First Blood (KHR Fanfic)

2. Sasagawa Ryohei

2. Sasagawa Ryohei

Ryohei was never a religious man. In fact, he was quite the opposite. He was a child that laughed in the face of god.

He was a man that grew up looking only towards the present. He was a man that lived for his ambition towards boxing and his care for his family. He'd never even considered a god in the world. It just wasn't a matter of concern for him.

Then, he met the Vongola's First Generation Sun Guardian. A man of religion, a speaker of Christianity. Father Knuckle. Knuckle was a boxer just like him-- but he had retired after a morbid incident.

Why? Ryohei wondered at first. Why would he quit?

He didn't understand. It almost sounded ridiculous to Ryohei.

Knuckle was a strong boxer. Ryohei didn't need to know the man personally to understand that. Ryohei was a man that loved boxing with his heart, and he believed nothing could stop that love.

Was Knuckle not the same?

Why priesthood, of all things? There were many directions to go after retiring from boxing, so why religion? Ryohei faintly knew that one day, as he eventually grows up in the underworld, he would solve these mysteries.

Perhaps, a thought that rose in his mind, I would understand why on the day I make my first kill.

But he shoved the thought away.

No, he reminded himself, I shouldn't kill.

------

His opponent was a boxer, just like him.

His opponent had good form, just like him.

Ryohei had been happy when he realized that similarity. After all, it'd been quite some time since he had boxed against someone. No one in the mansion could spar with him, as the only man with experience was an older Butler or two that was growing too old; or a few younger butlers that stood no chance.

"Fair play?" the other man smirked.

"Absolutely." Ryohei's reply was accompanied by his own smirk.

In this Mafia society of Flames and Boxes, it was by pure coincidence that both boxers had weapons that complimented their fighting style.

But in this round of similarly skilled punchers, their weapons decided the match.

And Ryohei underestimated his own weapon.

(Or perhaps, he overestimated his opponent's weapon. After all, he never thought the Vongola box Weapon would overpower normal box weapons that much.)

-------

His eyes were wide. Nothing went through his mind.

His Box Weapon returned to being just a fancy bangle at his arm, but that didn't change anything. It didn't change the dark red splattered at the wall, it didn't change the mangled corpse he was now seeing.

Ryohei was never new to blood. He was, after all, a healer.

When any two of the guardians started fighting, it usually resulted with the nastiest of gashes, a lot of broken furniture, and a grumpy, reluctant truce as they made their way to Ryohei. Ryohei would then immediately light his ring in concern, and perhaps get a little angry at the unnecessary cause of injury.

But this-- this, he knew, would not be fixed by Sun Flames.

This- This death, could not be healed.