Shamal is...terrible.

XXXX

They dragged Shamal to Nami High, still in their gym uniforms. It was a little embarrassing, but they were trying to help Tsuna's brother. Tsuna had texted and called his brother, but Ietsuna wasn't answering, so they were dragging Shamal through the halls. He was harassing girls as they passed, cat calling them and trying to reach out and grab them. At one point, Gokudera slapped a hand over Shamal's mouth and elbowed him in the kidney.

"Wait." Tsuna said, stopping in their tracks. "Hide!" Yamamoto and Gokudera darted into a closet and Tsuna grabbed Shamal and pushed him into the one across the hall. He had recognized the footsteps around the corner.

Hibari.

And Tsuna loved his boyfriend, but he knew that Hibari would not hesitate to attack Shamal. Tsuna was certain the reports of him harassing women had already gotten back to the DC and the man would be forcibly removed from campus, even if they did need him. And probably beaten half to death, to be honest.

Not that Tsuna wasn't rethinking his decision to save Shamal as they were crammed into a small, dark broom closet and he felt the hands groping him.

"Once we don't need you I will light you on fire." He whispered.

"I hear that a lot." He squeezed Tsuna's butt. "It's a good thing your voice is so high-pitched so it doesn't ruin the illusion-," Tsuna slapped a hand over what he thought was Shamal's mouth, but hit him directly in the face. It wasn't a tragedy.

"Missed, cutie." Hot breath was ghosting over Tsuna's face and he cringed. Wherever Shamal's mouth was, was way too close to him.

"I will let Kyoya kill you." Tsuna could hear the footsteps outside, Hibari stalking down the hallway. When they passed and Tsuna was certain they were out of range, he went tumbling out of the closet, extracting himself from the disgusting hands grabbing at him. He fell out onto the floor, groaning as the door opposite opened and Yamamoto and Gokudera came spilling out. "I do not like this guy." Tsuna said into the floor. "But we need him."

Tsuna scraped himself off the ground, Gokudera fussing over him. They continued on through the school, calling Ietsuna again, until they got near the courtyard and Tsuna heard a ringing. He was certain it was Ietsuna's phone.

When they came across the scene, Tsuna immediately smacked himself in the forehead.

Goddamnit Reborn.

His brother was in the middle of a fight with some other boys, already having been launched into Dying Will Mode. He was in nothing but his boxers, his body covered in skulls with secrets written in little speech bubbles.

Younger people address me without respect.

I can't drink coffee.

My brother would make a better mafia boss than me.

Tsuna blinked at that last one. Shamal opened his mouth.

"We aren't going to address that." Tsuna held out a hand. "Oh God, this is a nightmare."

"I don't know, I think it's kind of funny!" Yamamoto said, laughing and rubbing the back of his neck. "Though, I guess we have only a minute or two before Hibari shows up." He said.

"So we should probably break it up." Tsuna said with a sigh. "Okay, I'll-," Gokudera eagerly plunged into the fray, grabbing one of the boys and pulling them in. "Hayato!" Tsuna took off after him, Yamamoto following after.

Tsuna tackled his brother from the side, trying not to read the skulls and give him a little bit of privacy. Gokudera and Yamamoto were trying to separate the other boys, fists flying. Gokudera absolutely got hit in the face at one point, but he just doubled back and punched the kid in the jaw and sent him skidding into the dirt. Yamamoto knocked a few of them on the knees with his sheathed sword, and they yelped, running away. Tsuna was on his brother's back, trying to hold an impossibly strong Ietsuna down. He rose up, Tsuna squeaking as he went with him, clinging to him like a koala.

"I will fight them with my Dying Will!"

"Please, don't." Tsuna begged. Ietsuna staggered forward, elbowing Tsuna off his back. He righted himself in the dirt and grabbed onto his brother's leg desperately, tripping Ietsuna so that he fell forward onto his face. Yamamoto sat down on Ietsuna's back firmly, followed by Gokudera throwing himself over the half-naked teenager. Tsuna was clinging to his legs, trying to avoid being kicked in the face.

"Shamal!" Gokudera yelled, watching the doctor get distracted by two teenage girls who were walking by, staring at the whole scene incredulously. "Focus, you creep!" Shamal wandered back over, amusement written all over his face. Ietsuna was still in Dying Will Mode, banging his fists on the ground. The doctor crouched down, poking the boy experimentally.

"He's so...male." He said with disgust.

"Really. I couldn't tell." Gokudera said sarcastically, snapping his fingers in front of Shamal's face. "Fix him!" Tsuna was going to hug the silver-haired boy when this was over. He never would have thought that the biggest problem in the mafia was wrangling difficult personalities.

"I see you've found Shamal." Reborn appeared out of nowhere, and Tsuna yelped after a particularly strong wriggle from Ietsuna.

"Reborn!" Tsuna shrieked. "Why did you do this?!"

"For fun."

"Do I have to?" Shamal turned to Reborn, pulling a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it. Reborn shrugged back.

"No." Shamal straightened up.

"Great." He turned on his heel to walk away and Tsuna looked panickedly at Gokudera. The silver-haired boy launched himself off of Ietsuna and tackled Shamal from the side.

"Shamal!" He roared. With him off Ietsuna, the older boy threw Yamamoto off his back and very nearly kicked Tsuna in the face as he scrambled away quickly. Tsuna leapt to his feet as Ietsuna wheeled around, prepared to fight the two preventing him from achieving his Dying Will. He threw a punch at Yamamoto, who quickly ducked it and bobbed away.

Tsuna sighed.

"Ietsuna-nii-," His older brother caught him in the chest and knocked him into the dirt with an oof. Yamamoto pulled out his sword, still sheathed, ready to take on the angry teenager in front of them. Tsuna lit up his hand and leapt forward to meet his older brother, the older boy throwing a series of fast punches. But Tsuna had fought with Ryohei, and he dodged and weaved his way around all of them, catching him in the ribs with his fist full of Sky flames.

The impact was immediate. Ietsuna went flying with a grunt, rocketing back 20 feet as he folded over, skidding into the dirt. He laid there for a moment, before he slowly climbed to his feet, still in Dying Will Mode. He took a few steps forward, before he fell to the side.

A low whistle came from Shamal, who was laying in the dirt where Gokudera had pinned him.

"Jesus, kiddo."

"Dame-Tsuna. You've been holding out on us." Reborn said. His voice was light, but his eyes gleaming. Tsuna extinguished his hand, rushing over to check on his older brother who was laying in the dirt, still in Dying Will Mode. He was groaning, slowly trying to get back up.

"Nii-san, are you okay?" Tsuna asked, but it was as if his brother didn't even hear him. After another minute, the flame on his forehead fizzled out, and Tsuna helped him sit up. His brother was wheezing.

"What was that?" He choked out, rubbing his abdomen where it was starting to bruise. Tsuna winced.

"Sorry. You kept going after us." Ietsuna blinked, eyes wide as he stared at Tsuna.

"How did you..." He shook his head. "Christ, Tsuna. I don't think you realize..." His eyes slowly drifted over to Shamal. "Ugh, that guy is here?"

"He's going to help you." Tsuna promised. "Right?"

"No." Gokudera elbowed him in the kidney. "Fine." Tsuna took a step back, while Shamal crouched down to inspect Ietsuna, who was clutching his side, seated in the dirt. Tsuna walked back over to his friends, and grabbed Gokudera around the waist, pulling him into a hug. The silver-haired boy flushed, but Tsuna made sure to catch his eye.

"Thank you." He whispered. Gokudera averted his eyes, rubbing the back of his head.

"Uh, i-it was nothing!" He stammered.

"No, it wasn't nothing." Tsuna said. "Thank you, Hayato. Did you want some time to talk to Shamal alone?" He whispered.

"That pervert?! N-no way!" Tsuna was getting the feeling that Gokudera did in fact want to talk to Shamal alone. Tsuna could tell that the boy was seeking out the older man's approval, even if that older man was a pervert who shamelessly groped Tsuna and anyone who even resembled a woman. He cringed at the thought, embarrassed.

"Okay, Hayato." He said.

"Now, you can never really cure an incurable disease." Shamal reasoned out loud. "So you just give someone a disease that has the opposite symptoms, so that way you'll live-,"

"What." Tsuna said flatly. Reborn bounced onto his head, knocking his forehead.

"Be quiet, Dame-Tsuna. Shamal is explaining."

"So he's going to give my brother another disease?" Tsuna wanted to know. Reborn knocked on his forehead again, and Tsuna winced.

"...have over 600 diseases in my own body..." There was no fucking way a single thing that man said was real. Tsuna watched him use a mosquito that came out of nowhere to give his brother a disease supposedly called Angel disease, and quickly the skulls began to disappear. Tsuna tuned out the rest of Shamal's explanation, rolling his eyes up to try and look at Reborn. Reborn stuck his head out of Tsuna's fluffy hair, peering down.

"Reborn, you don't get Skullitis from getting shot with Dying Will bullets, do you?" He whispered. "This is just some weird condition you inflicted on my brother to teach him some kind of twisted lesson, isn't it?"

"Dame-Tsuna, does that sound like something I would do?" Reborn said with fake horror. Tsuna was pretty sure he had his answer.

"Fuck." Tsuna heard his brother curse suddenly, and he turned to see Hibari stalking over angrily from the other end of the courtyard. Of course.

He saw the skylark raise an eyebrow as he took in the scene before him; Ietsuna, half-naked in public once again. Tsuna and his friends at the high school for some reason, a school they didn't go to, in their gym uniforms. And a clearly older man who did not belong. Someone who had suddenly appeared after there being reports of an older Italian man harassing girls in the hallways.

Hibari stopped before them, crossing his arms.

"You should not be here." He said to Tsuna and his friends. "And for ditching school, I will bite you to death. After, I bite this intruder to death for being on Nami High property." He had pivoted towards Shamal mid-sentence. Shamal looked him up and down curiously.

"What-," Hibari knocked him in the face so hard the cigarette went flying from his mouth for the second time that day. Shamal stumbled back, surprised as Hibari continued his onslaught. He heard grunts as Shamal tried to dodge, clutching his chest with shock as blow after blow landed. He dodged a few, but Hibari was fast, and had gotten even faster from training with Tsuna while Tsuna was powered up. A mosquito suddenly flew out of his jacket, and Tsuna realized they carried diseases, if the one used on Ietsuna was anything to go by. Tsuna darted forward and slapped his hands together quickly, killing it before it could get to Hibari. Shamal fell backwards into the dirt and Hibari froze.

"Ew!" Tsuna flicked the guts off his hands, making a face.

"Did you just...release a mosquito?" Hibari demanded.

"It's Trident Shamal's best defense." Reborn supplied cheerfully. "They carry a variety of diseases!" Hibari's eyes narrowed.

"You attempted to infect me?" He hefted his tonfas again, darting around Tsuna, ready to attack Shamal again. Shamal's eyes widened and he scrambled away, yelping at the angry figure coming after him. Some more mosquitos flew out of his jacket and Hibari killed two of them between his palms. Tsuna slapped a third just as it landed on Hibari, the skylark freezing and looking down. Tsuna looked up nervously. He reached out suddenly as he watched a fourth land and bite. Hibari slapped it and killed it, but not before it had already bitten him. "Face me, herbivore." Hibari barked at Shamal. "What did you infect me with?"

"Just Sakura-kura disease!" He said. "I can fix it!" Hibari took another menacing step forward. "Who the fuck is this kid?" Shamal wanted to know.

"That's the chairman of the Disciplinary Committee." Ietsuna muttered from the ground.

"I'll leave, I swear!" Shamal said.

"You have been harassing female students. You will be bitten to death." Hibari growled out, taking a menacing step forward. He pivoted towards Ietsuna. "And you will be bitten to death for yet another case of public indecency." Ietsuna groaned, clutching his side again.

"Please, no." He begged. "Tsuna already beat me the fuck up." Hibari's head snapped around to look at the smaller boy, who was currently holding out his hands covered in mosquito guts, too grossed out to look at them, head turned away and nose wrinkled.

"Tsunayoshi?" He wanted to know.

"Uhh..."

"He was in Dying Will Mode and attacking Tsuna." Yamamoto supplied cheerfully. "He was just defending himself." Hibari considered it.

"Fine. And your being here has something to do with the intruder." It wasn't a question.

"This pervert was curing Ietsuna of a deadly disease." Gokudera said, arms crossed. There was a slight look of glee on his face, watching Shamal get chased around the courtyard by Hibari, blood from his mouth and nose smeared onto Hibari's tonfas. Shamal ducked behind Tsuna, grabbing him by the shoulders and angling him as a human shield.

"You wouldn't hurt such a cute, little thing, right?" He reasoned.

"He absolutely would." Yamamoto said cheerfully, shooting Hibari a thumbs up as he glared at the duo in front of him. Shamal sighed and grabbed his thighs suddenly, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him to his chest.

"If I go out, I go out like this." Tsuna squeaked and there was an immediate uproar from Tsuna's friends and brother, watching Shamal grope him yet again. Tsuna stomped on Shamal's instep and ducked away, spinning around and slapping him across the face. The bug juice on his hand smeared against Shamal's cheek. The doctor brought up his hand to his face, stumbling.

"You people have been hitting me in the face a lot today!" The doctor peered up, to see Hibari looming over him, face contorted in fury.

"For sexual harassment on Nami High property-," He hit Shamal so hard Tsuna felt like he could see the doctor's brain rattling in his skull as he went tumbling into the dirt. "I will bite you to death." Tsuna darted away, hiding against Yamamoto as his boyfriend gave Shamal a beating.

"We should get him off Nami High property before Hibari kills him." He whispered.

"Nah, let him go for a little bit." Gokudera said gleefully. "The old pervert deserves it." Tsuna watched Shamal yelp and scramble in the dirt. It was a horrifying sight.

"I don't know if anyone deserves Kyoya's wrath like this." Tsuna said, unable to look away. "He did save my brother's life." He offered.

"Fine." Gokudera grumbled.

"I'll grab Shamal." Tsuna said.

"You sure about that Tuna?" Yamamoto said. "He keeps trying to grab you." He pinched Tsuna's cheek. "I mean, you're adorable and scary which is why Hibari likes you too. But it's kinda nasty when this old man does it." Tsuna sighed.

"It's fine. It's the least I can do for him, for helping nii-san." The baseball player shrugged.

"Alright. Come on, octopus-head." Yamamoto pulled his sword out again. "Let's face our punishment like men." He grabbed Gokudera by the arm and threw themselves into the fray between Hibari and Shamal. Hibari reacted poorly, angrily going after them as Tsuna grabbed Shamal's arm and his brother's arm and hauled them away, dragging them out of sight and off the property.

They were just outside the gates, doubled over and panting. Both of them were bruised and swollen from their respective encounters.

"Well-," Shamal swallowed. "That was enlightening." He was already adopting his relaxed demeanor again, pulling out a cigarette and smoothing down his hair.

"I very much enjoyed watching you get beat up by a teenager." Reborn said, hopping onto Tsuna's shoulder. "The great Trident Shamal, beat up by a civilian teenager." Tsuna didn't know what Hibari was exactly, but he was not a civilian.

"He is not a normal teenager." Shamal argued. "Adult hitmen who would run from that demon."

"They have." Tsuna said. Shamal glanced at him, the briefest look of surprise flitting across his face before his demeanor shifted back to relaxed.

"Hitmen, hmm? After your brother?"

"No. When I was younger." Tsuna said. "Kyoya's kinda difficult, but he protects Namimori." Protected me, was the unspoken phrase that passed between them. "Besides, you had to know there would be consequences for an adult man breaking into secondary school campuses and harassing students." Tsuna felt a little bad for the man, but really.

"I didn't think you would have a literal demon guarding a school!"

"He runs a gang that has control of Namimori." Ietsuna wheezed out. "I would get out of here before he catches you and ships you off to some yakuza torture room." Tsuna winced. That was definitely a dig at him.

"What?"

"Hibari Kyoya." Reborn supplied helpfully. "As in-,"

"The clan." Shamal let out a string of curses in Italian. "Fuck. Goddamnit Reborn." He shook his head. "And that swordsman? What the fuck was that? What is he, 15?"

"Yamamoto Takeshi is a natural born hitman." Reborn said, almost proudly. Shamal threw up his hands.

"Shamal-san, thank you for helping Ietsuna-nii." Tsuna said, reaching out to touch Shamal's hand very sincerely. "I am very grateful for your assistance. But now, I think it would be in your best interest to leave the school campus."

"You're not kicking me out of Namimori yet." Shamal noticed. Tsuna nodded.

"I think Hayato wants to speak to you before you go. I don't really understand your relationship, but I think you're important to him and you should talk to him." Tsuna said. "You can head back to my house with Ietsuna-nii, since he is injured and should not continue the school day."

"I'm-," Ietsuna took a step forward and groaned. "Okay, you're right." He admitted.

"Shamal-san, I am inviting you into my home so if my mother happens to be there, please, stay away from her." Tsuna said seriously. He was really hoping his mom wasn't going to be home.

"I'm locking him in my room." Ietsuna said with a groan. "I might just take him to the Namimori Shrine after I get some clothes." He muttered. Tsuna nodded, turning to put a hand on Ietsuna's shoulder.

"Okay, just let me know. Thank you, nii-san. And I'm very sorry about your injuries. I didn't mean to hurt you. I can help you with them later." Tsuna promised. Ietsuna blinked.

"Uh, oh...it's fine. It's alright, Tsuna." He said. "Really. Don't worry about us. I'll get Shamal out of here." Tsuna nodded at him again. He rushed off in the other direction, worried about whatever was going on between his friends and his boyfriend. As he disappeared, Shamal turned to the young Decimo.

"Your brother is weird." He told him. Ietsuna sighed.

"I know."

XXXX

When Tsuna got back, Gokudera was groaning in the dirt, bruised. Yamamoto had also clearly been knocked on his ass, but had sat up, a smile on his felt guilty.

"Great training session, Hibari!" Hibari's eye twitched, watching as Tsuna hurried over. He crossed his arms.

"Who was that disgusting herbivore?" He demanded. Tsuna waved a hand.

"Don't worry about it, he's gone." Hibari made a face.

"He released diseased insects." He was still peeved about that.

"I'm sorry, Kyoya. He was curing my brother of...some condition Reborn inflicted on him." Tsuna explained. "Reborn called him here. We were just trying to...minimize the amount of women he harassed." Hibari huffed.

"He harassed you." Tsuna shivered.

"Ugh, more than you know." He wanted to take a shower. "I feel gross." He looked up to see Hibari raising an eyebrow, arms crossed.

"Why did you simply not injure him?"

"We needed him." Tsuna said.

"He could perform medical treatment perfectly fine with a broken leg." Hibari muttered. Gokudera pulled himself to his feet, almost stumbling.

"I hate saying it, but I agree with Hibari." He said. "What was he doing to you in that closet?"

"What?" Tsuna had never heard his boyfriend respond like that.

"It's fine!" Tsuna said quickly. "It's fine, I promise. We needed him willing to help." He said. "If it means dealing with a pervert for a few minutes, it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make to save Ietsuna's life." Hibari was on the verge of blowing a gasket, even after taking out his rage on Shamal and Tsuna's friends.

"I will see you in training tomorrow." Hibari informed him, eyes narrowed. Tsuna winced, knowing that Hibari was going to push him. "Return to your school." He ordered.

"Sorry Kyoya!" Tsuna called out as his boyfriend turned on his heel and stormed off, certainly to take his rage on anyone who committed the most miniscule infraction. "That could have gone worse." Yamamoto reasoned from his spot on the ground. Tsuna rushed over, helping Yamamoto to his feet.

"I am so sorry." He said to his friends. The baseball player waved a hand.

"Nah, it was good exercise! It's refreshing, getting your clock cleaned by Hibari." The look on Gokudera's face told Tsuna he vehemently disagreed.

"It's my fault, for inflicting Shamal on you." Gokudera said, hanging his head with shame. "He came to Nami Middle for me. Otherwise, you should have never had to deal with him. I'm sorry, Tsuna." Tsuna shook his head.

"No, it's not your fault at all, Hayato. Don't apologize; you have nothing to be sorry for." Gokudera rubbed his neck, cheeks flushed.

"You're too nice to me." He said.

XXXX

They headed back to their own campus and continued the rest of the school day. Tsuna did eventually get the text from his brother saying that their mother had come home and Ietsuna had immediately taken the old pervert to the Namimori Shrine, before he could do anything. Tsuna greatly appreciated that.

So after school, even though they were supposed to head towards Tsuna's house, he steered them in the opposite direction.

"Not that I mind, but where are we going?" Yamamoto asked, slinging an arm around Tsuna's shoulder as they walked.

"Shamal is at the shrine. We're saying goodbye." Tsuna said. Yamamoto nodded.

"Alright, then! You wanna stay close to me?" He teased. "I'll protect you from his grabby hands." Tsuna's ears tinged red.

"Maybe." He muttered. Gokudera crossed his arms as they walked, grinding his teeth.

"That freak? He doesn't deserve your goodbye, Tsuna." He said with a sniff. Tsuna just smiled back. When they arrived, Shamal was sitting on the steps, as was Ietsuna but they were as far as they could possibly get from each other.

They lifted their heads when Tsuna arrived, probably thankful for company other than each other.

"Hayato, why don't you go say goodbye to Shamal?" Tsuna suggested. "I'm going to check on my brother." Gokudera sputtered for a moment, but something like gratitude flicked across his face briefly, before he just nodded and walked over to the older man. Tsuna bent down by his brother on the steps. "Nii-san?" He asked. Ietsuna peered up at him.

"I'm fine." He insisted, but one hand was still pressed to his side.

"You did a number on him, Tsuna." Reborn said. Ietsuna shot his tutor a glare.

"Can I see?" Tsuna asked tentatively. Ietsuna reluctantly lifted his t-shirt, and Tsuna could see the ugly bruise forming all along his side. The skin where Tsuna's fist had impacted itself was raw, like from a first degree burn. Tsuna winced. "I'm very sorry."

"No, it's okay." Ietsuna waved his hands, trying not to wince. "I know how I can be in Dying Will Mode. You were defending yourself." He insisted. "Plus..." He was reluctant to continue. "I kind of deserve it. For threatening your boyfriend." He admitted.

"Nii-san,-," Ietusna cut him off.

"No, I want to apologize. It was inappropriate of me." He said. "I just didn't know how to react to what I saw and I acted without thinking. I put you in a hard position and I treated someone you cared about poorly." Tsuna hadn't been expecting this kind of apology. He didn't know what to say.

"I-, uh..." He stuttered. "Thank you, nii-san. That means a lot to me."

"I know you may not be comfortable with it right now, since I haven't really...done a lot to help you." Ietsuna rubbed his forehead. "But if you ever need help, you can ask me. I want you to ask me. I don't care if it's mafia related." He promised. Tsuna dipped his head.

"I will."

"Say, what do you think they're talking about?" Yamamoto interrupted, when it seemed like the moment had passed. Tsuna was grateful, because he wasn't sure how to continue.

"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked, turning his head. The baseball player gestured at Gokudera and Shamal.

"They keep looking over at you, Tsuna." Yamamoto said. Tsuna cringed. He didn't want to know what Shamal was saying. Though, he supposed if Gokudera hadn't punched the doctor in the face by now, it couldn't be bad, right?

XXXX

"I get it." Shamal told Gokudera, as their conversation was drawing to an end. The older man pulled out a cigarette, lighting it.

"Get what?" There was more bite in Gokudera's voice than he intended. The doctor jerked his head towards the group on the other side of the steps, eyes going to the small, slim figure he knew so well.

"Why you stayed with him." Shamal said. "He's powerful."

"He's kind." Gokudera responded sharply. "He's my friend." A smile tugged at the older man's mouth.

"You never would have said anything like that a year ago." Gokudera spluttered, but Shamal ignored him. "I'm glad you're here with him." Gokudera scrubbed his hands over his face, sighing.

"You fucking wind me up." He accused the older man. "But...I am too. I'm staying with him."

"You'll be his Storm Guardian, one day." Shamal said, taking a long drag off his cigarette.

"He doesn't want to be a mafia boss." The silver-haired teen said almost instantly. He knew exactly how Tsuna would respond.

"Listen, kiddo. I've seen the other one grow up. I know what he's capable of." Shamal leaned in. "He's never going to get any Guardians while in the orbit of a more powerful Sky. It's just not going to happen."

"What do you mean?"

"Would you ever choose Ietsuna over your Sky?"

"Never." The answer was immediate. Gokudera didn't hesitate to answer.

"The older one is going to crack under the pressure and someone will need to pick up the mantle." Shamal said with a shrug. "Xanxus isn't around and the little Vongola would do anything for his brother."

"I don't care if he becomes a mafia boss or not. I'm with him regardless." Gokudera insisted. Shamal reached out and patted his shoulder.

"That's why you'll be a good Guardian."

XXXX

A knock on his window pulled Tsuna out of his daze. He jerked up suddenly, wiping the drool from his mouth, checking that none had gotten on the math homework he was supposed to be doing. He turned, to see Hibari outside his window, crouched on the sill. He climbed to his feet and slid his window open.

"Kyoya, how many times-," He began as Hibari climbed in.

"Tetsu was attacked." Tsuna's eyes widened and he immediately grabbed the skylark in a tight hug, reaching up and wrapping his arms around his neck tightly. Hibari allowed himself to be pulled downward, but did not wrap his arms around Tsuna in return. "I am fine, Tsunayoshi. I do not need to be coddled." Tsuna tightened his grip.

"He's your closest friend." He pressed a kiss to the side of Hibari's head. Hibari sighed, and reluctantly put his arms around Tsuna, allowing him to hug him in earnest. When the chairman released Tsuna, the younger boy took it as his signal that he was done being hugged and released him in turn. "What happened?" Tsuna wanted to know. "Is he okay?"

"He is currently in the hospital. He is conscious, and will make a full recovery." Hibari informed him, and Tsuna started making plans to bake cookies and go visit him.

"But what happened?" Tsuna wanted to know.

"He said he was attacked by someone of the same description you provided. School uniform, around our age, animalistic with superior strength to that of a regular human." Hibari said. His eyes narrowed. "I do not like this."

"Do you think this has something to do with the list they got?" Hibari set his jaw.

"If it were my intention to stage a large attack, I would take out their best fighters first." Hibari said. "And they have a list of just that. I would not be surprised to learn that Tetsu ranks on a list of the top ten fighters in Namimori."

"So that means there are going to be more attacks." Tsuna said quietly. Probably on him and his immediate friends. And his brother.

"Yes." Hibari said with a sharp nod. "When the next attack happens, we will capture this...boy." He practically spat out. "Anticipate an escalation of hostilities shortly thereafter. I doubt he is acting alone." Tsuna thought about the man who had attacked at his house, with the heterochromatic eyes. No matter how many times Hibari hit him, he wouldn't go down.

"Do you remember the one who attacked my house?" Tsuna said. "He said something about obtaining Decimo." Hibari pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn't say it, but Tsuna knew exactly what was going through his mind. Fucking mafia.

"He is a high-level target." Hibari forced out. "And well-protected."

"Well-protected?" Tsuna squawked. His brother was not well-protected. He had barely anyone in his corner; no Guardians, just Reborn.

"He has you, idiot. And you are one of the most dangerous people in Namimori." Hibari snapped. "As well as the group of herbivores who will do anything for you, you only need ask."

"Oh." Tsuna hadn't thought about that. "So...you think they'll come for us first?"

"I do not know. There is the chance that they believe that you are Decimo instead." Hibari pointed out. Tsuna almost fell over.

"What?"

"You are the one who defended the little prince with Sky flames. You were also seen with the bronco, a known mafioso." It took Tsuna second to realize the skylark was referring to Dino. Tsuna wanted to throw himself on his bed and scream into his pillow. Instead he just smacked his forehead.

"What do we do?" Tsuna asked nervously.

"Train and prepare. When they show themselves, attack and capture." Hibari said with a shrug. "Do not go anywhere alone." Tsuna sat down heavily on his bed, sighing. He looked up at the dark-haired teen.

"Are you sure you're okay?" The skylark rolled his eyes back.

"Yes." Tsuna reached out and took his hand. Hibari allowed him to.

"Just let me hold your hand for a little while."

XXXX

Tsuna hadn't addressed his brother directly, but he had a feeling that Ietsuna was a little low on the list of fighters in Namimori.

He knew his brother was capable; that was for certain. He had seen the hammer he had been trained to use.

But he also knew his brother was out of practice. Meanwhile, Tsuna and his friends had been continually training. Tsuna had achieved a semblance of flight, Yamamoto was frighteningly fast with his sword, and Gokudera had even gotten his arm cannon working that fired destructive, concussive shots. Hibari was...Hibari, but even he had improved after sparring with them. He had adapted to Tsuna's superior speed and force while he was in that flame-ridden condition.

Tsuna hadn't had a chance to talk to Hibari about it yet, but he could swear that in the middle of some of his fights with the skylark, he thought he had seen something fuzzy and colorful, just barely visible on the end of his tonfas. Tsuna privately thought that Hibari was trying to emulate his technique and was just maybe succeeding. It had only appeared a few times; when they were pushing hard. When Hibari was exhausted, as was Tsuna. And those few times Tsuna had thought he had seen something, Hibari was dead on his feet after those fights which was incredibly rare.

After all, they knew it was possible for someone besides Tsuna to wield it. Ryohei had some kind of odd relationship with Dying Will Flames. Tsuna was relatively certain that the lightning that had appeared from Lambo's horns during some of his temper tantrums also came from Dying Will Flames. And even Gokudera's arm cannon...the power came from an explosive mechanism but Tsuna sensed something special about it. Something just beneath the surface, ready to come out.

Yamamoto...Tsuna knew it was there. Something special lived within the swordsman. Reborn called him a natural born hitman, but Tsuna didn't know about that. What Tsuna did know is that Yamamato had resolve, and if that was what this whole Dying Will business was about, then his best friend had it.

Ryohei? Was crazy.

But this just drove home for Tsuna that Ietsuna was out of practice and that was about to be a big problem.

So even though Ietsuna was just walking to the store, Tsuna had insisted on accompanying him, his friends in tow. His brother seemed surprised, but allowed it. Tsuna felt bad that his friends were up to speed on the situation, but his brother seemingly was not. He had tried to tell him, saying that they thought someone in Namimori was after him because he was Decimo. Ietsuna had just shrugged and said, 'what's new'.

Tsuna wasn't sure if he understood the gravity of the situation.

A chill went down Tsuna's spine suddenly and he grabbed his friends, who halted as well.

"What is it?" Yamamoto whispered. Ietsuna kept walking forward, unaware, and Gokudera lurched after him. He grabbed the blonde boy by the back of his shirt and hauled him back. Ietsuna struggled, protesting.

"What the hell?"

"There's something wrong." Tsuna said. Yamamoto pulled his sword out of the bag on his back, and Gokudera pulled out the mechanism that unfolded into his arm cannon.

"What do you mean?" Ietsuna demanded.

"A bad feeling." Tsuna said.

"So we're stopping because of your bad feeling?" He sounded almost incredulous.

"Tsuna just knows things." Yamamoto interjected, stepping in front of them. Gokudera took the other side, loading up his arm cannon. It made a whining noise. It was kind of like a red skull with its mouth open.

"I told you, nii-san. We're in danger." Tsuna said. "Get ready." Ietsuna sighed, but he flicked his hammer out of his jacket. It unfolded sharply. He didn't take any pill like he did before, but at least he had taken out his weapon. Tsuna had already texted Hibari to let him know that they were about to have a captive, if things went well.

At the same time, two boys stepped out on either end of the street. On one end, the end facing Yamamoto, was the short, animalistic boy. He was hunched over, a set of fangs in. He looked almost...bigger, and he was growling.

The other, had a taller boy, with dark hair and a beanie. In the same kind of uniform, but he wore glasses and was swinging around what looked like a yoyo, a disinterested look on his face.

"Looks like we're going to kill a few birds with one stone." He said. The one on the end growled in response.

"God, I love it when they're dramatic." Yamamoto remarked. He turned around and tapped Gokudera on the shoulder.

"WhatI?"

"Fire." Yamamoto said cheerfully.

Boom!

The concussive blast ripped itself from the arm cannon, an explosive, fiery ball that was launched directly at the one with glasses. Tsuna saw his eyes widen as he ducked to the side. The blast hit a telephone pole down the street, warping the metal and sending it crashing to the ground, almost onto the attacker with glasses. He stared up from the dirt, stunned.

The other one roared.

Yamamoto twisted his sword, the blade appearing and rushed to meet him. Tsuna whipped around to see a look of fear on the face of the other one, as he twisted and ducked to the side, yelping as he saw the blade coming for his face. Yamamoto managed to catch him in the arm with the edge, slicing through cloth and skin easily, a spray of blood flicking off the end of the blade and into the dirt. The attacker had attached himself to another telephone pole and Gokudera spun around and fired at it.

"The fuck!" He screamed as he launched himself off before he was hit.

Tsuna twisted around to see the other one pulling himself out of the dirt, and he got ready to fight, narrowing his eyes.

...just for his brother to rush past him, hammer out. He rushed the attacker, who was flinging out his yoyo. Tsuna yelped and ducked as a series of needles flew out, embedding themselves in the fence. His brother had managed to dodge it, and was moving onward, even as the yoyos flung themselves out. Tsuna watched one of them fly through the air, the string glinting.

That's not a string, Tsuna realized.

"I've got this!" Ietsuna yelled, ducking the yoyo and blocking the sharp metal wire with his hammer. He managed to sever it with the sharp end. Tsuna was worried, but he also knew that his brother was keeping the Dying Will flames in his back pocket. If he pulled that out, Tsuna was certain there was no way this guy could defeat him. "Get the other one!"

Tsuna turned back, to see the animalistic attacker caught in the terrible trap that was Yamamoto and Gokudera together. If he tried to stay away, Gokudera was firing ranged attack after ranged attack and they were getting closer.

"Stay fucking still!" Gokudera roared. The concussive blasts themselves looked like they were confusing the attacker, his eyes getting hazy. But if he got too close, Yamamoto was there with his sword, ready to take him out. And getting too close to the sharp blade was not an option.

"Get out of there, Ken!" Tsuna heard the other one scream behind him, and this one, Ken, straightened up and started to back away, bending down to jump. He leaped onto one of the telephone poles, and Tsuna knew he was about to leap away. He shut his eyes as he ran forward, and when he opened them, there was a flame on his forehead, flames in his hands, and the entire world was much clearer.

He took off after him, with enough force to crack the road where they had been walking. He flew straight for Ken as he attempted to leap away. He was vaguely aware of the other one getting away, Ietsuna attempting to pursue, but being warded off by an insane spray of needles.

Tsuna shot forward and grabbed the other one by the nape of the neck as he attempted to jump away. He immediately started struggling, clawing at Tsuna's arm.

"Let me go!" He roared.

"Do you really want me to do that right now?" Tsuna asked. Ken suddenly froze, gulping. Tsuna lowered himself to a safe height, and then dropped Ken directly where Yamamoto and Gokudera were waiting. He yelped, and Gokudera cracked him across the jaw, sending him to the ground as Yamamoto set his blade over the back of his shoulders, smiling cheerfully.

Tsuna landed next to them, pinning Ken's arms behind his back with his flame-driven strength.

"Tsuna..." he heard the whisper from his brother who had walked over, but he ignored him.

He held him down like that until the DC arrived. Tsuna was a little surprised it wasn't Hibari himself bringing a pair of handcuffs with him, but it was other members of the DC, including Ren.

"Sorry, Tsuna. The chairman was called away suddenly." Ren apologized. He was politely ignoring the fact that Tsuna had a flame on his head and his eyes seemed almost dead. "So, how are we going to lock this guy down? He's super strong, right?" He roared underneath them.

"He kinda sounds like he has a lisp." Yamamoto commented.

"I do not have a lisp!" Ken roared. Tsuna pulled up his head by his hair. "I'll fucking kill you!"

"Tsuna what are you-," Tsuna reached out and held his jaw open. He knew something wasn't right about those teeth.

"SHTOP!" Ken struggled underneath him while Tsuna pulled out what looked like a pair of fake fangs. Immediately, the boy started to writhe, his body changing. It seemed to change to be smaller, his muscles decreasing. Tsuna felt all the strength go out of the boy's body as he held up the pair of spit-covered fangs. He made a face, dropping out of that weird mode, and swaying for a moment. Yamamoto's hand on his shoulder steadied him.

"This is gross." He said, wrinkling his nose. "Can I like, have a bag for these?" One of the DC members took out a cloth and wrapped them up as Ren put Ken in handcuffs. "He shouldn't be super strong anymore." They hauled the writhing figure up, as he was screaming threats at them, tossing him in the van and shutting the doors.

With a quick salute, Ren drove off. Tsuna flicked the saliva off his hands and turned to his friends.

"Well, we got one of them." He said. "Thank you for helping, nii-," He turned to his brother, who was staring at him, pale. "Nii-san?" He asked, brow furrowing. "What's going on?" Ietsuna shook his head quickly.

"Uh, nothing! Nothing. I've...never seen you fight like that."

"Do you know what it is?" Tsuna asked. "We haven't been able to figure it out." He confessed.

"Uh, maybe. We can talk about it later." He said. "I-I'm gonna go to the store."

"We should come with you." Tsuna said.

"No!" Ietsuna said quickly. "No, it's fine. You guys go home. Or to wherever they're taking that guy. Whatever you need to do." He said, scampering down the street with a wave.

"Why are you acting so suspiciously?" Gokudera roared after him, but Ietsuna was already gone.

"Wonder why Hibari didn't come himself." Yamamoto said. "That isn't like him."

"No, it isn't." Tsuna agreed. "I'm going to call him." He did, and no one picked up. A sense of dread began to build in the pit of his stomach. He knew, realistically, his boyfriend's phone could have just had the volume down. But the timing seemed too suspicious.

"Tsuna?" Yamamoto noticed immediately.

"He's not picking up." Tsuna whispered. "D-do you mind walking to the school with me?"

"Of course not, Tsuna!" Gokudera said quickly. Yamamoto slung an arm across Tsuna's shoulders as they started walking.

"Hmm, it's 1 pm, right?" He said.

"Right." Tsuna choked out.

"That means it's nap time!"

XXXX

The entire walk over, Yamamoto suggested different, ridiculous reasons that Hibari might not have answered his phone.

"He's busy beating up trespassing herbivores in the courtyard."

"He's visiting Tetsuya in the hospital!"

"He took a really, really, good nap."

"He's taking a shit."

Tsuna almost choked on the last one, Yamamoto ruffling his hair. He knew his best friend was just trying to make him feel better and he appreciated it. But he knew something was wrong.

So when he got to the school to see the side of the gym caved in, smoking, he knew exactly what it was.

Hibari was walking out of the wreckage, dragging Ryohei behind him. He looked dirty, but unharmed. Well, he looked furious, but unharmed as he dragged the limp, bordering on unconscious, boxer across the bricks behind him, ignoring quiet yelps of pain. He dumped the boy in the courtyard, breathing heavily, eyes narrowed.

"Kyo?" Tsuna asked timidly.

"They fucking destroyed my school." He hissed. "To attack this herbivore." He nudged Ryohei with his foot, bordering on a kick. Tsuna squeaked and dropped down to check on the boxer, whose face was bloody. He slowly rolled him over, hands shaking, but Ryohei groaned, and shot him a thumbs up.

"It was an extremely tough fight, little brother! But we're okay!"

"How did you know Ryohei was being attacked?" Yamamoto asked curiously. "I thought you were on your way to us."

"I just knew." Hibari muttered angrily, turning to stare at the damage done to the school. He was vibrating with rage.

"I knew it. You are psychically connected to the school!"

The tonfa to Yamamoto's head was expected, at this point.

"Who did this?" Tsuna asked, looking back up at his boyfriend.

"He had spiky hair and a wrecking ball. Heterochromatic eyes, like before." Hibari hissed out. "He left the moment I became involved."

"A wrecking ball?" Tsuna asked incredulously.

"A wrecking ball." Hibari looked twitchy. "Get this idiot herbivore medical attention. I will inform you what we learned from the other one tomorrow." He said, kicking Ryohei. Gokudera snickered as the boxer groaned, until Hibari wheeled onto him.

"Kyoya." Tsuna interrupted. "Where are you going?"

"I am going for a...walk." He ground out. So that meant beating up delinquents. Tsuna figured he needed to blow off some steam. He stormed off, as Gokudera and Yamamoto attempted to haul Ryohei up.

"Why are you so fucking heavy turf top?"

XXXX

So the Mukuro Arc is like...basically here.