ATOS Chapter 52

Chapter 52 – Across Thousands of Stars [End]

Novel Title: 跨越千万星辰 (Across Thousands of Stars)

Author：御小凡 (Yu Xiaofan)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: 泽田纲吉 (Sawada Tsunayoshi -MC), 六道骸 (Rokudo Mukuro -ML)

*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*

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— “A very rare situation has emerged in his case. After several rounds of phototherapy and chemotherapy, the tumour cells suddenly started reproducing internally.”

— “Please prepare yourselves mentally for the surgery. Of course, you can discuss it among yourselves first. But I hope you do it quickly, as time waits for no one.” Tsuna was so startled when he heard his name being called that he fell off his chair. His arm was grabbed firmly. With the help of that grip, he managed to awkwardly prop himself back up onto the chair.

This time, Doctor Shamal was being serious. He looked at Tsuna and Mukuro calmly. After Mukuro helped Tsuna back onto the chair, he asked calmly, “Is there a risk to his life?”

“After the removal, we’ll see. But the post-surgery cure rate is almost a hundred percent.” Doctor Shamal cautiously explained, “However, your case is quite unique. Normally, post-surgery would involve supplementary chemotherapy. But whether it was the phototherapy or chemotherapy that caused the issue for you, we can’t use it freely. We can probably only observe using medication.”

Throughout their conversation, Tsuna could hear the small sound of his teeth clattering. Mukuro stopped questioning Doctor Shamal and looked at him with concern, “Tsuna, can you wait outside for me? Can you walk out by yourself?”

Tsuna wanted to shake his head. But he realised that his panic might affect their conversation. So he nodded stiffly, walked outside, and almost fell onto a bench.

He never smoked. But he really wanted a cigarette now. Subconsciously, Tsuna reached into his pocket. After a couple of seconds, he dialled Reborn’s number. The other end picked up quickly. “Hello?”

“Reborn.” Tsuna’s voice trembled terribly when he spoke, almost as if he was about to cry. And he truly felt like crying.

“What’s wrong with you?” Reborn’s voice remained unchanged. That sense of calm in the face of anything infected Tsuna. He stuttered through explaining the situation. At the end, he asked helplessly, like a lost child, “What should I do, Reborn…”

A sigh, almost inaudible, came from the other end. “Municipal Centre Hospital, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Wait.”

Reborn arrived quickly, unusually not wearing his suit. He had on a simple shirt with subtle stripes. When he got to the hospital and saw Tsuna, he almost thought that it was Tsuna who was ill, not Mukuro.

After knowing this person for so many years, it was the first time he had seen him in such a disoriented state. Even his expression was empty. Seeing Reborn was like seeing a glimmer of hope. Tsuna grabbed onto him.

“Reborn, they said they’re going to remove Mukuro’s eye.” Tsuna grabbed Reborn’s hand, trembling. Reborn calmly held onto him and didn’t interrupt.

“They said it wasn’t necessary to do surgery before. Why… Why now? He’s only in his twenties. And he’s going to lose an eye at such a young age… Lose an eye, do you understand…”

The more Tsuna spoke, the more bewildered he became. Mukuro was so exceptional and so beautiful. He had been like that since childhood, a smart and beautiful child.

To lose an eye…

“It’s my fault. I should’ve taken him for more check-ups. Knowing he came from that kind of place, I actually only relied on the government’s one-time examination and never paid attention to his health again.” Tsuna lowered his head, covering half of his face with his hand. His voice choked up, “What should I do…”

“Is the melodrama’s lead’s scene over yet?” Reborn grabbed his arm with another hand and looked around. After determining the direction, he roughly dragged Tsuna towards that direction.

After knocking on the door, he opened it directly. Doctor Shamal and Mukuro, who were sitting inside, showed surprised expressions upon his arrival.

“Why are you here?” Mukuro didn’t hide his disdain. Reborn pressed Tsuna into the chair and dragged another one over. “Do you think I wanted to come?”

He glanced at the guy who was never still, “I’ve said it before. I’m never interested in where you would die.”

“Ah, that’s great. If you showed up at my funeral, I’d probably die with regrets.”

After all these years, they had downgraded their impressions of each other by a level.

Doctor Shamal’s gaze shifted between the two faces, guessing the relationship between Mukuro and Tsuna. But who was this man who suddenly appeared?

“Well, may I ask about your relationship?” Doctor Shamal couldn’t help but ask.

Pointing his thumb at Mukuro, Reborn asked, “Does this have anything to do with this guy’s treatment?”

“After all, discussing medical conditions with unrelated individuals is always strange, right?” Doctor Shamal chuckled.

“Tsk.” Reborn pointed at Tsuna. “He’s the patient’s guardian. And I’m this guy’s guardian. Is it strange now?”

Someone accustomed to giving orders naturally exudes an aura of control over the situation. Reborn was undoubtedly such a person. Doctor Shamal quickly reorganised his thoughts, “We were talking about the issue of prosthetic eyes.”

“Since there’s no time to waste, get it done quickly. We can talk about those things when he’s well enough to live.” Reborn firmly stated, causing Tsuna to tremble again.

“So, the family agrees to the surgery?” Doctor Shamal naturally looked at Tsuna.

“If you want this guy to live, isn’t this the only way?” Reborn countered.

Doctor Shamal had to shift his gaze back to him. “Yes.”

“Why talk so much nonsense then?”

Mukuro secretly held Tsuna’s hand and that hand was chillingly cold. He also said to Doctor Shamal, “Though I don’t really trust you, I’ll trouble you with this surgery.”

Smirking, Doctor Shamal shrugged, “The sentence before was unnecessary.”

Before entering the operating room, Mukuro smiled at Tsuna, “Honestly, just the thought of being anaesthetised and taken into the operating room makes me want to escape immediately.”

Tsuna held his hand, unable to say anything. Their hands were equally cold.

“But thinking that you’ll be waiting for me outside and the first thing I’ll see when I wake up is you, I can endure it.” He paused and blinked his eyes, “Of course, if you initiate another kiss, that would be even better. Can I hope for that?”

Tsuna’s eyes turned red.

Reborn, standing on the side, couldn’t bear it anymore and kicked the bed’s wheel. The nurses around him looked at him strangely. But it had no effect on him. “Alright. Whatever you’re planning, do it after you come out alive.”

And then, pulling Tsuna back a step, Reborn watched as Mukuro was pushed into the operating room.

Tsuna stared stiffly at the door of the operating room. Reborn ignored him, sitting in silence by the side. The surgery took a long time, at least in Tsuna’s perception. He had thought about many things. The trivialities that had felt so lengthy and intricate at the time now seemed to pass in an instant.

For himself, he probably had never experienced such intense emotions.

Even his first love was like that – it used up all the burning passion he had in his anticipation. In truth, this wasn’t due to any particular setbacks. Tsuna’s life had been almost smooth sailing. It was guided correctly. Even the hardships felt like well-planned tests.

But none of this mattered.

Life itself was a prolonged consumption of actions. Your soul would be shaped and expended within it. You only realised it when you found that strong emotions no longer suited you. This might seem cold. But it was the self-defence mechanism of life. Since birth, people must constantly learn to say goodbye.

We bid goodbye to childhood innocence, teenage naivety, and youthful enthusiasm.

Until our final farewell from this world.

Tsuna thought of the first time Mukuro smiled at him. He thought of how this child said he liked him nearly in despair. He also thought of the times when he had asked how he could like him more.

His heart suddenly contracted painfully.

Yes, that’s how it is. I’ve liked someone very much for a long time. This person has beautiful eyes and hair. He hurt me. But he also likes me a lot. He’s willing to do many things for me, offering his life willingly.

I truly, really like him.

Thinking this, Tsuna’s tears flowed. The day after the surgery, Mukuro finally woke up. His right eye was wrapped in a thick bandage. His already fair skin was now so pale that it matched the colour of the bedsheets. Tsuna, who had been watching over him, looked equally haggard. But as soon as Mukuro moved, he knew.

He quickly pressed the call button to summon a nurse and bent down to ask Mukuro if he felt uncomfortable anywhere. Mukuro weakly looked at him, didn’t speak, and his fingers moved lightly.

Tsuna held onto his hand. His eyes turned red again. He lowered his head and kissed the corner of Mukuro’s lips. His throat tightened painfully. “Don’t worry. It’s okay now. Everything will be alright.”

Everything will be alright.

Mukuro recovered well. The feared relapse didn’t happen, which filled Tsuna with gratitude. However, the bandage that was wrapped around his right eye needed more time. With just one eye, his vision was compromised. Mukuro often knocked over things like cups because he couldn’t accurately judge their positions.

Every time Tsuna saw this, he felt a bitter pang of sadness. He truly felt pain, as if he was enduring the torment himself.

No, it might even be more painful than what he himself had endured.

Instead, Mukuro accepted all of this unusually calmly. He had Tsuna inform several high-ranking executives of Estraneo, asking them to temporarily manage the company for a while. This included Ken and Chikusa. Both of these individuals reacted quite strongly and were immediately about to book flight tickets to Japan to visit Mukuro.

Mukuro easily convinced the two by explaining that helping manage the company was their way of helping himself. However, Tsuna couldn’t shake the feeling that Mukuro didn’t want to be seen by acquaintances in his current state.

As for Tsuna himself, there were also some important matters that needed urgent attention.

He called Reborn and set up a meeting.

“What? Is it okay if I don’t go play babysitter for you?” Reborn’s greeting was as sharp as ever when they met. Reborn’s words never hurt him since Tsuna had grown accustomed to it. He didn’t find it hard to accept.

They were currently sitting in the hospital garden. The sunlight shining brilliantly.

“About Mukuro, there are some things I want to discuss with Reborn,” Tsuna said with a faint smile. His gaze dropped to his own interlocked hands. “After all, in my eyes, Reborn is also like an elder to me.”

“Hearing that from someone of your age, I’m not sure whether to be happy or not.”

Tsuna took a deep breath and explained in detail about Mukuro and his own situation. It was the first time he had opened up about this without hiding anything.

After listening, Reborn chuckled. “So, what’s the result of your little trial?”

“It’ll probably be… a decision that disappoints Reborn,” Tsuna replied.

“Cut the chatter. Since when can you represent me in expressing opinions?” Reborn’s expression remained unchanged. “Go on.”

After a short pause, Tsuna continued, “I want to be with him.”

“The Vongola heir being homosexual. That’s some interesting news,” Reborn remarked sharply. “This isn’t something that can be settled with mere words.”

“I know,” Tsuna responded without hesitation, looking directly at Reborn. “I’m aware that I have to take responsibility for the choices I make. I understand, Reborn.”

Telling Reborn was like a ritual, signifying his first step forward. There would be many challenges ahead, but he deeply believed that what he was about to experience was worth it.

“Besides wishing you good luck, I don’t have much else to say,” Reborn suddenly eased his expression. He stared at Tsuna for a long while. “Why does my only student always make such foolish choices?”

“Maybe because I’m not very bright to begin with.”

Reborn laughed. It was a rare display of warmth in his action. Tsuna looked at him earnestly. “Reborn, thank you.”

Thank you for many things.

After bidding farewell to Reborn, Tsuna returned to the hospital room. Mukuro was reading a book. It was a fairy tale book, of all things. It might have been borrowed from the little girl in the next bed. Even with half his face wrapped in bandages, he seemed to have a certain charm among women.

“Why is the matchstick girl so stubborn? There should be many other ways to survive,” Mukuro turned a page. The last image was of a little girl dying alone in the cold winter.

“What’s the point of comparing yourself to a fairy tale?” Tsuna chuckled, picking up an apple and peeling it. Mukuro, however, was still lost in thought. He pointed to the coloured illustration and asked Tsuna, “Here it says that when each person dies, a star falls from the sky. Does that mean that each person is a star?”

“They say that you…-” It was rare for Mukuro to be interested in these things. Tsuna leaned closer. “Perhaps it means that each star represents a person.”

“But people are so far apart from each other.”

If you keep taking things so seriously, Andersen will cry.

“However, looking at it this way, meeting someone, another star, is truly remarkable.” Mukuro’s lips curved into a faint smile. There was a mysterious light in his eyes. “How many stars did I cross to finally meet you?”

Tsuna paused all of his actions. Mukuro looked at him. His single eye fixed on him without blinking, as if expecting something.

This was the person he loved and who loved him in return. The road ahead wouldn’t be entirely smooth. There were many things they needed to face. But they had made their decision and firmly believed that they wouldn’t change.

These were words left unsaid. But somehow, they both knew it.

“You…” Tsuna leaned in willingly. A hint of a smile slipped out as their lips met. “You really have a way with words.” This marked their twelfth year of meeting each other. They had been together for a long time.

And in the future, they will remain together for a long time as well.

-END-

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*Translator’s Note: That’s the end. I kinda wish to see more of their intimate moments but meh…it’s quite good that it ended this way, anyway. I’m already happy. I hope you guys are content too. It was really hard work to translate this novel. I have to get myself familiar with the anime and manga. The names of people and places are in Japanese’s kanjis. It won’t be translated the same way as Chinese is being translated. I had to observe the raw chapters carefully to read the kanji in Japanese. And kanjis in Japanese are quite complicated. Even when you graduate high school in Japan, you won’t necessarily know all kanjis out there. But anyway, I have finished translating this beautiful fanfiction. So, I’m already content. If there are any mistakes, pardon me. It might take me ten thousand years later to come back and fix them hahahaha. Anyway, I’m translating two new novels. Do check them out. One is from the same author; Yu Xiaofan. The novel title is ‘Spring is the Plan of Life’. I swear to God, this is my favourite so far compared to all her novels. And another from McChicken (Mai Xiang Ji Ne). The title is ‘Your Fangs Are Perfect for Biting My Glands’. It’s an ABO novel and it’s a fun read. -K

さようなら！！！

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