Disclaimer: I do not own KHR. If I did Tsuna would be a true super uke and smarter, sorry as much as I love and will write about the lovable idiot, Goku and Naruto have made it so too many main characters are idiots

Summary: What if Tsuna was smart, like genius hacker smart, but decided to hide it behind an average student exterior.

Chapter 9: Survivors

Tsuna stared at Mukuro, dumbfounded, before…

"Tsk… hahahahaha."

Before Mukuro could get mad or start assuming Tsuna was making fun of him, Tsuna did his best to stifle his laughter.

"I'm sorry. It's just that was one of the main reasons we risked going after the Estraneo."

Somewhat pacified, Mukuro decided it wasn't worth it to get angry at a potentially useful ally. It wasn't every day you found a group of pre-teens who could take down an extremely technologically advanced bunker with minimum effort.

Mukuro then snapped his head in the direction of the door leading to the scientists' quarters.

"What do you plan to do with them?"

Tsuna winced. "In order to do this, we had to make a deal with the head Yakuza in Japan." Seeing Mukuro's eyes narrow, Tsuna continued quickly. "They'll be sentence under mafia law."

"So the Vendici will be stepping in." Mukuro smirked; one did not want to cross the Vendici.

Tsuna just nodded, hoping this meant Mukuro wouldn't be going on another killing spree.

He began to head toward prison section, but then turned to look at his three friends. "I want you guys to stay here." They were less than enthusiastic to comply.

"EXTREMELY no."

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to be alone with him Tsuna."

"No."

Sigh. "Look, some of these guys may panic if they see a large group, and depending on what the scientists did to them that could be a bad this, a very bad thing."

"What if they EXTREMELY panic and your EXTREMELY alone?" Takeshi nodded at this and Kyoya just "hn'd."

"I won't be alone, Mukuro will be there." Seeing their confused looks, he elaborated. "Him." He pointed toward Mukuro, who just lifted an eyebrow.

"I don't trust that herbivore."

"I know, but he needs me, so he won't let anything happen."

With that they reluctantly agreed to stay put and make sure they didn't have any unwelcome visitors.

KHRKHRKHR

The stair case directly behind the door lead the odd pair down three flights into what looked like a typical dungeon setting. Like the lab corridors, the prison consisted of a narrow hall with doors lining both sides, the key difference being the type of doors.

Tsuna couldn't help but feel a bit sick at the sight of the long rows of steel door bolted shut with thick locks. The only openings, in the otherwise solid block of metal, were a small 4" by 4" barred observation window and a cat flap at the bottom.

Mukuro walked past the cells he knew were empty, not at all disturbed by the familiar sight of what had been his "home" for the last three years, and instead focused on the only three cells with living occupants.

"There are only four of us left."

Tsuna looked up, startled by the sudden noise in what had been a tensely silent trek through the prison, before looking back down. He had to swallow back some of the bile that threatened to come up. He had known it was likely that many of the initial fifteen test subjects, brought to Japan four-years-ago, wouldn't make it and that only made him feel guiltier about delaying this mission.

"I-I've known about this place for four years."

Mukuro froze and turned to stare at the nervous boy with his mismatched eyes (Tsuna noted the kanji for one had changed to six). His expression was unreadable, but Tsuna didn't dare look away as he tried to convey his feelings with his eyes. He needed Mukuro to understand there was nothing he could have done before then.

"If you were gifted enough to find this place, surely you could have informed a mafia famiglia, even if you don't have any ties to one." The words were hissed out between clenched teeth.

"Maybe, but then all of the test subjects would have been executed by the Vendici."

Mukuro seemed to consider that a moment before conceding the point. The Vendici were meant to protect mafia law and if something, even a child, was deemed too much of a threat to let live, the Vendici eliminate it. Try as he might, Mukuro couldn't fault Tsuna for not acting sooner, this wasn't the kind of thing you wanted to mess up.

"What of the Yakuza?"

"He gave me 24 hours to do what I have to before he moves in. I was hoping to use this time to get all living prisoners to safety and examine the technology." Mukuro indicated a door for Tsuna to open, so he got out a simple lock pick. "As far as the Vendici will know, all of the living subjects escaped during an experiment, killing multiple scientists in the process."

Mukuro smirked. "Kufufu. Glad I could help with the cover story."

"Indeed."

Tsuna opened the cell and was faced with the sight of a small form with dark hair, shaking huddled in a corner. He looked toward Mukuro, feeling it would be safer for the older boy to approach the dark haired one.

"Chikusa." The small form jerked up at the sound of the name, revealing glasses covered dark blue eyes and a bandaged forehead.

"Mukuro-sama?" While the boy was visibly relieved to see Mukuro, he was also confused.

"We're leaving." His eyes widened as he hurried to stand and run toward the door, but hesitated when he noticed Tsuna. "He's helping us."

The boy didn't seem to sure, but carefully stepped out of the cell. Tsuna offered him a small awkward smile, but the boy just hid behind Mukuro, causing Tsuna to let out a small sigh.

"Are you hurt at all, Chikusa-san?" The boy didn't even look at Tsuna, just shook his head quietly. "Alright then."

Tsuna couldn't help but feel even more awkward as they moved on to the next cell. Neither Mukuro nor Chikusa said anything as he proceeded to pick the lock and Tsuna quietly wondered what kind of person was behind the door.

He didn't have to wonder long because as soon as he got the door open, a larger body slammed into him and knocked him to the ground. Tsuna looked up to see blonde hair, a large scar running over his nose, a small flower like birth mark on his cheek, and golden eyes with a feral look in them. It looked as if the boy was prepared to bite him but was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder.

"That's enough, Ken."

Blink. "Mukuro-san?" He, like Chikusa, seemed confused, but switched his attention back to Tsuna and started growling when he felt Tsuna shift beneath him.

"He's harmless, let him up."

"But Mukuro-san-"

"Now, Ken." Mukuro's voice left no room for argument as Ken slowly got off Tsuna, who Mukuro helped to his feet. "Are you alright, Tsunayoshi-kun?"

"Yeah, but what's this about me being harmless?" -.-

Smirk "Kufufu. Aren't you?"

"I'm far from helpless. Kyoya saw to that."

Mukuro quirked an eyebrow at that. "We'll have to test that later, but for now we have one more friend to rescue."

"Right."

The casual conversation left Ken and Chikusa gaping. Apparently they weren't used to seeing Mukuro act so freely around a stranger. They chose not to say anything (more Chikusa chose not to say anything and he put a hand over Ken's mouth to keep him from saying anything) and followed the other two to the last occupied cell.

As with Ken and Chikusa cells, Tsuna proceeded to pick the lock, but he was not prepared for what was on the other side.

"WTF!"

KHRKHRKHR

22 hours later

"…get the rest."

'…'

"Yes, I know I'm five minutes late, but it couldn't be avoided."

'…'

"Look, I'm sorry, but I had one lab full of corpses, another filled with deadly chemicals, another filled with explosives, and several irate-"

'…'

"I'm not making excuses! Damn it, Asami-san!"

Tsuna was pacing around his hotel room in the dead of night, currently locked in an argument with the most dangerous Yakuza in Japan. He was exhausted, having not slept in 39 hours, and in no mood for political battles. What was supposed to be a relaxing, post-mission vacation was quickly becoming a nightmare, for him at least.

Having anticipated that they would have to provide shelter for multiple traumatized Estraneo children, Tsuna rented out four suites at Imperial Tokyo Hotel. Each of the suits had two bedrooms with queen beds; a private bathroom for each room in each suite with a giant Jacuzzi tub; and a sitting area decked out with the biggest T.V.'s any of the boys had ever seen. All of that combined with five star room service and restaurants, two enormous pools, a fully equipped spa, and a gym; and it was the epitome of luxury.

So of course Tsuna was annoyed when he was the only one unable enjoy it.

"Look, it was only five minutes, leave it alone. Now I'm on vaca-"

'…'

Now Tsuna was angry, instead of just irritated. "We agreed all of the living test subjects would fall under my protection." There was no way Tsuna was going to let Asami go back on that part of the deal.

'…'

"I don't care if he's not human, he's still living. Therefore, he falls under my jurisdiction."

'…'

"Yes, I'm willing to fight you for it, don't think just because I agreed to the truce two year ago I won't."

'…'

"Screw testing my resolve, you Asshole!"

Click.

At this point, Tsuna was too tired to worry about the consequences that would follow hanging up on Asami Ryuuchi. He resolved to turn off his phone and call the bastard back tomorrow.

I hate that guy!

(A.N. There have been some complaints about Tsuna being a little stiff, but that's the point. Tsuna isn't a normal kid; he isn't supposed to act like one. I designed the character to be socially awkward and overly intelligent, almost like an autistic child. It isn't uncommon for people to think of geniuses' and famous scientists, like Einstein and Darwin, as being a little off. Do to his obsessive compulsive methods of recording data and collecting insects, Darwin has been believed to be a functioning autistic. While Tsuna isn't so much detached, as he is perfectly capable of feeling, he's slightly out of touch and has a hard time connecting with people on a deep level, leaving his character a bit stiff and rude. When making him this way, I used characters like Ritsuka from Loveless and Miharu Rokujo from Nabari, as models. They are characters who are stiff and uncomfortable around most people, but open up to and show a full range of emotion around those they truly care about. So before anyone starts thinking I can't design a character, think about the personalities tacked on to real people who are considered geniuses', I guarantee you'll find a few that were "stiff" or awkward. And for the last time, I already admitted to getting inspiration from "The Mafia Wants You." I really wish people would stop reviewing about how eerily similar it is, when it's completely different.)