Summary: In which Tsuna is a traveler and has seen many shades of life. So when the Mafia comes to claim him as the next successor at the age of 19 in the form of a handsome man with curly sideburns, he only smiles. (AU) Jaded!Tsuna, Wise!Tsuna.
Once upon a time, a little boy was abandoned by his parents. He went traveling around the world by foot, searching for his parents. He lived off of the land, never feeling the comfort of a home. This boy was so lonely, all he ever wanted was love. He longed for the warmth of family and friends. He searched far and wide, but none of the children wanted to play with him because he was dirty, and none of the adults wanted to adopt him because they didn't want another child. He did everything he could to scrap by a living and continued in solitude to his adolescence. By this time, he had been alone for so long he didn't know how to be around others. He had no social skills, and a romantic interest was out of the question.
And one day, he gave up.
Everything clicked in his mind.
There was no need to search for them anymore.
There's no need to find someone who will accept him.
All he needs…is himself.
Yes. That is all he needs.
Since there's no one who is willing to protect him, love him, he'll do so for himself.
There's no need to rely on anyone else.
A flame flickers and his brown eyes melts into golden rays, circling an eclipse, turning into a sunset of its own when sunlight bounces off it.
He blinks, staring far off at the waterfall.
Now that he has gotten his priorities right, where was he again?
Ah, he thinks, I'm at Jiuzhaigou.
Flopping onto the ground, the brunet let his body falls, his entire view tilts and faces the blue sky.
On that day, Sawada Tsunayoshi decides to start his life all over again.
This time, he'll truly start living.
For himself.