Deja Vu - Katekyo Hitman Reborn 《COMPLETED》

CH29:Maturity

What was freedom? How did it taste? The world that he knew from before was so far from reach now. Blue skies and green lands that stretched on; his mother's smile – it had long since become a foreign concept.

His world had been reduced to concrete walls and metal bars, a musk that clung to his skin, smelling of death and anguish. What was once a clean cotton shirt torn to shreds and stained brown by crusted blood.

"Ie-kun..." The name came to his lips easily. He whispered it over and over again, imprinting the word into his mind, reciting it like a mantra.

It was the only thing he had left now. Everything else had been ripped from his hands, filling him with only self-loathing and guilt. Memory escaped him gradually, dissolving into air as the pain forced him to retreat further and further away from the waking world.

He could not remember the smell of his mother's shampoo anymore. He couldn't remember what it felt to be hugged by gentle hands, to have felt safe. The warmth of his childhood had long since dissipated; only the knowledge remained, the certainty, the guilt: this was all his fault.

The boy lying on the floor opposite of his own cell shifted, features twisted into a grimace. Then, the tension in his brows lifted, and he relaxed once more. It was likely he wouldn't wake anytime soon.

Something in his heart eased slightly, despite how it still ached with guilt. A bittersweet mixture of relief tinged with regret. Why was he sorry? Who was this boy? Why were they here?

He thought and thought and thought, and was left with only a whisper: this is all your fault.

A door creaked open. Two men stepped into his prison, watching him with shrewd eyes as they took in the sight of his battered figure and defeated eyes.

There was something familiar about the man in the lab coat. Familiar yet different. The man's trembling fingers and bowed head seemed at odds with what his mind had conjured of his personality. Submission was a strange look on the man, despite how he had never seen him before this very moment.

"Here he is, Lorenzo-sama." The man spoke, a reverence in his voice. "This one here possesses sky flames unlike which we have ever seen."

"Is that so?" The other man hummed thoughtfully. The look in his eyes was scathingly cold. "Well, bring little Tsuna-kun to his new cell then. He will be our new guinea pig."

Tsuna... kun?

He inhaled sharply – before everything came flooding back. The bubble in his ears popped, and a tidal wave of memories slammed into him, making his breaths escape in desperate, hulking puffs.

"What do you want from me?" His voice was shrill, tears pricking his eyes as he struggled to his feet. "Leave Ie-kun out of this!"

"SHUT UP AND LEARN YOUR PLACE, YOU FOOL!" Jerad snarled, spittle flying as he turned to Lorenzo, suddenly meek. "I apologise for the disrespect, sir! I- We only just got him some time ago. He hasn't been trained properly yet. I assure you this will not happen aga—"

Lorenzo placed a finger to his lips.

"Be quiet." he said.

Jerad shut up immediately, wringing his hands together in an effort to calm himself down.

Lorenzo turned his steely gaze towards Tsuna instead. "Make no mistake, Tsunayoshi, I have no business with your brother. What I want is you, boy."

Briefly, a sinister look flashed through his eyes. He continued on nonchalantly. "But to have your obedience, I must keep your brother here. How unfortunate, isn't it? You are destined, poor child, to ruin everything you touch. You drag down the people that you love with you."