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AN: Scene breaks are separated by three dots and a brief description of the new scene. EX: Location: Konoha, Status: Academy (six years old). The status describes Naruto's place in the time line, he is the main character in the series so I thought he would be the easiest to focus on. Please pay attention to them as I do go back and forth between location and time. Happy Reading!~

Ironically Reborn

Irony: (def.) a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result

Reborn: (def.) brought back to life or activity

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Chapter 1:

The Tuna and the Carnivore

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Tsuna was always liked manga. Especially in his Dame-Tsuna days, before Reborn arrived. He would often skip school and read it, sometimes even hiding in his closet while he did so to avoid lectures from his mom.

He would have taken any of his mom's lectures compared to what Reborn had to dish out on the matter. Many phrases along the lines of 'waste of time' and 'live in the real-world Dame-Tsuna' would come up along with a baby foot to the head. For many of his middle school and high school years this hobby was set aside for his own personal safety.

Once the mantel of Decimo was placed on his shoulders he clung to the old hobby like a lifeline. When he was a preteen he adhered to the manga to stave off loneliness. Now however, he pursued it to be alone. He loved his guardians, he truly did, but sometimes they made him want to hide in a closet.

Which he did. Hide, that is. In many different closets around the manor. Much like when he was younger but, instead of avoiding a lecture from his mom, he was avoiding one from Reborn.

The irony of the situation was not lost on Tsuna.

The point is, his head was full of stories and plot lines that he hunted in the sanctuary that was his closet. So, when he died at a decent age and found himself reborn in an impossible place, the only thought his tiny infant brain could muster was;

"And Reborn said my hobby was useless"

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Location: Konoha; Hokages Office

Status: Academy Days (eight years old)

"Iruka, please come in."

The chunin in question opened the door to the Hokage's office and glanced at the old wizened man behind the desk. The Hokage smiled at the academy teacher as the young man went through the proper formalities when addressing the village leader. When he was finished, he sat in front of the desk ready to give his report.

The Hokage listened sincerely as Umino Iruka talked of the academy students he taught; pointing out concerns he had with certain students, asking for advice on how to tip toe around the families of children from clans, encouraging the children to stop bringing live weapons to class, and general things you'd expect from a school that teaches kids how to kill people.

Towards the end of the meeting the Hokage posed a question that always eventually came up in these monthly meetings and Iruka had to give a fond smile for the student this question was always the inspiration for.

"Naruto is doing great! He even made a friend!" Iruka gushed, his professional air slipping a little at his general joy over the statement. The Hokage looked interested and happy with, sadly, a hint of suspicion mixed in as well. Without having to ask for a clarification Iruka went on.

"The new student, the one from the civilian family."

The Hokage raised an eyebrow; "A civilian family? I would have thought a ninja family…"

Iruka shook his head, "From what I have observed, the boy doesn't get along well with his family," his eyes brightened and he suddenly chuckled, remembering something, "on his first day of class he stormed right up to Naruto and demanded friendship. Naruto almost fell out of his chair in shock.

I think his motives in befriending Naruto was to make his family angry, but I doubt its one anymore, I've seen them together and it seems sincere."

After that statement, conversation seemed to halt while Iruka shuffled his papers together and the Hokage puffed on his pipe thoughtfully. Reaching some conclusion, the Hokage put down his pipe and stood up with Iruka and walked with him out the door.

"I think I want to see this budding friendship for myself." The Hokage murmured while Iruka grinned, pleased, before bowing formally and walking the opposite way out the building. Making his way out the building at a leisurely pace, the third Hokage waved away his annoyed secretary and stepped out into the slightly chilly air.

Breathing deeply, he picked up his pace and made his way to the warm and bright chakra he had gotten very familiar with over the years. Many he passed in the streets bowed respectively as he walked and he nodded to each in turn. Eventually he passed many of the shopping districts and entered a residential area. Walking up a small hill he looked down and saw a playground, empty except for the two young boys he was looking for. Tilting his head lightly he reassessed his observation and noticed that Uchiha Sasuke sat a little way off down the hill, alone.

The raven-haired boy sat on a tiny wooden platform over a small pond, his feet dangling over the edge his toes grazing the water. He was staring at his reflection with a blank look and the Hokage stared at him suddenly feeling like the old man he was. Shaking his head, and wishing he still had his pipe to chew on, he shunsined quietly and crouched in a tree that was overlooking Naruto and his friend. Giving one last look at the lone Uchiha, he focused on Naruto deciding to concentrate on one orphaned, troubled youth at a time.

Naruto's friend was…cute. The Hokage had to suppress a chuckle from his hiding space because there was no other word to describe the boy. He had fluffy brown hair and big brown eyes that should have belonged on an innocent woodland creature. After taking quick stock of the scene he had to suppress even more bouts of laughter.

The boy was standing over Naruto in a classic lecture pose and was shaking his finger while Naruto pouted, his lower lip jutting out. Naruto's eyes were glazed over and the Hokage had to wonder if this was a common occurrence.

"Buuuuuttt-Tsu-chan!"

The Tsu-chan in question crossed his arms firmly; "He's alone, isn't that enough?"

For as hard as Naruto seemed to pretend he wasn't listening, he glanced up and the Hokage could tell how venerable the look was. The blond boy shrugged his shoulders and put forth one last pitiful argument;

"But Saskue's a meany!" Naruto complained and the Hokage raised his brows in surprise. Was the what they were arguing about?

"Maybe he will surprise us." The boy shot back evenly and the Hokage was struck by such a simple and wise statement coming from the mouth of a child. Feeling very curious and hopeful he watched as the two boys made their way towards the lone Uchiha. Before they could get too out of range of hearing Tsu-chan suddenly stopped and looked at Naruto as if just realizing something;

"He's not going to replace you as my friend, if that's what your worried about."

The Third was once again surprised by the wisdom and articulate way the young boy handled the situation. Judging by the way Naruto's shoulders slumped in relief that was exactly the reason he didn't want to go up to Sasuke. Watching in amazement he observed as the little brown eyed wonder gave Naruto a hug and a little pat on the head. After this they made their way back towards the Uchiha heir, Naruto having a renewed bounce in his steps as they did.

He watched as they introduced themselves to Sasuke and smiled at the inevitable fight that broke out between Sasuke and Naruto. The Hokage's smile widened when he was able to recognize, even from his place in the tree the barest hint of a smile on each of the fighting boys faces.

Coming down from the tree the Hokage started to walk back towards the hokage tower a new hope burning in his chest. Giving the boys one last passing glance he was startled to find big brown eyes looking straight in his direction. The Hokage stopped and they stared at each other before the small boy looked away trying to placate the fighting boys.

When the Hokage continued to walk, he was suddenly struck with a sudden memory of a young Itachi. An articulate mature boy who adored his brother and who do anything to uphold the peace of his village. This young Tsunayoshi had that same kind of spirit and while he hoped Tsunayoshi wouldn't have to suffer as Itachi had, he was glad the village would have such loyal ninja protecting it.

He smiled. Yes, the village would be in good hands.

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Location: Konoha

Status: Team Seven (twelve years old)

Kakashi eyed his new genin hopefuls and inwardly sighed. The report the Hokage had given him stated that Sasuke and Naruto were good friends, best friends even, but everything he was observing seriously disputed the fact.

When he arrived late to pick them up the only one who seemed to notice was the pink haired one who stared at him in horror while the two boys were beating the snot out of each other. In between punches he caught them yelling something about tuna, of all things. He easily separated the two but that didn't deter them yelling about dates and times, complaining that it was their turn; supposedly with this tuna they were screaming about. Highly disturbed that the two boys were arguing about who would get to spend time with tuna like a divorced couple fighting over their child, he asked all three to meet him on the roof and shunsined away.

Now the two sat, facing away from each other, seemingly having come to an impasse, both stewing about their precious tuna. Kakashi had the strongest urge to go and bang his head against a wall, something he hadn't had any desire to do since he was in Anbu. Somehow, even though it seemed completely unrelated, he knew that the young bloodthirsty Anbu he served with back in the day was somehow, even if it was distantly, related to this new headache. And with that thought, Kakashi found himself having a horrible flashback.

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Location: Konoha; Hokage's Office

Status: Post Kyuubi - Pre Academy

Kakashi read through the mission scroll the Hokage had passed over to him quickly. After he was done he went through standard procedure and disposed of the scroll with a spike of chakra. He then proceeded to stare at the Hokage, offended. His Anbu mask covered most of his displeasure but the Hokage seemed to understand anyway.

"I would have assigned a seal novice to this mission but I have had multiple reports saying that the child truly is a demon. I'm taking precautions on this one," The Hokage wound his fingers together and stared at Kakashi pointedly, who then bowed his head cowed, "Jiraiya isn't here and you're the best at seals in the village. Lesser chakra demons are rare but not unheard of. Seal it away if that's the case but if he is actually just a rambunctious kid, get the parents' permission for ninja training."

The Hokage paused here as if considering something more to add before shaking his head; "Unless you think he his isn't stable enough for ninja training. If that is the case report to me and we will consider a different course of action."

Kakashi bowed his head in understanding and shunsined away when the Hokage dismissed him. He leapt across the rooftops pondering on what kind of kid inspired such fear from the locals. The silver haired Anbu doubted the kid was actually a demon, they would have noticed by now. The boy lived in one of the smaller towns beyond the gates of Konoha. It was one of the bigger farming settlements, with probably no less than one hundred people living there but it was close enough for any seasoned Jounin to sense a demonic chakra lashing out.

So basically, he, an Anbu, was doing damage control…for an eight-year-old. It was basically babysitting duty. Kakashi sighed behind both his masks and passed Konoha's gates, immediately leaping through the trees towards the settlement. When he arrived at the "demon boy's" home he was instantly confronted with the boys' mother who immediately burst into relieved tears.

"Oh Anbu-san thank goodness you're here!" the mother wailed while Kakashi resisted the urge to plug his ears. Being as polite as his position dictated he pushed her to take him to the boy, eager for the mission to be over. He flinched when the mother grabbed both his hands and held them to her chest like he was a lover and stared up at him with tear lined eyes.

"You'll fix my baby boy, won't you?" the woman whimpered, while Kakashi tried to politely pull his hands away. Regrettably, it was like trying to pull a stubborn tick off one of his nuke-nin pups.

"I'll try my very best." Kakashi tried to speak politely through his grit teeth. When the woman finally released him he discreetly rubbed his aching hands while she led him through the small house. They went out the back door into their fenced yard and Kakashi zeroed in on the boy.

He was tall for his age with black hair. Instantly Kakashi notice the heavy weapons hidden up his sleeves. Kakashi rolled his eyes and knew what the deal was. The kid probably had natural talent with these weapons and knew it. Probably flaunted it and was scaring the civilians. Typical brute mindset, though Kakashi reevaluated as he watched the boy tenderly run a finger across the cheek of a little yellow song bird that was perched in his hand. The bird preened under the attention and the boy smiled.

Over all he looked…non-threatening. Kakashi gave another annoyed sigh and glanced at the mother who leaned in and whispered;

"He's most content when he's handling his bird."

Kakashi was saved a response when she stepped forward and called out; "Kyoya-chan there is an Anbu here to see you."

The boy hardly glanced over before returning to his bird thoughtfully; "Anbu?"

Kakashi blinked in surprise before inwardly shrugging. It wasn't that unbelievable that someone on the outskirts of Konoha didn't know who the Anbu were. Their dealings tended to be discreet most of the time anyway.

His mother opened her mouth to explain but he stepped forward and cut her off giving his own explanation and also hoping to frighten the boy a little; "The Anbu are an elite squad of ninja, handpicked by the Hokage himself. We protect the village in the shadows and are the Hokage's personal guard. The best of the best."

Kakashi knew he was laying it on thick but he was also trying to convince himself this, still lamenting over the fact that he, an Anbu, was basically being paid to babysit. With a tired roll of the eyes Kakashi missed the mother paling and a delighted shiver running down the boys back.

When his eyes rested back down he looked at the boy, who was now looking at him, not in fear as he had hopped, but excitement.

"Elite?" the boy repeated, his pupils dilating so fast that Kakashi's instincts screamed in warning. His shoulders stiffened as the boy stood up and he pulled out two metal tonfa's. Coal black eyes stared at him before he smirked in delight;

"I will bite you to death"

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Location: Konoha

Status: Team Seven

Kakashi blinked and the memory faded. His first impressions of that monster were so wrong, as a ninja it was completely embarrassing. A fight had, of course, broken out and he was shocked at the ferociousness coming from the boy. He was also shocked at the general destruction that seemed to happen, especially since Kakashi wasn't doing anything more than dodging. Not to mention the kid wasn't even using chakra, it was all just brute strength! That amount of strength should be impossible! The last straw came however when spikes, spikes, protruded out of his weapons. Kakashi ended it quick, then and there, staring down at the unconscious boy in barely concealed horror.

It wasn't so much that the boy was terrifying in that moment, Kakashi was, of course bigger than him and faster, it was the potential. Truly, it was astounding. Kakashi knew that two, maybe even one year of hardcore ninja training would make the boy truly something to be feared. He almost wished the boy was part demon because knowing his luck, if the boy ever did become a shinobi of the village, Kakashi would somehow suffer.

And suffer he did.

Danzo had an immediate interest in the little "not-demon" demon. The Hokage, sensing disaster, drafted him immediately under his watch to be trained as an Anbu. Kakashi soon learned that the not-demon, now known as Hibari Kyoya, could hold a fatal grudge like someone…well, someone possessed.

The boy seemed to take deep personal offense that he was knocked out and taken to Konoha by Kakashi, despite the fact he was immensely pleased to be taken in for ninja training. Was that damn brat grateful at all? No, of course he wasn't. He sniffed Kakashi down like a demented blood hound constantly and was always making snide comments on his eating habits. Herbivore this, carnivore that, he even threw in an omnivore from time to time. He was a nightmare!

Let's not forget the extensive damages done to the Anbu hideout as well. It took forever to teach that brat respect and when questioned why he wouldn't follow the leadership of his captain he always gave a vague answer stating; 'The only man I will ever follow is that man.'

Like that was supposed to mean something. Kakashi sincerely hoped he meant the Hokage. Last he heard the brat was an Anbu captain and Kakashi felt bad for the men serving under him, though he knew how pleased the brat probably was. Though despite his horrifying qualities, Kakashi supposed he could respect the kids ultimate goal; protecting the peace of Konoha.

"Um, Sensei?" The pink haired one mumbled. Kakashi blinked in surprise and hastily remembered he was supposed to be testing the brats. Not bothering to explain to them why he zoned out for the past five minutes he began the customary introductions.

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Till Next Time!