Please Read!
Please Read!
I want to warn all of you that this story isn't going to be updated any time soon. So, don't expect any. I'm just only uploading it to make some space for my flash drive. But I'll mark it as an on-going. Whether this gets updated depends on after I finish my major stories or in the mood. But that shouldn't stop you from reading this.
Chapter 01
Past Lives
Giotto was not sure who was in more pain. He couldn't breathe, his eyes stung from the endless tears, and his heart was breaking into a million pieces. He wasn't even sure if he could handle it anymore. Sorrowful tears dripped down to his chin to his shaking arms. In them, Ugetsu Asari was lying there, dead. The familiar warmth from the man had long faded. Giotto slowly shook his head in denial. He couldn't let the person he loves die.
"I, Giotto, the last surviving ReVi, will sacrifice my first ribbon to Ugetsu Asari. Please allow him to reborn with a new beginning."
At the Vongola Mansion, an irreversible trade had been made.
Morning practice for baseball have always started the day for Yamamoto. He got a chance to make a few home runs, swung his bat as hard as he could, and enjoyed the adrenaline pumping through his body. He loved every second of it. And he knew that he wasn't going to give it up for anything in the world. His coach beckoned the baseball ace over, intending to share strategies. Yamamoto left behind his bat and walked over to the man near the benches.
"What's up, coach?" Yamamoto smiled.
"Nothing much... Uh, actually, I want to see if there's something wrong. You haven't been doing so well. You used to hit thirteen home runs. Now, it's four. What's going on?"
"I don't know. But I'll get better, I swear. I just need more practice."
"Alright then... But if this keeps up, you might need more than practice. I might have to bench you too."
Yamamoto turned away and walked back to the field. He frowned slightly at that. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Everyone had considered him as a baseball ace. He did his best whenever it came to baseball. And, now, his coach is saying he's not doing so great. He shook his head, ignoring negative thoughts. He just needs to plan something else to get better. Spending some time in the field would give him the opportunity to sharpen his skills.
The original time for practice with additional ones later has finally taken a toll on Yamamoto. His ability to swing his own bat had less coordination. The pressure he was feeling now didn't seem like it's going away any time soon. Yet, he had to endure it. Everyone is expecting him to win the upcoming match. He can't allow himself to disappoint his school. He just couldn't...
'Maybe some advice might help...' He thought.
It was during gym when it all happened. The instructor decided that everyone had to play baseball. Yamamoto obviously didn't have any complains about it. He heard some of his classmates whine and some cheer. His amber colored eyes decided to wander around among his fellow classmates. His eyes stopped when he landed on Tsuna. Useless Tsuna is what everyone calls him. But it was hard to say with the recent events showing his awesome skills in kendo and volleyball.
The students had already split in two with different captains. He was standing on the left side of the brunet, who was standing around without a team. Each group was complaining about how they didn't want him or how he'll cost them a winning chance. He walked over to the captain and threw an arm over his shoulder. His casual smile was on his bright face as he spoke.
"Isn't it alright? Just join our team."
He felt the captain's body tense at the suggestion and thought he was joking. Yamamoto gave him a small smirk and said that they'll be fine as long as he prevents anyone from hitting. Another student agreed to the suggestion without knowing the consequences later. He later ran out to the side of the field to grab a few bats. Without looking, he noticed a small blush on Tsuna's cheek.
'Hm... I wonder if he's sick.' He thought, curious.
The match ended with the opposing team winning. A few male students were ganging up on the brunet near the scoreboard, expressing their displeasure. Tsuna later found himself stuck with cleaning duties on the field. Yamamoto rushed back to the school to grab another broom. He came back with the brunet standing around with the wind blowing lightly.
"Help has arrived!" He proclaimed.
"Yamamoto...!"
He noticed how nervous and tense the boy became when he arrived. Tsuna began sweeping to begin his duty. He quickly took the opportunity to apologize to the baseball ace for his poor performance. Yamamoto brushed it off, saying it was only gym. He stood there with his broom, doing nothing. He then stated that he was counting on Tsuna as his target stock. The brunet looked over his shoulder, puzzled.
"Aren't you amazing lately? Like in the kendo battle and volleyball tournament... I've got you checked in my book."
Tsuna turned around as he gasped. His words became mumbling and stuttering words with a wide smile. Yamamoto watched the boy scratch the side of his head, shyly. The baseball ace took notice to the small blush on his cheeks. Yamamoto threw the broom that was on his shoulder down to the ground, intending to sweep. He tried to keep his smile up the best as he could.
"In comparison, I just play baseball like it's all I know."
"W-What're you talking about? It's that baseball skill that's amazing."
Yamamoto stopped sweeping momentarily. He thought over what Tsuna said. His smile faltered slightly as he recalled his current progress. Up until now, he's only getting worse with all the practice he's forcing himself to do. His teammates and coach knew about his continuing struggles. They were looking at him with pity and disappointment. Sometimes, they would whisper behind his back on the field and locker room.
"It's not going that well."
"Huh...?"
Yamamoto found himself explaining the situation to Tsuna. He didn't really understand, but he did nevertheless. He talked about how his practice are going. He talked about how his average keeps dropping. Even his fielding are screwing up. He even said that he might not get a chance to play for the first time. His smile was no longer there. Tsuna merely stood there, willingly listened to his troubles.
"Tsuna... What should I do?"
"Eh? You're asking me?" He exclaimed.
Yamamoto threw away his serious face as he turned to the brunet. Tsuna paled when he was asked. He didn't know what to do. The baseball ace threw his broom over his shoulders with both hands on it.
"Just kidding. Lately, you're so reliable, so I just..." Yamamoto trailed off.
'I've never seen Yamamoto like this. I want to give advice, but...'
An image of Reborn, his Spartan tutor, came into mind. Tsuna didn't want Yamamoto to find out about Reborn. Reborn's baby appearance was strange enough, but he doesn't want him involved. Reborn would do something strange again like what happened with Gokudera. The brunet relaxed his shoulders. He allowed his broom to rest on his left shoulder.
"I guess... More effort... Is the way to go... I think."
"Yeah! You know, I thought that was it, too. We agree, as I expected."
Yamamoto wrapped an arm around Tsuna's shoulders. He didn't bother to see the small smile and blush. The baseball ace cheered over their agreement with a wide smile and fresher determination.
"Alright, today I'm remaining here and practicing like hell."
"I heard you are getting friendly with Yamamoto..." Reborn began.
Tsuna was working on his homework when Reborn said it. He looked over his shoulder to the bed. Reborn was sitting there, polishing one of his gun from his collection. Where he's storing it, Tsuna didn't want to know for his own safety. He allowed his pencil to drop out of his hand and roll across the desk. Reborn stopped what he was doing as he stared at his student with a serious expression.
"I only gave him some advice. I wouldn't really call it 'getting friendly'." Tsuna stated.
"I suppose it's fine for now. But stay away from him. I won't forgive you for any unnecessary interactions without my consent."
"I understand..."
It was supposed to be a regular day at school. There shouldn't be anything different from the rest. Yet, one student from their class came rushing in, yelling for everyone's attention. Tsuna was just going to his seat when he said that Yamamoto was about to jump off the roof. He paled as he recalled what might have caused this sort of situation. The rest of the students nervously brushed it off as a bad joke. Then, the same students stated why.
Yamamoto went too far and broke his arm.
Everything was confirmed. Tsuna knew it was his fault. All of the students had already agreed to leave the classroom to see what's really going on. The brunet was standing in the middle of it, desks and chairs scattered around with forgotten items. Kyoko came into sight when she was about to follow the rest, telling him to do the same. Tsuna quickly said that he will catch up with her later. She nodded her head and left.
'I want to go, butReborn said I can't interact with him. If I don't, Yamamoto might really kill himself.'
Students from their class were crowding around the rooftop. They were screaming for the baseball ace to come back and to stop kidding around. Yamamoto ― with one arm in a sling ― ignored what they're saying. He had his back towards them, looking down to the ground below.
"Hey, Yamamoto, this isn't funny!"
"You're taking this too far!"
"Heh. Sorry, but that's not true. After the baseball god threw me away, I have nothing left." Yamamoto said.
Tsuna was standing behind the small entrance building to the roof. He was standing there the entire time since Kyoko left the room. The brunet felt faint and weak-hearted from the sight. He knew that he should do something to stop it, but didn't know how. His mind was screaming at him to move. Yet, his body kept him in place. Tsuna turned around when he heard the sound of footsteps. Reborn was standing next to him, watching the crowd.
"I can easily tell that you really want to save him."
"I-I do, but you said I c-can't."
Reborn averted his attention away from the anxious chatting group to his useless student. His black eyes sparked with seriousness. He clicked his tongue as he pulled out his gun. He pointed the weapon at Tsuna. The brunet mentally jumped at the sight.
"Go help him then. He's probably going to stick to you later. Make sure you don't get attached to him when he does."
"R-Reborn, what do you mean?"
"I said go. Unless you want me to shoot you."
Tsuna ran away in order to avoid punishment from his tutor. He never really understood why Reborn was being harsh when Yamamoto was added to the topic. Without looking where he was going, he bumped into someone and dropped to the floor. When he sat up, he found himself in the middle of the students and Yamamoto. He looks around nervously, wondering what he should do. Everyone was staring at him. Even Yamamoto turned around to speak with him.
"If you came to stop me, it's no use. You should be able to understand my feelings." Yamamoto started.
"Huh?"
"For someone that's called No-Good Tsuna all the time... You can understand the feeling of preferring to die over failing at everything, right?"
Tsuna paled slightly at the comment. He couldn't form any words. Jumbling words only came out from his mouth. He looked down to his feet with an awkward smile. Yamamoto turned his back, still looking over his shoulder.
"No... You and I are different so..."
Yamamoto's expression darkened. He turned around with his hand clenching on the rail.
"How arrogant of the recently awesome Tsuna-sama. So you're a fine student now as opposed to me."
"W-What? N-No, that's wrong! It's because I'm no good!" Tsuna exclaimed.
He had his hands outstretched, waving. Yamamoto's eyes widened when he heard the sudden denial. Tsuna said that he never put effort into a single thing he did. However, he still said to put effort into something when he really haven't done anything. He quickly apologized about what he said yesterday. Yamamoto stood there, listening to every word. Tsuna added that he never had experienced situations Yamamoto found himself in or had thought over anything intense.
"In fact, I'm a pathetic person who would have regrets when dying... Thinking if I'm going to die, then I should have done it with dying will. Thinking it's a waste to die from something like this..."
Everyone became quiet when he finished. Everyone had their eyes locked on the brunet, expecting something else to happen or to be said. Yamamoto did the same with a straight face.
"So, I can't understand your feelings... Sorry... Later!"
Tsuna quickly turned around before he gave anyone a chance to react. Yamamoto, coming to his senses, called out to the running brunet to wait. Before he knew it, he grabbed onto Tsuna's sleeve. That caused the brunet to slip on his own feet, backwards. He was yanked back too hard against the fence. Apparently, the fence weakened throughout the years and decided to finally crack. The other students screamed in surprise.
Yamamoto and Tsuna screamed.
In the dark hallway, Reborn stood in silence. He thought over what he said to his useless student. He clicked his tongue in irritation as he pulled out his gun. His student better be thankful later, he thought.
"Now is the time to get into your ReVi mode."
And the sound of gunshot echoed the hall.
The bullet pierce the window, leaving a small crack. It entered Tsuna's head as the boy continued to fall. The brunet closed his eyes for a minute. He opened them when he felt the aching in his forehead disappear. A single red ribbon stood in front of him. He quickly grabbed it and wrapped it around his hand. Tsuna took that chance to run down the building and grabbed onto Yamamoto. The tip of the ribbon extended itself and took hold of one of the trees below before shrinking its length.
The two of them safely landed on the ground. The red ribbon that was tightly wrapped around his hand disappeared when it was no longer needed. Tsuna could hear the students from the roof exclaiming their safety and thought that it was one of Yamamoto's joke. The brunet turned his attention to Yamamoto. The baseball ace was still injured and pulling a stunt like that might have worsened the wounded arm.
"Yamamoto, are you okay?" He asked, worried.
"Yeah... Tsuna, you're amazing. Just like you said... Have to do it with a dying will."
"Eh...?"
"I don't know what I was thinking. Nothing good comes from my idiocy."
'At least everything is okay. Thanks to Reborn, I managed to save Yamamoto."
The two of them shared laughs before deciding to go back inside the school.
Near the school's entrance, Reborn watched the scene unfold with his faithful chameleon. He frowned at the sight before turning away. He'll plan a punishment for his useless student later.
This is more of a different approach from the original KHR. But I hope you'll like it whenever there's an update. Thanks for reading.