I have arrived in Namimori.
Fon
Tsuna stared at the simple email with wide eyes. He had sent the name of his town to Fon after receiving his vow but he hadn't expected him to arrive so soon. The boy shut his eyes for a second before opening them determined.
Inside of the forest at one in the morning. There is a small field; you will know it when you see it.
Yoki
He hit the send button before he could change his mind and then dropped his head into his hands. He knew it was smart to meet in a secluded area where no one else could see them and he trusted Fon enough to be alone with him. That didn't stop him from being incredibly nervous about it though. Naturally he couldn't get any sleep at all that night, didn't even try, and ended up sneaking out the moment his Mom went to bed.
'A mafia boss should always be early,' he remembered Reborn lecturing him amused.
Because of his early escape and his knowledge of the woods he got to their meeting spot half an hour early and then proceeded to spend that time panicking, internally, of course.
At exactly one Fon appeared at the edge of the meadow and despite himself Tsuna couldn't stop a smile. He wondered how long the martial artist had been surveying the area. He'd probably been there before Tsuna was. The boy stood from where he had been sitting to greet the baby. Tsuna bowed his head slightly in greeting and Fon returned to it.
"I would like a spoken vow as well before we start," was the first thing Tsuna said.
It might be rude and unnecessary since Fon had already promised to keep his secrets but that hadn't been in person. There was something in Fon's eye, curiosity maybe, but Tsuna did not know how to read the other's face. The martial arts expert merely nodded.
"I, Fon, vow that I will not tell, show, or somehow inform anyone or anything of…"
He glanced at Tsuna with a slightly raised eyebrow.
"Tsunayoshi," the boy provided.
"Of Tsunayoshi's presence or activities."
To Tsuna's surprise the man slash baby summoned a small bit of red flame in his hand as well before it vanished. It was a nice trick; not actually soul binding, so Tsuna still knew that Fon could break the vow if he wanted to but it was a nice touch and Tsuna trusted the other's integrity. The boy bowed again in thanks.
"Not Yoki hm?" Fon asked dryly and Tsuna smiled.
"You already knew it wasn't my name. There wasn't any point in hiding it anymore."
He sat down in the grass and offered the baby slash man a water bottle.
"I would have brought tea," he apologized. "But it wouldn't be very practical."
"It is fine," Fon smiled at him. "Now tell me. What are you interested in learning?"
"To be able to protect myself and others," was Tsuna's immediate response. "I want to focus more on speed, agility and endurance then strength."
Fon made a humming noise.
"What have you been doing for practice?"
"I haven't practiced any martial arts. Each night I come here and run through the woods. It helps my agility and endurance. I'm a little clumsy," he admitted. "So I've been trying to train that out myself."
Fon nodded and looked at him in silence. Tsuna did his best not to fidget. He couldn't remember if Fon had met his dad in the past or not. Obviously Lal had but hopefully Fon hadn't. Tsuna didn't want him getting suspicious; though when he thought about he did take more after his mother in looks.
"Show me."
Tsuna blinked at him.
"Sorry?" he asked.
"Do your run," Fon told him. "I want to watch."
Tsuna blinked again before nodding. That made sense; it would allow Fon a chance to see what he could do. He took a swig of water and then set off.
'Nothing flashy,' he told himself.
It was an automatic response to want to show off but he knew it was best if he just stuck to his original path. He was just turning a corner when his intuition warned him of something. Unfortunately the sense was weak since his flames hadn't been unlocked so he couldn't tell what was coming or from where. The boy took a guess and made a quick dive for the ground and felt something swoosh where he had been. He saw a small amount of red and assumed Fon had just attacked him.
'Looks like all the Arcobaleno are sadists,' he mused.
That wasn't really fair though since he understood the need to test his abilities. It had just been a long time since he had to deal with something like this. Another warning sense as he slid around a tree; so he grabbed a branch to swing himself up in time. Tsuna couldn't deny that he was having fun.
The next time his intuition went off he couldn't dodge and was kicked into a tree. The boy could instantly tell Fon was holding back since it hadn't hurt nearly as much as Reborn's kicks did. Not to mention Fon didn't aim for his head which was appreciated.
He skidded back into the clearing out of breath with several new bruises and scrapes but nothing serious. Fon joined him a minute later as he was taking a drink from his water bottle and stretching.
"Every night."
Tsuna turned his gaze on the…his trainer.
"Every night at one, here in this field."
The boy grinned and bowed his head.
"Yes Sensei."
XXX
The moment Tsuna saw Takashi after gym for cleaning he beamed at him.
"Wow, you look happy," the other boy grinned back.
"I am. I'm taking martial arts lessons."
He'd gone through several lessons so far and was pretty sore but it was a good sore. So far Fon only had him doing katas but Tsuna was okay with that. He wanted to learn as fast as he could but he also knew he couldn't rush things.
"Ah I see," Takashi grinned. "That's why you're not as clumsy anymore," he laughed.
Tsuna stared at him in confusion for a moment before wanting to smack himself. He had forgotten that he was supposed to be acting like Dame Tsuna. Well it was about time he stopped anyway; as long as he ignored the bullies and kept failing classes he would probably be okay.
"Yeah," he laughed along. "It's nice to be able to walk five feet without tripping over something."
That was one hundred percent true. His balance still wasn't perfect; probably would never be until he got his flames unlocked but as long as he could hold his own in a fight he was alright.
"So who's your trainer? Anyone I know?"
Tsuna shook his head.
"No. He's from out of town."
"Ah. Hey do you want to get ice cream after we're done?"
Tsuna grinned at how easily Takashi dismissed the topic and laughed.
"Sure Yamamoto-san."
"Takeshi."
The boy stilled and looked at his friend who just grinned at him.
"We've been cleaning together for over a month now, you come and watch me practice fairly often so call me by my first name."
Tsuna couldn't help the wide grin that spread across his face. He had his friend back.
"Call me Tsuna then."
XXX
Tsuna froze in the middle of the clearing and then found himself flying across the field and into a tree.
"Oww," he moaned.
"One must always be focused Tsunayoshi," Fon reprimanded him.
"Sorry Sensei," the boy apologized. "I just thought of something."
He bit his lip worried.
"How many waves do you think freeing the children made?"
Tsuna hadn't thought of it until now but surely something like that would draw attention and he really didn't want that. Fon raised his sleeve to cover the lower half of his face as he thought.
"Not many," he answered and Tsuna blinked.
That wasn't the answer he had been expecting.
"We did not destroy the Famiglia; just a branch of it. This was also a branch that the Estraneo did not want anyone to know about so they are keeping the business quiet."
That made sense when Tsuna thought about it. It wasn't like they wanted the other Famiglias to know about their experimentation on children and it also filled him with relief.
"Good," he smiled.
"Trying to avoid attention?"
Tsuna looked up to meet Fon's steady gaze and after a second nodded.
"I, uh, know a bit about the mafia and I don't want them butting into my life."
"And yet you are willing to interfere with theirs," Fon pointed out mildly.
"That's different," Tsuna responded sharply. "They were hurting children."
The two hold eye contact for a while before Fon just nodded and beckoned for the boy to stand.
"Again," he ordered, letting the subject go for the moment.
XXX
"Hey Takeshi; what do you want to do after you graduate?"
His friend looked up from his ice cream with a large grin.
"I'm going to go into professional baseball," he said with a laugh.
Tsuna wasn't really surprised to hear that and smiled. Takeshi made a couple hand motions, nearly dropping his ice cream, as he described how awesome being a professional player would be and Tsuna listened to him with a laugh.
This was why he didn't want to drag the boy into his life; he looked so happy and Tsuna nodded decidedly. He wasn't going to; well not into his business at any rate. It was Tsuna's choice who his guardians were after all. Takeshi could just remain his best friend without being involved in the underworld. Of course Tsuna didn't really know any other rain types but he would worry about that later. Right now he was going to enjoy the ice cream.
"What about you?" the boy asked after winding down a bit and Tsuna snorted.
What about him indeed.
"Who knows?" he shrugged. "Maybe I'll change the future," the boy grinned.
XXX
"Hey Fon?"
Tsuna ducked under a kick and used his own to try and knock the baby's feet from under him. It was kind of hard with the size difference and he decided not to do that again. After training, every night, for a month Fon had allowed him to use his name instead of Sensei and had started him on actual conflict though he still had to practice his katas.
"Hm?"
"Do you think I'm ready to fight Hibari?"
The Arcobaleno kicked him back into a wall and raised an eyebrow. They practiced on the streets occasionally so Tsuna could get an understanding of how fighting on flat ground instead of the forest floor worked.
"Not to win; I know I'm nowhere near that level," Tsuna clarified. "But to not die and not receive serious injuries."
Fon raised his sleeve to cover the lower half of his face as he thought. Tsuna hated that; that and Reborn's stupid hat. He couldn't tell what they were thinking when they hid their face.
"Another match," Fon announced to Tsuna's confusion but he took a sip from his water bottle and stepped forward.
After that it was a whirl of kicks and punches and dodging; a lot of dodging because it was really hard to hit someone Fon's size and ability. Not only was the baby a genius at martial arts but he was also…well…a baby. There was less area to hit. The fight ended with Tsuna laying on the ground panting and Fon looking down at him thoughtfully.
"You may be able to survive," the baby decided. "You plan on fighting him?"
Tsuna's eyes lit up and he jumped to his feet.
"Not yet," he grinned. "I want to give him a gift first."
He ignored the slight raised eyebrow and headed off into the street.
"Come on."
Fon followed him, naturally, since he was curious and Tsuna looked around until he found the perfect gift. A drug dealer; the boy came up on him from behind and knocked him out. Fon continued to watch confused, though he didn't show it, as Tsuna somehow got the man to the Hibari's building.
Tsuna practically glowed with excitement as he re-arranged the body there. He was carefully to move the man's coat to showcase the drugs before stepping back.
"There," he said while dusting his hands.
"You do realize it seems like you're courting him right?" Fon asked dryly as they walked away; the baby sitting on Tsuna's shoulder as a comfortable weight.
"What?" the boy spluttered. "No…well yes. But not like that," he protested and then pouted when the baby chuckled.
XXXXX
AN: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. So here is the next chapter. I hope you all enjoy. Please let me know what you think; I really appreciate advice and comments. Compliments are awesome too though haha.
