The Ferocious Lion of Vongola
Tsuna had spent 15 years of his entire life under the tutelage of the Sun Arcobaleno, Reborn, for the sake of his upbringing as the Vongola Decimo. Respected by some and feared by most, he holds the name of the "Ferocious Lion" of Vongola. And now, the Lion is to search for his Family.
Warning: Swearing, an extremely out of character Tsuna, violence
A/N: Okay, so I'm just giving this story a try because- well, you know, plot bunnies are evil… *shudder* Every single day, the plot bunny just sits there staring the hell out of me and giving me the creeps with this 'Write-what-i-demand-or-you're-not-getting-any-sleep-again' stare and I just had to or else I'm not sleeping. Again. *groans* Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
Chapter One: Ciao
"You're going to cut it? Your hair, I mean," Reborn asked, leaning against the wall with an aura of dignity and professionalism that not any ordinary 2-year-old can possess, his arms crossed above his chest, a cup of coffee within his tiny hands. "Last time I checked, you said that it's too troublesome so you never did bother."
His student shrugged as he thoughtfully fingered the edge of his long, dark brown locks. His hair had grown, indeed, but he never bothered to cut it out of his own belief that appearances didn't matter especially when they were someone in the same line of profession as he was and that the length of one's hair doesn't necessarily determine his or her capabilities on the battlefield (the mere idea was utterly ridiculous, really). However, thinking back to it, as he was the last viable candidate and inheritor for the position of the Familgia, he had to look after himself very carefully and that included combing the hell out of his hair which had always been hassle because his training sessions with Reborn was not exactly the easiest and the neatest. So here he was, contemplating whether he should or shouldn't cut it.
"A few Mafiosi had seen me personally and they were mostly the people who I trust and those who the Ninth had deemed trustworthy. On the other hand, those who knew of me from gatherings, meetings, or just rumors in general had taken my appearance as someone who greatly resembles the founder of Vongola itself, down to the weapons, how he wears the Vongola Ring, and the silhouette. In fact, some of those rumors even seemed to accentuate the fact that my hair resembled a lion's, thus they named me 'The Lion' or something like that," he muttered with a sigh. "Of course, they don't really know how I looked like because I wore a mask as the Ninth suggested, but that didn't stop them from comparing me to Vongola Primo."
The Sun Arcobaleno hummed. "So you're trying to be cautious."
"Basically, yes."
Reborn took a calm sip from the cup of coffee he had within his grip, silent, as if he was thinking of something, before nodding to himself.
"Keep it," he suddenly said.
Blinking owlishly at the command, the brunet unconsciously tilted his head to the side.
"Why?"
"Because it's more amusing that way," the Sun Arcobaleno vaguely replied.
And they left it at that because Tsuna was not suicidal; he'd choose to obey rather than have a hole blown through his head any time of the day.
"Anyway," Reborn said in a tone that dismissed their previous conversation. "Your flight is due in an hour and Oregano is finalizing everything along with Turmeric."
"Is Oregano coming with me for surveillance purposes?" the brunet asked as he walked over to his nearly empty closet in order to grab a few things before removing his clothes which consisted of a black dress shirt and casual jeans. He didn't particularly mind the fact that he was stripping right in front of his tutor, partly because his tutor had made sure to make him as immune as he possibly can to embarrassment by regularly putting him in embarrassing situations all the time and partly because Reborn had been with him for way too long that he learned not to care.
"She insisted on coming, actually." Reborn shook his head with a smirk. The woman had been personally appointed as Tsuna's temporary subordinate for him to be benefited with the actual experience of leadership and so that Oregano can monitor the brunet's condition while away or within the HQ. Somewhere along their 'companionship', Reborn mused, the woman had gotten attached to the brunet, viewing Tsuna as a perfectly capable and reliable leader and Tsuna, in turn, didn't really mind.
Slipping into a woodland camouflage t-shirt and a pair of skinny ripped jeans, he nodded. "Is there anything else that I have to take note of before leaving?"
"What do you remember?"
Gathering the mid-length hair from behind his head with one hand (Reborn had always called it his 'tail' which was a reference to his nickname 'Lion' in the underworld) and quickly tying it together with a silver ornament which he had received from the Ninth on his 12th birthday, he grabbed his black jacket which lay neatly on the surface of the bed.
"Secrecy is top priority, avoid confrontations with enemy if possible and finish my assignment without any complications such as being involved with anything troublesome given my nature to attract trouble," he verbally listed, slinging his black jacket over his shoulder and grabbing three of the most essential things that he needed in order to accomplish this mission; the Vongola Ring, his X-Gloves, and a gun which was modified to resemble Xanxus' own.
"Don't forget punctuality," Reborn emphasized with a slight glare. "You're definition of early is arriving precisely a day after the event, and if this habit of yours reaches Japan, I'm asking Oregano to send you back immediately to Italy so that I can personally give you a lecture about punctuality."
Flippantly waving his hand in the air, Tsuna chuckled, evidently amused, as he opened the door to his room.
"Alright, alright," he laughed. "Ciao, Reborn."
Reborn pulled at the edge of his fedora to conceal the slightly prideful smirk that tugged at the edges of his lips.
'He had grown,' he couldn't help but think.
Watching as the door closed, he let the smirk turn into a small smile.
"Ciao."
TBC.
Next Chapter: Frogs.