The rays of the Italian sun bounced off the waxed table sitting in the middle of the larged, well-furnished room. Sitting behind it was a teenage girl working furiously on a small laptop. Her golden blond hair was tinged blue from the light of the computer screen while her striking red eyes followed every movement she made on it. At one point, the girl finally slowed her typing and stopped to check over what she had done. She was about to put the finishing touches when a loud 'ding' from her computer distracted her.

'What's this...?' She wondered as she moved the arrow to the small envelope icon that appeared on the top right corner of her screen. She clicked it and a new window popped up, containing a single sentence.

"We need your assitance now."

A smile grew on the blond's face. She pulled out her cell phone and pressed the speed dial button. When it was answered, she quickly stated.

"Sis, it's Sonya. We're finally leaving."

Talk about nice way to crash a morning. Cross reached out and grabbed her phone, slipping her headphones off her ears and around her neck before pressing the green button on her cell. She pressed the small device to her ear, already knowing who had called.

"Sis, it's Sonya. We're finally leaving."

Now that got her attention. Black hair with red highlights were pushed out of sharp red eyes as Cross sat up, immediately turning her laptop off. Now this was definitely worth her time.

"Meet you down in five."

Sonya smiled to herself, knowing full well that she would've had annoyed Cross if she didn't have the news they've both been waiting for.

"Alright. See you then." She ended the call and shut her laptop. She grabbed it as she stood and strided for the large wooden door of her room. When she went opened it, she saw two suited men standing next to her doorway. The blond looked at both men before giving her laptop to the brown-haired male on her left.

"We're leaving, so bring our things downstairs." She ordered in an authorative voice. He nodded and turned to leave. Sonya turned the other way and headed down the hallway, the second suited man following behind.

"Ms. Sonya, shall I call for the jet to get ready?" He asked, taking out a PDA from his pocket.

"No, book us a flight. I don't want anyone tracking our movements. And go help Benito pack our things, I'll be fine walking by myself." He bowed and walked the same direction the first man had left in. With them gone, Sonya gave a sigh of relief, feeling the tension slip away. She could finally feel the exictement boil inside her while walking down the flight of stairs. From the staircase she could see the lobby where she would wait for Cross to arrive.

"Cross, love. Benito's here to help you get your things." Alissa called out from behind Cross' black door. Cross rolled her eyes and placed her laptop into her messenger bag along with her notebook, sketchpad, and a few other things, finally sticking her mp3 into her pocket. "Come in." She called out. As her door was opened to admit Benito and Dante, Cross pulled her hair into a messy side bun and stuck a newsboy cap onto her head, sweeping her bangs to the side to cover her left eye. She tugged her headphones back up and nodded to the two men and woman before pulling her messenger bag up onto one shoulder and exiting her room, clutching a panda plush in her free hand.

Happiness bubbled up inside of Cross, it had taken forever for them to get a new assignment and now? They were going to Japan! This was great. Even if the assignment sucked they would definitely be able to meet some interesting people. When the dark haired girl reached the staircase she placed a hand onto the railing and heaved herself up, sliding down the grand staircase. She passed by a few other people while she slid, a few of them exclaiming in surprise. A laugh slipped out past Cross' lips and she hopped off before she could fall off the end of the railing. She stumbled a few steps before regaining her footing and looking up. In front of her were a set of glass doors and beyond that, the lobby her sister would be waiting for her in.

Sonya walked into the lobby, acknowledging the servants with a nod of the head. She headed for a pile of luggage and grabbed the her large tote bag, containing her laptop. As she bent to pick it up, she noticed the large mirror hanging just a few feet away from her. She straightened up and frowned at her appearance. What a mess. She pulled the scrunchie that held her blond hair into a bun and let it fall past her shoulders and down to her lower back. With nimble hands, she quickly braided her locks before wrapping the scrunchie at the end. Satisfied, Sonya bent down to pick her bag once more when she heard the familiar laugh of her younger sister.

The blond watched Cross slide down the railing of the large staircase and stumble her landing. She held back her chuckle by covering her mouth with her pale hand. She turned to the direction of Cross and watched her come in.

"You said five minutes." She joked.

Cross frowned slightly and pulled her black pocketwatch from her, well, pocket. She flicked it open and scrutinized the time. She closed it and placed it back into her pocket before looking back to her older sister,

"So I was off by a few seconds."

She shrugged nonchalantly and then moved to the pile of luggage, "Whoa, Sonya-nee how much did you bring with you?" She shifted her hold on her panda, holding it in the crook of her elbows like a baby as she examined the different bags. A wicked grin suddenly split her face and one pale hand shot into the pile to pull out a small bag which she promptly pulled open with glee. "I can't believe I almost forgot these..." She breathed out, pulling out the twin sai that rested within. She twirled them expertly in her hands for a moment before they disappeared somewhere on her person and she let the empty bag fall bag onto the pile of luggage. She straightened up and fixed her glasses before glancing at the ornate clock that hung on the wall.

"What time's our flight?"

Sonya slightly frowned at Cross' first comment. "I only brought the essentials. Including both our weapons." She added the last part when she heard the happy sigh of her sister. Dante walked in and handed a pair of tickets to the blond teen. "Ms. Sonya, Ms. Cross. The flight will be in two hours so we will be departing now." "Good. Thank you." Sonya said as she passed one of the tickets to Cross, "You can have the window seat." As she said this, more subordiantes in suits came in and started carrying the baggage out. Once they were all out, the blond turned to Dante one last time.

"Make sure our disappearance remains a secret for now, alright?" She ordered camly. He nodded. Sonya smiled and gave the man a pat on the shoulder.

"I know you'll watch over the house our father left us quite well." And with that, she turned for the door.

"C'mon Cross."

Cross hummed under her breath as she followed her sister, really, she always was the more responsible. After getting her ticket she tucked it away into the inside pocket of her coat and another smile slid onto her face when her sister said she could have the window seat, Sonya always did know how much Cross liked staring at the clouds. After nodding a final 'see you later' to Dante, she followed her sister out of the house and into the fresh Italian air. She blinked a few times to adjust her eyes to the bright sunlight before she glanced around for one last look of the grounds before sliding into the waiting car. Who knew how long it would be before she would see this place again?

"Do you have any information on what our assignment is this time Sis?"

Sonya closed the door behind her when she followed Cross inside the car. "All I know is that we're needed to help the future of the Vongola family by helping Reborn-san tutor the 10th boss." She explained, looking out the window to take a last glimpse at their mansion, "However I don't know what kind of tutoring or what this 10th boss looks like." She frowned as she thought about the missing vital information, but knowing Reborn he was doing it on purpose. "We'll just see what's in store in Japan." The car's engine roared to life after she said this and the driver began to take them to the airport miles away. Yet with how fast the driver drove, the sisters got to the airport with an hour to spare.

"Thank you." Sonya said to the driver as she got out of the car. Once she was out, two men in airport uniforms ran to her and bowed. "We were told to aid you Ms. Nakamura." They said together and began to take out the luggage without another word. Sonya just grinned.

"Good ol' Dante." She said as she headed inside the airport.

"Maah...Reborn-san...always so cryptic." Cross murmured. She rested her head in the palm of her hand and played with her panda with her other hand, her eyes strayed out the window and she stared at the clouds passing by quickly because of how fast their driver was going. A half hour or so later they screeched to a stop outside of the airport and Cross rolled her eyes at how the attendants immediately rushed over to her sister and bowed. Really, you'd think Cross was just another girl tagging along for the ride. She stepped out gracefully and stretched, chains on her outfit jingling. Boy was she glad she and her sister would be able to bypass security. Those alarms would never stop ringing if she stepped into one of those metal detectors.

Cross played with one of her piercings as she followed her sister casually into the airport. One hour left. How would they kill time now? They couldn't train/practice in such a public place without attracting attention and Cross doubted her sister would want to ruin her outfit before they even got to Japan. This would be a long wait, Cross sighed.

An hour later...

Finally, they were on the plane! Cross plopped into her seat and immediately threw the shade open to see the sky and ultimately, the clouds. They calmed her all the time. Whenever she got annoyed or her emotions got the best of her she would escape to the roof of the house and just stare at the clouds, eventually falling asleep and her sister would be forced to come wake her up herself. They were so peaceful. Floating along slowly like that...it would be nice to be like them. Floating along without a care in the world, detached from the rest of the world. A sad sigh slipped from Cross' lips as she continued to stare out the window, only looking away to buckle her seat-belt, and that was only for a few seconds. Her hands itched to go to her bag for her sketchpad and after a while she gave in and pulled it out, settling down to sketch what she saw, a serene expression on her face. They would be in Japan soon and who knew how many more chances there would be left for peaceful times like this one?

The hour waiting to board the plane passed Sonya by like a breeze. She spent it reading over files that dealt with their family's budget and funds for the next few months. She wanted to finish the calculations she had made on her laptop that morning, but she knew she wouldn't have enough time.

When she sat down on her seat next to Cross in first class, Sonya went back to reading a few more charts and graphs that dealt with more money problems. At age 14, she already knew the ups and downs of the Italian economy and made sure enough money flowed into the private banks of Nakamura. At times, she wished she could just stop what she was doing and relax, but with no one else to take charge of the family Sonya had to take the reins and do it herself. Suddenly, the blond heard the sigh of her younger sister. She glanced at her, still facing the file and watched her pull out her sketchbook. The sad look that was in Cross' eyes turned to a tranquil one once that was in her hands. Sonya smiled.The strain of being the responsible one didn't hurt as much once she saw Cross okay.

The plane took off from the ground, letting the blond make one final mental good bye to Italy. Excitement bubbled again inside her when she thought of Japan, but she kept it all inside. Once the plane was steady in the air and the seat belt sign shut off, Sonya pulled out her laptop and began working once more. For three straight hours she worked, stifling yawns and rubbing her sore eyes. It was when the plane began to descend back onto land that she finally shut off her laptop and put it away. And that's when she realized how hungry she was.

"Did they serve any lunch?" She asked Cross, rubbing her eyes once more.

Cross looked up from her sketchpad, and away from the colors playing across the sky. She blinked slowly and then turned to her sister with a sheepish expression on her face, "I wasn't paying attention..." she murmured, hugging her sketchpad to her chest with one hand, the other twirling a pencil. She slowly lowered her legs from their curled up position in the chair and winced at the pins and needles feeling shooting through her legs. A few minutes later the plane landed and a flight attendant came over then to tell them that they were now in Japan. As if that wasn't obvious.

She tugged her bag onto her shoulder and exited the plane and into the waiting hanger. After stretching a bit, and popping a shoulder or two, Cross let her arms fall back to her side. Then she froze. She looked down at her empty arms, "I forgot Pandii!" She exclaimed with horror. It was too late to go back to the plane, they probably wouldn't even let her on even if she made it back to the flying machine anyway. Cross frowned and then turned to look for her sister, she didn't know who was or if anyone was coming to pick them up.

Sonya quickly handed Cross her stuffed panda when she cried out that it was missing. While they were exiting, the elder one had let the younger one past by her. That's when she saw that she had left Pandii behind. The blond quickly put it in her bag and followed Cross out of the plane. "We're not going to have any more help for now. So you go hail a cab while I get our luggage." She patted her sister's shoulder and smiled, showing that she was confident that Cross could do this.

After twenty or so minutes, Sonya was able to find and place her blue luggage and Cross' red luggage onto two carts without any help or effort. Many people watched in amazement when they saw the skinny girl pick up bags almost two times her weight. Once she got everything settled, she pushed both carts simultaneously towards the exit where she expected to find Cross.

Cross nodded to show that she had heard her sister and placed Pandii into her bag before exiting the airport, fixing her hat so that the brim only covered part of her face. She didn't doubt for a moment that her sister would need help, she would be fine. Now...to find a cab...

It sucked that they wouldn't be getting any help, even if it was for now, Cross realized as she pushed through a crowd. Or attempted to. Mou, what was it with the guys here?! You'd swear they'd never seen a girl before. And they kept shouting weird things too, kinda along the lines of showing her around or something. If she was having so much trouble she couldn't wait to see what would happen when Sonya finally stepped out of the airport. Finally she spotted a free cab and managed to escape the crowd, casually walking over and smiling at the driver, "Neh, can you take me and my sister to Namimori?" She asked. The man nodded and leaned over to push the door open for Cross. Suddenly a man in a business suit shoved Cross aside and climbed into the cab. He told the driver to go somewhere but Cross hadn't bothered to listen, no, instead she had grabbed the front of the man's shirt and hauled him out of the cab. Her eyes were narrowed dangerously and she held her hat in one hand, "What do you think you're doing?"

She must have scared the man pretty badly cause he had suddenly gone very pale. It wasn't everyday that a girl half your size suddenly lifted you bodily from a cab and glared at you. He stuttered an apology before turning tail and stumbling away. Cross dusted off imaginary dust and fixed her black cap, placing it back on at an angle. Then she smiled innocently at the driver before turning back to the entrance of the airport to see her sister exiting. "Wait right here." she told the man and he nodded quickly. He wouldn't dare leave. Cross hurried over to her sister to take the cart with her own luggage.

"I got us a cab."

"Wonderful." Sonya replied with a grateful smile, relieved that there was less things to worry about. She handed the cart with least items (which all belonged to Cross) and followed her sister to the empty cab, ignoring the many stares and calls from the locals. When they got to the cab with the trunk already popped open, Sonya quickly grabbed two of her heaviest bags with each hand and brought it inside. She got more stares, but expertly ignored them all while transferring the rest of her things. Once she was done, she helped Cross put her luggage inside. Amazingly everything fit inside the trunk and Sonya shut it before getting inside the passenger seat.

"Do you know where we're headed sir?" She asked when she closed the door. He nodded nervously.

"Then if you don't mind. Take us there quickly." Without another word, the driver stepped on the pedal and the sisters were rushed to Namimori.

After twenty minutes or so, Sonya had the cab driver stop in front of a small, two-story house. "This is sufficient." She said as she montioned to get out of the car, "We will keep our things in the car, but you must go to this location and drop our things off there." She handed the driver a piece of paper. Before he could protest about the change, Sonya shoved a wad of bills into his cup holder. She knew it was the exact amount, but the way she folded it made it look like it was more. The driver nodded to show that he would do what he was told.

"Good." And with that, Sonya finally stepped out of the car and slammed the door shut.

Cross nodded to her sister to thank her for her help and then slid into the backseat of the cab. Her eyes automatically traveled up to the sky, and to the clouds. Or at least, what remained of them. It was, after all, getting dark out. She barely noticed when the car stopped, only snapping out of her daze when Sonya left the car and slammed the door. She nodded to the driver and then slipped out as well, turning her eyes to the two-story house that they had stopped in front of.

"Is this where Reborn-san is?"

"That's the address he gave me." Sonya replied as she looked at another piece of paper that she dug out of her skirt pocket. Her eyes trailed back to the house and to the sign that was posted by the gate.

"Sawada." She announced aloud, "What a normal name... Whatever, c'mon Cross." She headed for the door and politely knocked. Footsteps reached Sonya's ears in a matter of seconds and soon a short, brown-haired woman opened the door. She looked at the two sisters for a moment before smiling warmly.

"May I help you?" She asked. The blond was in a short state of shock and was unable to form words. She didn't expect to see a kind face living under the same roof as Reborn and the 10th Vongola Boss.

"Um, we're looking for Reborn-san." She finally replied, a bit flustered by the situation.

"Oh he's with Tsuna-kun and the others!" The woman said cheerfully, "They're both upstairs in the first room on your left. I'm sorry but I won't be able to escort you there since I'm busy with dinner. You two can stay for it if you'd like."

"That would be... lovely?" Sonya was still confused as the woman allowed the sisters inside. Once again, the woman pointed up the stairs to the sisters' right. The blond gave a hesitant nod in understanding and started up the stairs.

Mmm...Cross didn't care much for names if they weren't important so she slid her hands into her pockets and kept shooting glances at the clouds while her sister talked. Following her when she started to walk.

Cross could have laughed at her sister, really she could have. The way she reacted when the kind lady opened the door. Sonya just didn't know how to relax sometimes. "Thank you Sawada-san." Cross murmured, bowing politely before stepping into the house. "Sorry for intruding." She added as she slipped her shoes off at the front and placed them neatly to the side. She tugged her headphones down and raised an eyebrow at her sister, "Shouldn't you have expected something like that? After all, it is Reborn-san we're talking about."

She smirked at her sister before turning around and gracefully climbing the stairs, her steps light such that the chains on her outfit barely made a sound with her movements. She walked ahead of her sister and then pushed the door to the indicated room open...only to duck as a grenade flew past where her head had been but a moment before.

Sonya blushed a bit in embarrassement when her sister laughed at her. So she was a little uptight, so what? With all she had to do she was usually always like that. "I just didn't expect it, that's all." She replied softly. The blond followed her sister up the stairs and towards the room where Reborn-san was supposed to be. Cross was ahead of her and slowly opened the door. That's when a grenade almost hit the younger one. Luckily, she dodged it and Sonya immediately grabbed the explosive and threw it out the door Sawada-san was about to close. The woman seemed to pay no attention to what was happening and calmly shut the door, only to be spooked when the grenade finally exploded in the other end.

Sonya didn't get to see what Sawada-san's reaction was because she ran to the door Cross had opened. In the room was almost complete chaos. A spikey, brown-haired boy who looked like Sawada-san was trying to stop a silver-haired teen from strangling a little boy with afro and horns while another teen with black hair was laughing at this. And in the middle of this violence was a calm Reborn, sitting in his chair and sipping some tea. He looked up and saw the two girls.

"Oh, hello Sonya, Cross. You've finally arrived?" He questioned innocently. Sonya had a deep suspicion that he was faking it like always.

Cross grinned and then sat down opposite from Reborn, amidst all the chaos. “Hey there Reborn-san, it’s been a while.” She greeted him. She shot a curious glance at the brown-haired teen before turning back to Reborn, “Is he…” Reborn calmly stood up and then…kicked the brown haired boy. Cross blinked in surprise.

“Stupid Tsuna, you have guests.” He said while the boy, now identified as Tsuna, was yelling about it hurting. The silver haired teen turned his head quickly and glared at the two girls for a moment before it registered who they were. “Aren’t they…!”

“Meet Nakamura Sonya and Cross, the Target Sisters.”

"Hello." Sonya greeted as she crossed the room and took a seat next to her sister. With the silver-haired teen a bit distracted with the appearance of two new girls, the young boy with the afro wiggled his way out of his grasp.

"Nyah!! You're so lame!!" He yelled at the teen before running out of the room. Sonya completely ignored him as she turned first to the silver-haired teen who had recognized them.

"You are Gokudera Hayato, the Hurricane Bomber." She stated, showing that she too recognized the Mafioso. Then she turned to the brown-haired boy called Tsuna. The blonde remembered that the 10th Vongola Boss' full name was Sawada Tsunayoshi. This must be him.

"And you are the 10th Vongola Boss. It is an honor to meet you. I am Nakamura Sonya." Of course, she was just being polite. The scrawny boy in front of her really didn't seem like the Mafia type, but Sonya knew well not to question Reborn's judgement. She quickly glanced at the black-haired boy. She didn't know him, but he seemed to know what they were. For now, she didn't need to pay attention to him.

"Um, nice to meet you both..." Tsuna replied. They both seemed pretty normal to be Mafia people, but Reborn knew them so apparently he was wrong.

"Why are you two here?" He asked bluntly. Sonya just gave Reborn a glance.

"They're two new tutors that will help you become a better Vongola boss." The baby replied.

"I don't want to be a Mafia boss!!"

Cross smirked, it was so like Sonya to know who the others were before even being introduced to them. Then she turned her attention to the 10th Vongola boss, otherwise known as Sawada Tsunayoshi, "Hey there tenth." she greeted almost lazily, waving at said boy. While Sonya was still talking to the tenth, Cross turned to face the last boy and grinned back at his smiling face, "Hey there. My name's Nakamura Cross, and you are?" As if she knew Tsuna was going to shout Cross covered her ears for a few seconds before lowering them again, still grinning at the boy.

"Are you playing in the mafia game too? My name's Yamamoto Takeshi. Nice to meet you." Cross' smile stretched a bit more, she liked this guy. He was definitely a lot friendlier than some others she'd met but...a game? Did he really think that this was all just a game? What a strange boy...

Sonya glanced at the black-haired boy named Yamamoto and raised an eyebrow. Game...? She made a mental note to ask Reborn-san about this member of the family later. Tsuna hesitantly greeted Cross when she greeted him and turned back to Reborn.

"I don't need anymore tutors!!" He repeated, "Because I'm not gonna be a Mafia boss!"

"Don't think of them as Mafia tutors." Reborn stated, "They're here to teach you something else that would help you if you were a Mafia boss or not."

"Really?" Tsuna asked as Sonya gave Reborn a questioning look. What was the reason they were here then? Reborn suddenly jumped up and landed in the middle of the table they all sat at. He then grabbed Tsuna's shirt collar and pulled him down to his level.

"No-Good Tsuna, do you know the difference between a salad fork and a dinner fork?" He asked out of nowhere. The brown-haired boy blinked.

"Um... no?"

"How about the effects of realism in 20th century art?"

"No..."

"Well, that's what Sonya and Cross are going to teach you."

"What?" Sonya was radiating anger now, the fine line that held her sanity about to snap, "The reason you called us, highly trained hitwomen, from our home country of Italy is so that we can teach the 10th Vongola boss art and manners?" She was twitching, trying hard to calm the storm in her heart and to avoid pulling out any uncessary weapons.

"Oh don't worry, you're teaching him how to kill too." Reborn added, "I wouldn't call in the Target Sisters for something as menial as teaching an uncultured kid manners." Sonya stared at him, remembering how much he annoyed him. She just huffed and sat back to relax, pushing a strand of blond hair that fell out of place. Tsuna just scooted farther away from the blond and closer to her calmer sister. Though she didn't look it, Sonya seemed much more unstable of the two sisters.

Cross snickered at her sister’s outburst; mm and they said she was the one with a horrible temper. “Neh Reborn-san, I hope you really don’t expect me to teach him manners? I’m not the one for that stuff at all.” Then she turned her body completely to face the arcobaleno, “To kill? He’s to be the tenth…does he even know how to hold a gun? Know how to use any weapon?” She put her hand in front of her, balancing a sai in the palm of her hand, “Does he even know how to dodge…” she eyed Tsuna for a moment, “…if I were to throw this at him?”

It seemed Gokudera had gotten over his initial shock of seeing the two sisters and tried to glare menacingly at Cross. This only resulted in her laughing at him while flipping the sai into the air and catching it, her hand wrapping around it easily. She gripped the handle with all of her fingers and pinched her thumb in the joint between the handle bar and shaft. She brought it up and smirked at the silver-haired boy, “Really, don’t make me laugh.”

Tsuna eyed the black-haired girl cautiously and with slight fear. She was pretty scary too. Who knows when she'd decide to throw that blade at his face, especially since he was still caught in Reborn's grip.

"Cross, you will be teaching Tsuna here the arts seeing as that's your expertise. But you can focus on his training his fighting abilities." Reborn explained. "So that means I will be teaching the 10th proper ettiquete." Sonya concluded after throwing a glare at her younger sibling for snickering. "And assasination skills." The baby added.

"What?!" Tsuna shouted, "I don't want to learn those things! I'm not going to be a mafia boss!!" The blond just glanced at him before turning back to the hitman.

"When do you want us to start?"

"As soon as possible."

"Are you guys even listening to me?!?!" Tsuna didn't have another chance to let out a whine when Reborn let go of him and immediately kicked him in the face. The brown-haired boy laid on the floor, knocked out.

"By the way, I'd like it if you two would go to school with Tsuna, Gokudera, and Yamamoto while you train them." The baby added.

"Them? I thought we were only training the 10th." Sonya stated, a bit confused.

"Well, there's no harm in training the others. They could use the help." She just glanced at the other two, obvious distaste in her eyes especially towards the silver-haired teen.

"Fine."