by that man named Randa, he was instructed to inform the mafia they were encroaching on Yakuza territory. Yet since then this war has become about world domination, not just territory.
"Life really has become about one question, one question asked to everyone who you don't know the allegiance of".
"That one question has replaced friend or foe".
"Mafia or Yakuza".
Yaru shrugs as he chuckles, "Back then they were just two sides of a conflict, one was arguably good, one was arguably evil". Once upon a time the Mafia and Yakuza could simply be considered two professional crime organisations, two groups that could never ascend so high in the world.
"But now everything has changed, it has become about fighting for freedom from suppression or fighting for the ascendance of one mighty warrior to the position of god".
"The mafia are heroes and the Yakuza are dictators, or the mafia are criminals and the Yakuza are god's army, those are the two positions that you can take". One position hinted at by Yaru is that of the free human, one who watches the state of the world for what it is. The other is of the slave, or the enforcement officer, someone who has become completely indoctrinated by propaganda.
"I am not like the others, I am not so blind that I would willingly see the whole world bow before one man and obey his every wish".
"Especially that man".
"Mafia or Yakuza…".
"If I had to pick one of those words to describe Sakura and myself… then there is no doubt what I would chose".
"I am… we are…".
"MAFIA".
Sakura smiles as Yaru declares the duo's position. She quickly pulls out her violin and uses her powers to begin healing Enma. "I'll heal him; you hold her off".
"Roger, I'll keep guarding you matter what but remember, he's the only one amongst us who can beat Lucy, you have to heal him".
Once more Lucy jumps into action by firing a long thick beam of glass towards Enma.
'That will hit Enma if I don't block it' Yaru realises.
Instead of evading his sister's attack, the green haired Yakuza… no… the green haired Mafioso raises his boot clad foot and then lowers it down on top of the approaching beam. He pushes the beam down into the floor, relying on the friction caused by the downward force to stop the beam.
Despite the advantage Yaru has in this particular power struggle, he is correct that his sister is stronger than him overall. Lucy doesn't need to wait long before attacking once again, this time she summons a collection of glass shards and fires them towards Yaru.
Again being between Enma and Lucy means that Yaru has no choice but to stand his ground. Now that the glass beam has stopped moving he raises his foot and slams it down again, shattering the beam into thousands of pieces. Swinging his foot through the air, he kicks those newly created glass shards into the ones Lucy is firing, cancelling out the impact.
"HOW MUCH LONGER" Yaru yells over his shoulder.
"DONE" Sakura replies.
Enma looks down at his hands, his ultimate dying will flame burning on them as strongly as ever. "My strength is back". He quickly takes hold of his weapon and prepares to enter the battle.
Lucy fires more glass shards at Yaru, she fires more and more and more until Yaru no longer has recycled glass to retaliate with. Her brother dodges to the side of the attack, leaving Sakura the new target for the glass.
Sakura quickly pulls out her trumpet and plays the loudest note she is capable of, using powerful soundwaves to knock the shards from the sky. Lucy is wide open.
"GO" Yaru yells at the top of his voice.
Lucy hears someone arrive at her side, it is Enma, he used a burst of speed so great that it caused sound to be generated. The Shimon family boss raises the hammer in the sky causing her eyes to widen, she cannot deflect this attack.
"THIS IS FOR REBORN" Enma shouts as he brings the hammer down with his full power.
The result, a direct clean hit.
Lucy has been defeated.
Enma takes several deep breaths, as Fon's message about his technique finally begins to sink in. This is the incredible power of wielding the heavy as if it were light. He has defeated Lucy in a single blow.
He picks his hammer up and lazily places it above his shoulder. He slowly walks towards Lucy and mutters four words, "Time to finish it".
Upon finally reaching the downed Yakuza he raises his hammer high into the air, ready to unleash the killing blow.
Lucy seeing this tightly curls herself into a ball, as if the position will save her from any damage. She could be made of pure diamond, a blow from the hammer would still kill her. Yet something stops the hammer from falling, something gets in the way.
Yaru appears between Enma and Lucy.
"WAIT" he shouts as he places his hands out in front of him, begging Enma to stop. "Please don't do this, she's still my sister".
Enma keeps his hammer raised in the air, as if waiting for Yaru to get out of the way. In response the former Yakuza leader refuses to move. He maintains his position in front of his sister, his eyes slightly watery as he lays his very life on the line to protect his only remaining relative.
"She just afraid" he sobs, "She's afraid of dying".
"I don't care whose relation she is" Enma states coldly. This is the woman who has caused him so much suffering almost single headedly. Although the likes of Kara have killed his friends none of have killed so many as Lucy.
"She is Yakuza, an enemy who killed my tutor Reborn".
Sakura approaches Enma from the side, speaking more gently than she has done in a long time. "The lines were blurred with her long ago, she has been doing all she has to avoid punishment, to avoid torture".
Seeing Enma is still unmoved Sakura's voice becomes more desperate. "If you actually killed her after all this, what right do you have to call yourself mafia. What makes you better than Yakuza".
"Just listen" Yaru says as he points to his sister. Slight whimpers can be heard from his elder sister, "She is crying because she thinks she is going to die. She has just been following orders all this time, what would you have done differently".
Enma starts for a moment before closing his eyes. His grip tightens on the hammer as he realises that Yaru is right, the man has claimed to be mafia for mere minutes yet he is already preaching superior morals to the Shimon family boss. He is already being the better human.
"DAMMIT" Enma shouts, "After all this time waiting, where is my revenge, for Reborn, for Basil, for the Shimon, for the Arcobaleno… WHERE IS THEIR REVENGE".
Enma continues to shout to the new mafioso. "You are all doing this preaching about she has fallen into this terrible mental state because of torture".
"The Yakuza have put me through so much, so why don't you tell me…".
"WHO'S THINKING OF MY MENTAL STATE?".
"WHERE IS MY JUSTICE?".
"It's different for you and her" Sakura points out, sounding less like she is pleading and more like she is explaining something to a young child.
"How is it different?" Enma growls.
"It's different for you in the same way it is different for the two of us" Yaru claims.
"JUST SAY IT ALREADY".
"It's different because we've had someone to hug while we cry" the younger Kosuke sibling finishes.
Enma processes what Yaru has to say and then drops his hammer, tears filling his eyes. He clumsily falls to his backside and years' worth of tears come flooding from his eyes all at once.
Sakura lowers herself to her knees and embraces Enma in a gentle hug. "I will hug you… I will hug you while you cry".
Yaru smiles, content that Enma has decided not to kill his sister. It is the right decision in his mind, it is people who are capable of making decisions like that, difficult decisions despite all their circumstances who are truly what define the mafia.
Yaru finally turns around to see a confused Lucy, she is just beginning to sit up. This is the first time he has seen his sister in years without worrying about whether she will attack. She is no longer desperate to kill, she is no longer yearning for the death of the innocent, she is simply afraid.
Yaru hugs his sister tightly. "I'm here now Lucy, it's your brother Yaru".
"Brother? Yaru?".
"That's right, I won't let them touch you with that cane… not ever again".
Lucy's eyes are filled with tears once more as she tightly reciprocates Yaru's hug. "Brother" she says once more. Yaru is uncertain whether this is her recognising him but he knows for certain that this is her accepting him.
He has saved her.
"There, there, I won't let them touch you ever again, I promise" the brother claims.
"Never again?",
"Never again".
Bana vs Gon
Gon and Bana battle for several minutes continuously, throwing darts and firing arrows in perfect unison. The people below are showered in a constant raining of sharp objects as one after another the pointed weapons knock one another from the sky. The battle appears perfectly even.
Gon notices that Bana's ability to fire each successive shot is a lot slower than his so decides on what he believes to be a sure fire plan. He throws three darts in quick succession, one after another they travel towards Bana, there is no way to stop them all with one arrow.
Bana decides to use three arrows, due to his inferior speed this would normally be impossible, however, he places all three arrows on the string at once, firing them all together. Naturally as a result of this two of the arrows take a wider path than the central one.
'Two of them are going to miss.' Gon notes.
Suddenly the path of the two outer most arrows change, they travel back towards the central path. The result of this is that Bana successfully knocks all three of the darts from the air at the same time, an incredible curving shot that only one man in the world could have ever pulled off.
Gon starts as he sees the display of skill before him. His distraction lasts just long enough for Bana to dash towards him. 'Dammit', he reaches for a dart from his pocket. 'I won't make it in time'.
Bana swings the bow in his hands into Gon's sternum, sending the Yakuza leader crashing down into the ground. A direct hit, the first he has ever landed on this man.
Gon gradually picks himself up. "I don't get it" he begins speaking aloud, "Why is my superior control not taking effect".
The elderly man looks at his opponent floating in the skies above him. He is surrounded by weaker members of the Yakuza and weaker members of the Mafia yet none of them tangle with him. They all know he is too strong for them.
'In that case I will just wait for him to fire and watch carefully what happens'.
That doesn't go according to plan for the old man. Bana's eyesight is perhaps the keenest in the world, he doesn't miss that Gon has no intention to attack first. The Mafia Policeman seizes on the opportunity to once more close the distance between them.
'HE'S GOING FOR ANOTHER MELEE ATTACK' Gon notices. His eyes then widen greatly, 'IS IT BECAUSE OF THAT?'.
Bana notices the widening of Gon's eyes, "You finally understand" he decides as he once more swings his bow towards the head of his opponent.
It is the second hit.
Once more Bana hits Gon hard, down into the ground, this time starting from a grounded position.
The shorter fall means that Gon maintains more momentum, the hard impact on the rough surface causing a spell of temporary paralysis.
Bana has won.
Gon smiles despite his bad condition. "You really did use your head, just like Primo would have done".
"I had melee superiority all along" smiles Bana, "And I noticed how your darts hit me last time, it is because I always fired first, then you could choose how our shots collided".
The blonde haired mafioso turns his back on Gon, "Your plan was half hearted and only took one probably path into account, it failed to even consider the other paths".
Bana looks before him, while the rest of the mafia police are fighting one has found a free moment in combat to find him. It is naturally his wife, Vongola Kyoko. The couple smile to one another, Bana then decides to take the first step away from his most challenging battle ever, straight towards the woman he cares most about.
Upon taking the first step Bana realises how exhausted he is, how tired his legs are. He begins to fall uncontrollably towards the ground. Quick thinking and the use of his bow as a walking aide manage to hold him up long enough for Kyoko to run over and catch her boss.
Bana laughs, "I'm finally glad I took this thing up all those years ago now".
"You better be talking about your weapon and not your wife" Kyoko huffs in reply.
Gon takes his turn to laugh, causing the couple to turn around and face him. "There is a cruel irony in all of this. In me being defeated by a clone of… no, being defeated by the son of Primo".
"You won because you were always better than me right?".
"NO" Bana asserts, causing the smile to disappear from Gon's face. "That's not it, the reason I considered all the possibilities in this battle and you didn't. It's because I was fighting for the cause I believed in, unlike you I truly wanted to win for something, for someone, so I did".
"But Primo told me loyalty was the most important thing" rebukes Gon, recalling how so long ago he asked Bana's father to help him revolt, to help him betray the Yakuza.
"Then perhaps e was simply testing you, or saying you should put more effort into changing your cause" decides Bana, "This test was set up by Primo, by divine influence, his son vs his admirer. It is my victory".
The Yakuza leader sighs deeply, "You are right in some ways but wrong in others".
"You are right that I misunderstood Primo's message, that you won because you were fighting for those that you cared for".
"And how was I wrong exactly" Bana questions.
"It is because of those statements that your earlier one was wrong…".
"… you are simply better than me, son of Primo, Vongola Bana".
Xanxus vs Varon
Varon and Xanxus are members of the strongest seven each side set aside in the previous battle. Perhaps these two hold the positions as the weakest forces in their respective sides elite tier, yet they both deserve their places, they are both truly strong.
Xanxus is the rage filled son of the 9th Vongola boss, a man who truly knows no limits to the depth of his anger. Through spending time with Sawada Tsunayoshi, Squalo and his father he has softened his hate but he still keeps it for the man before him. This is one of the chiefs of the Yakuza, the ones who killed his father.
Varon is completely insane, with very little of his mental capacity left intact from the years of psychological torment he spent at the hands of Honda and those he ordered about. There is no knowing what this man will do, he seemingly has no motivation left in life other than to follow orders. He is truly dangerous.
Varon uses weighted balls, floating in the air he throws three of these heavy balls towards Xanxus with a force that makes shotput throwers look like a joke. Very few people could avoid these attacks.
Fortunately, from a mafia point of view one of the few is Xanxus. He fires his dual pistols, a keepsake he inherited from the 7th to knock the first two balls from the sky. As for the third he ducks beneath it.
After ducking beneath the third ball Xanxus is greeted by the image of an incoming attacker. Varon uses another weighted ball to smack him on the underside of the chin, driving him up even further into the sky.
Xanxus upward momentum is short lived, he counters it by firing both of his guns upwards at once. A method of high speed movement he showed off in the ring contest he had with Tsuna back when he first appeared within the family.
As the son of the 9th plummets back down towards the insane warrior. Varon throws another ball up towards Xanxus. This one is narrowly avoided by a well-placed shot, just off centre meaning the ball isn't deflected but is instead put slightly off course, so it misses its target.
Xanxus final position is at point blank to Varon. "KILL, KILL, KILL" the Yakuza fighter chants as he brutally swings his heavy ball towards the head of Xanxus. There is no way to survive that attack.
Varon's attack stops right in its tracks though. It is stopped by the firing of a gun, the gun fired by the 9th's son, the man Tsuna chose to be the 11th boss. That man is Xanxus. The bullet pierces Varon's chest, just aside of his heart, expertly placed to avoid the death of the Yakuza man.
"Kill… kill… kill" he mutters in an increasingly quiet tone as he falls towards the floor.
Xanxus lowers himself to the ground, landing just before his opponent. He doesn't take the opportunity to kill him. This is Xanxus' greatest act of mercy.
"You know, through what I heard of that Lucy girl's story, I kind of understand how you were brought to this point" Xanxus declares. There are indeed parallels between Lucy and Varon, the former was saved by her brother but it is far too late for Varon now.
"But it's only possible because you were evil in the first place" lecture the raven haired Varia boss, "I know because I used to be the same".
"But I think what I have truly learned since meeting Sawada Tsunayoshi… is that there is no longer any possibility of me ending up like you".
Xanxus turns his back on Varon and slowly walks away. One astounding thing stops him his tracks. Perhaps the last recognisable attempt at conversation Varon would ever make.
"W… Why?".
"Why you ask…" Xanxus begins without turning to look at Varon.
"It's because I have friends".