Hey guys!

I decided to write this to get it out of my head and organized...

I kind of know how the story will end, but I have no idea how long this story will be...

Enjoy!

Tsuna quickly gathered his X Gloves and Vongola Ring before stepping out the door. Yesterday, Reborn suddenly left for some business back in Italy, and was out of there in a blink of an eye (not including the last minute training he somehow crammed into 5 minutes. Don't ask.)

And just like any other normal mafia teen being trained by a Spartan Arcobaleno, he decided to take advantage of the rare free time by going to an arcade and eat some lunch with Gokudera and Yamamoto.

"I'm off!" Tsuna yelled as he ran towards the door.

"Tsu-kun! Be careful! There's been rumors about a pickpocket in town!" Nana yelled from the kitchen. However, her words fell on deaf ears, for Tsuna was already out and heading towards the intersection where he agreed to meet his friends.

"Yo, Tsuna!"

"Juudaime!"

Tsuna smiled and waved at his friends. "Yamamoto-kun! Gokudera-kun!"

Yamamoto and Gokudera smiled at him. Yamamoto wore casual clothes, jeans and a t-shirt, with the Shigure Kintoki slung over his shoulder in a baseball bag. Gokudera was also going for a casual look, wearing jeans and a red shirt with a while polo over it.

"Are you ready to go, Juudaime? I've been doing a lot of research on where to go eat lunch!" Gokudera said excitedly. Tsuna could almost see a little tail wagging in anticipation of a compliment.

"Yep. Gokudera wants to go to the new okonomiyaki restaurant over in the shopping district," Yamamoto said with a grin. "I heard that it's doing well."

Tsuna smiled and said, "Sounds good to me. Where is it?"

Gokudera pointed a thumb at himself and said, "Just follow me. I know where it is."

…Or so he said.

"Baseball-idiot! I told you it was the other way! Is there anything else in your head besides baseball?"

"Maa maa, Gokudera. I'm pretty sure it's this way."

"And what makes you think that?"

"Gut feeling."

Gokudera threw up his hands. "You're hopeless. You got us lost, asshole. Congratulations."

"Come one, it's got to be this way. It look like it would be in this direction."

Tsuna just shook his head as he watched his friends bicker over which direction to go. He stopped trying to intervene 15 minutes ago, deciding that it was in vain. He looked at his phone to look for directions, and didn't notice a tall, stocky boy standing in front of him. Tsuna bumped into him, froze, and looked up to find himself staring into two small, steely eyes. He took a big puff from his cigarette and breathed into Tsuna's face. "Where do you think you're walking, punk?"

"Hieee! I'm—I'm so sorry!" Tsuna apologized profusely. He cowered under the annoyed gaze of the other boy, and braced himself for any attack coming his way. It felt very humiliating that he had fought so bravely in the future against a man who successfully controlled all the other parallel worlds, and yet he was afraid of a delinquent boy with nothing but a cigarette in his mouth.

Gokudera came to his rescue as he retorted, "Maybe if you weren't so wide and took up half the sidewalk, Juudaime would have been able to pass by, asshole."

The other teen looked up. "What did you just say?"

Gokudera growled, "I said, maybe if you—"Gokudera was suddenly punched in his stomach and he gasped as he felt the wind knocked out of him. He doubled over, holding his stomach in pain.

"Gokudera!"

"Gokudera-kun!"

Yamamoto whipped out his Shigure Kintoki, holding between his two hands. He stood in a fighting stance, and was ready to charge when Gokudera suddenly stood up, eyes shadowed by his bangs. The other boy looked at Gokudera with mild interest, and faced him once more.

Gokudera reached into his pocket and pulled out 8 cigarettes, lit them, and took a big puff. In between his fingers were 8 dynamite sticks, which he pulled up to his cigarettes to light them.

His opponent visibly paled at the sight of the explosives. He had no weapons except for his hands, and that would be no match for Gokudera's bombs. Tsuna noticed his disadvantage and the way his hands were shaking in fear. Gokudera was going to win with no trouble at all.

Which was why Tsuna tried to stop the fight before it got too far.

"Gokudera-kun! Stop what you're doing right now!"

"Yeah, you should stop."

Everyone froze, and faced to the side to find 2 boys standing by the street. One was about an inch or so taller than Yamamoto, with jet-black short hair and bright eyes. A smirk danced across his lips, and he cocked his head slightly to the side. He was lean and muscular, with broad shoulders and a long torso, decorated by his striped shirt and gray zip up jacket that matched his eyes. His hands were stuck in his jeans pockets, and one noticeable odd thing on both his wrists were link cuffs with no sleeve attached to it.

To his right was a lanky and lean teenager about an inch shorter. He had thin, sandy brown hair and big yet hooded eyes. His head seemed to balance delicately on his long, thin neck, which was partially covered by his navy shawl collared sweater he wore over his blue shirt. He was quite unremarkable, average in every way except for his hands. Tsuna noticed how unusually large and long-fingered they were. It looked as though it belonged to a 7 foot tall basketball player before being attached to his thin arms. On his left middle finger was a ring, sleek and black, almost like a wedding band.

"Boss!" The boy suddenly bowed to the newcomer. "I wasn't meaning any trouble at all, sir! I'm on my way to the headquarters, sir!"

"Go on ahead Yamada. You did gather some information before having this little quarrel, correct?" the black haired boy asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Then go. And don't get any more fights. It's seriously annoying having to apologize for you. I don't really want to clean up your mess." He gave him a disdainful look, before continuing, "Don't bother answering back. Just hurry on to the headquarters. They should be waiting for you."

Yamada rose and rushed off, but not before giving a frightened look towards Gokudera. Gokudera growled, and Yamada turned pale and ran a little faster.

"Sorry for any trouble he caused. He's a stupid imbecile we had to let in our family. The name's Mizuhara Ryuusuke. You can call me Ryuuji if you prefer," the taller boy introduced. "Here to my right is Shima Naoki."

Tsuna opened his mouth to introduce himself, but before he could Gokudera interrupted him. "Oi, you should be more responsible of your subordinate, jerk. He did unspeakable acts to Juudaime!"

Ryuuji raised an eyebrow. "Unspeakable acts? Like what? Did he grope him or something?"

"What, no you sick bastard! He breathed on him!"

Tsuna groaned inwardly. He could have predicted this. Gokudera always over exaggerated and made a big deal out of everything that happened to him, good or bad.

Ryuuji stared at him, and then started chuckling to himself. "I see. Yamada and his horrible cigarette contaminated breath got on your Juudaime, I see. What a serious crime. Who is this Juudaime anyways?"

Yamamoto pushed Tsuna forwards and said, "Tsuna is our Juudaime!"

Tsuna suddenly looked very flustered, and stammered, "Yamamoto-kun! You can't just say that to random strangers on the street!" He faced Ryuuji and said, "Don't believe what they're saying. It's just bogus."

Ryuuji looked at them, and asked, "Are you guys part of the Yakuza?"

Gokudera scoffed. "Yakuza? How insulting. Yakuza are for suckers. We're part of the mafia!"

"Hieeee! Gokudera-kun! You shouldn't be saying that kind of stuff!" Tsuna cried as his eyes darted to the two teenagers standing a mere 15 feet from them.

"Maa maa, it's all fun and games, so what does it matter?" Yamamoto said cheerfully.

Ryuuji smiled. "Yakuza are for suckers, you say. Why not duel me here to see whether Mafia are stronger than the Yakuza or not?"

Gokudera said, "Why? Are you guys part of the Yakuza?"

"I'm the up and coming boss of a gang actually."

Tsuna gaped, the words not exactly sinking in. Boss, yakuza, what? He had a hard time dealing with the actions of the mafia already; he had no need to get himself involved in Japan's oldest crime organizations.

"We don't really have the time for this, don't we guys? Ha ha ha. Let's just go and eat lunch, we wasted so much time already. It was nice meeting you guys!" Tsuna blabbered while staring nervously at his friends with a message repeating itself over and over. Let's go!

Gokudera once again paid no heed to the boss of the Vongola, and instead said, "I accept your challenge. I will show you the power of the mafia and the Vongola Family!"

Ryuuji smiled, and said the last thing Gokudera expected. "I like your eyes, Gokudera."

"HUH?!"

Suddenly, indigo smoke emitted from the cufflinks on Ryuuji's cuffs. It wrapped around his arms, creating a long indigo sleeve that wrapped over his arms. Blades formed on his forearms, and he got into a fighting stance, legs a little wider than shoulder width and arms up and ready.

Gokudera scowled, and he activated his belt buckle, bringing out an armor clad Uri. "Uri! Cambio Forma!"

Uri growled, and merged with Gokudera; now he had large amounts of dynamite strapped to his body, a pipe-shaped igniter in his mouth, and sunglasses.

Tsuna watched this all in shock. Everything had suddenly happened so quickly, and he was too numb to make any move to stop the fight. Unable to do anything, he just watched wide eyed as his friend and the opponent suddenly attack each other, Gokudera sending out rocket in every direction, and Ryuuji swiping at them with his blades, gradually getting closer and closer to Gokudera. Every time he got too close, Gokudera would activate his shields, causing Ryuuji's attacks to get deflected. It seemed as though Gokudera had the upper hand, and Ryuuji was on the defensive.

Suddenly, Ryuuji fumbled, and Gokudera saw his chance. He sent his rocket bombs flying in the air, which suddenly changed direction and went straight at Ryuuji. Tsuna expected Ryuuji to make some sort of move to escape, but instead he stood his ground, a slight smirk twisting his lips. The bombs landed spot on, and the air was filled with smoke. Tsuna coughed, waving his hand in the air to clear the smoke and see if Ryuuji was still there. He glanced over at Shima, and was surprised to see that he wasn't there. Huh.

As the smoke finally cleared, the trio were surprised to find nobody there.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

"Congratulations, Gokudera-kun. You have just fought against my illusions. You're more skilled than you look."

They whisked around and found themselves face to face with Ryuuji and Shima. Ryuuji was grinning, with his hands on his hips, and a satisfied expression glued on his face. Tsuna couldn't believe what he heard. Illusions? Like Rokudo Mukuro illusions? What—how—ILLUSIONS?

"What—wait—how—whats going on?" Tsuna spluttered.

"I—my bombs should have hit you! Why are you—what—"

Ryuuji sighed. "I already said that you fought against an illusion of me. How hard is it to understand?"

Yamamoto grinned. "That was pretty cool. What sort of machine did you use to make that show?"

Tsuna sweat dropped. Yamamoto was being the usual thickheaded Yamamoto. He heaved a sigh. "Um, I'm just curious, but… are all yakuza like this?"

"It's complicated, I guess. But that's besides the point. I've heard of you guys. You defeated the Kokuyo bullies, correct?" Ryuuji asked.

Oh geez, that feels like 10 years ago. "Um, yes we did, but why do you ask?" Tsuna asked.

"I'm sure you heard of the pickpocket hanging out around here in Namimori."

Tsuna felt like he heard it before. Very recently. Maybe even this morning? "We have."

"What's it got to do with us?" Gokudera snarled.

Ryuuji blinked. "I really do like your eyes. I like the storm in them, if you don't mind." (I mind it a lot, thank you very much, Gokudera muttered under his breath.) "I want to recruit you in catching this pickpocket."

"Um, it's just a pickpocket. The police can handle him. What are the yakuza doing trying to catch him?" Tsuna asked.

"Well, that is also very complicated. I could explain it to you, but I'm starving. Let's eat lunch together."

"WHAT? NO WAY IN HELL AM I GOING TO LET YOU EAT WITH THE JUUDAIME! YOU WOULD BE A DANGER TO JUUDAIME!"

Tsuna had no intention to get involved with the Yakuza. None. Being in the mafia and all of its trouble no doubt gave him some premature wrinkles, and sleep deprivation with dark circles to vouch for it. After seeing Gokudera and Ryuuji fight just gave him more reason to avoid the Yakuza. Even though Gokudera fought against an illusion. No, scratch that. Especially because Gokudera-kun fought against an illusion.

"I know you don't want to get involved, being in the mafia and all. But just hear me out. We need some help, and we need to get this over with quickly," Ryuuji said. "Just… just listen to what I have to say first. Then you can decide whether to help us or not. If it makes anything better, I'll treat you to lunch."

Yamamoto grinned. "Count me in! I want some free lunch."

Gokudera glowered. "You idiot of a guardian. What sort of Vongola guardian takes bribes from the opponent? Have you got no pride?" He faced Tsuna. "Juudaime, these guys don't deserve any pity. One of their family members breathed on you and attacked you. (He actually attacked you, Gokudera-kun, Tsuna said.) We have no reason to help them out. Let's leave."

Tsuna looked at Ryuuji, who looked so pitiful and helpless that he made his mind. "I'll listen to what you have to say. I think you guys seem to be in real trouble if you seek help from middle schoolers like us."

Ryuuji laughed. "Oh, you don't know half of it." He faced Gokudera. "I don't know if this changes anything, but this pickpocket has the potential to completely terrorize Japan. He might move on to other countries, and before you know it, he's going to have the planet Earth in his palm."

Gokudera frowned, and he closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead with his fingers.

"Neh, Gokudera-kun. Let's just hear what they have to say. If we don't want to we don't have to help them out." Tsuna reasoned.

"Yeah, Gokudera. It's just fun and games after all," Yamamoto added.

Gokudera sighed, resigned. "If it's what Juudaime wants, then it's what I want as well."

Ryuujji smiled brightly. "Glad we got that settled. Now, let's eat some lunch."

VvVvVv

When he went to the restaurant, Tsuna expected to hear something about the current situation from the yakuza teenagers. Instead, the said person was wolfing down okonomiyaki at speeds even Lambo can't compete with. His companion picked at his food in silence, his eyes never leaving his plate. Yamamoto tried hard in the first five minutes to seem somewhat civilized, but soon followed Ryuuji's example and just stuffed as much okonomiyaki as he could in his mouth. Gokudera looked at him and tsked, muttering something about distasteful boneheads and how he should just blow his head up.

Tsuna wasn't sure of what to make of the situation. He wanted to hear Ryuuji's reasons for asking him to collaborate with the mafia, but at the same time he just wanted to go to the arcade and later go home and read manga like a normal teenager. The environment in the restaurant didn't help; they were the only ones in the room save for the waiter in the corner texting on his phones. The sounds of cups and utensils hitting plates and the sizzling of the okonomiyaki rang in the room, and nobody was talking.

Suddenly, Ryuuji froze, his mouth stopped mid-chew, and he stared up at Tsuna. He swallowed his food, and asked, "Are you guys ready to talk?"

Gokudera glowered at him. "We were ready the minute we walked through the door."

"Well, I wasn't. Thanks for your patience. Right. So, the pickpocket. The petty criminal." Ryuuji exhaled, and ran his hand through his hair, thoroughly messing it up. "We—as in my father and his close subordinates—have a suspicion he is the extortionist that blackmailed the Yamaguchi-gumi and any of the families that have any connections with them, which includes us. He disappeared a year ago without a trace. He goes by Matsunaga Futoshi. We thought someone got rid of him, and forgot about him until we heard about the pickpocket in Namimori. We investigated in the pickpocket, and his appearance matches him perfectly." He pulled out his phone and pressed something on the screen. Once he found what he was looking for he hands the phone to Tsuna.

Tsuna looked at the screen and found himself looking at a picture of a crowd zoomed in on a figure in a chambray shirt with the sleeves pushed up to right below the elbows. He had shaggy blond hair wrapping his thin face, black roots peeking out at his crown, and his hand was inconspicuously reaching into the hand bag of a distracted teenage girl on her cellphone. He had on dark aviator shades which hid his eyes from the camera. However, he was staring right at the camera, and plastered on his face was a disturbing grin. It was creepy feeling, and Tsuna quickly handed the phone to Yamamoto, but not before getting shivers crawling up his neck.

"Um, Ryuuji-san? What did this person do in the past?" Tsuna asked.

"Matsunaga? Hmm…" Ryuuji put his hand to his chin and frowned, eyebrows furrowed in thought. "I think he was into all sorts of stuff. Stealing, building bombs, human trafficking, all sorts of stuff."

"Is he part of the yakuza, too?"

"He's not. The yakuza… refuse to be put in the same group as him. The yakuza may do criminal activities, but they do it with pride and class. This guy is a psychopath, a sadist. He loves torture, he loves pain, and he loves blood. And the worst thing with him is that he does whatever he wants, whenever he wants, wherever he wants. Sex? No worries, he just goes to a whore house. Money? He robs a bank. Bored? He kidnaps people, tortures them, then either kills them or leaves them to die."

Tsuna sat in his seat in shock, and Gokudera snatched the phone from Yamamoto's hands and stared at the picture incredulously. "He looks so… weak." Gokudera looked up from the phone. "How does a guy like this be so evil?"

Ryuuji shrugged. "That's why I want you guys to help me stop him. You guys are in the Vongola, the strongest mafia group in the world. I did my research," Ryuuji quickly added as he saw the surprised looks on their faces. "Our gang already had some… quarrels with him before, and it didn't end well. Help us prevent it, before he disappears again."

Tsuna felt conflicted. He knew he should help them, and he knew they needed some extra help. However, he didn't want to get his friends in danger, and he didn't want any more trouble than he had already in his life. "Ryuuji-san, why don't you just ask some other Yakuza gang?"

Ryuuji just laughed. "They're worse than us. And they're afraid. The yakuza itself is complicated, and the people in it are even harder to understand. If you agree to help us, I'll give you more details, but for now, I need to know if you're going to help us or not."

Tsuna looked down at the table. He could feel the pressure looming from all around him, and he wasn't sure what he wanted to do. Did he want to help them? Of course he did. But did he really —want to be involved in all that trouble? In a span of 2 months he went to the future, defeated Byakuran, he defeated Daemon Spade (and rekindled the friendship between the Simon and Vongola), and he went through the Arcobaleno fight and helped defeat the curse. He had enough excitement for 2 lifetimes, and it didn't help that in the future he was going to become the boss of the biggest mafia group in the world. But he couldn't leave these people alone. But… all he wanted was a normal of a middle school life as he could. Scratch that, he wanted a normal life in general!

"I… I don't think we can help you. I—I'm going to have to decline."

Gokudera and Yamamoto looked Tsuna in shock. Ryuuji pursed his lips, but said nothing. He stood up, reached into his pocket, and tossed a card to Tsuna. Tsuna caught it clumsily, and looked at it. All it had on it was a phone number. Tsuna looked up at Ryuuji questioningly.

"If you change your mind within the next 10 days, call me." Ryuuji then left without a word, Naoki trailing behind him.

VvVvVvVv

He never considered himself a bad person. He merely thought he was doing his role on Earth: judgement. Seeing who is fit to live and seeing who isn't. He attacks the weaker ones. It's not his fault they die. They just can't protect themselves. They're worthless. As for the stronger ones, if they beat him, they're strong enough for now. If not… then they aren't worth much thought.

Some see it as cruel, wrong, or just plain messed up. But he sees the beauty in this. His judgement, his control, is leading the human population on the right track again. Natural selection. It was out of a job ever since man walked upright. He knows it's impossible to fix it completely. But at least he can do it a favor.

The police and yakuza are constantly out to get him. But he outsmarts them. He's better than them. They can't do anything correctly. They need to be exterminated.

His plan is working. His master plan, the one that started 4 years ago. He wonders how that boy is doing now. His one tool, his one pet.

Wipe off the weak. Test the strong. That's his role, his one purpose. Or is it? Surely he's worth a bit more than those zombies riding the subway every day. No, he broke out of his boundaries long ago. Nothing can keep him prisoned forever. His mind has no limits.

He is God.

Review! Any comments are welcome!