Chapter Text
Tsunayoshi Sawada had always been considered useless.
In a world of Summoners and Familiars, he didn't fit into either side and often found himself bullied for it. He wasn't a Familiar, the lack of animal parts was distinctive, and yet he didn't feel the call of the Summoner that others claimed they felt. That he knew his best friend Hana Kurokawa had felt when she had described it to him.
He didn't feel that connection that others felt, the need to create a bond.
"Sawada? What are you thinking about?" a sharp voice cut through his thoughts, effectively bringing him out of his head. He blinked, turning to the right of him to find both his friends, Hana and Kyoko, looking at him expectantly.
Oh. Right. He was meant to be studying.
He had befriended Kyoko Sasagawa when he was a small child, after she was insistent that the two of them would be best friends. She was a fox familiar, with light brown ears stood atop her short brown hair, and a cute fox tail behind her. He learned early on that she was as lonely as he was, and the two of them bonded over it.
Eventually Kyoko met Hana Kurokawa, in primary school, and in turn Tsuna met Hana. Hana was a Summoner, and was both sharp and scary. She asserted herself early on as a force to be reckoned with, but she had become soft around Kyoko and Tsuna. She and Kyoko were bonded, which made Tsuna a bit jealous.
Despite the differences, the three of them hung out together a lot. Hana and Kyoko were Tsuna's only friends, so they spent all their time with him despite having other friends in school. Unfortunately, this meant a lot of the time was spent studying because Hana was insistent that Tsuna at least know everything even if his grades were always low.
It wasn't his fault, she knew that.
"Sorry, sorry," he laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "What were we looking at?"
Hana pursed her lips. "You need to pay attention," she chided, with no real heat in her voice. Hana had always been like that, and he appreciated it. "I asked if you understood the last question, since you didn't understand it last night."
Tsuna looked down at his sheet, and at the question she was talking about. She was right, there were some equations he hadn't been able to wrap his head around, and it's really thanks to Hana and Kyoko that he understood most of it. "Yeah, you really helped with that one Hana, thanks!"
"Then why did you lie and tell the teacher the answer was 2.5, when it isn't?"
"Um. Well, you know what would happen if my grades suddenly rose," Tsuna replied. "Also I forgot."
Hana rolled her eyes, but Tsuna could tell she wasn't actually upset with him. "Fine. But I expect you to answer correctly next time."
Tsuna nodded, but he knew he wouldn't follow her advice. He wasn't generally liked by other students and teachers, and he preferred to stay in the background. He didn't want any eyes on him, and he knew that's what would happen as soon as his grades started to rise.
--
"I'm home!" Tsuna yelled as he entered through the front door of the Sawada residence. He knew it would just be his mother home, as it had only been him and her since he was little. His father worked overseas, and never visited. Tsuna hadn't seen him in so long that if it weren't for the postcards Iemitsu Sawada sent, he would have thought his father was dead.
Nana Sawada stayed at home, looking after her son and the house. Iemitsu always sent money home to let them live comfortably, but Tsuna didn't like relying on him. "Welcome home, my dear," a soft voice spoke, and Tsuna turned from the front door to find his mother standing in the entrance to the kitchen, a tea towel tucked into her apron.
Tsuna knew he looked more like his mother than he did his father. He had her hair, eyes and skin complexion. She wore her brown hair in a short bob, and her brown eyes always seemed to shine, especially when she smiled. Nana was a kind-hearted woman, someone who was soft-spoken and never had a bad thought about another person. She loved her husband and her son with all her heart, which meant Tsuna had to stand up for her against his father.
"Hi mom," he smiled, putting his shoes down near the front door. He walked up to her and kissed her cheek, then let her turn back to what she was doing. "It smells really nice in here!"
"Oh, dinner will be ready soon," she giggled, continuing the dishes. "It's your favourite! You've been so good recently, I wanted to spoil you."
Tsuna smiled, putting his bag on a chair. He was rolling up his sleeves when he spotted something on the kitchen table that he had never seen before. "Hey mom? What's this?" he asked, holding up the strange flyer.
It was a plain flyer, with no graphics or art on it. It simply had words written in bold font, reading:
WE WILL TRAIN YOUR CHILD TO BE THE LEADER OF HIS GENERATION.
CALL TODAY.
XXX-XXXX-XXXX
The phone number was one he wasn't familiar with, and reading the words gave him a bad feeling - one that settled into his stomach. It almost felt like something bad was coming.
Nana turned around again, looking at the flyer in his hand. "Oh, that was given to me today! It wasn't our usual mailman, and this man had a suit on but he was nice! He said it was a special offer that his company was handing out to students," she explained, wiping her hands on her apron. "He was so suave! He reminded me of your father before we were married."
Tsuna made a face at that, not wanting to really think about that right now. "Mom, this could have easily been a scam. Please tell me you didn't call." Nana's face contorted into a sheepish smile, which made Tsuna's heart drop. "Mom! Really? What if it's a scam?"
"But your grades need the help, Tsu! I think it will be fine. A little call can't hurt," she giggled, turning back to the dishes. "They said they would send a tutor in a few days."
"Moooooom!" Tsuna groaned, rubbing his face tiredly. There was nothing he could do about it now, he realised. He would just have to keep an eye out. For now though, he pinned the flyer to the fridge and turned back to his mother. "Do you need any help?"
Nana turned around again, placing a hand on Tsuna's cheek with a gentle smile. "Oh sweetheart, you can head on up to do your homework. I'll call you down when dinner's ready, okay?" she smiled, kissing his cheek before sending him on his way.
--
"Mrs Sawada is calling in a tutor?" Hana asked, taking a sip of her canned coffee. The three of them - Kyoko, Hana and Tsuna - were settled on the roof for lunch, sitting in a circle and enjoying the sunshine. The three of them often took the roof to avoid the other students, and because they were generally good in keeping things tidy the student committee had no issue with letting them up there.
Tsuna nodded, rubbing his eyes. "She got this weird flyer and thought nothing of it," he groaned, still confused. It had been two days so far and they had heard nothing. "She's not worried by it though. It's been two days and we haven't seen any tutors."
"Maybe they're still finding someone to send? What was the company?" Kyoko asked.
"No idea, they didn't leave a company name. Just a phone number."
"Did you try calling the number?" Hana asked, more and more interested in the story. Tsuna knew she loved listening to things like this, and pulling them apart.
Tsuna nodded again. "I tried this morning, it's been disconnected," he said, frowning. His mother had gotten through two days ago, but now? Nothing. "It's really worrying me. Mom doesn't seem concerned that she potentially got scammed."
Kyoko patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Give it a few days Tsu, it might be just taking a little while. Maybe they switched numbers!" she suggested, trying her best to cheer her best friend up. Tsuna appreciated it, and made sure to give her a smile to show it. Maybe he should take her out to get some cake again.
"You're right, both of you," he sighed, relaxing back against the wall and picking out his sandwich. "But Hana, you're already my tutor."
"I don't get paid for it Sawada."
"I'm not that bad, am I?"
Hana pursed her lips, pretending to think it over. "Well..." she trailed off, putting a finger to her lips. "Maybe I should ask Mrs Sawada to pay me."
"Hana!" Tsuna whined, ignoring Kyoko giggle beside him. He picked up one of the wrappers from his lunch box, throwing it at her. There was no malice behind his actions, and he knew Hana knew that.
The taller girl smirked, hitting the wrapper away. "Relax Sawada, you're not that bad," she admitted, then paused. "But more money would be nice."
--
Three days after Tsuna found the flyer, the tutor finally showed up.
It was a Sunday, which meant Tsuna was able to sleep in. He didn't have anything to do today - both Hana and Kyoko were busy - so he wasn't expecting any visitors today. Which meant he wasn't expecting to wake up to a baby in a black fedora standing on his chest.
"Ciassu," the baby spoke, tilting his fedora. Tsuna stared at him for a few moments, before his eyes wandered up to the green chameleon standing on the baby's hat. "You slept in, Useless-Tsuna. That isn't very befitting of a mafia boss."
Tsuna's intuition wasn't quick enough to warn him of the danger coming his way, and he wasn't able to protect himself from the green mallet that appeared from nowhere and whacked him on the head. He yelped in pain, falling out of his bed with a loud thud. He rubbed his head where he could already feel a bruise forming, glaring at the baby who didn't seem phased by Tsuna throwing him off.
Instead, the baby simply jumped onto the floor in front of Tsuna, the green mallet transforming back into the green chameleon. What the hell?
"What was that for?" Tsuna whined, glaring at the baby. "And who are you?"
"I am the world's greatest hitman," the baby said, smirking. Tsuna already hated him. "My name is Reborn, and I am going to be your tutor. I will make you grow into a boss, one that will eventually take over the Vongola Familigia as the Tenth Boss. Which means you will be listening to me, and you will become someone to be feared."
Tsuna stared at the baby - Reborn? - in disbelief. Mafia boss? The way that Reborn spoke was filled with so much conviction that Tsuna almost believed him until what he said actually hit Tsuna's mind. "What?" he choked, eyes wide. "You're out of your damn mind-"
"Careful, Useless-Tsuna," Reborn cut him off in a sing-song voice, the chameleon transforming into a gun that Reborn pointed at Tsuna's forehead. "I wouldn't question me. Your mother called me and requested a tutor, and here I am," he cocked the gun, the smirk gone and his voice turning hard. "And I have never failed a mission. You will not be the first. So I will turn you into the greatest mafia boss, worthy of the Vongola's head."
"I-" Tsuna gulped, eyes wide as he stared down the barrel of the gun. "You can't blame me for not believing you. You're a baby!"
Reborn smiled, but it wasn't a happy smile. It was one that had Tsuna fearing for his life. "You'll just have to trust me, it seems," he said, voice low. "I could end your life right now. I can think of.a thousand ways to make you wish for death, but never actually kill you. There are so many things I can do to - that I have done to others because I was paid to do so."
The two of them were silent after Reborn's declaration, staring each other down. Tsuna sighed, dropping his head and raising his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine. Okay, so Vongola boss? Mafia? Me? Are you sure you have the right person? Mom said she called about tutoring."
The gun disappeared, and a chameleon appeared once more, this time on Reborn's hand. The chameleon seemed to be sizing him up, tongue flicking in and out. "Leon seems to like you," Reborn said, letting the chameleon climb from his hand onto Tsuna's shoulder. "I will be tutoring you, but your mother knows it's for school. You will be tutored in more than school work. You're a descendant of the Vongola bloodline, and I've been tasked with growing you to take the position of the Tenth boss. So I will be by your side, watching and helping. Which means you will be listening to me."
As Reborn spoke, Leon had settled himself onto Tsuna's shoulder, who was thoroughly confused. But he had a feeling if he questioned Reborn anymore, he might get another mallet to the head. "Okay. So, um. What's first?" he asked, ignoring the little licks from the lizard currently giving him love.
Reborn eyed the two of them for a moment - and Tsuna suspected that Leon wasn't like this with anyone else - before speaking. "Well, I'm going to watch you for a while. We'll work out a schedule and find you your first subordinate," he said, "I'll run you through what you need to know and determine what you need to work on. The rest will be up to you."
Leon moved down Tsuna's shoulder and worked his way back to Reborn, who settled him on the top of his fedora.
"So you need to prepare yourself, Useless-Tsuna," Reborn smiled. "Because I'm not an easy teacher. You're in for a world of pain."