Thieves and Beggars

Chapter 7

So. I unexpectedly killed Reborn in the previous chapter. I actually wasn't planning on doing that, so I'm not sure why I did it…facepalms. ;^;

But! He could still be saved~ I mean, Barbosa was saved too, and I actually need Reborn in the upcoming chapters. Besides, I never got to expand on his character because I was really focused on Yamamoto's crew, and dropping him out of the story now makes no sense to me. So, I made a huge plot error, but maybe that's the joy of writing. To be spontaneous! Or not. Kufufufu. Anyway.

Note: After Chapter Six, I realized I went along with the first movie's storyline and had the gold coins as the link between being cursed with immortality, such as when Yama steals the coin. In the beginning, Yamamoto already had a gold coin with him, BUT PLEASE NOTE. THAT IS NOT THE COIN FROM ISLE DE MUERTA. It's a completely different keepsake that will have its story told sometime into the future.

Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!


Chapter Seven

They were running, all of them. The flames were growing higher and higher by the second, and the smoke was blackening fast. The heat was nearly unbearable, and the walls were collapsing in the cave as Yamamoto, Hibari, Dino, I-pin, Giotto and Tsuna ran for their lives from the frying pan and into the fire. Literally.

The navy was waiting for them at the mouth of the cave. There was no way they could escape without being caught. Yamamoto chewed his lip. Nowadays, it was never a good thing to be a pirate. He would be nabbed by the authorities instantly, but I-pin, Hibari, and Dino were civilians. They didn't plan to become lawbreakers, but at the moment, Yamamoto knew that the navy wouldn't be keen on listening, even with Dino's influence.

So it was die by the fire or die by hanging. Neither was very appealing. The group stumbled onto the shore, where their rowboat was still fortunately left behind. Giotto coughed and wiped ash from his face. "What now, Yamamoto?" he asked. "We're going to get caught."

"That's not the pleasant way to go, mate." Yamamoto replied crisply, taking off his hat to shake dust from it. "However, I've got a way out. But it's mad, I say."

"How?" Hibari asked immediately.

"Wait."

Everybody's head turned. Dino bit his lip, a pained expression on his face. "Yamamoto…you can't go. The navy is here. You'll be caught for sure. Just give yourself up."

"What?" Giotto and Tsuna both said in disbelief. Hibari's eyes narrowed. I-pin spun around and said in surprise, "Dino, what are you saying?"

"This—this is…" the blonde struggled with the words. "Listen, I-pin, Yamamoto is a pirate. He's actually a pirate lord, to be exact, and he's a lawbreaker. Pirates must hang. It's the rules."

"No offence, mate, but the hempen ropes aren't very appealing to me." Yamamoto cut in flatly. "Are you going to sell me out?"

Dino closed his eyes, exhaling heavily. "Yeah, Yamamoto. I am."

"You bastard!" Hibari bellowed, suddenly ramming his tonfa right into Dino's face. The blonde yelled in pain as his nose broke with a snap and began gushing blood. The raven drew back and attacked again, striking Dino in the shoulder and stomach as well. I-pin shrieked and grabbed Hibari's arm, yanking him back. "Brother, stop!"

"You arse, how dare you suggest something like that," Hibari snarled, straining half-heartedly against his sister's hold. "You came along for this journey. Nobody forced you to. You sailed with a bunch of pirates on a stolen ship for four goddamned days. This man brought us here and he saved my sister. He saved your fiancée. And you're going to hand him over to the navy like a rotten turncoat!"

"YOU THINK I WANT TO?" Dino bellowed, wiping blood off his face. It was the first time he had raised his voice like that. "You think I want to come along, Kyoya? I did it because I love I-pin, but I have other responsibilities as well. I'm the Cavallone's heir. I have to take care of my family and our business. It's my job. I can't throw that away. I can't, don't you understand?"

"No," Hibari said, shaking with anger. "No, I don't understand one bit. But I do know one thing. Touch Yamamoto Takeshi and you. Will. Die."

"That's enough," Yamamoto said sharply. "We've got no time. Dino, I have no way of understanding what you position are in at the moment because frankly, I can't give a rat's arse about the navy and the East India Trading Company. However, I do understand what family means to you. But if you try to stop me, I won't go down without a fight." He turned to the rest of the group. "Gio, and Giotto's brother…I need you two to go and turn the rowboat upside down in the water. Now, and quickly."

The blonde nodded and pulled Tsuna along to do so. Dino and Hibari were still facing each other, and I-pin was standing nervously between them.

"Kyoya—" Dino started, but Hibari cut him off.

"I'm going. I've got other business now, and it doesn't involve you." The raven turned on his heel and began walking towards Yamamoto. I-pin closed her eyes and sighed.

"Dino…" she said softly.

"I-pin, please," the blonde said suddenly. "Please, I-pin. You can't go with them. They're pirates. I-pin, you can't. Please. Please."

The young woman looked up, pressing her lips together firmly. "Dino, I owe Yamamoto my life. And I have questions about my past that I need to know. I…I can't go with you."

"No, I-pin, please—"

"I'm sorry," I-pin whispered, then turned and ran after her older brother, long black hair swinging behind her.

He couldn't watch her as she left. Dino closed his eyes and listened to the waves crashing against the walls of the cave. There was an empty emotion inside his chest right now. What was it? Pain? Regret? He bit his tongue and nearly tasted blood. Why did losing everything hurt so much now?

Then, suddenly, it came crashing down upon him, the words spoken by someone they had visited not very long ago. It was astonishing how quickly fate could move.

You shall lose what you once held dear
Betray what matters and fail to bring a loved one near

He lost I-pin once. She was saved, but in the process, he'd dishonored the Cavallone name. He tried to fix that, and where did it lead to? Dino sank to his knees and opened his eyes. He was alone on the shores of Isle de Muerta. Fail to bring a loved one near. All his efforts were in vain.

I-pin was gone. Again.


"This is madness." Giotto said plainly. Yamamoto chuckled dryly and said, "Yes, I've heard so before."

"Don't talk so much," Hibari muttered from the back. "I'm running out of air."

"Urk, what was that I just stepped on?"

"Crab."

The rowboat bobbed a little. Yamamoto reached out to feel around the rocky side of the cliff. It was hard to see, so he had to make sure they were all following the right direction. "I'm going to check the surface. See if we're going to right way, mates."

"Hurry up," Hibari complained. "There's not much air left."

"Aye, aye," Yamamoto said lightly, and then ducked out from the under the rowboat. Saltwater stung his eyes a little as he swam towards the surface, inhaling sharply as he broke through the water. Treading above the water, Yamamoto looked down to see the blurry outline of the rowboat underneath him. It was a smart idea, actually. With the navy waiting for them at the mouth of the cave, it would be impossible to get out of there alive. Unless, of course, they couldn't be seen.

The solution? Go underwater. Holding one's breath while trying to swim to the surface would be difficult if they didn't know which way to go, so Yamamoto helpfully solved the problem by having him, Hibari, I-pin, Tsuna and Giotto line up under the upturned rowboat and walk underwater until the found the Vongola, relying on the air bubble trapped under the upside down boat. Giotto was right in a way. Only Yamamoto could come up with such mad theories.

Their ship was only several feet away. Once they walked around the side of the cliff underwater they would be able to board the ship and escape. Yamamoto took a deep breath and plunged back down under the waves. He located the rowboat and immediately ducked under. He emerged, spluttering.

"How far are we?" Hibari asked immediately.

"Not far," Yamamoto replied. "We've only got this last corner, mate. Let's go."

The group mumbled and continued their slow-motion walk along the bottom of the sea, hanging on to the side of the cave that extended below the surface of the sea to make sure they stayed under. After several feet, Yamamoto poked his head out from underneath the rowboat and managed to get a glimpse of the bottom of the ship. "Alright, we've made it. Go up before we all suffocate."

Taking huge breaths, I-pin, Giotto, and Tsuna all ducked out from underneath and swam quickly to the surface. However, Hibari remained behind, frowning. Yamamoto blinked and said, "What's wrong, mate? We're really going to run out of air soon."

Hibari gave him a fierce glare. "I…I can't swim."

Yamamoto blinked. Damnation, he'd forgotten. Hibari immediately looked the other way, as though angry with Yamamoto. The dark-haired pirate managed an amused smile. "Well, I'm sure we can solve that, right?"

Hibari raised an eyebrow. Yamamoto chuckled and held out his hand. "Just trust me, mate."

"You're the one who said never to do so," Hibari retorted, but grasped Yamamoto's hand all the same. In one swift movement, Yamamoto bumped his head up and knocked the rowboat over. The air bubble trapped beneath immediately rushed up to the surface. Hibari struggled a little at the uncomfortable feeling of the salt water rushing in, but Yamamoto pushed off hard against the bottom of the sea and they shot upwards. Within seconds they broke through the surface, and Hibari spluttered madly, coughing and shaking water out of his eyes. Yamamoto held onto him tightly, spitting a stream of water out of his mouth. Thank goodness they were still in a relatively shallow area surrounding the cave, or Hibari would've drowned. The man looked like a soaked, irritable cat again, scowling and clinging onto Yamamoto's shirt.

"Get me out of here," he mumbled, keeping his head down. "I hate water."

"Aye, aye," Yamamoto said good-naturedly, kicking towards the Vongola. He could see that the others had already made it back safe and sound, and suddenly, a length of rope splashed into the water as they neared the side of the ship.

"Cap'n!" It was Gokudera. "Grab on! We don't have much time!"

"Get up there first," Yamamoto said, grabbing the end of the rope and placing it in Hibari's hands, which seemed reluctant to let go of his shirt. The raven nodded and wound the rope between his hands, and Gokudera began pulling him up. A second later, Mukuro also tossed a rope over and pulled Yamamoto out of the water as well.

"We saw the fire," Mukuro said. "What in the devil's name happened in there?"

"A fire happened, that's what," Giotto said dryly, tossing a ragged cloth over to Yamamoto. "Yamamoto, you do realize that we have to sail past the navy's ship in order to get out, right?"

"Aye, but I'll bet they've got part of their arms full with Reborn's crew right now," Yamamoto said, fixing his hat. "If we fire a couple of shots at them as we go, we should get a decent head start."

"What if they fire back?" Lambo squeaked, clutching the hem of his shirt. He looked so terrified that Yamamoto had to wonder how on earth the kid became a pirate.

"Then we fire back again, moron!" Gokudera snapped, slapping Lambo on the back so that he slipped on the deck. "Hurry up and man the cannons, damn it!"

The crew scrambled to comply. Ryohei, Gokudera and Lambo vanished into the hulls, Mukuro climbed up to unfurl the sails, and Giotto ushered I-pin and Tsuna into the captain's quarters, despite their protests. Yamamoto took his place by the wheel, and was surprised to find Hibari already standing there, loading a rifle. His hair was still wet, plastered to his neck, and he'd abandoned his jacket somewhere so all he wore now was a vest and shirt. He was quite skinny.

"Canons not your thing, eh?" Yamamoto asked, turning the wheel as the wind began to tug the ship forwards. Hibari scoffed loudly, tapping the butt of the rifle on the floor of the deck. "Don't make me hit you."

"As you wish," Yamamoto said lightly, turning the wheel. "Pass me my effects, will you? And some gunpowder. One fight's over, and another's just begun."

Hibari rolled his eyes and tossed Yamamoto's sword, and bag over. The pirate lord caught it with an expert hand, immediately rummaging through it for his spyglass. "Ready yourself, mate. From what I remember, the Vongola isn't built for defense, was it?"

Hibari scowled. "No. Speed."

Yamamoto sighed. "Maa, maa. Not much use for us if we get a hole blown in the hull."

The giant ship steered around the corner. It felt as though everybody was holding their breath. Yamamoto's eyes narrowed in concentration as he turned the wheel slowly. The Vongola scraped past the side of the cave, so close that all one had to do was reach out and they could touch to weathered rock.

"Steady as she goes…" Yamamoto said, too quietly to be heard by anyone other than Hibari, who raised an eyebrow. There was a moment of stillness, and then the ship turned the last part of the corner and the navy's giant battle cruiser came into view.

"Captain!" Mukuro yelled.

"FIRE!" Yamamoto bellowed, turning the wheel sharply so that all the cannons on the right side of the ship were exposed. There was a deafening roar and a powerful boom as the entire ship was pushed slightly to the side. The cannonballs flew across the short distance between the two ships and within seconds, nailed the navy's boat with several hard shots. There was another ear-splitting blast as the crew under the deck continued to fire. Shouts came from the ship as the wood splintered from the impact, but a moment later, a cannonball from their enemies came whizzing by.

"Watch out!"

The first damage the Vongola took was a huge blow to the rails. The cannonball skidded along the width of the deck, shattering wood and blowing up part of the rails on the other side of the ship. Yamamoto gritted his teeth and turned the wheel sharply, bringing the Vongola out towards the open sea in an attempt to start their escape. However, they were still too close to their enemy. Navy officers and gunmen swung over from lengths of rope with well-practiced aim, landing on the ruined deck with loud thumps. Yamamoto cursed. There were at least six of them already.

Bang. Bang.

The dark-haired man blinked when two of the sailors dropped like stones, dead with a bullet through their head, courtesy of a raven next to him. Hibari made an irritable noise in his throat when he saw that only two of their foes had fallen and took aim with the rifle again.

Bang.

A third sailor collapsed on the deck. The remaining three immediately fired at them. Yamamoto and Hibari ducked quickly, pieces of wood breaking off from the shots. There was another roar as a canon nailed itself into the back of the ship, right into the captain's quarters.

"I-pin!" Hibari said suddenly. Yamamoto grabbed his arm and yanked the raven down.

"Don't look up, you'll get hit!"

There were the sounds of two more shots, and only one sailor was left standing. Yamamoto squinted up at the crow's nest to see Mukuro half-hidden among the mass of ropes and sails, a rifle in his hand too. He gave a quick wave to the blue-haired man, who returned the gesture when he saw that Yamamoto and Hibari were safe. Then, barely a second later, another bullet grazed by Yamamoto's exposed hand, cutting the flesh open and scattering droplets of blood over them.

"Whoa," the pirate lord blinked, sucking on the wound. "They're better than I thought."

"Who was it that told me not to get up?" Hibari hissed, looking furious. "You're stupider than I thought!"

"You're a horrible person, has anybody told you that before, mate?"

"Yes," Hibari shot back, "You did." With those words, the raven cocked his rifle again and crawled over to the side of the ship, lying flat on his stomach and taking aim between the gaps in the railing. Yamamoto shook his head in mild amusement, keeping the ship's wheel steady while still lying down on the floor. The canons and bullets continued to fly around them, and the Vongola shuddered as she attempted to sail out of the cove while being pursued by the Navy's battleship.

"Pirates! This is Commodore Gamma! Surrender yourself this instant!"

The Commodore's voice was magnified slightly over the roar of the battle, just loud enough for Yamamoto to hear it over the din. Ginning, he pulled his hat down over his eyes and smirked. "Way to be ironic now, Fate."

"What are you mumbling about?" Hibari yelled back. Yamamoto only gave him a half smirk and said brightly, "Hold the wheel for me, Hibari!" and slid down the ruined steps leading up to the wheel, ignoring Hibari's protests. He shimmied down to the deck, ducking quickly through the trapdoor and into the hull, where Gokudera, Lambo, Giotto and Ryohei were operating the canons and covered in dust, grime, and sweat.

"Cap'n! What's going on?" Gokudera bellowed, wincing as another cannonball crashed into the side of the ship.

"Need a favour from you men," Yamamoto grinned. "I need you to fire off a reply to the Commodore for me."

The four pirates blinked, and then looked at each other. Shrugging their shoulders, they looked back towards their captain.

"What be yer orders?"


Aboard the navy's top battleship, Millifore, Commodore Gamma slid his telescope shut with a snap, glowering at the Vongola as it continued to sail out of the cove with no obvious intention of stopping.

"Damn those pirates. We're shooting at our own ship," he growled, clenching his fists.

"Commodore! Do we proceed with the plan?"

"Aye," Gamma replied, turning his back onto the stolen vessel. "Destroy those maggots if it's the last thing you do!"

"Yes sir!" the sailors chorused, hurrying to their positions to initiate their plan. Gamma closed his eyes as the cannons were directed towards the ship yet again. It's over.

Booom.

The sound of a canon shook the waves and rocked the boat, and Gamma frowned. There was no way his sailors had fired yet, so what was going on…?

Boom.

This time, sea water forcefully splashed up onto the side of the ship, washing out any sailor who wasn't steady on their feet. The Commodore himself had to grab tight onto the rails, hanging on to keep himself upright.

Boom.

A third cannon shot rang out, and to Gamma's shock, he saw the cannon fly right into the water instead of hitting the boat. His eyes widened. This tactic. He'd seen it before. It couldn't be.

"Brace yourselves!" he bellowed to his men, and at that moment, a giant tidal wave erupted from the sea from nowhere, sending the Millifore tipping dangerously close to one side. Sailors screamed as they fell and equipment came crashing above them. Several cannons rolled loose and fell with dull splashes into the waves. Gamma cursed as the ship straightened itself after several heart-stopping moments of nearly flipping. He knew who the pirate lord on that ship was now. The Commodore threw back his head and bellowed the much-hated name up towards the sky.

"Yamamoto Takeshi!"


Hibari laid flat on the deck, spluttering madly as he spewed a stream of seawater out of his mouth, eyes wide. What on earth had just happened?

"Hibari!"

Yamamoto was running up onto the platform now, throwing himself flat onto his stomach as well to avoid the bullets still hurtling their way. "Are you okay?"

"What in the devil was that just now?" Hibari hissed. "Did you make that tidal wave?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes," Yamamoto replied cautiously. Hibari scowled. He got the feeling that the pirate was hiding something from him again.

"How did you do it?"

Yamamoto shrugged, pulling out his pistol. "I've got my ways. I've lived at the sea my whole life, so I know a few tricks."

"Why did you make that tidal wave?" Hibari pressed. "Right after that annoying herbivore told you to surrender?"

Yamamoto pursed his lips and an unnaturally dark look washed over his expression. He shook his sleeve back and turned his arm out towards Hibari. "Look here, mate, you see what's on my arm?"

The raven turned to look. For a moment, he only saw a suntanned arm with a tattoo of a swallow, some Chinese characters and a seashell, and then his eyes focused on another mark that he had seen once before. It was a burn mark in the shape of a P. A pirate's brand.

"That's…"

"The burn," Yamamoto said quietly, shaking his sleeve back down, "was from the man on that ship right now. Commodore Gamma."

"He burned that mark on you?"

"Received a promotion for it too," Yamamoto gritted out. "I'm not losing to him a second time."

Hibari bit his lip, fingers tightening on the rifle. For some reason, that made him…angry. The fact that another man had done something like that to Yamamoto…

"Captain!" Mukuro suddenly yelled from the crow's nest. "We've got a strong wind in our sails!"

"Aye!" Yamamoto called back, brightening up a little. "Full speed ahead!"

The giant sails of the Vongola puffed out as the sea breeze caught in its folds, spreading the cloths out like a bird spreading its wings. Yamamoto stood up and quickly turned the wheel of the ship, bringing them further out towards the sea. Hibari got to his feet as well, wind sending him stumbling forwards into Yamamoto's back.

"We're almost out," he said, blinking. Yamamoto grinned. "Aye, mate. We're good from here."

The Millifore had yet to catch the wind. Slowly, the Vongola began pulling ahead, and Mukuro jumped down from his post to call Gokudera, Lambo, Giotto and Ryohei up from the hull. I-pin and Tsuna came out of the half-destroyed captain's quarters as well, covered in dust but unharmed. The crew cheered as the vessel splashed through the waves, gaining speed and momentum. Hibari began to hurry down the steps towards his younger sister, a rare look of relief and happiness on his face.

Yamamoto smiled. They were almost out of the cove now. Beyond the mist, he could just start to see the blaze of a warm morning sun.

Clack.

He heard the ominous sound ring out in his ears and Yamamoto turned. From nearly twenty feet away, there was a tall figure standing on the deck of the Millifore. A familiar figure with a dark green coat and a wavy mop of golden blonde hair, pointing a long rifle in their direction.

Commodore Gamma.

In an instant, the wind picked up again. Yamamoto froze. There was no doubt who the Commodore was aiming for. But with this breeze, the bullet will definitely be blown off course, and it would hit—

"Kyoya!"

I-pin's voice carried Hibari's name over the sounds of the waves crashing against the ship towards Yamamoto. The raven was still walking down the raised part of the staircase towards his sister. Panic pounded through Yamamoto's veins.

"Hibari—!"

Bang.

The raven jerked, eyes widening in shock. I-pin stumbled to a halt, her jaw dropping as she looked up to where her brother was standing. Hibari slowly raised his hand, pale and shaking, to touch a larger, tanned hand that was placed over his chest.

"What…?"

Yamamoto Takeshi was standing behind him, arms wrapped protectively around the raven, shielding him from what would have been a fatal shot. Hibari turned to face the dark-haired pirate, confusion and fear etched on his face.

"Was that a gunshot…?"

Yamamoto gave a weak smile in response, coughing a little as his knees buckled. It was only then did Hibari see a dark red stain slowly blossoming on the pirate's chest.

"Yamamoto—!"

The pirate lord's knees gave way at that very moment, and Hibari, a moment too late, reached out to grab at the other's arm. But Yamamoto had already started to fall, and in a mere second, the dark-haired man had already tumbled over the side of the blown-up railings and plummeted into the sea with a resounding splash.

Far away, Commodore Gamma lowered his rifle with a grim smile of satisfaction at the small ripple of water next to the Vongola. It was his win.

"We're done here."

The wind howled as I-pin's scream pierced the air and Hibari grabbed at the remains of railing, his voice cracking with the sudden overload of emotion breaking through his voice. Behind him, Gokudera's yells and Tsuna's terrified cry only added to the confusion and disbelief.

"Takeshi!"


This. Is Chapter Seven. I finished this at 12:05 am the night before my math exam. Am I demented or what? In any case, I apologize for not completing this earlier. I am once again using the excuse of having a writer's block, and therefore you guys are entitled to smack me around the head for using such a pathetic reason for not completing my work. I'm sorry!

By the way, how many of you guys remember the rowboat scene from the first Pirates movie? :'D One of my fav moments~~ haha~

On a side note, I will admit that I had a lot of schoolwork, but I'm back now. Hi. Hi. Hi. I love you guys :'D And so, Reborn is dead. Dino betrayed them. I killed off Yamamoto. I am seriously insane. That is all. Please look forward to Chapter Eight! Reviews a much appreciated!

-Blackstar