32
The battle between the thunder guardians was not one Reborn had confidence in. The idiot cow was a real toddler in both mind and body. He was no child prodigy and was an overall crybaby.
But Iemitsu believed he had potential and Reborn couldn't disagree. While the Bovino family wasn't a very strong group, their advances in technology and the electrico cuoio made them quite persistent in mafia history.
Lambo...if he had been a few years older, he might be a wonderful personification of everything thel thunder guardian stood for but sending him to fight right now...Reborn still had his doubts. They would have to rely on the ten year bazooka immensely.
The night of the fight for the ring of lightning rained as if the heavens were weeping.
"Don't worry Tsuna, if anything happens we will jump in," Yamamoto said as they gathered at Namimori middle.
But his encouraging words got put down almost immediately by the Cervellos. "Actions like that will result in disqualification for both the one that was saved and the one that interrupted."
"Damn it!" Gokudera looked annoyed.
Tsuna wasn't surprised. The girls had stated the same thing during the sun fight.
Pillars were set up around the roof as the rain poured. A battleground of Electrico Circutio, was what the Cervello had named it. Lightning struck the rods on the side and the floor lit up with the dispersed electricity. Stepping in there guaranteed electrocution.
"We are withdrawing this fight." Tsuna picked Lambo off the ground while Toji held the umbrella over their heads. "Lambo's not fighting!"
Reborn sighed. He knew it. Although he can't say he wasn't pleased, he knew Tsuna would pick the welfare of his friends over victory.
That was what made him Tsuna.
He expected the Cervello to confiscate the ring and they could all get out of the rain, but Lambo started acting up.
"Lambo-sama wants to do that!"
The child didn't understand the situation. He thought this was a game.
"Wait, Lambo!" Tsuna tried to grab him but the water from the rain made his hands slip. "It's dangerous! You could die."
"Lambo-sama can't die because he is invincible! I want to go!" The kid was running in circles and whining. He stomped and threw a fit, splashing water everywhere while the Cervello and Varia watched.
"The lightning guardian has expressed his desire to participate in the battle. Please enter the ring," one of the girls said. "Your opponent has been waiting for two hours."
Tsuna stood in front of her and he crossed his arms over his chest. "I said, we are not doing this. Mafia or not, there is something seriously messed up if you all think it is alright to put a kid this young on the battlefield."
His voice was rigid and cold. The teen wasn't going to back down and the green eyed man behind him looked like he was itching for blood too.
"The guardian has not objected."
"The Vongola rings," Tsuna said in a low voice as he closed his eyes, "and the succession to the Vongola's thorne, no matter how they are said to be...I won't fight for that kind of thing."
His words surprised the Varia members and Iemitsu looked concerned. Reborn would be too because if he knew Tsuna, the teen was going to go on about how he didn't want any part of the mafia.
But to their surprise, when Tsuna opened his eyes, the dying will flame was burning bright on his forehead.
Orange flames lit up the night sky. It was not a flicker or an ember, instead, the teen's hands were both covered in a steady output of flames as well. Reborn felt his mouth hanging open. He didn't think Tsuna would be able to enter the dying will mode on his own so soon, without aid too.
Was this so important to him? To prevent a child from fighting or risking their life? That it was enough to drive out a dying will?
Tsuna slashed his hand across the air in front of him and the Cervello jumped back. There was a graze of black burn marks on the ground.
"That amount of flames..." Belphegor's smile disappeared. "Idiot long hair, you didn't mention anything like this before."
The Cervellos also looked unsure.
Tsuna took in a breath. "Vongola and everything it stood for is pointless to me. So I sure as hell don't want to lose any friends to something so meaningless. Take the thunder ring and call it a night."
The pink haired girl closest to Tsuna took a step back. The left side of her hair had been chopped off. Pink locks fell onto the ground and got damp by the water.
"You might want to think again," Toji threatened softly. "Tsuna is the boss right? He said no."
"If you continue to threaten us, the Cervello...then we shall consider that as a challenge to the Ninth's authority and confiscate your rings."
This was not going to end well.
Reborn thinks he should interfere before things escalate but then he feels another presence near them, and the Varias must have felt it too. There was someone standing on the fence at the edge of the roof. It was as if he had descended down from the heavens because Reborn certainly hadn't seen him come up any other way.
He was tall, with long legs and he was in a fully black uniform with buttons that were engraved with a spiral pattern. It looked like a highschool uniform but not one that came from the vicinity. The newcomer's hair was white and he wore a pair of round sunglasses even though it was night time. There was an umbrella in his hand.
"Hey, Tsunayoshi!" he greeted with a smile.
Tsuna looked surprised. "Gojo-san? What are you doing here?"
Gojo?
Reborn felt like he heard that name before.
The Cervello moved towards the strange teen. "Outsiders aren't allowed in here."
But the teen ignored her as he moved down from the fence.
"It sounded like you guys are doing something fun on the phone so I decided to drop by since I was near." Gojo landed beside the brown haired teen and patted Tsuna on the shoulder. "One-on-one fights huh? Old fashioned but it never gets old. So who's fighting tonight?"
Tsuna pointed to Lambo, who had been lifted off the ground by Toji to prevent him from running into the battleground.
There was a pause, then Gojo pointed at the five years old too. "This kid?"
Tsuna and Toji nodded.
The white haired teen managed a lopsided smile but it wasn't one from joy. He leaned down and attempted to whisper (attempted because everyone could still hear him without even trying) beside Tsuna's ear, "Is he strong? Have some special powers that I can't see, which I highly doubt?"
"Nope. Lambo is just a kid."
"A real kid?"
"Yes."
"Which idiot chose him to fight?"
Tsuna groaned as he hid his face in his palms. "That would be my dad."
Gojo hooked his arm around Tsuna's shoulder sympathetically.
"You mean the blond over there right?" He mentioned with his thumb at Iemitsu, who had come up the stairs with Basil. The head of CEDEF looked confused to see a stranger here and that was expected. His team had been deployed to keep the normal folks and anyone that tried to interfere with the fights out.
"Tell you what, I don't like him. If you still want to give him a piece of your mind, I can help."
Something told Reborn that his way wouldn't involve regular pranks such as tripping Iemitsu or dying his hair green. Iemitsu also eyed Gojo suspiciously.
"Voi! Who are you?" Squalo shouted from the other side of the roof. The Varia's second in command was wearing a raincoat but the sword had appeared on his left hand. He would attack if Gojo decided to interfere with the battles.
"My name's Gojo Satoru," the teen answered and his eyes landed on Mammon. Scratching his chin, the teen glanced back and forth between the two Arcobalenos on the roof. His eyes were the most striking blue Reborn has ever seen. The color was like that of a gem's glistening yet frigid, like glaciers. It was something surreal and eerie as he stared into those eyes. "Well, look at what we have here? You two are under quite a troublesome curse aren't you?"
His words made both Mammon and Reborn's heart skip a beat.
"Hey you—" Mammon started but Reborn cut them off.
"You're a shaman?" Reborn asked. Gojo...yes, that was one of the names that popped up in Reborn's search when he was researching Toji. The Gojos were well known in the world of the shamans and they had rejected Reborn's request for an audience. The curse. Does he know something about the Arcobaleno's curse?
"Bingo!"
His way of speech was definitely ruder than a normal Japanese's. This wasn't someone that knew how to spell humble or respect in his books. Reborn wondered if all of the shamans were like this.
However, Gojo lost interest in the baby hitman soon and turned his attention back to Tsuna. "Update me on what's going on then."
"We're trying to forfeit the battle but they say the guardian himself didn't object so the fight must go on. Those are the judges by the way." Tsuna looked absolutely done with his life as he gestured to the Cervello.
"I see, I see..." Gojo took off his sunglasses with one hand and placed them on Tsuna's head, despite the other teen's confused expression. He turned to Toji and asked, "Tsunayoshi's side needs to win this fight?"
The man lifted a smile. "That would be the best."
So Gojo let go of Tsuna and walked a few steps forward. He waved at the two girls with pink hair like an overly excited elementary kid. "What happens if I do this then?"
The jujutsu sorcerer stole the ring from Lambo and he was standing in the battlefield before the Cervellos could react. He stood across from Levi as he studied the ring between his fingers.
"Wait, what are you—" Iemitsu held out his hand to stop him.
"I am holding the ring and standing inside of the fighting ground so technically that means I am the Thunder or whatever right now doesn't it?" He flashed all of them a smile that was too bright and carefree for someone that had just signed up for a battle of life and death.
"You don't really have to do this, Gojo-san." Tsuna tried going after him but Toji stopped him by pulling him back by his waist.
"Let the Gojo's boy do what he wants," Toji said as he pulled Tsuna tighter into his chest. "It saves us a lot of work too."
"Don't worry, Tsuna. I'm the strongest." Gojo bent down and stretched his legs out. "All I gotta do is put that rough looking old man out of commission right?"
"Who are you calling 'rough looking'?" Levi pulled his weapons out as his eyebrows knitted together. "I don't care if my opponent is that kid or you, I will crush you both to show Boss that I am the most suited to be the Lightning guardian."
"The Varia does not object to the switch. Sawada Tsunayoshi, do you approve of Gojo Satoru to act as your Lighting guardian?" the Cervello questioned.
Tsuna sighed and he started sulking. The flames also vanished from his body. "Sure, why not? Life can get more fucked up so let's just get this over with."
"Then the battle for the ring of lightning, Levi A Than VS Gojo Satoru shall commence."
And they started. Levi came charging at Gojo just as multiple lightning struck the rods. In a flash of lights, the whole battlefield lit up for a moment. The Varia officer's choice of weapons looked like a hybrid of an umbrella and a sword. He used it to slash at Gojo and Reborn was sure Levi landed direct hits even in the field of blinding lights.
But when the electricity faded, the white haired teen still stood tall and without a scratch.
Electricity crackled around them. Levi jumped back a few feet as he assessed his opponent.
Belphegor laughed and there was some form of confusion in his voice. "Levi hit didn't he?"
His teammates didn't answer him.
"To put it simply, he didn't hit. What he hit was infinity." Gojo swatted at the air in front of him to disperse the dust. "There's still the whole agreement thing and I don't really want to get another lecture, so I won't reveal my technique. Come at me with all you got, old man."
Veins popped along Levi's forehead and he was about to try again.
"You're not wet." Levi stopped in his tracks. "The rain isn't getting to you neither is the thunder."
Everyone's eyes landed on Gojo as he said that.
Gojo hummed as he stuck his hands in his pockets. "You're pretty quick at catching on. I guess you're not as dumb as you look."
It was true. The teen's white hair looked dried and his clothing wasn't even a bit wet even though he was standing in the pouring rain. He had discarded his umbrella before he entered the field...yet he wasn't wet at all.
"A defensive ability?" Reborn looked at his student but Toji clasped a hand over Tsuna's mouth and placed a finger to his own lips. The hitman knew they weren't going to get answers from the two then.
But from the looks of it...it was a fitting ability for a thunder guardian. Their role was to take the lightning and divert the damage away from the family. If Gojo could nullify the attacks, then he could take on the role.
The Vaira must be thinking the same thing. Because Levi's muscles tensed. "The one that will fulfill the role of the Thunder guardian and get the most praises from the boss is me!"
Umbrellas shot out from behind him and circled into the air around Gojo. They became charged with electricity. Lights cracked through the air, linking all the umbrellas as the voltage amplified.
"What the heck are those?" Gokudera shouted.
And the umbrellas discharged.
All that electricity, all that power descended down upon Gojo in a fiery blaze of blinding lights.
"There's no way to dodge this attack," Mammon commented. "The umbrellas cover all angles and they discharge simultaneously. Even if that guy has a defensive mechanism, he would be fried."
"I wish the boss could see this light." Levi also looked confident as the high amount of electricity crashed into Gojo. "Die."
It wasn't just the attack from Levi they had to worry about too. The ground, that was tampered with conducting material, discharged as well as the lightning struck. The whole field was one electrical barbeque grill.
But to all of their surprise, a lazy sound came from the center of the lights.
"This light sure is pretty. But guess it's my turn now."
"What?" Levi turned around as shock painted his face.
The white haired teen on the battlefield lifted his hand and he muttered, "Red."
The lightning and electricity dispersed...no, they were repelled to be exact. And Gojo was standing there, alive and kicking with a smile on his face.
"Incredible," even Iemitsu had to admit that.
Gojo Satoru...these shamans put up more of a fight than Reborn ever have thought. He had visited many self proclaimed prophets and witches in the past in search of a way to break his curse, but none of them were on this level.
This was true sorcery.
"I will kill you no matter what!" Levi came running with his weapon raised. "Watch as I fry your heart directly!"
The white haired teen raised his hand in front of him to block. Reborn saw it then. The tip of Levi's weapon stopped just before it touched Gojo's skin, as if it had encountered an invisible barrier.
"You like electricity that much? How about you try some for yourself?" Gojo extended his hand and they all felt the air twisted. Levi's body got sucked back and one the lightning rods peeled off the ground. Metal bolts went flying as the lightning rod crashed into Levi.
Electricity transferred over to Levi's body and the man groaned as the pain shocked his tissues. But he was still standing when everything came crashing down.
"There's no way I would lose! I am the most fitted to be the Thunder guardian!"
"It's not a bad thing to have dreams but I am getting kind of hungry so let's end this." Gojo pointed his fingers like a gun at Levi and he smiled.
"Red."
There it was again, that invisible force washed across the field and roared right into Levi's body. His umbrellas went flying then Levi's body was blown out, passed the fence, off the roof, and flew all the way into the courtyard. They all heard a crash as they stared after the damaged fence while what was left of it creaked off its broken hinges. This power...it would be dangerous if they got hit head on.
"He's out of bounds does that mean he lost?" the white haired teen asked as he turned to the Cervellos. He had picked up one of Levi's fallen umbrellas from the ground and he was playing with it. Something told Reborn that Gojo was going to beat the man unconscious with his own weapon if the Cervello said "No".
One of the girls jumped off the roof and soon the other announced, "Levi A Than is unable to battle. The victor of the Thunder battle is Gojo Satoru."
"See, Tsunayoshi!" Gojo was laughing as he casted the umbrella aside casually and walked back towards them. "I told you I am the strongest!"
"Gojo-san..." Tsuna had a soft smile on his face as he came up to greet the shaman.
Right then, Gojo forcefully pushed the other teen's head down. Something shot past them and left a dent on the floor. They all turned around and they saw the attacker.
"Trash," Xanxus stood on top of the extra storage room on the side of the roof. "Are you seriously thinking of defeating me and becoming the successor by bringing all these outsiders?"
"I just don't want to lose any friends to this battle." Tsuna straightened himself as he stared up at Xanxus's gloomy expression.
Heat gathered under the assassin boss's palms and Xanxus shoved away the Cervello that tried to get him to back down. As the girl laid unconscious on the ground, Xanxus laughed. "I finally see why that old fool chose you at first. That childish way of thinking sure makes you two peas in a pod. That kind of thinking would only ensure you taste true despair in our world...just like that damn geezer did."
His smile was cruel and it set off alarms.
"Xanxus! What did you do to the Ninth?" Iemitsu shouted angrily and Reborn felt himself going for his own gun as well. Timoteo might not make the best of choices but he was still an old friend.
And Vongola's descent into madness will not do the mafia world any good.
Xanxus only grinned. "Isn't investigation your job? CEDEF?"
Iemitsu and Reborn had to hold themselves in. There was no proof and the ring battles were still going. They can't touch Xanxus now.
"As for you, Sawada Tsunayoshi," Xanxus turned to Tsuna. "I'm excited. Looks like you are not completely useless after all. Show me the strength that drew the old fool's attention in the first place. But if you lose the subsequent ring battles...all that is the most precious to you shall perish! I will execute that as my first order as Vongola's Tenth."
"All that is precious?" Tsuna mumbled and his eyes looked dazed. Like he was in thought, to somewhere else. He was detached again.
The others on their side also looked shaken. Gokudera and the other teens frowned while Iemitsu and Basil were scowling.
"Hey, hey!" Gojo waved at Xanxus as he dropped his arm around Tsuna's shoulder. His bubbly actions also shook Tsuna back down to reality. "If this was a chess match, Tsunayoshi is supposed to be the king of our team isn't he? So if he goes down then that means I lose. I don't like that!" The teen's demeanor changed to something darker and more intense as he glared up at Xanxus from underneath his long white eyelashes. And Reborn was sure they all felt it, the piercing gaze that seemed to be able to see right through any facade and lies.
"Careful, or we might have to put your fire out early."
Reborn heard the white haired teen say the threat in a sing-song tone.
"Looks like we can agree on something after all." Toji cracked a smile at that. One of his arms was still around Tsuna's waist yet he didn't flinch when Gojo aimed his fingers at the man's forehead. Instead, he had that weirdly shaped dagger that he used to stab Tsuna when Reborn first met him right in front of Gojo's Adam's apple.
Gojo stuck out his tongue in disgust. "Don't push your luck. I'm still thinking of killing you one day as payback, you scum."
"How scary."
Reborn wondered what the feud was between the two. He could tell Gojo was absolutely serious and Toji didn't mind making the teen bleed either. The two weren't on good terms and that was relieving news.
But Tsuna didn't look affected by the tension surrounding him. Instead, he smiled. That same smile Reborn had seen him wore as he pointed a gun to his own head.
It was both endearing and alarming.
"That is a funny thing to say, Xanxus." The teen held his warm gaze with the assassin's icy one without wavering. "Because it looks like we've got two wins on our side already. You really should be careful now, because you should at least try harder to gain the upper hand before you attempt to make a threat. Otherwise..." He stopped for a moment then tilted his head to the side and the curve of his lips was starting to look uncharacteristically voluptuous. "It would just make you look pathetic."
The whole world was silent then. So quiet that Reborn could hear each drop of rain crashing into the floor.
"You..." Xanxus's voice got squeezed through clenched teeth. "Trash!"
Almost simultaneously, Xanxus exploded in a raging fit and the Varia members all grabbed out their weapons. Flames shot out of Xanxus's guns but they were dispersed by Gojo. Belphegor's knives crashed into Toji's sword while Tsuna laughed as he backed away to where Gokudera and the others were standing. The other teens had come out of their shock and were prepared to fight too but Tsuna waved his hands.
"My, my...such a short fuse. You know, Xanxus," Tsuna said in a relaxed tone. "I am absolutely spiteful right now. I don't want to be part of the mafia and I fucking hate all these violence. But you people keep dragging me into this mess...so tell you what, no one is getting an easy time out of this if I have to suffer. We can all burn in hell hand in hand like one big happy family."
And he extended his arms out as he turned to smile at the Cervellos. "Go ahead, announce what is the next fight then!"
The girls were taken aback by his sudden enthusiasm but they still did their duty. "The next fight will be the battle for the storm ring."
Hearing that, Tsuna patted Gokudera on the shoulder. His expression had reverted to something Reborn was more familiar with on the brown haired teen. Something more naive and sincere. "Gokudera-kun, winning isn't the most important thing. Please stay safe."
It was as if the Tsuna from a few seconds ago was nothing but an illusion. He was still Sawada Tsunayoshi, the same innocent teen with too much of a heart.
"I-I will." The silver haired teen stuttered but he still trusted Tsuna.
"Well then, let's call it a night." Tsuna started ushering all his friends down the stairs. "Gojo-san, would you like to come over to my place for a midnight snack?"
"Sure!" The shaman followed as he dodged passed Squalo, who had attempted to hack open his side with his sword.
"Voi! You really think we 're going to let you all go after what you said?" Squalo's loud voice stopped them but strange enough, it was Xanxus who stepped in.
"Let's go, you trash." He turned away. "Don't any of you dare to put on another disgraceful performance like Lussuria or Levi did, starting with you Belphegor."
And the Varia disappeared, returning to the pitch black night where assassins belonged.
This left Iemitsu staring at his son and the shamans with an oddly painful and confused look. But he only sighed as he told Reborn he would need to go check on the Ninth back in Italy. Reborn let him go, because he knew that was an important priority.
If the Ninth had already fallen, they would have bigger problems to deal with.
Still, as Reborn watched the teenagers and Toji left school grounds, he couldn't help but feel a chill inside his heart. That Tsuna...was perfect.
He was every bit of a leader Reborn could ask for. The aura, the threats...everything was on point.
But it wasn't the Tsuna he knew.
Author's notes: The Arcobalenos didn't hear about the Jujutsu sorcerers before because the sorcerers tend to conceal themselves from the public and they left the mafia curses to the Vindice so there was very little knowledge of them outside of the Vindice. Most sorcerers or shamans also tend to fight inside barriers/screens that conceal themselves from normal people. While some of them do take work from the mafia, you can't really believe everyone claiming to be connected to the spirits right? A lot of fakes in the business too and the Arcobaleno's curse is probably something out of a normal shaman's league.
