"Ahhh! I'm an idiot!" Tsuna screamed at himself. "Why couldn't I move!? It'd have been fine if I just moved!"
"Ciaossu," Reborn said, appearing from the ceiling, Leon in hand.
"What the heck is that?!"
"Leon's finally settled down and entered a cocoon state," the hitman answered.
"Anyway, while things have gotten really bad here, what have you been up to?!"
"I was investigating a jailbreak incident that happened in Italy." Reborn began to explain what he found.
"Ahh hold on a minute," Tsuna said, realizing the situation. "If that's the case, our opponents are also in the mafia?!"
"The opposite," Reborn corrected. "These people have been exiled from the mafia."
"Ah, is that Chikusa?" Mukuro wondered and said male fell to the ground with a thump. "Oho. You found the one, hm?"
"Is Chikusa back?" Ken appeared through the doorway. "Oh my! Hyaaaa, how pathetic! All covered with blood and burnt to a crisp! How rare... Very rare..." he leaned close to the male, opening his mouth to bite him. "Hyaaaa the blood looks tasty!"
"Don't chew on him, Ken," Mukuro replied, making the boy stop in place. "He just lost consciousness. If he met the Vongola, there's no way Chikusa could have returned empty handed unless he's found something. Let's wait for him to wake up." He then stood up from the couch. "No matter, I think I will go out since we have time."
"Hm? Go out to where, Mukuro-san?" Ken questioned, curious.
"To capture the other target that tied for rank one." Mukuro's eyes gleamed in amusement as he recalled the name. "I believe her name was Kocho Tomoe, kufufufu."
Tomoe frowned, Kyoya was not picking up his phone and her father had called her to inform her that Kusakabe was in the hospital, beaten.
Her hands clenched around the cup she was holding. 'Shit... I don't know much of the details of this arc, so I don't know much that happens, but...' "Where the hell are you, Kyoya? ...Stop making me so worried, you idiot..."
"Neechan..."
"Mhm? What is it, Arashi? Shouldn't you be in bed right now?" Tomoe tiredly asked, looking at the boy who called out from her by the door.
"I can't sleep... Nightmare..."
"Want me to bring you to mama and papa?"
"Mhm... Please."
She smiled, walking over and picking him up. "Let's go to them."
Humming as she cradled Arashi in her arms, Tomoe's feet made no sounds as she walked across the traditional wooden floors of her home.
She did her best to keep quiet to not wake the three year old. If she woke him up, then it would make her feel guilty as it was hard to put the boy to sleep. She didn't want to go back to her parent's room to ask them to put Arashi back to sleep again.
Entering his room, she walked over to the small bed and gently placed her brother down. Tomoe tucked him in, carefully pulling the cover over to make sure he wouldn't be cold.
She smiled, caressing his short black hair and leaned down to his forehead. "Goodnight Arashi."
"Nghm..." the boy made a noise, turning over to his side and Tomoe continued to smile at his sleeping form.
However, that all came to a stop when she felt a presence appear behind her, the feeling of flames were prominent and Tomoe could tell that they were trained. This person was a strong threat, and it was someone she did not know. After all, she didn't personally know anyone or recall anyone in Namimori having mist flames.
Her flames threateningly flared in response as her posture tensed. 'Are they an assassin or mafioso?!'
Quickly turning around, she was face to face with a male who had his dark blue hair tied up and heterochromatic eyes that stood out, one being blue while the other was red with a kanji number for six in his eye. A trident was in his hand and Tomoe immediately knew who he was.
Rokudo Mukuro, the future half-mist guardian of Vongola. A strong mist user who could even surpass an Arcobaleno and escape the feared Vindice.
He was someone who hated the mafia and did not care to use people as tools or kill. Additionally, he was the antagonist for the arc currently happening, the one causing all of the attacks in order to lead out Tsuna and possess his body to destroy the entire mafia.
'W-What?! Why is he here?! I thought he would send one of his partners to fight me like the others! I can beat him, however it will be a bit tricky, especially since he is more experienced than me and will go for the kill if needed... Besides, I can't put my family at risk if we fight here and now.'
It was silent, the two observing and assessing each other until he spoke. "Kufufu. It seems unlike the others you have your flames well trained and under good control. I guess there was a good reason why you were tied for the number one spot with that skylark." He cocked his head to the side. "Tell me, are you part of the mafia?"
"No," Tomoe replied quickly and firmly. "I don't desire to be tied to that world." She glared slightly, moving her arm slightly to prepare her flames in case he began to attack. "What brings you here during the night? Uninvited guests are quite unexpected."
Mukuro raised a brow, smirking in amusement. "Kufufufu. No need to be all tense, I'm only here for a chat." To prove his point, he made his trident disappear.
"A chat?" Tomoe mumbled. 'He didn't lie and his body language didn't change at all.' "Fine." She put her arm back down and straightened her posture, crossing her arms. "Let's talk then."
"Kufufufu, wonderful." He did a dramatic bow. "I am Rokudo Mukuro, it's a pleasure to meet you, Kocho Tomoe."
"Are you stalking me or something? Or am I just that famous enough for you to know my name?" She blurted out (out of habit) instead of giving out a smart reply.
Mukuro's eyes widened in shock for a second before he let out a laugh. "Kufufufu!"
"H-Hey!" She blushed slightly at his laughter directed at her.
"N-Ngh!"
Hearing a noise, Tomoe immediately snapped her head towards Arashi who was furrowing his brows, realizing that Mukuro's laughing was waking him up.
Without wasting a second, she ran up to the male and moved her hands up to his face, clamping his mouth shut with her hands which one hundred percent surprised the teenager. "Shh!" She shushed him, whispering. "Be quiet or else you'll wake him up!"
Mukuro stood there in shock, but Tomoe didn't seem to notice because her gaze was on the tossing and turning boy. Soon, his moving around stopped as he seemed to feel comfortable and started to peacefully sleep again.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Tomoe turned her head back to only blink, realizing Mukuro's face was only a few inches away from hers (due to her going on her tippy toes to reach him) and that she had habitually covered his mouth like he wasn't an escaped murderer who could have killed her at any second as she was distracted with her brother.
'Shiiiiiiiiiiit. He's going to try and kill me now. RIP me, here lies a dead bitch.' Slowly, she removed her hands from his mouth. "Uh... sorry?" She took a few steps back. "Let's... Let's just talk outside."
The male dumbly nodded, following behind her as they both walked out of the young boy's room. Tomoe noted that Mukuro followed behind her, walking four steps behind her. It put distance between the two, but at the same time, it didn't.
Tomoe stopped walking when they reached a good distance away from the main house, now they stood in the courtyard which was beside the outdoor training area. Turning around, the moon seemed to shine down on both of them.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about, Rokudo Mukuro?" Tomoe asked, eyes narrowed as her voice was full of seriousness.
Mukuro stared back at her, eyes narrowed, just as serious, if not more. "You, you're a reincarnator, aren't you?"
'...What...?'
A breeze blew between them, making the sakura tree petals flutter around them as the wind blew Tomoe's hair and clothes toward the side. Mukuro's smirk grew as he saw her wide eyes, a face full of panic and confusion.
'How did he...?'
"Kufufufufufufufu, I see you are then!" He let out a slightly crazed laugh. "To think that I would find someone like me in this world!"
'Huh? Like him? What? Is he also a reincarnator? How? Are there more of us?'
Questions flew into Tomoe's mind like a bulldoze.
"There is no one else like us in this world," he said, answering her questions and Tomoe's head snapped up, realizing he was standing right in front of her. 'When did he get so close to me?' "I am someone with six past lives, going through all six paths to Hades."
"S-Six...?" Tomoe managed to mumble out as she looked him in the eyes. 'Six past lives... That's...' "Y-You... I..."
Mukuro waited in response for her to say something. He watched as her figure trembled and tears began to escape from her eyes.
However, his eyes widened as she unexpectedly wrapped her arms around his neck and he was pulled down in for a hug.
"Huh...?"
"T-That must h-have been so sad and lonely!" Tomoe cried out, hugging him. "To endure that all by yourself with no one by your side or to tell...! T-That's painful!" She sniffed, not caring the tears that were running down her face. "When I died and reincarnated, I was sad... I-I had to leave behind my loved ones and start my life all over again... I was scared of what would happen to me and I always wondered what happened to my family after I died. Y-Yet you went through this six times already..."
She caressed the back of his head and Mukuro's eyes had never been wider. He was shocked. A girl that barely even knew him was embracing and comforting him? It was... It was...
It was so warm...
"You must have suffered so much..." Tomoe whispered as Mukuro buried his head deeper into her shoulder, letting the tension leave his body as he put his guard down for once. "I'm sorry that you had to go through all that."
'Warm... It's so warm...'
Mukuro closed his eyes, leaning into Tomoe's embrace.
Despite it being a cold and chilling night, to the both of them, it was warm.
"Reborn! What should I do?! I'm scared?!" Tsuna cried out.
"You already know what you should do," he replied as Tsuna thought of the others. "Don't forget what those guys have already done in order to find you. If you keep escaping from this, the victims will only increase."
Tsuna bit the inside of his cheek. "E-Even so... Even so, to me, I think what those guys are doing is really strange. Why get everyone into trouble... That Mukuro guy sure pisses me off!" he looked down. "But, even Hibari-san hasn't come back... There's no way that I, Dame-Tsuna, can go against a guy like that... It's impossible..."
"But, that's not what the others think."
"Oh! There you are. Let me go with you too!" Gokudera shouted. "This time I'm gonna kill that spectacles freak!"
"Gokudera-kun?! But, what about your injuries?!"
"What, those little scratches?!" The bomber laughed it off.
"I'm going too, Tsuna! The little guys told me all about the matter with Kokuyou High. It's an interschool mafia roleplay, isn't it?" Yamamoto said and Tsuna's jaw dropped. 'You were ticked Yamamoto!'
"I'm going too!" Bianchi joined in. "I'm worried about Hayato."
"GEEEEH!" Gokudera passed out. 'Opposite effect!'
"Right! We'll all go to the enemy grounds together then," Reborn decided.
"The hostage they have is someone you all know well."
Looking out the window of Kokuyou Land, Futa sat with his book to his chest, a blank stare in his eyes.
"Hey I have a quick question though," Tsuna blurted out, sweat rolling down his face at the look Reborn gave him. "We know that Hibari-san, who was ranked first, is missing... But what about Kocho-senpai?"
"What about her?" Yamamoto asked.
"Kocho-senpai, she was tied with Hibari-san in ranks."
"HUH?!" Gokudera yelled, coming back from the dead. "That woman is-?!"
"Are you worried that she'll get attacked as well?" Reborn guessed his thoughts and Tsuna flinched, nodding. "Don't worry, she'll be fine if she doesn't leave her house. Besides, now that they've found their target, do you really think they'll go for a mere civilian?"
(Yes, yes they would.)
Tomoe rubbed her eyes, realizing she was indeed not sleeping in her bedroom, but on a couch in a place she didn't know. Trying to remember how she got into this position, she thought back to the memories that occurred the day before.
'I met Mukuro and hugged him after finding out he was like me... We stood there in silence for a while... And then... And then we fought?' She paused, frowning. 'Why did we fight again?' She blinked. "Oh yeah... I beat his ass." 'Barely.'
"Don't need to brag," Mukuro grumbled and Tomoe looked over to see him sitting on the other side of the couch, bandages wrapped all around him. "It's not like you didn't come out unscathed too. I would have won if I didn't pass out first, you were on the brink of unconsciousness as well."
Tomoe looked at the bandages around her hands, arms, legs, and parts of her stomach (all her wounds were from scratches or punches/kicks which caused bruises, the same for Mukuro). Thankfully he didn't hit her face. Well, they did agree beforehand not to go for each other's faces. Their faces were both of their only redeeming quality.
They couldn't lose their good looks. That would be terrifying.
"So, why am I here Rokudo-kun."
Mukuro made a look of disgust. "Just call me Mukuro." He leaned back against the couch, throwing his arm on the top of it. "You call everyone else by nicknames, why call me by my last name?"
"Because you're older than me mentally," Tomoe admitted, biting the inside of her cheek. "Would Mukuro be okay?"
"Kufufu, that's fine. It's better than "Rokudo-kun"," he replied in a mocking tone. "Tomoe, is it okay if I call you that?"
"Mhm. Yeah s'cool," she mumbled, bringing her knees up to her chest as she leaned her head on them. Tomoe stared at Mukuro. "Can you answer my previous question? Why am I here?"
"Because I need you for my plans," he answered, looking at her with a serious gaze. "In order for them to proceed, I need to make it look like we attacked you and took you as hostage." The teenager gave her a closed eye smile. "So please be a good hostage for me."
Tomoe gave a look of disbelief and exasperation. "No cap? Man, that ain't cool at all." She huffed, letting herself fall into his lap, making him tense. "Low key not looking forward to this."
Mukuro let out a sigh, relaxing at the physical contact and he let out his signature laugh, patting Tomoe's head. "Kufufufu, don't worry Tomoe. Just pretend that you were beaten by me-" She gave him a look. "-Fine okay. We can pretend that you're unconscious. You fought against me and after we fought you were attacked by my comrades, and with your weakened state, you were unable to fight back and were taken to Kokuyo Land."
Tomoe nodded. "I like that excuse much better, please explain that to the others when they come charging in here and see me laying on your couch." She crossed her arms, sniffing. "I refuse to lie that I was beaten by you."
"Kufufu. But Namimori's other strongest fighter was?" Mukuro taunted, playing with her hair. "They will be curious as to how he lost against me, but you won."
"Bleh." 'Kyoya rubbed off on me. Tch, damn my prideful self.' "Whatever. I still don't admit I lost to you Mukuro."
An irk mark appeared on his face. "Kufufufufu. You are surprisingly prideful and childish Tomoe."
"Hn."
"What does that even mean?"
"By the way..." She drew out Mukuro tilted his head. "You beat up my dear Kyo-chan and damaged his face, didn't you?" He tensed, feeling a cold shiver go down his spine.
"Kufufu. So what if I did?"
Oof. Wrong answer buddy.
Tomoe smiled, reaching over as if to pat his head, but instead grabbed his hair, and pulled. "This is revenge, you pineapple!"
"ARGH!"
A/N: Tomoe has a thing for pretty boys
Also Mukuro and Tomoe! Yes! I wanted them to met so badly since those two would share and understand each other's pain since they are similar.
P.S. Tomoe may act calm and mature, but in reality she's petty and bit chaotic, she just hides that personality and sometimes it slips through her "facade" / current personality. (We all still have a childish/chaotic side to us even when we get older) - so, expect in the future chaps for that side of her to slowly start coming out. (especially in a certain Varia arc chap hehehehehe)