I am the protagonist

"If I could, I would prefer Hibari ten years from now, when he would be fully mature. If he could take that one step further, then there would be no need for Hibari of this era."

"But after my strength improved, Hibari appeared in this era... so I had to put my ideas aside for the time being."

【I see. 】

[Tsuna's initial choice was Hibari, ten years from now.]

I thought about what kind of person Hibari would be ten years from now.

Well, I can somewhat understand Tsuna's feelings.

[If it were Hibari back then, there wouldn't be much of a problem. But Hibari in this era is practically a powder keg.]

"Is the lark a powder keg now?"

Suddenly, Yamamoto noticed that Tsuna's gaze towards him had become somewhat strange.

"Yamamoto, don't you know that Hibari has been provoked to the point of exploding?"

"???"

"what?"

"Tsuna, don't talk nonsense. I didn't provoke him!"

Now Tsunayoshi realized just how naive Yamamoto was; he didn't even realize that he had unintentionally provoked Hibari.

"You should think about whether you provoked him or not."

Do I...?

Yamamoto unconsciously thought about what would happen ten years from now.

It seems that the strength of all of us increased when we first went to the future world.

[Hibari arrived after the rest of us, and his strength hadn't improved much. It seems his ring hadn't yet transformed into its true form as a Vongola ring... I recall it was because the ring hadn't acknowledged Hibari at the time.]

[Hibari's expression didn't seem very good at the time.]

Because in the future, Yamamoto paid little attention to anything other than his own strength; at that time, there were only a few companions he needed to keep an eye on.

Well, it might be a bit harsh to say that, but Yamamoto really didn't consider Hibari a comrade at the time. After all, a comrade is someone you can trust to carry your back, and Hibari was a powder keg back then. Not treating him as a danger was already more than enough.

Given the potential future circumstances, Yamamoto had no desire to improve his relationship with Hibari.

Is it because of that reason?

But Yamamoto thought about it carefully and realized something was wrong.

"That doesn't make sense. Hibari doesn't have any real friends in Namimori. Even if someone tries to befriend him, that person won't treat them well."

The thought that Hibari had made everyone a target for his bite made Yamamoto feel that this was even more unreasonable.

Seeing that Yamamoto was still struggling to find an answer, Tsuna was speechless.

"Yamamoto, it's all about strength."

"Strength...right, strength!"

Upon suddenly receiving the answer, Yamamoto immediately realized that Hibari's grim expression was due to the vast difference in their strength.

A proud person like Hibari would never admit to being weaker than others.

But at that time...

Yamamoto remembered that at that time, he, Sasagawa-senpai, and Gokudera were all stronger than Hibari.

Not to mention back then, even if they returned to this era, the strength of the three of them would be above Hibari's, and even far surpass it.

No wonder Hibari's expression was so unpleasant back then.

Now he understood why Yun Que had looked so unhappy.

Chapter 266 The Rampaging Lark

In a forest, a series of tree branches suddenly began to eerily extend, all pointing towards the same person.

Sensing the danger, the man immediately rolled to the side, thus avoiding the deadly attack of the tree branch.

"Boss!"

"!?"

Upon hearing the sound, the man immediately rolled to a safer location.

Countless stone spikes emerged from the ground.

[That's dangerous!]

Dino glanced at the spot where he had just been. If it weren't for Romario's warning, the stone spikes could have pierced his body completely and left him in place.

What on earth is going on?

What did Kyoya do to become like this?

Looking at the figure standing in the center of the forest, Dino felt a strange chill run through his entire body.

It was as if they were already in danger.

This feeling is terrible.

How exactly did Kyoya manage to do that?

[Once I get close enough, everything around me will start attacking me. Under these circumstances, it's impossible for me to get close to Kyoya or understand his current state.]

Dino had no idea how this strange phenomenon came about.

However, he was absolutely certain that this phenomenon was caused by Kyoya.

[Would a normal Cloud Flame produce this effect?]

This is completely unlike typical proliferation.

The proliferation effect is under the influence of the Cloud Flame effect, but did those situations just now seem like normal proliferation?

Proliferation itself only increases the quantity, it is a quantitative increase, and it does not change the existence of itself.

Even if the branches are multiplied, it only increases the number of branches, but it cannot give the branches their own consciousness and the ability to search for and attack enemies.

Even those stone spikes.

Those stone spikes are probably just ordinary sharp stones.

When will these stones be able to undergo this kind of change?

This situation doesn't resemble a normal proliferation effect; it's more like that of a box animal.

"It really turned out like this after all."

"!"

The sudden voice beside him startled Dino.

"It's Tsuna."

At the same time, Dino also realized the problem with Tsuna's words.

"As expected? Tsuna, you were aware of this change in Kyoya all along?"

"Hmm~ I do know very well what's going on with Hibari right now. I can only say that he really didn't listen properly. I warned him not to try it, but he still risked it for power."

Dino decided he would find out what was hidden behind this later, but for now, he needed to deal with the immediate problem first.

"Tsuna, do you have a solution for Kyoya's condition?"

"He's just in a berserk state where he can't control his power right now. Temporarily putting his consciousness into hibernation will stop him from going berserk."

"It's just that it's quite troublesome to do normally, so I'll just deal with it directly."

In the blink of an eye, Dino saw Kyoya slowly fall down in the distance, and Tsuna, who was just next to him, was now standing next to Kyoya.

When did Tsuna go there?

Dino stood up and ran towards Kyoya.

I crouched down to check on Kyoya's condition.

There is no danger to her life; she has simply fainted.

After confirming Kyoya's condition, Dino stood up. Now he needed to ask Tsuna what state Hibari had entered.

"Tsuna, what exactly happened with Kyoya just now?"

"That state just now was clearly not a normal state. Even if it was a power rampage, the proliferation was not normal. Even if it was a power rampage, it shouldn't have reached that level."

Tsuna nodded in agreement; Hibari's state just now was indeed not normal.

"That certainly cannot be considered a normal state."

Dino knew that Kyoya's state just now was definitely not normal.

"However, to be able to enter this state, Hibari's control over the past week must have reached a certain standard, otherwise Hibari would not have tried to master that power."

That power?

[What does that power mean? Could it be that Kyoya has been training his self-control for this reason?]

[Tsuna, didn't you talk to Kyoya about this?]

Dino subconsciously thought that Tsuna hadn't said anything like that, but he immediately dismissed that idea.

[No, what Tsuna meant just now was that he had already told Kyoya about the dangers of entering that state.]

[Is it because of Kyoya himself?]

[Is the emotion stemming from seeing others' strength improve while one's own hasn't improved much?]

After a moment's thought, Dino understood why Kyoya had been training so diligently lately; it wasn't hard to see Kyoya's thoughts from that fervent attitude.

[No wonder, Kyoya actually went to Tsuna's aid; his emotions aren't entirely incomprehensible.]

Kyoya's personality is still too arrogant.

It's because of that personality issue that things have turned out this way.

"Tsuna, what exactly did Kyoya do just now?"

"Of course, it's a transformation that takes place in pursuit of one's own power."

"This is a transformation after power reaches its peak. Only by completing this transformation can one fully control the abilities attached to the Death Flame, instead of letting them exist only in the Death Flame."

Dino frowned slightly; he had never heard of such a claim before.

[Did Tsuna figure this out himself again?]

[A transformation that can only occur when power is pushed to its absolute limit... this transformation shouldn't be fake.]

The reaction Kyoya had just given him the idea that this transformation was no joke.

Although the attack method of proliferation has changed significantly, it is indeed the effect of proliferation.

"But now is not the time to say these things."

“Senior Brother Dino, your body has been invaded by Hibari’s Death Flame. If you don’t deal with it, your cells may soon break down.”

"!?"

Dino quickly checked his physical condition, and his face soon looked terrible.

Beneath my skin, countless deathly flames spread, relentlessly eroding my flesh.

No wonder I felt so unwell earlier; it was because of this.

The rate of erosion by those death flames wasn't very fast, but the area affected was constantly expanding. If it wasn't dealt with soon, his cells would be eroded, and then the problem would become serious.

Chapter 267 Dino's Impotent Fury

"The invasion is much more serious than I imagined. If it weren't for the fact that it possesses the attribute of the Void, ordinary people in that area would have been completely devoured."

The cloud's intrusive capabilities once again broadened Tsunayoshi's understanding of the world.

Tsuna knew about the terror of the clouds, but he was still surprised that it was exaggerated to this extent.

His eyes swept over Romario.

[It seems Dino had already ordered his men out of danger when the situation escalated; otherwise, the danger wouldn't have been so difficult to avert.]

That said, the awakening of the clouds is indeed more dangerous than imagined.