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RENATO GUERRA

"Um... I'd like to get through this peacefully, but... "

P E R S O N A L I A

"I was told I should work on my smile... So... H-How is it?"

//  A G E
19

//  P E R S O N A L I T Y
Even though he is a full grown adult, Renato is very much still the problem child he was several years ago, but for an altogether different set of reasons. Long gone are the pointless rage and unfettered violence of his childhood; in their place are the endless confusion and myriad anxieties of man in young adulthood. Renato doesn't know which he prefers; although he certainly acknowledges life was much simpler back when he could just beat all of his problems into submission. There is no doubt regressing to the old ways is often tempting but, much to the credit of his guardians, Renato has been somewhat successfully integrated into civilian life. But only somewhat. 

There is no doubt that he is poorly equipped to handle situations most would consider trivial even after seven years of habilitation. He understands his feelings only haltingly, aware enough to know his awkwardness but oblivious as to why it is or how to fix it. Though he may seem aloof and cold from afar, he is far from it. Those who have conversed with him know that, as well versed as he is in battle, standing toe to toe with his enemies has done little to prepare him for face to face interactions. He stumbles over his words, he avoids eye contact, and he often finds himself speaking a bit too much. He often finds himself needing to practice speaking before he does, and his ability to stick to a script is certainly indicative of his experience.

Of course, while he may seem to be quite mousey, Renato is far from timid. In fact, one could say he is too earnest for someone as tactless as he is. Although he is difficult to read in silence, it is not difficult to loosen his lips; he actively wants to interact with people and is terrified of upsetting or pushing them away. 

Even if he could easily get by in life by acting in the stoic manner most expect, Renato believes that to be an insult to the people who raised him. In his mind, striving for a life where he can laugh and smile alongside others (though he's probably better off not smiling considering what his good smiles look like) is the best way to pay them back. And more than anything else, that is what Renato wants: to pay back and honor the people responsible for making him who he is today. It wouldn't be incorrect at all to say that his moral compass always points towards "I will not disgrace my family". 

It is certainly unfortunate then that their wishes often run counter to his own desires.

//  B A C K G R O U ND
Fifteen years ago, in a miserable corner of the world, a very desperate family sold their four-year old son in order to pay off a great debt. Regardless of whether it was a tragedy or a relief, they would never learn what happened to the boy, nor would they would ever see each other again. 

The boy would be sent a world away to live in a cramped cargo hold full of runaways, illegals, and other unfortunate people nobody would miss, nobody would remember and nobody would save. He would learn the rules of this new world quickly, a world where friends would disappear or worse, where charity came with cost, and where weakness was exploited. 

Fortunately for the boy, it would come to an end in the same way it ended for many: he was sold to the highest bidder. In this case, that was a certain Italian crime family. It was not the way had expected his time to end; he was inferior goods after all. He was strong and hardy (for someone on the brink of starvation, at least), but he was aggressive, unpersonable, and not nearly attractive enough to make up for it. When he asked why it came to be, he was given a simple answer: he was strong.

And so, at the ripe age of seven, "Renato Guerra" would see the sun and step foot on dry land for the first time in three years. He, along with several other children collected by this family from various sources, were sent to a manor overlooking a village in the Alps. This picturesque mountainside served the backdrop of much of Renato's upbringing. 

But before the manor became his home, Renato had to earn it. For the first year, it was little more than a carrot on a stick for him and the myriad others. They would train and be tested against each other. Those who could distinguish themselves would be rewarded with comfort and opportunity; those who failed would be sent elsewhere. Renato was not clever nor was he charming, but he was strong and ruthless. And that was all he needed. He just had to crush everyone else who thought they were stronger.

And he did.

By the end of the trial year, twelve of the aspirants remained. But while they were granted the light and mountain air they were promised, there was a catch: they had to act as agents of the family. With his exceptional battle prowess, Renato was little more than the family's weapon, cutting down whoever they pointed him at without question. 

Five years of his life were spent doing nothing but fighting, training to fight, and recovering from fights. Today, thoughts of his lost childhood bother him, but back then, it was as good as it would ever get. He was praised and rewarded, all for doing something he was good at. He was, for the first time, content. But as they say, all good(?) things eventually come to an end. 

For Renato, that ending was heralded by war with the Vongola Famiglia, and by the end of it, his old family was rendered extinct and only three of his eleven comrades remained. He had fully expected to die then, either as a casualty of battle or by execution after the fact. Instead, he was granted amnesty by the enemy who had every right and reason to end him. 

At the behest of Sasagawa Mikoto, the then-and-current Varia Leader and the one who had spearheaded the final assault, all surviving children were taken in as wards of the Vongola for rehabilitation into civilian life. After sufficient psychological evaluation, all of them were distributed to willing host families. All except Renato, the only true "lost cause" of the bunch. It was completely understandable; nobody wanted to deal with the boy who had cut down their friends and family, who responded to everything with anger and violence, and who showed no signs of repenting any time soon. After spending a month in a sparsely furnished cell with no news, it seemed as if his initial assumption would come to pass. 

But it didn't, because the Sasagawa household took him in. 

A second chance was not something he had wished for. Patient discipline was not something he had wished for either. Nor was a real home or an education. But even so, he was--and still is--grateful for it. It is a debt he can never repay, except by trying his to live his life in the way she wanted him to. Unfortunately, old habits die hard, and Renato was about the age to enter the cutthroat environment known as high school. 

St. Dismas International School, a well-known primary and secondary school for high-profile mafia children, was his alma mater. There, his combined status as an complete idiot, a self-proclaimed pacifist and enemy agent quickly earned the derision of his peers and some of the staff. For the first time, he was at a loss. His first and best attempts at being normal had just been met with vitriol, and he couldn't fight them all, that's not what a good person would do. But it was the only thing he knew how to do, so he pushed back. He did a lot more than just "push back". 

Despite how much trouble he got in, both at home and at school, it was worth it. They still disparaged, when they thought he wasn't listening or he wouldn't notice, but it was bearable. It was also very lonely. His only form of interaction with his peers were from those who wanted to prove themselves against him, the Choice Club which was just using his prowess to boost their prestige, and his "cousin".

At home, Renato's life was better, but still not without conflict. Both of his parental figures were often absent due to their duties, and when it came to his actions, they had very different opinions on the subject. Eventually the logical argument won over the emotional one: he shouldn't waste his talents trying to be a civilian, but rather, he should serve as an agent for the Vongola. And Renato agreed, much to Mikoto's displeasure. Ironically, this was done in an attempt to prove himself useful to her.

During high school, he served as a part-time apprentice under the Vongola XIV Guardian of Rain, the one who had petitioned Mikoto to have Renato serve the Vongola. After barely graduating high school, Renato took on official duties within the Vongola Famiglia, albeit ones that were far divorced from his previous combative roles.

It is two years later when the Vongola XV-apparent is decided upon, and it two weeks after that that Renato receives missive from the Vongola XIV that makes his blood run cold:

They wanted him to mentor.

P A R A M E T E R S

"Can you keep up with me?"

//  F L A M E
Cloud

//  A B I L I T I E S
Notoriety - Even before his nomination as Vongola Cloud Guardian, Renato was a person of no-small repute. Much of this has to do with the high-profile individuals he associates with, but even more of it has to do with his combat prowess. Renato is often regarded as the Vongola's asset going into the fifteenth generation, and for good reason: he is powerful enough to complete any mission and defeat any enemy, but he lacks both ambition and charisma. He would be a perfect weapon, if it weren't for his fickle attitude and guardians' pacifist teachings.

Martial Insight - Although Renato is almost certainly the most unintelligent member of the 15th Generation Guardians when it comes to academics, social interaction and most other things associated with being a functional human being in today's society, he demonstrates startling knowledge of all things related to combat. Even if he doesn't practice them himself, he has a comprehensive understanding of the practices, techniques and capabilities of a vast number of fighting styles and weapons. It is worth noting that this vast knowledge can be used to mentor others--assuming both he and any potential students can get past his equally vast social hang-ups.

Consolidated Arsenal - According to Vongola records, Renato fights using a combination of eclectic hand to hand combat techniques and blade-work using anything from daggers to greatswords. He is most effective at ranges where he can unleash his potent array of blows, kicks and holds to create openings for decisive weapon strikes. However, he has recently began focusing on refining his swordsmanship, leading to a much more blade-oriented fighting method. That said, any self-respecting swordsman wouldn't call what he does "swordsmanship" in the least.

//  E Q U I P M E N T
Cloud Blades - A set of uniform short blades wreathed in Cloud Flames, suitable for throwing and melee alike. The quantity of short blades produced is dictated by the amount of flame energy inputted during opening. Due to this quality, Renato has developed a tactic of "shooting" his opponent with a hail of blades. However, the intended function of the Cloud Flames is to increase the size of the weapon, allowing the user to shift between blade types with ease.

Ragno di Nuvola - Cloud Spider, currently unnamed because Renato isn't creative enough to name it. It looks like a light-colored spider with purple markings, and is about the size of Renato's entire hand. As a weapon, the Cloud Spider exhibits poor direct combat performance, but is exceptionally versatile in utility applications. It's primary abilities involve inflicting massive SAN damage to anyone with arachnophobia, and applying the Cloud Flames' Propagation attribute to its spinnerets. The latter allows for rapid construction of large quantities of spider silk, which can be used for a variety of purposes. Also worth noting that this Cloud Spider isn't an 'it', but a 'her'.

//  T H E M E
[url=placeholder]TBA[/url]
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