#I either need to talk with Amano herself or need to stop thinking so much about KHR

[dreaming-hibi]

Them: "What are you thinking about?"

Me: "Well, there's the Simon family, right? It's very much implied that all of them are related somehow, since they lived enclosed in a goddamn island, there shouldn't have been all that much DNA exchange there. Also, it's stated that Enma's guardians are also childhood friends of Enma who have lived through a similar traumatizing experience. PLUS, in most official arts of the Simon guardians all of them have red eyes but only Enma has the crosses which confirms that he's 100% a descendent of Simon Cozzato but then... Enma is Simon 10th, although his father wasn't the boss and the family as a famiglia had kind of stopped existing for a while. So, how the fuck is Enma the 10th boss? How big was Simon's actual family that they could populate an entire island?"

Them: "Err—"

Me: "But sure, whatever. THe most pressing thing is, Simon Cozzato named the Simon family after himself. I'm pretty sure Simon was his first name, and Cozzato his surname. Though Amano makes the unfortunate choice of writing his name as シモン＝コザァート, I'm just going to assume that = is just another way of writing ・ which is what's usually used to separate foreign names. Also, Cozzato being his surname explains how Enma would end up being Kozato, names evolve and all of that. This is all very understandable, right?"

Them: "Uhm—"

Me: "But then this BEGS the question of, WHY DID GIOTTO NAME HIS FAMILY VONGOLA? wHAT WAS THE MAN THINKING?!"

To this day, KHR plotholes remain holes.

[uniarycode]

Dawn and Dusk

Series: Xros wars/Hunters

Written as part of @digiweek. Day 4, prompt: dark/light

Set shortly after the hunters go to Hong Kong.

Wordcount 2966- a bit heftier than the rest of what I've been posting

Trigger Warning: Suicidal thoughts.

Yuu did not bring many friends home to the Amano penthouse, but whenever he did the reaction was the same: pure, unabashed jealousy.

His parents were obscenely rich, he was wise enough to recognize it was more than just well off. His home was a middle school student's dream: indoor hot tubs, rooms one could reasonably play basketball in, and no parental supervision. Now, out on the balcony, he could look down and see trees the size of Legos, and a view that stretched out to the ocean. Most kids his age could not help but be envious. To Yuu however, only one feature stood out prominently.

Just how empty it was.

That void grew greater in its sheer size. Ceilings twenty feet high only served to underline just how little there was left to fill the silence. The distance between himself and those he could see on the ground, more metaphor than physical.

His recent trip to Hong Kong had only made this emptiness grow. He loved his sister, and while he’d thought himself used to her absence, it now rushed back to him in full force. They had spent years together in this home, and no matter how many corners it had, each and every one of them hid a precious memory between the pair.

His parents were away; his parents had always been away. Working, logging thirty hours every day to ensure that both he and his children’s children would be able to maintain this life of luxury with no effort on their own part.

So devoted were his parents that the very idea of indulging in such opulence like creature comforts or family were beyond them.

It had taken years for Yuu to associate the concept of ‘father’ with the man who bore the title. And in turn, possessed by Harpymon as he was, his father had not recognized him at all. Next to the protective love for his daughter, the son apparently did not matter at all.

Of all things, Yuu had been mistaken for a prospective suitor, which was certainly not something he wanted to unpack.

And that had been the first time he’d seen his father or his sister in months. Only once before in the year since returning from the digital world had he seen them together. He didn’t hate Nene, he couldn’t hate Nene, but even still, having her leave him like this…. Resentment wasn’t the right word. Bitterness was closer but didn’t quite fit. Envy was the most accurate of the bunch.

Yes, he was envious of Nene, for being able to go out there alone and fulfill her dream, while leaving him behind staring into memories of the past.

“You’re just like Nene.” He’d been told many times, from those who thought it a compliment. They were wrong, he’d initially believed they were wrong on both counts.

Yuu was smart, he knew it, even if he tried to be modest. Concepts just fit together to him in ways as naturally as walking. He even struggled to tutor others. The very idea of not understanding something was one of the few things he himself struggled to understand.

Nene was also intelligent, but it was far from natural. Whatever she did, she threw all her effort behind. With her being the eldest and thus the designated heir, failure was not an option, and she took advantage of every resource necessary to outcompete and outlast the others.

There was only one word he could think of to describe Nene at her most focused: Ruthless. There was no doubt about the success of the Amano corporation under her leadership, she would crush everyone she needed to crush and think little of the consequences. Even in her current profession: becoming an idol was merely a test of how far she could push herself, and Yuu sympathized with any who made the error of underestimating her.

But then, Yuu sympathized with everyone. That had been the other difference he’d believed existed between the siblings. From the lowliest ant to the grandest emperor to the most heinous criminals, he couldn’t stand to harm any of them.

Even the girl who would break the rules to try to steal his friends and swore to turn him into her prisoner, he just couldn’t bring himself to do any lasting harm to. He simply told himself if he was kind enough, if he showed how outmatched she was then Airu would eventually come around, or at least get the help she needed.

His parents had learned his bountiful generosity early. They only sent gifts these days, any allowance would immediately and indiscriminately be forwarded to various charities. He had never seen the problem with it; there were millions who needed money more than him.

He had, in childlike fantasy, seen that as the main distinction between himself and his sister. She had been named for dusk, and he for dawn. She had thrived in cut-throat competition, he had blossomed in a world without scarcity. She was the harbinger of darkness and despair, and he would be the one to lead others to the light.

And yet, he had, with these hands, “So easily…”

And she, in all her ruthless determination, had halted him, saved him.

Even if he didn’t deserve to be saved, maybe it had been out of her own selfishness. Why was his life worth any more than those he’d ended, those he’d tortured? Simply because she knew him and had an emotional attachment? But even that was a blemish on her, sticking her neck out for the likes of him. And he’d done it so easily before, with so little prompting. Who was to say he couldn’t do it again? “Wouldn’t it have been better if I wasn’t saved at all?”

He discovered a surprising bonus to just how long the drop off the balcony was.

“No good, No good.” A voice called out from his pocket. “Thoughts like that are no good at all.”

He stilled his breathing and took a step back. Damemon was right of course. There would be no penance found in death. He couldn’t die now, with the hunt on and needing to help with the digiquartz; his death would be only one more burden he was imparting on those around him.

But he needed to be careful. Damemon was no longer the only Digimon in his Xros loader. He had hunted Superstarmon. That was the point of the hunt, to capture all the Digimon, lost in the Digiquartz.

But the simple idea made his stomach turn. Digimon were living beings, with hopes and dreams, they didn’t deserve to be hunted for sport any more than Taiki or Nene did.

He didn’t feel bad about hunting Superstarmon, the Digimon had himself been hunting Taiki. What worried him, what scared him, was how much he had enjoyed the act of hunting. Of manipulating Tagiru and Ryouma into a situation where he could steal all the glory. Of joint-crossing with Taiki, something that he had been the only one of the original Xros Heart generals to never actually do. Of sneaking Tuwarmon in at the end to steal the capture out from the other hunters.

If he found himself enjoying fighting a bit too much, if he found himself taking joy in the pure act of hunting like Tagiru did, or sacrificing morals for his goals like Airu did? Could he? Would he go back to those times? If he would, shouldn’t he do anything it took to prevent it from happening again? Even if….

He shook his head. If nothing else this last year had proven just how wrong he had been; being compared to Nene was a compliment he didn’t deserve.

His empathy prevented him from truly stopping deranged criminals before they hurt more people. His aptitude was a gift born of biology and circumstance, not an accomplishment to be paraded around.

Even now, he was paralyzed by his own darkness, wallowing in it. While she was on stage, inspiring thousands, becoming the light that kept them moving.

Damemon popped out of his Xros loader. “You need to talk these things through, you can’t just keep it all bottled up.” His partner said.

Talk to whom? This was one subject that he couldn’t even breach with Damemon. ‘Sorry I’m so terrible you had to fight for evil and die’ was even more destined for disaster than his current train wreck of thoughts. “It’s no worse than normal.” He said.

“This is normal?” Damemon asked, seeing through him in an instant. “You need a better normal.”

“It’s just.” He exhaled. “I don’t know.”

And he didn’t. This wasn’t the answer on some test, and he was too wise to search his own knowledge of psychology for an answer. There weren’t any therapists that he could confess to without being either dismissed or thrown in the looney bin. “I got spirited away to another world and became a villain.” is the plot of some anime, not real life.

Tagiru wouldn’t understand. Taiki...might, he was at least physically present and could understand the magnitude of it all. And Taiki was the one who had originally broken through his wishful thinking. But Taiki also tended to attempt to shoulder all burdens by himself, even if there was nothing he could do. There was no reason for Taiki to exhaust himself just for Yuu’s sake.

And somehow, he was too embarrassed to share this weakness with his leader.

“I’m telling you it’s no good.”

It took a few seconds for Yuu to realize his partner wasn’t talking to him and had instead taken advantage of his introspection to swipe his phone.

“Hey.” He objected, reaching down to reclaim it. “You can’t just go calling people.”

“Yuu, are you okay?” His sister’s voice called from the other end of the phone “I’m heading over.” She declared.

“No. I mean, yes. I mean, you don’t have to, you can’t-” The line was already dead, he didn’t know how many of his feeble protestations she heard.

The average flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo took over four hours. How Nene left her apartment, procured one, and arrived at his door in less than 2 he didn’t bother to ask. It would have at least required breaking the sound barrier.

But then, barriers had never stopped her before.

“What’s up.” She asked simply

He did his best to muster a scowl. “You didn’t have to come all the way out here; I can take care of myself.”

As was his custom, Damemon destroyed whatever farce Yuu presented. “It’s no good, Yuu’s been having no good thoughts.”

“No good thoughts.” She said quietly, looking between them. “Yuu, you have to understand that wasn’t your fault.”

He quaked but did not respond, her hand reached out to rest on his fist as she repeated herself. “It was not your fault.”

“But it was.” he drew back, “It was my fault. If it hadn’t been for me, then hundreds, thousands, who even knows how many! They all wouldn’t have had to suffer! None of them would have had to die!” he threw his arm out, knocking over some cabinet, a priceless vase colliding to the floor.

Nene seemed unfazed by his outburst, “Bugramon was the one who chose the path of war. You had nothing to do with that, he chose to make them suffer, not you.”

“I chose! I saw them suffering, I saw their pain and I ignored it. No, it’s worse: I enjoyed it! I felt like a god, being able to choose who won and who lost. Using some as pawns to die and keeping others alive for my win.” His voice dropped. “Bugramon didn’t do that. I was the one who did it.”

“That wasn’t your fault either. Darknightmon tricked you. Even I -”

“-Because of me!” he shouted “He used me to enslave, he used me to manipulate you. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have had to stain your perfect hands. -”

“-Perfect?”

“- God I’m such a screwup. You’re the heir, you’re the eldest. Literally no expectations on me except ‘don’t mess things up’ and I turn both of us into mass murders.”

He felt her arms wrap around him, pulling him close. He couldn’t find the strength to break free, so he stayed there, staining her shirt with his tears.

“I am not perfect.” She said “You are not a screwup. And neither of us are mass murders.”

“We, we.” He couldn’t bear to say it. “It doesn’t matter if they came back. I still…” he unleashed another bought of sobs.

“No good, that thinking is no good.” Damemon insisted. “Death is different to us Digimon. It is unpleasant yes, and best to be avoided. But it’s not like humans do. Digimon never completely die.”

“We are not mass murders.” Nene insisted. “That doesn’t make what either of us did okay, but neither of us are truly murders.”

He wasn’t sure he agreed. His fingers curled into fists. “Even if Digimon come back, humans wouldn’t, right? Taiki had to trick the rose to be set free, you couldn’t just kill him and revive him. And he, I almost.” he couldn’t even bear to say it. “…It was so close.”

Yuu felt a bile burn in his throat, remembering just how little effort more he would have needed to snuff a life out completely. “You too Nene. If Minervamon hadn’t hidden in your Xros loader. In that case I would have, and you would have….”

“But you didn’t,” she said, “and you didn’t intend to. There’s no point worrying about what could have happened if it didn’t happen and you never intended for it to happen. I know you would never want to hurt me.”

He shook his head. It was easy enough to say no harm done, but his nightmares disagreed. Whether or not he was intending to kill her, he was certainly intending on putting a blade through her heart. And he almost did.

She took advantage of his silence to score one more point. “And I am far from perfect. I’m not like you, I stumble more than anyone. Grandma did use to say, it took me a year to learn how to walk, you did it on your first try.”

What did that matter? It wasn’t the first attempt anyone remembered, it was the last one.

“But you always stand back up, and right now, I, I don't.” he swallowed. Everything came to him as easily as walking, and yet, “I don’t always know if I should?”

His sister didn’t respond at first. Perhaps even she was caught off guard by his confession. But then, stumping Nene was a feat he dare not have the audacity to claim.

She held him, bringing them to the ground. One hand rubbed his back, up and down, up and down. “You know, if something were to happen to you, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

“You would survive.” He muttered, “You always seem to.”

“In name, maybe, but I wouldn’t enjoy any of it. I can’t see life without you.”

He continued to sniffle. God, he was so pathetic, crying here like a baby. “I’m not worth it-”

“You are!” she insisted. “You are worth it all. If anything, your biggest issue is you don’t know your worth; you’re too selfless, you value everything else above yourself.”

“I-I-I” she pulled him into her shirt more fully, muffling his resistance.

“One of these days I’ll teach you to be selfish like me. Until then, we’ll have to weaponize that selflessness of yours.” She pulled him away and stared him dead in the eye. “I want you to promise me, whenever you feel like you can’t keep going, whenever it feels like too much, you’ll find a way to pull through. For me.”

He took a few deep breaths. “That’s awful selfish of you.”

“I said I’d teach you to be selfish like me. You’re learning from the best.” She said “Promise.”

“I could never break a promise with you.”

They stared at each other for a few more seconds.

She took a deep breath. “I told you I stumble more than anyone. I’ve faced failure after failure. Going to Hong Kong, Father cut me off. I had no money, no connections, I had to start from zero. I thought there was no way I could keep going more times than I could count.

“And when those times come, I think of you. I think about how you’d stop everything, just to give a funeral to a butterfly. I think about how you’d always try to help everyone, even when too young or too small to be of any real use. You are my light, the thing that keeps me going even when immersed in darkness.”

Her hands were now on the side of his face, forcing him to look at her. “Now promise. Promise me that wasn’t all in vain. Promise me that I won’t lose my reason for continuing to push myself. Promise me you’ll keep going, if only for my sake. That’s all it has to be for now.”

Yuu took a deep breath, body shaking as the request percolated through him.

“I promise.”

She smiled, and pulled him close again, suffocating him in her embrace. “And now your first lesson in selfishness: Just let it all out. Don’t worry about me or Damemon or anyone else.”

That night Yuu released a year’s worth of tears.

Note: one etymology for Yuu is twilight, which doesn’t have to mean dawn, but it kind of fits here.

[superthatguy62]

A Look at the Final Fantasy III manga: Doga, Unei & Xande

Oh boy, here we go.

Doga, Unei and Xande are Noah's students and make up pretty much the last fourth of Final Fantasy III. Doga and Unei guide the Light Warriors throughout their quest, whereas Xande is revealed to be the main villain that's been the cause of pretty much everything bad that's happened over the course of the storyline. However, it turns out that Xande's genocidal attitude is moreso a result of the Cloud of Darkness, having corrupted Xande who merely wanted to stop time because he feared his newfound mortality.

In the manga, well...

I'll be frank. This is going to be nuts. To put the ending of this manga into perspective: There is no Crystal Tower. There are no Fangs. There is no Eureka. There is no Cloud of Darkness. There is no World of Darkness. There are no Dark Crystals. There are no Warriors of Darkness. The only elements of III's end game, aside from Noah's students, are the dark crystal bosses, who are essentially mooks. Which begs the question: How does an adaptation of Final Fantasy III end with none of the elements of the endgame barring Xande himself?

The answer is... interesting.

As a further warning: This is where my lack of Japanese shamefully comes into play. Because I use online translators, I mostly have only what's happening in the images and maybe the FFJPwiki to provide some context if any exist. Here, everything is so wild that that can only help so much. Maybe someday, somebody will translate this manga and provide some much needed context, but until then...

Doga appears in the third volume, watching over the surface world. He apparently recognizes whatever it was Desch did. His hood pops off and

Doga... has seen better days. Doga opens a portal allowing him to see where the Warriors of Light are. Doga spends the bulk of his early appearances after that fighting the sky, blasting lasers and whatnot as the darkened sky keeps destroying the world with lightning.

Meanwhile, thanks to the spincycle ability of Alus' stand (see Alus' writeup) the Warriors are able to unearth a crystal, along with Unei who looks as you'd expect.

...For about two seconds, before she reverts back to her prime.

(As a side note, Unei does mention that she used to be a looker when she was younger. Perhaps, there was some truth to that.) Unei sends Alus along and explains the nature of various things to the Warriors, such as Desch and the Floating Continent. At least, I think. Unei and Doga can sense each other though, and realizing that he's in danger, Unei puts the Warriors to sleep in order to speed up the explanations or maybe visual aids or what have you.

The Warriors dream of the various characters they'd come across. Unei then shares with them a dream of a meeting between herself, Doga and their teacher Noah. This is probably the only design of FFIII's Noah that we're ever given so be sure to soak it in.

Really soak it.

Meanwhile, an explosion happens and Doga is shocked as suddenly, erupting out of the earth is none other than...

Oh. Right. It's time for this.

So, that giant monster? Yeah, that's Xande. No I do not know why he's a giant monster and no, he looks nothing like that in the actual game. Apparently upgrading to Final Boss tier grants you some wicked perks. In any case, this final boss throws out tons of monsters that even Doga can't handle alone. Unei can once more sense Doga in danger and finishes up her explanation (with help from Melphie and Bowie) and presumably explains how she and Doga were sealed.

Meanwhile, Doga gets zapped and Unei gets zapped too as a result. Doga and Unei reach out for each other and

(Pls Mr. Tumblr, no parts are visible and it's more of a symbolic thing rather than a sexual thing)

No, I don't know what's going on at this point. Doga and Unei, now floating naked in space, talk to the Warriors some more, get zapped yet again (?), leave things in the hands of the heroes and just kinda fly off, presumably as a symbolization of their deaths in the game.

In any case, it's time for the final battle and the Light Warriors stare down Xande. Except Muuchi, seeing that giant colossus, has a nervous breakdown as everything that's happened apparently finally gets to him. The rest of the party mobilizes: Bowie and Mefi use magic to take down scores of monsters

while Doug proves himself as the best character by punching an Ahirman in the eye.

Meanwhile, Muuchi still isn't feeling well and collapses. He promptly ends up

...Somewhere

Meanwhile, the rest of the party's attack on Monster Xande isn't going well. Luckily for them, they're aided by

Ifirit and Shiva?! And with them is Muuchi, now more confident and apparently now having them as his stands.

Muuchi gets the summons on the offense, but is apprently bonded in the same way as Doga and Unei were, given that Xande attacking Ifirit causes Muuchi to feel it too. J Bowie decides to help out with his magic and it's around this point that the beast's armor cracks revealing its true form.

It all makes sense. It was the scrapped Guardian summon all along!

(So quick fun fact: Xande's design here is based on a scrapped summon, the "Guardian" summon. There is Amano artwork of this summon, but it didn't end up in either version of the game. On the flipside, unless I missed something, Xande's actual design is never used here either.)

The warriors are suddenly attacked by fierce blasts of lightning. Thins are looking grim and Muuchi even takes Melfi's hand in what I can only presume is a form of comfort.

No comfort for Bowie and Doug though. They're just in agony. Muuchi is eventually able to muster up enough strength to open an eye and see that they're actually being attacked by

Doga & Unei?! Clones by Xande? Doga and Unei somehow getting brainwashed? Who knows. In any case Muuchi manages to get Doga to back off and has Shiva attack them (though he clearly doesn't enjoy doing so.

Shiva contains the three students in a force field of sorts and Muuchi goes full Super-SaiyanDissidia and flies off to confront Xande.

Spoiler: It doesn't go so well.

In an impressive display, Melfi uses her magic to break the landscape they're standing on and causes it to levitate in order to reach Xande. Combining their power, the four unleash a blast of power, destroying Doga (?) and Unei (?) and Xande.

... Except, not really.

With the Warriors of Light tired out from their last ditch move, things seem truly hopeless. Luckily, well, I’ll just let it speak for it.

...Yeah.

Back with our heroes, Muuchi and Melfi have a private moment, though Doug and Bowie are nearby and watching them. Melfi thanks Muuchi and leaves, leaving the three (adopted) brothers, who themselves apparently decide to split and travel the world.

The End.

So... that was an ending.

[recentanimenews]

Anime's Top 10 Vampires of All Time!

  As the time for Halloween approaches, it makes us nostalgic for all of our favorite monsters, goblins, ghouls, and ghosts that haunt our anime. But what about the regal, majestic vampire? While they seem to be popular, vampires are pretty rare in starring roles, and separating the wheat from the chaff is an even harder task. A lot of times, the poor vampire is relegated to cannon fodder for powerful main characters to dispatch, treated as nothing more than lowly monsters to be exterminated, meaning it can be easy to disregard them as something uninteresting or weak. But fear not; we’ve learned from the best Van Helsing School of Vampire Hunters to catalogue who we think are the 10 top vampires in all of anime! Think you can stomach the challenge of standing up to these terrible titans, keep scrolling… If you dare! 

HONORABLE MENTION: Dracula Man (Dragon Ball)

Our list wouldn’t be complete without at least one honorable mention, and we felt it was hard to leave Dracula Man (AKA Fangs) here off the list. While not quite famous for being a vampire in the traditional sense, fans of Dragon Ball likely recognize this Thai Kickboxing Vampire! Dracula Man is far from the only vampire in Dragon Ball, with quite a few of the movies seemingly love the idea of pitting the Z Warriors against undead bloodsuckers, he’s the only one who appears in the canonical show itself. Of course, Dracula Man also has another dubious “honor”: being one of the only foes in the entire series defeated by Puar (with help from Upa, of course)! Dracula Man would go on to be something of a Dragon Ball in-joke, appearing in some of the games released well after his initial debut in the series, so we figured we’d say “fangs” for the memories, but not quite enough to make the top ten!

10) Staz Charlie Blood (Blood Lad)

Blood Lad was a quirky title that featured various supernatural types going at one another in a struggle to control the underworld. The protagonist, Staz, is a bit of an oddball compared to other vampires: he isn’t really affected by garlic, doesn’t mind crosses, can’t fly, and doesn’t even have wings. What he does have, however, is a huge obsession with Japanese anime and video games! Aside from that, Staz is the a territory leader in Demon World East, making him more of a delinquent than a refined aristocrat, but he is a descendant of Dracula himself (not an uncommon thing for most anime vampires, to be fair)! Staz is certainly a unique take on the modern vampire, and earns his spot at number ten for being a quirky, but likeable, modern rendition of the blood sucking creature of myth.

9) Sunako Kirishiki (Shiki)

Shiki was a pretty heavy and dark show, and we figured we’d get that warning out of the way first for anyone who might be curious to check it out after reading our list: things get dark, and we mean DARK. The vampires of Shiki tend towards the ghoulish side, with their dark eyes making them seem even more inhuman than usual. Perhaps most unusual is Sunako, a seemingly young girl that resembles a doll more than a dangerous monster. Sunako wants nothing more than to find some way for the Shiki and humans to live in some sort of harmony, but the cruel world she lives in, and the actions of both groups, makes her dream seemingly impossible. Like Staz and a few other good vampires, Sunako only feeds to survive, trying to limit her need to do so as much as possible and cause as little suffering as she can. 

8) Saya Otonashi (Blood The Last Vampire / Blood +)

While technically the same character, the two versions of Saya are quite different, and equally memorable. Blood the Last Vampire’s version of Saya is that of a cold, seemingly aloof young woman who becomes a cold blooded killer, hunting down the monsterous Chiropterans. Fighting vampiric beasts with a katana is cool, but it’s even cooler when you’re also the last remaining “true” vampire that exists! In Blood+, this version of Saya similarly hunts Chiropterans, although her past is far more mysterious and her own existence as a vampire is clouded in mystery and intrigue. Either version of Saya is worthy of being on a list, but we wanted to highlight both, as the movie and TV show were amazing and worth the watch! 

7) Mina Tepes (Dance in the Vampire Bund)

Mina Tepes' standing of the queen of all vampires sounds great, until you realize that everyone is seemingly out to kill you! After paying off all of Japan’s debts, Mina sets up a supposed vampire safe zone known as the “Bund”, but human aggressors and vampiric plots of usurping the throne threaten Mina’s life… Until she turns the tables on her would be attackers! Mina isn’t quite the little girl she appears to be, and while her bodyguards are quite capable, Mina is a full fledged vampire who has some serious skills and abilities. Mina certainly embodies that sense of aristocracy associated with vampires, what with paying off an entire country’s debts, but the way she carries herself and the vampire culture of the Bund cement the series as having one of the more interesting takes on vampires not as monsters, but as a unique culture separate from humanity. Just make sure you don’t call her a little girl, or you might not live long enough to even regret it! 

6) Seras Victoria (Hellsing / Hellsing Ultimate)

Originally a rookie police officer, a fateful and fatal encounter leaves Seras Victoria at the mercy of a cruel choice: die, or become a vampire! Deciding to choose “life”, Seras becomes the ward of the most powerful vampire there is: Alucard! Trying her hardest to resist the temptation to feed and bumbling through her transition from human to vampire, Seras is equal parts adorable and terrifying, as many people who’ve seen her true powers manifest can attest to. If you’re not familiar with her, let’s just say that coming between her and what she wants most is a fine way to get ground to dust! Seras lends a much more “human” component to the vampires of Hellsing, and frankly seems even more rational than some of the humans at times, making her a memorable character for just trying to do her best in the crazy hellscape she lives in. Good luck, Seras! 

5) Miyu (Vampire Princess Miyu)

The OG lady anime vampire princess, Miyu is an anime icon that fans of a certain age likely remember as one of their first anime titles ever! A classic horror series, Vampire Princess Miyu followed the titular main character as she hunted down Shinma, demons, that would wander into the human realm to do harm. Miyu is another compassionate vampire, generally selecting people to feed on that she can leave in an eternal state of “happiness” in exchange for the blood they give her. The Miyu series is an absolute classic, starting off as a manga in the 80's and still running today, with numerous anime spin offs in the forms of OVAs and TV shows. I remember first encountering Vampire Princess Miyu in a Blockbuster Video aisle (remember those stores?), and coupled with another high ranking vampire on this list, became one of many reasons why I ended up diving deeper into the wonderful world of anime.

4) Shinobu Oshino (Bakemonogatari)

We will try to avoid too many spoilers here, because one of the joys of the Bakemonogatari series is discovering the web of ways characters interconnect and the secrets that they hide. What we can say is that when the series first debuted, the donut munching young vampire known simply as Shinobu stood out from the rest of the eccentric cast, and seemed to catch the eye of many other fans. Shinobu is a relative mystery in the series, a skulking shadow that doesn’t seem to quite fit in with the things going on around the other characters, and diving further into the Bakemonogatari series reveals why this is. But we don’t want to say too much more about it; go check out the series for yourself and discover why Shinobu rates so highly as one of the most unique vampires we’ve seen in a long time. 

3) Vampire Hunter D (Vampire Hunter D)

Along with Vampire Princess Miyu, Vampire Hunter D is an anime that some fans might remember as one of their first anime ever. The star of a long running series of novels illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano, Vampire Hunter D comes to the anime world rarely, and generally in the form of feature films: 1985’s Vampire Hunter D, and 2000’s Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust. Both films are amazing and still hold up today, and D is one of the best semi-silent protagonists there is, hunting down vampires in the post-nuclear future world they inhabit. The mixture of post-apocalyptic sci-fi and medieval style horror make the series truly unique, and whether you’re an anime fan from 30 years ago, 20 years ago, you probably think of D and his fabulous hat when you think of anime vampires! 

2) Dio Brando (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure)

While he’s certainly an odd style of vampire compared to some of the more traditional ones on the list, there are few that can hold a candle to the one, the only, Dio Brando. Originally a human boy who discovered the secret of the Stone Mask, Dio is a being of pure evil and selfish desires that fits perfectly with the image of vampire, and his original vampiric run through Phantom Blood truly feels like a classic movie monster villain. When he re-appears in Stardust Crusaders, Dio’s vampirism takes a bit of a backseat to his Stand abilities, but his classic vampiric cry, “WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!”, still remains! Fans who had a chance to see the original JoJo OVA from the 90s might remember Dio’s fabulous vampire cape, but even without it, his fanged grin and inhuman stamina make Dio one of the top vampires in anime; after all, not many of the others can claim the ability to stop time and drop road rollers on people! Dio, we love you, even if you are a terrible monster.

1) Alucard (Hellsing / Hellsing Ultimate)

  When you talk about anime vampires, though, it is really hard to ignore the lanky, leering, and imposing presence of Alucard from the Hellsing series. The huge red hat and coat, the glasses, the wide, inhuman toothy grin, and the huge guns give Alucard a timeless profile, and coupled with his absolutely bonkers assortment of abilities, makes him perhaps the most terrifying vampire on the list. Stopping time for a few seconds seems like child's play compared to some of the abilities that Alucard possesses, and the absolute terror his foes suffer when they realize just how outclassed they are by Alucard makes for some of the best moments in anime. Of all the vampires on the list, Alucard is also the most “authentic”, detesting sunlight, holy symbols and consecrated weapons, and even being unable to cross bodies of water without his coffin and soil. Whether it’s being the most accurate to vampire lore, striking a memorable profile, or just being ridiculously powerful and scary, Alucard really hits all the right buttons when it comes to the top anime vampire!

  And with that, we put the last stake into our list! Vampires certainly seem far more popular than they are prevalent, but when a vampire is a good character, they really leave an everlasting impression. So as you get ready to enjoy your Halloween festivities, maybe take some time to revisit some of these amazing vampires, or check them out for the first time. Just beware… If they ask you for a drink, you better protect your neck! 

  What do you think of our list of vampires? Have any that we didn’t include here? Let us know what you think in the comments, and have a Happy Halloween! 

  ----

Nicole is a features writer and editor for Crunchyroll. Known for punching dudes in Yakuza games on her Twitch channel while professing her love for Majima. She also has a blog, Figuratively Speaking. Follow her on Twitter: @ellyberries

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[italicwatches]

GAMERS! Episode 07

So.

Last time sure happened.

Let’s see where things go from here. It’s GAMERS!, episode 07! Here we GO!

-We begin, with loading the game save for up to this point. Whoever’s playing this game is very irresponsible with their save data, you always cascade down the list, never lock into a single save file. That’s just too risky.

-But into the actual show! A bus, where some generic anime boys, so standardized you can’t see their eyes, watch. And they can see HIM, the fucker who managed to get Karen…And Keita is just trying to ignore them, even as he deals with the frustrations of people disconnecting on his mobile game and not actually playing…

-Opening! After PUBG, our next game reference is…It’s Super Mario Bros. You know Super Mario Bros. I did an entire writeup for the game’s historical relevance for Nintendo back in the lead to the Switch’s release as part of the 30 Days of Switchmas. Crazy successful, redefined the platformer genre after Nintendo themselves essentially invented it with Donkey Kong, was originally designed as the peak of a cartridge-based game with the Famicom Disk System rapidly coming up…None of this is news.

-DAY 07: Amano Keita and Karen’s best entertainment

-To the class! Where Keita is talking to Tasuku, and has decided to, and I quote, “stop indiscriminately blowing up normies”. Tasuku, who slept like shit, has no idea what he’s talking about but good for you, man. Also, people are all staring at Keita. Because of what Tasuku did, in part. But hey, hey. Tasuku had no idea it’d turn into a relationship! Of course, Keita thought Karen was more into stylish guys like Tasuku…

-And Tasuku is also dealing with the rocky state of his own relationship. Aguri’s been…Well, it’s been messy, since the guy she’s into is with Karen now. But, Aguri likes Tasuku, so Keita can only assume that Tasuku really was two-timing his girlfriend! This is horrible! No wonder he has no idea how to talk to Aguri about it!

-Which explains everything, including Karen accepting a confession from little old him! It’s all to try and build up a plausible deniability. …He needs to get out of this. His head is full of deep, weighty thoughts as he goes to the restroom. He doesn’t want to be part of breaking Aguri’s heart, she’s a sweet girl who deserves better. Maybe he’ll ask Karen to let him rescind his confession…

-And when he comes out, he runs into someone, almost literally! Oh, sorry, he wasn’t…Oh god it’s Karen. And then Karen has a freakout because the boy she’s super into, who is now her boyfriend, is heeeere…But oh dear, something seems wrong! Are you okay? You look pale…

-Um, er, he’s, um, he’s gotta get back to class he’ll talk to you later bye! And then he’s gone, leaving Karen confused…And as Keita starts to head back, everyone mumbling about him…That’s when Chiaki spots him and waves him over into an empty room! Oh lord what do you want, Chiaki? Can’t you see his day is going wrong as it is?

-Can’t You see why Karen stuck her neck out for you, you idiot?! Well, yes, of course he does…(Oh god one of you use your words) Good, good! But that was a crazy move, and should keep that pink-haired fiend from…What was that? Nothing nothing forget she said that part! Look the point is, they might be enemies, but she respects you enough to not want to see you hurt. And that Aguri girl was never gonna be your girlfriend.

-Well, yes. He knows that. Oh, good! You’re moving on really well, Keita!

-Cut to after class. Keita has a long string of furious emojis in his texts, and is across from Aguri, who is…Really not happy with him. Also she has a really crazy looking drink. But, but she’s sorry. She’s mostly not mad at you. She’s mad at Tasuku, who’s two-timing her. Keita tries to use his logic, because the only evidence that Aguri has is the guilty look Tasuku gave her, but why ELSE would a guy give such a look to his own girlfriend?! Huh?!

-…Okay you have him there. But uuuugh. Her life’s gone to hell ever since she met you! That’s…Harsh. But all those floozies hanging onto Tasuku only met him through you, ya damn enabler. Well, well, it was Tasuku who used him and egged him onto talking to…both of them…Keita quietly ‘realizes’ that he might have been used as a cover for all of Tasuku’s cheating. And now Aguri’s got to try to pull out of this nosedive and convince Keita that Tasuku really is his friend and not just using him from the start. But Keita’s gone into a deep depression.

-FOCUS DAMMIT! Karen accepted your confession! Whatcha gonna do about it, huh? He’s…He’s gonna tell her the full truth of what he knows, so they can break up honestly, and handle this maturely. (God you kids are the furthest thing from mature. The only way you could be less mature is if you were using mud to inoculate yourself against the terrible spread of cooties.)

-Well. Good for you. But how do YOU feel? And are you really gonna let someone else decide something that matters so much? …You’re right. He’s got to decide this himself! And then she realizes how fucking gross this drink is now that all the layers have mixed. She’s…She’s gonna go buy a new drink.

-New scene! Karen is up on the roof freaking out because Keita asked her to meet him here oh god what��s going to happen? Is this about their new relationship? Is it going to go sideways? Was that confession some kind of mistake? Is she about to be dumped, on the eve of her confused but delighted triumph?! No, FOCUS, girl! Don’t let him see you sweat…! But she’s terrified of how this could go…

-And then Keita arrives, and OH GOD PANIC! She doesn’t want to look at him and face the end…And so he finally just asks, if she hates him. No, never! Then, then why won’t she face him?

-W-Why don’t you?! …But he is. Y-You want to stop dating her, don’t you? She, she gets it, she’s seen how people around school are acting…You can take it back, she’ll, she’ll just…

-She’s not speaking from her heart. Deep breath. Be honest with herself…

-As Keita admits, he’s glad to hear she doesn’t hate him. He thought, with the way she’d been almost avoiding him…But…But he’s got to ask something difficult. Of course. Can they go on a date?

-And there it—Wait what? Wait what?! Karen is so shocked that when she turns around she’s in a fighting stance. Oh you adorable little dork, never change. So Keita says it doesn’t have to be right now, it can be whenever she’s free…And Karen is so confused that her world turns to crayon drawings. She doesn’t know how to parse this. She expected a rejection, and got confessed to. She expected a retraction, and got asked on a date. None of this was fitting her worst-case scenarios, or the Plan, either.

-Well…They’re, they’re in a relationship…Right? And just hearing that from Keita sends chills up Karen’s spine as she goes tomato red. As Keita panics a bit, and admits that yes, there will be hardships, and of course people are saying shit behind his back…And…And he knows he’s got no chance against a bishonen like Tasuku. He’s going to lose out in the end. But…But dammit, you don’t rage quit, you play the match until the end! He’s not giving up until it’s over!

-And oh, Karen just glows she’s blushing so bad. You could just put Karen in a dark room, repeat that line to her on a loop, and her blush would give enough light to read by. But she manages to catch herself, and try to act like the Magnificent Tendou Karen-san, as she accepts his offer as nobly and honorably as she can manage. As she also insists they do this in the right order, like a proper relationship! A-And they should disband, for today! Wow this managed to get weird, as Keita lets off a salute from her authoritative tone. but this isn’t what she had in mind and oh god this just got weird as she barely manages to get past him before she panics and flees to the stairs.

-Commercial break!

-And we’re back! It’s date time, and Keita and Karen are at the bowling alley, slash karaoke place, slash arcade, slash…well it’s a big entertainment center is the point. Karen dressed her best, Keita’s best is his usual outfit, and he’s kind of freaking out a bit as he tries to be all cool and make this work…Until finally she just tells him they can just goof off and have fun and not make this too crazy.

-So…I’m gonna let you in on a little secret.

-Keita fucking sucks at analog games. Karen beats him in ping pong, he manages to get a dart stuck in his thigh when they play darts, and he takes a cueball to the face though I think that might have been Karen’s fault, and he loses terribly at bowling. By the time they stop for lunch, Keita’s energy is drained, and Karen is at full power. But even with how draining this is, Keita is finding it really fun…And Karen has to keep herself from admitting how much being here with him is making it fun.

-As he looks over the map, seeing what else they could do today…There’s a pool. Swimsuits. NOPE DO NOT GO THERE. He immediately covers it with his hand, and oh, hmm, there’s basically just the arcade left…

-But she saw a huge pool on all the maps.

-…Oh. So you did. Well…Um…They could just go check it out for fun! Unless you don’t want to see her in a swimsuit? D-Don’t be ridiculous! But now she’s all blushy because he called her bluff and oh god this got nerve-racking. Keita’s low self-esteem comes out but Karen can only hear the parts where he doesn’t want to be at the pool with her and now he’s gotta pull up pull up.

-And that’s how he ends up at the pool in a rented pair of trunks, waiting for Karen to come out. He has truly betrayed all humanity. And then out she comes in a cutesy but revealing bikini and Keita’s brain just kinda…

-Poof?

-Poof. He feels like he just lost a precious life in a video game from the sheer impact of that outfit, and things get awkward again as she has to guide him into being at least mostly normal.

-When Karen spots a couple playing splashy games in the pool, and kind of wants to do it too. But some clear rules to keep it safe! It’s a turn-based water attack game, and whoever gets the other’s hair wet first wins! You’re…You’re ridiculous. And as soon as they’re in the water, this becomes legit serious competition, a war of water that looks like something out of Jojo and then Keita is splashed and down. VICTORY IS KAREN’S!

-And then they see the couple who are, you know, goofing off and having fun and just being silly. …Suddenly they feel like huge nerds. To the arcade, where they belong? To the arcade.

-But that’s when Keita and Karen spot…is that Chiaki? It is! Some guys are trying to harass her…And when she spots Keita, she races for him, needing someone she knows, enemy or not! She clings to him immediately because save her! Er, that is, she’s gonna, help, you…With…Give her a minute she’ll think of something good.

-The guys leave, though, not wanting to cause enough of a scene that they actually get noticed by someone who might do something about it…And trying to get a girl who’s here on a date would definitely cause a scene.

-There’s just one little problem.

-Keita’s here on a date with Karen, and she’s…really not liking seeing this blue-haired strumpet cling to her Keita. So you know, Chiaki, he’s KIIIIND of on a date, so…So you are, Keita! SO WHY DO YOU KEEP TUGGING HIS ARM INTO YOUR CLEAVAGE?!

-Okay, fair. She should not have interfered in a date from a fake relationship.

-Okay now Karen is more mad. Chiaki, what would you like your gravestone to say? I’m thinking…”With my last breath, I curse Keita”? Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?

-But soon everyone’s sitting down and talking and Chiaki has the good grace to apologize for all of that…But why’s she here on her own, anyways? She’s not! Her sister invited her aaaaand then ran off on her own. So she’s gotta find the kid…Well, they’re willing to help. And Chiaki realizes there is an honor in Keita, one she can respect!

-But, no, Karen will do all the helping. Keita, you don’t need to be looking for a cute little sister. Please go to the arcade and wait for her at once! YES MA’AM! AMANO KEITA, GOING FORTH! Jeez. Chiaki is a little scared now.

-Eventually, Karen arrives to the arcade, with a Chiaki whose sister apparently already went home. And as Karen goes to find a game to play, Chiaki pulls Keita aside and do you get why she’s here with you, you stupid idiot?! Do you understand the favor Karen is doing for you?! You need to do something for her! …You just want to join the games, don’t you. Sh-shut up.

-But Karen’s date-mind has been overtaken by her game-mind and YES THEY CAN PLAY BIG MULTIPLAYER STUFF INSTEAD OF 1v1 NOW COME ON CHIAKI

-And that’s how they end up playing totally-not-Mario-Kart. Where Keita spins out right at the start, but starts to learn the mechanics, holding close behind the others in third place…When he gets the mighty BOMB ROULETTE! It’s so exciting that even the children in the arcade are watching!

-The bomb roulette, the ultimate chance item…A flip of the coin. Either you explode…Or everyone else does. Will he dare to use such a risky item, especially on this track, so close to the finish? He…He lines up with them both, and SLAMS IT DOWN! And whatever way the bomb went, all three got caught in it.

-Karen is just silent until they get to the bus…When she finally just breaks down into the giggles at how ridiculous of a play that was! And that it still ended in him losing when he could have pulled a solid second or even first place if he hadn’t bothered…But she also sees something about Keita. He didn’t use it so he could win. He didn’t throw the match, either. He went for the interesting option. He did the crazy thing that would, win or lose, make for a good story, that would excite the kids watching them play…

-And she’s finding she likes that about him. That wild spark in him…While Keita, Keita respects how she always goes all-out with him. There’s never any going easy…And that’s what he likes about her. As now she’s all blushy and nervous…And he ends up asking if she got that new game Fire Tactics? Of course she did! She’s wanted to talk to someone about it! And so everything relaxes, as the two fall into a shared passion.

-Credits!

You know, these crazy kids might just make it all work out…

…I mean, if it weren’t for the other three people in their life. Between Chiaki, Aguri, and Tasuku, someone is gonna fuck it up. We’ll see who breaks the whole thing next time, in episode EIGHT of GAMERS! Wait for it!

[cielofics]

(Old) ICMSAR XIV

WARNING(S): OCC's, Parent!bashing, depressing!thoughts, suicidal!tendencies,

NOTES: "Japanese" "Italian" 'Thinking' 'Tsuna's eye speak' [Phone call]

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Amano Akira does.

Everyone that Tsuna had requested to be brought to  Nebesa was done in a flash. It was after all the baby hitman doing it. Nobody had wasted any time in doing so and the next day when the members of the household left Ienari alone, he didn't make up such a fuss.

Why?

Luckily, Ienari had a soccer tournament that  day and had to be gone anyway. He was however suspicious as to why everyone was leaving but he had to search for his guardians too. So far, he had none and he needed to talk to Reborn about teaching him the strong stuff already.

Ienari frowned as he headed where the tournament was held. What is going on? Kaa-san took the crying brat, the Chinese brat, the girl-who-looks-like-a-boy brat with her. Bianchi went along with her too. Are they planning something?

Ienari looked up at the sky for a moment before saying out loud, Naah. Not possible. She's so dense that she doesn't even realizes me and dad abusing Dame-Tsuna. Ah, the benefits of having such a naive mother.

His thoughts darkened at dame-Tsuna. I'll have to get rid of him soon. Dad said that we just have to wait for a few more days before we dispose of him.

Ienari smirked as he thought of the latest plan of his father to get rid of his brother. Finally, he'll be gone and no-one will even care for him. Hmph, he should have just died 8 years ago.

XX..XX

"Now explain Mama, Tsuna. What is going on?" Reborn asked frustrated that his boss had been hiding something from him.

Tsuna was stiff where he was sitting and Nana's usual smiling face was lost. She looked at her frozen son at her side before sighing.

"I'll tell you th-"

"BOSS!" a voice cut her off as the door slammed open. Looking over, they saw a panting Nebesa member who brightened as he saw who he was looking for. "Boss! Thank god you're here right now!"

[Is something wrong?] Tsuna wrote down as he directed the question to the panting man.

"Yes!"

[What is it?]

"Force A was defeated and are being healed in the infirmary. The enemy is still attacking..."

Now Tsuna looked startled at the aspect that Force A was defeated. Even Mukuro, Ryohei, Chrome and Hibari looked shocked for a moment before schooling their faces.

"THAT'S EXTREMELY IMPOSSIBLE! THEY ARE THE STRONGEST GROUP TO THE EXTREME!" Ryohei yelled out and that was enough for the rest of the Mafia members to understand that the situation was small.

Tsuna got up and motioned for the man to lead him to the control rooms as he looked at Reborn and said, 'Ask mother what is going on.'

Reborn nodded as they saw the brunet leave the room and deal with the enemy on his own.

"Omnivore, help?" (do you need help, omnivore?)

Tsuna shook his head and the others nodded and believed Tsuna would be able to take care of the matter. Once Tsuna had left, Reborn looked at Nana who coughed to gain the attention that was lost.

"Right, let me continue. As I was sayin-"

"BOSS!"

Everyone groaned as the door once again flew open and another panting Nebesa member was there.

"What is it now?" Reborn asked darkly

The Nebesa member seemed to falter before asking, "W-Where is b-boss?"

"He left to the control room already," Chrome said quietly as she didn't want anybody else to kill the poor member.

"Thank you very much, Chrome-sama!"

"Tell the others of this too and avoid disrupting us!" Gokudera yelled. The member 'hai'ed before leaving the room in haste.

"Now, please continue," Takeshi said, a frown marring his usual happy face.

"8 years ago, I wasn't the best mother a child would want. At that time, I was still under the delusion that my husband loved me very much and my two babies got along together very well. It was only a year later that I learned what my oldest son was hiding from me." (A/N: This is after Tsuna gets his memories from the parallel world. He didn't tell Nana about these memories though)

Everyone remained quiet as they could hear the sounds of people running outside.

"It turned out that my husband wasn't the I-love-both-my-sons-equally and Ienari wasn't the I-love-my-brother type either."

"What do you mean, Mama?" Reborn asked, lowering his fedora downwards.

Nana took a shaky yet deep breath as she recounted what she had seen 7 years ago.

---

Nana was humming in the kitchen, making dinner for her family today. Her husband had come home yesterday without telling her and couldn't make a feast like she usually does.

Thump.

Nana looked startled as a big sound was made. She furrowed her eyebrows as she went upstairs to see what was happening. Usually, she would ignore these kinds of noises but today, her instincts were telling her to check it out. As she walked upstairs, she could her more blurred voices, becoming louder and louder as she went up. Soon, she realized that the noise was coming from her oldest son's room.

'What is going on inside?' she thought as she tried to remember what her son could be doing that made these many voices. Hard as she tried, she couldn't remember. She couldn't remember what her son liked, needed, enjoyed. She couldn't even remember if her son had a project or anything. It was then horror filled her mind. 'Oh no, I've been ignoring Tsu-kun...'

With that thought, she stopped mid-way on the stairs. 'He couldn't be trying to kill himself, now could he? Oh ��my god, what kind of mother am I to have ignored my own son?'

Thud~

Startled out of her reverie, she continued to walk forward to her oldest son's room. She was about to make a call for her son when she heard something akin to a whimper. Freezing in her tracks once again, she made up her mind to be quiet as possible and find out what's going on.

Luckily for her, Tsuna's door was slightly opened and she peeked inside. What she saw had her eyes widened.

There stood her husband holding a knife to Tsuna's throat as he brought the knife across his throat. Her youngest son stood there in the corner smirking to himself. Time seemed to still for a moment as she couldn't recall how to breath.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw how her son was quickly bleeding and her husband and son did nothing to help. Instead, they took turns carving something on Tsuna's body, drawing more blood.

She couldn't scream nor breath at the moment. She was stuck frozen. She couldn't believe what was happening in front of her. No, she didn't want to believe but the proof was right in front of her eyes. Her family, the one she thought was the perfect one, was broken.

She felt anger swell in her as thoughts flooded her mind. 'Why didn't Tsuna tell me?! Was I that unworthy?'

Just as her anger swelled for her son's insistence on staying quiet, it diminished all together. Instead, it was filled with dread and realization. She was never the best mother and never is. Even now, she was stuck to the root and couldn't help her son when he needed her the most. She had realized that Tsuna had started to talk less in their presence and had started wearing longer sleeves. He had also started to avert himself away from them.

She never paid it any attention and now she was regretting it. She saw how Iemitsu and Ienari seemed to be satisfied with what they did and were about to leave. Quickly hiding herself, she saw the two pass her laughing about their accomplishment and how they should get a reward for their hard work.

She heard them call out that they were going outside, heard them leaving the house, heard the definite click of the keys locking the door, heard their laughter from outside. After seeing what she saw, her senses had sharpened.

Coming out of her hiding spot, she made her way towards her oldest son's room. The door was still open and this time, she didn't just stay outside, she rushed in. She hurriedly called the hospital and told them to come quickly.

While she waited for the ambulance to come, she went to the bathroom where she was sure the First Aid kit was placed.She quickly went towards her bleeding son and tried to stop the wound on his neck. "T-Tsu-kun, p-please hold o-on. D-Don't die o-on me. P-Please," she mumbled out while tears fell uncontrollably. She had some First Aid knowledge but she wasn't a doctor and her son needed a doctor right now!

"I-It's.. f-fine," a weak voice croaked. Looking down, she saw her son, her bleeding son, smiling weakly and trying to get up.

"W-What are you doing?! You are bleeding!" She yelled as she tried to stop her son from doing anything stupid.

"Y-You are d-doing it w-wrong," he mumbled out weakly as she saw her son's eyelids drooping. She couldn't think at all, right now. Her son was about to bleed to death and was somehow still conscious. She saw how Tsuna directed her hands albeit weakly and slowly to stop the bleeding wound.

After a few minutes, the ambulance came and Tsuna was rushed to the hospital. She was asked many questions but she couldn't answer them truthfully. She couldn't tell anyone the truth and even if she did, no-one would believe her. She didn't have any proof, no matter what the condition her son was in.

As she waited for her son to be sent to the admission room, Nana was trying to digest what had just occurred.

Ring~

Her cellphone rang. As though on auto pilot, she accepted the call and pressed the phone to her ears.

[Hello Nana!]

[I-Iemitsu! W-What's wrong?]

[Just wanted to tell you that I'll be taking Nari out to Tokyo for 2 days. He wanted to visit it for buying the best soccer shoes for his upcoming tournament. You wouldn't mind being alone for 2 days right?]

[O-Of course not! Enjoy!]

[Love you, Nana! Bye!]

Nana was completely blank as she realized that her husband was acting completely normal after what he and her son did. They wanted to go to Tokyo while her oldest son battled for his life?!

She could feel her love vanishing completely for them. Instead, it was filled with hatred and wanted to get revenge.

Just as she was thinking about this, the doctor came out and said that her son was stable and that he'll regain his consciousness in a few hours. However, he wouldn't be able to speak for long times since his windpipe was damaged a little. She felt fear invading her mind as she thought of never hearing her son's voice ever again.

Wiping away her tears, she set by her son, watching him peacefully sleeping as though nothing had happened. If only that were the case.

She was happy though that her son and husband wouldn't be here for two days. This way she would get a chance to figure out what exactly she had been ignoring and probably rectify it.

Time seemed to be passing by very slowly for her and after waiting 2 painstaking hours, did her son regain his consciousness. She couldn't talk to him immediately as the doctor and nurses checked him for any abnormality. After a few minutes, she sat by her son's side and took in his pale hand in hers.

Remaining silent for a while, she finally asked, "Tsu-kun, please tell me the truth. Has this been going on for a while now?"

She saw how her son's eyes lost more of the hope in and he nodded silently. "What else?" she asked. Seeing the confusion on Tsuna's face, she clarified, "What else did they do to you?"

There was horror in his son's eyes before they became blank again as he shook his head in denial. She squeezed his hand, "Please Tsu-kun, tell me. I-I already know what they did and why you are in the condition. I'll be able to believe you so please tell me," she begged her son to tell her. She couldn't bear it anymore, she wanted to know the truth and at this point, she wouldn't even be listening to Iemitsu or Ienari.

It took her another few tries before he relented, telling her everything and Nana's hatred continued to rise.

"Pretend this never happened" a very weak voice sounded in the room. Nana froze for a minute before glaring, yes glaring, at her son.

"Why should I be ignoring this?! You told me that Iemitsu is a Mafioso and can kill us anytime he wants but that doesn't justifies anything! He's hurting you!"

"Hurt you after... telling truth," Tsuna said brokenly. Despite that, Nana seemed to understand him clearly.

"It doesn't matter!"

"Ienari won't stop... will torment me for.. taking you away," he said later, causing Nana to freeze. She had seen the evilness in Ienari's eyes. She recalled the times where she had dismissed many things on her imagination but it turned out to be something else now. Her son was filled with jealousy and wanted attention. If this happened today and I would confront them, Ienari wouldn't stop.

She sighed in frustration before she felt a hand on her hands. Looking up, she saw a bit of the light returning to her son's eyes, "Help.. come... in future."

She whispered, "Will it save you from them?"

Tsuna didn't say anything but nodded, "Promise... pretend."

She bit her lips, "I promise but... if there's nobody to help you when you are on the verge of death, then I'm breaking it."

Tsuna nodded and gave her a weak smile.

---

"And that's the truth. Ever since then, Tsuna's been telling me of the Mafia and assuring me that help will come soon and I have to wait."

She hesitated for a second before saying, "Help did come. In the form of Reborn. For that, I thank you."

There was silence and everyone had their eyes wide. Shamal spoke first, "How did Tsunayoshi know that Iemitsu was in the Mafia?"

"He was threatened by Iemitsu and had told Tsu-kun the truth."

Shamal nodded and from the corner of his eyes, he could the stiff posture of the hitman. It seemed that the child had really affected him.

All of Tsuna's guardians were shocked as well. They had their suspicions but to actually find out it's true was shocking. They grit their teeth in frustration especially Mukuro, Chrome, Hibari and Ryohei. They were the first ones to remember and were the first ones to be friends with him and they hadn't noticed this kind of thing.

They were aware how Tsuna was able to hide his pain in their counterpart's world. It seems this world's Tsuna could do it too and very efficiently. Reborn, still hadn't spoken a word and that was unsettling. The tense atmosphere was broken when a door slammed open, once again.

"BOSS!"

Everyone turned to the third panting Nebesa member with a deadpanned expression.

"Herbivore," Hibari growled.

The member seemed to fluster before answering, "I-I need B-Boss..."

"He's in the control room!" Takeshi said

"He isn't! He left after the problem was solved by saying he was coming here."

"Well, he isn't here," Bianchi pointed out. "Why are you even looking for him?"

"Ah, Boss has some paperworks to do and he said he'd do it after he's done with a very important business," the former yakuza member said.

For a while nobody spoke before Mukuro eerily chuckled, "It seems that the little bunny has run away."

The ones who remembered their past merely nodded and Reborn sighed. "Do you need him to do the paperworks or can someone else do it?"

"Well, Liu-san can but..."

"Is he on vacation?"

"No"

"Away?"

"No.."

"Sick?"

"...No"

"So, get him to do it!" Reborn growled out.

The former yakuza straightened up before saluting goodbye.  Reborn looked at Nana for a while before saying, "We'll get both of you out of there and there is no need for pretend anymore. I'll take care of Ienari and Iemitsu isn't here at the moment."

Nana smiled in relief and said, "Arigatou Reborn-kun."

Reborn nodded his head before murmuring loud enough, "Now how to teach both of them...?"

Nobody dared question what he meant by it and were quite aware that the hitman and the two twins were going to have an amazing meeting.