#khr meta

[hopeswriting]

tsuna and gokudera’s dynamic is “no one’s ever found me worth standing by my side no matter what to the very end” and “no one’s ever found me worth accepting me just the way i am, and as i am now in spite of my many flaws and shortcomings”

tsuna and yamamoto’s dynamic is “everyone always makes me pay the price for every single one of my mistake, no matter how little and insignificant” and “everyone always expects me to be perfect at being who they want me to be, and i’m afraid they’ll find me worthless if i mess up even once”

tsuna and lambo’s dynamic is “no one ever cares that i’m just a child” and “everyone always punishes and rejects me for acting like the child i am”

tsuna and ryohei’s dynamic is “no one’s ever found me worth taking under their wing, looking after, paving the way for me and making sure it’s safe for me to follow after them” and “as the one who needs to be relied on, as the protector, the example, the older one, no one’s ever looked after me and took care of me on the same grounds as i do for them”

tsuna and hibari’s dynamic is “i’ve never had anything to put my faith in, knowing that it wouldn’t so much as shake and would never fail me even in the face of the end of the world” and “i’ve never had to learn that even my strength can fail me, but there can be strength in weakness too, in letting others help me make up for that weakness, and i can grow even stronger for it”

tsuna and mukuro’s dynamic is “no one’s ever thought me worth allowing me my childhood and made me grow up too soon” and “no one ever cared that i was never allowed to be a child, and i’ll never stand for that fate to be allowed to go on unpunished any longer”

tsuna and chrome’s dynamic is “i’ve always been less than what people want me to be, have always been not enough to meet their expectations of me” and “i’ve always been so worthless in everyone’s eyes, no one’s ever expected anything of me”

(tsuna and reborn’s dynamic is “no one’s ever put faith in what i can become, in what i can be right now, and in me in spite of my many flaws and shortcomings” and “i’m never going to let anyone inside my heart ever again, and no one will bother trying to get inside anyway being the way i am now”)

do you get it?

[catpriciousmarjara]

Katekyo Hitman Reborn!: Namimori Location

(Documenting my research process so I won't forget and get confused why I did something in a fic during a later read through. Nothing serious really.)

Where exactly is Namimori in canon?

As I was writing a khr fic, I realized I needed the exact location of Namimori for one sentence. A sentence that wasn't even important in the long run. Rather than abandon that single sentence I decided to try and locate where the town of Namimori would be in Japan. Because apparently I like pain.

There is virtually no information on the actual location of Namimori anywhere. So I had went on a research binge. And I found something that gave me a starting point.

In 2009, there was a special KHR episode that was aired during the Jump Super Anime Tour titled, Vongola Style School Trip, Arrives!

Saying that I found it is not that accurate. Its more that I went looking for an episode like this specifically. This isn't the first time I tried to locate fictional locations on a map for the sake of the plot. And I've realized that episodes centered around trips provide amazing clues, especially where the trip starts, where it ends, the scenery outside etc.

Thats what I hoped for here as well. And the hunch paid off! Between timestamps 3:07-3:10, there's a map. Not very detailed mind you. Just enough to show the direction where they came from. But that's better than nothing.

So they're going to Nagoya city, which is in the Aichi Prefecture. Its in the Chūbu region. It also looks like they're coming from the Kanto region, possibly from the direction of Tokyo.

So that means we can leave out the Kansai, Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu regions in the south. There's no way Namimori is in Hokkaido, or Okinawa, so those two prefectures are out as well. The most likely locations for the town to be in is in the Kanto, and Chubu regions.

Comparing the physical map of Japan with the short glimpse we get, I'm reasonably sure they passed by Mt. Fuji as well.

See that little protrusion under Fuji-san? I'm pretty sure thats what we see in the map shown in the episode. So yeah they passed Mount Fuji.

Another thing, see that arch like thing before the protrusion? Thats Kanagawa prefecture, and we can see in the very beginning of the video, around the 0.03-0.04 timestamps, that they don't start anywhere there.

See? They pass by it completely and started somewhere well before Kanagawa. So Kanagawa is out.

Lets go back to Fuji-san again.

The mountain lies between the Yamanashi and Shizuoka prefecture borders.

That gives us three possible routes:

Chiba-> Tokyo-> Yamanashi-> Shizuoka-> Aichi [Nagoya City}

Tokyo-> Yamanashi-> Shizuoka-> Aichi [Nagoya City}

Yamanashi -> Shizuoka -> Aichi [Nagoya City]

Why did I decide on Tokyo as the starting point in Kanto despite there being other prefectures in the region?

In KHR's seventh volume, Hot Summer Arrives!, we get chapter 57, Swimming at the Sea. Its a beach chapter.

The beach is described as being close by and the fact that Ryohei's boxing club senpai, Kuroda Eiji and his buddies Kisanuki Yukio and Ookura Takuya, apparently work there as lifeguards, supports this. (You know...cos they're in middle school and all and jobs at that age tend to be close by...for civilians at least.)

Which means that prefectures like Saitama, Tochigi, and Gunma, which are all landlocked as you can see on the map below, are automatically disqualified as locations for Namimori.

By that same logic, Yamanashi is also disqualified.

Ibaraki is not counted because despite the abrupt beginning and ending of the map scene in the episode, we can guess that the starting point of the trip wasn't quite that far back. By the curve of the arrow I mean. {Yeah I know this is a reach but I'm pretty sure I'm right.}

That just leaves Tokyo and Chiba.

The argument in favour of Chiba is a meta one. Tokyo is an iconic location when it comes to manga and anime. Most anime set in Tokyo shows several shenanigans centered around Tokyo's various landmarks. Even works not set in Tokyo sometimes have Tokyo episodes and Tokyo adventures. Like Haikyuu for example.

Considering how much shenaniganry and crackishness KHR has, it would be very strange if it was set in Tokyo and yet didn't have any Tokyo misadventures in it. Reborn would just go ahead and name Tokyo Tower Vongola Tower or something just like he named Nagoya Castle Vongola Castle. So Namimori might not be in Tokyo, but in Chiba instead...which is still part of the Greater Tokyo Area now that I think about it, so still Tokyo in a way?

I couldn't find a way to clearly articulate an argument in favour of Tokyo when a friend send me this link.

I was walking on a path well-tread! @ladydraculena had already slashed through the figurative jungles for me!

I went looking for the two locations marked in the map in their post but it seems like Namimori Steamed Buns has since closed down. Hibari Nursery School on the other hand is going strong.

With this information the argument in favour of Tokyo grew much stronger.

Thus canonically the town of Namimori is most likely located in Tokyo and if not in Tokyo proper, definitely in the Greater Tokyo Area.

(Please note that I left the Tohoku region out of this. The region is very distinct and neither anime nor the manga has shown a singular sign of being set in Tohoku. By that I mean that if a work is set in Tohoku, it would be impossible to hide its Tohoku, or mistake it as somewhere else.)

Edit: @rooigseix pointed out that since most of KHR's usual shenanigans strictly happens in Namimori, the usual Tokyo adventure trope meta might not be applicable in this case. Namimori might be far away from Tokyo centre like the Ota or Edogawa districts, which are close to the sea as well.

Edit: @lightning-will-bovino pointed out Kokuyo land and there is in fact a theme park called Noah Forest Amusement Park or Mori-no-Yeunchi near the Hibari Nursery School!

It seems very likely that Amano-sensei was inspired by the area. It might not be where Namimori is actually located but the existence of these establishments in close quarters lends further credence to the theory of Namimori being in the Tokyo area.

In conlusion, the most likely location of Namimori would be in Tokyo prefecture but close to the Chiba border. Not landlocked as well.

Thus, Edogawa ward is the most suitable location.

And after all of that, I decided that Tokyo wasn't a good fit for my fic's Namimori and by my magical writer powers shifted it to Mie Prefecture instead. ╥﹏╥

[na-nossa]

Meta Fridays #1

So, we were rewatching Mukuro's fight with Tsuna in episode 26 (for academic purposes, obviously), and I noticed something I missed the first time. Mukuro calls the human realm the ugliest and cruelest, and he's hesitant to use his 五 skills, though they're his strongest, only doing so when he’s pushed to the brink. Even Reborn points out how intensely dark his vibe gets in this realm. It makes sense: Mukuro was a victim of of some horrific experimentation, twisted by human hands, and now he's essentially trapped in that same cruelty. He treats his allies like mere pawns and plans to plunge humanity into a war that matches the chaos swirling inside him. Tsuna's kindness also really irritates him, as to him it's foolishness, too soft for a world like this.

Now—in Katekyo Hitman Reborn, the Dying Will Flame is more than raw strength; it's energy drawn directly from a person's life force, deeply connected to their emotions. When Mukuro clashes with Tsuna's flame, he's not just confronting power; he's encountering Tsuna's will, his soul laid bare in its purest form. That's why when Reborn casually drops, "Looks like the Dying Will Flames purified Mukuro’s dark aura," it implies that Tsuna's flame might have broken the cycle of hatred Mukuro was trapped in. It's ultimately what changes him (plus, I like to think hearing Ken and Chikusa tell him he's their "place of belonging" helped, too 🥺). After, though Mukuro keeps up his mask of indifference, he softens, even becoming willing to sacrifice himself for his friends.

While turning enemies into friends with the power of Le Feels™ is classic shounen stuff, what stands out in KHR is how this transformation isn't just a simple change of heart. It's linked to the supernatural foundation of the story and the source of the protagonist's powers, with the Dying Will Flame representing a connection to the characters' very souls. Tsuna doesn't hit Mukuro with a fireball; he messes with his entire being, like Reborn said. Indeed, the show lingers on shots of Tsuna's hand on Mukuro's face, emphasizing the moment of contact. After Tsuna's final attack, Mukuro's lying there all soft and innocent, looking way more angelic than he has any right to. And sure, it could be because he's knocked out cold 😃, but I think it's more than that. It's the first sign of the change already taking root inside him.

[ner0w0w0]

Small detail and maybe it’s not as important as I think it is but I like how with adult Hibari, the Cloud Hedgehog’s spikes are usually even, symmetrical, with equal length

Whereas baby Hibari’s are random, erratic, and with different sizes. 

I think they showcase their different temperaments. Like adult Hibari is more calm and more in control of his feral, his Roll is concentrated, there aren’t many of them and whatever are there usually controlled. Whereas baby Hibari is kinda all over the place as there are always a lot of Roll’s copies. His emotion at any moment of time is just a turbulence of anger, annoyance and irritation. His feral isn’t that well-managed yet and he’s one breath away from growing the biggest spike to pierce through the closest herbivore.

I think it’s neat.

[aceofthegreenajah]

So @tls12lessthan3 and @libzarzar have enabled my corrent orv obsession and my forever khr obsession. This is me assigning flames (sky flames only, no earth flames) to orv characters! ALL the orv spoilers. I will be vague about them but I will allude to things in the epilogue.

I have done my best to rely on canonical info about flames and not my headcanons.

KDJ - Sky I feel like this is pretty self-evident. The most telling thing about being a sky is how people react to them. People grow very attached to KDJ; they look up to him; they follow his lead; they want to impress him and protect him. He holds the group together and they start to fall apart when he's away for too long. (See: both his first 'longer' death and the epilogue).

That isn't the only thing, though. Skies have a stubbornness and unwillingness to change (see: Tsuna refusing Vongola all the way to the end and everything about Xanxus as prime examples). They won't change for others lightly, and they don't generally accept anyone or anything as an authority. They might sort of align themselves with an organization or another sky, but ultimately they always follow their own goals.

These are both very KDJ things - he puts his party through hell with his self-sacrificial tendencies but even though he realizes this, and knows it is shitty, he doesn't really change. And he shows no subservience to any power, even those that could crush him like an ant.

Skies like to surround themselves with people - as KDJ does. The sky might be posessive over them, but they don't really grow dependent on them, and rarely confide in them. (See: multiple skies in khr are willing to sacrifice their elements for their plans. Tsuna not being willing to sacrifice them for leadership of Vongola just means his goal is never obtaining said leadership. Which he says himself at any opportunity. KDJ is not willing to sacrifice any of them presicely because his goal is a happy ending for everyone.)

KDJ he shows multiple instances of posessiveness - first thing that comes to mind is when he has just recruited SYS and determines that she can never know YJH just in case that makes her leave KDJ for YJH. He grows to rely on their abilities in his plans; that doesn't mean he relies on them as people emotionally. He always holds himself a little separate.

Some skies are also good at reading and understanding people - reading comprehension and omniscient reader's viewpoint, anyone? All of KDJ's skills dovetail nicely into an aspect of sky flames. Not exactly, of course, but Tsuna can tell the difference between illusion and reality (fourth wall) and you could argue bookmark is about comprehending and then harmonizing with someone. There are skies with different types of future sight (hyper intuition, and the seer bloodline in Giglio Nero skies). You can dig for more - there's plenty of material to work with there.

YJH - cloud Clouds are incredibly strong, independent, slow to grow loyal but incredibly loyal once it is earned (yet still independent to the end). Their growth (in power) is exponential.

YJH is the strongest human character (probably). He always makes his own plans and goes his own way, unless the others can wrangle him to participating in the group. Even to the very end. He does grow loyalty to KDJ (but not really subservience) but it happens very slowly, and yet he is one of the two characters most unable to let go of him at the end. Tell me that isn't textbook cloud.

HSY - mist(sky) So. My first instinct for HSY is mist.

Mists are creative and imaginative. They are subtle when they want to and incredibly theatrical at other times. They also have an independent streak, and a tendency to refuse reality and twist it to their own whims.

Avatar is a skill that could fit into a few different flame types, but they could be mist constructs.

But I could also be talked into a full no-avatars HSY being a sky.

+ surrounded by people. The other HSY surronunds himself with people - she does play KDJ's role in many respects. Our HSY also surrounded himself with the disciples. The first group especially grew incredibly loyal.

+ HSY is also very stubborn and unwilling to bow to authority.

+ Predictive plagiarism could be a sky skill. As said khr skies have future related skills (hyper intuition and seers). I could see it as a mist skill as well (mist thing is creativity) but as avatar fits better in mist, predictive plagiarsm fits better in sky.

- On the other hand our HSY is eventually absorbed into KDJ's group and ceases to gather her own followers. Not a sky thing to do, but this is after she has lost >=50% of herself.

In short: it could be that HSY is originally a sky, but every time she creates an avatar she gives it some of her flames, and this has left our HSY a mist once >=50% of her flames are gone.

LHS - lightning Lightnings are hard to damage and their role is often protecting and taking damage for the other flames. Many lightnings we see are active and eager to take action. LHS fits this exactly.

JHW - storm Storms are, most of all, passionate. Gokudera is passionate about Tsuna and his hobbies; Fon is passinate about martial arts; Bel is passionate about his royalty and stabbing people. Whatever the storm wants, they have the drive to be the best and dedicate themselves fully.

JHW is very passionate about justice and right and wrong.

Her abilities also fit storm and the disintegration property storm flames have. Storm flames are extremely destructive and there are really no super effective countermeasures for them. All of JHW's abilities are OP and destructive as fuck flame abilities.

Now we come to the ones I am a little unsure about.

YSA - Rain/Sun But which one? Rains are officially 'tranquility', but their characters are all over the place. What most unites them is that they all have a purpose. Squalo has the sword and Xanxus; Takeshi had baseball and switches to Tsuna; Colonello and Lal have each other (at different points of their lives) and training their students and (at some point probably) their military careers. And so on.

There is also some sense of self stuff going on there.

Squalo hitched his whole existence on Xanxus practically on sight. That makes him sound spontanous, and the loud and rough exterior reinforces this image. But he is also Xanxus' second in command who ran Varia in his absence, and shows surprising insight at several moments (like in the future when training Takeshi). Stormy waters run deep?

Takeshi knows how to play the fool but not how to connect to people. He measured his self-worth by how good he was at his purpose (baseball) at first; when he formed any sort of connection with Tsuna he grew incredibly loyal and dedicated instantly. He continues to keep up the exterior that people are used to - when Takeshi drops the act, you know things are serious. Still waters run deep.

YSA is very good at putting on a calm or chipper or charming front. Is there an underlayer we rarely get to see? I'd argue yes. We see hints of this even in pre-canon - she was getting back at superiors at work without anyone suspecting her. She also is incredibly dedicated. She was valued employee at work, studied on her commute, then becomes dedicated to helping KDJ's group survive in the apocalypse and drives herself to death with it.

But she does fit into Sun as well.

Suns are energetic and constantly on the move, constantly doing something. When they do something they give it 200% level effort. They are ferocious, often chipper, sometimes hyperactive. They may be very fast healers.

Sangah is a high-achiever. At first she is competent at work, studying even on her commute. She bikes to work. When self-defence becomes a necessity, she grows to an incredible fighter very quickly. She uses her skills so much that eventually they start to kill her.

She is also chipper and cheerful by default, which is not a must for a sun but is still a very sun attitude. I Can Do It! Her focus is not only on skills but on people, and that and her upbringing as a wealthy woman may explain why she feels the need to put on a more placid surface. Social expectations she's internalized, you know.

So, since YSA could go either way (she can be both. people can have multiple flames) let's check out our last (adult) member to see where she falls into. To make sure we have a full set.

JHY personifies the concept that you can't know a person just by what you see on the surface. She's trans; we meet her putting on an act - Aileen explicitly even states that you can't belive what comes out of her mouth. She has the wall of impossible communication. I couldn't write a more rain characteristic if I tried.

She did have a purpose originally - dimension hopping and trying to get strong - but eventually abandoned it. Giving up her purpose would contribute greatly to her self-loathing, so it's not a dealbreaker for her being a rain.

Sun is also a possibility. When learning a skill JSY learns incredibly fast (for skills learned through the wall.) If JSY is a sun, the self-loathing rises from being unable to do things and learn things. Suns are active and curious, and being forced to be neither would be hell on them. And she quickly becomes happier as soon as she can do stuff.

The trouble is that I like rain better for both YSA and JHY, but my brain wants a full set so one of them will be assigned sun. Last night I leaned towards JSY sun; this morning YSA sun. Opinions welcome! I feel like JSY is the character I have the poorest grasp on.

I will make a new post for the kids and teens if I feel like it. Hades is ofc night flames and likely Persephone as well. (I have a fic idea with those two running the vindice and kdj getting adopted by them. And another fic idea with just orv except with flames. I have a few chapters plotted for both but nothing 'written'. )

[indigosprite]

Lovely headcanons from khr fandom today. I offer a year old ramble about illusions and how they work I’m currently thiking about again for this fic I’m writing. Oh he’s gonna be terrifying. Actually terrifying not the smoke and mirrors khr had to give us. The flames and how they work genuinely fascinate me. I think I’ve developed some pretty complex headcanons surround at least three of them currently.

[any-n-everything]

I love how the Shimon arc (inheritance ceremony arc I know) leans into the whole (cowardly) lion motif that Tsuna has going for him

Like not to point out the obvious but the collective noun for a group of lions is called a "pride"

And the whole arc was set up to reveal that Tsuna's pride (what he cannot let go of) is his family and friends

Like that's a whole Thing for him and I love that for him

[ayz283]

khr's ending is a cheat

let me start by saying that I both love and hate khr’s ending. On my first read, I was like THAT’S IT??? But the ending grew on me not gonna lie. Now I think of it with fondness.

Mostly bcs of what it symbolises. Tsuna & co are in their growth phase of life. They are changing for the better, and even insurmountable obstacles can be overcome.

Tsuna saying no to the mafia? Inspirational. I could never. And the fact that even after everything they threw at him, he stuck to his guns? Unreal. Only this guy.

Yes, Tsuna as a mafia boss was everything I wanted, but also it wouldn’t be true to the core of his character.

khr’s ending succeeded where many others’ failed. There’s no epilogue of 30 yrs in the future and Tsuna has destroyed the Vongola with the aid of his friends and he is widely respected or whatever. Reborn also never achieved the goal he set out to do in the first chapter, by making Tsuna accept the role of Vongola Decimo.

No, khr left things open-ended.

But open-ended in the best way.

Tsuna’s future is limitless. That’s what’s makes it so great.

He has faced impossible odds, from Byakuran to Vindice to an age old curse. He has won all of them.

Whether he commits to denial, or running, or destroying, or remaking; Everything is possible, and everything is on the table.

It’s basically an imagine your own ending. Pick a future that suits you.

(And that’s awesome.)

[byakuwan]

now i'm wondering if byakuran could theoretically revive someone from the dead.

something something sky flame harmony attribute reignites their flames?? and returns them to a state to have regrets and such. then heal their body from there. no idea how that would even work.

reasoning:

he already uses those miracle healing powers several different times

he might've already done it previously in some form with daisy

it's not all that far off from vindice being kept alive through their flames.

amano doesn't hold back from doing the most wild things ever. why should anyone else?

[social-muffin]

Been thinking about a Bodyswap AU with Tsuna and Hibari, mostly because that could so change the way they understand each other!

Especially if only their self awareness is switched! So the body they are in has the same tastes, energy levels, smell sensitivities, all such things! Even the body's emotional reactions didn't change!

Because what if Kyoya's body feels most things so intensely that Tsuna can't handle it because he doesn't have Kyoya's self control!

And what if Bullies approach Tsuna's body because Kyoya doesn't like hanging around the others and after dispatching the Bullies, Kyoya feels Tsuna's guilt over it?

I just think it could make it easier for them to understand each other.

[rooigseix]

Tsuna and Enma got his ancestor recklessness and this is the reason why:

- Cozart and Enma: the same "my family own one-of-a-kind flame and when time calls, your got a whole earthquake coming at you" type. Cozart with his whole "50vs20000" battle and Enma whacked a ceremony of the very top mafia family having not even 10 people on his army. And they do it PUBLIC.

- Giotto and Tsuna: this comparison is a little bit more tricky, as Tsuna as we all know was like, spent 80% of his time panicking while trying to adapt to the chaotic surrounding. So, I'm gonna put a version of him on the scale: 270 aka Sawada Tsunayoshi of the Future-Never-Be aka the ikemen we never know of his face:

Take a look in what he did in canon:

Destroyed Vongola rings - the heirloom, one part of the world system, the ultimate weapon in the middle of a war. (Of course I know he did it with good reason, as Yamamoto said)

Suicide. No one die accidentally when having a whole scheme going on like that, the most suited word in this situation is "suicide". (And yeah later on we know he faked his death, but admit it, faking death under Byakuran's nose required a bunch of courage here. And more importantly, he did it without his ring. Impressive move, but still a borderline suicidal one)

The most iconic one: Brought his past self, his friends and guardians' past selves, which was, KIDS, to the hugest battle with a numerous-worlds-destroyed maniac. If that wasn't enough, he brought his past self's crush, his past self's crush's friend, which was not only kids but also citizens HAVING NO ABILITY TO DEFEND THEMSELVES WHATSOEVER. To be what? To be his past self's determination to get imporved and win the battle. And Future!Tsuna did it WITHOUT telling his guardians, except for Hibari. Look at this and tell me he was not messed up in the head a little, I dare you.

The reckless part in this: Future!Tsuna had no way to make sure 14!Tsuna having 100%, absolute possibility to WIN against Byakuran. He only regarded 14!Tsuna as "the me with the most potential", not "the me that can win against Byakuran." Imagine this like a card deck - you have somewhat good hand but there is no way you know you're gonna win. And what did Future!Tsuna bet in this game? His (past self's) life, his guardians' life, two innocent girls' life, and the Vongola family itself was also thrown onto the bet table. (Because the truth is that, if 14!Tsuna lost, the whole Vongola will go down. Maybe the world too, see how many worlds Shouichi had seen Byakuran destroyed)

Future-Never-Be!Tsuna is just a possibility of what Tsuna can become, but with that little information, you can't tell me this man wasn't reckless and crazy just like someone he looked alike to.

Also, do you see the pattern here?

The pattern of "I die but my past self, which is, me in some ways, will come over and kick your ass and give you numerous headaches", do you see the familiarity?

Yeah.

The birth of CEDEF.

Giotto's way to be the nuisance to the next boss (who he had a dispute with) even when he went for a continent and a ocean away.

Aka, summarize as "even if I'm absent from the picture I will continue be your problem, one you absolutely can NOT get rid of until I feel done." Ruthless and bloodthirsty Secondo can not get rid of CEDEF, Byakuran can not get rid of 14!Tsuna.

Like great-great-great-grandfather, like great-great-great-grandson.

Note: in here I am an advocate of "The Earth is more reckless (and maybe crazy, maybe) than the Sky." Cozart and Giotto I don't have information. (but Giotto was driven to speechlessness once and scream in utter surprise at Cozart's face twice, that said something) But no one can tell me Enma was not reckless than Tsuna. Or at least more battle-trained. Or at least inherited his ancestor's trait sooner.

Just look at how they react when first time meeting Varia member.

This is Tsuna in Varia Arc. (Chapter 83)

This is Enma in Rainbow War Arc. (Chapter 359)

Both are their first time meeting and being attacked by Varia.

The difference is clear as a day I think I don't need more demonstration.

By the way, we don't know if Earth flames operate differently from Sky flames or not, but if they operate in the same way, Enma did all the waging war with Vongola and fighting solo with Varia (4 members of them) with such sheer determination and will that he didn't need any drug to get into HDW mode.

While Tsuna still need the drug when facing off Iemitsu in the Rainbow War. You can not tell me Simon Decimo was not trained for battle than his friend at the same position in Vongola if this case is true.

[hopeswriting]

was thinking about takeshi and how he's my favorite brand of unconditional devotion btw. the utter and absolute and all-consuming kind that runs so deep to the very core and is so intrinsic and fundamental to it, it can only express itself in the most casual and natural and certain way. without second thoughts, without any room for doubts or for any moral dilemma to be had over it, because of course he ought to always be breathing and living for his chosen person first and foremost. of course he ought to hang on their every word and make them true no matter what, no matter what he has to do to make it happen, no matter what he has to do to other people to make it happen, and no matter what it might turn him into in the process. because it's obviously the way the world should be for his chosen person. at their feet, ready to bend over backwards and break and build itself again to better answer to all their needs even if they don't ask it for it. it's the only right way it should be for them, and of course takeshi's going to do his utmost at all times to make it a reality as much as possible.

and his devotion comes out as naturally as breathing, comes out lighthearted and nonchalant like he might as well be talking about the weather, but it's not unaware of itself. it's not that takeshi doesn't know it's unhealthy and wrong and that he's willing to go entirely too far in its name for anyone's good. it's not that he wouldn't hear you out if you were to sit him down and explain to him just why he needs to tone it down a little (a lot). logically, he'd agree with you and know you're right. and then he'd tell you he's still not going to do anything whatsoever about it. that he's not bothered by it and doesn't feel the need to change anything to his attitude. makes it a point to never let anyone or anything sway him even an inch in the stand he took when it comes to that, no matter how many thousand of times you might go over the subject with him.

because the morality of his devotion isn't the point at all. is entirely irrelevant to it and doesn't affect the way he expresses it all. it's not the metric with which he draws a line in the sand to hold it accountable to. because the thing is, takeshi's entire world revolves around tsuna--tsuna is his entire world altogether, and it's just a matter of fact, that simple. to him it's a truth as unchanging as the sky being blue, and so being the way he is according to that truth is the only way he can imagine being that'd feel right to him. and so the actual and only metric that matters here is "would tsuna be happier if i were to do this?" and/or "is this something tsuna needs me to do?"

and like. i don't think takeshi ever stops being a kind person capable of compassion and understanding and mercy and forgiveness even ten years later once they became mafia through and through. and i don't think either he grows up to be feared and called a monster per se despite the things they inevitably had to do during those ten years (and the things they'll inevitably keep having to do as long as they keep being mafia), at least not in the way, for example, they'll never stop fearing and calling mukuro one. but i do think that among the tenth gen, he ends up being the one with the most ruthless, merciless and horrific blood on his hands of that particular and distinct loving kind. you know the one i mean, right? he comes to be the one most expected and the one first expected to be willing and to take it upon himself to go through with it when the need arises. and to think little of it after, if anything at all. all in the name of making tsuna's reign as easy on him as possible.

and it's to the point where it's the kind of blood that makes even mukuro pause at times. or, when takeshi is the one coming up with solutions himself during meetings, makes even reborn blink. not because it's unjustified or wouldn't be safe or efficient or anything of the sort, but because it is unwarrantedly thorough in its retaliation. and sometimes, at times like this, he's the one tsuna needs to step in for the most, because he's the only one who can reason with him that "yes, this would work in getting rid of our problem" but "no, please, don't do that takeshi". because if tsuna is the only thing that infers on just how much and in what ways he'll let himself be devoted to him, then of course, he's also the only one takeshi's willing to reign himself in for without second thoughts. because he'd hate to ever do something tsuna would disapprove of or wouldn't want him to do. or do something that'd make tsuna see him differently or love him back less even in the slightest.

and it's also like. his devotion isn't an undisciplined one. it's not one he doesn't have control over, the very opposite. it's a very purposeful and conscious choice he chooses to keep making over and over again every step of the way, and he taught himself to have control over it, to know when it's needed and/or wanted, and how much and in which ways it is when it happens, and to keep it down otherwise. and, yes, to also reign it back in at tsuna's request at times when it still slips past his control. because it's all about making tsuna's happiness easier and secure and long-lasting, and never about burdening him with just how committed he is to do that.

so it comes down to this: takeshi willing to go above and beyond and more for tsuna unless tsuna explicitly asks him not to. and to tsuna needing to ask him not to every now and then. and to other people pointing out to him how too many times tsuna's already needed to stop him, and that maybe there's a hint for him to take there. and to takeshi seeing the hint, looking it straight in the eye and recognizing it for what it is and just. deciding it doesn't apply to him because it's all perfectly normal behavior to him. because it's the only kind of behavior that makes sense to him and feels right.

and so—to circle back to my first point—he can only express his devotion as naturally as breathing, so casually, almost like it's something inconsequential and not worth talking about despite how unmistakably it couldn't be further away from being the truth. it's the only way he could have always known how to express it, because, after all, who has ever taken time to ponder about the details and the hows of the way they breathe?

and i, for one, absolutely eat that shit up every time, thanks for coming to my ted talk <3

[juudaimes-true-form]

Interestingly, when I first started the Future Arc I interpreted Byakuran's ability not as communicating between different versions of himself but that he simultaneously existed as the same person in all time lines. It's how I rationalized what happened with Ghost. In conjunction to it being difficult to bring someone from a different timeline into a different one, I thought it was impossible for the same person to coexist with themselves in the same timeline. So when Byakuran tried to bring Ghost, who at the time was himself, into our Byakuran's timeline, he was trying to break that rule. To have multiple of himself coexisting which resulted in one being forced to change: the intruder. That's why Ghost could continue as Ghost alongside Byakuran because they were no longer a singular entity but rather two separate beings.

[ner0w0w0]

Why is Cloud flame and its box weapon so... weird

Okay so before I talk myself into a corner, I'd like to establish my observation: the Cloud box weapons all have propagation factor, but they can only either multiply in number, or change size.

Like, with Iris, her way of using her flame was fairly basic in usage. She used her box weapon, a Cloud whip, to whip her cloud receptive slaves and propagated their muscle mass, sometimes even elongated their bone to make them bigger (in a rather unnatural way). Its straight forward, easy to understand, it's a propagation in size.

Next, Kikyo. His dinosaur box weapon was rather... normal in the large scheme of thing tbh. It made him into this... Hydra-Dinosaur-Medusa thing. His hair grew into spinosaurus heads that follows the common rule of Cloud's attribution: multiplication in number.

Honorable mention to Lal Mirch's box weapon, Cloud Centipede that could change its size and length, but not number.

However, Hibari's Cloud Hedgehog, Roll, funnily enough, could do both. And, horrifyingly enough, more.

So, Roll's usage could actually be splitted into 2 categories: how adult Hibari used it, and how baby Hibari used it. So, Roll under adult Hibari only propagated in size. It could expand, thicken, become thin layer and act a shield for Hibari, or roll forward. But never multiplied in number.

Furthermore, after being fed so much flame that its box got broken, it can do shit like this... like... how?! I don't recall any Box Weapon based on living creature can become a separate space the way Roll did.

Tbh, I have a rather... bizarre headcanon for this. It could be because of Hibari's secondary Mist Flame with its construction factor that mix in with the Cloud Flame to influence the Box Weapon (also like, the dimension thing kinda similar with what Mukuro's Vongola Gear can do yk). And only adult Hibari can do this because he has more experience with Mist Flame and more open to use it. But then Cloud Hedgehog is only for Cloud flame so it's impossible for his Mist to seep through. Unless his wave energy is already an incredible mix between Cloud and Mist, like Xanxus's Flame of Wrath, so much so that it can't be distinguish through Cloud rings, and Roll's also affected by this. And could this also be the reason that normal Cloud rings couldn't withstand his flame, thus break upon 1 use?

Also can we talk about how he had two, the same exact Cloud Hedgehog boxes? Like we're told that there only 343 designs based on living things made by Geppetto Lorenzini, and Verde team made 343 boxes based on the designs. Are you telling me at least 2 (because he clearly tried the Reverse technique once before, so at least one box had been broken to do it) of those boxes are of the same design? cus the numbers are not adding up.

Ok, moving on to baby Hibari. Now baby Hibari used Roll in the Vongola version, and X version more. But there's a snippet when we see him using the OG version, and upon being fed so much flame that it went berserk, it multiplied both in size and in number.

There's only one difference between the two Hibari: the Vongola Cloud Ring. Like adult Hibari only got one chance to put however much flame he could in the box before the ring broke, and the hedgehog would have to do bunch of stuffs with just that reserve before it went back into the box. (God adult Hibari was basically nerfed during the whole Future Arc, imagine if he got more Cloud rings or just the Vongola Cloud Ring. He'd probably solo the whole base)

Could this be the same for other Cloud boxes? That they require much much more Cloud flame for both of the factors to be used. What does it say about Hibari's flame, that afterward, when he had the Vongola version and X version, he went on and did insane shits like these? Like how strong, vast and dense his Cloud Flame has to be so that he can fight like this?

Okay, a little side track into weird flame territory since we're talking about it, let's discuss Skull. Skull is interesting in the way that his flame usage is rather similar to Iris', which is basically the propagation of human cells. But unlike Iris whose control is rather crude, as there is little to no finesse in the way those slaves' muscle grow (they grew in places that muscle shouldn't have been, pushing each other and probably crushing their own bones with their muscle mass), Skull's control on his Cloud Flame is absolute and instance. His cells grew instantly the moment he was hit, so much so that even when he got a critical hit from Squalo, he remained fine, albeit a bit hurt.

Now, human' cells have things like genetic code and more to tell them what they're and where they would be and how they would grow, so they could automatically slot into place during the propagation process. But it's the control Skull has that he could grow just enough of what he need, and not accidentally grow, idk, an extra finger or giving himself cancer, and that makes him incredibly strong and I don't think enough ppl is talking abt it (like just think about the potential)

Other than that, we have a rather fascinating OP factor of Cloud flame in general and Skull in particular. They can absorb other Flames. Other than Tsuna's Zero Point Breakthrough: Revised where his Sky Flame harmonize with other's and absorb it, no other flames is able to do this, other than Cloud. And if we went with how Hibari said it, it's sort of its default function.

And Skull? Oh he's just straight up absorb the whole flame attack from, what? four Varia. Like ez pz home boy only whine because he's hurt from Squalo's sword attack.

My working theory for this is because in nature, cloud has already been rather... versatile and can be affected by other elements (sun, lighting) to change and thus creating other phenomenon (rain, storm); also mist is like... thinner ground version of cloud anyway. And Skull's using his own body as a flame conductor, thus directly absorb other Flame types to himself. Though his flame isn't Sky, there's no harmonizing factor to neutralize the Rain, Storm, Lighting and Sun attributes. His body is probably fighting itself to stabilize, or using those attributes to stabilize each other (his Cloud can swallow the Sun since they're similar, the Rain's tranquility can block and neutralize the Storm and Lighting too) (Now it'd be funny if Skull got shot by Tsuna's X-burner, like would Skull's Cloud strong enough to absorb Tsuna's concentrated Sky Flame like I'm curious.)

[discendia]

What feelings does your character most often instill in their fans? Affection? A desire to protect? Open lust? A love/hate dynamic? Why do you think their fans feel this way?

By contrast, what would their haters dislike about your character? Is it a petty complaint?

A mischaracterization of the character or their intentions? Are they just a woman in a largely male-centric series?What controversies/drama would your character incite in fandom?

a more normal one i guess

Why was the normal one harder??? Agshsjd Anyways, here it is and thank you so much for asking again, I luv you 💕💕

《 Meta Asks: If Your OC Was Canon 》

─────── ⋆⋅✿⋅⋆ ────────

Rio

What feelings does your character most often instill in their fans? Affection? A desire to protect? Open lust? A love/hate dynamic? Why do you think their fans feel this way?

She… she has fans? Like her fans? Not Takeshi’s fans?

Now, she could probably have a small fanbase that adores her, mostly in the female side of fandom that it's at awe every time a tall long haired female character appears???

By contrast, what would their haters dislike about your character? Is it a petty complaint?

I've mentioned this before, but I think her haters would complain about her being an unnecessary character for the plot and only existing for ✨ shonen manga heteronormativity✨.

A mischaracterization of the character or their intentions? Are they just a woman in a largely male-centric series? What controversies/drama would your character incite in fandom?

Aside from passing as an easygoing and airheaded character without any worries, her main plotline with Takeshi could be easily misunderstood. Fandom would probably wonder why is it there when they already have Mukuro and Chrome’s storyline.

Another possible controversy could be why does she get to fight while the other girls only have supporting roles in the kitchen.

[indigosprite]

Sky flame ramble