"This is troublesome, Kisuke. Those strange body parts of that kid—are they going to be just as difficult to deal with?" Yoruichi asked while rubbing her temples.
"Now isn't the time to think about that, Yoruichi. Suppress him!" Urahara ordered.
"I've been wanting to try anyway!"
Yoruichi's figure blurred, and in an instant she appeared in front of Tsuna. Her fists and kicks flowed together in a continuous barrage, attempting to overwhelm him with her masterful Hakuda techniques.
And she succeeded.
The moment Sajō Sabaku ended, Yoruichi's relentless strikes forced Tsuna to retreat again and again.
As for Tsuna—he had no ability to block her attacks at all. His limbs moved like newly attached prosthetics; his left and right arms couldn't even coordinate with each other. There was no way he could defend against Yoruichi's skill.
Yoruichi clicked her tongue, slightly disappointed. She had expected that, judging by the Hollow's earlier tricks, this fight would be difficult.
Instead, it felt far too easy.
Seeing the expression on her face, Urahara instantly knew what she was thinking and shouted a warning:
"Yoruichi, watch his hands! Something strange is definitely going on!"
"What could possibly—"
Before Yoruichi could finish speaking, a crimson claw slashed through the air and tore open her clothing.
She immediately retreated.
Her clothes had been specially made by Urahara from reinforced materials and were normally very difficult to damage.
Only then did Yoruichi notice that Tsuna's right arm had grown even larger. It resembled a monstrous dragon claw, burning with red flames. It seemed those flames had scorched through her clothing.
"Well then… I suppose I'll take this a bit more seriously."
Yoruichi ripped away the damaged fabric. Dense spiritual pressure surged across her body, and her back and shoulders became wrapped in highly compressed Kidō energy.
Shunkō.
This was Yoruichi's personal secret technique—infusing Kidō power into the user's arms and legs. Even the slightest movement could unleash tremendous destructive force. For someone like Yoruichi who specialized in close combat, it was an enormous boost.
In the next instant, she appeared before Tsuna at a speed almost impossible to track.
Her fist slammed into him.
Tsuna was blasted away, a hole blown through his right shoulder as his body smashed through several distant rock formations.
"Kisuke, should I keep going?"
"Look out!" Urahara suddenly shouted.
The Hollowfied Tsuna who had just been blasted away suddenly flew back.
With the assistance of his wings, his speed was no slower than before. The wound Yoruichi had inflicted had already completely disappeared.
Yellow flames ignited around Tsuna's left hand, spreading across his body. He suddenly burst forward at a speed rivaling Yoruichi's and clashed with her in midair.
Yoruichi frowned.
She could clearly tell Tsuna still had no control over his limbs. His punches and kicks couldn't harm her.
Yet somehow, he had matched her speed.
There was definitely something strange about those yellow flames.
She noticed that the flames originated from his left hand.
In that case—
Sorry, kid.
Yoruichi's fist erupted with tremendous power and struck Tsuna's left forearm.
But something unexpected happened.
His arm didn't merely break—
it snapped off entirely.
Yoruichi had only intended to break the bone. She had never meant to completely destroy the arm.
What was going on?
That moment of hesitation gave Tsuna an opening.
His severed arm suddenly grew back instantly, and his fist slammed into Yoruichi's face, sending her flying.
Urahara used Shunpo to catch her midair and quickly explained what he had observed.
"That's not High-Speed Regeneration. It's far faster than that."
High-Speed Regeneration was a Hollow ability where white fluid covered missing body parts and regenerated them.
But Tsuna's arm had grown back far faster than that process.
"You must not attack his left arm!" Tessai suddenly shouted, already launching a Hadō spell.
Looking where Tessai had fired—
from the place where Yoruichi had severed Tsuna's arm, a humanoid Hollow had grown out of the wound.
Only Tessai's Hadō blast made it disappear.
"That's troublesome indeed, Tsuna-san," Urahara said.
At the same time, he stepped forward, placing himself between Tsuna and the other two.
A crimson shield appeared before him, perfectly blocking the red flames fired from Tsuna's right hand.
Blood Mist Shield.
"Please hurry up, Tsuna-san," Urahara muttered. "If this keeps going, we're the ones who'll be in trouble."
---
In the Inner World...
Facing the towering pillar of flame that Byakuran had unleashed, Tsuna had no options left.
Unable to dodge, he could only close his eyes and wait for the end.
[Call… my… name…]
[My name… is…]
Suddenly, a distant voice echoed in his ears.
The power he had been searching for all this time—
he could finally hear it.
Tsuna opened his eyes.
A serious light shone in them as he spoke the words of release.
"Sweep away and devour everything—Sora!"
An orange flame ignited on Tsuna's forehead.
It rapidly expanded into a blazing fire.
This was the symbol of Hyper Dying Will Mode.
At the same time, a pair of gloves appeared on his hands—white fingers and black palms, with the emblem of the unsealed Vongola Sky Ring on the back.
They were the X-Gloves Ver. V.R., the equipment Tsuna used in the future arc of Katekyo Hitman Reborn!.
Yet Tsuna felt no joy at successfully releasing his Shikai.
The X-Gloves provided almost no defensive capability.
He still had to face Byakuran's attack with his own body.
The flaming pillar had already reached him.
Tsuna instinctively crossed his arms to block, hoping to reduce the damage as much as possible.
Then he heard the voice again.
[Stay calm…]
[Observe carefully… find the flame's critical point… and then…]
Without realizing it, Tsuna abandoned the idea of blocking.
Instead, he stretched his arms outward and embraced the incoming pillar of fire.
Just before his hands touched the flames—
the Dying Will Flame on his forehead extinguished.
"Zero Point Breakthrough."
The words slipped out unconsciously.
Following his instinct, Tsuna activated the technique.
A cracking sound filled the air.
Ice crystals spread outward from his hands.
In the blink of an eye, the terrifying column of flame froze into a towering pillar of ice.
"So you couldn't help interfering after all, Vongola," Byakuran said calmly.
He showed no frustration at all. Instead, he casually kicked the ice pillar aside and spread his arms in welcome.
Tsuna noticed something odd.
Earlier, Byakuran had called him "young Vongola."
But now he had dropped the word young.
Before Tsuna could think further, a tall black figure stepped in front of him.
A pure black suit.
Spiky hair.
Blazing flames burning on his forehead.
And the exact same equipment on his hands.
It was unmistakable.
That was himself—
but older.
His frame was taller, his face more mature.
But his appearance, his Dying Will Flame, and the X-Gloves were identical.
It was Sawada Tsunayoshi as an adult.
"He passed the test. Naturally, I should appear," the adult Tsuna said to Byakuran.
Then he turned and extended his hand toward the younger Tsuna.
"Nice to meet you, another me… or rather, Sawada Tsunayoshi from another world."
Tsuna took the offered hand and stood up.
From the adult Tsuna's words, he had formed a strange guess.
"Wait… are you really the Tenth Vongola Boss?"
The adult Tsuna smiled.
"I'm not the Sawada Tsunayoshi from Reborn!," he said. "You understand that. I'm simply the image of the power within your heart. Not just me—him as well."
He casually pointed at Byakuran.
"Hey, hey, Vongola! I hadn't decided whether to tell him that yet!" Byakuran complained.
Tsuna immediately understood.
The two before him were the two powers within him.
One dressed entirely in black.
The other entirely in white.
"So… the other me—well, I'll call you Tenth then. You represent my Shinigami power, and Byakuran represents my Hollow power?"
The Tenth simply smiled, silently confirming Tsuna's guess.
"Then what about everyone downstairs? The Vongola Guardians and the True Six Funeral Wreaths?" Tsuna asked.
"Oh, young Vongola," Byakuran said with a playful grin. "That was merely someone's bad sense of humor."
"They were only illusions," the Tenth explained. "A test we created together with Byakuran—to determine your reason for seeking power."
"...Tch."
Byakuran clearly disliked being dragged into the explanation.
"Illusions?" Tsuna said in surprise. "You two can use illusions?"
As far as he remembered, both of them possessed Sky Flames, not Mist Flames.
What did illusions have to do with them?
"Our power is your power," the Tenth replied. "Anything you can do, we can do as well."
Tsuna immediately thought of his Fullbring ability.
It allowed him to use equipment representing all seven Sky attributes.
So the Tenth and Byakuran must also possess the power of all seven attributes.
"I'm glad," the Tenth continued, "that even when you had no power, you never abandoned Lambo in the face of danger. And even when facing Byakuran alone, you still prioritized Lambo's safety."
"You understand this already. The power of Sawada Tsunayoshi comes from protecting. When he fights to protect his comrades, he becomes incredibly busted."
"So when you chose to let Lambo escape… you passed my test."
"Tsk."
Byakuran's expression darkened, clearly reminded of some unpleasant memories.
"I see," Tsuna said with a relieved sigh. "So I've earned your recognition."
"Of course."
The Tenth patted Tsuna's shoulder.
The white kimono Tsuna had been wearing transformed into a Shihakushō, the uniform of a Shinigami.
"Hey, Vongola," Byakuran said, draping an arm over the Tenth's shoulder. "Recognition is your business, not mine."
"Come on, Byakuran," the Tenth said helplessly. "With his knowledge, how long do you think you could keep hiding it?"
A realization flashed across Tsuna's mind.
"So both of you are my power. Byakuran, the hostility you show is just an act—you won't actually harm me. As long as I accept you both, I can control your power. In fact, you exist to protect and empower me."
The more he spoke, the darker Byakuran's expression became.
He shot the Tenth a glare.
"You talk too much, Vongola!"
The Tenth simply laughed.
As long as Tsuna understood the purpose of their existence, that was enough.
From the very beginning, neither of them had intended to harm him.
But the more Byakuran looked at the Tenth's cheerful face, the more irritated he became.
Finally, he glared at the younger Tsuna.
A massive surge of spiritual pressure blasted Tsuna backward.
"Time's up," Byakuran said coldly.
"One last warning for you."
"Until you master the Vongola power, don't even think about using my power."
=====================
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