Chapter 40: Kawahira, I-Pin and Ramen

Chapter 40

Kawahira, I-Pin and Ramen

"The power of one man doesn't amount to much. But, however little strength I'm capable of... I'll do everything humanly possible to protect the people I love, and in turn they'll protect the ones they love. It seems like the least we tiny humans can do for each other." - Roy Mustang

"When I, who am called a 'weapon' or a 'monster', fight a real monster, I can fully realize I'm just a human." - Roy Mustang

TODAY'S REVIEWER QUOTE, DAMMIT!

IT'S NOT HER FAULT It's not like she CHOSE to be in another world with physcothic babies and murderous pineapples. - Nazo-san

Let it be known that I had no freaking idea what the hell to do.

Mao wasn't talking to me (I think she was pissed that Fran revealed my name to me and fucked up her secrecy plans), Fran wouldn't talk to me (I had, after all, invaded his freaking mind), Mukuro was busy, Tsuna was running a freaking mafia family, Hibari-sama...just no, Gokudera was- haha, funny, no, and Yamamoto?

Was that guy even alive? I never talked to him...

Anyway.

Reborn was probably yelling at Tsuna to run said 'freaking mafia family', Dino was probably falling down some stairs or something, Lambo got all sexed-up over the last eight years or something, Fuuta suddenly got old, Nana doesn't freaking know about the freaking mafia, Lal Mirch is probably out for my blood (I didn't tell her that I was going to the Alps, after mentioning it to her) and Squ-chan is on some killing-spree, to defeat one-hundred swordsmen so he can become the Emperor of Swords, or something.

Shrug. No biggie.

SO. Last resort turns out to be...

"Hi, I-Pin. Turns out that I'm heading over to Japan for the next few days. Would you mind if I totally crash at your place?"

"Oh, it's no problem, Yuni-san!"

"Just call me Yuni, I-Pin. You're freaking older than me, so I ought to be calling you I-Pin-san, but that's too many of those parentheses for my taste."

"Umm, Yuni? I believe that those are hyphens-"

"Ahh, whatever."

"...are you alright?"

"Fan-fucking-tastic, I-Pin."

"..."

"No! My mom's freaking dead, I'm the freaking boss (which is a BIG problem, I mean, who the fuck'd put me in charge), my best friend hates me, Squ-chan is beating people up (100 people, to be exact), I can travel through freaking time, I might be an alien, I really don't know, and to make it all worse, apparently, according to fucking Fran!, my name is Riza Verita."

"...I can see how you would be distressed."

"NO FUCKING SHIT."

"..."

"Sorry, I-Pin, I'm pretty stressed right now."

"You are always welcome over. Master says that he would like to speak to you, anyways."

"Cool. I'll be over in fourteen hours to a day. Airplanes are more mood-swingy than I am."

"Of course."

"Peace."

"Sayonara."

I let out an incredibly exaggerated sigh. Seems like I-Pin was the only one who could understand my (Riza Verita's? Or Yuni of the Sky's? I DON'T FREAKING KNOW ANYMORE.) ranting.

Good girl.

I arrived at I-Pin's Master's Ramen/Dumpling shop about fifteen hours later.

I had bitched at a grand total of eighteen people on my way.

Those people included Gamma, Nosaru, Tazaru, Genkishi (who I had actually threatened.), Yamamoto (turns out he's just fine), Gokudera, Ryohei (I extremely scared that fucker), someone who looked suspiciously like Levi, ACTUAL Levi (why he was at the airport, I don't freaking know.), Haru (I told her that her freaking 'desu' made me wanna gut her. She started crying. Then I apologized), Lambo (sexed-up bastard), Ken, Chikusa, M. M. (I swore Bianchi killed her), someone who looked suspiciously like Kozato Enma (then I tackled him in a hug, apologizing fiercely [Enma was one of my absolute favorites]), REAL Kozato Enma (I had hugged him really, really, really tightly, kissed his cheeks [Italian-style~]) and told him that I would marry him one day. He was really confused.), Tsuna and Skull.

That's right, folks. Kozato-freaking-Enma.

To be honest, I had had problems finding his family on the records. The Vindice's records held little to no important information. The Vongola, however, had a fucking plethora of important things.

I learned about the Vongola Sin (there was no information on the Penalty, suspiciously). It was the blood of Simon Cozarto.

I'll explain more about it later.

"I-Pin!" I cried, running across the room to tackle her. She was only a year older than I was, and we were fairly close friends. Over the last few years, I felt as if we had drifted apart in a way...

"Yuni." she smiled back, more calm than I was. I blame Fon. Crazy ninja that was related to Hibari-sama...

"How've ya been?" I asked, happily. I hadn't seen her in so long, between Fran and my fight, my trip to the Vindice, my mother's death and my little...trip to the future. I had missed her, way more than I thought that I had.

"I have been well." she said, shifting her ramen-delivery-box. "And you?"

"Swaggy." I grinned. "I got some time off of boss-ness, because Gamma thinks that I should get some normal-ness in before I before fully-submerged in the mafia."

I-Pin nodded. "I will be off work in twenty minutes. Would you like to come with me, or wait here?"

"Where are ya delivering to?" I asked, expectantly.

"To Kawahira-ojii-san, Kawahira-ojii-san's daughter, Kawahira-ojii-san's daughter's brother-in-law..." the list went on and on. "Kawahira-ojii-san lives on the opposite side of town than all of his daughter's husband's relatives! What'll I do...?"

"I'll deliver to Kawahira, if you want." I offered. "And you can take care of his daughter's husband's relatives."

She smiled, in relief. "Thank you, Yuni. There's a uniform in the back closet, if you'd like it. I doubt that Master or Kawahira-ojii-san would mind much if you didn't wear it."

"I'll stick to my outfit, thanks." I said, glancing unsurely at the white uniform. "Yeah, definitely sticking to my outfit."

She laughed. "Well, let's go, then."

"Delivery for a certain Kawahira~" I sang, kicking (gently...kind of. IT DIDN'T BREAK. That's good enough for me) the door open.

Kawahira was sitting on some couch, just chillaxing. I guess when you have freaking eternity to do whatever the hell you want, you can take things slow.

"Hi." I saluted him. "This is from I-Pin-dearest. I hurried over, so it shouldn't be soggy. I know how you complain about that."

He sighed, clearly recognizing me. "I'd imagine that you'd have some questions, would you, Verita Riza-san?"

I winced at the sound of my past name. "You have a wonderful imagination, then, Kawahira."

"Let us begin the questioning." he opened the ramen box, after handing me the correct amount of money.

"How did you know my real name?" I asked, sitting down on the adjacent couch.

"You've figured out the Arcobaleno Pacifier's Miracle, I suppose? Yuni-san's real ability? Well, Riza-san, I am the protector of the Tri-Ni-Set. I can do anything that that Byakuran-whippersnapper or that child, Tsunayoshi Sawada, can. I can do anything you can do, Riza-san, and more." he answered.

"So you can do the 'Miracle', as you put it, of the Arcobaleno, Vongola or Mare Rings?" I clarified, crossing my legs.

He nodded. "Exactly."

"So in the future, or some point in time, I tell someone my real name, and you've gone to that exact point where I revealed it?" I raised my eyebrows, in relative disbelief. "Is like your only pastime stalking me or something?"

"You just told I-Pin, approximately sixteen hours, fourty-seven minutes and thirty-four seconds ago." he pointed out.

I shrugged. "True."

He slurped up some ramen. "Next question?"

"If the Mare Ring's Miracle is to be able to travel horizontally through time-" I began.

"To parallel worlds." Kawahira nodded, clicking his chopsticks together.

"-then why couldn't Aria do that, when she had possession of the Sky Mare Ring?" I finished.

He sighed. "The power of the Arcobaleno's Miracle is greater than that of the Mare Ring's. Think of it like compatibility. You'd have to be the proper heir, selected by Sepira or I. Sepira chose to give the Vongola Rings to the Vongola Primo, so all of his descendants are therefore eligible for the ring. Xanxus-kun wasn't related to Vongola Primo, and therefore the Ring rejected him."

"Thankfully," he went on. "Aria-san did not try and use the power of the Ring like Xanxus-kun. She would have been rejected too. The only rightful heir to the Sky Mare Ring is Byakuran-kun, regardless of how awful of a person he is."

I shrugged. "He becomes a better person during the Curse of the Arcobaleno Battles, I think."

"So, Riza-san," he leaned forward, but it was kind of hard to take him seriously when ramen broth was dripping from his face. "How did you find out your real name? Did you take advantage of the Arcobaleno's Miracle?"

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to find a way to phrase it. "It's more like, I was using the Miracle thing to find out how to break into the Gesso systems - speaking of which, I need to track down Irie Shoichi - and my friend, Frapple, told me. But Frapple was angry at me, when he told me, so that kind of killed the dramatic-ness of it."

He considered it. "So you found out through your friend? That means that you must have told this 'Frapple' fellow, somewhere along the line, after discovering it for yourself."

I rubbed my nose, not liking where this conversation was going. "He reacted pretty badly, I think."

"You going to tell him, somewhere along this time-frame?" Kawahira asked me, curiously.

I winced. "If he reacted badly, I dunno if I want to freaking tell him now. Maybe, if he never knows, then he might never throw a bitch fit this timeline."

Kawahira scratched his head. "Whatever you think, Riza-san."

"I think I should be getting back." I stood up, shaking out my clothes. "I-Pin might think that I fuckin' killed you or something."

He nodded. "Farewell, Princess of Knowing."

"Who the fuck came up with that name?" I demanded, stomping my foot. "Cuz they die, right now."

He laughed. "You have to figure that out yourself."

I groaned. "You sick bastard."

"Bye-bye!"

Cultivate your hunger before you idealize.

Motivate your anger to make them all realize.

Climbing the mountain, never coming down.

Break into the contents, never falling down.

My knee is still shaking, like I was twelve,

Sneaking out of the classroom, by the back door.

A man railed at me twice though, but I didn't care.

Waiting is wasting for people like me.

Don't try to look so wise.

Don't cry 'cause you're so right.

Don't dry with fakes or fears,

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

You say, "Dreams are dreams."

"I ain't gonna play the fool anymore."

You say, "'Cause I still got my soul."

Take your time, baby, your blood needs slowing down.

Breach your soul to reach yourself before you gloom.

(Re)flection of fear makes shadows of nothing, shadows of nothing.

You still are blind, if you see a winding road,

'Cause there's always a straight way to the point you see.

Don't try to live so wise.

Don't cry 'cause you're so right.

Don't dry with fakes or fears,

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

'Cause you will hate yourself in the end.

-Wind from Naruto

"Yuni-san." Fon greeted me, as I sauntered into his shop.

"Fon-sama!" I bowed, holding out the money from Kawahira for the ramen. "I am honored to make delivery for a member of the Hibari Family, such as yourself!"

Yeah, I had never really given up on Hibari-sama...

He laughed, an airy, light sound. The voice of Kondo Takashi makes me want to die out of happy awesomeness.

"Shouldn't I be calling you -sama, Yuni-san?" he teased, lightly.

My face fell slightly, reminded of the fact that I was now Arcobaleno boss.

Fon realized that and covered it up nicely. "How was your trip to Kawahira's?"

"He's a creepy old man with an adopted daughter and enjoys watching young girls." I deadpanned, seriously.

Fon chuckled, quietly, politely. Yep. If he was an adult, I would have raped him already. Nod. "Whatever you say, Yuni-san. As long as you smile."

I raised an eyebrow. "Were you like some kind of monk or something in a past life? Cuz you act like it."

Fon considered it. "I live to help those around me. My goal is enlightenment upon myself and all of humanity."

I sweatdropped. "Didn't you just describe Buddhism, to a freaking point?"

Fon shrugged. "It is how I live my life, Yuni-san."

I mulled it over. "You live your life to help others, and bring 'enlightenment' upon yourself and the rest of the world?"

The Storm Arcobaleno nodded, his expression one of inner calmness and satisfaction. "I want to insure everyone has a place to belong."

I sighed, smiling fondly at the baby. "No wonder Mammon-dearest thinks that you're a suckup; you're too perfect."

He smiled, lightly. "I'm afraid that the Mist Arcobaleno does not enjoy being in my presence. I have attempted to make peace, but I am simply shoved aside, each time."

I scrunched up my nose. "Well, making peace with Mammon simply won't work, Fon-sama. You gotta bribe the little bastard."

"Mammon-san would never speak to me." Fon said, almost sadly. But I think we all know that Fon dislikes Mammon as much Mammon dislikes Fon. "He would never accept an apology, much less money."

I waved it off. "Send someone like Colonello."

Fon looked surprised, but quickly turned to face his cash register, sticking the payment from Kawahira (that had been forgotten) inside. "Colonello? Why Colonello, of all the Arcobaleno? I think that even Skull might have been a better choice."

I shrugged. "Colonello is supposed to be the Rain Arcobaleno, right? He ought to at least be able to calm people."

"Speaking of the Arcobaleno, Verde has sent out a message to the Arcobaleno, requesting you." Fon said, pointedly, closing the register. "Well, he said that he would like to speak to the Sky Arcobaleno."

I swallowed down a lump of unease. "Verde? No offense, Fon-sama, but I don't trust that slimy old git."

Fon winced. "You must give all beings a chance, Yuni-san."

"But Verde is creepy." I emphasized. "And he's tried to take out the Arcobaleno at least seven times."

"True." Fon admitted, albeit hesitantly. "But I'm sure that he has his reasons. We must give him a chance-"

"Yeah, and give Hitler another chance too." I muttered, sarcastically. "And maybe hand him the control of an army, while you're at it."

He sighed. "Well, here's the address," he handed me a slip of paper, with the address printed on it in clean, red ink. "It's off the coast of Namimori, you can make the trip tomorrow."

I pocketed it. "Thanks. Want to come with me? I'd imagine that in Verde's lab, of all places, I'd need to be ready."

Fon looked a little pitiful for me, since he knew that my battle skills were at an all time low. "I, unfortunately, cannot accompany you to the laboratory. Verde-san tends to... oh, how do I say it..."

"Attack the Arcobaleno whenever he sees them?" I offered, brightly.

He nodded. "Exactly."

"Can I...steal I-Pin?" I attempted.

"If she allows it, of course." Fon blinked. "I would never force any of my students to do anything that they did not wish to."

I beamed. "Thanks, Fon-sama!"

He bowed, slightly. "The pleasure was mine, Yuni-san."

"I-PINNNNNNNNNN." I yelled, running and tackling her (again).

She laughed. "Yuni-san- sorry, Yuni. Nice to see you. You already visit Kawahira-ojii-san?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "He paid! And I didn't have to threaten him (much) or anything!"

I-Pin smiled. "Kawahira-ojii-san is good with payment."

"Will you accompany me to Verde's, the green Arcobaleno's, lab?" I asked, cutting to the chase. "It's kind of dangerous and I don't have any battle experience or anything..."

"I would be honored." she beamed, sweetly. "I shall protect you, Yuni."

"Thanks, I-Pin!" I hugged her again. "You're so much more helpful than stupid Squ-chan, dearest."

"You say that a lot." I-Pin said, suddenly.

I blinked. "Say what a lot?"

"Say dearest after you say a name. Like when you would say Mukuro, dearest or Squ-chan dearest." she pointed out. "It's kind of sweet."

I shrugged. "I was raised this way. Kind of."

I-Pin nodded. "I was raised in China and Japan, so I have mixture of cultures."

I considered it. "That would make sense, considering how you were born in China, but spent a majority of your time in Japan..."

"So we will visit the green Arcobaleno's lab tomorrow?" she confirmed.

I grinned. "You got it."

"Now what would you like to do?" she asked, happily. Apparently, she was eager to visit the laboratory of an Arcobaleno like her Master.

I smirked. "Mario Kart Wii."

"Good morning, girls!" Fon called, pushing open the door to the living room of the apartment above the ramen shop, where I-Pin and I had spent the night.

I was still gripping a Wii-mote, in my sleep. "Narghhh... Mario... Fucking Princess Peach... I-Pin, nooo."

I-Pin popped up out of her make-shift bed of blankets and pillows, already wide-awake. "Yuni! Wake up!"

I groaned, flipping over onto my stomach. "Nooo, I-Pin... I wanted to be Luigi... you can be that Yoshi fellow..."

"Yuni, wake up!" I-Pin insisted, poking me.

I opened an eye. "Coffee..."

She understood immediately, running from the room, and returning with a vanilla-flavored mug of coffee. "Drink."

I chugged it in seconds, pulling the rim away from myself, satisfied. "Ah, talk about waking up! I feel new life, I-Pin! New life!"

I-Pin giggled, slightly. "Yuni loves her coffee, doesn't she, Master?" she teased, lightly, to Fon.

He laughed, exiting the room.

I bristled. "Offended! I'm in the room, I-Pin!"

She smiled. "I apologize, Yuni."

"Sure." I sniffed. "My heart has been broken like the bones of Hibari-sama's victims~"

"Shall we go to Verde-san's laboratory now, Yuni?" I-Pin asked, with a pretty smile.

I sighed, resigned to my fate. "I suppose, I-Pin..."

.

.

.

.

.

I've played a lot today. Playing tag and swords, we ended up covered in mud. Would playing dirtily tighten up our friendship, I wondered. We also fought a little. I'm sleepy. I can't stand anymore. I'm sleepy. Good night… We wondered what would we dream about today. We wondered if the delicious meal would pop out. We wondered how had today been. We wondered if we had laughed 'WAHAHA'.

Ramen no Bichau~ Ramen no Bichau~ Since that song was just repeating over and over again on my iPod, you get an i-Pin-related chapter. Blame iTunes.

Reviews~

CuteDork - Don't give your mom a heart attack... Yuni is less sad, thanks to I-Pin's I-Pin-ness :D

Kufufu no Fu - Messin' with your feels is fun, my friend.

Ingmina - Don't kick puppies D:

Paigecat - I actually think you did suggest Riza. She couldn't remember any names from people she loved (especially herself :l).

Rd - Lilo and Stitch ROCKS.

HG59 - I just love this crack pairing, its so much fun. Don't bite your arm (cannibal.)! Your profile pic of Enma makes me smile. Enma's adorable. :3

coldgazeproduction - Yuni joined the Millefiore, remember? In the Future? And the Millefiore 'killed' Tsuna, so therefore, Yuni killed Tsuna. *shrug* P. S. Yuni thinks of Fran as her bestest friend in the world. P. S. S. (P. S. stands for post scriptum, something from France. Google it).

shirokuromokona - In the timeline that Yuni travelled to last chapter, she told Fran. Kawahira knows, because he fucking knows everything. But because Fran reacted badly in that parallel world, she doesn't want to tell him.

Pailrose - Glad to know you like her name... I find it interesting too.

Lawlette - I'm sorry that I've never heard that song! I listened to it and loved it (hope you don't mind I stole it to stick randomly in my story XD) THANK YOU. Ciao Ciao

FreeWeirdGal - This is War by Thirty Seconds to Mars? I like that song... Of all people to reveal it, it had to be fucking Fran. *nod*

Maso-chan - 'Riza' was chosen, because I really like Fullmetal Alchemist, and 'Riza' is the name of one of the characters. And 'Verita' means truth. *shrug* It's an American thing, lol.

Anello Della Campana - Thanks for the pillowwww. Fran's a heartless bastard. *shrug* But we all love him anyways.

anyandeveryanime - Romance? Now? She's about to face freaking Verde! No time for romance!

Khorale - I type really, really fast. I can get a chapter done in an hour-2 hours. XD

akuma-chan25300 - I love how everyone is mentally killing Yuni (Riza) off, so that Mukuro and Fran (in that parallel world) would feel bad.

Deko - The future is dark. But the sky will always come out from behind the stormy clouds.

a simple fan - Sorry that my chapter is so sad. IT WAS UNINTENDED, DAMMIT.

MeWubFranxx - Regret by Mai Hoshimura? Funny, cuz she regrets being a bitch to Fran...

Eulphy Whitlock-Lupin - Rizza Lyn is a pretty name.

Michiyo - Riza just suits her. *shrug* Blame the naming gods.

CC - DONT CRY, MY HOME SKILLET. Alphonse with or without armor? Da-mn, that boy is sexy with or without, my friend. He is a sexy beast that deserves raping. *nods*

Furionknight - Looking forward to the future :D

ResyaAfhirsa - I have a plan, bro, don't worry. AND EVERYTHING WILL BE MINE, MWAHAHAHA.

CrimsonSkyTamer - Mukuro is Mukuro. Bluntness and Mukuro go freaking hand-in-hand. That summary was awesome XD I loved it!

MeLikesROFL - THANKS FOR THE PILLOWWWW.

Slender Man - Nice name *wink, wink* Fanart?! Really?! *squeals and dies* THANKS.

The Ice Sorceress - The future of Mukuro and Fran being bitches? That future won't happen, if Riza/Yuni has anything to say about it.

Nazo-san - I'll keep up dem sexy writing skills, just for you. *wink*

Eruruu4 - Thanks for the pilowwww

kuroshi0415 - I don't hate Byakuran. He's too fucking insane to hate. XD Mainly cuz he made that marshmellow-Byakuree video or whatever, and therefore, won my freaking heart.

Memory25 - Only...played... Sapphire? *DIES* Somewhere in an Authors' Note, somewhere (did I already say that...?!), I said that Yuni and Fran would be the official pairing. Those poor children... But they'll have their auntie Squ-chan and uncle Mukuro to help - oh shit, those brats are screwed. I hate writing sadness. IT DOESN'T BELONG.

I-Pin just makes me happy, so I included her. That's all there is to it.

I think that the perfect (or one of them) song for Riza/Yuni would be Sotto, Sotto by Lan Fan, from FMA:B. Not just cuz I'm obsessed (which I'm NOT. Kind of.), but I just like it. *shrug*

QUESTION:

If I was to write another story, where an OC is REBORN into another character's body and grows up and all, what show would it be from, what character would it be, and what pairing should the story center around?

Crack pairings are encouraged.

No yaoi, cuz I just can't write that stuff.

No yuri either. Same reason as yaoi.

Leave a review :D

Leave an expresso :D

Expect an update...sometime this week, but after Wednesday. I'm going to Michigan for a Red Wings game :) Watch it on TV and try and find me. I'll be wearing a pink Red Wings jersey. FIND ME.

Ciao Ciao~

-LeoInuyuka