The instant he saw Byakuran, Tsuna became alert.
Judging by how the True Six Funeral Wreaths had behaved on the floors below, as their leader, Byakuran could only mean trouble.
Byakuran was still lounging lazily in his chair like a man on vacation. His gaze drifted toward the sky, as if he didn't regard Tsuna as worthy of notice at all.
Tsuna quietly shifted his footing. In his view, staying on the rooftop with Byakuran was far more dangerous than going back downstairs to endure a few sarcastic remarks from Hibari. As long as he didn't violate Namimori's discipline, Hibari was safe enough.
A chill ran through Tsuna's heart for no reason.
Acting on instinct, he threw himself into a roll on the spot.
With a sharp clang, a palm-length needle carved with a dragon motif struck the place where he had just been standing.
Murderous Aura.
Tsuna could feel it.
The lazy-looking figure before him was radiating murderous intent completely at odds with his relaxed appearance.
Thanks to the battle instincts Tsuna had honed through fighting Hollows, Byakuran's first attack didn't succeed.
"Not bad, young Vongola."
Byakuran stretched lazily and sat up, one leg crossed over the other, resting his chin on both hands as though he were watching a show.
Tsuna immediately caught the wording in Byakuran's remark:
Young Vongola.
Which meant this Byakuran was different from the others below. He knew Tsuna wasn't the original Sawada Tsunayoshi from Reborn!.
"What do you know?" Tsuna asked grimly.
"What exactly do you mean?" Byakuran asked with amusement. "A younger you? Or a smaller you?"
So it was true.
This Byakuran had not mistaken him for the original Tsuna from Katekyo Hitman Reborn!.
And unlike the others, this Byakuran possessed a much clearer sense of reason.
Could it be—
"Are you my Zanpakutō?" Tsuna asked.
He hadn't forgotten why he came here in the first place. He had never seen his own Zanpakutō, and it wouldn't be strange if its spirit took the form of Byakuran.
The moment he heard that question, Byakuran burst into wild laughter, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world.
It took him quite a while to calm down.
Then, face full of contempt, he said,
"Congratulations, young Vongola. You've managed to trigger me. How dare you associate me with that thing."
Byakuran's killing intent intensified.
He pointed furiously toward Tsuna, and a white long serpent shot toward him with terrifying speed.
There was no way the current Tsuna could dodge something moving that fast.
But just before Byakuran attacked, Tsuna experienced that strange feeling again—the inexplicable sense that told him exactly when Byakuran was about to launch a surprise attack.
Because of that feeling, Tsuna moved in advance and narrowly avoided the strike.
Only then did he get a clear look at what the white serpent was.
It was a dragon-shaped creature—
Byakuran's Box Weapon, the White Dragon.
Unlike the dragon-carved needle from before, which had only delivered a single attack, the White Dragon possessed will of its own.
One strike missed, and it continued pursuing Tsuna at once.
Meanwhile, Lambo in Tsuna's arms still thought this was some kind of game and kept cheering him on enthusiastically.
Rip—
The hem of Tsuna's clothes was pierced through by the White Dragon.
If this kept up, the next thing pierced wouldn't be his clothes—
it would be his body.
On the lower floors, Tsuna could still hope that the corresponding Guardian would appear and hold off each member of the Funeral Wreaths.
But here, on this rooftop, he was facing Byakuran directly.
And the one matched to Byakuran could only be—
Sawada Tsunayoshi himself.
In other words, no one was coming to save him.
And the Lambo in his arms would be lucky not to make things worse.
Besides the White Dragon, there was also Byakuran himself watching like a predator from afar.
If this continued, both he and Lambo would be killed.
From the corner of his eye, Tsuna caught sight of the door they had come through.
Judging by Byakuran's earlier move, letting him escape was clearly out of the question.
But at the very least—
Tsuna glanced at Lambo.
He couldn't let Lambo risk his life along with him.
Relying on that inexplicable instinct, Tsuna chose the option that would minimize the damage.
He threw himself into a tactical roll, took the White Dragon's next attack on his left arm, then grabbed Lambo and hurled him toward the still-open door to the staircase.
"Run, Lambo! Go find Hibari-senpai—he'll protect you!" Tsuna shouted.
Hibari Kyoya had a vicious mouth, but in truth he cared a great deal about the weak. If Lambo ran to him in this state, Hibari would definitely protect him.
"And you have the guts to lose focus while fighting me?"
Byakuran's voice came from behind him.
A fierce burning sensation suddenly filled the entire space.
Tsuna turned and saw that Byakuran's right hand had already condensed an enormous mass of flame-pressure.
That attack—
why did it look so much like the final clash Byakuran had used against the original Tsuna?
Help me.
Tsuna screamed inwardly for that strange feeling to save him again.
But his instinct told him something else this time—
he had been completely locked down by Byakuran's move.
There was no chance of escape.
So this is it?
Tsuna watched as Byakuran slowly thrust out his arm.
A massive spiraling pillar of flame roared toward him.
He had no way to stop it.
He could only wait to be swallowed and torn apart by the terrifying vortex of fire.
---
On the other side...
A great amount of white fluid erupted from Tsuna's seven orifices, quickly covering his face and upper body.
A Hollow mask fully formed over his face.
Behind it, his hair turned purple, and strange markings appeared across his upper body.
Tsuna's upper half had begun to Hollowfy.
A shrill, agonized scream tore from his throat.
Beside him, Tessai Tsukabishi increased the force of the strange hand-sign he was maintaining. He had seen Hollowfied monsters before and could still keep his composure.
But very soon, his shocked expression changed.
The bindings of Bakudō #99: Kin restraining Tsuna were beginning to loosen.
As the white fluid spread across more and more of Tsuna's body, the restraints binding his arms suddenly shattered.
Tsuna regained his freedom.
Then his entire body was engulfed in white fluid.
A hole opened in his chest.
Sawada Tsunayoshi had fully Hollowfied.
Tessai changed tactics immediately.
As he leapt backward to open distance, he fired off two incantationless Bakudō in succession:
Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō. (Six Rods Prison of Light)
Bakudō #62: Hyapporankan. (Hundred Steps Fence)
Six bars of trapezoidal light instantly locked around Tsuna's torso.
At the same time, dozens of white rods shot from Tessai's direction, piercing into Tsuna's body in chaotic succession.
Hollowfied Tsuna let out a cry of pain.
But as he twisted and struggled, Rikujōkōrō and Hyapporankan shattered apart.
White fluid surged from the wounds made by Hyapporankan, rapidly regenerating the damage.
Now free, Tsuna naturally locked onto the person who had just attacked him—
Tessai.
Inside that cramped pit, Tessai could fire rapid Kidō at Tsuna.
But likewise, Tsuna could strike Tessai almost instantly at that range.
Tessai realized the danger immediately.
He used Shunpo to spring upward out of the pit while swinging both hands, launching two Hadō spells in rapid succession to slow Tsuna's charge.
Hadō #31: Shakkahō. (Red Fire Cannon)
Hadō #33: Sōkatsui. (Blue Fire, Crash Down)
Scarlet and blue fireballs exploded against Tsuna one after the other.
They did not inflict real damage—
but they succeeded in slowing him down.
With a whoosh, Tessai shot out of the pit.
Below, a red light suddenly blazed up from the bottom.
Tessai instantly cast another incantationless spell:
Bakudō #81: Dankū. (Splitting Void)
A transparent barrier sealed over the mouth of the pit.
The red blast struck against Dankū's barrier and triggered a violent explosion.
The original pit collapsed, and a torrent of rubble buried the charging Tsuna beneath it.
"Oh~ What an impressive Cero," Urahara said, fanning himself as he walked over.
"Cut the commentary, Kisuke," Yoruichi said. A swirl of smoke passed, and she had already shifted from cat form into human form, fully dressed. "This kid's Hollowfication is obviously a lot stronger than the ones we dealt with before."
"Urahara-san, Yoruichi-san, please be prepared," Tessai said. "Tsuna-san's Hollow is clearly different from the others we've encountered."
Having fought Tsuna directly, Tessai knew that if his reactions had been any slower, he might have been left at the bottom of that pit.
"We definitely need to take this seriously," Urahara said, lowering the brim of his hat and holding his cane horizontally before him.
That cane was his Zanpakutō.
He was ready for battle.
The atmosphere suddenly became unnaturally still.
Aside from drifting dust, nothing changed.
Normally, those rocks could never hold down a Hollow for long.
So why hadn't Tsuna come out yet?
"Kisuke, are we overthinking this?" Yoruichi said casually as she stretched her body.
"No," Urahara replied. "That's exactly why we need to be more careful."
His expression had grown completely serious.
By past experience, Hollowfied people usually lost their reason, and their fighting style became far more reckless and direct.
But Tsuna had yet to appear.
That was precisely what made him dangerous.
Suddenly, a series of stabbing sounds erupted all around them.
Strands of blue-green hair-like objects shot up with violet flames, forming a cage around Urahara, Yoruichi, and Tessai.
"Interesting."
Faced with the sudden change, Urahara pressed down his hat and drew his Zanpakutō.
"Awaken, Benihime."
From the top of the cage, those blue-green strands all attacked the trio at once.
Urahara cut through them with his blade.
Yoruichi dodged with agile movements.
Tessai rapidly shattered them using low-level Hadō spells.
More and more blue-green hair fragments accumulated on the ground.
Then the fragments ignited with violet flames.
Their shapes began to change.
Stretched and reformed by the violet fire, they became one Spinosaurus-like beast after another, all wreathed in purple flame.
"This is bad, Kisuke!" Yoruichi shouted.
Urahara understood immediately.
He reversed his blade and drove it into the ground, activating his Zanpakutō's Shikai.
"Bind them, Benihime!"
A web-like spiritual pressure spread from Benihime's tip, trapping all the newly formed beasts in place.
Yoruichi and Tessai quickly used their own techniques to destroy the creatures.
After that exchange, however, the three no longer dared to casually cut down the attacking strands of hair. They could only keep dodging their attacks.
"Kisuke, we can't let that kid keep playing around like this!" Yoruichi shouted.
"I know. Tessai, work with me!"
Tessai understood at once.
His words and movements matched Urahara's exactly.
Bakudō #63: Sajō Sabaku! x2 (Locking Bondage Stripes)
Tsuna's spiritual pressure beneath the rubble was far too obvious—they didn't need to search for him at all.
The thick, serpent-like chains generated by Bakudō #63 drilled into the collapsed rocks and tightly bound the strange spiritual pressure hiding within.
Urahara and Tessai pulled together—
and dragged a Hollowfied humanoid creature out from under the rubble.
Tessai's eyes widened.
This Hollow no longer looked anything like the one he had seen earlier.
It had blue-green long hair.
Its left arm was dark green and covered in fine scales.
Its right arm was thick and crimson.
A terrifying large eye had opened in the middle of its chest.
From its lower back extended a blue fish tail.
A pair of pure white wings spread from its back.
Its whole body crackled with bizarre lightning.
And on its mask, beneath the left eye, was only one mark—
an inverted blue crown.
=====================
Support by Dropping Powerstones, Comments, and Reviews:>
300 Powerstones – Bonus Chap
600 Powerstones – Bonus Chap