Target 60: Resentment


On a morning as cold as this one, Mukuro noted from his soft seat the flying figure of Birds, propelled by Ken's punch. "You useless geezer!" Without the deranged twins to guard him, Birds had clashed against the wall with a grunt, helpless before Ken. "Mukuro-san's not paying your sleazy muck to get us a disadvantage!" He lay with twitching hands, reaching for a wooden staff fallen near him, but Ken stomped in his direction and kicked it the moment he was close enough. The glare he conveyed was filled with the intent to kill, and Birds had certainly recoiled against that furious expression, glancing at Mukuro with widened eyes.

"Ken," Mukuro called calmly, contrasting with the tension his subordinate was displaying. Chikusa was in the background, watching with Fuuta by his side, but he had not stepped up in the slightest for the situation, even if he usually acted in Mukuro's interests. Smirking, Mukuro knew why: the reinforcements asked had been, in the end, mere strangers, warranting no trust; true tools, moved by money. Regardless, though he had let that kick from Ken slide, he tapped his trident to the floor, and it faded afterwards when he had Ken's brief attention. "Leave him be."

"B-but Mukuro-san…!"

"Why, are you implying I would come to suffer a loss simply from the failure of a mercenary?" Mukuro pressed, seeing from Ken's side the hopeful glint in Birds's eyes when Ken had stepped back with a grimace. "Let us not forget the reason we stand here at all. Birds' companions may have fallen, but he still holds something of great use to us."

"Th-that's right," Birds said, raising his voice in desperation, though it sounded strained from the pain of the blow he suffered, "The Bloody Twins might've been defeated by those kids, but most birds still follow my orders!"

Ken snapped back to Birds to retort, "Shut up! That Sparrow guy's already got a bunch on his side, anyway! And they already found out about the birds!"

"He isn't wrong in saying that, however," Mukuro interjected, "In fact, the birds have been discovered by the enemy. While that may be true, it would be preposterous to assume they would endeavor removing all birds set in Namimori. One will necessarily remain, and it will be hidden enough that not even Squalo Superbi will notice its presence. Surely he can do as much as hiding a single of his prized pets away from the Vongola's sight."

Birds nodded along, trembling still in fear; not of Ken. Rather, by not being in Mukuro's favour, he would surely not have anyone who would stop Ken from killing him in the first place. The agreement with Mukuro was that plea for mercy. "Of course…! It's, it's my speciality!"

"Besides," Mukuro said, ignoring said plea, turned to Ken, "We already have all the information we need to strike. Whether or not we were to lose the entirety of our cameras, the Vongola's Fate is sealed."

"What's the plan, Mukuro-chan?" M.M asked from the side, leaning on a wall a little farther from Chikusa and Fuuta's position. "Is it finally my turn?" She had her eyebrows slightly raised, expecting little from the course of events, frowning idly if only because she truly had only been idling so far.

"Now, there is no need to be so impatient," Mukuro said, having glanced her way for the moment he made the off-hand remark. "Accounting for speed and attack power, Ken…" Mukuro's eyes narrowed when he looked back to Ken, who was blinking in slight confusion. "You will be the starring role now."

"Seriously…?" M.M muttered with a scowl as she glanced at Ken.

"For, for real?!" Ken grinned, teeth flashing as much as his sticking tongue as he jumped in delight. "Heck yeah! Take that, you losers-for-hire! And you, too, Kaki-pi! At least what I'm doing will matter in the end!" He had pointed at Chikusa, who presented no reaction, almost too similarly to Fuuta next to him.

"Chikusa only performed as ordered," Mukuro said, "I ask no more of him. Regardless, considering the circumstances, I've concluded we have been approaching the Vongola from the wrong angle. In light of this failure, eliminating each threat until one remains will only be giving them further time to train those remaining."

"So it's confirmed they're just buying time?"

"Of course," Mukuro said, "Their tutor must be aware of their lacking prowess and is preparing them accordingly. As for Kyoya Hibari, he must have allied with the Vongola and acted against our provocation as a result, considering the reinforcements that came to his aid." In truth, Mukuro had already been suspecting something along those lines considering the report he received about Hibari's missing status, but whether or not that was the case, his presence could have made his operation more difficult, thus his last decision; though it had no pay-off beyond unraveling the existence of a spy. The strength in Kyoya Hibari, and the incompetence of the Bloody Twins was in his mind, but it was nothing that he felt like pointing out, as he had better things to focus on. Regardless, his smirk was ever so slightly wry. "Kufufufu… Though, for only a single individual to appear for the Vongola's Tenth makes me think we are being taken lightly. Knowing that they will never move here until they are certain of their victory, we must focus now on the reason why we came here to begin with: the Vongola's body. And for that, we will make sure their morale is crushed, and they have no path to escape to except our headquarters should this mission fail."

"Right! Leave it all to me, Mukuro-san! There's no way I'd ever fail you!"

"Ah, but let's not be so hasty..." Mukuro shifted his gaze towards Fuuta. "You will not be performing alone."

"Huh?"

"You will make it clear we are ready to strike even outside of our own territory," Mukuro said, "and our little spy here will be the true offensive force, now."


. . .


"Hurricane Bomb Hayato, huh?! Now that's a hitman title I've never heard in my life!" Squalo countered with a grin of pride in himself, pointing accusingly at Gokudera. "Guess the Cavallone Family's left us for dead!" The statement was as if contrary to his mood, if not from seeing Gokudera's glare narrow from sheer anger he couldn't hide.

"If anything," Gokudera retorted in somewhat of a strained voice, as if holding back from action, "I'm the guy who just saved all your hides in one fell swoop, and my Boss sent me knowing I'd step up to the plate!" Then, he stepped in a huff towards Tsuna, who blinked in confusion. He took slips of what looked at first to be paper from his pockets, and showed them to Tsuna, nearing them to his face. "Take these. As far as I'm concerned, this guy might be your tutor, but he's no authority to me. This is what my Boss went out of his way to bring to your attention to make sure you'd succeed."

"Huh? Ph-photos…?" Tsuna took them, only for his eyes to widen in shock. He looked to the side, where the unconscious body of one of the Bloody Twins was, exclaiming, "Wait, these are photos from jail…! These are the fugitives?!"

Squalo glanced towards the photos simply tilting his head to the side, frowning with a calculating gaze. "Voi, this isn't what I was told," Squalo claimed, "Weren't there only three fugitives?!" He directed a glare to Gokudera, having seen the identities of the people revealed on the photos, which were not alike the first ones he had received as reference to Mukuro Rokudo. Firstly, a young woman with short hair was at the corner of the pictures, with the Bloody Twins there alongside an old man. There was such a striking contrast from the lackeys he had seen paired up with Mukuro that it was unmistakable, and these individuals had nothing in the way of an apparent connection. Tsuna, meanwhile, was seeing in Squalo that kind of certainty, and frowned wryly, unsure what to do with this new information.

"At first, that's what it looked like," Gokudera said to Squalo with a scowl, but his expression softened in a light show of shame, "They'd escaped together, but they split in the end, so the Boss wasn't expecting them to re-group. When he found out, he sent me specifically to help the Vongola's Tenth in suppressing this threat not only by giving information, but in joining the offensive effort."

"And, what? That hitman collapsed there was gonna target somebody we know?" Mochida asked, speaking now from sheer confusion as he had been staring blankly at the unconscious twin. A sinister creature that had been fought, settling as part of his reality.

"He and his twin are hitmen known as the Bloody Twins," Gokudera explained, sparing Mochida a glance, "They're serial killers working under that old man in the picture. He's called Birds, and he's the sole reason they even knew who to target."

Yamamoto flinched, staring pointedly at Gokudera, but unable to move beyond the consequent twitching of his fists. "Serial killers..." Yamamoto muttered, voice low as he processed the gravity of these words, "Fuuta's with people like that..."

"And then there's Kyoya Hibari," Gokudera uttered, and everyone twitched to quickly turn to Gokudera in reaction to the familiar name, "He's been associating with you for a while, and considering the group he's leading, it makes sense he was targeted first. Eliminating him would bring you at a disadvantage both in terms of manpower and information. Luckily for him, though, I was making more of my rounds when I noticed those hitmen on the move with Birds's little birds leading the way."

"Wait, though!" Ryohei shouted, pointing to the unconscious body, "If they're twins, why do we only have one here?!"

"One, one actually got to Hibari-san?!" Tsuna voiced while taking a step back in the fear involved in the implication.

"More importantly," Squalo said, "How long have you been here? You didn't just arrive today from Italy." His voice was low, thoughtful but grim as he was considering more than what he had just said.

Gokudera noted that and answered in kind, "Hmph, I've been here since yesterday and just acted as a spy."

"You've been here all along?!"

"But you haven't been around us," Squalo said, level-headed in stark contrast with his pupil, whose reactions he had been deliberately ignoring. "Have you?"

"It's not like you should be needing me if you're actually doing your job," Gokudera countered, raising his eyebrows in a bitter taunt. "Or what, is tutoring too hard a job for the Varia?"

"Voi, like Hell it is!" Squalo pointed his sword to Gokudera as he finally snapped, and Yamamoto stepped forward with a wry smile.

"Now, now," he admonished, though his mind also seemed elsewhere, "No one needs to get into an argument if we're all allies."

"'All allies', huh..." Gokudera muttered, glancing towards Squalo. "For now, we are." He had been staring at Yamamoto otherwise, scowling in reaction to such a clear sign of innocence in the midst of the serious situation.

For now? I wonder what he's talking about... Tsuna thought, only to see Ryohei step for him, and put a hand over his shoulder. "Isn't this good, Sawada?! The only reason Hibari isn't here yet is because he's late!"

"S-speaking of…! Sure, we can assume he's late, but what if he's actually in trouble—"

"Are you underestimating me, Tsunayoshi Sawada?" All turned to the figure approaching them, and noted tiny shadows hovering near who they could already perceive as Hibari from his voice alone.

"Hi-Hibari-san…!" Tsuna shouted in awe, only to frown with added bitterness with every calm step Hibari was taking. Hibari was staring at him coldly, contrasting greatly with the five yellow birds by his side. "Uh, what happened so that you have all those birds with you…?"

"Wait, those are Birds's little birds!" Gokudera exclaimed, placing himself in front of everyone with an incredulous gaze on the reckless youth, "What are you bringing them over here for?! They've got hidden cameras with them! That's how the enemy's even found you!"

"Hidden? They were in plain view," Hibari said with no signs of hesitation, eyeing Gokudera sharply with a simple frown, "and I removed them. They seemed to be weighing on their necks, after all."

"Did he just… Tame the birds that some hitman was using?" Mochida asked, staring blankly at Hibari.

"They looked hungry," Hibari added.

Yamamoto chuckled. "That's awesome! Besides, if this was the vigilance we had to worry about, Hibari's just solved it, right?"

"No, he didn't," Gokudera said, "Those aren't the only birds he's got. If anything, we should be watching out if his birds followed Hibari here without him knowing!"

"I wasn't followed," Hibari said, "and the remaining ones I found are being taken care of by the committee for now."

"Th-the committee..." Tsuna muttered, unable to conceive the mental image.

"Voi, how spread out were these birds?" Squalo asked, and Gokudera turned partially his way assuming it was a question for him. "Don't tell me they ended up getting a scenic view of where Tsuna lives."

Gokudera grimaced, closing his eyes. "That's probably what happened, too," he said, "so it's only a matter of time before they begin targeting"

"Voi, you've gotta be kidding me!" Squalo snapped, his grimace more fierce than usual as he almost couldn't beat the urge to charge at Gokudera, "Weren't you sent to give us information?! If one of the fugitives had a skill as troublesome as getting these tiny birds to watch over us, you and your damn boss should've had the courtesy of warning me on time!"

"Even if I did, there was no way to stop the birds!" Gokudera argued, with one leg back as though having sensed Squalo's killing intent despite wanting to feign otherwise, "The moment they're out, there's no way around them! That's why the best choice was to stay hidden until I spotted the enemy attacking: they already knew how many you were, but they wouldn't have expected me there, and I could hide knowing they were around. Meanwhile, you could never enter the Sawada residence without being noticed, and birds can't be sensed like an enemy charging to kill. Someone like you should be knowing that the best out of all of us!"

"Of course I know about it, that's why I'm saying you should've warned me of something that troublesome! What would you have done if I hadn't evacuated Tsuna's mother?! She could've been the target instead of Kyoya Hibari! Besides, even if we couldn't escape our house getting found out by the enemy, I could've at least made it so that wouldn't matter!"

"Hey," Hibari interjected, but he was not yet close to the two. He was glaring at Gokudera, the one nearest his position, with a tonfa already raised as if to prepare for a finishing blow. "I didn't appear to see and hear a crowd forming in front of me. Whatever this commotion is, could you keep it down so I can defeat Tsunayoshi Sawada in peace?"

"U-uh, that's right..!" Tsuna said, rushing to be in front of Gokudera to guard him from the blatant danger. He held both hands out as a gesture to symbolize everyone to calm down, and while his gaze was not focused and his frown was lop-sided, he continued to speak for the sake of Squalo "From what I can tell, things got really bad, but mom's safe, right? We should probably focus on training, then. Besides, with the house empty, there's really no point in it being known if we spend most of our time here..."

Squalo and Gokudera stared at Tsuna, both glares causing Tsuna to step back, shrinking under the intimidating pressure they released. The first to look away was, surprisingly, Squalo. "Hmph, what that Cavallone brat's lucky for is that my training's actually working on you. Anyway, Kensuke Mochida! Let's start already!" He had turned to Mochida, and motioned for him to move with his sword. He stepped away before even listening to Mochida, however, assuming he would follow; and more importantly, that he could not be subjected to more annoyances Gokudera could bring forth.

Mochida ended up shouting from the distance, distraught by the sudden turn of events, "The training?! I mean, with Hibari here, I guess it makes sense, but—!"

"Voi, you better not be telling me you're giving up now!"

"It's not that, but—" Mochida looked to his right, where one of the Bloody Twins was located. "Is that body just gonna lie there for no reason?!"

"I brought it for questioning," Gokudera said, "If he doesn't answer anything when he wakes up, I'll just knock him out again and hand him over."

"To the authorities?" Yamamoto asked, while Mochida had sighed in reaction to Gokudera's calm explanation. He did not express his dissatisfaction outwardly, seeing Squalo lying in wait. He dashed away to his side, glancing back to Yamamoto simply to check on the conversation.

"… You damn well who I'm handing him to!" Gokudera retorted, only to look towards Tsuna again. "Afterwards, I'll return here and await for orders."

"Orders?" Tsuna asked.

"My boss expects a lot from you," Gokudera said, "I expect you to answer those expectations, and act as the Vongola Tenth you're meant to be." He retreated then, walking for the Bloody Twins with efficient haste. Tsuna had not been able to provide him with a single answer to his statement, and merely allowed him to go, dignified of his position.

Tsuna grimaced, with a bitterness akin to a grudge. "Well, with all this settled, I guess we should also go train, huh, senpai?" Yamamoto offered, and Ryohei offered him a thumb's up.

"Of course! We must get stronger to the extreme!"

Vongola Tenth, huh... Tsuna thought, watching the two step away from him, though his eyes still drifted towards the newcomer. Is that all I am, as far as he's concerned? Even though the only reason I'm fighting at all is— "What are you spacing out for?" Tsuna gasped, jumping back immediately when he felt a familiar wind pressure signalling Hibari's incoming hit. Trembling hands were raised, fisted as if in preparation when he saw Hibari. "We're fighting. I've been looking forward to taking you down for a while now…!"

I can't hesitate now, Tsuna thought, stepping to the side, Squalo's already told me what I'm lacking; I knew all along. I just don't have an actual reason to hurt Hibari-san. Still... "Me actually hitting you… You'd rather that, right?" Tsuna asked, with a voice as low as it was hesitant. "Anyone would be angry if their opponent were holding back."

"… And you were?"

Tsuna shook his head. "I was trying my best," Tsuna said, "but my best just wanting to react to the situation isn't enough. I need to learn what is it to seriously fight, even if it involves hurting you. And I've gotta learn how to deal with that if I want to get past this with everyone…!"

"Show it to me, then," Hibari said, calmly, "how serious you are."

Tsuna scowled, stepping back to dodge as narrowed eyes focused on Hibari's movements. I've gotta do this, he thought, almost as a chant, There's no way around it. I told Hibari-san I would…! Tsuna grabbed at Hibari's right arm when he had the chance, tightening his grip was as much strength as he could muster. Something you hate, think of something you hate…! The sole reason I'm in this mess... Then, Tsuna saw Hibari swing his other tonfa for Tsuna, who had known he was most likely to retaliate that way: while a kick was possible from the sideways position, Hibari was visibly not keen on being restrained in combat, and would normally use his other arm by instinct. Subconsciously, Tsuna knew that, and tried not to avert his eyes from Hibari's. Is because someone thought it was a good idea to make me a mafia boss of all things! I… If they're gonna force me to become one, I'm not just gonna let them!

Just as Hibari's other tonfa was nearing Tsuna's face, his fist soared for Hibari's. I'm not becoming a mafia boss, no matter what! Naturally, the attack connected, as Hibari's arm was caught by Tsuna's, and the momentum built to hit Tsuna with his tonfas could not be retracted easily, or even stopped to repel Tsuna with a kick. As Tsuna had predicted, scarily enough, Hibari had an opening formed out of Tsuna's previous weakness, and his own recklessness fighting. Not having expected Tsuna would hit his face, he had been knocked back. Now, there were more openings to exploit. More that Tsuna always was able to exploit, if only his resolve had been higher. Tsuna let go of Hibari's arm, and ducked as Hibari had immediately moved it horizontally to attack Tsuna, even despite his sight not being set on Tsuna from the blow. For that, I've got to fight! Everyone's waiting for me! Squalo…!

But then again, as much as I hate not being a mafia boss, I don't know... Tsuna elbowed Hibari when he stood, using his entire weight to add to the hit. Hibari slid back, and Tsuna exhaled. In the end, what I really want to fight for has nothing to do that. What I hate more than the people who forced this on me… Is myself, for always lagging behind, when I could've been like this if I just tried! "I won't apologize," Tsuna said, "I'm training so I no longer feel like saying that, because I have a good reason to be standing here right now. I meant what I told you the day before yesterday…!"

Tsuna had stood then, watching Hibari raise his head to meet Tsuna's eyes. To Tsuna's surprise, Hibari, whose upper chest area and shoulder twisted as if in reaction to the pain, was smirking wider than any other time he was fighting him. "I was waiting for this," Hibari muttered, "For you to show your true colors. Just as I expected, you… You were strong all along."

"I might not be some genius, or a natural born killer, or even all that competent" Tsuna said, "but I know by now that I'm supposed to have talent somewhere. Hibari-san… I'll be going on the offensive now."

Hibari charged, fast enough that Tsuna saw him obstruct his sight after a single blink and he was forced to jump back knowing the kind of injuries he'd sustain under the force of Hibari's tonfa. Tsuna tilted aside to dodge another strike, and attempted to move behind Hibari, who stopped him immediately with a kick. Tsuna blinked awkwardly. It's great that I actually managed to attack Hibari-san properly, but he suddenly got way stronger than before…! How do I take him out if he's not showing openings?! Tsuna blocked a tonfa's strike then, feeling its pain concretely on his skin. He had been hit before by Hibari, particularly on his abdomen before he would stand up slowly. Tsuna winced regardless, the force of the hit worse than before, but Tsuna allowed himself to move forward with the arm blocking Hibari's arm. Tsuna blocked Hibari's right arm after letting his slide from Hibari's left, and raised his knee, which he thrust forward. Hibari struck Tsuna from behind, his tonfa colliding with his back, but Tsuna was able to knee Hibari's waist, with both momentarily recoiling.

Observing that idly was Squalo, moving only a step aside to dodge Mochida's attempt at a hit from his wooden sword. "Hmph, looks like he's starting to shape up," Squalo remarked with a smirk, only to shift his gaze to Gokudera, off to an edge of the mountain. "And that piece of trash the Bucking Bronco brought's already taking that body away. So much for an interrogation…"

"Squalo!" Mochida shouted, and Squalo did hear his footsteps. Briefly, he glanced towards Mochida's position, and rose an arm seeing a trained vertical swing coming his way. However, while he pressed his hand on the sword, stopping it immediately, he saw Mochida's feet moving, kicking up dust and pebbles. "Take this!" He let the sword drop from his hands, knowing Squalo would let go then, and took the sword while ducking. Gripped strongly now, Mochida swung from right to left, aiming from Squalo's shins, but Squalo jumped back from the dust and Mochida with a triumphant grin.

"Voi, nice try, brat!" Squalo shouted, "But you're still 100 years too late to match me in speed! For someone average like you, the only thing that could save you's a gimmick to make you stand out! Without that, you're just a kid with a wooden sword!"

However, Mochida continued charging, passing by Squalo. Squalo turned around, an eyebrow arched with mild curiosity, and watched Mochida try to stab him. Knowing him, it's another feint. Squalo stepped aside, and Mochida swung the same direction, only for Squalo to swat the sword away with only his hand. The sword flew centimeters away from the two, clearly from Squalo holding back. "Damn it," Mochida muttered, rushing for his weapon.

"You're missing something," Squalo stated cleanly, "Just like Tsuna was before today."

"Missing something…?" Mochida questioned when he looked back, just after he had squatted to reach for the sword. "You mean a fighting style?"

"Voi, that's too obvious to say," Squalo retorted, "What I mean is that you need more than just some wooden sword and some resolve to go fighting like a professional. Try all you want to feint with that sword, but it doesn't fit that style! You need something more malleable!"

Mochida's hands trembled as he picked the sword up, standing with a grimace. "I… Honestly, I don't have any attachment to the kendo style itself," Mochida said, "but if it's about throwing this away, I can't. It's one of the only things I have any investment in! If I'm gonna fight, I'm going to use this!"

"Have it your way," Squalo said dismissively, smirking as though imagining something beyond the present situation. "That's not a bad thing you got there. But you get what I'm telling you, right? Use that sword, but don't let it go to waste by not making it fit how you fight! You wanted to be as strong as I am? I didn't just use a sword: I let my hand become the sword. And even that's got those explosives you saw before!"

Mochida narrowed his eyes, pondering. "You've got a point there," Mochida said, "but even then, my only problem isn't just that. I'm still not strong enough!"

"If you're self-aware, come at me with something that needs more than my hand to get through, and make it quick! I'll be getting bored of your tricks at this rate!"

Hearing Mochida's war cry from the distance, Yamamoto momentarily glanced in that direction, offering Mochida a sympathetic smile. "He's sure having it tough with Squalo," Yamamoto said, "Then again, there'd be nothing better than getting trained under him." To be honest, I'm kinda jealous, but then again, Kendo's what fits Mochida-senpai the most. As for me...

"Hey, Yamamoto! You can't just lose focus in the middle of training! Strengthening ourselves is of the utmost importance!" Ryohei shouted as he attempted to lunge at Yamamoto, who had by now gotten used to preparing his throwing arm quickly enough to thwart Ryohei straightforward dash. Throwing low was usually a safe and viable choice. It would cause Ryohei to waste time running aside to dodge, even if he would continue approaching. I can at least say it's been good training for the tournament.

This time, however, Ryohei swung his fist forward, towards the pebble, and seemingly punched it aside. "Sasagawa-senpai? You do know the training's all about you trying to figure out how to get close while I'm throwing, right?"

"But this is the fastest way!" Ryohei argued back, "It's not like there's anything preventing me from doing this!"

Yamamoto chuckled. "In a way, you think outside the box more than any of us here," he said, "Then again, if you can even do that, I gotta up my game. I'm planning on rescuing Fuuta with this skill, after all. I'm not planning on letting you have the upper hand."

"Well said, Yamamoto! Though, I'd never go easy on you," Ryohei countered, "My motto is 'extreme', and that's how it'll always be!"

Yamamoto ducked to take more pebbles from the shore, and walked back to make distance between himself and Ryohei while giving propulsion to his next throw moving his arm backwards. The position of his legs was none other than the expected slight crouch necessary for an effective throw, and Ryohei was forced to step aside now, and while he ran, Yamamoto was already preparing another pebble.

Gokudera was looking behind every so often to check on the entire location, confirming their diligent efforts. They displayed the amateurish nature of the fighters involved: mere middle school students who had never before gotten into a real fight. While Reborn would speak of the potential of Tsuna and his friends, that fact was a hard one to believe for Gokudera, when none had yet completed their training when the opposition was hoping to strike. Although, despite this, Gokudera could not deny, as he saw Squalo in the midst, bothering with someone other than Tsuna, that he was not simply slacking from his duties, or making light of the situation. Everyone was training, intending with all their resolve to win. And that, most of all, drew his gaze back to their training stances, with a hint of hope in his sullen frown.


. . .


Shouichi Irie was absolutely certain the sound of an explosion had resounded from that neighbourhood. That specific street in which he knew for a fact a loud, strange man swinging a sword around was living in. For months now, he'd spotted the man on his way to school, and he could mostly sneak by the scenes he would cause. Sometimes, he would be calmly and peaceful treading through the neighborhood. How the man had never been confronted by a police officer over his weapon was largely questionable, but that wasn't the point now.

The point was that Shouichi Irie desperately needed to search for better routes to his school. Ones that wouldn't explode. Or contain threatening men. Though, since he'd spot the man walking through more streets than the one his house was located at, Shouichi at least wanted a location no conflict would arise in. However, no matter what, something strange was about. Even without the explosions or the strange long-haired guy, there was still those strange men in uniforms, their armbands implying they were part of some gang named after discipline.

As of now, on his way home, he could spot them everywhere. In the past days, he could see them run as if chasing after something, but now, it seemed as though they'd found their target. Climbing onto trees, speaking to frightened people in their homes about the matter, the group of delinquents was cleanly on its way to fix what appeared to be a yellow bird infestation. It wasn't a normal infestation, though. Of course not. The birds all had to have cameras around their necks, as if they were used for vigilance.

In all corners, scary delinquents trying to tame birds. Some successful, some not. Shouichi grimaced. Just what's happening with this town? Shouichi could not help but stare, even if part of him wanted to pretend everything was normal. On the other side of the street, beyond the delinquents, was someone his age, his uniform dark green. Shouichi blinked, seeing the spiky-haired boy rush by the delinquents with his tongue sticking out. Wait, isn't that a Kokuyo Middle School student? One of those who've been attacking Namimori Middle School for a week already?!

… Shouichi Irie concluded today that this route was entirely off-limits for his safety's sake.


. . .


The sun had sunk already into the boundary line between the landscape and the sky, and Tsuna was walking with Squalo by his side after Hibari had left their match to continue the next day. That time, Hibari had a smile on his face when claiming to return, and Tsuna was able to smile nervously in return. Ryohei, Mochida and Yamamoto had accompanied Tsuna and Squalo on the path home until they decided to split to head for theirs, and it was then Tsuna had applied the only order he was able to give to Gokudera, who had come back to watch the training process. He had pressed Tsuna for input when the afternoon arrived and the training was by its end, and in light of the danger the birds provided for everyone's safety, the most Tsuna could tell him was to accompany Mochida so that everyone could return to their homes in pairs. As such, Mochida and Gokudera had been the first two to split from the group due to their distance from Tsuna's home, followed by Yamamoto and Ryohei, optimistic as always.

Meanwhile, fatigued, Tsuna sighed. "In the end, I still didn't manage to defeat Hibari-san," he said, "I've hit him now, sure, but he never gets knocked down. I might as well be training Hibari-san at the same time as myself..."

"Voi, are you whining even though you're making progress?!" Squalo retorted, though his tone was lighter than his usual anger would imply, making Tsuna's reaction just as weak.

"Can't I vent every once in a while?" Tsuna argued dejectedly, but his frown could almost be a bitter smile. "I know I'm doing well. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, but… I'm definitely not looking forward to Hibari's hits. I swear he's getting stronger..."

"If you don't wanna get hit, get better at dodging!" Squalo said, "As far as I'm concerned, he's so slow I could get in between him before he'd attack you!"

Tsuna scratched the back of his head, finding in him little energy to think of how to deflect Squalo's bragging. In the end, he settled for muttering, "I've still got a long way to go, huh…?"

"Of course you do," Squalo said, "I'm your tutor, but you're just a brat. You barely have any experience! It's just how it is."

"I guess," Tsuna said, "Still, it helped taking fighting more seriously, but, I don't know… Something's still missing." He looked towards his hands, which were up to his chest as he noted their trembling, rugged palms. "I think I'd have already beaten Hibari-san if I were stronger, but I don't really know how I'd do that." As though his hand could be key to something, he stared intently, losing sight of anything else, while Squalo's eyebrows rose in mild doubt.

"How else would you get stronger? You either train, or you fight for real!" Squalo shot back, only sparing a glance at what Tsuna was looking at, figuring that he was merely feeling in him the pain of physical exertion. "It's just like what the other pieces of trash are doing. Well, except that bomber brat we got sent. He's acting all high and mighty now, but he'll have something coming for him with how insufferable he's being!"

"He mentioned something about the 'Varia'," Tsuna interjected, almost as a mutter, meant for himself rather than Squalo. "And now that I think about it, everyone who's visited you from Italy didn't really trust you." His gaze deviated from his hands and were directed to Squalo's side then, wearing a small frown as he tried and failed to ponder the implications of his own words.

"They're a bunch of soft-hearted fools," Squalo sharply claimed, "There's no point in listening to them."

"What's the 'Varia', though? It's some kind of group, right?"

"Voi, I don't owe you a—" Squalo stopped in his tracks, looking specifically to the right corner of the street, obstructed partially by a thick wall surrounding a house. "Who's there? If you don't come out, we'll just kill you instead!" He pointed his sword towards the center of his line of sight, and Tsuna followed that quickly and incredulously.

"K-kill? And what are you even talking about?!" Tsuna questioned, only for a small figure to jump from the corner meekly.

"Wait…!" Squalo and Tsuna both stood wide-eyed before the little boy showing both palms of his hands, gesturing to stop. From what they could note of him, his hanging scarf dirtied by the edges, and brown eyes reddened due to crying, it was clear he was none other than Fuuta. "I-it's me!"

"Fuuta?!" Tsuna exclaimed in shock, while Squalo's sword was still firm in pointing accusingly Fuuta's way.

"Voi, what are you doing here? The last time I saw you, you were under mind control!"

"Mind control…?" Tsuna muttered, staring further at Fuuta, up and down.

"I… Escaped," Fuuta said, his voice quiet, hesitant. "So I wanted to find you, because..." Tears welled in his eyes, and he stepped slowly forward. "Because, I..." He was running by then, and Squalo's eyes had narrowed watching the boy's arm retract to his pocket briefly. Squalo glanced towards Tsuna, but his expression was a grimace Squalo had already learned to associate that with sadness, but at the same time, bitterness. Squalo stepped back, then.

Tsuna placed a hand over Fuuta's shoulder when he approached, and Fuuta stopped with a flinch. "Fuuta," Tsuna said, softly, "I'm happy you're here, but..." He directed his gaze to a closed hand, the one opposite of the shoulder he was grabbing. "What is that in your hand? Are you… Really okay?" The sharp object in Fuuta's hand glinted dangerously, and it was being gripped tighter as a result of Tsuna's questions.

Fuuta opened his mouth to speak, but no words came from the endeavour. It was closed with a bitten lip, and he scowled. As far as Tsuna could see, the boy's eyes were hollow, and he knew then the shrill scream he let out, though genuine, was a sign of the situation Fuuta had been in from the beginning. He raised his other arm, and Tsuna grabbed it. "Let… Let go!"

"Fuuta, please," Tsuna said, "This isn't what you want to do. Just put that down and come back to us! You've got the chance now!"

"N, no…! I can't go… Back!" Fuuta's arm trembled furiously under Tsuna's grasp, struggling. Distraught, his eyes no longer were set on Tsuna, and he pulled at Tsuna's arm with his vacant one with growls of desperation. "I… I—"

"Voi, this is pitiful by now," Squalo said from the side, sending an unimpressed look to the struggling Fuuta, "You can tell how to knock somebody out properly with your intuition, can't you? We've got better things to do than to argue with someone who's mind controlled."

"We can't do that to Fuuta," Tsuna said, "He's innocent..! And even if I did that, it wouldn't reverse this, right? Fuuta, come on. Yamamoto is worried about you, you know? So is Kyoko-chan's brother, and Mochida-senpai. They've been thinking of nothing but saving you…!"

"Let… Me… Go!"

There's no doubt the kid was ordered to attack Tsuna with that, Squalo thought watching the exchange, but a shard that small couldn't kill anyone. Why would Mukuro Rokudo not arm the brat and let him pick up this random thing? Squalo looked away from Fuuta, towards the landscape, and his eyes were wider than even when he'd first seen Fuuta. "Vooooi, Tsuna! We don't have time to be bothering with Ranking Fuuta right now! Look at that!"

"Huh?" Tsuna looked away from Fuuta briefly to follow Squalo's gaze, only to note a faint rise in smoke specifically from the area correspondent to his house, camouflaged by the evening sky. "Smoke…?"

"That trash was only sent here to buy time! Whatever it is that's happening there, it's the enemy's doing!" Squalo shouted as he began running. "So you better start moving and leaving the brat behind, now!"

"Wha—" The enemy…?

"Let… Me..."

Tsuna shifted his gaze to Fuuta, listening to his strain voice with wavering eyes. If I let him go, he'd come back. He'd come back and suffer…! Tsuna's eyes shut, and he suppressed hints of frustration. "I'm sorry…!" He pulled Fuuta by the arm as he ran, and heard the boy wince under the force utilized. Regardless, of the low groaning of Fuuta trying still to be released from Tsuna's grasp to execute his order, Tsuna followed Squalo, turning the corner in the direction of his house; of the smoke rising to the sky.

By the time he was in the middle of the street, he could smell the smoke. Tsuna could hear his heartbeat clearly while processing the implications of that smell assailing his senses, and Squalo's speed attempting to reach his house. Fuuta ran clumsily behind him, but Tsuna could not even hear him anymore, heavy thoughts weighing on his mind.

They sunk when, from a distance, an abnormal light could be seen in the direction of his house. When he looked aside, Squalo had already stopped by its front, and visibly trembled with fury. Tsuna's eyes focused on that sight first and foremost, but his pace slowed considerably, and now, he stepped towards Squalo with wide eyes, hands trembling. If not for Fuuta, he would've forgotten even to apply force to his grip on his arm. "S-Squalo..."

"It's no use," Squalo said, his voice suppressed by the sheer intensity of his emotions, "whoever did it already got away from here."

Finally, Tsuna turned to his left, where what was still visible and being corroded of his house could be clearly seen. Consumed by flames, the second floor was beginning to crumble, along with his room, from which he noted more fire from beyond the window. "No way..." Tsuna muttered in disbelief, his gaze directed now to the ground floor, where the kitchen would be; where his mother could have been. "Our house… What… Why would they—"

"We're being taunted," Squalo said, "They probably figured out we're trying to buy time."

"But, it's not like they needed to just… Destroy my home like this! Why, why—"

"Voi, don't show weakness! That's exactly what the enemy wants from you," Squalo said, "They did it so you wouldn't feel safe anywhere. Hmph, and then that brat had the gall to say not talking about the birds would do anything. Now we gotta figure out how to fix this before your mother arrives."

"Fix this…? How can we even fix something like this?! In two days, no less!"

"As if I know!" Squalo argued back, "If you have time to whine, start following me! We're finding another place to stay!"

"Wait, what about calling the firefighters?!"

"At this point, someone's got to have called them already! What we gotta focus on now is a place you can rest in for tomorrow! And voi, dump the kid already!"

Squalo stomped away from the house afterwards, but Tsuna found himself unable to move. At the mention of Fuuta, Tsuna noted his strong grip on the boy's arm, and that he was no longer struggling. Slowly, disheartened, Tsuna looked back towards Fuuta, and saw tears in his eyes. Overriding his own will to cry, Tsuna scowled, finding the sadness in Fuuta, who was made against his will to aid in an act so cruel, much more profound and undeserving than his own. Like Squalo had at first, Tsuna trembled in fury, and made a point to look away from Fuuta so it would not be directed at him. Meanwhile, Squalo had turned around and was starting to walk for him after seeing he wasn't being followed. "Voi, did you hear anything I said? We don't have time to waste on—"

"… I can't forgive them," Tsuna muttered, and Squalo blinked in confusion. It wasn't due to the words he'd uttered. Simply looking at Tsuna's expression, and his eyes filled with hatred from injustice, Squalo blinked in face of the unfamiliarity of such raw bitterness from the boy. "Seeing what they did to Fuuta, and what they've done to our house mom's meant to return to… I can't forgive them!"

"Is that right? And what're you gonna do about it?" Squalo questioned, and Tsuna's vacant hand tightened in its fisted position. Faintly, to Squalo's surprise, something flickered from that hand; something akin to a spark.

"… I'll fight them," Tsuna asserted quietly, and looked towards Squalo when his emotions were at their peak, "I've got to defeat Mukuro Rokudo and make things right again!"

"Tsuna!" From behind Tsuna, a familiar voice was heard, and Squalo's wide eyes had been directed to that position. Tsuna, as well, looked back, noting Fuuta's equally shocked expression. "Are you alright?!" Yamamoto, accompanied by Ryohei had halted their dash abruptly, and Yamamoto seemingly froze faced with the entire imagery. "Fuuta…!"

"We saw the smoke from afar and we started thinking it could've been the enemy's attack on you!" Ryohei explained, "From the looks of it, we were right."

"Yamamoto, Kyoko-chan's brother..." Tsuna muttered hollowly, as if lacking in the energy to be entirely happy seeing them.

"Not only that, but Fuuta is with you! I don't know what happened, but it's good to see you've managed to save him!" Ryohei exclaimed, stepping closer to Tsuna slowly, only to stop when he saw Yamamoto quickly pass by him.

Tsuna blinked watching Yamamoto squat to wrap his arms around him. "I'm glad you're okay," he muttered, and Tsuna was compelled to let go of Fuuta's arm. "I was so worried…!" The hand from Fuuta, twitching as it was changing its aim to Yamamoto, dropped slowly, bringing itself to a halt, trembling.

"Voi, he's not the slightest bit okay," Squalo said, "That kid's under mind control! And ordered to kill us, no doubt!"

Yamamoto rose his head to note the arm with the shard. "Mind control?" Finally, Fuuta swung the shard downwards, and Yamamoto jumped away.

"At that point, his mind already been messed with enough he probably can't even use his powers," Squalo said, lightly shrugging, "So, he's useless as they come now."

Tears poured from Fuuta's eyes, leaving the three facing Fuuta grimacing in light of the situation. "I'm sorry," Yamamoto said, "but even if it's you, I'd want you to take that back." He was confident in turning around, as though there were no danger in doing so regardless of what he learned about Fuuta's circumstances, to lock eyes with Squalo, frowning firmly.

"Huh?" Squalo said, glaring back if only out of being ignorant of what he could possibly do before Yamamoto's demand. "Haven't you all figured out what kind of situation this is?! Our house is on fire, and Tsuna needs his rest! We can't just keep chatting!"

"He's charging for Tsuna!" Ryohei exclaimed, and Tsuna stepped aside promptly, having seen it coming. Is he aiming just for me?! Tsuna thought, eyes wide from the shock of that implication. Because I'm supposed to be the next Vongola boss...!

"Fuuta…! Stop this…!" Tsuna shouted.

Before Tsuna could restrain him, however, Yamamoto had already grabbed Fuuta's hand, and removed the shard with the other forcefully. Tsuna could almost not believe the speed with which he had done so, as if he had predicted where he would go, and had wasted no time turning around for Fuuta's sake despite talking to Squalo. "C'mon, Fuuta," Yamamoto said calmly, "It's dangerous wielding things like these out in the open. I'll take care of this."

"N… No..." Fuuta sobbed despite himself, and Yamamoto, grabbing onto the shard, feeling Fuuta cling to him, pulling at his sleeves, turned to Squalo with a frown. "Give it… Back..."

"Squalo," Yamamoto said, "Take that back."

"Voi, you think you can give me orders now? I said it like it is! Or, what?! You're telling me he's got any use beyond ranking things?!"

"Fuuta is just Fuuta," Yamamoto said, "He's cautious, and a little cheeky, but hard-working; my old man can attest to that. If he tried for it, Fuuta could do anything, just like any of us. Even if he's often just loitering around with his book..." Fuuta's struggle stopped, and he froze in place. "I don't want Fuuta to get the wrong idea and start despairing. Wallowing in self-pity and guilt is the last path I want him to take."

Fuuta's trembling hands approached his face, and he faintly winced in pain. "Not only that, but he's a friend of ours!" Ryohei exclaimed, "If he ever set out to do something, we'd support him until he could do it right!" From behind Ryohei, panting could be heard, and Ryohei looked aside. "Oh, Mochida and the octopus-hair guy!"

"It's Hayato Gokudera, you lawn-head! And what the hell's going on here?!"

"Fuuta…! You're alright!" Mochida shouted, taking him almost as the only thing in sight, grimacing. Flashes of the last time he had seen him coursed through his mind, and he stopped near Tsuna noting Fuuta's wavering form. He seemed to be suppressing something, unable to move past his position. "I, I'm so sorry, Fuuta! If I'd actually tried defending you, I might've actually been able to save you! Even Sawada, right now…! It's all my fault!"

"It's not your fault," Tsuna asserted, frowning thinly, "And it never could be yours either, Fuuta. The one responsible for all of this is Mukuro Rokudo only, and we've got to stop him."

"Aaagh!" Fuuta collapsed, clutching his head with both hands.

"F-Fuuta?!" After falling to the floor, he made no noise, seemingly unable to in his unconscious state. Tsuna saw that with shock, but Squalo had both arms behind his head, watching vacantly.

"His mind control's getting removed," Squalo said, "I guess you ended up saying what he wanted to hear most. Satisfied, now? That kid might be getting cured from his mind control, but Tsuna and I are still homeless!"

"Now that you mention it, that is true!" Ryohei said, only to frown. "However, my house only has one vacant room…"

"Fuuta's staying with you, right?" Mochida asked Yamamoto after having rushed to Fuuta's side and ducking, and he watched Yamamoto carry Fuuta on his back.

Yamamoto nodded. "Yeah. It'd be cramped, but if Tsuna wants to stay, I don't think my old man would mind."

"Voi, I can't be separated from Tsuna! Stuff like this already happens when we're together, so imagine when we're apart! Besides, we've got to talk over what to do from now on: we need somewhere we can all gather."

"… My house works," Mochida said, lowly as if he were still thinking over the matter. "It's my aunt's house, but she barely comes back home, anyway."

"Hmph, I don't like you, but I'll take it!" Squalo said, and walked towards Mochida expecting him to walk for his home that very moment. "Get moving, Tsuna! We gotta follow your friend over!"

"Wait," Yamamoto said, taking a step forward of courage, "Will you still not take back what you said about Fuuta?"

"Voi, a swordsman without a sword is basically useless: it's the same principle! If you actually care for that kid, you'd better put him away where nobody else can reach him, because those fugitives aren't gonna play nice now that he can't be their puppet!" Squalo warned, and found disgust more than satisfaction in seeing Yamamoto's determined expression become crestfallen.

"… I see," Yamamoto said, only to turn to Tsuna with a small smile. "Thanks for stopping Fuuta, Tsuna. I'm sure he'd have hated himself for it if he'd actually hurt anyone with this thing." He looked down at his hand, holding that shard still. He was being particularly careful where to place it, able to identify which part was the sharpest, but merely seeing it reminded him of all that had transpired. He turned towards the horizon, and proceeded to throw the shard as strongly as possible.

All watched it cut through the wind as it flew quickly enough barely two seconds passed before it left their line of sight. Tsuna, however, was particularly disturbed when he had noted the glint in the shard for the single second it was there, and stopped in his tracks towards Squalo's side to stare grimly to the sky. That shard...

"Voi, I'm not saying this again! Get your ass over here!" Tsuna turned around abruptly, rushing for Mochida's side seeing him frown tiredly. He heard parting words from his friends behind him, which he wanted to answer in kind, if not for Squalo's continuous incessant screaming over how they had wasted enough time already, and how he didn't want to deal with talking to the firefighters (though he eventually would have to). Mochida took up the role of saying goodbye to his peers, and only Gokudera walked away stoicly, confident in leaving alone, away from Yamamoto and Ryohei.

When the three were left to their devices and had nothing to do but walk, there was only silence in the area. The situation weighed against them, and stifled their voices as they considered the gravity of what they were up against; and how they couldn't be anything but fully serious should they come across their enemy.


. . .


"And that's how you get things done right!" Ken claimed pointing at the projection on the wall of the Kokuyo Center building opposite of Mukuro's seat. "They totally freaked!"

"Kufufufufu… Indeed, this was a job well-done on your part, Ken," Mukuro said, "Though, it would have been further satisfactory if Ranking Fuuta had managed to stab the Vongola."

"Speaking of, he's gone to the enemy side! Isn't that bad or anything?!" Ken asked, blinking in shock as if he'd only now remembered Fuuta.

"Take a good look at the corner of this room," Mukuro said, glancing to his right. Ken followed his gaze, and noted immediately a large book on the floorboard, dusty from lack of use. "The mind control already rendered him unable to provide us with new rankings, and spy work could be accomplished just as well by any of you. Without the ranking book, the boy has no use to us, in the end. I simply took advantage of a throwaway."

"Ah, now that's our Mukuro-san! So dastardly and treacherous!"

"I prefer the term 'pragmatic'," Mukuro clarified calmly, if only to silence Ken with the clarity of the assertion. "Regardless, this won't be the end of our offensive effort. It should be precisely now that the Vongola is in a state of disarray that we strike. And for that..." Mukuro shifted his gaze to the girl leaning on a wall, blinking when she met his eyes. "I suppose it would finally be your turn."

"Me? Really?" M.M dislodged her back from the wall and smirked. "It was about time I got some work to do, Mukuro-chan. So, what is it? Anyone I should attack?"

"Let's see..."


. . .


Admittedly enough, Tsuna had a hard time sleeping that night. His biggest comfort was the fact that he knew his mother was safe, but images of the fire consuming his home as though it were that easy haunted him enough that even through his fatigue, it took time for Tsuna to settle, especially considering he was in someone else's house. In the morning, while not even Mochida could find it in him to say something to cheer him up, he did surprise Tsuna by having cooked breakfast on his own, revealing to Tsuna a skill he didn't expect of his friend. Squalo, meanwhile, had been found near the entrance looking towards the door, like he'd never slept at all.

He did follow Tsuna to the kitchen when he woke up, and when Mochida had left, he saw him off staring at Gokudera, who'd arrived to make sure no one would be alone outside. Gokudera appeared to be doing as planned, and while Tsuna was glad for that, he did wonder what he could be thinking behind that displeased frown of his. Sat by the dining table, Tsuna was reminded of his position relative to the mafia, and could not say his morning was a pleasant one. "After everybody's gathered, I'll have to make a detour," Squalo uttered suddenly, in a calm voice as if that were meant to be part of his thoughts alone.

"Huh?"

"Your mother's gonna come back next week, and she can't see the house like that," Squalo explained, glaring daggers at the entrance. "I gotta get your house fixed by then."

"In less than a week? How?"

"You're meant to become the next Vongola Boss," Squalo said, "If you need a house in a few days, you're getting the damn house."

"All because I'm supposed to be a mafia boss, huh..." Tsuna lifelessly muttered. "Looking back on it, I was lucky when it was just you. The way Gokudera-kun looks at me, you'd think 'Vongola Tenth' is all he thinks I am."

"That's because they really believe you could step up to the plate," Squalo answered surprisingly smoothly, too focused to start picking at Tsuna's sentimentality. "They don't know you in the first place."

"But, just because they think that of me, no one should be doing these kinds of things," Tsuna said with tightened fists trembling over the table. "Squalo, I… I still don't think I can forgive Mukuro Rokudo."

"That's good," Squalo said, "Means you have a reason to fight now. One even stronger than what you had before." Just as Squalo finished that sentence, his eye twitched, and the sound of the door being knocked on was heard. Squalo glanced towards Tsuna coldly. "Stay there. I'll answer the door."

Squalo headed for the front door, which was within his line of sight as the end of the entrance's corridor led to the well-lit kitchen. Without hesitation, Squalo opened it, only for his eyebrows to furrow in displeasure rather than any intense emotion he wanted to feel towards the intrusion. "Hello," Hibari said from the other side of the door, and casually passed by Squalo, "I heard your house burned down yesterday night."

"Voi, you?! How did you know we were here?!" Squalo asked, hearing Tsuna's footsteps from behind.

"Hibari-san?!"

"I saw the herbivores fighting in the same spot as us on my way to your house, you see," Hibari explained to Squalo, though he seemingly couldn't help but glance towards Tsuna in anticipation. "They told me where you were right away. So, are we going? I still need to settle the score with Tsunayoshi Sawada."

"A-about that..." Tsuna muttered suppressing a sigh, noting that he truly had been the only one not to have been there for the fire, feeling absolutely nothing over the event. Explaining said emotional impact was likely ineffective on Hibari as reasoning to stop the training, leading Tsuna to simply stare without knowing exactly what to do with his presence.

"Right now, we gotta plan when we're gonna head to Kokuyo," Squalo answered in Tsuna's stead, pointing to the open exit, "so, if you wanna fight Tsuna, you're gonna have to wait until that's over!"

"You don't need to," Hibari said, "I'll be going there to punish the miscreants tampering with Namimori's peace, anyway. More importantly, let's get this over with."

"Not this time around," Tsuna said quickly in reaction to Hibari stepping forward, in his direction. He noticed his own tone, however, and took a step back out of fear of seeing Hibari more murderous than he currently was. "I, I mean— I wouldn't consider myself ready to go to Kokuyo without being able to take you down, but I've got to set when I'll be fighting there. I've just got to deal with them myself now."

"Just like your home tutor, you have no intention on changing your mind," Hibari noted.

Tsuna nodded slowly, unable to hesitate despite the underlying fear. "I'm sorry, Hibari-san... I just can't forgive them now. I've got to do something about this."

"Then, this is an easy matter," Hibari said with a smile.

"Huh?"

"Let's make this day the last of our fight," Hibari said, "Whoever wins, gets to go to Kokuyo. This way, there won't be any complaints, will there?"

"If you're planning on that," Squalo said, "Then you better make sure there aren't gonna be any nuisances doing more than burning our houses. Now that the enemy's on the offensive, we can't afford to waste time."

"I already have the committee on patrol. If anything does happen, it wouldn't be my problem."

"Well, either way…!" Tsuna interjected, "I personally think Hibari-san's idea would be for the best, but I wouldn't wanna leave the others behind when they're also in danger because of me. So, let's just wait until they're back…!"

"I don't see a reason to," Hibari said as though to cut Tsuna off, so quickly he had given his answer, "when biting you to death here would have the same result."

"B-but Mochida-senpai's house—"

"Does it look like I care?" Figures…!

Tsuna ducked to dodge Hibari's horizontal swing of his weapon, only to hear vibration from Squalo's direction. He was still by the door, watching with a frown as if unimpressed. Squalo closed the front door and removed the phone from a lower left pocket of his leather jacket, all the while Tsuna was forced to jump back from Hibari's lunging attack. "What is it?" Squalo asked when he had placed the phone over his right ear.

Mochida's voice resounded loudly from the phone's speakers: "We just got attacked on our way to Sasagawa's house! According to Gokudera, it's the woman fugitive!"

"Take her down," Squalo ordered simply, as the first thing that popped to mind as he laid eyes on a conflicted Tsuna struggling against Hibari. "Tsuna's busy right now. Kyoya Hibari just entered your house and isn't taking a no for an answer."

"C-can't you just stop Hibari yourself?!"

"Voi, if I were allowed to fight anything, I would've done it already! Besides, your opponent's just one woman; you're stuck with the Cavallone brat! If you can't even manage to beat her, I don't know what I've been training you for!"

"Tch, fine, I get it! I just need to take her down, right?!" Mochida shouted.

"And don't go calling any reinforcements! If they go there alone, they could be caught by the enemy!"

"I know that! Warn Sawada about this, alright?! I called you to make a report, after all!"

"Voi, that's only obvious! Now, get to defeating the wench! You had more up your sleeve for training this time, right?!"

"I guess I won't be using it on you, after all, if that's what you mean," Mochida said in a quieter voice, in the process of accepting his current reality.

"If you get it, then stop wasting time and do it!" Squalo ended the call then and pocketed his phone, only to stare at the ongoing, one-sided fight. "Voi, Tsuna! Mochida and the Cavallone trash had a run-in with the enemy!"

The opening caused from Tsuna's shock allowed Hibari to hit him squarely in the abdomen, and only was not knocked unconscious from his sheer will to not leave the matter alone.


. . .


A familiar soft sensation was the first point of note in his consciousness, along with a headache beyond measure. His eyelids closed further, twitching in light of a struggle between wanting to wake up and wanting to continue to sleep. It had been so long since he'd rested, or even could afford to think of doing so. If now, he could sleep peacefully—

Fuuta's eyes snapped open with a gasp when flashes of imagery belonging to reality assailed his mind, most of which permeated by the blood red of the culprit's eye. He'd risen along with the shock, and saw the sheets that had been covering him through the night. Trembling hands grabbed at the fabric, and Fuuta scowled. That's right, he thought, I'm free now. Tsuna-nii and the others made me snap out of it… And Takeshi-nii must've brought me back.

Tears welled again in his eyes now that he realized where he was, and why. The evils he ran from. Being a hostage was not such a foreign concept to him, but before, he had no one to save him that could be motivated by more than money. The only people worth his trust were among the Vongola's top, if only because Reborn trusted them.

Feeling movement from the sheets, Fuuta looked to his right, towards the edge, and flinched. "Takeshi-nii…!" Slouching awkwardly on the bed, only his head reaching the top of the sheets, Yamamoto's eyes were still closed, and it was clear he was still sleeping. However, from what Fuuta could see, Yamamoto was barely kneeled nearby, and there was a blanket placed roughly over his shoulders, no doubt the work of his father. Was he here the whole time I was unconscious? Fuuta's wide eyes blinked sparingly processing the sight, and Fuuta grimaced. "That's no good," he muttered wryly, a hand closing in on Yamamoto's shoulder. "You're gonna be all sore when you wake up, Takeshi-nii..."

Feeling a tear flow from his right eye, Fuuta's hand stopped nearly over Yamamoto's shoulder. A small, faint smile was on Fuuta's features, even if the tears continued to blur his vision. He wiped them off brushing his arm against his face, and stared at Yamamoto with heavy eyelids. The headache remained, but as he further processed the situation, Fuuta breathed in, and exhaled to see to it the smile would remain. Thanks, Takeshi-nii, Fuuta thought, I mean it. Finally, he lightly shook Yamamoto from his shoulder, noting him twitch in reaction to the action. And that's also why I shouldn't cry. I don't deserve any of this.

Hearing the faintest of groans from Yamamoto, Fuuta finally let go of his shoulder. Yamamoto's eyes fluttered slowly open, and as he blinked, he slowly rose his head with eyebrows furrowed from confusion. Then, turning towards the bed, his expression seemingly softened, and he smiled. "Ah, Fuuta..." Yamamoto muttered, "You woke up, huh…?"

"Yeah," Fuuta answered, voice somewhat hoarse, "I'm wide awake. Sorry for worrying you."

"C'mon, what're you talking about? It's not like you did anything wrong." Yamamoto stretched, only to yawn. Then, using the bed's edge as support, he stood, and wobbled lightly while noting his sore legs. After looking over the room with an absent-minded glance, he said, "Looks like I ended up falling asleep here, too." He looked back at the blanket that had fallen from his standing position. "Dad could've used just waking me up if he saw me there. Then again, I probably wouldn't have listened."

"You should, though," Fuuta said, "It's not good for you to just fall asleep in weird positions."

"Can't say you're wrong about that," Yamamoto said, "but it's okay. I sleep in class sometimes, and it's not that far off from right now."

"You shouldn't sleep in class, either, you know?" Fuuta pointed out, smiling growing wider as a small hint of mischievousness, watching Yamamoto blink in momentary confusion.

Yamamoto chuckled when he did understand why Fuuta was so amused, and grinned as if let in on a joke. "You're also right there! I'm more of a bad role model than I thought, then."

"It's alright," Fuuta said, his smile now softer around the edges. His gaze towards Yamamoto was level-headed to a point, contrasting with his appearance. "I never had role models before, anyway. Better one than none!"

Yamamoto's smile now wry visibly representing that he had remembered something, he tilted his head downwards, and was staring at Fuuta to gauge his current mental state. Seeing him calm, he said, as gently as he could, "By the way… Ever since this happened, I've been doing some thinking, but when we met, you were being chased, weren't you?" Fuuta's smile faded hearing the question, unable to even think it was something he could answer to in the midst of his confusion. "And now, there's all this talk of fugitives, and even things like the mafia. I don't know the full picture of this whole thing, but… I don't think you need to suffer any more because of it."

"Wait," he uttered, his voice higher in pitch than usual conveying his desperation, "It's not Tsuna-nii's fault, really! Even if he wasn't here, someone else would've taken me!"

"I don't mean Tsuna's at fault here," Yamamoto said, almost like he had expected the misunderstanding, but it wasn't as evident in his expression as his implications usually were. Fuuta watched with almost unblinking eyes, thinking of the worst. "What I'm saying is that it's probably not all that good for you, getting chased around by these shady people. It'd be lonely without you around, and I'm sure everybody'd miss you, but you should probably be getting home to your parents now."

Fuuta's eyes widened, staring at Yamamoto as though he could easily fade away, and he muttered, "What?" Somehow, though he thought he had prepared for those very words, they had currently been the last thing Fuuta was expecting to hear from Yamamoto. That was a concern of the past; when returning was a casual affair. When he knew what to do of his life, dedicated to filling his ranking book. Feeling as though blocked from speaking further from pain in his chest, Fuuta was taken by the assumption that he had beforehand, when he was still in Kokuyo and figured he could simply be saved by someone else, regardless: the Yamamoto residence would eventually want him to leave, as he did nothing but deceive them into being a freeloader. He left the house without permission, returned whenever he pleased, and whatever work he did for their sake was to appease them so he could stay long enough. It was nothing he couldn't have done any other location, but even he knew he was selfish taking advantage of a family so naive and kind-hearted.

"You're just running away from home, right? It wouldn't be good getting you involved in whatever's going on here," Yamamoto said, "and if it's your family, I'm sure they'd wanna protect you. So, knowing you'll be safe's enough for me." As if noting the dramatic change in Fuuta's expression, and guessing at the reason for its shock, Yamamoto tried to smile brighter for reassurance. "Still, I'm not saying we'd never talk again. We could always just keep in touch." However, none of that reached Fuuta, who was recalling something darker. He had been planning to leave from the beginning, thinking he had no more business with them. He had barely, if at all, expected to be saved, lest of all searched by Yamamoto. Even so, he never told Mukuro of Tsuna's whereabouts, when that could have perhaps left him better off. It was part of the code and he did value it, but he also knew there was something else, deep down. And why now, being told to leave was troubling.

He would remember the times he was inside the house, and not bear to think of it being wrecked by the malicious hands of Mukuro Rokudo. The sushi shop was where he would learn how to work practical tasks, which he had found, to his surprise, to be calming more than stressful in his perspective, especially because he would be praised afterwards for the effort. He could enter Yamamoto's room like he was family, and be welcomed as such. He could experience studying alongside him, and find that Yamamoto only was performing poorly because he wouldn't focus enough, and lightly scold him for that to feel superior. When greeted by Tsuyoshi, he would immediately call him for help as though he were part of the shop, but sneakily leave behind snacks in return and call them a salary. Most importantly, when he did leave, they would let him go, despite how it may have made them feel, and how much his outings amounted to nothing but the increased chance of being kidnapped.

Fuuta could have chosen to sacrifice all of that for his life pursuit, but the ranking book appeared almost insignificant in comparison to the lives involved. After all, should he return, they would probably welcome them, and he could find out what to do from there. He would not simply be nothing, with nowhere to return to like he feared so ardently in the confined of his mind tortured by Mukuro. He would live knowing he finally did something that wasn't selfish for that family, and think nothing of it, too, when he returned of his own will. However, in the end, all of it was as before: Fuuta's own thoughts, with no bearing on what Yamamoto himself believed; and he would never have noticed without being told.

"… I don't have them." That whisper was low enough that Yamamoto blinked in confusion, but Fuuta could not see that. He was turned to the bed sheets, and seeing that as something he could perhaps never see again. He wasn't sure if he could continue speaking his mind, but he felt as though he could no longer go back if he remained silent, and that compelled his timid attempt at breaking to Yamamoto a truth he hadn't planned on saying before.

"Did you say something?" Yamamoto asked, with no particular emotion beyond confusion in the simple question because he hadn't yet peered into Fuuta's expression.

"I don't have a family," Fuuta asserted, grimacing more towards the sensation of his own tears than in frustration that he had to repeat his own words. Yamamoto saw him wipe those tears relentlessly, but even afterwards, his head was still downcast.

"Huh?" Yamamoto's light expression faded with concern, and he hunched forward to have a better look at Fuuta, seeing the grim implications of his face along with his statement. It seemed he almost couldn't take it at face value, a shade of disbelief Fuuta was finding more ironic than disappointing.

"I don't remember them, either," Fuuta added, his voice low and strained from suppressing tears. "They've been gone long ago. I'm sorry for lying to you."

"Then, before you moved here, how did you—"

"Important people would take me in every once in a while," Fuuta said to deliberately interrupt Yamamoto, not wanting to think of the question or deviate from what was currently on his mind. "When I was in Italy, I basically moved from one Vongola house to the other, depending on who requested it. So, the only thing that's ever been consistent in my life is the ranking book."

"Fuuta..."

"I really didn't mind that, though. Going anywhere I wanted, and having some kind of purpose was fun. I could learn all sorts of things, too. I basically just stuck to you wanting to get more rankings from Japan, but... Even though that's all I had, I couldn't keep it, either. So, I just kept thinking about what I was gonna do. Now nobody would even care that I exist, and I don't even know how to do anything else. But, I couldn't just tell them about Tsuna-nii, because I wouldn't take that, either. I didn't have anywhere to go, but I figured that it'd be okay, somehow. Because you said I could do anything, I could just get away with coming back and being accepted, even though all I did was lie to you. If I'd thought about anyone but myself for once, I might've even not been taken away, but I was still thinking stuff like that. It's sad, isn't it?"

"Sorry," Yamamoto said, as the first thing he felt he could voice, "I didn't know." He seemed almost in awe, staring vacantly at Fuuta who backed away from Yamamoto, frowning deeper in reaction to the response from Yamamoto.

"Huh? Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong, you know?" Fuuta said, finally looking Yamamoto's way firmly, if only to understand what could be behind his demeanour, "I was the one who hid everything from you. You ended up assuming I was running from home so cleanly, I just took advantage of it. I thought it'd be better than telling you I'm actually wanted by the mafia."

Yamamoto continued to stare silently at Fuuta, his thoughts wavering, none coherent. Fuuta did not speak further as if to demand an answer, and that fact sunk into the heavy mood of the room. In the end, unable to even become angry, he could not help but smile wryly. "Geez, way to mess it all up, me," Yamamoto said in a joking tone, "You had all that piled up, and I never noticed at all. I really could use taking a hint, huh?" Yamamoto squatted near the bed finally, seeing Fuuta's wistful eyes in his; ones that had seen more evil than he had, even though he was four years younger. Yamamoto smiled more earnestly now, and placed a hand over Fuuta's forearm. "I really am sorry. Still, if that's how it is, we can all think of something else again. With dad here, too. It's okay. I mean, I was the one who said you could use going home, but you were basically family to us already. And if you don't have a home, I guess this is where it is for now until anything's settled."

Knowing that smile from Yamamoto was actually more genuine than a simple facade, and simply because Yamamoto always seemed to think that negativity was not worth his time, Fuuta was as if frozen for the few seconds he heard his words. He'd uttered them so easily, like he didn't even know what they meant, but he couldn't deny that Yamamoto truly felt that way. Feeling that fact strike at his chest, Fuuta could no longer contain his own emotions. "You don't get it at all, Takeshi-nii," Fuuta retorted, carrying hints of bitterness within, "Here I am, trying to act big and not cry, and you go telling me something like that…" He sobbed then, struggling to continue speaking. "Even though… I was... T-tricking you all along… You just—"

"It's fine," Yamamoto muttered, his smile more uneven as he regarded Fuuta with a sense of melancholy. "You're still the Fuuta we all know. As long as you're safe and sound, everything's alright now."

"That's— That's just… Weird— I was just a freeloader, and I put you in real danger—"

"Fuuta. It's fine, really. Nobody's mad at you now, or ever. Doesn't that just settle it?"

Before he knew it, Fuuta was wrapping his arms around Yamamoto, and cried out against his shoulder. Yamamoto remained silent then, simply returning the gesture and patting Fuuta's back. Despite the sadness flowing from his eyes, certainly nothing insignificant, Fuuta somehow felt his headache fade slowly, and he'd come to know why in face of his own outburst. Fuuta was still the same no matter what would come of him, and the people who cared would know that. For the first time in days, and perhaps more, Fuuta felt like he could finally rest.


Author's Notes:


Since the last target, this story got 9 favourites and 10 followers; I truly thank you for your patience! I'll hope to get this story moving further as I leave the hiatus! This time we're preparing for the climax, and Fuuta's been saved! Well, nobody went to Kokuyo to save Fuuta but it's better this way: it means I can actually do things with Fuuta beyond portraying him all dazed. And now that Ken burned Tsuna's house, he's got more of a motivation than being targeted and saving Fuuta, hahaha. The thing about the Kokuyo arc in KHR is that Mukuro in it seemed to have formulated his plan around taunting and luring Tsuna to his location so he can identify him and be at a higher ground to take his body, using everyone working under him to gather information. Which, I mean, it could work? But Mukuro's a mad lad, that's definitely not how you play it safe when you have zero clue who the Vongola tenth is and how strong he is at all. His luck's basically the fact that Reborn's an even madder lad who decided to just send everybody in without any plan whatsoever, even though the characters barely trained. Unfortunately for him in KSS, though, Squalo is no such insane chap.

Needless to say canon had to go through changes yet again and I had fun making Mukuro, who now not only knows who the Vongola tenth's tutor is, but also knows his associates, where he lives and Tsuna himself, have to change tactics because he doesn't need to taunt them anymore. Besides, Squalo was relying on Mukuro's stance of wanting to lure the gang to Kokuyo so he could train everybody until then, so Mukuro couldn't just keep being dumb and not start to play on the offensive. Which, I mean, Mukuro already was with the Bloody Twins at this point, but then he did the whole burning Tsuna's house plan and it worked out alright. Sure, he wanted Fuuta to stab him, but it's, like, whatever, hahaha. When it comes to writing Mukuro, for me, I like to emphasize his elegance, and his composure: he isn't just smiles and mystique, but he wants you to see him like that; as such, in his communication, he displays that polite but assertive front and tries not to make his displeasure too obvious. I show off Mukuro right now honestly because KHR did it, too, so I'm trying to keep with the feel, and I like writing Mukuro anyway so it's a win-win situation for me.

Ken was pretty fun here with his whole outburst towards Birds and the way he almost makes Mukuro frown from his backhanded compliments lol Ken loves Mukuro with all his heart, but he's really bad at showing it. I'm not sure if I'm making Mukuro nicer or more reasonable than he usually is? I think Mukuro wouldn't just dispose of his manpower if it still has any use, and he's not Xanxus or anything, so it feels appropriate he's all cool and logical. The twins are down, but nobody needs them, anyway. And Gokudera's still a thing! He feels like such a supporting character it's not even funny, but he's around! Hibari kinda stole the show when it comes to that first scene, especially with how nonchalant he was about taming all the birds.

Overall, I didn't expect it because I wasn't all that excited for Hibari going in the arc, but Hibari's being a really nice highlight, particularly when it comes to his interactions with Tsuna. By the end he's a pain, but that's why we all love him, am I right? I wanted this big training scene to happen to sort of show how everything is doing in a general fashion, so you finally saw Yamamoto and Ryohei concretely! I'm not sure if the arson incident contrasts too hard with the first scene, but timeline-wise, it had to be placed where it was, so the most I could do was add Shouichi as comic relief before the storm that was coming. Shouichi, in fact, has no clue what's going on, hahaha.

Anyway, there was a ton of weight to the scene with Fuuta under mind control and Tsuna's house being burned down as a sort of turning point for all the characters, but Tsuna and Yamamoto in particular pop to mind here. Tsuna in KHR ends up going to Kokuyo because Gokudera protected him from a fatal wound and got super hurt in the process, but meanwhile, over here, it's because of his house, but it's not exactly just the house, but Fuuta, too. It's a combination of a lot, his character development included. At this point, Tsuna seems like a different person and I'm not sure if that's a good thing ='D Still, he's got his resolve on, and that's amazing to see from Tsuna, who was already starting to build resolve to improve himself and fight, but then there's the whole Yamamoto thing,

You know, that thing where Fuuta tells him the truth, and talked about the mafia and everything. Yamamoto's been legit trying his best, but he feels like he's coming short. Sure, the Kokuyo arc from KHR had the whole thing where Yamamoto had a tournament and couldn't fight, and I was originally gonna follow that here, but something as simple as Fuuta staying at Yamamoto's made it so it was impossible to have Yamamoto care more about baseball than Fuuta. Hell, I've only now noticed how big a change it is that Fuuta's living with Yamamoto. I really like it, though, because it makes Yamamoto be more than just baseball or swords or whatever. He's struggling with himself, based on what he can do for Fuuta.

Speaking of Fuuta, in the manga and anime, there's not a whole lot you know about him? In the manga at least Fuuta's kidnapping has higher stakes because there were all these chapters with Fuuta in that made you spend time with him, but the anime just rushes through it so you don't really feel much for Fuuta in the Kokuyo arc. But even in the manga, Fuuta's such a mysterious character. What do you even know about the kid? He does rankings, and he's an informant that gets targeted by shady people a lot. There's kind of an implication that Fuuta doesn't have much of a home in KHR: he shows up, seemingly spies on Tsuna for a while until he barges in and asks to live with him. There's reasoning for this in the fact that Fuuta finds Tsuna not to fit with his rankings, making him a fascinating specimen, but that basically means he had nowhere else to be concerned about when moving in. Furthermore, what about after the Kokuyo arc? Why is he still there? The implication, of course, is that he's attached and likes it there, but this is never addressed in-universe. The catalyst to the events of the entire arc is Fuuta going missing, but the series never tells you about how Fuuta felt being parted with the thing that Fuuta liked doing the most, and practically the hobby that defined his entire lifestyle.

Because of this, I had to give extra consideration to what would happen in this AU, where Tsuna did not defy expectation and Fuuta was staying at Yamamoto's instead. In the end, I settled with the idea that Fuuta was not tied to anything, and had the Yamamoto residence as more of a hideout, at least on paper. In truth, he did get somewhat attached, but was basically floored when he realized that everything in the Kokuyo arc was actually his fault. I had the idea that, now that he sacrificed his rankings, though, Fuuta would wonder what could even be next to him, because all people ever wanted him for was the rankings. However, Yamamoto was different. He never had that consideration at all; and the people he got to know accepted him no matter what he was doing. In other words, it might seem like it's supposed to be that he was ronery the whole time but it's more like he didn't know what to do now that he could no longer make his journey, but he had Yamamoto all along.

Personality-wise, I'm hoping to all existent gods that I'm getting him right, and there's definitely a vibe from Fuuta of a kid that's on the sly and curious side, so he's sort of playful, but in a subdued way. He knows about all the mafia stuff that's going on, so he tends to address these things with as much chill as Bianchi, which seemingly would require some levels of experience or maturity, so I think that Fuuta is pretty composed for his age, and even the Kokuyo arc implied that he had self-discipline and loyalty enough that he kept quiet, though he was depressed because he felt guilty about Tsuna's involvement with Mukuro. Basically, I see Fuuta as a friendly kid who knows maybe more than he should about the mafia. Now, he's basically admitted the whole mafia thing to Yamamoto in clear words, and I thought the scene was interesting because of that, as well. In that sense, I really am glad I decided to focus on Fuuta, and give him time to wonder about himself in this arc, both for Fuuta's and Yamamoto's sake. Regardless, I do hope the story is heading well enough, and that it could be potentially looked forward to!