Archive of Our Own

"Oh, wait," the voice shifts to Mochida-senpai's, "You're already going to die. Everyone just wishes it would happen sooner." And Tsuna wants to sob, to scream, to fight, but he's known it ever since he was six and a half years old with a bolded death sentence written on his left wrist that nobody else could see.

Tsuna was going to die young, and there was nothing he could do about it. What was the point, anyway? If there was one, Tsuna couldn't see it. Not in the darkness of his own head, not in school where not one person cared, and not at the house, with her still in love with the man who never comes back.

It feels like he spent forever and no time at all before the alarm on the side of the bed he sleeps in blares its message that it's 7:30 in the morning and that he has to get ready to go to Namimori Middle. "Just over three years left," he tells himself, and if he's talking about middle school or the time he has left in general, well, nobody asks him anyway.

Shuffling into another uniform that he had to buy (the old ones all got... destroyed), he trips over his own feet and hits the floor in a thump. Grimacing and picking himself back up again, he carefully walks down the stairs, managing not to fall down them for once. "Good morning, kaa-san," he greets the woman he shares a hair color with, who's cooking in the kitchen already. "Oh! Tsu-kun, good morning!" she chirps back at him, not looking at him but smiling cheerily all the same. Tsuna doesn't know how she does it.

He packs up the things from the night before, shoving them in the bag he has, just so they can get stolen from him later. But it'll be worse if he brings nothing at all, so he makes the effort anyway. Unfinished homework, pens, pencils, partially ripped books, damaged notebooks, all it gets carelessly tossed into the backpack as a voice calls that breakfast is ready.

"Itadakimasu," he says, before slowly eating and making sure to eat everything. That'll be the only food he gets until dinner, after all. He needs all the energy he can get.

It's 8:24, but he can't leave yet because he'll get to school too early, and that'll give the bullies more of an excuse to beat him up if they aren't going to be late to class. Tsuna survives by giving those at school more of a reason to leave him alone than to bother him. It's easier that way, because most people won't go out of their way to push him around if they have something else more important to do.

Everything is more important than Tsuna if they don't have time to spare.

Tick, tock. The analog clock in the kitchen seems to laugh at him, and he glances distractedly at it. 8:26. Finally.

Time to go. Opening the front door with a click, he mumbles out a "goodbye," and he heads off to school. Even though he rushes out the door, past the Suzuki house, trips on the way past the block to school, and slams his face against the lamppost, he makes it to school at 8:42 with only 3 minutes to spare, and even better, no time for the bullies to push him down. He falls enough by himself.

Making it in the classroom at exactly 8:44 with a few seconds before he’s technically late does absolutely nothing as the nameless and faceless teacher scolds him for being late, even if he got there in time. He doesn't complain and instead sheepishly musters up a smile while Yamamoto-san and his gang of friends come barging in with the teacher simply telling them all to sit down.

This is just "Dame-Tsuna's" life; he has no right to complain. Yamamoto-san is the baseball and sports ace, and oh so very popular, while he is weak and clumsy and stupid with no athletic ability at all. It's only fair that he gets picked on.

(Something in him screams at the difference in treatment. He ignores it. It won't do him any good.)

After being yelled at for a good five minutes, the teacher finally tells him to just sit down. He nods and stumbles his way towards the desk he was assigned, ignoring the laughter in the classroom as the lesson starts. Poetry, huh? He's not very good at that; the words just don't click the way the teacher teaches them. If only they would—

...No, he cuts off his own thoughts and instead stutters out a wrong answer when the teacher calls on him and flushes when a disappointed but knowing expression covers their face. It's only expected that they would give up on him after all these years. It's fine. It's okay, he's used to it.

The rest of the school day goes in a blur.

During the middle of the whole mess, he thinks he hears a "Sorry to keep you waiting, Kyōko-chan," from an upperclassman.

Sasagawa Kyōko. Huh, now that's a name he hasn't thought about in a while.

Tsuna remembers her as the girl with the sun in her smile, kindness in her eyes. He did want to date her, back when he was 9 and still had some hope of having friends, but...

"Do you think Kyōko-chan would ever waste her time on you, Dame-Tsuna?"

...yeah, he’s fine with what he has. Besides, it wasn't fair to her for him to simply classify her as 'cute'. She was her own person, in the end, and it wasn't right for him to just have a crush on her when he'd never even had a proper conversation with her. Besides, even if he did still like her like that, Tsuna doesn't think he could get past Kurokawa-san.

But it was fine, he was used to it, after all.

The rest of the day went by normally. The lunch in the backpack got stolen by another upperclassman, or maybe someone from the grade he's in. Tsuna doesn't really know. Almost everyone does it— and it all blurs, after a while. And he's been at this same routine for years.

He only needs to deal with it a little longer. The words on his wrist read: THREE YEARS, 35 WEEKS, 2 DAYS, 3 HOURS, 23 MINUTES LEFT, after all. He's always been good at that. He's—

"Nana tells me that you've always been good at waiting, Tsuna, so just wait for papa, haha!"

—absolutely fine. He's... better at it than the other list of failures he has. He's not good at anything. He's just... slightly okay with it. It's fine. Tsuna's fine. That's what she says all the time, to just live life, right? He's... surviving.

And that's all he can do with the time he has left standing.

Reborn is the World's Greatest Hitman, and it's because of that and the fact that he's long since had a favorable relationship with Vongola Nono, Timoteo, that he's on a plane to Japan to train the heir for Vongola Decimo. If he was any less professional, he wouldn't be anywhere near Iemitsu's spawn. He doesn't want to chance having to deal with that man as a child. Even worse— Iemitsu as a child discovering hormones.

But Reborn is the Greatest, and even if that is what that child—Sawada Tsunayoshi, in Japan—is like, it won't stop him from doing his job of making him into a Mafia Boss—a Vongola Boss—the world would be jealous of. Of course, he would have to his own recon; CEDEF might have given him some files, but Timoteo had let it slip (purposefully?) that Iemitsu hadn't been back in Namimori, Japan for 8 years. Reborn couldn't be sure what would be accurate, especially with parts of it reading like: "Tuna-Fish is such a cute kid! He's kind and shy and adorable!!!"

Could anyone blame him for not fully trusting that? So, his own information needed to be gathered. But, to be honest, he didn't really expect much. Sawada Tsunayoshi was fully a civilian and completely ignorant of the Mafia, after all. He would have to beat some sense and some pride into him before he could even start on their history and his expected duties as a Vongola Boss.

But during it, he realized something was... off, about his student-to-be. He was ready to leave by 8:24, but instead of rushing out the door, he waited until the clock hit 8:26, then rushed out of his house. He was also very... quiet, for lack of a better word. He wasn't completely silent, but he'd only speak when the teacher sometimes called on him, and the emotions on his face when getting called out were—

Fake. Rehearsed.

He did what was expected of him, took the scoldings, and then disappeared into the background, even when people were talking about him, he didn't acknowledge it, and people didn't bother him in class, just during breaks and during lunch, though they mostly used that time to steal his lunch. Another thing being his lack of reaction to his lunch being stolen. There wasn't a blink of surprise or disappointment when he found his lack of lunch, and there wasn't a speck of hunger on his face as he went through the whole day without having eaten lunch, and only a medium-sized breakfast.

And there was just the whole school's reaction towards his future student in general that was a whole mess. Not for the first time, Reborn contemplates flying back to the CEDEF headquarters in Italy and shooting Iemitsu in the face with Leon. Or one of his other guns, if Leon didn't feel up to it.

"Tsuna faces some light bullying in school, but that's just kids being kids! Besides, you'll be there to man him up, Reborn!" he had said, but looking at his future student's school situation put a sour taste in his mouth.

It wasn't "light" bullying— the damned kid was being harassed from the minute he stepped into the building, and after school for half an hour, and they only stopped after they decided they needed to get home.

"Light bullying" did not force a child to learn how to bandage himself up with a tired tolerance on his face! Reborn might be a hitman, but civilian children weren't supposed to know how to make sure a cut didn't get infected. Mafia kids knew how to dress their own wounds, but they were going out on missions, not to school.

He strangled a sigh in his throat (and imagined it was that damned idiot), looking at Iemitsu's wife blink at her son's wounds that were obviously caused by bullies and sigh about how clumsy he was. He watched as a quiet acceptance slid over his student's face, before being covered up with sheepishness and an apology, and waited for morning to come to greet his new student.

(He notes down that Nana doesn’t tell Dame-Tsuna “Welcome home!” like Iemitsu insisted she always did. He wondered why.)

Tsuna once again wakes up to the beeping of the alarm clock after listening to the dream nightmare words that his mind continues to tell him when he's asleep. He wonders why he even tries to go to sleep, considering the fact that he never gets a good night's rest, and he always feels just as tired as he did the day before.

"Probably routine," he determines to himself after he finishes changing, blinking as he hears kaa-san's voice calling him down. Strange, she never does that. It makes Tsuna twitch towards the written-out numbers on his wrist, and he gives in to the urge for once and he freezes at the sight of them.

ONE HOUR AND FOUR MINUTES, it reads cheerfully. His heart stutters. Stops completely and starts back up again. "What?" Tsuna thinks deliriously as he stares at his death sentence. It's never— it shouldn't just change like that— he doesn't—!

"Tsu-kun? Did you hear me?" Tsuna puts his wrist down. He breathes. He's fine. He's not shaking. "C-coming!" he calls back, rushing down the stairs and forgetting why he took the time every day to walk slowly down them. A flash of pure panic hits him just before the familiar pain takes its place, and he just manages to stop a cry from coming out from his mouth. It won't do anything. He can hear the fussing of kaa-san, but it's hazy at best, and he takes the time to hold his dizzy head and get up off the floor instead.

"...Did you need anything, kaa-san?" he asks, blinking as his eyes recognize another figure standing next to her bent-down body. "Oh, yes, I forgot to mention it yesterday, but I've gotten you a home tutor!"

...

"W-wha... wouldn't one have a better time tutoring s-someone else?" he stammers, eyes locking on the short baby (but that's not quite right) figure next to kaa-san. Blank black eyes stare back at his terrified face, as he faintly hears kaa-san introduce the baby (kid? man?) as the new tutor.

"This is Reborn-kun," she says brightly. "He's a child prodigy sent to make you into a future world leader! Won't that be fun, Tsu-kun?" she coos, beaming with a paper shoved into his face. If he was younger, he might have screamed that it was impossible and that it was a total scam, but Tsuna's mind is still scrambled from the sudden shortening of the time left. It's so strange that it shouldn't even be an option, but—

(DANGERDANGERDANGEROUSDON'TANGERHIM—!)

—when has life ever made sense? The timer shouldn't have changed, and the next second, he gains a home tutor that almost screams danger. He has already accepted that he would die young, but at just 12 instead of the 15 he saw for years is such a dramatic change that he can believe that this inconspicuous baby (not a baby?) will cause death in less than an hour now.

"...I guess," he mumbles out drily, not looking forward to the day at all. "It's... nice to meet you, Reborn-san," he offers blandly. "Is breakfast ready?" he asks. "Mhm!" kaa-san calls, "It's on the table already, Tsu-kun!" Tsuna nods, and shuffles his way awkwardly towards the dining room, sitting down at the seat he usually sits in, noting the extra one already out, and starts eating. Except, he doesn't because food is immediately stolen from the plate he uses.

He doesn't react, choosing to ignore it. It's just... lunch coming early. He might be a bit hungry until dinner. Maybe he'll have to ask kaa-san to make a bit more for dinner, later, if only so he isn't even more exhausted tomorrow. Oh, wait. He won't have a tomorrow. He forgot about that. He's been so used to having a bit over three years, he supposed.

He finished eating at 8:23 and slides around the dining table to fiddle with and to put on his shoes, opening the door when he sees the NINE MINUTES written on his skin. That's fine. Maybe the blonde guy—kaa-san's husband—will finally come back to the house if he dies. Positives, right?

He rushes out the door, past the Suzuki house, trips on the way past the block to school—

"Exactly 8:26, Dame-Tsuna?" And Tsuna's heart stutters again, (hehatesthatname) but he forcefully puts a stop to it. "...Yes, Reborn-san. I... like routine," he responds simply (bitterbitterbitter), picking himself up off the ground, ignoring the FOUR MINUTES reminding him of how the clock was quickly ticking down.

He's fine.

(tick, tock. tick, tock.)

("Oh, what a cute child! Where's your parents?"

don'tthinkdon'treactit'sfinefinefine

"Ciaossu, I'm the Home Tutor, Reborn.")

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," Reborn muses to himself, "is just a bit strange."

"It's... nice to meet you, Reborn-san," he had greeted weakly. He hadn't screamed or yelled about having a tutor, or that his 'tutor' was a baby (he was still the Greatest), he had just questioned why one would pick to tutor him. His new student having no self-esteem was something he expected, but it was still annoying. He'd have to change up his methods slightly since he wants the boy to have a Will.

A Vongola Boss couldn't be a lousy wimp who was easily spoken over, after all.

And Reborn refused to have a student that was a doormat. He worked that out of Baka-Dino, and he would work it out of this one as well. Even if it half killed said student by the end of things.

He stole some of his breakfast, but that didn't get a reaction either. "What happened to 'Tuna-fish gets so worked up over simple things!' ?" Reborn wonders. He would have assumed that Iemitsu would at least have a clue on how his family acted, even if he didn't go back that often.

He didn't even have time to tell his student what his true objective was. Well, he'll have plenty of time for that later.

He proceeds to hitch a ride on his student, but he doesn't seem to notice; at least not until he speaks up. So he has to work on his awareness, as well as beating into him other Mafia matters even Dino knew. Hmm, well, it can't be helped for a former civilian, he supposes.

Though, he inwardly frowns to himself, his student's response...

"...Yes, Reborn-san. I... like routine."

How peculiar. At least Reborn won't be completely bored during this mission, other than the chaos he himself will create. He has to find some way to amuse himself, after all.

(It keeps him from thinking of—)

But, the way he trips over the same area he did the days before is slightly concerning.

Hmm...

"Just two minutes and twenty-six seconds left, huh?" Tsuna contemplates how terriblehurtfulcruel his life turned him into this person so unconcerned with his own death. He always knew it was going to happen— it's just going to occur a bit earlier than expected.

And that's fine with him, totally and completely fine, he tells himself, hyperaware of the baby (notbaby) sitting on top of his head. He does not twitch.

(ONE MINUTE, TWENTY-NINE SECONDS—)

Tsuna stumbles back as he hears a chirpy voice suddenly in front of him. He's not quite back in his mind when he feels a weight jumping off of his head.

"Kyaa, how cute!" Sasagawa-san says as she crouches down to his level, the home tutor greeting her back with a simple "Ciaossu." She asks why he's wearing a suit—hey, why is he wearing a suit?—and Reborn-san responds promptly with a "Because I'm in the Mafia."

What. What?

Tsuna thinks Sasagawa-san says something else in that half-a-minute encounter before starting to walk away, but he can't think. Mafia? Okay, Tsuna is— he's going to die by a mafia man. Fine, that's okay. His death won't be normal. Alright.

"—crush on that girl, don't you Tsuna?" He blinks blankly. Why did he just call him Tsuna? He doesn't have permission to, but there's something else he has to address with that statement first. "W-what? No—" he starts, but he's cut off by the ba—mafia man. "I can read your mind. Shouldn't you have told her by now?" Reborn-san says.

(FORTY-SEVEN SECONDS LE—)

"No!" he shouts. "I— I don't even—! How could I—?" he sputters, and he can't breathe what? He can't deny anything because the home tutor isn't listening to him, and instead pulls out a gun.

(NONONONO!)

"It's finally time." “Time for what oh my god thisissosudden—”

"Die."

A loud and sharp bang! rings throughout the street and—

Tsuna falls.

ZERO SECONDS LEFT, is left unseen flickering on his wrist.

Reborn was looking forward to the time he could finally shoot his student with the Dying Will Bullet. And hey, it was over something relatively harmless like confessing to a school idol crush. He'd get over his embarrassment.

Dying Will Mode achieved through the Bullet is always fun to watch, though he doesn't get to see it often since he doesn't train others often. He wouldn't he shoot his targets with them, after all, and they're technically a "Vongola Trade Secret", and he's not a part of Vongola.

But. But.

His student falls and doesn't immediately shoot back up, shouting his regret towards the world. He stays down, lying there, not bleeding but not getting up.

(ohgodwhathashe—)

He leaps forward as the female student from before darts towards his student's body (just unconsiOUS), scrambling out worried-filled questions like "What happened? Is he alright?"

Reborn's hand reaches out, and carefully, as to not break Omerta or the Vindice Mafia Laws, lights his flames under his (small) palms and pulses it through his student's forehead. Weakly, something crackles under his hands and Reborn breathes.

Okay. Not dead. He can work with not dead.

He's the World's Greatest Hitman, he can do better than work with not dead. His student—Tsuna—will be fine. Reborn will make sure of it. Because it's his contract to make sure he's okay and fine to inherit Vongola.

(but also because it's all hisfault)

"Tsuna's fine," he tells the girl, Sun Flames working through his student's body through his head, spreading out. He's the World's Greatest Hitman— he'll make sure of it. He coaxes the small amount of Sky Flames out, and Reborn does not breathe out a sigh of relief when Tsuna coughs and wearily blinks his eyes open.

"W-wha... Reborn-san?" his troublesome student mumbles out questioningly, somehow managing to look both sleepy and concerned at the same time. "...Get to school. We'll talk about whatever that was later." At that, Tsuna jumps up (like he was supposed to) and looks panicked, before rushing off towards the area Namimori Middle School is located.

Reborn jumps back on his student's head, watching as he tells the girl, "Sasagawa-san" that he's fine before continuing. Right. So, no more Dying Will Bullets. He'll have to call the Nono about that slight problem. It's fine. He can work with that.

He will.

Tsuna stumbles his way towards the school, still aware of Reborn-san hitching a ride on top of his hair, but with his mind frazzled and his thoughts scattered.

"I was— oh my god I was dead. My timer hit zero how am I still standing? Why did my timer change again? It never— but now it changes twice? What is—"

He can't breathe and apparently, it's obvious because Hibari Kyōya visibly pauses when he comes to bite him to death for coming to school late. "Herbivore," he glares. "...Get to the nurse, and then get to class," he states simply before turning away, ignoring the loud gasps of those that have a free period in the morning.

"Well," the slightly awkward and squeaky voice of the home tutor kaa-san hired says from behind him. (When did he jump off?) "You heard him, Tsuna."

Right. Right.

The brunet trips over nothing again, before slowly making his way to the nurse's office on the second floor, watching his feet to prevent any more accidents.

(TWO YEARS, THIRY-NINE WEEKS, FOUR DAYS, EIGHTEEN HOURS, FORTY-TWO MINUTES)

Meanwhile, Reborn has to call someone earlier than he thought he would have to... When he's absolutely sure that Tsuna's totally fine and okay and not going to drop dead the second he takes his off of him.

Reborn breathes in again. Tsuna's fine. He's the strongest Sun Flame user; there's no way his student would be anything but great after being healed by him. Even if he didn't have great medical knowledge, Flames were based on Will, and he had a lot of it.

So.

Tsuna's completely fine. Stop panicking.

Reaching on the top of his fedora for Leon, he feels the chameleon change into a familiar phone in his hands. Quickly dialing a number he hadn't planned on using for a while, he waits for the person on the other end to pick up. Reborn itches to shoot something.

(anything but tsuna)

"Ciao, Shamal," he greets in Italian, as calm as he can fake. "Aah, Reborn, I didn't think you'd call so soon," comes the scratchy voice from the other side. "I need you to come to Namimori. Immediately," he demands instead of an explanation.

"...Why? I mean, I've got no problem with having the chance to look at some Japanese ladies, but you're tutoring the Vongola Decimo, aren't you? Did you get to the tenth bullet already, Reborn?" questions Shamal, voice edging to a teasing tone before he cuts him off. "No. Tsuna had an adverse reaction to the first Dying Will Bullet I shot at him. I need you to come to check what exactly went wrong. Think of it this way— you get to check on Smokin' Bomb since I've already called him to Namimori."

"I... see. Alright, I don't treat men, but I've never heard of something going wrong with a Dying Will Bullet, so it'll be good research. Hayato’s still probably that impulsive teenager. And I'll be able to check out the pretty Japanese girls while I'm at it~" the doctor says, "I'll be there soon."

“Hurry up,” demands Reborn before he ends the call with a click. Back to watching Tsuna, then. And looking for prospective local Guardian candidates.

Yamamoto Takeshi might be one for Rain— he seems to be a natural-born hitman, for all that he’s playing baseball currently. He's a bit too lighthearted for his tastes, but he's obsessive enough that if that dedication focuses on Tsuna, he would be willing to learn the sword from Yamamoto Tsuyoshi. And wasn't that a surprise, to find a former assassin in the tiny town of Namimori, but it works out for him, so Reborn won't complain.

Mochida Kensuke would've been a potential Storm Guardian if he hadn't already called Gokudera Hayato over, and even then he'd have to work on that... relationship a lot for it to even be a possibility. The fact that he actively bullied his charge was... Well, it'd take a lot of effort that the kid might not be willing to put in. Besides, Tsuna needed at least one Guardian that was already in the Mafia. He would've preferred someone aware of Vongola customs, but none of the unbonded Elements were anywhere near his student's age.

Hibari Kyōya could be his Cloud— Tsuna would have to win him over somehow, and his sheep-like personality wasn't going to grant him any points. But he was the strongest Cloud in Namimori, even being two years older than his student, and Tsuna's penchant for continuing to get up without wincing might help with that. He'd have to train him up physically, and any other Guardians he would have when he was ready to court the Classic Cloud.

Sasagawa Ryōhei could be his Sun Guardian. He was a bit, ugh, extreme for his tastes, but he had untamed Sun Flames that might rival his own if he got the proper training for them. He'd probably have to orchestrate something to catch his attention. All monitored, of course, but since he couldn't just shoot—

(notmoving)

—his student to give him a boost, he'd have to work him up the old-fashioned way. It wouldn't be as quick, and he would have to think up another way to get him using his Flames, of course, but he would do it one way or another. Reborn still was the World's Greatest Hitman, after all.

How to get him into Dying Will Mode without bullets, though... That required some thought.

"—ou hear? Mochida-senpai challenged Dame-Tsuna to a match after school!" Reborn pauses. That's... Okay, he can plan for that.

Considering how Mochida dislikes Tsuna, he'll probably rig the match. He can't do anything about the judge without Mochida changing them out again, but he can make sure the equipment is fair and equal on Tsuna's side. He'll... probably have to tell Tsuna about the match, since most people talk over him instead of to him, just so he isn't caught unaware.

Okay. Alright. Reborn can work with this.

Tsuna went through his school day in a daze after the trip to the nurse. He ducks past the bullies for once, and he makes it to lunch without much trouble. That's why he's startled when Reborn-san suddenly shows up when he's looking for a place to hide.

"Mochida took offense when the Sasagawa in your year was concerned for you and challenged you to a duel after school. It seems like he didn't deem it important enough to inform of this." Tsuna blanks. "W-what?!" he shrieks quietly, stumbling backward. "You... fainted in front of her, and when Mochida went to confess to her, she was more worried about you, and he decided to duel you to win Sasagawa Kyōko," explains Reborn-san.

"But, but Sasagawa-san's a person, not a thing to win! Why would he even—" Tsuna sputters, sinking to his knees. He has dreams nightmares about Mochida-senpai! On pure instinct, he looks towards his reminder. It's... less than before. About a year less, actually, but still more than mere hours. He might not die from it then. But then again, Reborn-san caused his death timer to change and actually hit zero, so it's not really a reassurance anymore.

"Since you can't access your Dying Will Flames the fast way, I've made sure that your equipment won't be tampered with. I... can't do anything about the biased referee with such little time, but you should have an easier time with fair equipment. I've heard plans that they're going to send Kendo Club members outside your classroom when school ends. No, you can't run away," Reborn says flatly, denying the chance for him to get away before he even voices it.

It'll... be fine, right?

It wasn't fine. Not at all. (Why did he have a feeling of being watched?)

In the end, Tsuna won, but he was bruised and battered and had a sprained wrist on his dominant hand from trying to block a hit from Mochida-senpai. Hibari-(senpai?-san?) looks at him funny now, though, and Reborn-san looks like he's scheming something. He doesn't seem to be acting on it, at least not for the next week or two, which is... good.

(unlikehim)

Sasagawa-san and Kurokawa-san became Kyōko-san and Hana-san, which was one positive. And Reborn-san didn't look interested in turning

Maybe his life could calm down? Well, as much as a "Mafia Boss in Training's" could calm down. And with Reborn-san as the hitman attempting to teach how to be said Mafia Boss.

Yamamoto-san started to talk to him and it's making Tsuna antsy. "Hey, hey, Tsuna—" Why was he calling him Tsuna he never even spoke more than two words to him before-? "You were pretty cool in the fight against Mochida, huh?"

No—! "I-I guess. It-it wasn't really that great. I got beat up, after all," he mumbles, wishing that the stares at the back of his head would just stop. "Aah, but Hibari-sempai didn't beat you up for crowding, even though he bit everyone else 'to death', Tsuna," replies Yamamoto-san casually.

Please stop. "I-I don't— I'm quiet?" he squeaks out instead, "A-and I was... kind of, sort of, brought there against my will," he babbles slightly. "That's never stopped him before, though?" starts the Baseball Star, before Tsuna is promptly saved by the bell, and Yamamoto-san is forced to sit down in his seat.

Unfortunately, he sits right next to him.

Inwardly (and outwardly) Tsuna panics more than he usually does.

He becomes increasingly twitchy as Yamamoto-san continues to stare at him, and decides to look out the window, before looking back into the classroom.

Never mind, he doesn't want to look at Reborn-san in a tree costume in the tree staring with black (blankblankblank) eyes directly at him, especially since it seemed like literally no one else could see through his t— the tutor's disguises. He didn't know why, but it was weird. So was he, but he didn't wear a tree costume.

Whatever. It was fine.

Tsuna spoke too soon.

"—Gokudera Hayato, a transfer student from Italy. Please welcome and treat him well. You can sit by— Hey! Gokudera-kun, hey! Where are you—"

SLAM! Tsuna falls over with his desk and chair, and he bangs his head against the floor. He thinks he can feel the new transfer student's glare, but his mind is stuck on Italy. Right, so Reborn didn't execute his plan for Hibari-se...san because he already had one in the works and probably didn't want to complicate this one. "H-hiee, G-Gokudera-san?" he sputters. He doesn't get a response. At least, not directly.

"—won't accept—pathetic—boss—" he heards the transfer student mutter to himself, before glaring once more, and storming off towards the only empty desk. Tsuna could only gulp and hope that Reborn-san would explain things to him before things escalated.

To be honest, Gokudera-san was the one who escalated things before Reborn-san had a chance to really explain things like he promised he would for the Mafia things.

"I challenge you," he says after class ends, "Meet me outside the back of the school after school ends." Then, he stomps away with rage written all over his face. It's the angriest Tsuna has ever seen anyone— well, aside from Hibari-san when people were breaking his rules or just crowding in general. Which were also against his rules, but even so...

("Hn. Herbivores, the lot of you."

Tsu-kun's small body shook, afraid. Maybe once he would have approached, but...

"He shouldn't get involved in our world." coldcolDCOLD—

Not anymore.)

Tsuna shook his head at the memory. It was fine.

The day went by normally, and at lunch, Reborn-san showed up again. "He came earlier than I expected, but yes, I was the one who called him over," he confirms. "I told him to challenge you. I would've shot you with a Dying Will Bullet if you really needed the help, but considering the help hasn't arrived yet, and your... reaction to them, I won't be able to. His title in the Mafia is Smokin' Bomb. Take that as you will, Tsuna."

Honestly, Tsuna would panic more, but the only thing he could blurt out was: "Hibari-san is going to kill us." Reborn-san raised an eyebrow as if demanding him to explain right that instant. He does.

"Hibari-san has rules for people who live in Namimori. He doesn't like people crowding near him. He'll, ah, 'bite them to death' right away if he sees, he hates anyone who disrespects the Namimori uniforms— years ago it was the Elementary School, but now it's the Middle School, and I'm sure it'll turn towards the High School when he gets there, too. He hates those two the most, but he hates damage to Namimori that didn't come from him, almost as much as those two, and the fact that it's Namimori Middle is even worse."

The tutor looks thoughtful, somehow, even with a baby's face. "Makes sense, I suppose. He is a Cloud." A... A what? Actually, Hibari did remind him of a cloud (somehow), but saying that he was a cloud was a bit...

"Not your literal definition, Dame-Tsuna," replies Reborn-san to his thoughts, sounding... amused? (And the nickname. It should hurt, but even a few days and Tsuna trusts. Just a little, but he does, because it's not mocking him.)

Tsuna looks bewildered, but he's always been a bit easy to read when he wasn't trying to hide, so he supposes that it could have shown on his face. And who knew what skills the Mafia could teach someone. Leon(-san?) was somehow capable of turning into a gun and a phone, after all.

"Get going," he demands, but it's not the way his bullies demanded the lunch in the bag he brought to school in the earlier years after everything went cold and off. Tsuna's lips twitch upward.

(It's the first time he's smiled in years, not that Reborn knows that, or Tsuna can tell what he's done.)

Tsuna feels a bit lighter as he goes throughout the rest of the school day, even with the reminder of a challenge looms over him with each passing class, Gokudera-san somehow being in the same classes— each and every one. It also makes him twitcher, like the knowledge of Mochida's (not senpai) duel did.

Except he knew it wasn't kendo swords, it was bombs he was going to have to deal with. He would have to make sure they didn't damage the school too badly— Gokudera-san might be trying to kill him or something, but nobody (exceptthemhehatehateshatesthem) deserves Hibari-san's ire on their first day. Or any day, really, but they should know better after the first.

Some people were just begging for trouble, Tsuna supposes.

School ended too quickly and not soon enough, to Tsuna, and he squeaks and squeals, but shuffles the stuff in the bag away (Reborn-san even lets him keep the bag in one of his hiding spots all over the school! he won't have to replace them) and walks carefully towards the back of the school, avoiding the bullies he knows are there and actually makes it there without any bruises from them. Only a few from days before, and those that have yet to form from tripping.

"Finally," spat the silver-haired boy with green (red?) eyes, "you're undeserving of the title of Vongola Decimo. I saw your battle against the Kendo captain, and it was pathetic. There's no way you could lead such a great family! I'm more deserving, and I challenge you for the position!" Tsuna flinches back because he knew it was coming, but it hurt.

(He doesn't know of his life. Of his panic and hurt and pain an—)

He can feel Reborn-san watching, though, and Tsuna forces himself to stare back and dodge without screaming when a stick of lit dynamite comes hurling at him. But Tsuna knows hurt when he sees it— it was just that no one in Namimori suffered more than him, who even the few homeless on the streets picked on.

But Gokudera-san hurts and something in him burns.

(Resolve flickers in his orange eyes.

A hitman's own black ones widen.

A flame bursts.)

The lone demolition specialist throws bomb after bomb, but Tsuna, calmer (warmer) than he's been since before he was five, stops the explosions by throwing them in the dirt and stomping on the lit fuses with the shoes on his feet.

(A timer unseen counts down, numbers flaring and changing from years to seconds to years again with weeks to spare.)

A frustrated noise makes its way out of Gokudera-san's mouth. Danger, get clOSER! something in Tsuna shrieks and he does just that, just as emerald eyes widen in pure panic after dropping too many bombs at once, all too near to get away, and Tsuna might be calm— he might be fast, but here, right now, he isn't fast enough and steps on the few he can reach before pushing the young (just twelve) and throwing the dynamite into the air, where it explodes.

It's loud, but it doesn't hurt or damage anyone.

Tsuna thinks he can faintly hear a scream and a growl that he tries so hard to avoid, but the flame goes out and he's coldcoldcold again and he drops to the floor that's covered in unlit explosives.

(Just after, to be repeated, the World's Greatest Hitman jumps down, ignores the shock of the one he called, and whispers to his troublesome student, "You've done well, Tsuna.")

Reborn has to deal with an angry Skylark and somehow convince him to not murder Tsuna's Storm Guardian, not that either of them knows that fact.

Later, one Hibari Kyōya grudgingly muses to himself that he might have to change his world view of him, herbivores, and small animals. If people like that baby existed (he ignores that he knows one), maybe he'd have to add himself to a category, too. Along with him (them).

A Carnivore. That would work.

(He ignores his thoughts when they wandered towards asking himself what Sawada would count as. He's obviously an herbivore.)

Hayato frets. He had— oh god he had tried to kill the Decimo. Not— not really, but—Decimo, Jyuudaime, Sawada Tsunayoshi-sama—didn't know that. Hopefully, Reborn-san would explain it, but even then would he forgive him? In the end, Hayato had put him in danger. He could be (definitely was) fit to be the Vongola Boss, but he knew he was still technically civilian.

Civilians did not take kindly to murder attempts. He wouldn't go to jail— Reborn-san had promised him that much, and besides, that would raise questions, but... His dream of being acknowledged might never come true.

("Who would trust you, you bastard?")

The... the kindness he had scorned at first would be his only hope.

"Please," Hayato begs to the Sky, to the God(s), to Jyuudaime, "Please forgive me. Just another chance. I won't waste it."

(Alone in his apartment after the fight, unseen to him, in another house, a brunet with chocolate brown eyes stirs with a not-baby watching over him.)

"Welcome back to the living world," says Reborn drily, and what Tsuna woke up to. "R-Reborn-san?" His throat felt dry. How long had he been out? Why was he sleeping in the first place? And without any nightma—

an eerie calm, warmth, familiar orange fire, Gokudera-san, explosions

"Ah!" he exclaims. "What happened to— is, is Gokudera-san alright? Did— did I stop all the explosions? Hibari-san didn't bite anyone to death, did he?" he fusses, because that was a large portion of his worries. "Yes, yes, and yes. Everything is fine, Tsuna. Do you remember what happened, actually?"

"O-oh, um yes? It's... actually a bit weird. My memory's not usually that clear," muses Tsuna. And the warmth... Tsuna shivers. "Right. What you did was called Hyper Dying Will Mode, something that was supposed to be activated going beyond the normal one activated by a Dying Will Bullet. It lasted exactly five minutes, but then sputtered out like the normal Dying Will Mode would've. I suspect that it's because you're a civilian and aren't used to using your Flames quite yet."

Tsuna's first instinct was to deny that as the reason. But Tsuna pauses, because does he have the right to speak against Reborn-san? Who, despite appearances, is in the Mafia and a Hitman. "Dame-Tsuna? Something to say? Because it's written all over your face. I don't even have to read your mind to know that," prompts Reborn-san. "I... don't think it's because I'm a civilian," admits Tsuna, "There's really no evidence, just a gut feeling. Actually, I don't think I've had one of those in a while— years, really. The last time, I don't think I..."

Tsuna blanks. "Sorry, what were we talking about?" he asks, blinking at Reborn-san's expressionless face.

("They wouldn't," thinks Reborn, horror not on his face. They would have told him if they did.

But they would. They're Mafia, and there were four heirs back then.

The Mafia takes no chances, especially if they're good and Vongola has always been good .)

"Never mind, it's not important right now. I'll confirm things later with a colleague I've called over," dismisses Reborn-san, and Tsuna blinks again. Usually, he would threaten him with Leon if he wasn't listening properly. Which wasn't often, but it happened enough that he was used to that response. It was... mildly disturbing and knocked him off balance. It was fine, he would adjust.

"Oh... Al— alright? Was there anything else, Reborn-san?" he questions lightly. "No. Do your homework and call Smokin' Bomb later. He was... worried for you. Reassure him, after your work and lessons, of course." Tsuna's fingers twitch, and his eyes glance at the timer he hasn't had the time to look at the past few days. TWO YEARS, FIVE WEEKS, SIX DAYS, FIFTEEN HOURS, THIRTY-SIX MINUTES, is written neatly on his wrist.

"It changed again, huh?" he muses to himself, grabbing the bag Reborn-san must have brought back to the room when he passed out. He winced at the stack of books, took a breath of air, grabbed a pencil from on the desk, and started on his math. Reborn-san will probably... shoot him a lot for questions, but it'll be worth it to learn something for once.

Life was... okay, for once. It was fine.

Tsuna's head hurt from staying up late doing work, but he snaps awake at six, and sluggishly he avoided the hit on the head Reborn-san uses to wake him up in the mornings, for some reason. Slowly, he blinks the sleep out of his eyes.

(Recently, he's been too tired to have those kinds of dreams nightmares thoughts at night. It's startling how much of a difference it makes.)

"Reborn-san?" he mumbles, avoiding the trap on the floor that wasn't there the night before, making the way towards the closet filled with hoodies and two separate school uniforms for the different seasons, and grabbing the summer one even if it was a little cold today.

"A good boss shouldn't keep his subordinate waiting," Reborn-san says, and immediately, without thinking, he retorts, "I'm not even a Boss." Then his brain pauses as he moves to make the bed, the words clicking just as he's finished. "What subordinate?" he asks, puzzled. "Smokin' Bomb. Gokudera Hayato. The Dynamite Boy from yesterday," answers the tutor.

Tsuna stops. "Ah!" he exclaims, "Right, Gokudera-san, wait, he isn't outside the house right now, is he?" But Reborn-san only smirks and that's the only answer he needs. He stumbles down the stairs, falling but catching himself on the railing somehow, and goes to unlock the door. "Gokudera-san!" he calls. "Come in, please," he requests, louder than his normal voice but softer than his shout from before.

He leaves the door open and is rewarded by almost inaudible footsteps, and the click of the door closing. "Decimo," he speaks quietly, nothing like the loud hurricane storm he was the day before. He makes an acknowledging hum before moving towards the kitchen to start breakfast because he's awake and kaa-san isn't these days. It's routine, after a few tense days.

"No, wait, Jyuudaime? That's Decimo in Japanese, right?" he mutters to himself, before deciding to speak up again. "Um, Jyuudaime, I just wanted to say— that, um, I was, wrong before, when I said that you weren't— that you didn't deserve the title of Vongola Decimo. Sawada Tsunayoshi—" he's never liked his full name "—you're the only one fit for the title," finishes Gokudera-san, twitching nervously.

"Did you eat yet?" says Tsuna casually, practically ignoring his previous words like only those of kaa-san's bloodline can. When Gokudera-san shakes his head, he increases the number of ingredients for the food he's going to make. "No," he hums, "Okay, come sit down at the table with kaa-san and me— I don't mind, really, and she won't, either."

The teen looks torn between rejecting the offer due to perceived rudeness or accepting because it was Tsuna who asked. That's... huh.

(Nobody looks at him like that. Not even kaa-san.)

In the end, he picks one. "Of course— Jyuudaime." It starts as a shout until he notices Tsuna's minute flinch from the sudden loud noise, and ends in a softer tone of voice. "We'll talk about, um, whatever happened yesterday after breakfast. Kaa-san doesn't know yet. I mean, I will tell her, but right now is a bit... Oh! And, um, you can call me Tsuna, Gokudera-san."

"I couldn't!" he calls, seeming panicked. "Y-you're the Decimo! And, if you would let me be, my boss. That— to call you by a nickname would be rude," mutters the other teenager, shifting on his feet. "A-and, just Hayato is fine, Jyuudaime."

"If I call you Haya...Hayato-kun—" the third person to let him "—then you should call me Tsuna, at least. It's not an order, Jyuudaime is a bit long, and Decimo would gain attention for being in another language, right? Besides, I don't want subordinates, but I could... always use a friend," reasons Tsuna while starting up the rice cooker, grabbing a fish and a couple of eggs from the fridge, and setting things up for frying those on a pan as well.

Gokudera—Hayato-kun(?)—goes still, before awkwardly stuttering his way through Tsuna's nickname, that nobody even uses. "T-Tsu— Tsuna...-sama." The brunet's lips twitch upward, already working the coffee machine for Reborn-san. "Good enough, for now, Hayato-kun," he says, gesturing for the boy to sit down.

It's... a nice morning. Even with his shrieking when Reborn-san decides to shoot him for being a bit slow. He hopes school will be a bit more bearable with a... friend.

(Even if he's a bit eccentric. He can't be worse than that blurry figure in the memories he has sometimes.)

School went absolutely fine.

Okay, Nezu-san was worse than normal, and almost caused both him and Hayato-kun a lot of trouble, but it worked out in the end. He got 'bitten to death' by Hibari-san when he found out about his lies.

Then again, Hayato-kun was the one who angered him, but he only came to the school the day before, so he probably wasn't used to the way almost everyone in Namimori treated him.

He also got fired, which was. Actually a good thing. Because he was one of the main people who insulted him daily, and he couldn't simply avoid him because he was in his class. On the downside (another upside?), there was an opening Reborn-san took to become a substitute math professor. It... wasn't fun.

But he didn't demean him the whole time, either, so it could have gone a lot worse.

(The next day, though... What was with the offerings?!)

Ignoring the school offerings, there was suddenly someone else visiting the house when they got back to the house.

"Eh? This is the new Vongola Decimo you're training, Reborn?" drawls the messy shaven man in a long white coat (for a scientist? doctor?).

(Why was he flirting with kaa-san?)

"Shamal. So, what kind of weird reaction did the kid have to a Dying Will Bullet?" asks Shamal-san(sensei?)

Ah. The doctor Reborn-san said he was calling over. "Oh, um, I can answer that. I didn't get up. Reborn-san had to heal me to make sure I stayed alive," he offered. Hayato-kun stiffened. "WHAT?!" he freaks, before lowering his volume and calming himself slightly, "Jyuu— I mean, Tsuna-sama, what do you mean— you died?"

"For a couple of seconds, I think so. Reborn-san said that I still had my Flames, just internally, so I was either dead, dying, or really close to it." He shrugs. "I'm still alive, though, and I don't think I'll die anytime soon, so it's fine."

Tsuna did not like the looks the doctor, the bomber, and the tutor sent each other. But it's not likely that they'll answer him, so he doesn't ask.

"Get to school, you two," says Reborn for the first time that morning.

Oh god. He forgot about Yamamoto-san.

Now, Yamamoto-san wasn't a terrible person, especially since he never physically hurt Tsuna, or only occasionally called him by the dreaded nickname. It was just that they were on opposite sides of the spectrum, just like he was with Kyōko-san a few days ago. He's just popular, while Tsuna wasn't, and he cared a lot more about that popularity than Tsuna.

Baseball was something Yamamoto-san adored, and Tsuna was clumsy and terrible at sports. They didn't have much in common, but it was still better than how mostly everyone else at Namimori Middle treated him on a daily basis, so he didn't really hate him.

You can't hate someone you don't even know, after all.

Tsuna would have assumed that by at this point that Yamamoto-kun would have gotten the message that they lived in two different worlds and that he shouldn't bother. But, apparently, he hadn't gotten the hint because he, currently, is trying to convince his team to play with Tsuna. They've been in the same classes since Elementary, he should know how terrible of an idea getting him to play sports is.

"Y-Yamamoto-san, it's fine, really. I'm terrible at sports, after all, I'd rather..." let everyone have fun without me, is left unsaid.

And left unheard, thinks Tsuna as Yamamoto-san proceeds to completely ignore him and continue laughing and smiling in that way that makes Tsuna want to scratch something. Namely, the timer on his wrist. But he has more... self-control to do that. He's had time to make sure he didn't continuously try to scratch it off.

(It wouldn't stop it from counting down, anyways.)

And Hayato-kun had skipped school to restock his dynamite. Tsuna doesn't know where he used them enough to run out. "All I have to do is keep them from hitting, right?" remarks Yamamoto-san, which is somehow enough for the students. "Isn't baseball a team sport?" is what Tsuna doesn't say. They would just ignore him, anyway.

And so, Tsuna plays, trips, falls, fails, and loses. Just like he expected. "It's your fault we lost!" they shout, "Sweep the field by yourself, Dame-Tsuna." He sighs to himself, jumping when a voice calls from behind him, "Help has arrived!"

"Y-Yamamoto-san?" he stutters, incredulous. He mentally shakes his head, gripping the broom tightly. "Sorry that I lost the game," he apologizes. "Don't worry about it, Tsuna," the baseball lover waves off. "Anyway, haven't you been amazing lately?" he asks, and Tsuna blinks. "What?"

Yamamoto-san proceeds to list the kendo battle and how he heard he had fought "that transfer student", and how he only had baseball. "It's just— no matter how much I practice, it's looking like my batting average is just dropping and my fielding keeps screwing up, you know? What should I do, Tsuna?"

"Why are you asking me?" thinks Tsuna to himself, before thinking over Yamamoto's complaints.

...how much I practice...dropping....screwing up...

"Maybe... maybe you're practicing too much?" suggests Tsuna on a whim. "I mean, w-when I was younger, there was this interview with this famous athlete, a-and, I remember he said to— to not practice every day, because it could, um, make your muscles work less? It— it could cause really bad problems, i-if you know what I mean?"

Yamamoto-san actually looks thoughtful for a few seconds, before making a dismissive sound. "Nah, that couldn't be it. I mean, 'practice makes perfect,' after all. What was I thinking, asking Dame-Tsuna for advice?" he says as he walks away, leaving the broom he'd picked up on the field.

"What were you thinking, Yamamoto-san?" Tsuna wonders to himself, looking at the turned back of the taller, darker-haired boy. "Don't get hurt," he wishes as he quickly cleans up the field and rushes back to the house when he'd finished.

"Jyuu— I mean, Tsuna-sama! I'm back. Did anyone cause you any trouble?" the green-eyed boy asks eagerly. "...Not any more than the usual," he denies. "But... do you think you could keep an eye on Yamamoto-san tomorrow? He might... do something irreversible that he doesn't really mean," requests Tsuna, knowing that he was right.

"Oh? Yamamoto Takeshi? The baseball star?" inquires Reborn-san. "Ah, yeah. The boy in the same class as me. He's always smiling, for some reason," responds Tsuna idly, almost raising an eyebrow on the curious look on the tutor/hitman's face. "Mmm. I think it started, um, when he was about seven? I don't know what happened, but he got obsessed with baseball—  well, more than he already was."

"I see," he said. "So, keep an eye on the baseball kid? Alright, I can do that, Tsuna-sama!" Hayato-kun beamed. "Ah, right, do you have a phone, Hayato-kun?" he asked, already pulling out the one he never took off his person, in fear that it might be taken and broken.

Phones were a lot more expensive than just notebooks and backpacks, after all. He could live without one, but kaa-san wouldn't be okay without him texting her where he was or where he was going if he couldn't tell her in person.

Hayato-kun hesitantly nodded, but it was an old version. "I can see if kaa-san still has her old one," mused Tsuna, and she walked in sleepily just when he said that. "Ah, kaa-san, do you still have your old phone? Hayato-kun has one, but it's not recent."

She did and agreed to give it to him, ignoring the sputtering of Hayato-kun, but he'd have to wait until tomorrow for her to dig it out and reset it for him. "Sawada-sama— you don't have to—" he argued.

"Oh, no, but I want to. You're Tsu-kun's first friend, after all!" Tsuna stills.

("who'dwanttobefriendswithsomeonesodame?")

Breathe. It's fine. Everything is fine and okay. He's not there anymore.

"Tsuna-sama?" comes the concerned voice of the other teenager. "I—it's fine, Hayato-kun. I'm okay."

"TSUNA-SAMA! THE BASEBALL IDIOT'S TRYING TO JUMP OFF THE ROOF!" shouts Hayato-kun, barging into the classroom.

"He— he's what?"

Out of breath, Tsuna makes his way towards the roof, ignoring the other students of Namimori Middle confirming what Hayato-kun had already told him seconds ago, with the teen following behind him effortlessly.

("They say he stayed after school to practice and broke his arm!" they chirp.)

"Yama—Yamamoto-san!" he calls, eyes darting towards the tall figure leaning against the rooftop fence. "Oh? So, I've fallen so low that Dame-Tsuna has come to stop me?" states Yamamoto-san bitterly.

("Don't do it," shouts the people in the class. Why don't they stop him themselves? It's not a joke. Why can't they see.)

"That's— That's not it, Yamamoto-san. I— I might be Dame-Tsuna, but you're Yamamoto Takeshi, son of the owner of TakeSushi, lover of baseball— but, but that's not all you are, Yamamoto-san. Throwing— ending your life here isn't— isn't your only option. S-so what if you broke your arm? Wounds heal, and you still have legs to carry you to a different path." Tsuna takes another breath in before he continues quietly.

"Death is— the end of everything. Dying doesn't give you another chance at living. Even then, what about— what about your father? You're... you're all he has, concerning blood family, Yamamoto-san. Don't... Don't do this to him. To yourself. Your father cares about you and would— he would help you through the healing period." Tsuna begs because he's never wanted to die, but he doesn't have a choice, and he doesn't want to let someone take their own life because of careless words and a healing wound. "It's just worth it," says Tsuna tiredly, and he's not sure if he's talking to the boy on the edge of the rooftop, or himself.

Tsuna takes a step forward, while the confused boy takes a step back—

—and the fence breaks.

"YAMAMOTO!" Tsuna screams and darts ahead, lurching almost off the edge and almost falling if it wasn't for Hayato-kun grabbing his leg at the last second. Tsuna groans at the sudden drop and save, blinking to try and clear up his sudden dizzy vision.

"H-Hayato-kun, do you think you could, um, pull the both of us up?" he says, once he's gotten his head straight, for the most part. "Of course, Tsuna-sama," replies the boy quietly, likely from the adrenaline of having to catch Tsuna, along with Yamamoto-san, who he grabbed.

The darker-haired boy sat quietly as Tsuna caught his breath, and Hayato-kun rightfully freaked over his health and well-being, while halfway grumbling of "stupid baseball idiots not being thankful enough towards Tsuna-sama". He honestly didn't want to know.

Somehow, Tsuna's embarrassing speech convinced Yamamoto-san(-kun?) that he could join Hayato-kun in walking him to and from school. It was bad enough Hayato had an excuse, living in kaa-san's house, but Yamamoto-san too?? He didn't like Reborn-san's speculative face after he started doing that, and he definitely didn't like it when he bluntly asks Yamamoto-san if he wanted to "join Tsuna's family" and that they were "in the Mafia".

None of it was false, but Yamamoto-san tried to die over a broken arm! Who knew what he would do with bullet or sword or even Flame wounds. They were apparently common on the higher Mafia levels, and Vongola was the very definition of "High Mafia".

(Reborn-san had yet to explain in full detail what Flames were, or why he looked so livid when Shamal-sensei had looked him over and affirmed that Tsuna's "Sky Flames" were sealed around 7 years prior. There was only one even he remembered when he was 5 and—

...what was it, again?)

Reborn-san was stubborn. He knew that much, from the barely-over-a-week he was living in the house, but he could be redirected if Tsuna felt strongly enough. And this was something important.

"Reborn-san. You're going to drag Yamamoto-san into the Mafia no matter what, right? Then, please get Shamal-sensei to heal his broken arm. If you're— if we're going to get him involved, we can at least fix his arm," requests Tsuna, looking the Mafia hitman/tutor in the face, if not directly in his eyes. "Hmm," replies Reborn-san in his squeaky voice. Tsuna tenses, before forcefully relaxing. Relaxing is better for doing things (like running away) than tensing is.

"...It is good for a boss to reward his subordinates. I suppose you could if you could convince Shamal to heal Yamamoto," allows Reborn-san. "Good luck making him!" he says with sadistic cheer, hopping away and towards the kitchen, where the extra dinner kaa-san had made was in the fridge.

"You're a doctor," the boy—the Decimo candidate— hisses, rage only showing in his slightly glowing eyes, "A mafia doctor, yes, but a doctor. Are you just— just going to not even look Yamamoto-kun over because of his gender?"

Shamal coughs uncomfortably. "What the hell? Reborn didn't warn me of this?" he thinks as he avoids the piercing gaze of both the young Vongola and his former student. "Well, I wasn't called here for him, and besides, I told you when I first got here that I didn't treat men."

He expects his student to jump to his boss's defense, being admirable and puppy-like and insecure in his position, but he only stays by the small brunet's side, quietly seething, but watching.

"Maa, Tsuna, it's fine, really," tries the Rain, but Shamal has dealt with Skies before, and civilian or not, the Mist has refused to treat someone he considers under his protection. "It's not. I— I wanted to yell at him for flirting with kaa-san and only didn't because she didn't seem to mind all that much. But, he's a doctor, Yamamoto-kun. Mafia he might be, he shouldn't get to pick and choose who lives or who dies!"

It's obviously struck a chord with the boy with the broken arm, who goes just as quiet as Hayato. "Well," muses Reborn, and he tenses. "You heard Tsuna, didn't you Shamal?" And hasn't Reborn only been here for just over a week? How did the tiny civilian boy amuse Reborn that much that he was willing to back him up on this?

"Besides," continues the bristling Sawada, unaware of how much he's flustering the doctor and breaking his worldview. "Yamamoto-kun's not technically a man. We're all underage, 12 years old," he seems to choke on his words, as if just realizing how young they all were, "We're just kids. Won't you help Yamamoto-kun, Shamal-sensei?"

"Damn," he thinks. When did this kid learn how to phrase questions so they weren't really questions? But, with that speech, really, how could he reject them? At that point, he would've done it even without Reborn breathing down his neck.

"...I guess you've got a point there," is all he says, though.

(The hesitant but triumphant smile that the civilian gives him is in no way endearing. He doesn't even have enough control over his Sky Flames push 'harmony' on him!)

"Aha, thanks, Tsuna."

(He's never been thanked by anyone other than kaa-san. It's...nice.)

The next few days go... normally. Reborn-san finally gets to explaining the Dying Will Flames of the Sky (he's a Sky, apparently) and what they do and his role as a Vongola Decimo Candidate. Most of which were Mafia politics and how to keep alliances and relationships and deal with neutrals or outright enemies. Reborn-san wasn't a very patient teacher, but he knows what he's talking about and explains it better than the ones at school could about normal subjects.

(It didn't make his head spin as much!)

He did explain normal Mafia terms since he was "a fully ignorant civilian boy" until recently. Like the differences between hitmen/hitwomen and assassins, and the different specialties each had. It wouldn't be very good if he accidentally insults one.

(Even if he's going to die before he becomes Decimo.)

Then, Hayato-kun made it clear he didn't approve of Yamamoto-san kun ("Call me Takeshi, really!" Tsuna refused.) constantly calling the Mafia a game, even with the Sun Flame medicine that healed his arm in an instant, even if he had to hide it from Yamamoto-kun's classmates. On the plus side, he's slowly drifting away from them. But, the situation...

"THE MAFIA ISN'T A GAME, BASEBALL IDIOT!" he shouts, glaring with red sparks flying around him. Yamamoto-kun's easy grin stays where it is, though his eyes narrow. "Haha, but isn't it?" he says, "I mean, you have those cool fireworks and that Reborn kid had all sorts of toys!"

Hayato-kun's temper had gotten a lot better when he pointed out that the Mafia was bound to have bosses that got on his nerves, and that he couldn't blow up at all of them, but something about Yamamoto-kun always got under his skin. He didn't think it was the fact that he saw the Mafia as a game, though it was probably part of it.

The teenage bomber seethes, and Tsuna worries. Yamamoto-kun might be starting to learn how to wield a blade from his father (why did a sushi chef know how to fight?!), at the suggestion of Tsuna, but his mindset of the whole Mafia thing being just a whole game Reborn-san made up wasn't very good for his safety. Especially since there were going to be literally assassins sent after him in the future, with the possibility of both Hayato-kun and Yamamoto-kun getting caught up in it.

"I'll prove that you aren't worthy," grumbles Hayato-kun angrily, taking his place on Tsuna's right. Tsuna doesn't like that smile. Reborn-san... probably has something planned. The tutor is going to give him an actual heart attack, one of these days.

Hesitantly, he waves Yamamoto-kun goodbye, and steps back into the house, Hayato-kun right on his heels.