"No, seriously. Are you two out of your minds? What if you had died? What then? Are you two a duo of suicides?" the Equalizer spread his arms. He may have become a Specialist to satisfy his ego, but first and foremost, his duty was to protect citizens. What would he do if he allowed two young guys to die in vain like that?
But just as the Specialists had their own opinions, which they were not shy about expressing, so did Minato, who was carelessly kicking stones on the ground.
"What's it to you? You, a trio of useless morons, were afraid to take any action, trying to shift the responsibility onto someone else. And while you were sitting on your asses, we took action and did something.“ Minato said with a stony expression, not even trying to choose his words carefully when speaking to his superior.
”I guess I was right. He's not trying to insult for the sake of insulting. He's just honest and says what he thinks. Although, perhaps he's too honest." Tsuna thought to himself, watching the verbal conflict between Minato and the specialists. And yet, if it weren't for him, he would have really died. Without tragic music, without slow motion, without his name being shouted in the distance.
After all, this isn't a comic book or a manga. He is mortal, just an ordinary, weak guy. But at least he learned a lesson for himself.
Walking home from the scene of the accident and thinking about all the events that now seemed unreal, he couldn't help but smile. Even if he couldn't save Sunahara himself, he did what he wanted to do. And despite the burns on his larynx, despite being scolded by everyone who could, he had no regrets, and that was more than enough.
He sat down on a swing to catch his breath. It was probably the most eventful day of his life.
“Damn, I wanted to thank Mimi-san. Looks like I'll have to wait until tomorrow,” he muttered, gazing dreamily at the sky and slowly rocking back and forth.
“Hey, you scumbag!”
Tsuna already knew perfectly well who was making the noise. And, without any surprise, he saw the face of the red-haired bully with a band-aid on his nose and eyebrow.
“Ah, Kagero. You look better.”
"Shut up! Listen here and remember, I won't repeat myself! I didn't ask you to come to my aid! You didn't have to save me, capiche?! I could have controlled myself! So I'm not going to ask for your forgiveness or thank you! No way! Am I indebted to you?! Of course not! But I'm not going to thank someone like you and that imbecile with the puppet face!" Sunahara's face was once again contorted with emotion, but this time his usual arrogance and irritation had returned. There was no pain, and, surprisingly, no disgust or contempt.
And to be honest, Tsuna would have felt uncomfortable if Sunahara had become easygoing after that and behaved like his best friend until the grave.
“Maybe it's for the best,” Tsuna thought, watching the guy who seemed physically incapable of saying thank you walk away into the distance.
“You think so? As for me, he could use a couple of belt lashes on his ass.” came a quiet, monotonous murmur right next to his ear.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Tsuna flinched at the unexpected proximity, so much so that he bumped foreheads with the owner of the voice. Minato, who was hanging upside down, magnetizing to the swing bar. But even though Tsuna was writhing in pain, he didn't care, and a stoic expression still adorned his face. It was as permanent as the statues on Easter Island.
"Ah, MiMi-san. My heart almost stopped,“ said Tsuna, rubbing his forehead. ”Weren't you questioned by the Specialists? Aren't your loved ones worried?“
”Well, yes, but no one forbade me from running away from them," Minato replied calmly, jumping off the crossbar like a monkey from a branch. “And there's almost no one to worry about me.”
“It makes sense, not only is he strong, but he also has a cool ability. Considering how much effort you put in, and how much I put in, I'm even a little ashamed.” Tsuna grumbled, rubbing his head.
“Really? Well, if I said I didn't have any problems at all, I'd be a liar.” Minato took off his sneakers, revealing his foot, which had turned black as soot. “I hate my ability, so I don't use it very often. And when I have to, I can't control it properly, which is why this happens.”
The sight was not pleasant, nor was the smell of burnt flesh coming from his foot. However, he wasn't too surprised. The stronger the ability, the harder it is to control. It was logical.
"I think I understand the principle. You have to think of your body as a network through which electricity flows. And in order to release the energy correctly, you have to visualize the flow correctly. If you make even the slightest mistake, this is what happens.“
”You're not stupid. You figured it out quickly.“ Minato said in surprise.
”Well, cramming is all I know how to do." Tsuna muttered with a smile that did not hide his self-flagellation.“Is that so? Then answer this question. Why did you save him? He's trash,” Minato asked in his usual tactless manner.
"Trash, huh? Maybe you're right. I don't even know why I treat him like a human being, or why I decided to help him. I guess I just remembered how I felt when I was lying under the rubble. I remembered the feeling of hopelessness and despair that I felt. But also the hope I felt when I was saved. And I think I understand.“
”Understand what?"
"I understood what Kagero and you, Mimi-san, meant. I don't have any special powers, and I don't have strong convictions like a manga hero. I just thought that I didn't want others to feel the same despair that I felt. And it doesn't matter if it's my friend or my enemy in trouble, I would do the same thing. That's all. It's probably nothing compared to you, or Kagero's desire not to lose. Still, I can't help how I feel. But I'm willing to swallow these insignificant feelings, because I've seen where selfishness can lead. So, I'll forget about..."
"Nuh-uh. Now it's your turn to listen to me. Even though you're weak, and your ability is so weak that it's almost non-existent, you were the first to rush in among all those who were there. Were you guided by your emotions? Did your body move on its own? So what? Does that make your desire less meaningful and sincere? Hell no. Then my desire, identical to yours, has no right to exist either."
At that moment, a lump formed in Tsuna's throat. He couldn't explain it, couldn't understand why tears were involuntarily streaming down his face, but he felt accepted. There was a person who didn't mock his naive desire, his insignificant boyish dream, who couldn't forget his childhood innocence.
Images flashed through his mind of moments when everyone felt it was their duty to mock him, to ridicule his silly dream. But now, standing before him was a truly strong man who was not afraid to say that he shared his feelings.
“Who cares if your ambitions are insignificant compared to others? It doesn't matter what they say, because this dream is yours alone. After all, the feelings hidden in your heart are yours alone. And what you think here is not important,” Minato said, pointing to his head and slowly moving his finger to his chest. “What's more important is who you are here and what you feel. And so, I admit I was wrong. I judged you like a book with a poor cover, but you are not pitiful at all. You have a core that even you didn't know about. And it's much stronger than you think.”
Minato reached out his hand to Tsuna, who couldn't stop the tears flowing down his cheeks. It all reminded him of how, about ten years ago, he had reached out his hand here to help another person who needed it so much.
“Get up. You'll be a Specialist, I'll make sure of it.”