Drawbacks of a mind that remembers

The Boy born with the truth

Time stood still for no one, and soon, the holiday week is over. Everyone returned to what they were doing before–the students went to school and the adults went to work. Tsuna tapped at his table and sighed loudly, Shinichi's condition still weighing heavily on his mind despite the constant reassurances that he was fine.

It was a little bit before five in the afternoon when Reborn came through his door, announcing his presence with a loud bang. Tsuna jolted from his seat, startled by his tutor's appearance. 

"Reborn! What brings you here?"

"Hello, my impossible student. I'm here to resume my duties as a tutor, professor, lecturer, consultant–take your pick." At each job title, the hitman dressed accordingly, much like when he was stuck in an infantile form.

Tsuna resisted the urge to roll his eyes at Reborn (He received a punch anyway). "I'll take the consultant today then."

"Still thinking about your detective cousin?"

The brunet let out a frustrated growl. "I don't get it! I just want to visit him and assure myself that he was fine, but each time I bring it up, I get shot down immediately. Something's very wrong here–"

While Tsuna ranted, Reborn listened silently while recalling what he saw the last time the Kudo family was over. The boy was an ordinary teenager, he had no links to the mafia except through Tsuna, and he was a star in the investigation field. His parents were both big names of their respective fields as well. If anything stood out about them, it would be the "set of clothes fit for a child in Kudo Shinichi's luggage."

"What?" 

"Kudo Shinichi had a set of children's clothes in his luggage the last time he was here," Reborn repeated. 

Then it clicked. Though everything happened in a blink of an eye, the brunet could remember every second of that frenzy. Tsuna remembered the feeling of shrinking hands the last he held his cousin's. The extremely cold fingers that seemed to grow smaller at every second. 

"Shrinking is not possible with current technology, right?" Tsuna asked. 

"Sky flames are just as fictitious."

That strengthened the idea he had. He hurried to his computer and typed 'Kudo Shinichi'. Immediately, a number of links appeared, but most of them were dated at the latest two years back. He seemed to have taken a break around that time. However, what if the break was forced?

"Do you think Kudo-san was involved in something dangerous and thus cannot show his face to protect his loved ones?" Tsuna questioned aloud.

"It would certainly answer the biggest question of now."

Tsuna's eyes turned orange as his hair turned even lighter. Something must have happened for his cousin to fall out of the limelight for years. "Reborn, I want a full, detailed report on Kudo Shinichi's disappearance."

As much as Reborn would like to decline the task, it was no longer Tsuna speaking, but a man who lived a century ago. With his head dipped forward and his right hand upon his heart, he agreed and took off into the night.

The blond stared up at the lone moon glowing in the dark sky and sighed. He could kind of understand why Shinichi would not tell him anything. They had just met for the first time last week–anyone would be crazy enough to share their personal problems with a stranger. 

"If only you'd say something about your problems, like your brother."

~~

A white-clothed figure stood on top of a skyscraper, his right hand juggling the large diamond he managed to steal. There was no red light shining from within, signalling another failure in his heist. 

"Dammit!" He spat, angrily chucking the rock into his pocket. "Where is Pandora located?"

"Young Master? Are you all right?" 

The young man tilted his head to the back, a lopsided grin hanging on his face. "It's another miss, Jii-chan. I'm starting to doubt the existence of this jewel."

"But Young Master, you have seen the records that prove its existence! It's because of such evidence that people chase after it!"

"But Jii-chan, those records are written on weathered paper! They may be falsified and we'll never know because we keep chasing this myth! I've been chasing, searching, following the trails of hints by the evidence, but I've arrived at nothing. What if Pandora is actually a human with a dual personality or some...thing..."

He paused. Quietly, he brought his white top hat to his chest before it disintegrated into white flames. Jii watched him with unbridled concern, worried about the boy he treated like his grandson. His eyes flickered an unnatural colour before it withered away. 

"I think Pandora being a person is possible, but Kaito-bocchama, it's time we start moving," Jii said. Kaito turned to look at him for a moment then switched his clothes for his exit disguise. 

He looked up at the moon. Something has crumbled, and now everything was falling apart. Pandora is no longer his only interest–it was merely a part of the bigger package.

"That painting should have revealed us by now. It's time to break the shackles upon the night, brother."