[IC] As One | Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

[Vongola_Hasayo]

Naoto smiled, relieved that Daisuke was okay, yet not surprised for some reason. Maybe he will be alright in this world... The thought was nice but quickly faded as Daisuke started sprinting around the yard in terror of Sonya. "Physically the guy's a wall himself but mentally...I better get Sonya to stop this one." Naoto took a step to head over and try and stop the match. Suddenly, it seemed like Trespiano wasn't allowed to have a quiet day anymore as the sound of something being fired roared in Naoto's ears followed by an explosion. It took him a second to realize that the cloud of pink smoke was where Daisuke was. Not long after the silhouette of someone could be seen inside the smoke. Whoever was in there wasn't Daisuke...at least not the one that was just here. Sonya started into one of her nonchalant explanations that irked Naoto. "Is that really Daisuke?" For a minute Naoto was impressed by how much he had changed. Then, the man opened his mouth. "Yup, that's the idiot alright..." Still it was impressive what ten years could do.

Just then Daisuke called out to someone and a man appeared from the roof. "What is it with you mafia and leaping from rooft-?" Naoto's words dropped off as he looked at the man and realized something. Something that Jak had realized as well. She might have been able to keep her cool but Naoto was fed up with these people messing around with them from the start. As the man spoke it only solidified his theory. He was the kind of person who didn't care who got hurt or how much pain he causes as long as he got results. "You!" Naoto pointed at Vector with a glare. "You're my opponent. I don't care what you want, if you go as far as putting innocent people in danger I won't forgive you! Trespiano isn't your tool and I'm gonna tear you apart for thinking so!" There was something different about this Naoto. He didn't care about the beating Sonya and getting that wish anymore. He was completely resolute in fighting Vector and making him regret setting fire to the festival.

Suddenly, adult Daiskue interrupted and Vector sent his supposed son flying through the Alato household. "Hey! What did you do that for!? Is there no one you won't hurt!?" Naoto pushed off the ground and darted towards Vector. He stopped in his tracks when he heard Daisuke's present voice come from the hole in the wall. Vector took the opportunity to ignore Naoto and leave. "Wait! Get back here and fight!" He started to chase after him only for Sonya to bark at him. "That's enough! You wouldn't stance a chance against him as you are." Naoto stopped and shook as he held himself back. He knew she was right. Even after all he said to Jak he knew wasn't going to be able to beat Sonya either. All of this was sinking in and Naoto hated it. "Sonya. If I train with you, will I be able to take on guys like him? I still don't want to become boss but I can't let people like him have their way."

[TwilightDragon]

So, were they going to fight again, or what? As far as Cyril knew, there were still Abby, Jak, and a bunch of other people that had to fight Sonya. It wasn’t fair that Ben, Daisuke, and he were the only ones that stepped up to fight her. Crossing his arms, he stared at the scene in front of him. The older Daisuke was continuously calling the other man “dad”. Even though Hajime was obviously his father, he believed that he shouldn’t be spouting the word to and fro the place. They could get in trouble. Hajime seemed to get annoyed at the fact that his son punched him in the same, and thus sent him through the wall of the Alato household. This is ridiculous. he thought to himself, rolling his eyes and about to rest his hand against his hand when someone touched his shoulder.

It was Hajime, and Cyril listened as he spoke rather hastily. Look ahead of me and see who is the real enemy… he mulled the words over in his head as he looked over everyone, but his thought process was interrupted as a smaller and younger Daisuke appeared from the hole in the wall. He questioned whether the man was gone. ”He’s gone alright.” he said in a sigh, rubbing the ridge of his nose. ”I don’t think the Big Guy’s mom is going to be happy about the huge hole in the side of her house.” he looked back toward the hole that Hajime had made with Daisuke’s body, only to glance up at Naoto as he spoke to Sonya.

”I don’t think you should be so eager to fight him. Didn’t you see the power he had?” Cyril snapped at him. ”Nonetheless, you shouldn’t have been threatening him. He could have ripped you to shreds if he even bothered fighting you at the moment.”

Fionn glanced back and forth, a frown on his face. This was beginning to get kind of scary. That man was seriously tough. he thought, looking around at everyone. He was pretty sure that no one in the backyard would be able to lay a finger on him if they wanted to. I shouldn’t have helped him. He almost killed a ton of people, along with setting fire to the festival. The fire could have spread to the homes if the firefighters didn’t come in time.

He didn’t know why the hell he had helped a complete and total stranger. He kind of reminded him of a terrorist. Don’t think like that, Fionn. Then you’ll tell yourself that you aided a terrorist in burning down the summer festival. That was an ugly thought. The blond haired kid sighed, running a hand through his hair as he approached Daisuke. ”Hey. Are you okay?” he asked. ”I mean, you seemed exhausted when you came over, and now you just got sent through a wall.”

He supposed that he felt sorry for him. His own father had potentially harmed him. But Daisuke seemed like he was going to be fine. He’s sturdier than he looks. ”If that happened to me, I would have been knocked out on the spot.”

[RainDash]

Jak was quiet again, as the man left after speaking to Cyril about something. Once he was out of sight, Jak pulled her mangled popsicle stick out of her mouth and stood. She moved quietly to the nearest trash bin and threw the mass of splinters away. Her face was in shadow as she thought about it. Vector was Daisuke's father and he knew Daisuke would be in that fire the he set. Not only did he win her scumbag of the year award, he also won the worst father of the year. What kind of person does that their children? Jak's hand was clenched so tight that it felt like it was going to break. Jak tried taking a deep breath. It didn't work so she did it again. Then once more. It wasn't working. She still felt angry and upset.

"I'll go next to spar with Sonya. I need to calm down anyway." Jak said, moving back to the backyard and holding one gun in her hand while tucking the other in the back of her jeans. "That is, if you want me to, Miss Sonya." in all honesty, she wanted to fire the guns and just keep shooting until there were no more bullets. She wanted to shoot a target until there was nothing left but tattered paper. It would have felt good, but she knew better. She had to hold herself back, because if she did that then she would be no worse than Vector.

Jak just wanted to get the sparring over with as soon as possible. If she waited any longer, she might burst. She felt like she was sitting back, watching everyone be tossed around like toys. She felt like she had to do something, that she had to simply sit by while people were getting hurt. Maybe she couldn't stop that or hurt Sonya, but she had to try. She had to try because Naoto asked her to try and push Sonya a little. Jak was going to do something, and if that meant carrying on with the sparring, then she was more than willing to continue the 'training'. Maybe then, after all that happened, she could face Vector and help Naoto seek revenge for the festival and all the people he could have hurt for the sake of his own whims.

[AgniSpirit]

The arrival of Vector and the unexpected reveal by his own son proved to Sonya that while Daisuke was far more durable than before, he was still a clueless idiot. The backyard was soon buzzing with questions that obviously got on her superior's nerves, but she decided to stay quiet while he explained things. God knows when she'll ever have another break from these whiny brats. Instead, she took the time to assess each candidate's reaction to Vector's arrival. Daisuke was obviously crossed off the list, Fionn, Cyril and Benjamin were reacting as she expected. The other three, however, were handling the situation quite differently.

Abby was surprisingly quiet as everyone around her were more than curious about the dark-haired man. It wasn't that she herself didn't want questions about Vector's connection to yesterday's fire (although the look in his eyes was more than enough to convince her that he was capable of something dangerous), but she was more interested in his words. He and the future Daisuke said he was basically second-in-command and he had his own set of candidate choices. The only position that had more than one candidate was the Sun Guardian, and that was her and Fionn. Was... she not the first choice? She still wasn't so sure what a Sun Guardian did but knowing that her taking the position was still up to debate by the higher ups was unnerving. It was already obvious from the previous battles that everyone so far had a background well-suited for the mafia life.

But here she was, little miss pampered, with not a clue on how most of the weapons provided for her worked. What in the world was she even doing here?

Sonya noted the blond girl's distraught expression and decided to look into it later. Although she respected Vector and his choices, she was also here under the Tenth's orders. Both Fionn and Abigail had to be observed under her watchful, and unbiased, eye. The red-head then turned her attention to Jakki who was also expressing a different reaction Sonya had never thought she would see. The usually calm girl had a ferocity in her eyes that she had never seen before. It also had to be looked into in the near future.

Finally, Naoto was showing the most promising reaction she could ever hope for. He had stepped up to Vector, enraged by his actions and the lack of remorse from the older man, especially after Vector threw future Daisuke across the yard. Sonya quickly stopped him from chasing after the departing man, only hesitating just the slightest when she heard the shout from the newly returned present-day Daisuke about Vector being her husband. She clenched her fists, reminding herself that he was a verifiable idiot and he didn't know any better. Instead of punching the living daylights out of the Thunder Guardian candidate like she wanted to, she instead shouted at Naoto to stop. Her temper soon subsided when he heard his request from her. He said it in a calm, but determined voice full of understanding. He knew he wasn't strong enough to take on Vector yet and that awareness almost put a smile on her face. Almost.

"It's going to take a lot of work, but I can assure you that I will make you stronger." Sonya left it at that for the meantime since she heard Jakki call for her. The woman turned around and saw the tall teen walking over to her with a gun in her hands, requesting for a spar.

"That's fine. But before you make your first move, it would be advisable for everyone to know that Jakki here will be firing rubber bullets. Expect to be hit, since I know for a fact that Jakki is not fully trained in guns." But I will be looking to see how good your accuracy is.

"You may start whenever you'd like." She announced just as Abby snapped out of her depressing thoughts and rushed to take cover behind the newly-made hole in the wall.

[Vongola_Hasayo]

Cyril started in on Naoto with a lecture he didn't need. Everything the indifferent teen said was true but his attitude was what really started to irritate Naoto. Turning to Cyril Naoto gave have him an annoyed glare. "When he starts terrorizing your home then you can tell me about being eager to fight! And what do you care? From what I've seen you don't want to do this Vongola thing as much as me. So why'd you even come? And why do keep criticising me when you put on this I-don't-care-loner act?" Naoto wasn't just banning back at Cyril. He was honestly curious as to why someone who, as Naoto could tell, seemed to despise the mafia would show to a meeting where he was being recruited for one.

Naoto's gaze was brought to Sonya as she answered his question. Her answer was short and even might've left out something that she felt wasn't the time to tell him, but Naoto felt that she meant it. "Then let's get started. I don't think Jak can wait any longer." Naoto noted as Jak stepped up. He got out of the soaring area and silently cheered her on from the side.

[RainDash]

Jak took a few deep breaths, adjusting her stance a little. She put her right foot behind her sideways and her left foot in front of her. She held the gun as though she were about to intercept a punch, her arms were a little loose and her hands were wrapped around the grip like she'd seen on television. There was a switch on the side she assumed to be the safety and switched it off, and noticed her hands were shaking. She took a few more deep breaths and the shaking eventually stopped. She could only bruise someone, she told herself. These weren't real bullets and could kill someone unless Jak managed to get really unlucky.

Jak took aim at Sonya's stomach, adjusting to aim a little higher to account for gravity, and squeezed the trigger. The recoil was bit more than she'd expected, she managed to slow the gun a little as it came back, but it still hit her on the nose. It mostly hurt, and no blood was gushing out. The bullet itself would be slightly off, now heading for Sonya's chest as opposed to her stomach. Jak managed to regain her stance and adjust her arms this time to stop the gun a little faster. She couldn't break her nose while fighting Sonya, that wouldn't really work. Not to mention that would be the lamest sparring end in the history of sparring. Injuring yourself before the opponent set you at more of a disadvantage than if you hadn't done anything in the first place.

[TwilightDragon]

Naoto started to yell at him, making Cyril glance over at him in alarm. While he seemed to be steaming with anger, the dark haired boy was rather calm. And thus, he knew that he should stay out of Hajime’s way… for now. And he had to admit, he had nothing against Naoto, either. So he wasn’t about to fight with him. ”Too many questions. You’re making my head hurt.” he sighed, rubbing the top of his head as he looked back at the fight that was going on in between Sonya and Jak. If he wasn’t mistaken, after Jak, there would be Naoto… and then that other guy. Fionn, right?

Jak was an able girl, at least, that’s what he thought. If there was anyone that had a chance against Sonya, it was her. If she lost, then Cyril knew that they were done for. They would be forced to be in the mafia. And sadly, there were people in their group that didn’t seem to have a chance at the mafia life.

[AgniSpirit]

Sonya simply sidestepped Jak's initial attack, sighing in exasperation when she saw the teen hit herself with the butt of the gun. As sad as it was, it gave Sonya the much-needed information that Jakki was not a gunslinging genius and that she picked the weapon on a whim. "Before you shoot at me again, try holding your gun with both hands." She ended up saying, feeling just a tad bit sorry for her. She also made a note to not try and dodge this time around. The first dodge was truly just out of habit and Sonya wanted to see how Jak's aim was, even if it meant getting a painful welt on her body. Afterwards, she'd go on the offensive and see how well her hand-to-hand combat was, if she even had any training.

Abby physically flinched when she saw the gun slam against Jak's face in recoil. That had to hurt pretty bad. She wondered why the girl had picked such a dangerous looking weapon before her eyes traveled to the make-shift armory on the opposite side of the hole. There was no point in holding it off any longer; she was going to have to step up to fight eventually. Everyone was trying so hard to beat Sonya so they could have their wish granted, or she assumed. But after seeing all the bouts, Abby knew there was not a chance in hell of her winning. Yet, she couldn't back out now. Vector's words were still fresh in her mind and she wanted to at least prove she was a contender for the Sun Guardian position. She still wasn't sure why she wanted it so badly, but she wanted it.

Walking out from behind the wall, Abby made her way to the table to inspect the weapons. A few were familiar to her while a lot weren't, making them even more dangerous in her eyes. She hesitated to even touch one, afraid that she might cut herself on something. Finally, her eyes settled on a pair of nunchucks. She had seen them used on television before and from what she remembered, they didn't have anything sharp on them. Maybe that was a safer bet? Taking up more courage than necessary, Abby reached out to grab the nunchucks. Grasping the smooth wood under her sweaty palms, the blond made her way back to the others instead of her old hiding spot behind the hole. She couldn't show any more fear, no matter how much her knees were shaking.

[RainDash]

Sonya's advice had to opposite effect on Jak. She brought the gun up again, this time grabbing it with both hands, the barrel of the gun parallel to her right arm. As Jak aimed down the sight, she decided that before she had been aiming too high, so it would be better to aim it low. This time, Jak was ready. She made a few minor adjustments to her stance and then squeezed the trigger three times, as fast she she could while trying to be accurate. She aimed for Sonya's knees and her chest, hoping to at least make the next person who had to fight her have a bit of a better advantage. At best, she might knock the wind out of Sonya though, which might mean that they'd have to stop for a quick break so that Sonya wouldn't get hurt. I doubt that though, Sonya probably has all sorts of tricks up her sleeve. I mean, if she can't fight when I just wind her with a few lucky shots, then I might have misread her confidence.

The bullets were on course, and would hit Sonya where Jak had aimed if Sonya didn't move too much. The recoil of the gun was still something Jak had to get used to, but the gun didn't slip and hit her in the face this time. It stayed in her hand. Jak smiled a little, glad to have figured out of a decent way to hold the gun and not give herself a broken nose in the process. She lowered the gun to point it at the ground, her finger still sitting on the trigger just in case Sonya rushed her. "You know... wouldn't it have been easier if we had just used a dummy?" the thought occurred to her now that the anger she had been holding back had abated. "I mean, rubber bullets or not, they still hurt."

[AgniSpirit]

Sonya clenched her fists and braced herself for the bullets headed her way. Both hit her spot on but thanks to her knee-high boots, the one aimed at her knee felt a lot less painful than the one that hit her chest. Although she didn't visibly flinch, the bullet still hurt like a bitch and was on its way to leaving a nasty mark. Shaking off the pain, Sonya looked over to Jak.

"When someone says they want to have a spar, a gun isn't the first weapon that pops into a normal person's mind." She began to explain, "You chose a gun because you knew your capabilities. Self-awareness is just as a valuable a skill as strength or speed. In all honesty, I didn't bring any dummies because I didn't think any of you kids would have thought this through as well as you have just shown me." By far, Jak was the most impressive spar of the day. Her accuracy was decent, especially for someone who had never held a gun before. And she was definitely a fast learner. Sonya was already making plans for her training regimen as she rushed for the girl. In a span of a few seconds, the red-head appeared in front of Jak, disarmed her, grabbed her shirt and threw a punch straight at her already bloodied face. However, at the last second, Sonya stopped her punch a few centimeters before it made contact.

"Congratulations, you're the first person to hit me. That means you don't get completely owned." Sonya released the girl before pushing her towards the others, "Plus, you already injured yourself. Where's the fun in that? Now, who's next?"

"Me." Abby stepped up as she tried to put on her most determined face. Sonya's eyes traveled down to the weapon gripped tightly in the short girl's hands.

"Do you even know how to use that?" She asked.

"Yes!" The blond replied a little too loudly, causing her to blush. She took a few more steps towards the tutor and began to experimentally spin the other half of the nunchuck in the air. It spun flawlessly at the low speed, giving Abby the bit of confidence she needed to spin it faster. And faster. And faster.

WHAM!

The spinning half slammed right into Abby's face, resulting in her immediately dropping both the weapon and her knees. "Ow, ow, ow, ow...." She mumbled nasally, clutching on to her now bleeding nose with tears threatening to spill from her eyes. But she wasn't going to cry, no matter how much that freaking hurt. Sonya just sighed.

"Please don't tell me you're done."

"I'm not!!" Abby screeched, "Just... give me a few seconds..."

[RainDash]

Jak managed to get off the shots, and they hit. Jak felt triumphant, but next thing she knew, Sonya had her by the shirt. Jak prepared for the punch to connect, but nothing happened. Sonya instead stood Jak up and pushed her back towards the group. As she landed on her butt, she realized that her nose was not only still hurting, but it had started bleeding. Jak just kind of stared, dumbfounded by what had just happened. She'd hit Sonya, but hadn't really managed too push her at all. That hit wasn't even lucky. She'd managed to hit Sonya because she'd wanted to be hit. So, Jak sat there with a hand trying to stop the bleeding.

"Hey, Naoto. You got any tissues? I think I might have given myself a bloody nose," Jak said, trying to talk around her hand. After she spoke, Abbey went next and promptly hit herself in the face with the nunchucks she'd picked up. Jak tried not to laugh. She really did, but she ended up giggling as she held her hand against her nose to keep the blood from spraying everywhere. It was weird, she'd lost, but she didn't even feel bad about letting everyone down. She just wanted to laugh and enjoy the peace for a while. However, she'd need a real tissue before long, she didn't want to bleed all over Naoto's backyard.

[Solace]

If falling asleep while standing up with your eyes wide open was not a possibility, then Daisuke was the king of kings.

"Nyah-" the exhausted boy snapped awake with a start, flinching slightly as the sound of a whack and a girlish screech popped the bubble that had formed beneath of his nostrils. Daisuke cringed when he found himself standing by his lonesome next to the hole in the wall of the Boss' house, springing into action as he broke into a dramatic sprint across the grand landscape of five footsteps.

"Hey, guys! What's going on yo- MOTHER OF GOD!" Daisuke shrieked as he pushed his way through the group and his eyes laid upon the crime scene. He dropped to his knees as his palms met the ground, crying out to the sky, "Why must you do this to us, kami?!"

Daisuke barely stood up as he ran just past the writhing Abby and knelt down to the fallen pair of nunchucks, picking them up with both hands and clutching them into his chest. "Take my staff instead, you fiends! I'll, I'll-"

The sight of blood running down from Abby's nose halted Daisuke's act completely. He trembled moderately as he could see her about to let loose a rain of tears in her expression, gritting his teeth as a seething fury burned. He wheeled around to the woman who was no longer scary to him, his eyes squinting. "Hey.."

Daisuke stood up on his feet and faced Sonya directly, spinning the nunchuck fluently without fault. "You don't hurt girls, and you don't make girls cry," the Japanese boy, surrounded by a familiar air that the brief visitation to the future had given off, continued to spin the nunchuck around his arm as it gradually grew faster, and faster. "If you hurt my friends, I'll never forgive you! I'll destroy your entire exist-"

And in an instant, the nunchuck smacking directly into Daisuke's face reverted him back to his original self, causing him to coil down in pain as the nunchuck flew from his hand. He grumbled as blood ran down his head and both of his hands bolted up to cover it, falling back beside Abby. "Ahh... I guess I'll never... see those fields of..." Daisuke now laid on his back. "Pineapple.."

[Vongola_Hasayo]

Naoto watched Jak's match closely. He didn't care she was able to get Sonya to actually try a little anymore. He just roof for her to do her best. Sonya ended the spar after clearly taking a few shots on purpose. Jak did as well as everyone else, Daisuke not included. Naoto chuckled slightly as she asked for a tissue. "Sure. I'll get you one." He turned to head inside only for someone to already be holding out some to Jak. "Here. You're not a bad shot for your first time~" Chimed Miku. Naoto looked at his mother with a scary thought in his mind. Don't tell me she knows how to use a gun...

Naoto shook the thought from his mind. "Well, looks like I'm up." He had decided to go last and he didn't expect Abby or Fionn to want to take their chances after seeing what Sonya could do. To his surprise, when Sonya asked who was next the blonde piped up. "Looks like you underestimated Nao-kun." Naoto mother said happy that Abby seemed to have regained some courage. "Guess so...she looked finished after the first match but now..." He didn't know what to expect out of Abby but she looked like she was eager to prove herself. Then she hit herself with her own weapon. Naoto flinched at the sight of the nunchucks whacking her in the face. He didn't know what to expect but it sure wasn't that. "Mom, I think we're gonna need some more tissues..." Naoto said holding back his laughter. He couldn't help it. It was like something he'd seen on tv. "Oh dear..." Miku said resting a hand on her cheek.

As if on some kind of cue Daisuke appeared and started his next bout of idiocy. Naoto notice the change to genuine fury and protective nature. Daisuke was so hard to get a read on. "He's gonna get himself killed." Naoto said as the thunder candidate threatened Sonya. Then, as if Daisuke had become a human instant replay he repeated Abby's blunder and joined her on the ground holding his face. Naoto frowned and looked at Sonya while pointing at Daisuke. "Can I fire that one? I am the boss right?"

[RainDash]

Jak took the tissue from Miku, thanking her. As Jak held it up to her nose, she thought about how weird it was to realize that Miku was a trained killer. That she'd been in the mafia probably her whole life, shooting guns and doing illegal things. Jak wouldn't put it past Miku if she knew how to fire a gun. Still, how long had she known about the house here on this street. How long had known the occupants inside, but yesterday was some sort of unfurling of her whole idea of how she thought the world worked, if Miku could fire gun then the sky was purple, she'd always told herself.

I guess the sky's purple then… Jak was interrupted by Abbey sudden declaration that she was going to fight. Naturally her reaction was to laugh at Abbey, but she nearly lost it at Daisuke's imitation. For a moment, she thought he knew how to use nunchucks as well, but that hope was probably just as broken as his nose was at this moment in time. She laughed louder this time. "Geez, at least I'm not the only one who hit themselves in the face! I just hope there are enough tissues to go around!"

[TwilightDragon]

Fionn blinked when the boy who had crashed through the wall suddenly got up and went back to the others. Why was it that he was always ignored? He had to admit, sometimes being able to fade into the background had its advantages, but he hated when he steeled his nerves and actually made an attempt to talk with someone and they just plain ignored him. Then again, Daisuke was a hyper young lad, and he could have been focused on what was going on with Abby… who had smacked herself in the face with a nunchuk. A few people were laughing after Daisuke’s little mess up—such as Jak and Naoto. They seemed to be getting along, which was good. At least they weren’t as tense with each other anymore. The blond haired boy walked back to the rest as well, pouting when Naoto asked Sonya if he could fire Daisuke. Well, that’s mean…

”I don’t think you should fire him. How do you know if he’s completely useless or not?” Fionn had forced himself to talk once more, glancing up at Naoto. His voice was low and very calm, and did not hold a trace of hostility. ”I think you should give him another chance. He was chosen for a reason, right? Maybe whoever nominated him saw the potential he had.” he tipped his head, remaining near Naoto. ”Anyway, aren’t you supposed to understand him the most? I don’t know much about the mafia, but I know that leaders and bosses are supposed to understand those who work under them.”

Okay, maybe he spoke a bit too much? Fionn flushed and scuffed the floor with his shoes. Maybe he was lucky and Naoto didn’t even notice him. He really did speak a bit low...

Cyril, however, was just barely holding back laughter. Even though he was already sitting down on the ground, he would have rolled around in laughter if no one was around. But since people were nearby, he simply stared at the two fuck-ups in front of him. If Naoto is worse than Abby and Daisuke… I don’t know what to think. Would he be angry, or would he simply be frustrated? Maybe he’d be both… the family that he came from didn’t stand people who couldn’t even fight. Thus, he was raised to reject everything that wasn’t satisfactory. He would be stuck with people who didn’t even know left from right… and that pissed him off.

[Vongola_Hasayo]

Naoto turned to Fionn with a quizzical expression. "You don't tell a lot of jokes, do you? Besides, I thought it was obvious that I don't want to be the boss..." The pink haired teen said slumping his shoulders. Everything Fionn said only helped to reinforce Naoto's opinion of himself being boss. He didn't have the qualities Fionn just described...at least he didn't notice that he did. When Sonya threw Daisuke through the wall...somehow I knew he'd be okay. I wasn't worried. But is that the same thing? And I don't know why, maybe it's just because we're both from here, but I trust Jakki a lot. Agh, come on Naoto! You're not cut out to be a leader...if I was he'd still be here... As Naoto drifted into his thoughts his mother stepped next to Fionn. "Don't be so hard on Nao-kun." She whispered with a smile. "He's been running away from his potential so I need all of you to help him turn and face it. Please, take care of my son~" She smiled warmly and stepped away to examine the wall. "My, Liberta's going to have to fix that. Sonya can get carried away sometimes."

"Hey, mind if I ask you something?" Naoto spoke shortly after his mother moved away and he had jolted out of his thoughts. "Why did you show up? I mean, joining the mafia might be an appealing idea but...I can't imagine any of you jumping at the chance just because it might be exciting. Cyril wouldn't answer so what's your reason?" Naoto didn't know what he was hoping to here. He hadn't been sure of anything that's happened except his feelings about fighting Vector. Right now he just wanted some kind of answers.

[RainDash]

Jak was surprised to see someone talking to Naoto. When did he show up? As he spoke, she wondered why he was even here, and was very quickly asked by Naoto the same question. Why was she here, what did she hope to gain? Jakki thought about her reasons to be there, and why she didn't just go home after practice, like she always did. After she went home, she'd lay down in her bed and contemplate reading her book or maybe how to hit home runs better. Yet she'd still find her night strangely... empty. She didn't have anything to do after school now, nor did she want to spend time with her mother.

"Hmm..." Jak pretended to think about the reasons she'd come. "Well, in all honesty... I'd have to say I came because... I think that my reasons are my own, and I don't really wanna tell you or anyone I came just yet. Maybe eventually, but... try asking me again in ten years or so, okay? I'd hate to lie to you, so maybe hold off on that question for a bit? I don't know. I'm sure there's stuff you don't want to share with everyone else, so... Ugh, I'm rambling now. Sorry." Jak adjusted her tissues, effectively blocking her mouth to discourage any questions. She didn't want to be the whiny kid that talked about her dead dad and brought the mood down. Besides, Dad wouldn't want me to talk too much about it. It's my problem, and I can't let anyone else worry about it.

[AgniSpirit]

"No, you aren't allowed to fire candidates." Sonya stated in an annoyed tone. Wish I could though. She mentally added as she shook her head at the sight of both Abby and Daisuke on the ground in pain. If it wasn't for that quick five minute glimpse into Daisuke's bright future, she would have gone over and knocked out the idiot already. However, as she was deliberating whether or not to still go with that plan, Abby finally stood up. The look of determination behind the young girl's tears made the red-head raise one perfectly trimmed eyebrow.

"Aren't you going to pick that up?" She asked, pointing to the cursed nunchuck resting besides Daisuke.

"There's no point." Abby mumbled, wiping the still flowing blood from her nose, "I don't know how to use any of this stuff."

"So you want to fight bare-handed?" Sonya asked this very slowly, just to make sure the blond was hearing all this correctly. Out of all the candidates, Abby was one of the few people to not have a combat background of any sort. At least Fionn did some hard labor as a child. Abby never had to work a day in her life and she was expected to destroy the misfortune that attacks the family with her own body? All she had was cheerleading and while that gave her speed and agility, those two skills weren't enough to survive the battlefield.

“Yes.” The tutor caught that tiny bit of hesitation in Abby’s voice, but once the girl caught it, she raised her tightened fists in a shoddy offensive stance. Sonya mentally sighed, already feeling the need to correct her footwork and placement of her arms but instead crossed her arms over her chest.

“Alright, come at me.” Those words rang through Abby’s achy head, but she truly had no clue what to do first. She cursed herself for not watching those dumb action movies with her father. At least that would have given her some idea. But she just fought Jak, and the taller girl had injured Sonya (slightly). Even Abby could see the redness on the tutor’s chest as well as the small dent on her boot from where the bullet hit.

“I said, come at me.” Sonya announced a little louder, shaking Abby out of her strategic thoughts. The blond clenched her teeth and swallowed hard before running over to Sonya, her right fist ready to throw a punch. When Abby threw it the moment she was close enough, it landed straight into the tutor’s open palm. Sonya gripped Abby’s hand, preventing her from pulling away before landing her own swift punch right into her stomach. The wind was knocked right out of Abby as she quickly flew a hand over her mouth, using whatever energy was left to stop her morning breakfast from flying out of her mouth. She was already getting her ass handed to her in front of all these people but there was no way she was going to throw up too.

Sonya kept her fist lodged in Abby’s stomach not only to keep her from falling over but to inspect her disarray of emotions more closely. She hadn’t forgotten the agonizing look of realization the blond had on her face just a few minutes before, most likely from Vector’s news, and wanted to see if Abby had the fire to fight through it, especially in front of such a towering obstacle. Although, now that Sonya thought about it, she shouldn’t have punched the girl so hard. She really didn’t want to wash vomit off her boots today.

Those thoughts quickly dissipated when Abby suddenly reached out with her free hand to grab Sonya’s blouse. Sonya immediately responded by punching upwards at Abby’s elbow joint. Abby screamed in pain, but kept a tight grip on the shirt as she pulled Sonya towards her just as she brought her left leg up. Too short to reach her stomach, Abby instead aimed for Sonya’s already injured kneecap. The blond’s knee collided with hers and a shock of pain shot up from the impact, making Abby completely regret her decision. But when she saw Sonya’s left eye twitch just the slightest, she knew it was worth it even as the tutor punched her in the ribs. Abby finally let go and went down with a loud thud, but the smile would not fall from her face.

Sonya dusted her hands in order to distract from her sudden weight shift to her right leg. She felt a small pang of pain originating from her right knee and held back a smirk. Well done. She silently congratulated the fallen girl before turning to the remaining fighter.

“Alright Naoto, your turn.”

[TwilightDragon]

Fionn blinked when Naoto asked him if he made any jokes. The one who made a lot of jokes was Reiner, his older brother. He made so many jokes that it was annoying as hell. He couldn't say anything to make him stop, though, since Reiner could easily snuff his anger out. "Well, I don't know what you're going to do, then. I don't think you can change Sonya's mind. All you can do is try your best." he shrugged, watching Abby step up to Sonya once more. He knew that she was going to lose. Abby seemed like an able woman, but... Sonya was just too tough. She was part of the mafia. The red haired woman probably received years of combat training, and she wanted mere teenagers to go up against her in a fight. Fionn turned back to Naoto when he asked why he was there, and Jak answered before he could even think about the question. So she's keeping a secret, eh? I won't pressure her. And Naoto shouldn't, either. She'll answer in her own time.

"I think I came here because... hmm... I think it's because I actually want to make myself useful, you know? Sonya chose me, so that means that she must need me, you know? I don't want to be known as some cowardly guy who didn't fulfill his duties." he scratched the back of his head, watching Abby collapse to the ground after Sonya delivered one last blow. That... was painful to watch. He hoped that she was okay. But he was sure that if he went up and asked, he would be ignored again. Now, it was Naoto's turn, and Fionn glanced at him. "Go on, buddy. You're the boss, so I bet you'll do better than all of them! You'll do great!" That was a God awful attempt at supporting him, but... at least I did, right?

Naoto had to do well. He was the boss. Sonya chose him to lead them. Why would she choose him if he was useless? Fionn smiled up at Naoto, wondering if he was nervous. Fionn was nervous, too, but for a stupid reason. He wasn't used to these many people around him. But Naoto had a legit reason to be. "Even if you do bad, just remember that you didn't do any worse than any of them, okay?"

[RainDash]

Jak's nose had mostly stopped bleeding, so she threw the tissues she'd used away. "Jeez, how'd you manage to get by on that kind of attitude?" Jak asked Fionn, turning her attention away from the fight after it look like Abbey was about to vomit. Jakki was not a fan of puke or watching others vomit. "You, sir, are way too serious. Maybe we should just relax and see what happens. I mean, the worst that happens at this point is bloody noses, right?" Jak stood and hooked her arm around his neck. "Besides, you'd think for a fourteen year old boy, being surrounded by pretty girls would be a dream come true. I mean, you're going to see Sonya every day."

Jak laughed, pulling him closer. "Besides, we're all still pretty young. No having a sense of humor just makes you a grumpy old man who can run places. What fun is there in worrying in what will be? I mean, if I hadn't come here today, I would have never shot a gun or gotten my face hit by it." she finished after Abbey was knocked down and Sonya called for Naoto. "All right Naoto, aim for her legs and chest. It looks like Abbey managed to hit her on the knee, and there wasn't any protection against the rubber bullets I fired earlier, so those are sore spots. Go for it!"