Colonnello caught up to the shady-looking man at the entrance of his military base, when the man was about to leave. He was very skeptical as to what sort of business the man might have to even be in the COMSUBIN headquarters, because Colonnello was 100-percent certain this man was not an officer. He did not really care what the man would be doing in general; Colonnello's interest was particularly fixed on how the man was connected to his lieutenant.

"You're wasting your time." The man spoke to Colonnello before he could even say anything.

The mysterious man was wearing his black-colored fine Italian suit. With a blue tie and a maroon shirt on the inside. His trademark would probably have been his black fedora with an orange lining and an odd leaf-green lizard perched on it. Or it could have been his spiral-shaped sideburns. The pair bead-black eyes were still sharp with a vision possibly over 20/20. Without a doubt he was suspicious-looking, but he was not at all to be disrespected.

"Who are you?" Colonnello asked the man. He wasn't sure of the best way to express his doubt so he asked the first question that (in his mind) sounded relevant enough.

"I don't think that's any of your business." The man chuckled, half-smiling at Colonnello. In his mind, the man was actually quite surprised that Colonnello did not have even a slight idea of his identity. This man had quite a reputation.

"Who sent you?"

"Not your business."

"What were you doing here?" Colonnello continued, determined.

"That's not your business either." The man replied with a grin.

"What were you talking about with Lieutenant Mirch?" continued Colonnello as his tone grew colder and colder.

"Also not your business." The man actually seemed entertained in the situation.

It was a strange frustration that started to claw itself out from inside Colonnello. A little voice in his head told him to just beat the answers out of that man, and all other voices in his head that was arguing before agreed to do just that. Colonnello studied the man. He did not look like he was carrying some sort of weapon; Colonnello was confident enough in his strength as a military elite that he would be able to lift the man and force him to choke the information he needed out. So after some quick but careful thought he outstretched his right and as he lunged for the man's neck.

Reckless mistake, and Colonnello realized that after the split-second the situation changed and he found himself an arm's distance from the man with a gun pressed against his forehead. It was a surprise to Colonnello as he certainly did not notice the Glock (specifically, Glock 17 handgun) within the man's possession before. One thing he did notice though—in the midst of his confusion—was that the strange lizard on the man's fedora was not there anymore.

"You could've died an idiot." The man remarked. His grip still firm on the Glock and if he pulls the trigger, Colonnello knew he would die.

"Shit." Colonnello cursed himself.

"Crude and naïve. Don't they teach you not to underestimate an enemy?" the man said, smiling.

"Shut up." Colonnello said as he felt embarrassed with himself. He really should've known better.

The man put down his handgun; Colonnello felt relieved but strangely he only wanted to try choking the man again. Then to Colonnello's surprise, the Glock morphed into the weird green lizard as it climbed the man's arm and rested on his fedora.

"What the—?"

"Leon here is my partner." The man explained as he sensed Colonnello's vigorous curiousity. "He's a shapeshifting chameleon."

It sounded like some sort of bad joke from the way the man was grinning when he explained what the lizard—chameleon was. But from what had happened Colonnello could only conclude that it was entirely real.

"Who are you?" Colonnello asked again. This time in a more interrogative manner.

"To be honest, I'm surprised you don't know." The man still maintained his courtesy. "I am the Vongola hitman, Reborn."

Now everything was puzzling as Colonnello racked through his mind to make sense of everything. The man named Reborn is a member of the Vongola. Colonnello may not have heard of Reborn, but everybody knows of the Vongola. The most powerful and influential famiglia in all of Italy. Nobody would dare make them an enemy. What would Reborn then be doing in the COMSUBIN base? And why did he need to specifically have something to do with Lieutenant Mirch?

"What are you doing to Lieutenant Mirch?" Colonnello's aura changed when he talked of his lieutenant.

"Do you mean Lal Mirch? Not that it's any of your business."

"So you know her?! How?" he pressed on.

"You sound like a curious idiot. And you also sound like you care too much for Lal Mirch."

"She's my lieutenant! What is she hiding from me, Reborn?!" he raised his voice.

Reborn paused for a moment before answering, "You must be Colonnello."

"…How did you know that?" Colonnello questioned as he tried to calm himself down.

"Well, she's told me about you." Reborn smiled.

"What?! So what is going on between you two?"

"I don't have to answer that. But I guess I'll tell you that I'm not her enemy."

"Sounds convincing." Colonnello sneered.

"We have nothing to prove to you." Reborn remarked flatly. "I'm wasting my time here."

Reborn turned and walked three paces away before Colonnello shouted at him.

"Wait!" Colonnello called out. Reborn stopped, but he did not look back. He was waiting for Colonnello to say what he was meaning to say.

"Can we—I trust Lieutenant Lal Mirch?" he asked solemnly.

Reborn thought hard for a reply, because he himself was not sure how to answer the question. It wasn't really his intention to cause chaos among the COMSUBIN and as a respected Mafioso he should not just spit out some random reply.

"That would be a question directed at Lal herself." He answered.

Reborn walked away after that. Colonnello did not stop him either; he was too preoccupied with his own questions now. Questions that were for Lieutenant Lal Mirch to answer.

Since he caught up to Reborn a few minutes before, Colonnello had forgotten how physically tired his body was after a long day training and all. He realized how he should be using the rest of his time for sleeping or resting his body because the next day: his trainer Lal Mirch will continue on with her Spartan training routine for him and his unfortunate fellow officers. Colonnello was weary and not at all eager on meeting her tomorrow. Perhaps he really was an idiot.

Colonnello was wide awake the next morning in his uniform in the barracks and almost ready to assemble in the hall. He only needed to tie his camouflage-print bandana around his messy blonde hair like always. The time was 4 o'clock in the morning. Most of the COMSUBIN had work starting at 5.30. The miserable ones with Lal Mirch as their trainer were doomed to start as early as 4.00. Colonnello headed out of the barracks and into the assembly hall when he finished tying his bandana and making sure it was on just right.

Not many people were in the assembly hall; Colonnello noticed Lieutenant Mirch sitting down on a chair and busy with whatever it was she was writing on her clipboard. She did not seem less prepared, however. Her Colt M4 was placed right next to the chair and her uniform was on properly; her hair seemed like it was perfectly treated and conditioned, despite the fact that it is impossible to do so in the COMSUBIN. She looked up at the standing men (still not all of them assembled) and noticed Colonnello. Lal did not realize she was staring at Colonnello for a suspiciously long time and when she finally realized it, all her men have already assembled.

Lal Mirch stood up and placed her clipboard on the chair and grabbed her M4. She fired three loud shots into the air and it was enough to silence the men and have them lined up properly. At ease position with their arms behind their backs and eyes straight to the front.

"It's nice to see you again, guys." Lal began, but she said it without a smile. "I hope none of you missed me too much." She sneered in light sarcasm.

Most of the officers regarded Lal Mirch as a mix between the ancient war god Ares and Helen of Troy. Nobody would deny that she was beautiful, but her Spartan regime outshone her beauty. In a way, it is a good thing to happen in the military. Lal was respected for her skills and feared for her ruthless methods; and it was because Lal was ambitious and easily bored, she would not waste time with weaklings. It was these qualities that made Lal Mirch the most capable trainer for the Italian naval elite, the COMSUBIN.

She walked through the rows studying her trainees, shoulder-arming the M4 machine gun. The men were trained to make poker faces while inside they felt like some ghosts were about to devour their hearts.

"Any of you cry in bed? Any of you write letters to your mommy? This place feels like hell yet?" she teased them as he walked.

Her presence was both relieving and terrifying to these men, depending on the situation. She stopped briefly at Colonnello though nobody noticed. Colonnello smiled thinly at her and it quickly vanished as his lieutenand stalked to the front.

"Attention!" she commanded to her squad. At once they shifted into "at attention" position. She order-armed her weapon; resting it on the ground and the tip touched the outer toes of her right boot, and supported by her right arm.

"I'll let you have fun today. We'll practice shooting." She grinned in excitement as she gestured toward her M4. Her eyes twinkled as she noticed some young men could not resist exclaim "Yes!" enthusiastically.

"Unfortunately," she continued "Most of you don't even know how to handle a weapon properly. So most of you won't be doing shooting ranges."

Then came some groans and sighs from her audience. She ignored it by mumbling "It's your own fault you're a bunch of weak scum!" and paced around the officers once more. Shoulder-arming her gun and tapping several men on the shoulder, Colonnello included. Then she went to the front again.

"Those of you who I tapped on the shoulder, you will be training with me. Best get prepared. The rest of you will train with Commander Orion until further notice. So the rest of you, you are dismissed. Don't waste my time." Announced Lal.

The chosen officers followed Lal Mirch to the weapons arsenal. Colonnello obtained his own personal G41 assault rifle. And from there, it was mostly Hell-by-Lal-Mirch-esque.

Colonnello stuck around the shooting range even after Lieutenant Mirch dismissed them at 5.00 half an hour later. He was practicing with his G41; and his accuracy was frightening. He never missed center target inside the shooting range with his concentration focused solely on the target. That is, until Lal Mirch approached him.

"Still here?" she asked as she joined in the shooting range and with her M4 and aimed at the target next to Colonnello's. Her precision is deadly as well. She was also more accustomed to the weapon than the rookie Colonnello.

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am." Mumbled Colonnello, his concentration deviated.

"Are you okay?" Lal was skeptical.

It was not like Colonnello to be so formal. He was once of the most troublesome of the new recruits, but also the most gifted. There was no need for him to be so proper with Lieutenant Lal Mirch, especially now that she regarded him as a close friend.

The officer let down his G41 and sighed as he stared at Lal Mirch's face and watch it turn faintly red. Colonnello's striking blue eyes had more of an effect on her than she expected. He did not say anything for a while. He just stared at her. It was sudden how he broke eye contact and turned away, saying:

"I met this guy who knows you or whatever."

"Um…what?" Lal too let down her weapon and looked at Colonnello.

There was a flash of worry in her eyes. But also a streak of anger. It was hard for Colonnello at that moment to look straight into those eyes. He was shivering very slightly.

"His name's Reborn. Yeah, that's it. He—"

"Where did you hear that from?!" Lal cut off, raising her voice a bit.

The tone was not a tone of fury but rather a cold, repulsive tone. Like if somebody wanted to condemn someone inside a church without screaming. Such a tone was much more horrible to endure than rants and shrieks or a normally-angered human.

"Like I said. I met him. Yesterday afternoon." It was hard for Colonnello to contain his own emotions.

"What were you doing talking to him?!"

"You were with him yesterday. I wanted to know what was going on." He answered truthfully. "Lal, what are you hiding from me?"

Lal Mirch could not believe it. It was a form of anguish and it tortured her terribly on the inside. Colonnello called her Lal in his last sentence—meaning he was very serious. So in a way, Lal felt like she had betrayed Colonnello when all she had been trying to do was protect him. She herself was not prepared for when her secret would be found out. She had imagined it to be a better situation. But what can she do? Colonnello already knows enough from Reborn; she cannot be immature or careless. Lal took a deep breath and held back what could have been a tear before striking Colonnello with the palm of her right hand.

It hit him pretty hard, and Colonnello did not foresee it coming at all. And it was a slap, not a hit. Colonnello expected Lal would hit him hard like men do when they're angry. She actually, genuinely slapped him. He winced in pain as he touched the part where it burns but he did not say a word. He just stared at Lal like before. And Lal was trembling when she confessed:

"He's from the Vongola right? He had a message for me; I am in the Vongola as well."

"You're kidding!"

"…dumbass." Scoffed Lal.