3/26/14

I will warn you: If you like part 1, ridden with high school problems about crushes, rejection and all the angst, then please don't read any further. This is a darker route with all the nit and grit of living Mafia-style. Looking at the original two chapters, it just wasn't as satisfying to try injecting humor when you know shit will go down in these five chapters of part 2 (which I'm still trying to push since my writing might get out of hand and stray from the right track) so I completely rewrote the start. YOU ALREADY KNOW HOW THIS STORY WILL END. If you remember how the future arc began, I will end exactly there. I will tie this up with the canon story. No slip-ups and bolsters will be involved when the ending crashes right in.

On the bright side though, a lot of characters will grow. Namesake was my only personal work out of all the things I've ever written and, compared to last year since I posted the last chapter, I've gained far, far more experience. I had to resort to relying on myself a couple of times, too blinded by the fact that being alone will help prevent me hurting others (OMG the drama). In so many ways, it was wrong for me to think of such a thing. Tsuna, Kyoko and the rest will eventually realize it. Looking at their experiences in this story, it is such a far cry from the angst of the predecessor. They have to realize they're in the adult world already. So many questions keep popping up. Will Tsuna become corrupted by the neverending cycle of betrayal or realize his romanticized dream? Will Kyoko finally tell Tsuna 'I love you?' Will Yamamoto become passionate about baseball again? Will Gokudera understand his Boss wasn't the Superman he idolized back in his school days? Will Ryohei finally 'man up'? Will Chrome actually speak her mind and not rely on Mukuro? Will Hibari remain the badass motherfucker we still remember TYB? Will Lambo realize all play and no work is not usually allowed in the Mafia? WILL MUKURO-NAPPOSAMA EVER MAKE AN APPEARANCE?! IDK LOL. Due to time and word constraints (I'm trying to control the words outtake trololol) I might (not) be able to answer them all.

So this is it.

Get ready for the ride. It's gonna be one heck of a roller coaster. Hopefully. Please.

From the Millefiore files under 'Vongola famiglia'. Loading…

Tape has been taken from the site of the Vongola Main HQ in Sicily. Dated two years ago. Sound file compressed. Press play when ready. Buffering… Click.

Audio translated. Encoded in text. Press file to open. Identities confirmed. The Vongola Storm Guardian. The Vongola Rain Guardian. The Vongola Sun Guardian. The Vongola Thunder Guardian. The Vongola Cloud Guardian. The Vongola Mist Guardian. The Vongola capo.

Storm Guardian: Why I joined? Why do you need to ask that?! All for the Tenth! The Tenth!

Rain Guardian: What? Ahaha, I joined the Vongola at first because it sounded like a fun game with all the 'swish' and 'ka-pow' and 'bzhoooo' and 'schwing'. It looked cool. Hahaha!

Sun Guardian: I knew deep in my heart that this would be the most extreme way for me to prove I'm the best at boxing! There was nothing gained from fighting in the ring alone! Fighting in the Mafia ring was the best! There were a lot of good rivals! It was tough, but training to fight everyone gave me strength I never thought I'd possess! Uoooooooooohhh to the extreeeeeeeeeeeme- CUT

Thunder Guardian: Umm… I forgot. Sorry, Kyoko-chan I really need to play this game with Ipin and Fuuta… Can I answer it later? I think it's about taking over the world or something… I was such a stupid kid, hahaha! Yay! Thanks! Fuuta! Ipin! I won't lose!

Cloud Guardian: To fight stronger opponents. I'll be going then. I have a tight schedule.

Mist Guardian: Kufufu~ Who said I joined the Mafia?

Vongola Boss: Um, it surprised me too. Back in junior high, I never thought it would be possible for me. I hated shouldering lots of responsibility and becoming the Vongola Boss was the last thing I needed. I wanted to go back to my life as an ordinary kid who'll then become an average salaryman. To tell the truth, the reason I agreed coming to Italy was because I didn't want to become Dame-Tsuna forever. When I returned to Namimori, I realized it was something more. There are things I wanted to accomplish, things I wanted to protect like Kyoko-san, and things I wanted to change. I think when I join the Mafia, I can do such things. I can leave a mark in this world.

Voice unknown. Woman.

Woman: You sound pretty damn naïve. And you overcut your time.

Vongola Boss: I thought you weren't allowed to talk since you're recording it!

~K27~

"So, everything that makes me whole
I will dedicate them all to you now
I'm Yours"

-My Dearest, supercell

THE BEGINNING OF THE END

"You're actually going to stay?" said an incredulous Tsuna-kun when I confirmed that I had indeed, from out of the blue, decided to go to Sicily with them.

I have to make sure he gets my drift so I raised my arms, yawned and nodded.

"B-But this is- H-how could you-"

"Erm, if I didn't, I think you wouldn't even try either Skyping or calling me?" Yep, I think that's a good thing to say.

"But I thought we broke up…"

He is kinda right (that's what I thought) but it was done so vaguely so I guess I didn't get over it.

"Did we? I'm sorry it wasn't really called a break up. I didn't utter a word then."

"Yes but still-" he now walks in circles around the front. By my left, Gokudera-kun was playing on the DS with Yamamoto-kun while the other Mafia 'henchmen' were dozing off in the other seats.

"Hey Tsuna-kun, don't you think New York was kinda cool? The musical was totally awesome-"

"Kyoko-san, don't you know the possible dangers you'll be burrowing yourself into once you come with me to Sicily?"

Oops. Look like the 'change-the-topic plan' wasn't a success.

Tsuna walked up to me with that piercing gaze of his I nearly coughed back the pineapple I was munching earlier.

"A little…?" I'm being honest here ok. I know there will be people who might come after his head and if they know I'm there…

"I'll take that as a no," he sighed and turned on me. He began pacing the plane in circles again. "Kyoko-san, you might die when given the chance."

"I'm perfectly aware of that, thank you." AT LEAST I KNOW THAT MUCH.

"It's not that bad, Tsuna," Yamamoto-kun called out from his button-smashing match. "I mean, it's not an hourly basis-"

"Still, if they find out Kyoko-san's here-"

"You say you miss her almost everyday," interjects Gokudera-kun.

"I-I do not. G-Gokudera-kun-!" Tsuna was coloring up as he stamps his feet in protest. It was kinda weak-willed. I never thought I'd see ultimo coolio Boss Tsuna breaking like this.

"Kyoko-san, it's the truth," Yamamoto-kun laughs. "He does not say it out loud but he often looks at your teabag charm like an idiot."

"H-How dare you the Tenth an idiot?! Take this lightning blast you damn baseball freak-!"

"T-That's reassuring," I smile quite mischievously at Tsuna-kun, who turns more scarlet as he turns away from me.

"I-I want to keep a cool image, guys!" he says exasperatingly. For now he takes a deep breath and just sits beside me. I look at the window. No island still in sight.

"It will be tough. I know that," I assured him. "I've thought it over back in Namimori. That's a good reason why I broke it off. Why you didn't talk to me at all."

"I could've used technology to my advantage either way to contact you. I was just too scared. I never thought I'd be doing the wrong things for the right reasons."

"It's a common mistake humans make," I shrugged.

"I might become too protective and suffocate you." There was a tinge of apprehension staining his ardent tone. "All human beings have limits."

"You make it sound like it's a test," I snort. "It's not about what we endure. It's about what place we'll reach once we endure it."

"That's a cheesy way to put it," Tsuna-kun laughs.

"What can I say? I'm a sucker at romance."

That was all the words I needed to say to get an affectionate peck on the cheek.

~K27~

To be honest, I didn't expect this much of a welcome. I never thought that it this early the Mafia would make sure I'm engaged as much as possible. Starting with, uh, making me dodge bullets and worry whether I'm still intact.

"Gokudera, Yamamoto, come with me! The others will stay to provide cover for us. Kyoko-san, just don't move there!"

We've barely left the plane when the cargo cars suddenly opened and more men in black suits were shooting at us like this was an action movie set. Obviously I wasn't prepared for such a grand scene.

I covered my head from a corner of the plane as more guys just shot at the inside of the plane windows and randomly shoot from there. Tsuna and the others go deeper inside, probably at the cargo place to find a back exit and surprise the enemy.

I deserve a pat on the back for knowing such a strategy. That, or maybe it's too simple that an idiot like me could easily know what was coming.

A shout of surprise and swearing was heard from the outside. In less than three minutes, the trio came from the inside of the plane, much to our chagrin.

"Show's over. Hibari's here."

~K27~

Dammit I thought things would end much later. But then again, I placed the possibility of Tsuna-kun's ability in turning people to ice out of the equation and Hibari-san's possible Deus ex Machina-ist intervention so it's partially my fault.

"I thought you had an appointment later with the Mortare family," Tsuna said.

"I had an extra thirty minutes to pick you up," he said simply. "Kusakabe did his work earlier than last time."

"Is that so…"

"The last time Kusakabe was a minute late from their meeting, Hibari made sure to knock the shit out of the dude. I almost pitied him if it wasn't for his ugly hair," whispered Gokudera-kun at me. Both of us were at the back of his Benz while Tsuna was helming us along with Hibari on the front.

"Gokudera Hayato, if you don't intend to say something nice, make sure to keep your mouth shut."

"You fucker! I let you drive the fucking car for the Tenth and now you're- OUCH! NOW THAT'S GOING TOO FAR, GODDAMMIT!"

Hibari-san raised his tonfa further as his empty hand continued to swerve the car. Tsuna was now looking at us quite nervously.

"Erm, Gokudera-kun I think it's better if you keep quiet," I whisper. It was a good thing I'm the one in the middle to keep either of them in check. "I mean, he saved you guys earlier. Let him have his fun."

"Better you than me."

"Wow, thank you Gokudera-kun for being so freaking considerate."

Why I'm glad I didn't end up with him: He gets really unnerving. I'm really surprised Haru stuck up with this douchebag.

~K27~

Audio Recording. Intercepted phonecall from Namimori, Japan to Sicily, Italy. Woman presumed as Sasagawa Kyoko.

Sasagawa Kyoko: I'm sorry. I always thought you were a total jerkass.

Storm Guardian: I'm used to it. That's why I give up on relationships. What's up?

Sasagawa Kyoko: I miss Tsuna.

Storm Guardian: A lot of us do, Kyoko-san.

Sasagawa Kyoko: You probably miss him more than me.

Storm Guardian: I seriously doubt that.

Sasagawa Kyoko: Will it ever get better…? Are you guys still intent on fighting on?

Storm Guardian: Until our last breath.

Sasagawa Kyoko: Tsuna wouldn't want any of you to die.

Storm Guardian: And we don't want the dreams he built up to fall. It's not just his dream anymore. It's our dream too.

Sasagawa Kyoko: If you matured this much seven years ago, I would've told you sooner.

Storm Guardian: Even so, we were just not meant to be.

Sasagawa Kyoko: I had no regrets.

Storm Guardian: Me too, Kyoko-san.

Sasagawa Kyoko: But now, I have more regrets than I can count. Starting when Tsuna- when he-

Cut.

~K27~

Sicily is awesome! It's such a picturesque, almost archaic mishmash of history that it makes me fangirl and lap everything up because it reminds me of my ideal lover (which is not Tsuna)- it became more beautiful as it aged.

That, and the beach was beautiful (I actually just want to sleep on the Italian waters since it looks really cool).

"Kyoko-san, we're almost there," said Tsuna-kun from the front. Sure enough we now zoomed past green foray of trees that seemed like hundreds of years old with the aged trunks. I can just ogle at the sight before nearly ripping the map Yamamoto-kun gave me of Sicily.

Tsuna-kun must've noticed the gleam in my eyes and just looks at me.

"We can check the sights once I get back from my trip."

"Which is…?"

"It'll be over in six days," he grins. "And if you don't want that, I'll ask Yamamoto-kun to accompany you tomorrow."

"Erm, thanks…" This kind aura from Tsuna's rubbing me the wrong way. The thought of him crystallizing me if I disobey hangs like a warning sign in front of me.

I could just gape when I see their HQ in sight. And holy jeezus, it doesn't even deserve to be called their HQ. It looked more a castle that popped out from Grimms' fairytales, than a haven of criminals (a harsher way to put it but-).

When they even opened the door, a lot of men in suits and shades were bowing at by the entrance. My jaw dropped as Bianchi-san, donning her signature tattered jeans and tank top cover with extra purple tinted shades walked up to us, still unable to see me when-

"Kyoko-chan! I-Is that you?!"

Soon enough, I was pressed into a tight hug. It didn't take too long before three more people, two kids and a teenager where running towards me and completing the circle of welcome that didn't mirror my expectations of how the Mafia should welcome me.

"Kyoko-nee!"

"Nee-san! Your hair's so long!"

"Pretty nee-chan!"

I couldn't believe my eyes when I looked at them.

"Fuuta? I-pin? Lambo?"

All of them nodded in earnest. The gangly teenager with a cute grin turned out to be none other than Fuuta-kun, while the little lady wearing a red summer dress was I-pin-chan. And I can't believe this cool-looking kid was Lambo-kun! WTF happened to the afro?! Was it even real?! I can't- This is-

"We miss you nee-san!" Fuuta gave me an extra hug, unable to contain his tears. I could only pat his back because HE WAS TALLER THAN ME BY NEARLY A HEAD.

"WAHHH!" Lambo was still a crybaby as always as he tugs my shirt.

"Are you staying?" I-pin asks shyly. "Please stay oh please oh please oh please-"

And the three completely ignored the others who arrived with me. Tsuna then gestured the others to move forward with him and pass us, but not before talking to Fuuta first.

"Can you give Kyoko-san a tour around the palazzo while we conduct a meeting?"

"Tsuna, am I allowed to stay here?" Lambo-kun immediately butts in. I'm still unnerved by the hair care he must've taken to transform that hair of his.

"Tenth, the stupid cow must not forget his duties!" Gokudera pipes up, giving Lambo-kun his signature glare.

"Then I'll tick this from his day offs," Tsuna says as he pats Gokudera's shoulder. "Give the kid a break. He was with us in Russia last week."

Gokudera-kun merely glares at Lambo-kun again before standing right behind Tsuna. Yamamoto-kun just winks at me.

"See you tonight, Kyoko-san," Tsuna-kun smiles as he continues walking at the door, with his three guardians behind him.

"Gotta go too," said Bianchi. "Reborn and I am going on vacation somewhere in Milan," she says dreamily before retreating back inside.

The three of us were left outside. The people in suits remained in their poses, bowing at us.

"Umm, Kyoko-san," said Fuuta. "We should go inside too so the other guards would resume their work here.

"Oh-oh right," I said in relief. Whew, just the cue I was waiting for!

~K27~

"The palazzo was built during the time of Vongola Primo, during the early days of the Mafia in the 18th century," said Fuuta as we closed the big oaken doors of the entrance and were now walking past the marble-laden foyer with red silky plush chairs and furnished-gold tables. "This was originally the First Mist Guardian's rest house in Sicily, which was converted into the first ever HQ."

"According to our lessons in the Mafia school, the cradle of the Mafia was here in Sicily," I-pin said brightly as we now walked to a gallery of portraits. Underneath were descriptions carved in bronze and painted in black. "The Vongola was one of the first founding families, along with the Shimon and the Giglio Nero, and one of those that survived the great purge during the Fascist regime."

We now passed a portrait of the Vongola Primo, who was the spitting image of Tsuna that I had to rub my eyes to make sure I wasn't seeing double.

"You should say something Lambo!" chides I-pin as we now pass more portraits of the Vongola bosses. What struck me was, only the first, second and fifth had the younger portraits. The eight also struck me, since she was the only female boss.

"Ehhh, I'm not really good at history, you know!" yells Lambo. "Umm, the only thing I'm sure of, with what those noisy old men were saying-"

"-he means Gokudera-nii and the other guardians," whispers Fuuta to my ear as we passed the ninth boss, who had the oldest portrait out of the bunch.

"-Was that the Vongola changed from how the first boss wanted it to be," he continued. "And I think the current boss wants to return to the original way."

We now stop at a portrait of Tsuna, who was holding his flaming gloves in front and looked like he was staring into space.

"Which is…?" I half-asked.

"To protect the weak," Lambo said. "Corny, right?"

"I think it's admirable!" I-pin pointed out. "Tsuna-niichan is doing something heroic compared to the other famiglias for a change!"

"But so far," said Fuuta, whose gaze went from Tsuna-kun's portrait and then to my face. "That pureness of a goal isn't as pure if you look at his methods. No matter how hard Tsuna-nii tries, history has proved you cannot return things to the ways they were. The world has changed. People's hearts have changed."

"Fuuta-kun, you sound like you know better than me about life," I laugh nervously to how the conversation steered to such a darker tone.

"Ah, it's because I've been reading too much books on philosophy in my free time," Fuuta scratches and bows his head, laughing in embarrassment.

"Fuuta-kun's an honor student! The best in his batch!" I-pin sings out.

"He helps me with my homework," Lambo grumbles.

"I-It's nothing to be too proud about!" Fuuta says quickly. "I lost my ranking powers, so I'm just studying hard to help the Mafia with my brains in the near future. "I want to dabble in political science so I can at least help with how laws are enforced in Sicily. I hope to become a governor in the future and help the Vongola."

"Y-You're thinking that far ahead!" I open my mouth.

"It's the only thing I can do. I mean- Lambo-chan is the one with the most potential to directly aid in the Vongola reconstruction-"

"I'm not a good Guardian though! I don't know most of the rules yet. And they don't let me participate in fights…"

"When you grow older, things will change though."

"I want to grow old now then! I'm really sick of studying during weekdays!"

"You'll take that back Lambo once you do. I'm already fourteen and wish I were back in Namimori."

"Gah, you confuse me!" Lambo howls as he begins headbanging back and forth.

"What about you, Ipin-chan? Are you here on vacation too?" I asked sweetly at her.

"I'm here to study with Lambo and the others!" she says brightly. "During the summer I return to China and train with master. I want to join the Vongola soon as well!"

Wow. These guys have grown to this extent. They've decided already that they want to help the Vongola in their own respective ways.

"What about Kyoko-nee? Are you visiting?" asked Fuuta.

"I-I'm staying. But I am still unsure. I want to help too but-"

"REALLY?" The three said in unison, their smiles growing wider.

"Erm, yes. W-What can I do to help? I haven't trained myself in fighting or in Mafia politics…"

"It's ok Kyoko-chan! There's plenty of time to learn!" said Fuuta. "And there are lots of things you can do! I'm sure Tsuna-nii won't permit you to fight with us, but you can, um, stay here and keep things in order."

Like cooking and cleaning. I know that's what Fuuta implies. I'll be the trophy wife who'll wait dutifully for her beloved husband to return from his work everyday.

I guess that's the limits of what I can do as a person who knows nothing about hurting others.

"Kyoko-neechan, why did you come back?"

I-pin's question catches me off guard. I can only stare at her googly-eyes. To be honest, I'm embarrassed by the truth. Compared to them, I haven't truly thought over the reason why I decided to jump on the Vongola bandwagon.

But yeah, I just let the words tumble to my mouth. I continued looking at portrait Tsuna's dazed orange eyes.

"I guess you can say I decided to give Tsuna-kun a yes."

If I said I wanted to stay by his side, it would really sound like cheese quintupled.

"WAHHHHHHHHH!" Fuuta and I-pin then hugged me rather tightly. Lambo, meanwhile had his tongue out and was trying to vomit in the corner. Yep, I still can't erase the cheese and the rainbows (plus big fat unicorns) no matter how hard I try to ugli-fy it.

"I never thought Kyoko-nee had it in her!" said Fuuta.

"Nee-san seemed like a cold-hearted person when it comes to love!" added I-pin, making me turn pink.

"Kyoko-nee and Tsuna, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-" I made sure to cover Lambo's mouth hard before he tries putting the nail in the coffin.

"Kids…" I just had to say, making me all the more feel old. When I was also their age, I also liked prodding about Onii-chan's lovelife. Now I'm the one who's teased at by kids, good grief. Time sure flies by so fast.

"Since Kyoko-nee doesn't like talking about it, we can continue our tour!" now said Fuuta.

"YEAH!" said the other two.

I just ruffled their hair. Turned out we would finish only two-thirds of the place by nightfall.

~K27~

"Sorry about that," said Tsuna an hour later after dinner as he leads me to my bedroom. "Chrome and Ryohei-san are out in the meantime. They might return tomorrow."

"They're not coming with you?"

"They might not make it. Chrome's coming back from the Vendicare. She's making arrangements for Mukuro's parole-"

"U-umm is that even possible? I thought the punishment was too severe…"

"We're trying to assist in any way we can though," he smiled. "The Vindice are much nicer these days."

"And what about Onii-chan?"

"He's coming back from a match. He might get a world title shot this year," he answered rather happily.

"He hasn't told me he turned pro," I nearly grumbled. And he told me it wasn't good to keep secrets…

"He didn't want you to worry," said Tsuna.

"More like he worries I'll make him quit," I said matter-of-factly. "Not like it matters. I'm fine if he's happy with what he's doing."

"That's nice of you, Kyoko-san."

"Whatever. He's old enough to do what he wants," I shake my head. "Besides, what about you and the others? Are you guys doing good?"

Even in the plane, I was never plucky enough to ask him questions. I just kept quiet while he answered phone calls and e-mails. I'm more than touched right now because I don't see his phone with him.

"Not everyone's happy, Kyoko-san," said Tsuna. The truthfulness of his word slapped me with such force I realized he was leading me far from the place the three toured me earlier. "It's still taking us a long time to adjust to our responsibilities. We are the youngest successors of the Vongola will, after all."

It strikes me that he's this brave to tell me things were never the same since they came back here.

"It makes me work all the more harder though," he continues. "Especially now that Kyoko-san's here."

We stop in front of a large door. I can barely look into his eyes because of his… fucking idealistic train of thinking. He's pragmatic enough to make me see things aren't okay but still naïve enough to think that with me here, it'll be fine. He's so stupid.

"Open it," he nudges and when I pressed the brass knob, I can barely utter a word.

Instead of one of the opulent foreign bedrooms that should befit a visitor of a foreign land, I see a bedroom the exact replica of mine at home. It even includes all the pictures I had of my brother and them.

"This is your home now right? Well first things first, I need to make sure that you feel right at home here," he says as he steps in front. "Gokudera took care of the pictures. We tried rushing the other furniture."

"Yeah, this bed's bigger than the one in Namimori…" I scoffed. My hands just found my lips. Really, this was too much.

"I-I'm sorry if you don't like it-"

He didn't manage to finish his apology because I ended up embracing him tightly.

"You really treat me like a damn kid, you know," I murmur.

He doesn't say anything as he carries me to the bed. I didn't object.

"Thank you…" I just whisper, my smile widening with every tick of the clock by the small table.

"Kyoko-chan…" he says as his left hand entwines to my left. He then lets my head land on my pillow. It was one of the most exhilarating sensations I ever had. I landed in one of the softest beds I've ever been in. My heart was palpitating so fast I feel quite dizzy. And yet.

"Tsuna? Will you stay here for a minute? Until I feel asleep? Don't worry, I won't take long. I think." His hand finally leaves as he stands up.

He laughs as he plops himself on the sofa by my left. "If I hear you snore, I'll leave."

"I-I snore?"

"You did back in the plane. Gokudera and Yamamoto were drawing faces on you, haha."

"Those sneaks!" I turn back on him and seize my phone on my pocket, hell-bent on e-mailing Haru. "I'm seriously telling Gokudera on Haru. Umm Tsuna-"

When I turn around, Tsuna's eyes were closed. He was already asleep with a head lolling on the sofa, looking truly well-spent. I smiled. Right now, I was seeing the Tsuna I dearly remembered.

I yawned. The phone clicks and I toss it by the bed before taking the bed sheet. I then sit beside him, letting his head rest on my shoulder while I covered ourselves. I stole a glance at his long eyelashes before also retreating in sleep.

Earlier, I wasn't sure of my reasons. Was the reason for all this… was love? Was there something more for me to know? Did fate plan this? Right then it didn't matter.

What mattered was my epiphany of Tsuna being vulnerable too. He was still human amidst his status among even the mafia elite. He was still an unsure nineteen year old under his calm and collected façade. He by then made me feel that I wasn't as different as I thought. That I wasn't the only one.

~K27~

Continue. Encoded in Text.

Storm Guardian: And then when I joined for real, I found out I know nothing. That there will be times I will doubt the Tenth. That joining the Mafia was a test of willpower. Most of the time I would disagree with the Tenth and make decisions for myself. What surprised me was… not all of them were mistakes. That I didn't have to kill for the sake of the Mafia. That I won't be merely a storm that would destroy. I found that all on my own. I guess I thank the Tenth for it.

Rain Guardian: I killed my first man at 16. I couldn't sleep for days. When I thought it was over, it turns out I have to kill a lot more. Of course, I don't tell the old man. I wonder what he'll say if he finds out. Will he still accept a murderer for a son? It often makes me think more of what kind of game I'm playing. If it was more than a game, more than a game of life and death, then what was it?

Sun Guardian: CUT

Thunder Guardian: Oh right! Well, I joined because I thought I'll be able to rule to world one day. Umm I guess that's it… Bye, bye Kyoko-chan! I need to do my homework. Basil and Fuuta will help me pass my math exams. Please pray for me!

Cloud Guardian: I learned how weak I was. How cocksure I was to beat everyone, and then fall facedown in humiliation because of my arrogance. I had so many things to learn. I had so many weak resolves I needed to discard. I didn't like the thought of knowing there are people stronger than me, up until now. Sawada Tsunayoshi and the baby taught me a lot of things. I learned tenacity. I learned to keep going even if my limits didn't permit me to. I learned… living.

Mist Guardian: Umm… I joined because… it was what Mukuro-sama wanted. And then I began wondering if I wanted it like Mukuro-sama does. Even though we shared the same body, it turned out we thought differently. I wanted to stay with the Vongola because I know I was capable of doing something. People could count on me aside from Mukuro-sama. I think… it's the best feeling to know people trust you. I was able to do things I never thought I can do on my own. It's all thanks to them I'm able to say, Chrome Dokuro, Mist Guardian of the Vongola.

Vongola Boss: Most of all, I learned that I wasn't alone. That my mistake would be their mistake. In the back of my mind, I knew it was inevitable. I hesitated of course. The burden would be too much. But they helped me carry it. I always thought burdens shouldn't be shared, but the more I hurt myself, the more I also hurt the people around me. I'm happy you made me see that. I'm happy you're here. That you're still here.

~K27~

Next Chapter: We have to face reality and, grow up.