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Tsuna died in a sea of fire.
It was burning, it was freezing, it was the colour of the sunset and the sunrise all in one. It was beautiful. It was his.
Tsuna always knew when death came to him, when he brought death to his doorstep, it would be like this. In the midst of chaos and sacrifice, with his primordial fervour to protect those under his all-embracing sky. The most powerful in the history that had been written and was still to be. Tsuna burned everything and everyone, including himself, and marked the whole world with his flames, a reminder to anyone who dared go against his family in his absence.
He might have survived, if he hadn’t done that. Harmonised with the world itself – making it his, like those for whom Tsuna bled and bled for him, pouring his entire being, his entire existence, to it, just so the world would fulfil his duty when he no longer could.
Then Tsuna came back to life.
And everything was pain. Pain, pain and pain, for every little piece of his body, deep beyond flesh, bone and blood. Resonating in his soul for everything that made Tsuna Tsuna, and much more. A pain that couldn’t be described in words, nor explained by medical means, nor represented by simple neurological synapses. And when things calmed down... only emptiness remained.
With a debilitating need to fill it up again.
His senses slowly began to return. First, a wet feeling on his hands and legs. The sound of his heavy breathing. The taste of blood on his mouth. A distinct lack of scent. And the view of his lowered head, looking down at his hands dipped in a thin layer of water, reflecting his face with a faint golden light.
“You’re not the one in whom I’ve fallen imprisoned.”
Tsuna trembled at the sound of a deep, powerful voice, resounding through the air with ancient might. His head lifted far too quickly and all he could discern before the dizziness drove him back into unconsciousness were huge, mesmerising scarlet eyes.
When he woke up, Tsuna cried and screamed. He couldn’t tell if anything had been done, if he had done anything else, and fell back asleep. Then he woke up, cried and screamed, and was put back to sleep. And again. And once more. And more and more and more. Tsuna couldn’t think about anything, he couldn’t react in any other way, and he couldn’t make the freezing cold go away.
‘...won’t stop crying...’
‘...damn brat...’
‘...fed him, he won’t sleep...’
‘...stop screaming...!’
‘...demon...’
Small disconnected moments, of milk bottles, of women, of a stained ceiling, of a wrinkled and elderly face sometimes slipped between the crying. They never stayed long enough, clearly enough, for Tsuna to be able to make something out of them.
It was on an undetermined day, when Tsuna was floating in unconsciousness – not on gently swaying waves, but on cold, turbulent currents of the deep ocean – he could finally feel warmth once again. It was close, but so far away, right there, but nowhere near, and Tsuna was just a moth drawn to the fire.
His eyes opened willingly for what was probably the very first time and, before he could even think, his arm – so short, so chubby, so clumsy – reached out and his little fingers grabbed the index of the shadow watching over him.
The shadow, dressed in a beautiful white porcelain mask painted delicately in red, froze in place. Their flames, oh, their flames, were so timid, so wounded. Wedged so deeply into their core, so beaten and transgressed that they started to destroy themselves. O, wretched storm.
“You’re making things difficult for me, Naruto...” The shadow whispered, an echo of mournful resignation in their tone.
Tsuna didn’t understand what the shadow said. His mind was all over the place and in no place at all, the sounds felt like rambling, lacking nuance and with syllables jumbled together. But it hardly mattered right now – because Tsuna realised if he didn’t act right at this very moment, the warmth would go away.
And would never come back.
Tsuna’s flames moved much faster than either of them could think – harmonising, seducing, enchanting the storm to shelter under his sky, as it was so diminutive and restrained, but so destructive. So lonely.
The storm’s breathing stopped for that brief moment, their hand shaking in the desperate grip of Tsuna’s tiny fingers, before the storm shadow let out a heavy sigh. “Oh, Naruto...” The storm whispered, looking in pain. Looking like they were about to cry. Their trembling hand pulled away from Tsuna’s fingers and gently, almost timidly, rested Tsuna’s arm back on the cradle.
Tsuna didn’t let despair take hold of him again. Instead, a fatigue that went deep within his soul began to weigh on his sparse consciousness. But it was all right. With the storm’s gloved hand running through the strands of his hair, Tsuna let himself be gently lulled to sleep, feeling the storm’s resolution be destroyed and rebuilt.
Inside him, his sky flames hummed contentedly, still so empty and so cold, but for one night, it would be the gentle waves of a beach under a lightning storm lulling him to sleep until the ocean dragged him back into its freezing depths. It was fitting, too, for a storm to be the first once more.
The cycle continued. The moments when Tsuna was awake and when he was asleep blended together, endless days shuffling without beginning nor end, and Tsuna woke up, cried, slept. But no longer screamed.
“Who are you?”
The voice asked. Demanded.
Vongola Decimo (Tenth from Vongola), Grande Cielo (Great Sky), Neo Primo (The New “First”).
Sawada Tsunayoshi.
And Tsuna was back.
His eyes squinted, getting used to the low light around him. An endless corridor stretched out in front of him, pitch black on all sides, water covering the entire floor.
“Who are you, Sawada Tsunayoshi?”
Tsuna tensed, sensing the danger behind him, and slowly turned around, summoning his flames more out of habit rather than necessity. His hyper-intuition remained silent. Always present, always vigilant, always alert.
“Vongola Decimo.” Tsuna declared, looking into the scarlet eyes shining through the darkness. “Son of Nana, pupil of Reborn, descendant of Giotto.”
“Wrong.” A deep growl rumbled, shaking the bars separating the two of them and sending ripples through the water. “You are Uzumaki Naruto, son of Yondaime (四代目 : Fourth) and Kushina, descendant of Ashura.” The eyes moved closer to the edge of the cage and Tsuna absorbed the sight of a gigantic nine-tailed fox coming into light. “From whence did you come, Sawada Tsunayoshi?”
“From Namimori, Japan. From Sicily, Italy.” Tsuna replied with composure, eyes blazing in orange flames. “I came from death.”
“Death, so he says.” The fox grunted, looking down at him with the arrogance of one who had lived more, knew more, was more powerful. Kawahira-san looked at him the same way, once. “Death has dragged you too far from home, human.”
“Yes.” Tsuna inclined his head in acknowledgment. “I’m afraid so.” He closed his eyes, letting out a deep sigh and settling his flames down. “I was rather selfish in my death and took the world for me.” A slightly ironic smile twisted his lips. “I don’t regret it, though.”
“Even if you’re entrapped in a body that is not of yours, with a fate that is not of your concern?” The property that bled the fox’s voice with power had worn out, still into something deep and severe and ancient, but Tsuna managed to raise his shoulders again, an invisible pressure leaving the air.
“Ah, but I do know quite a bit about shattering fate that doesn’t concern me.” A hint of presumption touched Tsuna’s smile, very remnant of his feared mentor.
“Ha!” The fox ridiculed him. “Arrogant, you are.”
“Perhaps.” Tsuna shrugged, moving his head to scan the surroundings. “May I ask who you might be, honorable being?”
Tsuna asked politely, cautiously. He didn’t know where he was. He didn’t know what happened after his death. He didn’t know the consequences of harmonizing with the world.
He didn’t know about the ancient being imprisoned in front of him.
“My name is of no interest to you. I am the Nine-tailed Fox.” The fox leaned back, very obviously pleased by Tsuna’s gesture. “I shall be merciful regarding your unfortunate situation. Your present body is that of Uzumaki Naruto, an orphan youngling whose parents had recently... perished.”
Tsuna nodded at the ancient being’s words, not showing much emotion. The fox was clearly trying to tell a particular narrative, which Tsuna would follow as he sought clues to build up his own verdict.
“A mask-wearing man, an Uchiha,” The fox’s animalistic features twisted in disdain, the name Uchiha spouting venom. “Broke into the shrine in which your mother gave birth to you. He took you hostage and captured her, using her as a conduit to implant an influence in me that led to bloodshed and violence. Your father engaged in combat with the Uchiha and drove him away... not before sealing me inside you for the mere offense of existing.”
That... was a lot of information packed together, but missing so many details it made Tsuna raise an eyebrow unconsciously before neutralizing his expression. A bittersweet fondness arose alongside the memory of Hayato-kun scolding him with not just a bit of fear for having picked up this habit from Reborn.
The pain echoing in the void left by his right arm was slightly numbed by the new storm who began to take shelter in his sky, and the bittersweetness soured a little. Tsuna took another deep breath, pushing down his sorrowful feelings and focusing on the current situation.
“I see. Was this masked man responsible for leaving Uzumaki Naruto an orphan?” Tsuna asked, separating his identity from this... Naruto, although the fox seemed to recognize the two as one person.
(The new storm also formed a preliminary bond with Tsuna... but their connection was rooted in whoever Uzumaki Naruto represented to the other.)
“Indeed.” The fox snorted uninterested. “I had imagined that you would wish to take avenge, as you are Uzumaki Naruto, whether you intended to be or not.” The fox taunted him again. “We could ally ourselves on this matter. Well then, how about you tear off this seal over here, freeing me from where I’ve been wrongfully imprisoned?”
The fox’s lips twitched in a malicious imitation of a smile, like someone who never had to hide their true intentions in their entire life and would still have their will carried out regardless of the consequences.
And even if Tsuna hadn’t heard the malice in the fox’s voice... his hyper-intuition quickly registered the action of removing that seal as a Terrible idea, with capital T.
“Well, honorable Nine-tailed Fox, I have a very good intuition, which I’m very proud of. It saved me more times than I can count.” Tsuna smiled apologetically. “And right now? It’s screaming that ripping off that seal is an idea... not very favorable to my side, so to speak.”
“Why not? You too will be free from your fate as a newborn human offspring.” The fox’s expression stiffened.
“Dying, maybe.” Tsuna said, crossing his hands behind his back. “However.” Tsuna added immediately, seeing any pretense of a smile leave the fox’s face. “I’m more than willing to find another way to free you... especially if you’re a little more honest about the events, honorable being.”
“And what possesses you to think I cannot impose my will on your being!?” The fox roared, standing up inside the cage and sending a wave of power through the bars. Tsuna did no more than tense his body to receive the rapidly weakening shockwave. (Oh... the fox was a cloud.)
“The fact you haven’t done it yet, but tried to manipulate me into a farce of negotiation. As well as my intuition remaining quite calm. I’m in no danger.” Tsuna dismissed it with his head, hearing the fox’s growl resounding through the area. “But I’m a stranger in this world. Anyone who becomes aware of my situation will regard me as an imposter taking over the body of an innocent baby.”
“You deserve nothing more than to perish! Perish for my freedom!” The fox roared once more, sending more and more power to force the boundaries of the prison. Tsuna frowned under the pressure, feeling it being propagated by the cloud flames in a crude and unrefined way.
For such an ancient being to not even consciously control his flames... well, Tsuna certainly wouldn’t let that advantage go to waste. It didn’t even take a conscious thought to respond with his own flames, creating a superficial connection between the two.
The fox immediately tensed up when he felt the psycho-emotional connection, and another energy followed to form a shield on the other side. So he’s not completely defenseless, Tsuna reflected, not failing to notice that the cage between them also served as a form of metaphysical barrier.
Of course, it didn’t really stop Tsuna and he soon made his emotions and surface thoughts exposed.
The fox narrowed his eyes and asked sternly. “What have you done, human?”
Tsuna could feel his caution. “As I said before, my position in this world is quite precarious. It seems that yours also is, since you’re wrongly imprisoned.” Tsuna smiled lightly but sincerely. “So I’d like to propose an alliance, perhaps a partnership, between you and me. But for that, I need information. Honest information.”
“Are you doubting the truthfulness of my words?” The fox bristled, growling.
“I know you didn’t lie to me, exactly.” Tsuna shook his head. “But you weren’t honest and omitted a lot of important information. Like my very probable death if I ripped off this seal.” Tsuna gestured to the huge piece of paper in the center of the cage literally written ‘seal’.
“Hunf.” The fox huffed, still bristling. But the considerate caution was still there, shining in his eyes. “A millennium ago, my creator spread chakra throughout this world.”
Tsuna straightened his posture, listening attentively and respectfully, spreading his flames while simultaneously softening them.
It was always about ancient beings, wasn’t it? Tsuna was always good at seducing them.
When Tsuna’s brain and body finally adapted and started giving him information compatible with his soul’s mentality, things became as easy as they got harder.
He sort of knew what was going on, now. Nine-tails certainly helped to situate him, too. But the loneliness and emptiness were so overwhelming that they threatened to consume Tsuna entirely.
It wasn’t the type of loneliness that could be solved with company alone. Nine-tails provided him with that, so starved for interaction he could entertain long conversations with Tsuna without much convincing. He even implicitly allowed Tsuna to continue the psycho-emotional connection between them after it had been explained – although this certainly had ample influence from his sky flames.
But the empty void left by his guardians, by all those left behind by his death, was something Tsuna could barely cope with on most days – as much as ignoring an open wound and waiting for it to stop bleeding could.
There were only two factors allowing Tsuna to stay somewhat sane: the weak superficial connection with his soul resident... and the preliminary bond he had unconsciously formed with the shadow. He hardly ever saw they, that storm, but whenever something in Tsuna was very close to shattering irreversibly, they would appear. This bond was something they both desperately needed.
Just... something made him feel uneasy, knowing how this bond was formed with Uzumaki Naruto, and Tsuna still didn’t quite feel like Uzumaki Naruto. Even if he already accepted, on some level, that Sawada Tsunayoshi and Uzumaki Naruto were one and the same.
“Hello, Naruto... you’re feeling lonely, aren’t you?” The shadow landed silently on his window, announcing their presence with a smooth, young voice. Way too young.
And so lonely. Tsuna couldn’t help but sob in response, stretching out his arms and deepening their bond, so responsive to the physical closeness and wholehearted surrender from his storm. Something inside him quietened as he was taken in their arms, feeling the relief of close contact being reflected in the other.
This relief resonating in his flames, like a balm for the soul, would be enough for Tsuna to no longer decide to cease developing this virgin and incipient bond, despite his initial stance on the situation.
But then he saw how badly hurt the storm’s flames were... how much that storm was relying on the bond... how could Tsuna even consider breaking it?
Tsuna was a sky, after all. He existed to harmonize with other flames. To let them shelter in his sky to be as free as possible, always knowing they had a home, a safe haven, with him. How could he dare deny shelter to this storm in such need, just a heartbeat away from complete self-destruction?
“I murdered a child today.” His storm confessed silently as they cuddled him. “I could only think about how you’ll reach that same age in the blink of an eye.” His storm brought him closer and Tsuna grabbed wherever his little fingers could get enough hold.
His flames blazed even hotter and warmer, welcoming the storm without judgment or prejudice. No matter what happened, at this moment, this shadow with no name to call was his. And Tsuna always, always accepted his own unconditionally.
“How can someone as precious as you seem so safe and secure in these hands full of blood... Naruto?” The shadow whispered in pain, resting the temple of their porcelain mask on Tsuna’s forehead with affection. “Sometimes, I think these little moments with you are the only thing keeping me sane. After Minato-sensei's (先生 : Teacher)...” Their voice faltered and the storm fell silent again, snuggling Tsuna in a tight embrace.
Tsuna let himself be persuaded by the swing and fell asleep, comfy and peaceful, silently hoping he could just do more.
However, for now, these brief moments of mutual relief would suffice. They had to.
Tsuna stood quietly in the classroom’s back, sardonically appreciating the repetition of his past.
Only this time it wasn’t the disharmony caused by sealing his flames making him be rejected so thoroughly by the others, but the ancient being sealed inside his soul – from what Tsuna understood about Nine-tails’s explanations.
His early years were uneventful. He was subtly isolated, with virtually no interpersonal relationships to lean on. Everyone was a professional, necessary caregiver for a small child, just there to fulfill his most essential physical needs – as if the emotional wasn’t equally as important.
Then Tsuna met a old man who reminded him of Nono (Ninth) in all the good and the bad ways, and now he was enrolled in the Academy, because the kind and friendly elder with eyes far too old was, of course, the carrier of a blood-soaked legacy and Tsuna was yet again a pawn in a game much bigger than himself.
Tsunayoshi and Naruto really were the same person. They were him.
Sighing, Tsuna gave in to the urge of laying his arms on the desk and resting his head on them. He wasn’t looking forward to going through school again, but, hey, at least there was more practical components and an early graduation...!
If maybe the knowledge Reborn had miraculously hammered into his brain could not be so useless here... because now Tsuna would have to try paying attention. And actually learn something.
What a slow, slow, painful death.
“Maa, maa, Naruto, it’s only the first week.” A familiar voice popped up and Tsuna smiled instinctively.
“Storm-san.” He whispered as a greeting, sensing the familiar flames of the shadow crouching next to him, the room empty for the break. “You shouldn’t be here.” Tsuna scolded gently, but still leaned in to cuddle just because he could.
There was something so refreshing about indulging in displays of affection like a child, without the restrictions of being a mafia Don.
(Even Lambo, always so affectionate, eventually succumbed to the limited displays of love for him as his boss...)
“Shh.” Storm-san whispered back, raising a finger in front of the porcelain mask. “What my superiors don’t know can’t hurt them. I’ve compromised enough by simply letting myself monitor you sometimes while I’ve returned to regular duty.” He murmured, half-playfully and half-annoyed by a years-old conflict which Tsuna didn’t yet fully understand the ins and outs of.
Tsuna just hummed, doing something he couldn’t describe as anything other than fanning his flames in response. “You really can’t meet me outside of this watch duty?”
“Not yet. Maybe not even for a few years.” Storm-san sighed, unhappy, and gave Tsuna a pat on the head. “I’ve got to go.” He muttered quickly, disappearing just as fast.
As if on cue, the door opened and a pink-haired child rushed in, face red and swollen. Tsuna watched her as she ran to the back of the room too, but as far away from him as physically possible. He was tempted to try and comfort her, always having a soft spot for little kids, but he knew he wouldn’t be welcome.
The room began flooding in with people and he missed the chance anyway, remaining silent in his seat. Iruka-sensei was the last to enter, closing the door behind him and scanning the class, counting the students, concern taking over his face as he paused at the pink-haired girl.
But then Iruka-sensei’s gaze met Tsuna’s soon after and his teacher’s face twitched in discomfort before a placid, fake smile was put in place, only becoming genuine when he looked away. Tsuna didn’t move or talk, ignoring the hateful glare that his other teacher, Mizuki-sensei, sent him.
Drumming his fingers on the desk, he figured out that at least this aspect of his life was better. After all, going from Nezu-sensei who ignored him academically and despised him socially, to a teacher who tried to instruct him and another one who pretended to?
An improvement, for sure.
“Should I go and investigate?” Tsuna thought, pondering about the ‘challenge’ he had been given by two boys in his class.
“Wherefore?” It’s all Nine-tails said in response, a little displeased.
“Call it morbid curiosity.” Tsuna replied. “It’s odd how enemies came so close to Konoha (木ノ葉隠れの里 : Hidden Leaf Village) and, after engaging in a fight, our own shinobis left their corpses there for anyone to stumble upon.”
Tsuna probably wouldn’t find anything, returning empty-handed to the kids who promised to be his friends if he came back with loot, demonstrating his courage. As if the very obvious mocking tone didn’t already show they didn’t even think Tsuna would actually go.
He would normally ignore it, but... there was just something strange about these boys getting such sensitive information from a Konoha-nin (木ノ葉忍 : Leaf Ninja) relative and sharing it with Tsuna almost if they had been incentivized to do so. And added to the fact they really hated Tsuna because of their families, well...
“It’s a set-up to harm you.” Nine-tails’ cold voice boomed in his head, Tsuna shivering with the murderous intent propagated by the cloud flames of his soul resident. “And you’re still going? Ah, I should devour those rascals and spit them back out!”
“Please don’t. They didn’t really mean to cause any harm to me, but were being... naive. And used by their very ill-intentioned relatives. Those, you can feast to your heart’s content.”
Tsuna slightly muffled their psycho-emotional link, sensing Nine-tails’ dark satisfaction, so he could hide his own. It was always nice to see that the one Tsuna chose as his (new) cloud was showing possessiveness and territoriality towards him. The courtship progress was going well – even if Nine-tails didn’t know he was being courted to begin with.
Such a gaffe for any other sky, but Tsuna had never followed the correct rituals and wasn’t going to start now.
A putrid smell pervaded the air and Tsuna frowned, covering his nose. The sharp senses this body had provided him with thanks to Nine-tails were certainly useful, but not without their drawbacks. So it seemed like there really were corpses left here from the confrontation with the enemy.
His hyper-intuition suddenly kicked in and Tsuna jumped to the side, dodging a kunai that would have hit the artery in his neck. His eyes locked briefly with the image of an adult man in a soldier’s uniform, but wearing a headband with a very different symbol from the one of Konohagakure no Sato.
“Takigakure (滝隠れ : Hidden Waterfall).” Tsuna contemplated, remembering the introductory lesson for Konoha’s enemies and those with ‘neutral’ relationships. Reborn would somehow find his way to shoot him here if Tsuna didn’t memorize at least that much.
Nine-tails growled in response and Tsuna prepared to call his flames, when he sensed a quickly approaching rain, slowing down their surroundings to go faster. He decided to wait, retreating instead of attacking, and was soon rewarded.
“NARUTO!” A voice screamed, launching themselves at the enemy.
“Iruka-sensei!?” Tsuna’s eyes widened, seeing the older man push the Takigakure shinobi and release his flames to decelerate him, before turning and grabbing him, sprinting away. “What are you doing here!?”
“What are YOU doing here!” Iruka-sensei vociferated at him, furious and very obviously worried to death. “How did you end up here, an area where enemies have been spotted recently!? You’re lucky Shikamaru and Chouji knew where you went!”
Tsuna was stunned as Iruka-sensei continued to chatter and glance nervously behind them, even though they hadn’t been followed. It was only when they were inside the village that Iruka-sensei put him down and stopped to catch his breath.
“I’m sorry.” Tsuna murmured, kinda regretting now having decided to follow what those foolish boys in his class had said. “Akira and Shinji said if I came and took any items from the enemy shinobi, they would be my friends...” He spoke in a diminishing voice, averting his gaze.
All his words were completely true. His gestures and omissions only suggested they were the main motivator behind his actions, when they simply gave him a kick-start.
And Tsuna genuinely regretted having caused such concern to the teacher who was actually trying to teach him fairly, despite his prejudice.
“What-” Iruka-sensei froze, looking at him- and that was guilt? Not even pity for the friendless orphan, but remorse and empathy... “Ah, Naruto, I...” Iruka-sensei tried to find words, but didn’t seem to have much luck in that department before sighing as his flames flickered resolutely. “How about going out for a ramen with me? I can be your friend. And tell you how stupid this was and to not even think about doing something like that ever again!”
Tsuna looked him straight in the eyes, analyzing, and smiled, making sure to moderate the size. “Of course, Iruka-sensei! But you’ll pay.” Because Tsuna had no money.
“Obviously. What kind of adult makes a child pay?” Iruka-sensei sighed again, giving him one last complicated look before offering the hand for Tsuna to take.
Tsuna grabbed it without another thought, contemplating the potential of this rain. Almost all shinobi possessed awakened flames, and almost all of them didn’t use it beyond the most basic instincts. Iruka was the first Tsuna had seen use them to a greater degree so far, albeit in a totally unconscious way. A little like Nine-tails, but less crude.
All he had left to do was evaluate the rain’s resolve to do what was best for an orphaned child blamed for events beyond his capacity.
Iruka was, also, the small sliver of hope Tsuna put in this village which was so happy to throw a child to the wolves. Because Tsuna doubted he could handle things so well without his previous memories as Sawada Tsunayoshi, living as Uzumaki Naruto without any support.
Even he, Dame (ダメ : No Good, Useless)-Tsuna, had his mother’s unconditional love from birth and throughout his whole life.
But who did Naruto have?
The pink-haired girl was being bullied again and, worse, this time Tsuna caught it in the act.
She, Haruno Sakura as Tsuna learned, probably wouldn’t be happy about the village outcast helping her, but, well, Tsuna just needed to make sure he pacified the bullies so they wouldn’t take it out on her later after being ‘interrupted’ by him.
“Excuse me.” Tsuna said to the girl who seemed to be their queen bee, mocking the size of Haruno-san’s forehead quite eagerly. “It’s not very nice to lie to Haruno-san like this. Can’t you see she’s getting upset?”
“What?” The little queen bee frowned at him, trying to straighten her posture, but drawing back with a hint of apprehension. So she came from a family that was more afraid than hateful of Tsuna. “Which lies? Her forehead is bigger than my head!” She laughed, but it came out forced and nervous.
“But you’d need to have a very, very small head for it to be true.” Tsuna tilted his head to the side, giving the impression of confusion.
The queen bee backed away even further, clearly tense about the situation. “Ah, whatever! It’s not fun anymore. You’re too dumb.” She replied and marched away, her friends exchanging glances before following in a haste.
“T-Thank you.” Haruno-san spoke quietly as the girls disappeared from sight. Tsuna turned to her in surprise, having thought she would feel humiliated by having to be helped by him.
“It was nothing.” Tsuna took a good look at her, seeing her eyes fall to the ground with embarrassment and frustration, not directing her negative feelings towards an easy outlet like him, but inwards, targeting herself. “You know they were lying, don’t you?” Tsuna softened his voice, his protective instincts at seeing such a small child suffering surfacing.
“W-Well, my forehead is really big...” She laughed feebly, pulling her bangs to hide it. “To s-show off my big b-brain...”
So, the core of the issue. It was envy of the intelligence Haruno-san was already displaying so early in the Academy, receiving much praise from the teachers.
“Really? But aren’t you just smarter than them?” Tsuna crouched down in front of her, who widened the eyes in surprise, finally making visual contact. “What’s wrong with that? You’re smarter than me, but I don’t think your forehead is big at all.” Tsuna smiled, spreading his sky and offering a hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Naruto.”
“I’m Sakura...” Haruno-san replied, hesitating for a moment before taking his hand to get up.
“Would you like to be my friend, Sakura?” Tsuna opened his smile even more, noticing that her flames, not yet awakened, were a sun (and already vibrating with so much latent power).
“I’d like that... Naruto.” Sakura smiled back, just a little, barely curving her lips, but it was all right.
Tsuna had plenty of time to make her smile as bright as the sun.
A massacre.
A massacre has just happened.
An entire clan. Hundreds of people, dozens of skilled shinobi, all in the hands of a single child.
(Wasn’t Tsuna also that age when he turned the mafia upside down?)
His heart broke in pieces and rejoined together, hardened and still bleeding.
How? How could this happen? In his village? The place he took as his new home?
The place where his storm sacrificed himself until almost nothing was left? Where his rain fought daily with Tsuna’s undeserved hatred, and his sun was yet to bloom beautifully? Where his courting cloud was wronged and avenged, only to be imprisoned?
No.
Things couldn’t continue like this.
Tsuna stared at the boy, the young mist, sitting on the edge of the pier. The only survivor of this genocide coordinated way too well for Tsuna not see all the strings pulling from underneath. It all just cemented the decision that had already been bubbling in the confines of his mind.
He was a revolutionary. A vigilante. A conqueror. A leader. He would take the village for himself and destroy every little thing that was wrong with it. The mafia didn’t survive him without changing. Vongola didn’t survive him, and there was a very strong reason why he was called more and more Neo Primo and less and less Decimo.
It seemed his new title had been decided, as heavy and blood-soaked as the other.
Tsuna stepped forward. “Sasuke.”
His Uchiha classmate abruptly turned to him, eyes wide too much in terror, before recognition emerged and a pout took over his face, showing a ton of anger for such a small body.
Would it always be like this? Would Tsuna’s mists always be destined for pain and loss, turning trauma into fuel for rage and hate, before taking it all out on any target they found worthy?
“Go away, idiot.” Sasuke grunted, almost physically shaking with the force he used to spat out the words, immediately turning to the lake again and ignoring Tsuna.
Tsuna hummed to himself, closing his eyes as the pain of the mist’s flames resonated on him like open wounds, before expanding his sky to encompass them. Just to put Sasuke at ease, to accept his presence and his words without the fury of grief consuming him. Tsuna didn’t want to harmonize, not like this, not now.
(But he would. Tsuna could never look at a mist on that path and let it become a tragedy like Mukuro.)
When Sasuke relaxed the tense posture of his shoulders, previously raised almost to his ears, Tsuna sat down next to him, appreciating the sunset in silence for a few moments.
“You know, Sasuke, today I decided my goal in life.” Tsuna started, speaking with the casualness of someone talking about the weather. Sasuke didn’t look away from the horizon, but inclined his head in Tsuna’s direction. “I will become Hokage (火影 : Fire's Shadow).”
At his announcement, voiced with the same finality and fatality his teenage self used when looking into the eyes of a being older than Earth itself and said he found a solution never thought of in a millennia beyond counting, Sasuke looked at him, frowning, but with his attention captured.
“Why?” Sasuke asked, simply. No accusations, no mockery. Tsuna’s tone and attitude would never leave room for doubt.
Tsuna turned to him and smiled, as sweet as sugar.
“Because a massacre like this one can never happen ever again.” Tsuna spoke, seeing Sasuke’s eyes reflect a profound, profound pain. “It shouldn’t have even happened in the first place.”
“And what the hell does being Hokage have to do with this?” Sasuke snapped, bitter, hurt, desperate for a way out.
“An entire clan is gone.” Tsuna whispered gently and Sasuke’s breath faltered as he flinched at the harshness of his words. “This wasn’t just your clan’s traitor fault.”
Tsuna’s hand reached out and touched Sasuke’s cheek, carefully brushing the tears away as they began flowing down without the Uchiha even realising.
“The Hokage exists to do more than just command our shinobi. He is, above all, a symbol of power and protection for the entire village. What happened was the fault of the traitor, the Hokage, and all the shinobi who are in charge of our village. It was the fault of everyone who let such a tragedy happen as much as the one who caused it.”
With the touch intensifying Tsuna’s flames, it didn’t take much longer for Sasuke to completely collapse, seeking the comfort and shelter that was brutally stripped away from him along with all his bonds. Tsuna offered him all of it and everything else, welcoming the mist under his sky with open arms.
O, tragic mist. I must pray for your valiant soul. You shall shelter within the tenderness of the gracious sky.
Tsuna was still unsure about Uzumaki Naruto’s fate in this world. But he did know his very own mission.
After all, Uzumaki Naruto was Sawada Tsunayoshi, and there had been only one mission he could do since Reborn set foot in the Sawadas’ home. If fulfilling fate or becoming Hokage interfered with his mission, so be it. Tsuna would just deal with it, as he did with being Decimo.
Because his mission was to be an all-embracing and harmonious sky. It was the very core of his existence. His new guardians could never fill the void the others left, but... how could Tsuna let such elements be so utterly vulnerable, when they desperately claimed for a belonging that only a sky could provide?
No. He could never.
For Tsuna was a sky.
And a Sky he would be.