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The Heavenly Tyrant was a hard man to find.
Apparently, he only took jobs from very specific mediators and most of those people are scattered all over Japan. There was no pattern and the ones Dino managed to track down either had no idea where the man was or they were dead.
Missing, to be exact.
No bodies. Not a single trace of blood, tissues, or hair to be found.
He knew that the underground business was a tough market. Even for those that don't work on the front lines, danger was always around the corner. But for so many of them to meet the same strange fate? That was worrisome.
As if all of them were cursed.
The most frustrating part was that his search brought him on something similar to a wild goose chase. He was running in circles and pointless loops.
Reborn, you really gave me a tough task to complete. He didn't know why he expected anything less. This was Reborn, the same spartan tutor that made him fight a bear.
Well, let's hope this last guy can provide something good.
Dino looked up, there was a Korean man before him. He had a thin mustache and wore a plain black suit. At first glance, he looked like an average Joe. Just another nameless middle-aged man among the mundane crowd, going to his nine to five job and taking a smoke during his breaks.
Overall, this wasn't a man that was a heavily hitter and it didn't look like he was carrying either.
They were sitting at a more secluded area inside a cafe. Even though Dino couldn't see them, he knew that his subordinates were scattered around the place, disguised as normal customers just in case.
The man, he hadn't given Dino a name, took a sip of his coffee and looked Dino in the eyes. "I must say I'm surprised. It's not everyday I do business with Cavallone's boss. You said you wanted information?"
"Yes, I was hoping you can tell me more about someone that goes by the name of 'Heavenly Tyrant'."
"Heavenly Tyrant..." Realization flashed across his eyes. There was something questionable in his voice but the man hid it by placing a smoke against his lips. "Well, that's an odd request. I don't think the likes of you would ever need services from a man like that."
"He's a contracted killer isn't he?" Dino leaned back into his seat. "I heard he's good."
"He is good but also picky about requests. But so long as the money is in place, anything can happen." The agent made a money motion with his hand. He was calm when he spoke and didn't let anything telling slip on his face. "But you don't want him to kill someone for you don't you?"
Dino nodded. There was no point faking a job request. It was one thing if the men would take the bait, it was another thing to risk an innocent life. He had heard some concerning things about this clique of people. They were different from the mafia members with flames or the illusionists...but they had power, power that could even be described as the supernatural kind by those that feared them.
Like a curse.
"I wanted to know what kind of person he is." And then he and Reborn could decide what they will do. It was better if this man had absolutely no association to Tsuna but it couldn't help to be more careful. They would always be better off with more information than less.
Somehow that hit a funny spot with the man because he burst out laughing. "I've decided a long time ago that I was only ever going to get involved with him either in work or in hell. That's the type of man this Heavenly Tyrant is if that's what you're looking for."
That didn't sound good.
True, it wasn't much to go on but Dino could already sense the possibility running through his head. A madman with a head filled with gruesome logic? An unreliable bastard that sways and betrays at the first sight of danger? There were countless reasons why someone would be shunned by even their agent.
"What about children? Are there any rumors about him and children?" That was Dino's main concern. If Tsuna had been involved with this man, they needed to know.
That question took the man by surprise. His mouth sagged for a moment before he said, "I don't think he swings that way but who am I to judge? I am the mediator, I connect him to the jobs and I get paid. That's all I do. I don't give a dime about who he drops his pants with."
"Ah, I didn't mean it like that..." Dino felt himself getting a little flustered but he hid it under a cold mask. Now that was a possibility that never even crossed his mind. Or maybe it did but he didn't want to consider it. Tsuna was Reborn's student and the possible future boss of an allied family. Dino liked to consider the young teen as a little brother of some sort, family without blood relations...and his stomach doesn't sit well with the images the mediator's words had implanted in his brain.
The agent sighed. He chewed on the butt of his cigarette as he scratched his head.
"Look, I still got a reputation to uphold as a third party agent. I can't just give out the contact information for my network, not even if you mafia held a gun to my head. But for the price you're paying, I am willing to tell you this..." He scribbled something on his notebook and ripped it out. "Go check this place out, if you're lucky then you might find something."
"Thank you." Dino slipped him an envelope containing his pay then took the paper.
Once the man left, Dino unfolded the crumpled paper and saw that it contained one address.
For a nightclub in Saitama city.
#
The nightclub the agent directed him to wasn't anything out of the ordinary. It was a medium-sized place where people went to let loose. They had some good liquor and the bartender didn't pry too much. Crowds of people come and go, bumping and swaying into each other as they danced to the rhythm of the fast pop songs playing from the speakers.
Women with heavy makeup and short skirts, men with loose hands and colognes...there simply wasn't anything or anyone that would catch his attention.
It was probably a bust tonight too. Dino sighed. He mentioned for Romario to pay for the bill and grabbed his jacket, ready to leave.
The flashing lights inside the nightclub painted his world in a strange hue of colours.
That was when he saw him.
A man. One that wasn't much older than him sat alone in the quiet corner. He had raven hair, thin eyebrows, and a face that would be adored by women. With his black shirt and pants, the man was one with the shadows. Blink once and you will never notice he was even there. He didn't look like he was dressed for a wild night of fun, not when his clothing were baggy and plain. But even as he sat there, with his back hunched and slippers on his feet, Dino could tell he was strong.
He had no doubt underneath those plain clothing, there would be a body with muscles that looked like they were curved to mirror the great heroes in epics.
But that wasn't what attracted Dino's attention. No, his focus was on the scar on the right side of the man's mouth.
Black hair. In his twenties to thirties. A scar on his mouth.
This man met all of Reborn's criteria and he was sitting in the bar the mediator directed Dino to.
Romario and the others approached Dino but he held out a hand, mentioning for them to back off. While still holding his jacket in his arms, Dino slid into the seat next to the man. Upon closer inspection, Dino saw that the man had green eyes, a bright green that looked nearly poisonous. The lines of his jaw were hard and there was a certain kind of gleam in his eyes. One that didn't signalled good faith.
"I'm not interested in men," the man suddenly said as he drank another shot the bartender passed him. The yellow liquor moved inside his cup as he swirled it slightly.
Dino raised an eyebrow. "I'm not here for that. Are you the Heavenly Tyrant everybody is talking about?"
"Heavenly—Is that what they are calling me on that side now?" he laughed but Dino could tell there wasn't much kindness to his tone. The man's eyes scanned him over and Dino felt like he was being sized up by a serpent before it striked. "That tattoo on your arm...Bucking Horse Dino? The Italian?"
"One and only." But a good mafia boss doesn't back off. He couldn't give his opponent the upper hand or even the appearance of one.
"So what does the mafia want with me? I don't think any of you have been on my targets list lately. Oh, I think I did break some guy's knee the other day but he was kind of asking for it. That idiot's not one of yours is he?" He was baiting Dino, trying to force some kind of reaction out of him.
Dino shook his head and called for the bartender to give him something too. "I was just curious. They say you're very good at what you do, almost superhuman."
The Heavenly Tyrant set his cup down. "Heh, I don't associate myself with the mafia. I'll take a job if you've got the greens but otherwise? No thanks."
"Fair enough," Dino muttered into his drink. "What are you doing in a place like this? You certainly aren't dressed for a party."
"Just wanted a drink. A woman 's good too if the opportunity comes up."
He sounded like any regular man. Not even mafia men. Just a regular single man wasting his nights away with women and booze.
"I could ask you the same though," the man focused his gaze on Dino. "What's the boss of an Italian criminal organization doing here?"
"Business and visiting an old friend." Dino didn't falter as he held the man's stare. "Maybe I will even do some sightseeing. Ever been to a place called Namimori? I heard it's a quiet town. Nice place, nice people, and good sushi." He heard the last part from Reborn.
He had hoped the name of Tsuna's hometown would spark some kind of reaction but the man before him remained stoic as he paid for his drink. "Is that so? Doesn't sound like my kind of place then. Won't get any good businesses there."
The man got up and left the nightclub. Dino signaled for Romario and the others to back off before they could block the man. It wouldn't do them any good to cause a scene indoors.
He followed the Heavenly Tyrant out the back door and immediately tilted his head back as something slashed through the air. The brick wall behind him had a chip in it around the height of where his head should be. Dino got his whip out as he frowned at the glistening sword pointed towards him. It wasn't large and its blade was thin. It was hard to imagine how it could form such a deep damage on the wall.
He was fast. Dino raised the man's threat level up as he gripped his whip tight. Also...Where did that sword come from?
"So, ready to talk properly? Cavallone's tenth boss?" The Heavenly Tyrant had a smirk on his face as he bounced up and down lightly as if warming up for battle. "What do you want?"
"What do you know about Vongola Decimo?"
"The tenth Vongola?" There was surprise in his voice as he ran a thumb over the scar on his lips. "I thought the heir was dead? E something was his name wasn't it? Got shot in a gunfight. What does that have to do with me? It's not like I put that bullet through him. I don't do things for free."
The words were cold but they were rational. Dino couldn't tell if he was playing dumb or really didn't know anything. Only, he didn't have time to think too deep as the man suddenly vanished in front of him.
No, not vanished.
Dino's whip lashed out and it hit something in the air above him. The sky was darker. Looking up, he saw the falling form of his opponent. The man was pushing Dino's whip back down with sheer force.
He dodged out of the way as the sword embedded itself into the concrete. There was a wild grin on the Heavenly Tyrant's face as something smaller shot past Dino's ear. It drew blood, not a lot but Dino still felt a twinge of pain from his earlobe.
"Ah!" The scream behind him caused him to glance back. A short dagger had cut into one of his subordinate's shoulders. He couldn't tell if the damage was bad from his angle.
"Romario! Get everyone to stay back!" he shouted an order as he heard footsteps closing in.
Dino's whip extended, it shot through the air and went straight for the enemy's neck. Only, at the last moment Dino flicked his wrist and it changed directions, twisting around for the back of the man's head. It almost caught his opponent off guard. Keyword: Almost. As if he had eyes on his back, the Heavenly Tyrant ducked just in time and narrowly escaped the wrath of his whip.
Still smiling, the killer grabbed the whip as it retracted. He pulled with such force that it caused the surprised Dino to lose balance and fell forward. Dino raised his arm to his face in time as an elbow smashed into his head.
Shots were fired. Dino noticed the man jumping back a few steps as the bullets rained onto the spot he was standing a second ago.
"Boss!"
"Don't come close! Don't shoot!"
Dino wiped the blood running down his nose away. His head hurt as a dull pain radiated within his skull. Was it a concussion? To be able to inflict this much damage even though Dino had deflected most of the force was impressive.
Which meant, the killer's attacks held more force than his eyes led him to believe.
This was a tough opponent and something told him that numbers won't make much of a difference on the man. It just gave him more targets to choose from.
That was when he noticed the sword in the Heavenly Tyrant's hand was different. Wider, thicker, a completely different blade.
But his opponent stopped. He didn't charge at Dino with that insane grin any longer. Instead, the man looked annoyed.
"Killing you would cause a problem wouldn't it?" he asked with visible disappointment. "I don't really care what is going on with you mafia, but I sure as hell don't like people prying into my business. Look, I didn't murder that Vongola brat and I certainly have no intention of ever mingling with you mafia too much."
Huh? So he still thinks that this was about Enrico? Dino frowned. It was as if this man really had no idea why they approached him.
Still, he prepared to fight. "Did you think you can get out so easily after attacking the Cavallone?"
"On the contrary, I am letting you go because you are Cavallone." He licked his lips and shrugged. "You might be big in Italy but this is Japan. Thousands of people disappear every year. Don't come messing with the wrong crew if you don't want to add to that number."
With that, he vanished into the night for real this time.
"Boss! Are you alright?" his men asked when they ran up to him.
Dino took the tissue paper from his subordinates to stop the nose bleed. His man that got hit by the dagger was fine. It didn't hit anything major.
And that had Dino even more concerned.
The Heavenly Tyrant was every bit the rumor said he was. Powerful, a weapons master (he still had no idea where the swords and daggers came from), and clever. He obviously wasn't a man driven by complete violence or that chase for an adrenaline rush. His head was clear in a fight and he was experienced. He was efficient, almost too efficient. There was not a move that he made that didn't have a meaning behind it. Even as they battled, he still had the leisure to plan out his warning and escape.
Yes, a warning was what that was.
He knew when it was enough, when it was time to pull out, and he left enough of a mark that made sure Dino wouldn't chase him.
Dino hadn't used his flames but the man probably didn't pull out all of his aces yet either. It would be a hard battle to win and Dino wasn't going to do that on foreign land. The politics and diplomatics with the local government and the gangs would be an ass to deal with.
In the end, he sighed as he ran a hand through his shaggy blond hair. It doesn't look like this man knew Tsuna, so at least there was still some good news out of this mess. Right now though, he just hoped whatever secrets his little mafia brother was harboring was less dangerous to deal with.
Author's Notes:
Saitama: In the manga it mentioned Megumi's middle school was in Saitama so he probably grew up around those parts.