Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn - The Heart of Darkness -

Chapter 22

"Sorry, we are not-"

"Don't be so picky and just let your VIP customers in before the opening." Shiho said to the Italian girl behind the counter. She is rather tanned but still have short blonde hair and blue eyes. Hibari came in after Shiho and looked around.

After she looked closely at her for a while, she exclaimed in Italian, "... Shiho!! Is that really you?! It's been so long!!" She immediately came out from the counter and ran to hug her.

"Haha of course it's me, the one and only." She replied in Italian too.

"Heee... and I see you have improved. You even brought a guy with you."

"Don't talk anything unnecessary or else he will kill you." Shiho said jokingly, "Let me introduce to you, he's Hibari Kyouya." then Shiho turned to him and told him in Japanese, "Kyouya, she is-"

"I don't need to know the name of some herbivore." He replied and just walked out. He left Hibird with Shiho. Hibird stopped at Shiho's shoulder and sang, "Find me later~" in Italian.

"... He knows Italian?" Shiho said surprised, "Crap, I hope I didn't say anything wrong."

"So unfriendly! Shiho, leave him and be with me instead!" She said that seriously, "You won't have a happy life with him!"

"Who says I'm with him!? Plus, why must I be with you when we are both girls?!" She complained, "Anyway, how's life, Azure?"

She was Azure Paradiso, the daughter of the owners of this small cake shop. Her parents were already dead when she was young. Heard they were caught in the battle of some mafias and accidentally killed. She hated Shiho very much when she first realized she was from some mafia family. But afterwards, Shiho helped her in every way she can, including risking her life to save her in a mafia fight, making her to trust her over time. In fact, she was the one of the few friends Shiho had in Italy.

Occasionally, Shiho will come by and have a chat with her. But after she became an assassin, they met lesser. This was the first time they met again after Shiho went to Japan. They are having a good chat over a cake and a cup of tea. Nearing to evening, she excused herself to go back. She had been there for quite a while.

"You don't want to stay over?"

"I can't, Azu. I have to find Kyouya or else, he'll kill me. I have ignored him for the past 2 hours." She laughed, "I have left you my number, contact me if you need something!" and Shiho ran out of the shop, following Hibird who seemed to know where Hibari was. Reaching an alley, he appeared.

"... What are you doing here?" Shiho asked while trying to catch her breath after running. Her weak heart always posed a problem whenever she ran.

"Warm up."

The moment Shiho heard that, she took a peek at the alley where he just came out. It was so dark that nobody would have noticed if they were not good at looking into the darkness. There were tens of people lying down there unconscious. Hibari was unscathed.

"... Can you not fight for a day, especially when you are in another country?"

"Depends." He said and started walking away from the alley. Shiho followed suit. Somehow something was wrong but her instinct told her it was not something she should worry about.

The next day was spend on the preparation of the ceremony. Both of them were forced to stay at the mansion as there was a warning that Shiho was targetted. Hibari didn't mind it much as he wanted to sleep more at the garden. He looked at Shiho and she immediately knew what it meant.

"I knew it! This again!" She exclaimed when she went with him to the garden, "Why is the change of heart to keep using my lap as your pillow?!"

"It's troublesome to bring a pillow everywhere." He leisurely answered. This time Shiho was sitting on the bench and he was lying there. So it wasn't so bad but still... Shiho was again tempted to play with his hair. Now that the position was better, she could feel it better too. She touched it a bit and Hibari didn't complain.