A/N: 8059! Don't like it, don't read it! If you do like it, please review it! The more reviews, the more compelled I will feel to continue!!

~ The 'Gokudera' Department of Arazora

Disclaimer: I do NOT own KHR or any of the canon characters. I, however, do own any OC's that may appear and this particular plot.

Prologue

"What do you mean, he's gone?" the surprise and the hurt was evident in the voice of the tall, raven haired teenager, his dark eyes widening with horror. His companion, a shorter boy with a large head of light brown hair, just sighed softly.

"Gokudera-kun called me last night," Sawada Tsunayoshi whispered, his own voice disappearing at the end of that phrase.

Yamamoto Takeshi leaned against the wall, all the life seeming to leave his body. "N-No…It can't be…" Yamamoto whispered, clutching at his face, biting his lip furiously. "He wouldn't leave without telling me…"

"It was probably something really important," Tsuna seemed on the verge of crying himself, as he tried to console his usually happy friend. It felt as if he was missing a limb. Gokudera Hayato had just upped and left the previous night, after calling Tsuna.

Even now, Tsuna could remember, very clearly, the "conversation" that had occurred between the two of them just the previous night.

The phone rang; shrill and loud in the silence after Reborn set off an explosive because Tsuna had gotten the wrong answer. Glad to escape his tutor, Tsuna ran down the stairs, tripping over his own feet in the process and crashing onto the wooden landing.

The phone rang again and Tsuna scrambled to his feet, beating Lambo to the phone. The Bovino assassin pouted, his eyes threatening to tear over.

"Lambo-kun, would you like ice cream?" Tsuna's mother appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, holding a carton of the stuff. Immediately, Lambo's expression changed to one of utter delight.

He dashed off, followed closely by I-Pin, who was trying to correct his behavior.

Shaking his head, Tsuna answered the phone just as it rang once again. "Moshi-moshi," he said into the receiver.

It was quiet on the other side for a little bit and Tsuna was beginning to think it was a telemarketer when the caller finally spoke up. "Juudaime…I'm leaving tomorrow, for Italy. Something very important has come up and I might not come back alive. Please don't ever forget me and forgive me for leaving you so suddenly."

Click.

Tsuna stared at the phone, as the dial tone began to play.

Had he heard correctly?

Was his Storm Guardian playing a joke on him?

Tsuna ran to the door, pulling on his shoes as he opened the door. He ran down to the street, pausing at the edge of the road before he realized he didn't know where Gokudera-kun even lived. "All this time and you never figured out where he lives!" Tsuna berated himself, trying to keep back tears.

In the present, Tsuna ran a hand across his face, wiping away the tears that had formed at the corner of his eyes. Yamamoto's face was blank, hardening.

"That bastard," Yamamoto growled, clenching his hands into fists. "He didn't even bother to call me to tell me he was leaving."

The baseball player was shaking his head slowly, grinding his teeth together. Tsuna began to look worried. He didn't know how well Yamamoto could handle being hurt like this.

But despite the emptiness he felt at Gokudera's leaving, he could also feel a slowly flickering flame of anger burning in his stomach. How could he just leave like this?

"Tsuna," a very familiar, child-like voice rang out in the empty hallway.

"Ah, Reborn!" the brown-haired teenager jumped.

"If you miss Gokudera this much," Reborn pulled his hat over his eyes, his expression as unreadable as always. "Then go follow him."

Reborn held out two pieces of paper.

Yamamoto and Tsuna looked down at the slips blankly.

"They're airplane tickets," Reborn explained. "Use them to get to Italy. Find Gokudera and help him with whatever it is he has to do there. Then bring him back."

Tsuna didn't bother to question his tutor's motives but still, he hesitated. Yamamoto's hand snaked out and snatched one of the tickets from Reborn.

"Arigatou, Reborn-san," Yamamoto's voice was soft, the shadows obscuring his face. "I won't let you down."

"Go with him, Tsuna," Reborn ordered.

Tsuna still hesitated.

"As boss, Tsuna, would you let your own right-hand man go off on a dangerous mission by himself?" Something in Reborn's voice seemed to help Tsuna make up his mind. He took the ticket, staring down at the departure time.

"We have two hours to get to the airport. I told Mama that I was taking you on a purely educational trip to Italy. Now go home and get ready." Reborn ordered. Tsuna left, looking back over his shoulder at Yamamoto and Reborn.

"Reborn-san…" Yamamoto's voice was still soft, yet strained at the same time.

Reborn didn't say anything, just nodded his head.

Yamamoto smiled sadly before following Tsuna.

-------x

"Flight 8059 is now boarding from Gate 27," the announcer over the loudspeaker said above the din of the airport. "All passengers please report to Gate 27. You will depart soon."

Yamamoto and Tsuna were already in their gate, Yamamoto shifting his weight from foot to foot, his expression anxious. Tsuna just looked more like a nervous wreck. He had never been on a plane before.

They were finally allowed to board and they did so. They had been booked into the coach section of the plane and they spent just a few moments gawking at their surroundings before the people behind them coughed impatiently, forcing them forward.

"Here are our seats," Tsuna said, stopping next to two seats by the window. The plane wasn't all that big, because they would be making a change to a bigger plane when they stopped in China two hours from the present time.

Yamamoto slid into his seat, placing his head in his hands. Tsuna sat down next to his friend, unsure how to comfort him. He kept expecting the Storm Guardian to pop out of nowhere and begin shouting at Yamamoto for no particular reason. Even after the two of them became closer than before, this had still happened on a regular basis.

Fifteen minutes later, everybody had boarded the plane and they were preparing for take-off.

Yamamoto hadn't moved from the position he had assumed when he got on the plane, but Tsuna was holding onto the handlebars next to his chair for dear life as the plane roared down the lane. "We're going to die, we're going to die," he squeaked.

Once again, it felt weird not to have Gokudera say something in that rough, although comforting way, he had.

Neither Yamamoto nor Tsuna talked much for the entire flight. Yamamoto didn't seem to be in the mood and Tsuna was too scared to say anything, or move much, in case the plane malfunctioned and crashed or something along those lines.

When they landed at Pudong Airport in Shanghai, they had to get on their other plane almost immediately. They ran through the massive airport, searching for their gate. Yamamoto seemed to have regained some of his old spirit by the time night descended. The plane they boarded now was a lot bigger than the one they had taken across the sea from Japan to China.

It all seemed a little surreal to Tsuna as he boarded this new plane. He had just gone out of the country, which he had never done before, and it wasn't even going to be a fun trip. "Well, who says it can't be fun," he tried to reassure himself. "Gokudera-kun will listen to us. He'll come back. And…we'll be able to see Italy!"

"Talking to yourself again, Tsuna?" Yamamoto tried to laugh, but it came out all wrong.

Tsuna forced himself to smile. No use in making Yamamoto worry anymore than he already is. He told himself, as he scratched the back of his head.

Once again, the take-off was nerve-wracking for Tsuna. The sky outside had darkened, so that the plane was now flying among the stars. Tsuna pressed his nose against the window, staring down at the bright twinkling lights of Shanghai.

"Wow…" he murmured.

Dinner was served on the plane, stuff like pizza and beef noodles that tasted all weird. Neither Yamamoto nor Tsuna ate much. They had both seemed to sink into a state where they knew what they were doing and nothing else really mattered anymore.

Sleep didn't come easily for either of them and it was a long time before Tsuna finally managed to doze off. When he woke up, the sun was shining brightly through the window and the plane was circling above the airport in Rome.

"We're finally in Italy," he whispered.

Yamamoto turned his head, dark bags visible underneath his eyes.

"Did you sleep at all?" Tsuna asked, his voice worried.

Yamamoto shook his head, smiling slightly. "I couldn't sleep." He confessed. "I spent the entire trip thinking of what I'm going to say to Gokudera when I see him again." He laughed, this laugh still not his usual cheery laugh.

After they got their luggage from the carousal, they made their way to the main lobby. They both stopped in the entrance, seeing a head of very, very familiar light silver hair and a face with very, very familiar features.

Gokudera Hayato fell to the floor, pounding his head against the tile. "Juudaime, I'm so sorry for leaving you like that!" he cried.

"G-Gokudera-kun!" the brunette knelt down, trying to stop Gokudera. "Please stop, people are looking!" he whispered.

"Ah, sorry," Gokudera sat up, resting his hands on his thighs. He didn't look at Yamamoto, just kept his eyes on Tsuna's face. "When Reborn-san called and told me that you two were coming here, I was so shocked! I never intended to make you guys worry so much!" he said quickly, before Tsuna could butt in. "But what I have to do here is very important and I cannot leave immediately," his face became serious and that was when Tsuna realized Gokudera wasn't wearing his usual Western clothes.

No, instead, Gokudera was wearing a suit. Complete with red dress shirt.

"I-I understand, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna stammered. "No need to rush."

"There's something else, Juudaime," Gokudera lowered his voice. "But I'm going to have to tell you in the car. Please, come this way," he stood up, gesturing with his hands to the front doors. Yamamoto trailed behind Gokudera and Tsuna, still unsure how he was going to react.

He was feeling two different emotions at the same time. One, he wanted to kill Gokudera for making him worry, but on the other hand, he also wanted to just take Gokudera in his arms and never let him go.

Gokudera turned his head, seeing Yamamoto's face. His lips twitched ever so slightly as he reached out with his hand, brushing against the back of Yamamoto's. The tall Japanese teenager looked slightly surprised, but he just laughed, feeling his heart relax. He was where he was supposed to be.

Preview at the next chapter!

Chapter 1: Us vs. Them

"Wait, what?" Tsuna blinked.

"Juudaime, the Vongola are up against some serious enemies this time," Gokudera explained for the umpteenth time. "The Moretti family isn't like anything we've ever faced before." He clenched his hands into fists. "They killed my father…" he said after a long pause.