With the Dying Will Flame blazing brightly across his forehead, Vito threw another punch at his opponent. His fist made contact with his opponent's nose, but it didn't look like the punch did any discernible damage.

Instead, Vito got his arm grabbed and was thrown over his opponent's shoulder. Vito yelped and only just managed to land on his two feet instead of sprawling across the rocky floor. He didn't get any time to catch his breath, unfortunately, as a barrage of punches suddenly rained down on him. Vito held up his arms and tried to swerve around the assault, but the one straight that got him in the side of his face really got him good.

That hit sent shockwaves through Vito's skull and crackled down his spine. Once the punching stopped, Vito numbly dropped to his knees. The sun was at the right angle to give a bright enough shine to hurt Vito's eyes. A tall, giant, shadowy silhouette stepped in front of Vito to block the light.

"I thought you said you already knew how to throw a punch, Tsuna," Iemitsu said lowly. It was less a taunt and more like a quiet observation, but it still pissed Vito off. "Listen, look, and learn. This is how you throw a punch."

Iemitsu pulled his arm back. Despite how messed up his jaw was feeling, Vito ignored that and the jerky set of teeth pushing against his cheek to give a whistle. Right on cue, Brasi popped up from behind a nearby boulder to latch his fangs onto Iemitsu's elbow.

Despite the growls, snarls, and chomping Brasi was doing, none of that stopped Iemitsu from delivering his next punch. The other part of Vito's jaw was a fucking jumbled up mess now.

Thinking fast, Vito opened his palms and faced them toward the ground. With his X-Gloves, he released a condensed swirling tornado of flames, just big enough and bright enough to prompt Iemitsu to take a step back and shield his eyes. In the usual way Brasi seemed to instinctively know what new shape to morph into to work in tandem with Vito, the bulldog hung onto Iemitsu's shoulders and transformed into a crumpled parachute, the same kind Vito wore back during the war.

Raising his arms, Vito let the burst of flame envelop Iemitsu. The Brasi parachute snapped open behind Iemitsu with the connecting suspension lines wrapping around his torso. The giant influx of hot air sent Brasi soaring into the sky, Iemitsu following as he screeched in surprise during the whole trip.

Once Iemitsu was just a twinkle in the sky, Vito felt all of his flames disperse into nothing. He fell forward with his face flat against the floor.

He was fucking exhausted. He thought sparring and throwing punches with Iemitsu would have been therapeutic, not leaving him half-dead with too many broken teeth and other shit to count.

As Vito inhaled rock dust and started coughing, he turned his body to lie on his back. Opening his eyes to the soft blue sky, Vito could see in the corner of his vision Joe in his wheelchair push himself to his best friend's side.

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph," Joe murmured with a barely concealed snicker. "You look like – well, ya know."

"Like shit," Vito finished for him. It was still weird hearing Joe censor himself. Lal must have been one hell of a tutor.

She didn't have jack on Reborn, though.

The Arcobaleno in question stood on Mama's shoulder. Vito could see the uncomfortable look on Mama's face as she walked up to Vito and Joe. She didn't like seeing her baby boy get beat up so much, but this was neither the first spar she's seen him in nor the worst injuries he's gotten this week. The fact that it was Iemitsu whom Vito was duking it out with might have something to do with her compliance up to this point. Father and son were sort of bonding, in a way.

Vito still wouldn't call him "father," though, even if Mama keeps looking disapprovingly at Vito whenever he refers to Iemitsu by his first name.

"You have finally won your first sparring match against Iemitsu," Reborn said as he pretty much glowed in a yellow light. "Even if it's by ring-out, you get one accelerated heal, just as we agreed upon."

And the it'll be the only Sun Flame heal Vito will be getting. Reborn and Iemitsu didn't want to "spoil" him too much.

In just a few short minutes, Vito was well enough to sit up straight and stretch his arms with only slight winces. At least his pain tolerance was improving. That and his manipulation of his Sky Flames. That Zero Point who-duzit technique that Iemitsu was hellbent on teaching Vito still gave him trouble, but he was sure he'll figure it out eventually.

Straightening his jaw with an audible crack, Mama held a glass of lemonade toward him. Not his favorite drink, but it might as well have been dope and morphine mixed together since it always renewed his confidence and alleviated the muscle aches.

"You should take a break for the rest of the day, Tsuna," Mama suggested as she also gave Joe his own lemonade. "You've been working hard all week, so you deserve a reprieve. Basil-kun also said he'd be ready to train with you as your sparring partner, so you can start refreshed and anew tomorrow."

Joe was smirking. "It'll just be like all old times, back when old man Monara showed us how to box when we were kids," is what he'd probably have said if Mama wasn't around. She and Iemitsu still didn't know about the whole reincarnation deal, and they wouldn't for a while if Vito had anything to say about it.

Vito's training ground was situated atop a mountain, just outside the same place the usual gang had gone to for the camping trip with Dino, the trip that had turned sideways real fast. Among the forest trees over the end of the cliffside, an explosion went off. Vito guessed Gokudera was still hard at work, too. Vito had to give the guy credit, letting his precious boss get beat up ten times over day and night. When push came to shove, Gokudera still knew when to follow orders.

"I'll get Hayato-kun and Shamal-san their share of the lemonade," Mama said. She sauntered away. Vito and Reborn shared a short look before the hitman moved away and began dialing numbers on his phone. Joe reached out a hand and helped pull Vito up. After stuffing his X-Gloves – now morphed back into mittens – into his back pocket, Vito pushed Joe to their little campsite, beside the tents and the campfire. Vito checked the pot over the fire. From the smell of things, the soup was almost ready.

"So where were we before?" Vito asked as he snatched a wooden spoon to stir inside the pot. In between the spars, he and Joe have been catching up on what the other has been up to in this new life of theirs. "The time Lal caught you with your pants down, or the time an illusionist made you French kiss a stop sign?"

"Screw you," Joe said out of good humor. He took a sip from his cup of lemonade from a little straw. "We were talking about Earth Flames. Right? How I've got them and stuff."

Right. Earth Flames. And the Simon Family.

"I was about seven or eight when I met Makoto Kozato," Joe explained. "He and Iemitsu were working on some job together. Lal used to teach me about Rain Flames, but Kozato knew right away that I had Earth Flames. Must've just been randomly born with 'em, I guess, since they ran tests and made sure I didn't have any Simon blood in me. Iemitsu made a deal so that Kozato would show me how to use my Flames. Don't know jack about making blackholes, but I can kinda push and pull stuff if I concentrate hard enough. I prefer the old-fashioned guns, though."

Vito preferred guns and old-fashioned punching and brawling, too, but relying on those alone wouldn't get anyone too far with how intimately the mafia in this world was built on Flames. "So you've never met Enma or Mami? Have no idea what they've been up to?"

"I've heard their names, but it's someone else's job in CEDEF to keep track of the Simon Family, so I never looked into them." Joe cleared his thought and inclined his head toward Vito. "You met them when you ran off from home, right? Who are they to you?"

"They're my family," Vito answered without any hesitation. "I was pretty messed up when I was younger. Couldn't stop fucking dreaming about our old lives. Kept reliving my stint in prison, seeing Henry get killed; stuff like that. Drove me insane, so I left Namimori, tried to find something that would get me to stop thinking about everything we went through. Then, I ran into the Kozatos. We only spent time as a family for six months, but it was the best damn six months I've ever had, in this life or the last one."

Joe snorted. "If they're who you call family, what does that make me? Should I be jealous?" he joked lightly.

"I wasn't jealous of Marty," Vito said. At the mention of the kid, Joe's lips flattened into a thin line. He glanced at his drink. "He had an annoying voice, but he was still a kid, and you cared about him. You wanted to show him the ropes, teach him how to get the big bucks while being deserving of respect. It was the same for me, Mami, and Enma."

Even though Vito hardly knew Marty, Joe had pretty much grown up with him. Marty was there to help Joe out periodically when Vito was dodging bullets in Italy or boxing schmucks in prison. It hit Joe hard after Marty got killed, and Vito ended up having to pull Joe out of a few drunken or rage-fueled jams afterward.

"I don't know where I'd be today if CEDEF wasn't there for me," Joe suddenly said. "Pulled my ass out of the fire more times than I can count. I'd call them my family, too. Same goes for you, Vito. Don't care what anybody says. We're brothers." Joe clasped a hand on Vito's shoulder and offered him a smile. "I'll try talking with some of our boys back in Italy. Maybe talk to Iemitsu, even. If the Kozatos were there for you, then I think you oughtta know how they've been doing for themselves this whole time."

Vito returned the smile. "So, you're not jealous?"

"Jealous about what? Hey, if Enma and Mami are your family, then they're practically mine, too." Joe looked at something behind Vito before returning his attention back to him. "Maybe think about making some peace with Iemitsu, while we're at it. I get that you don't like him, but it's getting freakin' awkward with having yous two's pissing contest all the time, and Iemitsu signs my paychecks."

Fine. Iemitsu saved Joe's life back when he was just a kid in this world. Even if Iemitsu didn't know how much Joe means to Vito, Vito can lay down on some of the hostility.

It had to be a two-way street, though, and Vito axed all thoughts on making any peace when he heard Iemitsu walk up from behind them and open his mouth.

"The Simon Family will never forgive the Vongola for what Primo did to Cozarto Simon," Iemitsu said as he strung his arm around, stretching. "Makoto Kozato only wanted to use you as a weapon against the Vongola, Tsuna; a weapon to be used by his real son, Enma. While they aren't currently our enemies, you should focus on your own inheritance and your own future instead of clinging onto your obsession on reuniting with the Kozatos. In all likelihood, they will only take advantage of that compassion if you do meet them again."

Iemitsu didn't know the first fucking thing about Enma. However, because Mama and Reborn were coming their way and because Joe had the decency to give Iemitsu the stink eye, Vito didn't say anything. Neither Vito nor Iemitsu have won any of the arguments they've had this past week, and it wasn't just Joe whose nerves were getting frayed from them.

"These Kozatos can't be all bad if Vito's so vehement on a reunion," Mama chimed in, which kind of surprised Vito. She checked the soup pot and went to get the bowls and utensils from one of the tents. Her eyes met Iemitsu's for a brief moment. "Tsuna will always be our son. Letting him have some closure with the people who kept him safe when he went missing won't change that."

Mama quickly turned away. The look on Iemitsu's face said that he wanted to say something to her, but he neglected to do anything.

"Speaking of family matters," Reborn spoke up, "Tsuna, what have you learned about Xanxus through your studies?"

Between the boxing matches with Iemitsu, Reborn was having Vito read up on old CEDEF reports and other documents about Xanxus and the Varia. Vito was surprised by how much paperwork the Vongola seemed to keep, but the crime family must be too big to work without that much filing.

"Guy's got anger issues like a redheaded midget," Vito said. Mama and Iemitsu frowned at him, but Vito ignored them. "He uses his own brand of X-Guns that fire Dying Will Flames. He doesn't know the Zero Point stuff, so he compensates by packing a lot of fire power. Sky Flame harmonizes with Storm to make Flame of Wrath, right?"

"Are you right?" Reborn challenged. "A good mafia boss should be well aware of what permutations and combinations the various Dying Will Flames can take shape as."

Vito rolled his eyes. "Xanxus also ran his own coup against the Ninth ten-odd years ago. That's how he got himself frozen in the first place." Crossing his arms and adopting a contemplative stance, Vito asked, "Did Xanxus know your first student, Reborn? Maybe he taught Xanxus some tricks that you might know about."

Really, Vito was trying to fish for more info on Reborn's first student, who he still hasn't named or spoken too much more about. Unfortunately, Reborn saw right through Vito's play immediately. "Xanxus had inspirational examples to base his own rebellion on, but where he excels in brute strength and a fine familiarity with mafia politics, he lacked the finesse and tactical prowess to follow through. The ideal strategy to defeat Xanxus in the coming battles is to outwit him, much like how you defeated Iemitsu in today's spar."

"Reborn is right," Iemitsu added. "Outmaneuvering Xanxus is your best bet. It has been at least a month since Nono unfroze Xanxus, and my agents say that he has been hard at work training himself. He is much more precise with his X-Guns now, though I'm sure you are the better marksman."

Vito smiled. That was one thing he beat Iemitsu fair and square at without any flame powers involved. "Last I checked, Xanxus ain't got a shape-shifting bulldog on his side, so if we're talking about outsmarting Xanxus, it'll be a piece of cake."

"Watch that overconfidence, Tsuna," Iemitsu berated, which prompted Vito to roll his eyes again. "Don't act so dismissive. All of Nono's sons – Enrico, Massimo, Federico – shared conceited and cocksure attitudes toward the world because of their Vongola blood. And I watched each and every one of them die from idiotic and avoidable mistakes on their part. Xanxus' time being frozen has likely humbled him. You need to humble yourself as well. By the end of these Ring Battles, I don't want to be attending another funeral."

"Don't be so dramatic," Vito snorted. "Have you seen what Brasi can do? I bet you he can –" Vito stopped himself short as looked around the campsite. "Where Brasi? Didn't he come back with you?"

"When we landed and he returned to his dog form," Iemitsu explained, "he started sniffing in the air and ran off. He's the offspring of Leon, so I assume he can take care of himself."

As if on cue, Vito saw Brasi in the distance hop up from below the edge of the mountain. He trotted toward Vito, a small wooden branch being held in the dog's mouth.

"The heck is that supposed to be?" Joe questioned as he pointed at the end of the branch.

Of all things that there could've been, it was red necktie that was wrapped around the piece of wood. Something off was about the color of the tie, though.

Mama held her hands over her mouth as she gasped and took a step back. Reborn drew his Leon gun out, and Iemitsu was back in Hyper Dying Will Mode. Reborn and Iemitsu were spinning their heads around, looking intently at their surroundings.

Then Vito saw the trail of red splotches dripping from the tie. It wasn't naturally colored red and instead drenched in blood.

"What the hell?" Vito murmured. He didn't know what to say when Brasi sat in front of him and held the branch up, as if he wanted to Vito to take the tie.

"We are being watched," Reborn announced. "You need to train your agents better, Iemitsu. I called them not more than fifteen minutes ago, and they claimed that the perimeter was secure and untouched by any intruders."

"Is this some sort of taunt from the Varia?" Vito asked, pointedly not laying a single finger on the tie. "Whose blood is that?"

"The Varia must have figured out the rings they obtained are fakes sooner than expected," Iemitsu said. He glanced at Reborn before turning to Vito. "Xanxus seems to be taking after Reborn's first student more than we thought. He was also a professional hitman. For special hits, neckties dipped in rat's blood were Reborn's first student's calling card."

X

Technically, Fuuta was supposed to be asleep in bed by this hour. However, Tsuna-nii and Mama weren't around to make him go to sleep, and Hana-nee and Haru-nee were busy getting self-defense training from I-Pin and Bianchi. So, Fuuta was free to bring the last batch of mint chocolate chip ice cream up to Tsuna-nii's room and to watch Mochida-senpai train with the future version of Lambo.

Tsuna-nii had to go out to the mountains for his training. Fuuta guessed that was because he was the boss. Since Mochida-senpai was still technically only the rank of associate, it made sense that his training was a lot more simpler and could be done at home.

"Fucking shit!" Mochida-senpai screamed as a spark of green lightning ran up his hand and up his arm. He jumped back and rubbed his shoulder.

"Such an unclean mouth on you, Kensuke," Lambo drawled out, sitting across from Mochida-senpai. Lambo yawned and picked at his ear. "I forgot how much you used to spend around Tsuna-nii. I suppose now is about the time you start using the same language as him. Honestly, I prefer your future self. You are much more professional and mindful of what you say."

Mochida-senpai narrowed a glare at Lambo, but the glare wasn't as scary as Fuuta expected. Senpai was very new to the mafia, so he was probably still getting used to the idea of green fire creating green lightning. Older people had a harder time understanding how things like that worked and made perfect sense.

"Are you going to keep comparing me to my future self," Mochida said through gritted teeth, "or are you actually going to teach me how to use my Flames like Vito said you would?"

Lambo shrugged. "The young Vongola in this era has no real authority over me. I answer only to the Vongola Decimo in my time period." Lambo glanced at Fuuta. "And to my favorite older brother."

Struck by a surge of pride at the older Lambo speaking so reverently of him, Fuuta blushed and ducked his head. One day, Fuuta wanted to be just as big and strong and respectable as Lambo basically just confirmed that that's what will happen. Fuuta looked up again and offered the bucket of ice cream in his hands, as a show of gratitude. Lambo shook his head.

"Honestly, Kensuke, my time would be better spent training Fuuta-kun since you'll more or less get enough tutoring from Takeshi and other Lightning Flame users."

"I think you should stop using my first name, Bovino," Mochida grunted as he turned his glare to Fuuta. "And you're supposed to be asleep." Standing up, Mochida snatched the bucket of ice cream out of Fuuta's arms.

"That's mine, Mochida-senpai!" Fuuta whined. He tried to snatch the bucket back, but Mochida-senpai was too tall. Fuuta couldn't even hop off the bed to reach his ice cream, since senpai held the bucket high over his head.

"Vito says that you have to sleep," Mochida-senpai said sharply, "then you go to sleep. Since you're his brother, Vito will probably let you off easy. Can't say the same about me."

Fuuta stopped his attempts to take back his mint chocolate chip. He felt conflicted now. He wanted to stay up and share the ice cream with Lambo, maybe get some official training from him. But Mochida-senpai was supposed to be the one being trained while Fuuta slept. Mochida-senpai wasn't the Lightning Guardian, but he was still a combative member of the family while Fuuta was still technically a civilian barring his ranking abilities.

Mochida-senpai should be the priority. Why couldn't Fuuta have been born with a stronger affinity with Flames? Then he could be fighting on the front lines instead of Lambo and more actively helping Tsuna-nii.

"The cute pout schtick works on the Sasagawa-san and Miura-san," Mochida-senpai said. Was Fuuta making a cute pout? Were cute pouts something he can use to his advantage? "Not on me. Go to sleep, or I'll ask Bianchi-san to poison the muffins Miura-san baked."

"No!" Fuuta gasped. He tripped and fell on his bottom, too stunned at the threat to stay standing. "But Mochida-senpai! Those muffins are for Lambo and I-Pin! Haru-nee needs taste testers for when she bakes more for Tsuna-nii!"

"I don't care. Go to sleep."

From behind Mochida-senpai, Lambo let out a weary sigh. He stood up and stole the ice cream container from senpai. "You're no fun, Kensuke-senpai," Lambo said as he swallowed a spoonful of ice cream. Mochida-senpai was glaring back at him now. Lambo gave Fuuta a wink. "Stay true to that altruistic attitude of yours, Fuuta-nii. We are all far from innocent by my time, but simple acts of kindness can go a long way for one's character."

Before Fuuta could ask Lambo what "altruistic" meant, the lights suddenly went off. The sound of the TV from downstairs stopped, too. There was only the bull-shaped nightlight Mama had gotten as a present for Lambo plugged into an outlet to illuminate Tsuna-nii's room.

"Ah," Lambo let out a calm breath, "I almost forgot about this." He shoved something into Mochida-senpai's hand. Fuuta couldn't see a whole lot except for the brief shine of metal as light reflected off the object. "Here's an early birthday present. Works just like Takeshi-nii's sword."

A crash sounded off from downstairs, along with an unfamiliar shriek. The scream was almost drowned about by a battle cry from I-Pin, terrified shrieks from Haru-ne and Hana-nee, and Bianchi shouting, "Poison Cooking: Black Diamond Edition!"

Why was Bianchi using one of her poison cooking attacks when older Lambo was upstairs? Fuuta was about to ask that question aloud when someone noisily broke through the window. A black blur dashed through the room before flash of green light blinded Fuuta. Another unfamiliar voice started screeching in pain. Fuuta had to cover his ears since the sound was so sharp.

When Fuuta could see again, what he saw made him flinch and grab his wrist. He had only met the Varia Lightning Strike Squad once, but he recognized the uniform of the intruder immediately. Someone with a mask and a coat like that broke Fuuta's arm before. If Fuuta's uncle hadn't been there and negotiated a ceasefire with the Varia...

Instinctively, Fuuta hid behind Mochida-senpai. Senpai draped a protective arm around Fuuta as they backed away toward the door. Lambo was wearing his horns that were surging and beating with Lightning Flames while the Varia assassin lay on the floor twitching.

"It doesn't get any easier from here," Lambo called out as he snapped his fingers to send another shock across the Varia person. "But you know what they say. Misery loves company."

Then Lambo exploded in a puff of pink smoke. The original Lambo returned in his older self's place. He was asleep with a snot bubble being blown out of his nose. When the Varia Strike Squad person tried reaching his hand toward his baton weapon a few feet away, Mochida-senpai grabbed Lambo by his hair and dropped him in Fuuta's arms.

Fuuta turned away and left the room, carrying the sleeping Lambo with him. Senpai was stabbing the assassin with the knife-pencil thing the older Lambo had given him, and the last thing Fuuta saw a shivving scene like that was in one of the illusions Mukuro Rokudo had put on him. Fuuta didn't need to see anything like that ever again.

Mochida-senpai was just being a good associate for Tsuna-nii's family, though, eliminating a threat to the family. Can Fuuta really do the same once he's older? Stabbing someone to death? He couldn't even shoot Tsuna-nii's dad when he thought Tsuna-nii was an intruder. That was a good thing since Tsuna-nii's dad wasn't a real intruder, but –

Fuuta barely took three steps into the hallway when, between all the screaming coming all around the house, he heard the sound of a body hitting the floor with a loud thud.

Turning his head, Fuuta stared at the headless form of another Lighting Strike Squad assassin. The head was sitting against a wall. It was dark without any of the lights on, but some of the shine from the moon through a window and the light from Tsuna's room shone enough for Fuuta to make out most of what was in front of him.

Fuuta desperately wished Mama or Tsuna-nii were here. Tonight was supposed to be a fun sleepover. Instead, tonight was turning out just like his seventh birthday.

Someone picked up Fuuta and Lambo with one arm. Once Fuuta finally managed to turn his gaze away from the headless corpse, he saw Takeshi-nii looking with concern at the two kids.

"You okay, Fuuta?" Takeshi-nii asked. Fuuta couldn't find his voice, so he just nodded and hugged him. Fuuta could see some blood splashed along the sword Takeshi was holding.

Panting heavily, Mochida-senpai entered the hallway with shaky steps and approached them. "Yamamoto? The hell are you doing here?"

"Vito called," Takeshi-nii answered. "He said that the Varia are in Japan early. I came by to help make sure everyone was alright."

"What, you and Vito don't trust me to get the job done?" Fuuta could hear a slight stutter in Mochida-senpai's voice. He was also whispering, "Did you cut that guy's fucking head off?"

"Maa, Mochida, don't take it personally." Fuuta, still holding onto Lambo, felt himself be gently placed in the grip of Mochida-senpai's arms. "Here. My dad and Bianchi took care of the last assassins. Stay with them. Keep the kids and the girls safe."

"What about you?"

Fuuta was starting to smell the blood. Mochida-senpai's shirt was caked in it. He moved his head away from Mochida-senpai's chest and ended up see a small glint from Takeshi-nii's toothy smile. "Tsuna called up all of his Guardians," Takeshi-nii said. "The Varia are here in Japan. According to Tsuna, we're going to have a face-off."

X

This was bad. Iemitsu had naturally suspected Xanxus, Squalo, or Mammon would be able to see through the fake Vongola Rings in time, but he did not expect them to mobilize their forces so quickly. He shouldn't have sent Lal back to Italy early. While she may have seemed distracted around Basil for reasons Iemitsu hadn't yet discerned, her presence would have helped discourage the Varia's agents from attempting any more taunts or assassination attempts. If the Poison Scorpion and Tsuyoshi weren't as skilled and fastidious as they were, there may have been worse casualties inflicted in the Sawada house.

Iemitsu could only imagine how emotionally unstable Tsuna would be if any of his girlfriends or his little siblings were killed. Xanxus would surely defeat an off-kilter Tsuna. Thankfully, no one except the Varia Lightning Strike Squad members died tonight, and the failed hits appeared to only strengthen Tsuna's resolve.

At least, that is what Iemitsu assumed what Tsuna was experiencing behind that expressionless face. Iemitsu was too busy piloting the helicopter to get a better look. Reborn must be rubbing off him. Reborn sat opposite Tsuna, and they nearly mirrored each other with their heads tilted downward with their respective fedoras partially shielding their eyes.

Iemitsu opted to use the helicopter to get back to Namimori proper in a quarter the time than had they traveled by foot. They picked up Hayato Gokudera – who insisted to sit in the co-pilot seat "as Don Vittorio's representative" despite the teenager's complete lack of knowledge on how to pilot a helicopter – and left Shamal to protect Basil and Nana from any other potential attacks. Basil has worked with Shamal before and would be able to keep him from doing anything lecherous with Iemitsu's wife, so Iemitsu felt free to worry more about what other dirty moves the Varia might play.

"We're almost to your school," Iemitsu announced to his passengers.

"Namimori Middle?" inquired Tsuna. Those were his first words since kissing his mother goodbye on the cheek and entering the helicopter. "Don't land there. Head to the Namimori Shrine."

Why would Tsuna ask to go there? "The Shrine is farther away from our house than the school. We can get home faster if I land on Namimori Middle's roof."

"We're not heading home or toward Hibari's turf," Tsuna corrected. He held up his phone. "I already called up the Guardians. Except for Lambo, they're heading there, too. It'd be nice to know who my Mist Guardian's supposed to be, so that I can tell 'em what I have in mind for the Varia."

Telling Tsuna about Mukuro Rokudo and the girl he's partially possessing right now would only distract him. "What good will reconvening at the Namimori Shrine do?"

"Tsuyoshi and Bianchi can hold the fort at home. The Shrine is neutral ground. Everyone in town knows not to do anything illicit in that area. If the Varia try anything again there before you can start officiating the Ring Battles, then that's gives us all free reign to kick their asses."

While Iemitsu opted to redirect their course to the shrine, he shook his head as he processed Tsuna's words. "That's not how the Ring Battles work. Xanxus might have the authority to order hits on individuals affiliated with the Vongola Family but not formally an official member," such as in the case of the Ranking Prince, whose adoption paperwork Iemitsu should really push on once the battles are over to appease Nana, "but he knows going directly after you and your Guardians will cost him his candidacy. Even if he does do something so overt to bypass the Battles, the Vongola doesn't recognize any of the authority the gangs in Namimori may claim. Not even your gang, Tsuna. If they make any move against Xanxus or his Guardians, the Varia will have free reign to go to war."

At first, Tsuna frowned. Then he wore a smirk that Iemitsu has seen on Federico Vongola far more times than he could count. The rumors said that Federico died with that smirk on his face before his entire body was reduced to bone. Iemitsu desperately hoped Tsunayoshi wouldn't be following a similar fate.

"It won't be the first war I've been in," Tsuna said in a smug tone. Iemitsu was reminded of Basil for a moment. It sounded like Tsuna was half-joking with his words. Definitely an inside joke of which its significance was beyond Iemitsu's understanding.

As Tsuna had proclaimed, his teenage Guardians were waiting at the base of the small hill near the shrine. Ryohei was shadow boxing the air while Kyoya Hibari lounged in the grass a good distance away from him. The Hibari's lackey and Tsuna's lieutenant Tetsuya Kusakabe was also present, sitting on the stairway up to the shrine and on his phone. Tsuyoshi's son Takeshi was waving up at the helicopter. When they landed, Hayato declared that he was going to secure the perimeter. Takeshi said that he had already done just that, and an argument between the two ensued.

There was a small quiver to each movement Takeshi made, to each word that came out of his mouth. It wasn't the cold that was the cause of that, and those red gashes along his shirt he was hiding under his jacket told Iemitsu everything he needed to know. Iemitsu wondered what Tsuyoshi will have to say when he discovers how his son became a murderer tonight, or what Iemitsu will say once Tsuna secures his very first kill.

"For the love of God," Tsuna drawled in a tired voice as he stepped off the helicopter with Reborn on his shoulder, "will you two ever stop it with the back-and-forth some day? It's bad enough when Ryohei gets into fights with Hibari, but you ain't doing yourself any favors in becoming my right-hand man, Gokudera, or in getting that pay-raise to attend all those baseball games in America, Takeshi."

Tsuna's Rain and Storm Guardians reacted differently to the reprimands. Hayato assumed a submissive position and begged for forgiveness. Takeshi scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously.

That little habitual motion of Takeshi's practiced a thousand times over gave away the stains on his shirt. The very second Takeshi raised his arm, Tsuna's gaze sharpened as he asked, "Whose blood is that?"

Kusakabe intervened before Takeshi could explain. Holding up his phone as he ran toward Tsuna, Kyoya Hibari's right-hand man said, "Ichiro's brother Saburo spotted more men in black coats hopping across rooftops upriver. They'll be here in seconds."

Breaking off his glare with Takeshi, Tsuna gave Kusakabe a nod. "Good. You see how much more coordinated we are now that you're working for me, don't you?"

Kusakabe made a hand gesture of slicing off his own neck, likely not wanting to get into the topic of the NDC's merging into Tsuna's gang with Kyoya Hibari nearby.

"Alright!" Tsuna yelled at the top of his lungs. All eyes were on him now. "Kusakabe, Iemitsu, you can stand aside. Reborn, Hibari, you keep doing your own things." The Cloud Guardian lackadaisically yawned. Tsuna took a step toward the staircase and put a hand in the pocket where he was keeping the handgun form of Brasi. "Rest of you, stand with me."

Iemitsu and the others obliged Tsuna's orders. Reborn moved to stand on Iemitsu's shoulders. "Tsuna has grown to tolerate your presence," the hitman said, of course not revealing any indication that seeing the bloodied necktie this morning shook him as much as did shake Iemitsu. "Whether or not he will develop a positive opinion on you remains to be seen."

"He'll come around," Iemitsu affirmed plainly. "He grew to like you, and vice versa, didn't he?"

"He needed a teacher," Reborn said. "A confidant. Someone outside the chain of command of his crime family. He cherishes his mother and the children he has adopted in all but name, but he has no need for a father."

"Tsunayoshi is still a child himself," Iemitsu emphasized. Everyone needed a father. That's partially why he took Basil into CEDEF in the first place. "Incredibly skilled and naturally talented, but still inexperienced. He still has a lot to learn. Once the Ring Conflict is settled, and my business with CEDEF concluded, I'll be taking over his training. There will be plenty of time for the two of us to finally reach an understanding."

Ever so subtly, Reborn lifted the brim of his hat to give Iemitsu a sidelong look. "Tsuna resembles my first student in many ways," Reborn said, which nearly made Iemitsu's heart skip a beat. "I made too many mistakes with Federico Vongola. I failed to see what he really was. I was too obsessed with my own deluded vision of what I wanted him to be. With whatever happens with Tsuna, don't make the same mistakes I made. Be a good father, a considerate teacher, but realize who he is and what he wants to accomplish. Until you do, neither of you will ever understand one another."

Reborn rarely referred to Federico by name or admitted to him having been his first student nowadays. Federico had taken a different name when he began his rebellion, but the Ninth had banned it from being spoken in reference to him ever again. "Timoteo may have been the one to assign you this job," Iemitsu slowly said, "but regardless of his Vongola blood, Tsuna is my son. I appreciate everything that you've done for him, Reborn, and for me. Between the two of us overseeing his training, I foresee Tsuna becoming the boss to surpass Primo himself in power and infamy. He wouldn't be capable of that if you weren't there for him when I wasn't, so for all that it's worth, thank you."

Finally, the Varia made their dramatic entrance. Squalo, Levi, Belphegor, Lussuria, Viper, and the Gola Mosca all lined up atop the roof of the shrine. Squalo in particular traded a few taunts with Tsuna and Takeshi.

When Xanxus pushed through his subordinates and made his appearance, Iemitsu went to silently grab his pick axe from the helicopter. Xanxus would likely bring out the Flame of Wrath in a play to frighten Tsuna and his friends. It would obviously fail, but Tsuna would likely consider the sole action of producing the destructive flame as reason enough to counterattack. Iemitsu had to bring out Timoteo's letter and start explaining the situation before –

The deafening reverberations of rapid-fire gunshots rang out and made Iemitsu instinctively enter Hyper Dying Will Mode. His Dying Will Flame blazing brightly across his forehead, Iemitsu watched the Varia be bombarded by hundreds upon hundreds of bullets. Iemitsu traced where the bullets were being fired from and saw muzzle flashes from various points across the area. Behind sets of trees, behind a small bridge over the river, and around the corner of an outhouse were machine guns each being operated by a pair gunners.

Those were MG-42 machine guns. The only reason Iemitsu recognized the model was because Federico had used one in a joint job between CEDEF, the Vongola Family, and the Giglio Nero Family so many years ago.

Archaic Second World War munitions wouldn't deal any lasting damage to the Varia, even if they were caught unawares. Regardless, Iemitsu took one step forward to put a stop to the shooting. He only hesitated when Reborn spoke into his ear.

"Your charitable expunging of the local Yakuza's most recent hideout did not go unnoticed by Tsuna," Reborn said. "Your actions disrupted their weapons smuggling operation. They sought vengeance, so Tsuna had Hayato Gokudera and the NDC plant evidence to implicate the Varia. Between their training sessions, they concocted this plan to attack the Varia once they entered Namimori's borders."

Tsuna's gang and the Yakuza have always been on unpleasant terms. He must have used the Varia in an "enemy of enemy" play, only to further destabilize the Yakuza's strength and manpower within Namimori. Levi brought about a miniature thunderstorm to destroy one of the machine gun nests, Belphegor's knives unceremoniously decapitated a few gunners, and so on went the Varia members eliminating their attackers.

Tsuna and his Guardians also received a free, uninhibited view of the Varia at work. As the Vongola's best assassins, there did not exist any live footage showcasing their abilities and their aptitude with their Flames. Now, Tsuna and his friends had a better idea of what to expect in their upcoming fights.

Xanxus refrained from engaging in the slaughter himself. Instead, he stood with a straight back on the top of the staircase. With his black coat hanging off his shoulders floundering with the wind, Xanxus narrowed his gaze down to meet Tsuna's.

Tsuna held his Brasi gun out, a fine orange aura revolving around the transformed dog. Meanwhile, Xanxus let a fist hang by his hip with a piercing yellow-orange ball of fire seeping through his fingers.

The two of them were smiling at one another. They each had something the other wanted – the claim to the Vongola throne – and they were eager to see the better man win.

Well, as the sound of gunfire lessened, Iemitsu supposed now was as good a time as any to step in and begin the official proceedings for the Ring Conflict.

Then a couple of pink-haired, dark-skinned young ladies wearing black domino masks entered the scene. They revealed a document bearing Timoteo's unique Dying Will Seal and detailed their responsibilities as judges for the Ring Battles.

The seal was unmistakable, but Nono had agreed to let Iemitsu reign as the official judge for the Ring Conflict. Why did he change his mind, again? What was going on in that old man's head?

Maybe Iemitsu was too focused on the idealized image of the Ninth Boss of the Vongola he's nurtured for most of his criminal career. Perhaps a new change in management was what the Vonogla truly needed sooner rather than later if it was to survive to the next generation. Someone new that won't be so indecisive and erratic as Timoteo has acted lately, so bloodthirsty as Xanxus, or so narcissistic and obsessed as Federico Vongola.

The Conflict will end in Tsuna's favor. Xanxus will either submit to his boss's authority or join his brothers in the next life. The Varia will follow suit. Iemitsu will retire from CEDEF and assume the main brunt of Reborn's tutorship responsibilities, and both the Sawada Family and the Vongola Family will begin again better than ever.

It was up to Tsuna and his Guardians now to make that dream a reality.

X

The next chapter will be mostly from the perspectives of Tsuna's Guardians before, during, and/or after their respective battles. After that, we'll probably be going back to Vito's POV for the remainder of the Varia Arc.

Updates for this story will likely become fewer and farther in between for the foreseeable future. However, I can probably make more time for one-shot chapters for "Barbaro Incorporated." If there's a particular character you'd like to read from the perspective of or a little story idea you want to see explored – more snippets of what's going on with the Simon Family, Vito's friends or businesses associates and their takes on the whole crime business, Joe's adventures with CEDEF, a TYL story, so on – then leave a review/comment/send me a PM and I'll see what I can do.

Until then, hope you're enjoying the story. Keep an eye out for the next chapter, "Balls and Beans." With any luck, it won't be too long a wait till I get that chapter ready.