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lispersducoeur · 2 years

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KHR Theory

Hi everyone! How are you doing? I have a theory about "Katekyo Hitman: Reborn!" and I would like to share it with you so you can give me your opinion :)

I'm French at the base and I'm not bilingual in English so everything has been translated thanks to DeepL even if I corrected some mistakes.

"Hope" (with an uppercase) = the virtue of Hope

"hope" (without an uppercase) = hope, opposed to despair

Let's begin :

The term "born again" in English, or "Nouvelle Naissance" in French, is, in the Christian religion, the conversion to Christianity. Already, "born again"... "reborn"... it's easy to make the connection.

Let's say that the character of Reborn represents the hope that allows people to become a better person (rebirth, to reborn,...). This goes along with the term "born again", it would mean that the character of Reborn also represents religion.

Dino: Dino was about to lose his father, he had to take over his family, he was desperate but Reborn comes into his life and helps him. Dino is the "alumnus of hope" and he is there to help Tsuna manage her new world. Like a "big brother" (as said in the work).

Lexical field of death, depression and suicide:

Gun

Bullets in the head

Pills that make you stronger

"Dying will"

We know that the Varia represent the 7 deadly sins:

7 deadly sins :

Anger : Xanxus

Gluttony : Gola Mosca

Sloth : Belphegor

Lust : Lussuria

Greed : Mammon

Envy : Levi A Than

Pride: Superbi Squalo

The fact that they are opposed to the Vongola may mean that they are the 7 Catholic virtues:

7 Catholic virtues:

Temperance: Tsuna

Justice : Hibari

Faith : Gokudera

Fortitude : Ryohei

Hope : Mukuro/Chrome

Prudence : Lambo

Charity : Yamamoto

Explanation for each guardian: (the quotes come from the French Wikipedia which have been translated on DeepL)

Ryohei: Fortitude

"To possess the virtue of fortitude is to overcome human weakness and especially fear. Man, by nature, is inclined to fear danger, misfortune and suffering. It is par excellence the virtue of the "heroes". They go beyond their limits, "with firmness in front of the recognized risk, that is to say in last resort in front of the death", for the good of others or to defend the truth and the justice. The virtue of fortitude goes hand in hand with sacrifice."

Ryohei is the boxer who constantly wants to go beyond his limit. This description fits him: he never bends in the face of danger and he is presented from the beginning as a strong character (he is the leader of the boxing club) and with a powerful soul.

Lambo : Prudence

Lambo embodies Prudence for various reasons: he is very fearful and fear is a form of prudence. He will have throughout the manga a shield and an armor, symbol of prudence. According to St. Augustine: "Prudence is the love that sagaciously separates what is useful from what is harmful" this can represent Lambo who can store electricity in his horns and use it in battle, making the harmful (lightning) useful. The mission of the thunder guardian is to protect the family like a lightning rod. The first thunder guardian was sent to the front line with a shield, as a precaution.

Gokudera : Faith

Gokudera represents faith. He is devoted to Tsuna, believes hard in him and it shows in his behavior. Tsuna is also the Godfather and so "Sky" (Heavens, but Tsuna is not God in the manga). Faith is the fact to believe in something and to be devoted to it, while adopting behaviors which show it.

Hibari : Justice

Justice is the judgment of any individual or behavior because of morality. Hibari is the head of the disciplinary committee, he embodies justice from his arrival. In the Simon arc, he will affirm that his pride is discipline, therefore Justice. Justice must be neutral, exactly like Hibari: the solitary cloud that protects the family without any particular attachment.

Mukuro/Chrome : Hope

There are two quotes about the virtue of Hope on the French Wikipedia:

"Hope is a heroic virtue. It is believed that it is easy to hope. But only those who have had the courage to despair of the illusions and lies in which they found a security that they falsely took for hope." Georges Bernanos.

And :

"The true, great hope of man, which resists in spite of all disillusionment, can only be God. (...) We need hopes - the smallest or the greatest - which, day by day, keep us going. But without the great hope, which must surpass everything else, they are not enough. This great hope can only be God, who embraces the universe and who can propose and give us what we alone cannot attain." Benedict XVI.

In these quotes, there is mention of illusions, which is the main fighting technique of Mukuro and Chrome. Moreover, it is said that Esperance proposes to us "that which, alone, we cannot reach", that falls well because Mukuro and Chrome are two. Moreover, one and the other hope mutually something: Mukuro hopes to be able to leave his prison thanks to Chrome, it is besides his only means of exit via an illusion or by taking control of his body. And Chrome hopes to live thanks to Mukuro's powerful illusions recreating his internal organs.

Yamamoto : Charity

Charity is love of our neighbor.

"Charity takes patience, charity renders service, it does not envy, it does not swagger, it is not puffed up with pride, it does not do anything ugly, it does not seek its own interest, it is not irritated, it does not harbor grudges, it does not rejoice in injustice, but finds its joy in the truth. It excuses all things, it believes all things, it hopes all things, it endures all things." Paul of Tarsus, First Epistle to the Corinthians.

This perfectly defines Yamamoto, who truly loves his neighbor. Also, the sword is the symbol of God's love, but that may be just because a swordplayer was needed in the hero's team.

Tsuna : Temperance

Temperance is the virtue that conditions all the others indirectly: like the sky. It brings harmony, which is the attribute of the flame of Sky. Temperance is the voluntary self-restraint, it allows to control one's will, one's excesses, etc...

Tsuna embodies this virtue perfectly in the sense that he is the one who unites his family, and therefore the 7 virtues, like the sky which encompasses everything and influences everything, and also because he controls his will: his flame. The character does not sink into excess either.

Tsuna doesn't care about dying at the beginning, he regains hope as the story goes on, he goes above and beyond to protect the reason for living that he has acquired, his friends. In the Daily Life arc, he will say that he has no real reason to live and that dying doesn't make him hot or cold, in the Kokuyo arc, against Mukuro, Tsuna will lament on his fate saying that everything is over and that he "did his best" but that he couldn't defeat Mukuro, and it's his last will, the one of protecting those he loves, that will raise him up.

Now, the story and its message:

In the Battle of the Rings Arc, Tsuna and his guardians, representing the 7 Christian virtues, will face off directly with their Varia counterparts, representing the 7 deadly sins. Tsuna will fight against evil to protect his friends. He will have to become stronger to protect those he loves: he now has a reason to live. Xanxus is Tsuna's rival, the sin of anger, both characters have a problem with their respective fathers and Xanxus will reject his father's love because of anger (so he practices his sin and rejects the father's love and therefore faith) while Tsuna, who knows how to control himself, will overcome it. Xanxus who is consumed by anger and hatred will be defeated by the one who embodies temperance and self-control.

There are also parallels between the members of the Varia and the Vongola guardians (Squalo and Yamamoto = Pride and Charity. So, the taker and the giver. In their conversation in the future, Yamamoto will want to give time to his two passions, but Squalo will tell him to take time only for the sword) (Belphegor and Gokudera both have problems with their families but Belphegor has fallen into sin by killing them all, unlike Gokudera). The fact that Xanxus is frozen may be a reference to the Divina Comedia. In the writings about Hell, the lower we go, the more ice is present, as if it was not flames that were at the bottom of Hell, but ice, ice that prevents us from reaching the purgatory to repent so much our sins are important. As if we were trapped, frozen with them, for eternity.

In the future, Tsuna is dead. He will fight to avoid this death which shows that he now holds on to life thanks to hope and what it has brought him. He will face Byakuran, who is a human with power who will want to rise higher than God (he makes wings appear as a "symbol" because he is "superhuman", and he wants to become the God of a new world that he will create). Tsuna burns Byakuran's wings during the fight, which has a huge symbolism, he will even say to him: "So Byakuran, do you become a simple human again after losing your wings?" Byakuran is either a fallen angel wanting to rise above God, or the Antichrist.

Byakuran pretends to be a messiah to everyone, and, thanks to his knowledge of parallel worlds, he can perform miracles.

He will be somehow "exorcised" by Uni, the granddaughter of a shaman (religious power), who will take his powers back to the past. Moreover, Byakuran dies consumed by flames, he is the only enemy that Tsuna really kills, and he is entirely disintegrated by an X-Burner.

In the Simon arc, demons from the past resurface and Tsuna must face them with his friends to protect their loved ones and keep their lives. Enma is in despair and Daemon will use him, and Hope (Chrome), to get his way.

In the Curse of the Rainbow arc, Tsuna will be pushed to fight for hope, on his behalf. He will even have to support him and protect him from death. Arcobalenos are angels: those who mediate between God and humans. In the biblical religions, the Rainbow (Arcobaleno in Italian) is the bridge between God and mankind, the Covenant of God with mankind after the flood. The Arcobalenos are chosen by Checker Face. Checker Face is therefore God. "Checker" means: one who checks, or judges. In religion, this can only be God. He is an alien who is a life form more evolved than humans, he is probably the most powerful character of the manga. He comes from the heavens and this makes sense when you know the principle of the Trinity: God exists in three forms: The Father, The Son and the Holy Spirit. The Son, therefore, in the Catholic religion: Jesus, perhaps Kawahira: Checker Face in his human form who comes to help the virtuous (so the Vongola, for example, as in the future) and the form of God when he comes to Earth. The Vendicare prison represents hell, with its different levels, the lower you are in the prison, the more serious your crime. Just like in hell. It is lead by Bermuda Von Weckenstein, who is a former arcobaleno, so a fallen angel. He wants to kill Checker Face, who is God. Bermuda is therefore Lucifer. This arc is strongly adapted from the episode of the "War in Heaven" in the Christian religion. By the way, "Vendicare" means "revenge" in Italian, so it is the prison of those who want to take revenge.

Extra: The first guardian of the Sun was a priest. Connecting everything to Heaven and Sky makes sense. The Italian mafia families are Christian and choosing this milieu allows the author to address the themes of family, godfather, and father. Tsuna is described as fighting with clenched fists, as if in prayer, as if he were praying for the salvation of his soul.

Tsuna realizes at the end of the manga how far he has come and what he is living for thanks to Reborn.

Message of hope: Reborn leaves, Tsuna denigrates himself and tells himself that he has not changed. Reborn comes back, he says that he will not leave until his mission is accomplished. If we replace "Reborn" by "hope", it makes sense. As if we shouldn't lose hope because hope always comes back in the end, until it has lifted us up for good.

So: Reborn is about a depressed teenager that hope will bring him out of his depression. Accompanied by the virtues and knowing how to control himself, he will face vices, sins, his past and evil beings who do not apply the virtues. He will have to protect hope in order to be reborn as a better man through the Christian religion. "Katekyo Hitman: Reborn!" tells the story of the new birth of Sawada Tsunayoshi.

There is also another part of this theory that I thought about but I'm not sure for several reasons: it seems too far-fetched and the author wanted to continue her manga. I share it with you anyway:

Each arc represents a stage of mourning, which makes sense knowing that, to have a new birth, you have to die once. And Tsuna only dies each time he takes a dying will bullet. This means that Tsuna is mourning his old self, so that he can finally be reborn as a Christian. He is approaching Heaven and thus the title of 10th Vongola Godfather.

Kokuyo arc: Denial

This is the first time that Tsuna's world will be really turned upside down, during all the arc he won't believe it, he will constantly complain to Reborn saying that he can't be part of this world, he is in denial.

Mukuro represents the denial, he is not aware of his own death (Mukuro means Corpse), and he comes back from the dead as if he was in denial. Mukuro commits suicide in front of everyone and comes back, he takes the bodies of others etc... he is not aware of his death and he denies it by all means.

Arc Varia : Anger

Already, Xanxus is the cardinal sin of Anger, I think I don't need to go further

Tsuna is angry with his father and after beating Xanxus (and thus Anger) he will be more understanding towards Iemitsu

Future Arc : Bargaining

Tsuna has to prevent his own death and the death of his relatives. He goes to the future (something higher than him) and there is no arc in which negotiations are so central to the plot. Byakuran bargains all the time: that's why Tsuna is supposed to be dead, bargaining in his base Byakuran bargains with Uni to merge their families and Byakuran will bargain again with Uni later to get her back to his side to use the power of 7³. Tsuna becomes stronger and fights, to bargain for his death.

Arc Simon: Depression Daemon Spade has lost Elena, he still hasn't accepted and he is in depression. Enma is depressed, you can see it in his behavior and his whole family is dead, presumably because of Tsuna's father. When Tsuna learns that, it's the moment when he enters this phase: after almost losing Yamamoto, seeing his friends go to prison, he learns that his father is a killer. This is the moment when he has empty eyes, when he doesn't speak anymore etc... (symptoms of depression). He will question his close relations, his family, as well as the meaning of his fight.

Rainbow Curse Arc : Acceptance

This is the moment when the characters accept their fatality: Reborn accepts to die: he says that he was prepared for it and that he will join Bermuda. Tsuna accepts to become the next Arcobaleno of the Sky. But Bermuda is the one who does not accept his death. He created the flame of the night thanks to his refusal of acceptance and via his hatred.

So, under the guise of humor, joy, laughter, epic battles and colorful characters, "Katekyo Hitman: Reborn!" tells the story of a depressed teenager who will have to overcome the mourning of his own person in order to be reborn as a Christian by approaching Heaven, the Sky, and the title of 10th Godfather Vongola.

What do you think about my theory ??

#katekyo hitman reborn #reborn #KHR #hitmanreborn #katekyohitmanreborn #bringkhrback #khrtheory

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any-n-everything · 4 years

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Hi Sora! I know it's been ages but what do you think of Yamamoto Takeshi as a natural born hitman?

My god, anon, it really has been ages (more like years actually) since you sent this to me and to tell you the truth, Yamamoto Takeshi as a Natural-Born Hitman is one of those often said but completely bypassed aspects of KHR that there isn’t much to say.

I mean, it’s mentioned throughout the series, but we’re never actually given an in-depth explanation of WHY he’s Like That.

Reborn’s the one who first brings it up, and according to him:

“... they’re either an idiot, or a natural hitman.”

And prior to this scene, Reborn was explaining how there’s a world of difference between training with a sword and fighting with a sword in an actual life-or-death battle. Most probably, what makes Yamamoto a natural hitman isn’t exactly any sort of physical quality, but a mental one. It’s something that allows him to quickly adapt to danger and a way of thinking that leads him to have zero issues with putting his life on the line for whatever purpose he believes to be worth it.

In a way, you can say that it makes sense, because there’s definitely quite a bit of canon evidence that shows that Yamamoto really does have that do-or-die, ride-or-die mentality. When he believed that the “Baseball Gods” threw him away, he was also ready to throw his life away. And when associating with Tsuna brought danger to his doorstep, he was ready to do whatever he could to help/assist.

What’s both horrifying and intriguing is the fact that Yamamoto was like, 13 when he tried to commit suicide (following Japanese conventions of first-year middle school and Yamamoto’s birthday). And he was like, 14 when he fought against the Varia during second-year middle school. It’s a glimpse of how, and proof that, Yamamoto isn’t normal either, despite Tsuna’s insistence otherwise.

And again, as for WHY he’s Like That, it’s another one of those things that we’ll never quite know for sure unless Akira Amano publishes more stuff. Or, you know, we get a KHR Reboot (complete with the Shimon and Curse of the Rainbow Arcs).

Personally, I like to think that the reason behind Yamamoto’s... mentality is because of his mother. As for how, well, maybe his mother was also ride-or-die/do-or-die. Maybe she taught him to be like that. Maybe her death was so Traumatizing that he ended up like that. Who knows.

*cough*theauthor*cough*

Either way, headcanons are free and fulfilling! So let’s headcanon away, anon! And thank you for your ask!

#khr #katekyo hitman reborn #yamamoto takeshi #on natural hitman-ism #answered asks

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kittykatkaro · 5 years

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why do you think yamamoto’s win is bullshit?

Ok let me explain.

There are two main points why i have a major issue with his win.

1. Yamamoto trained only for a week

Ok i admit i might be off with this one week time frame, but it was a really short time.

Yes it is said that Shigure Souen is invincible and everthing... But again! He only trained it for a really short time. To master a sword I imagine it takes years. And he mastered it in a week and is able to properly use it in a life or death situation?! Oh come on. I know it's manga/anime logic, but still... I just... Ok not gonna rant...

And even if he is a natural born hitman. He van have all the instincts and reflexes, but it still takes training. Only talent doesn't do much, you have to train the skill!

So yeah, i can't believe and justify in my head, how he could win with such a short training period (when he never touched a sword before)...

And then we can smoothly go to the next point.

2. Squalo is a well trained swordsman and assassin

First of all. He is a swordsman! He's the sword emperor for christ sake! He learned different sword styles over the years. Years! Years of dedication.

And he is an assassin. One of the best in the world, Varia quality. (Although I shouldn't bring up Varia quality as Ryohei defeated Lussuria, but that was kind of OK to believe... Since Ryohei trains boxing for years already)

He also knows Shigure Souen... And again: other different styles. He killed the former Varia Boss!

So what I am trying to say: Squalo had the experiene. And got defeated by a middle schooler with practically no experience at all!

That's why I call this fight bullshit! Well at least the outcome.

I don't know if you can understand my way of thinking, but i hope i could at least explain a little bit of it. Sorry if it all seems a little bit messy, but English isn't m first language and I'm a bit tired already.

And to be honest, if we go completely by logic, Varia would have won xD but oh well, the plot has to get going, the main character can't loose.

And believe me I love both characters! Really! But this was just a plot armor thing for me 🙈 which i am mad about.

#katekyo hitman reborn #yamamoto takeshi #superbi squalo #khr ring battles #khr varia #khr

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yamameta-inc · 5 years

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‪yamamoto’s ridiculous levels of batshit energy manifesting when he plays baseball and not when he’s fighting people even though the narrative stresses how he’s a “natural born hitman” is SO funny like you’d think he’d be intense about trying to cut people up but no he loses all touch with reality when you let him throw a ball‬

#yamamoto takeshi #khr

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ohmykhr · 5 years

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Hi! Do you have headcanons of Reborn retiring as a mafioso and Yamamoto Takeshi becomes his successor as the Greatest Hitman of the World? Thanks. :)

Hello! Thank you for requesting, these might differ from your original request a bit, but these are just my headcanons on this, I hope you still like them though!

I can only imagine Reborn passing away with the title of Greatest Hitman of the World - he wouldn’t retire no matter how old he is. If he goes down, the title goes with him. And, if he can’t be a mafioso and do his job like he used to, he would become a tutor for future heirs and mafiosos.

Reborn has stated himself that Yamamoto is ‘’a natural born hitman’’ but that doesn’t immediately make him successor. Sure, he has the skills and by that time he could be the successor of the title, he would also have the experience, but I don’t think Yamamoto would take the title or live up for the title and this my reasoning for it:

Yamamoto doesn’t live to kill. He doesn’t fight to kill, he fights to protect his family and friends, but never to kill. I personally feel like he is too soft to become a coldblooded hitman in order to earn the title - he never wanted anything to do with family, it has never been his passion.

Let’s look at Reborn for a moment, he is proud of his title and he truly lives up to the title. He is ruthless when he needs to be and doesn’t hesitate to kill if he has to. In his world it’s kill or be killed. This is the difference between him and Yamamoto and also the reason why I think Yamamoto wouldn’t become a successor. Even though Yamamoto could, skill wise, become the successor, this trait in him is strong enough for him not to become the successor.

#khr #reborn #yamamoto takeshi #headcanon #im sorry if this isnt exactly what you wanted #but these are just the thoughts that i have on this #Anonymous

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what-the-fuck-khr · 5 years

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Hello, do you have headcanons of Yamamoto handling guns? I know he won't survive the mafia if he only relied on his sword so it would be nice if he also learn how to handle guns. Thanks~

oh hello anon!! this is sudden I don’t get many asks much less actually about khr or for headcanons!! I love going in depth, especially Takeshi lmao so!!

probably struggles when first given a gun. just. awful. has no idea what anything is on it. it’s a nightmare. can’t handle it properly or hold it properly bc he’s obviously so used to his sword

I figure it’s probably Reborn’s who’s teaching him; they have a very special kind of bond that’s not exactly like Reborn’s and Tsuna’s, y’know?

though I feel as if Colonello would help him if around, too. because Reborn helped Takeshi in the future arc, and Colonello shares his flame attribute, so it’s probably just easier for the two

Reborn (I think don’t quote me on this) said Takeshi’s almost a natural-born hitman, which is a little funny when you look at him. he transitioned from baseball to swordsmanship so smoothly, so he probably grasps how to use one pretty quick, as opposed to Ryohei and Tsuna

considering how scary accurate he is when simply throwing things, he’s probably got some good ass aim on him, too. when he starts, I figure someone’s accidentally firing the gun without meaning to and nearly popping their shoulder out (Tsuna lol) and those who aren’t popping their shoulders out (Takeshi and Ryohei)

Hayato probably gets bitter about it too lmao skfjdksnsk I’d expect him to learn the fastest, what with his his Vongola Gear and all that jazz. so he probably gets all petty and competitive with Takeshi who, in good nature, plays along

he’s probably not the type to carry a gun on him, but I imagine if he’s just tossed one or snatches one off someone, he can easily fall into using the gun over his sword quite well

he’s probably the type to try and use both at the same type tho lmao c’mon. so he probably sits there training with it and his sword, so if he’s ever caught with both, he doesn’t have to choose one over the other

he’s also most likely only going to learn how to use a simple handgun, like Tsuna and Ryohei. I think Hayato would learn with a couple other types of guns, but nothing overly wild. Takeshi’s just a simple guy and prefers holding his sword. swinging comes more naturally to him than firing a gun

he’s probably one who’s least likely to accidentally get hurt while training, as opposed to Tsuna and Ryohei. I feel he’s got good self preservation on him, and is very careful when he handles a gun, whether it’s loaded or not

also probably learns how to avoid bullets bc Reborn, in natural Reborn fashion, just starts bloody shooting at them lmao. all in all, he and Hayato end up with the least injuries. Tsuna and Ryohei,,, not so much. Takeshi’s got excellent reflexes, so almost any weapon he could probably learn, if he tried hard enough

#yamamoto takeshi #khr #katekyo hitman reborn #ask #lovely anon #80 #headcanons #long post #thank you so much for asking anon!!!#this was fun to do!!#i like looking into minor stuff in khr #and especially takeshi #so this was nice!!#takeshi with a gun ugh imagine #king

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lightofthedeep · 5 years

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Hi! Do you have headcanons of Reborn retiring as a mafioso and Yamamoto Takeshi becomes his successor as the Greatest Hitman of the World? Thanks. :)

Oh I don’t! Thats an interesting headcanon! But I believe that since Yamamoto is such a natural-born hitman, it’s definitely likely for him to potentially become the greatest hitman in the world!

#lighthouse mail #anon

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makeste · 6 years

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these are not kings, but princes

Or, “In this post, makeste essays about KHR, and the ephemeral nature of youth.”

So as previously mentioned, I have been rereading Katekyo Hitman Reborn, a series which came out fourteen years ago (a.k.a. long enough that there are people who are now Tsuna’s age that weren’t even born yet when the manga first debuted). This series ended in November 2012 (a.k.a. the last time the U.S. elected a President that wasn’t evil). Five and a half years later, I still haven’t gotten over it.

And here is the thing—KHR, while certainly a successful series and one that I love, was never anything particularly special. By which I mean it wasn’t one of the all-time greats. It had a lot of flaws, and even the things it was good at had by and large been done before in other series, and in many cases, done better. It’s not one of the series I mention when people ask me for anime and manga recs. I would not put it on a top ten list of must-sees or must-reads. (The one exception is the Varia Arc; this absolutely is in my top ten shounen battle arcs, and eleven years later it still kicks ass.)

The humor (although I love it! so much!) is not everyone’s cup of tea. The art style starts out kinda rough, then gets really good for a while, but then starts to deteriorate toward the end of the Future Arc (although the characters are still as pretty as a Marvel Chris at sunrise). The plot has brief moments of brilliance, but tends to fall flat on its face at critical moments. It’s got issues with its representation of female characters. And so on and so on. The point is, it’s far from perfect.

The question that I periodically ask myself, then, is: Why is this series my favorite ever? What the hell is it about KHR that captures my mind’s attention so insistently? What is it about this series that I just haven’t seemed to be able to find anywhere else?

The characters? That’s one potentially obvious answer. I definitely love these characters. I’ve essayed before about how unusual Tsuna is as a shounen protagonist in that he does not want to be the GREATEST! SOMETHING! OF ALL TIME!, but instead just wants to be plain and ordinary and normal. In a genre filled with Type A leads, having a Type B hero is a pretty bold move. Rather than a Naruto or a Luffy, Tsuna is a Frodo; someone who’s reluctant to take part in this adventure and would rather be anywhere else, but chooses to stick it out anyway for the sake of protecting his friends.

I’ve also fangirled at length about Yamamoto, who somehow walks a perfect balance between being cheerfully oblivious and extraordinarily perceptive, and is pretty much the definition of TVTropes’s Beware the Nice Ones. And then, of course, we have Gokudera, my forever favorite, who is a flawless bundle of angst and idiocy and tsundere and badassness, and whom we must always keep safe and protected because he is precious.

The characters are definitely a big part of it. But not all of it. For me, at least, I realized that there is something else that draws me to this series time and again. And what it is, is this:

To me, this series is about potential.

What I mean is this. Tsuna and the other main characters are all children, not yet even out of middle school.

They screw up. They make mistakes.

They learn from them.

They grow; they improve. They get better. And better, and better.

They’re young, all of them. They face challenges they aren’t and shouldn’t be prepared for yet, and somehow they manage to overcome them, at times almost purely on accident. They’re constantly in over their heads, because they’ve been tossed into this chaotic world with little to no experience, dealing with things like mafia succession politics, rival families, and the end of the fucking world. They struggle, and they flounder.

And in the end, part of the reason they succeed is because of that same youth and inexperience. They do things they shouldn’t be able to, because they don’t understand that they shouldn’t be able to do them.

They’re hopeful, because they can’t comprehend the full weight of the odds that are stacked against them. They’re young and invincible. They’re naive. They insist on seeing the best in others. They’re ignorant of the harsher realities of the world, and in that ignorance they help make it a better one. They can’t conceive of failure, because they haven’t lived long enough to come face to face with an obstacle they couldn’t defeat.

And the series ends with them still like this. In the end, Reborn never successfully makes Tsuna into a mafia boss. He’s changed, yes—night and day from the way his character was at the very start of the series—but he hasn’t fully matured yet. None of them have. They are frozen in time at age fourteen, smack dab in the middle of their adolescence. Forever caught on the bridge between childhood and adulthood. And for as long as I can remember, I’ve always been drawn to and captivated by that particular idea.

I’m not sure why that is, exactly. It’s like nostalgia, I guess, except more powerful somehow? Something about the transience of it. If childhood is spring, then adolescence would be the summer; bright, restless, and filled with long days that make you thirst for adventure. And sometimes, also, just so damned fucking hot that you wish it would just end already. And eventually it does, and you become an adult, and by and large things are usually a lot more comfortable and settled down.

And don’t get me wrong—I wouldn’t want to trade that, and I definitely don’t ever want to actually go back to my own awkward teenage years. But there’s still some part of me that loves to romanticize that period of discovering so many things for the first time. Of being free from true responsibilities, and of having the potential to become absolutely anything at all.

To me, this is the most seductive part of KHR. Yes, ostensibly it’s a shounen battle manga about mafiosos with superpowers. But it’s also a slice of life series about middle schoolers who just happen to go to a really weird middle school filled with really weird other middle schoolers. And who themselves are also really weird. And have superpowers. And sometimes they have the aforementioned mafioso battles.

But also they watch fireworks.

And do homework, and play baseball, and invent secret languages. They are children, and we’re watching them grow up. But because of the magic of fiction, they never quite will. They are permanently caught in this impermanent stage between who they were and who they one day could be. And because of this, their potential is unlimited.

And this, ladies and gentlemen: this is my motherfucking emotions trigger.

I will now proceed to quote “Future Looks Good” by OneRepublic.

You see, I had this crazy dream last night

This man, he talked to me

He told me everything that’s good and bad

About my history

And he said that you are, you are the future

You are, you are the future

And the future looks good

Does that make sense? I hope it makes sense.

To me, it could not be more perfect. They’re young enough to still be vulnerable, but old enough to stand their ground. There are so many what-ifs about who they’ll grow up to become, but the series only ever teases at it. We’ll never actually see it happen. But we get to partake in the journey, and because that journey never reaches its end, the ending can be whatever we want it to be.

But personally, I think it’s best if it always remains a mystery. Because this, here, this snapshot of this all-too-brief, transitional period of their lives: this is what I live for and breathe for and crave in fiction. These are not kings, but princes.

And one day, they’ll inherit the earth.

But not yet.

#khr #katekyo hitman reborn #essay #sawada tsunayoshi #gokudera hayato #yamamoto takeshi #I feel like this is the corniest post ever #but I put all my feelings into it!#*clenches fist*#'ESSAY AS IF I WERE TO DIE'

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kemikorosu-archive · 2 years

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@skylrks asked : My muse is dead. Tell me how yours is dealing with it.

takeshi&kyouya | My muse is dead. Tell me how yours is dealing with it. ( OPEN )

( &. NATURAL BORN HITMAN — When the Rain got news of the death of Kyouya Hibari, the strongest member of the Vongola, he thought that it was a joke. A poorly made joke. For as long as he remembered the older, long before he even got sucked into this life, he had been nearly unstoppable. Whatever loss the Skylark had endured, he could count on one hand. So the idea of Hibari being dead was ... Laughable.

Regardless, Takeshi was on the first jet back to the manor the moment news got to him. He barely even finished listening to the urgent call from Hayato to return. The moment the words ‘he is dead’ was heard, he was on the move instantly, his mission abandoned; a part of him hoped to feel the bite of the Skylark’s tonfa for being so foolish.

Takeshi stood there in stunned silence among the other Guardians, Kyouya’s battle torn body laying peacefully on the bed. Calloused hands formed trembling fists at his side as he looked off to the side, eyes clenched shut. But no matter how hard he kept them closed, the tears still managed to escape.

It was a cruel realization that ... Kyouya Hibari may have been an apex predator in every way, but he was not immortal. He wasn’t untouchable. How could they have ever forgotten? How could they think otherwise? It was a humbling lesson. One that they had to learn the hard way.

Takeshi Yamamoto dressed in a traditional black kimono to mourn his death for well over a month—in his honor, and as a reminder. He will uphold the deceased’s pride in every battle forward. )

#skylrks #yamamoto : incharacter * answered #yamamoto : verse * ten years later #death cw

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seijuurouxryuu · 6 years

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Yamamoto Being Yamamoto

Rating: G Relationship: None Characters: Sawada Tsunayoshi, Gokudera Hayato, Yamamoto Takeshi, Reborn, Dino, Byakuran, Yuni Warning: None

Day 3: Observant

There was a reason why Yamamoto was said to be a natural born hitman.

AO3

There was a reason why Yamamoto was said to be a natural born hitman. The teen has keen eyes and sharp instinct, which most knew but that wasn't exactly the reason why. It was because he was too observant. While it was true that he can come across as dense and an airhead sometimes, but he notices things. He notices minor details that most overlook. (Which was probably why he was the leader of the scouting department.) Even Gokudera acknowledged it after years knowing him.

It made him deadlier, if the sliver-haired man was to be honest as he watched the taller man laugh at whatever a group of girls that surrounded him were saying. Being a natural born hitman was already dangerous, topping up with a really good acting skill, one wouldn't even know what hit them when he strikes. Perhaps that was why Reborn chose him to be one of the guardians years ago.

Taking a slow sip on his champagne, Gokudera scanned the crowd, taking note that Tsuna was beside Reborn. It was an annual ball for the mafiosi, held each year with rotating host Famiglia. A time where they forget their ranking and feud with one another and mingle. Although, that motive never really work. People are too stuck up to forget it.

This year, it was hosted by Milliefiore and as usual, Gokudera and Yamamoto had accompanied Tsuna. Usually either Chrome or Mukuro would follow as well, but not this year. Not when there was a rumour about an attack happening. No one knew who was the target, nor who was going to be the attacker, but it was a threat nonetheless. Milliefiore almost had to cancel the ball because no one could find out who it was but decided against it. Probably to drag out whoever who planned it.

Byakuran and Yuni had seeked out for the Vongola's assistance, so there they were. Chrome and Mukuro had been sent to scout the area while Reborn, who came as an independent kept an eye out inside. Plus, even though he has no bond or contract with Vongola, he wouldn't abandon Tsuna when it comes down to it. Not that the brunette need any protection.

Which was probably why Gokudera weren't even beside his boss, since he needed to keep an eye out. The three of them had spreaded across the room, with each on the opposite end of each other.

"Gokudera!" Yamamoto grinned and waved at him. He clicked his tongue as the other slung and arm over his shoulder. He didn't attempt to shove it off as it doesn't really work. Yamamoto was a clingy person with a tight grip. Not to mention that he was tapping out a code.

"Man! Those girls are funny!" He laughed, not breaking from his tapping. 'Code Red: Bomb implanted somewhere in this room.'

"Yeah, fun." Gokudera gritted out, feeling himself tensing slightly at that. Yamamoto's flames immediately calmed him down discreetly just so they wouldn't bring attention to themselves. "You really enjoyed giggling along with those girls." 'I don't think there was a specific target.'

"Ahaha! Are you jealous?" 'It might be a plan to kill as many big Houses in here.'

"Hah?! Like hell I'm jealous! They're disgusting, ergh." Gold-diggers. All of them. But that wasn't Gokudera's concern at the moment.

Yamamoto grinned and finally, Gokudera shoved him off with a snarl. He grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close. "Get away from me. I'll blast your head off if you come anywhere near me." And he stalked off as Yamamoto shrugged, fixing his suit and appearance when he let him go.

It was all for a show.

Gokudera immediately walked around the ballroom, slowly sauntering as he acted as though he hated Yamamoto and his guts and all. He was over that, no longer the short-fused teen he was towards the other. He actually respect Yamamoto and could get along with him, just as long as he doesn't piss Gokudera off. He did that just so no one would be suspect anything.

He was actually searching for the said bomb. He'd had to find it fast. The night was slowly coming to an end, and the bomb could blow anytime soon. He had to dispose it. Fast.

Frowning, he stopped by the window and glanced up.

He left the room all together.

"Heyy Tsuna!" Yamamoto draped across Tsuna making the brunette stumble. Tsuna laughed at his friend's antic, not the slightest angered even though the other had interrupted his conversation with a Don from another Famiglia. The said Don wasn't so happy, but he did a rather good job at hiding it.

"Takeshi! Are you having fun?" Yamamoto nodded, humming. "Everything is so nice. Don and Donna Milliefiore has done a really good job!" Tsuna agreed cheerfully. "Ah right, it would be your Famiglia's turn next year to host, isn't it, Don Marian?" Don Marian nodded. "It is. We won't lose to Don and Donna Milliefiore in terms of extravagant!"

Tsuna chuckled good heartily. "Of course! We'll be looking forward to it."

As the two Don chatted, with Tsuna distracting the other, Yamamoto sneaked a look with Reborn, who was quiet the whole time. A glint of irritation flashed in his obsidian eyes, but his facial expression didn't change. As on cue, the hitman's phone rang and he excused himself. The Don was none the wiser, too caught up chatting with Tsuna to realize anything. Not even when Yamamoto detached himself, grabbing a champagne from the butler and lingered behind the brunette.

Until, that is, a loud explosion followed by shrieks outside of the ballroom. Everyone jolted and turned to the front door where the sound came from. Another loud thud resonated in the room before the door opened and Gokudera's head popped out. He looked a bit singed. He smiled brightly and said, "Please don't mind the noise! Everything is fine! Please, enjoy your night!" And he popped back out, door closing.

Everyone blinked, dumbfounded. Byakuran, from where he was at the center of the ballroom clapped his hand to gather their attention. "Well, we've heard the man! Let's enjoy the night to the fullest!" Since the boss of Milliefiore declared that it was nothing, everyone returned to their conversation, all none the wiser. Maybe except for the Milliefiore and Yamamoto. Tsuna as well, since he decided to cut short his conversation with Don Marian.

"Takeshi, what's going on?" He whispered, standing closer to the taller man.

Yamamoto, who was stifling his laughter since the beginning coughed loudly and harshly. Tsuna gave him a raised eyebrow as he patted his back. "Pftt- Nothing. Gokudera will fill you in later." Tsuna frowned but decided not to pry when Yamamoto waved his hand dismissively.

"Well alright. Let's go find Dino-san and Yuni." And they did. The three Skies soon chattered and laugh about whatever came in mind, more relaxed around each other. Yamamoto lingered back as well, smiling and answering when addressed. It wasn't long before the three of them totally forgot his presence in the midst of a heated discussion about their subordinates- or co-boss, in Yuni's case- shenanigans.

Reborn came back and they switched. The hitman rolled his eyes upon meeting Yamamoto's gaze as he fell into position beside Tsuna as the Rain fell back and made a beeline out of the ballroom.

The moment he saw Gokudera, he laughed again, obnoxious and loud. Gokudera snarled at him, but did not stop kicking the poor victim, who seemed charred even though the man had already passed out. "Shut up."

Yamamoto shook his head as he walked over. When he was close enough, he crouched down and pulled the head back to see the face, Gokudera backing away. He whistled. "Never knew the Marian got guts to do this."

Gokudera squinted his eyes at the man. "You already knew, didn't you?" He hissed. Yamamoto merely smiled innocently up at him. "Ugh, should've known." Yamamoto shrugged as he stood up. "Well, then. Shall we escort the man out?" His eyes glinted, Gokudera twitched.

Honestly, he should've known that Yamamoto had already know who it was. That man was too observant not to notice. Gokudera need another drink.

A/N= Ehhhhhh you can exactly tell when I lost any motivation and just winged it.

The guy Gokudera was kicking wasn't Don Marian but his subordinates. The Marian is a medium sized Famiglia and wanted to overpower the other strong houses.

Gokudera had went to find the bomb while Reborn went to drag out the culprit.

The bomb was diffused, of course. The culprit was charred because of Gokudera's dynamite. Gokudera was a bit singed because he almost got electrocuted. (Pst, the bomb is on the roof.)

[I apologize for any grammar, spelling, etc. etc. mistakes]

#khrficweek2018 #Katekyo Hitman Reborn #KHR #Sawada Tsunayoshi #Gokudera Hayato #Yamamoto Takeshi #Reborn #Yuni #Dino #Byakuran #My Writings #Humor?#TYL!Setting #It's weird #I kno

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ruluxe · 6 years

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Red River Hustle

KHR Digital Zine 2017 Submission

Characters: Gokudera Hayato & Yamamoto Takeshi Word Count: 4,318 Summary: When a mission goes awry, Takeshi meets Gokudera at a rest stop somewhere just outside Catania, Sicily, to take him back to their base in Palermo — only Gokudera isn’t his only passenger and Takeshi is reminded of how deep the mafia way of living still roots in him. Warnings: Contains swearing, gun violence, blood & minor character death.Inspiration: Red River Hustle by The Mumlers

Read on Ao3 & download the KHR Zine 2017 here!

Italy is a really beautiful place — specifically Palermo, Takeshi thinks as he drives along the E90 towards the main city. Mountains, serene beaches with clear waters that sparkle under the sun and eclectic ancient architecture rich in history thousands of years old soaked into the stone surround him. It really is one of his most favourite places he’s travelled since becoming one of Vongola’s guardians.

Another beautiful thing to come out of Palermo — if he could be so bold as to say so — is sitting in the passenger seat, shouting at someone over the phone in his native tongue. Takeshi has yet to catch on to the dialect, it’s much different than the Italian he was taught, and Gokudera speaks so fast that it would be difficult to understand him even if he were speaking Japanese. He does, however, understand when Gokudera turns to him, covers the mouthpiece of his cellphone and in Japanese says,

“Can’t you drive any faster?”

Takeshi laughs, the scar on his chin pulling with the motion. “I’m driving the speed limit.”

“There’s no one else on the fucking road, Yamamoto,” Gokudera gestures. “Drive faster .” He returns to his phone call, raising his voice to an even louder octave to the point that Takeshi feels bad for the person on the other end.

He presses his foot to the gas pedal tentatively at first, then, pushing it beyond one-hundred mph. Adrenaline surges as the engine revs and the speedometer climbs. There’s something dangerously exciting about speeding down a lonely stretch of road with the wind in his hair, as cliche as it sounds. Perhaps it’s old age getting to him or perhaps it’s just because Takeshi’s always enjoyed the simpler things life has to offer.

“Cazzo!” Gokudera suddenly shouts, tossing the phone into the cup holder next to him. “This mission has turned out to be such a fucking mess,” he says, making the smooth transition into the language Takeshi understands best. “The Tenth expects more of me, more of my team, you know?”

“I’m sure Tsuna isn’t going to mind.” Takeshi isn’t sure of the situation Gokudera’s in, or what mess he’s referring to but it can’t be as bad as he thinks. Gokudera has always been exceptional at keeping his unit in line, much better than the rest of them — with the exception of Hibari, but there again, Hibari’s unit is well, just Hibari.

“Thanks for coming,” Gokudera grumbles, prodding at the swollen split in his lip. He elicits a hiss before grunting, “I needed someone else to fucking drive. I haven’t slept in two days, I can’t feel my eyeballs.”

Takeshi laughs, despite his concern. “No problem. The car is nice.” It’s an Italian car, of course, he can’t remember the name of but it’s a two-door convertible in vibrant red. “It’s not one of ours though.”

Gokudera snorts. “Definitely not one of ours.”

“What happened?” Takeshi catches Gokudera’s subtle cringe at the question and doesn’t miss the tremble in his hands when he pulls a cigarette out of its case and proceeds to light it, or the fact that he's wearing shades to cover up a bruised eye.

He shrugs. “Little fender bender. I uh, commandeered this vehicle from the parking lot of that sushi place in Catania you love so much.”

Takeshi raises an eyebrow. “You stole a car?”

“I borrowed it,” Gokudera corrects. “Relax, I changed the plates.”

“Well… I’m glad you’re okay,” Takeshi says with a slow nod as if he’s trying to convince himself that he’s fine without further prying. He certainly doesn’t look okay. “It’s not very inconspicuous.”

“Yeah.” Gokudera takes a drag of his cigarette. “But it sure is beautiful.” He doesn’t say anything more about what happened, and Takeshi catches him looking over his shoulder several times.

“Are you worried about the police following us? Because I gotta tell you —”

“No.”

“— this car isn’t easy — oh. Okay.” Takeshi shuts his mouth abruptly and focuses on driving as fast as he can without drawing too much attention to them, though it’s not an easy feat in this car. It just gives Takeshi something else to worry about on top of Gokudera’s elusiveness.

After several long minutes of silence, “Turn here,” Gokudera demands and Takeshi complies without a second thought. It’s only after driving down the abandoned dirt road for a few minutes that Takeshi realises they’re not on course.

“This isn’t the way back to base,” he observes, easing his foot off the gas pedal. “We’re supposed to be going —”

“What are you doing, idiot?” Gokudera reaches over and shoves down on his knee so that his foot is forced to press on the gas again. “Keep driving!”

“But Gokudera —” Takeshi doesn’t get a chance to finish because the tires hit a dip in the road and the car bounces violently, tossing them around in their seats. As this happens, a loud thump! sounds from the trunk. The car lands on smoother ground and Takeshi brings the car to a full stop.

“What was that?”

“What was what?” asks Gokudera, pushing hair out of his face with one hand and bringing the cigarette to his mouth with the other. He brings his hand back down, gingerly poking at his ribs, wincing with the action.

“That sound. It came from the trunk.”

“I didn’t hear anything.”

“Yes… I’m sure you did. It was loud.”

Gokudera shrugs and raises a brow over his aviator shades. “Spare tire probably.”

“Gokudera,” Takeshi begins with a sigh, “what are we doing out here and what was that noise in the trunk?”

As if on cue, another hollowed bang sounds followed by some muffled, incoherent shouting.

“Are you telling me you don’t hear that?” And then something horrifying dawns on Takeshi. “Oh shit — Is that a person?! In the trunk?!”

“Maybe,” Gokudera supplies but Takeshi now knows he’s clearly hiding something. Someone, rather.

“That isn’t… one of our guys, is it?” he asks with a swallow, his mouth suddenly going dry. “Because now that I think about it, your team —”

“Look,” Gokudera says with a sigh and a pinch to the bridge of his nose. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t have time to question him myself, but I couldn’t take the chance of him being the rat. He was acting suspiciously before the mission and with it being the fucking shitstorm it became, now I know why. I should have killed him on the spot, but I know the Tenth would never forgive me.”

Sometimes Takeshi forgets Gokudera's lifelong ties to the mafia and a family far more unforgiving than their own. “So what are we supposed to do with him?”

“You're the natural born hitman. You figure it out.” Gokudera flicks his cigarette butt over Takeshi's shoulder. He hears it hiss as it passes his ear. Takeshi frowns.

“We should take him back to the estate and let Tsuna handle him.” He says this calmly in hopes of diffusing the inevitable explosion.

“There's no way in hell I'm bringing this guy back to the estate. What if he's got a GPS tracker hidden somewhere on him — or in him? We'd be putting everyone at risk,” Gokudera gasps. “No. We have to cut the fucker open right here, right now. After you get him to tell you what he knows.”

“You don't even know if he's guilty! You can't just cut a guy open on the side of the road in broad daylight, Gokudera! I think the lack of sleep is beginning to affect your brain.”

“Yeah well — I think the fact that you were dropped on your head as a baby has already had an effect on your brain and you're in no position to be telling me what you think is wrong with my brain.” Gokudera adjusts the glasses on his face and shifts with a haughty roll of his neck and shoulders.

Takeshi stares at him really hard for a really long time. “I think you're being paranoid bu—”

“I'm being paranoid?” Gokudera starts, his jaw dropping in offence. “I'm —”

“But,” Takeshi continues, raising his voice over Gokudera’s increasingly high pitched screeching. Sometimes it's comical when he gets like this, but now is not the time for laughter. “But let's get him out of the trunk, get him some water and talk to him.”

Gokudera shuts his mouth abruptly and Takeshi feels much better. Before exiting the car, he looks at the road ahead and behind them for any witnesses. There are none, so he reaches down to flip the latch and Gokudera grabs onto his arm.

“Wait, you idiot! You can't just open the trunk with no one back there. What if he jumps out and runs off? We can't leave that up to chance. You go. I'll stay here.”

Takeshi raises a brow and slowly eases back into an upright position. “Uh, okay… Not that I mind but, why me?”

Gokudera reaches across his lap to open the driver side door. “Look at me,” he says leaning back. He holds out a hand.

Takeshi can see the erratic tremors passing through his fingers. It makes his stomach sink to think that Gokudera’s been through so much in the last couple of days, and even more so, his life. He shakes his head. Of all the times to reflect on that, now is not the time. “You're right,” he says, getting out of the car. “But I have no idea what I'm supposed to be asking him, so maybe you could enlighten me?”

Gokudera sighs again, this time more dramatically exaggerated. “As I said, we were compromised. The only people that knew our location and target were the Tenth, myself and Stronzo.”

Takeshi knows that word, and it's not the name of the man in the trunk.

“We were shot at, the target escaped and we managed to get away without any major injuries, but they chased our car down. We were railroaded, our driver died —”

Takeshi’s stomach lurches into his throat, threatening a purge of its contents. He chokes it back down with a hard swallow and manages a shaky, “Gokudera!”

“Relax, I'm fine,” he says nonchalantly, waving his hand in dismissal.

“You don't look fine. Since I picked you up, you've been shaky and in obvious pain — did you even go to a hospital? How do you know you're not suffering internal inj—”

“Takeshi,” Gokudera cuts, harsh enough to stop him from continuing his sentence yet soft enough that Takeshi knows whatever Gokudera's about to say next is weighted with sincerity. “I'm fine. Just a couple of bruised ribs and a somewhat busted face. I'll live.” His lips slide into a partial grin before shadow falls over his face and the smile disappears. “Maybe. Depends on the Tenth’s punishment when we get back.”

Takeshi allows himself to grin at this, just a little. “I'm glad you're okay. I also don't think Tsuna is going to punish you, let alone kill you if this guy is responsible for messing up the mission. That isn't your fault.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“But hey — you just left the driver at the scene of the accident? What if the police start to ask questions?”

Gokudera draws in a sharp breath. “I know we've been over each other's level of intelligence a few times since you picked me up, but do I need to remind you that I actually use my brain? Of course I didn't just leave him there. I called for the Cleaners. That's who I was just speaking to. I know I'm supposed to check with the Tenth first but I couldn't get a hold of him on such short notice. As Right-Hand man, I had to override him.” Gokudera frowns. “I'm finished. The Tenth isn't going to want me by his side, let alone in the family, after this.”

“It's been eleven years, Gokudera. I really think Tsuna will understand your decision under the circumstances.” Takeshi pauses, running through the scenario in his head. Then, “How do you that the informant wasn’t the driver?”

Gokudera peers over the frame of his sunglasses for a minute before clicking his tongue off the roof of his mouth. “Because I just do, Yamamoto. It’s instinct. I know these things.”

“Well… okay,” Takeshi agrees despite his instincts that Gokudera might actually be wrong. He steps towards the trunk and calls out for Gokudera to open the latch.

The door springs open and Yamamoto finds the man hog-tied, his wrists and ankles bound by rope. There's a strip of duct tape covering the man's mouth as well, muffling his pleas. Yamamoto opens his suit jacket and pulls a shorter blade, a tantō, from his custom-made shoulder holster. Seeing Yamamoto do this, the man’s eyes blow wide and he begins struggling hysterically.

“Calm down,” he instructs in clipped Italian, reaching across the man to cut his restraints. “I'm going to keep your wrists and ankles tied until we're finished questioning you.”

The man stills, allows Takeshi to cut the rope and remains still while he re-binds the man's wrists and ankles in a more comfortable position. Well. As comfortable as Takeshi could make him, given the circumstances. “I'm going to take the tape off but if you scream, we're going to have some problems.”

A snort comes from the car. “You watch too much American television,” Gokudera chides in Japanese.

“And you don't? I'll remember that the next time one of your bigfoot documentaries conflicts with my baseball games on the recorder.”

“Shut up.”

Takeshi grins as he rips the tape off the man's mouth. He whimpers and Takeshi offers an apologetic shrug. “It's better to take it off quickly. Like a band-aid.”

The man nods slowly.

“You work for the Vongola?”

He nods again.

“What's your name?”

He coughs, but Takeshi doesn't offer him any water just yet. Finally, after a minute or two, the man in the trunk responds. “Frankie. Frankie Gallo."

“How did the target find out about you guys?”

Frankie starts speaking, and it's so quick that Takeshi can't catch enough of it to understand. He frowns and Gokudera shouts, “English, Frankie!” To Takeshi, he says, “Your English sucks too but it's better than your Italian.”

Takeshi stifles a laugh. Gokudera's not wrong. So, in English, he asks again, “How did the target find out about you?”

“How the fuck should I know?” Frankie retorts with a shrug. “All I remember is we're gettin’ shot at, then the boss drags me to our car and bam!��We're gettin’ t-boned by one of the other guys. Next thing I know, I'm wakin’ up in a trunk tied up like some sorta prized pig.”

“Gokudera seems to think you're the one that compromised the mission. Why do you suppose that is?”

Again, Frankie shrugs. “I don't know nothin’ about that so how 'bout you cut this rope and let me outta this fuckin’ trunk.”

Takeshi looks to Gokudera, who shakes his head. “I can't do that just yet,” he says, glancing back at Gokudera for some sort of guidance. When Gokudera says nothing, Takeshi slams the door shut. Frankie starts yelling, but he doesn't pay any mind. “Gokudera… what are we doing here? The guy says he has no idea what happened, let's just get back to base and figure it out.”

“I'm telling you, that guy is a rat.”

“We can't just sit here on the side of the road waiting for the police to find the car.”

Gokudera lets out a loud sigh. He pushes his car door open and steps out, pulling a gun from his waistband. “I lost my holster,” he offers with a shrug even though Takeshi doesn't mention anything. He switches off the safety and suddenly slams his fist down on the trunk lid. It springs open, revealing a red-faced and sputtering Frankie. Without a word, Gokudera points the muzzle at his head. “Who are you working for? Georgio? Alphonse?”

Frankie’s eyes widen and he worms further away from the gun. “I work for you, Hayato Gokudera, right-hand man to the tenth Vongola boss, Tsunayoshi Sawada. Sir.”

Gokudera cocks his gun, Takeshi’s heart begins to race. Part of him starts to itch, the possibility of bloodshed prickling his skin; rippling cold yet somehow electric chills up his spine. The other part of him begins to feel fear, his stomach twists in knots and his fourteen-year-old self is telling him to take the gun away from Gokudera and find another way. The internal war keeps him from moving at all, his eyes locked on Gokudera's face. He can see the mottled blues and purples shine under the gold rim of Gokudera's sunglasses. The angry red swell around the corner of his mouth when he sticks his tongue into his cheek before clicking it off the roof of his mouth and saying,

“Who do you work for?”

Frankie says nothing and Takeshi doesn't miss the shift in his eyes; the way they transition from round and fearful to narrowed and cold.

“I work for you and the Vongola, sir.” Frankie's voice changes too; low and flat with a hint of defiance. Working in the mafia especially under the tutelage of Squalo and Reborn, Takeshi has become more aware of these tells.

Gokudera wraps his finger around the trigger. He must notice this change as well, only his awareness comes from a lifetime of personal experience; hard lessons he had to learn all on his own from a very young age. This makes Takeshi frown.

He clears his throat. “Who do you work for?”

Takeshi waits, his eyes still fixated on Gokudera's every miniscule move, catching the slow rise and fall of his chest as he breathes; the thinness of his lips as he presses them together. The way his hands have completely stopped shaking. He doesn't have to be a genius to know this is Gokudera's last time for asking this question.

Frankie doesn't respond.

“You know,” Takeshi pipes up before Gokudera has a chance to squeeze off a round, “I think before we shoot him, we should cut him.”

Gokudera doesn't lower his gun but he does look over at Takeshi, puzzlement scribbled across his face.

“What?”

Takeshi shrugs. “If you're just going to shoot him dead without him giving us any answers, we still aren't going to have any answers. Right?”

“And? If he's not going to answer me, I'll put a bullet in every fucking joint until he tells me what I want to hear.”

“It could get messy,” counters Takeshi.

Gokudera scoffs. “Oh, and you think cutting him up like a Sunday Sushi Special won't be?”

“The gunshots are louder.”

“I have a suppressor.”

“We don't have the time or the luxury,” says Takeshi, switching languages. “You fled the scene of an accident and stole a car. The police are definitely looking for you.”

“Well then I'll cut my losses and put a bullet in his brain,” Gokudera says, placing his finger back on the trigger. “It'll be quick. We can take his body back there and bury it before —”

“Hey, assholes, either shoot me or take me back to see Sawada. I can't take any more of this bickering.”

“Shut up,” Gokudera says, turning his attention back to Frankie. “As if I'd be stupid enough to take you back there.”

“If I really was workin’ for someone and they wanted at the boss, I coulda already told ‘em the location of the base,” Frankie says, his tongue slicing sharper with every word.

“Let me put a bullet in him,” pleads Gokudera.

“He's going to put a bullet in you if you don't talk,” Takeshi says to Frankie.

Frankie's mouth twitches and slides into a lopsided grin. “If you guys were gonna shoot me, you'd already done it.”

Without warning, a gunshot cracks through the silent day, its echoes carried by the warm Mediterranean air for miles, as do Frankie's screams.

“That wasn't very silent,” remarks Takeshi.

“Giannini's working on better ones,” Gokudera quips.

“Tu cazzo di cazzo!” Frankie snarls. “Che cazzo è il tuo problema?!”

Another shot fires, reverberating through the air. Frankie howls in pain and Takeshi finally shifts his gaze from Gokudera to the man in the trunk. “English, Frankie! I said English!” Gokudera groans.

“You're fucking crazy,” spits Frankie, the words dripping like acid off his tongue.

“My partner’s not a patient guy,” Takeshi says apologetically. “You should probably just tell him what he wants to hear.”

“I think you should cut him,” Gokudera suggests. “Go for his ankles.” He grins. There's something eerily mad about it and it makes Takeshi’s skin tingle. “Achilles tendons.”

“Okay,” he agrees, and he feels that darkness begin to take over; it's tendrils embracing him like a mother would a child. There's still that vice in the back of his head that tells him they should just bring Frankie in, that there's still the possibility he's innocent.

“Wait,” Frankie cries, squirming until his back hits the divider. There's nowhere else for him to go. Not that it would matter, he's still restrained after all. “Let me go, I don’t know anything!”

“No,” Gokudera says, firing off another shot. This one hits Frankie in the abdomen. Blood begins to pool as it over-saturates the upholstery lining the trunk. “Now you have to tell us, otherwise you're going to die very shortly.”

“I thought you wanted me to cut him.”

Gokudera pushes the sunglasses up the bridge of his nose with his free hand. “I got tired of waiting.”

Takeshi turns to Frankie, disappointed but he's worried now that Gokudera's going to kill the man before they get any information from him. “I told you he was impatient,” he says, sliding his tantō back into its holster.

“And… insane,” Frankie breathes, his face twisted in agony. “I work f-for Don Alphonse. I w-was supposed to kill you — or get y-ou killed.”

This makes Takeshi's blood turn cold, yet fury ignites a fire so hot under his skin that he feels like it'd start to blister any second. He reaches under his coat again when Gokudera holds his hand up, motioning him to stop.

“Well, now. Wasn't that easy? How many more of you are there?”

“And why Gokudera?”

“One question at a time, Yamamoto. The guy is dying and not very bright.”

“There’s… there's no one else. Taking o-out the Sawada’s b-bitch —” This makes Frankie laugh but then he starts choking on blood. Good.

“So your mission was to take out Gokudera and then what? Go after Tsuna? Did you ever stop to think he's got six other guardians that would be protecting him?” Takeshi's laugh tastes as sour as it sounds.

“I find it hard to believe that Alphonse would just send one little shit to kill me. Is he really that stupid?” Gokudera asks.

Takeshi watches as the colour drains from Frankie's face. “He's gonna die in a minute,” he says, frustration and rage wrapping around his ribs like a boa closing in on its prey. “You shouldn't have shot him there.”

“Got the job done,” Gokudera shrugs. “Next question determines if I kill you now or leave you here to bleed out on the side of the road. How many more of you are there?”

Frankie's grin begins to fade. His breathing is laboured, Takeshi can see that it's a struggle. “N-none… Boss said t-hat if this m-mission went bad —” He falls silent, his mouth still moving on words he's unable to put sound to.

“Shit,” Gokudera hisses, sliding the safety on and slipping the gun behind him. “I shouldn't have shot him there.”

Frankie's gaze goes vacant, his eyes reminding Takeshi of the dead fish he used to clean at his father's restaurant. He almost pities him in the end but one side glance in Gokudera's direction, Takeshi's reminded of the worst that could have happened, and that a member of the family almost didn't make it home. He slams down the lid of the trunk and heads towards driver's side. "We need to call Tsuna. If any of Alphonse's men see you're still alive it'll give them a chance to flee before we can find out who you are."

Gokudera gets in the car and picks up his phone from the cup holder. "The CEDEF can help out. We should call Lal too." He sighs. "The Tenth isn't gonna be happy I killed a guy."

"It'll be fine. I'll call them," Takeshi says, taking the phone from him. He puts the key into the ignition and starts the car. "We're not too far from the base now."

"I need coffee." Gokudera digs into his pocket and pulls out a crushed cigarette pack. Takeshi watches from the corner of his eye as Gokudera struggles to light the cigarette. It isn't just the wind, no. His hand tremors are back.

"What you need is sleep," Takeshi teases.

"What you need is to shut up," Gokudera retorts, finally managing to get the cigarette lit. The wind blows back his hair and Takeshi sees speckles of red fanned out across his cheek. Without saying a word, he reaches over and wipes off as much as he can with the swipe of his thumb. Gokudera turns and scowls.

"You had blood on your face."

"Thanks," he mutters.

"What are we going to do with the body?"

"Burn it," Gokudera replies. "And the car."

"Ah... that's too bad. I really like this car."

“I’ll get you one for your birthday,” Gokudera says. “Minus the dead guy.”

“Preferably not stolen.”

“Obviously not.”

“Does it come with the grumpy, sleep-deprived, chain-smoking guy?”

Gokudera clicks his tongue off the roof of his mouth. “While supplies last.”

“Nice,” Yamamoto says with a grin as he pushes down on the gas pedal, racing off into the sunset. “Real nice.”

#gokudera hayato #yamamoto takeshi #8059 #yamagoku #khr #katekyo hitman reborn #khr digital zine 2017 #ru.writes #my writing

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