Mia Tempesta
Summary: Reborn never liked being a (secondary) Sky, but he can't deny his nature forever, so one day he starts collecting his Elements. Except now there was a tiny Storm that packs quite a punch that he doesn't know what to do with. Denial leads to trouble, trouble leads to possessiveness, possessiveness leads to ... something else much more tender. Throw in Checkerface and the Arcobaleno Sky into the mix and things get quite complicated.
"Chaos Shot," Reborn said, his aim never wavering as his Flames settled back from his previous attack, but were still just there, under the surface, waiting to be used again. "Ice."
He was in no mood to play.
"Wao," Kyoya breathed from where both he and Verde had fallen still in their little battle of wills over whether the scientist will be allowed to scan him for more injuries or not, they and Viper staring at Reborn with wide eyed amazement and shock.
"That," Iemitsu stuttered, gawking at the hitman. "T-that's the Sky harmonization factor!"
"Zero Point Breakthrough," Tsuna breathed, taking a step back from his tutor, as though he were only now seeing him for the first time. The sudden wariness might have something to do with the fire in Reborn's eyes, with Tsuna's own Sky finally recognizing another now that the overwhelming Sun wasn't overshadowing it, but instead working with it.
Reborn had made the Chaos Shot with his primary Flames in mind, but after training Tsuna to do the Zero Point Breakthrough, he had given himself over to the idea of trying to learn a 'Vongola blood only' technique with his own 'stunted' Sky Flames. Only to learn his Sky was not nearly as 'stunted' as he'd expected. It was not weak, nor was it pathetic, as he'd always thought.
It was just compact and weaker than his Sun.
But it's not fair to compare it to his Sun, since his primary Flames were the strongest in the world, had landed him the position of Arcobaleno, before he and his family had changed the meaning of that word.
His Sky didn't stand a chance against his Sun, but that did not mean his Sky was weak.
How could a weak Sky bond with such strong Elements like his own were, after all?
He should have realized it sooner, but better late than never.
Learning Zero Point Breakthrough was a piece of cake. Modifying it to a gun was just as easy. Combining it with his Chaos Shot was for entertainment purposes. He'd never actually planned to use it, but then Xanxus, that little bitch, dared to go and dis his Guardians by insulting his Sky Flames and Reborn had decided he'd had enough of Vongola bullshit to last him a lifetime, three times over. And so he had decided he was done with this shit.
"No one," he tells the petrified Xanxus - who looks like he's having a PTSD attack, which kind of makes him want to knock the guy out because he wouldn't wish those nightmares on his worst enemy; unless it's Checkerface, of course - in the still deadly calm voice that he's retained throughout the whole 'encounter'. "Gets to insult my Sky but me."
"Holy shit," breathed Skull, sounding amazed. "Someone mark it down in a calendar! Reborn-senpai's actually defending his Flames!" Verde numbly did just that on his tablet, still too busy gawking in shock like the other Arcobaleno were, as well as Kyoya. Because, honestly, none of them had thought they'd live to see the day where Reborn actually had a - semi - decent thing to say about his secondary Flames, let alone defend them from slander!
Kyoya's second "Wao," conveyed perfectly well how they were all feeling regarding that at that moment.
"B-but you can't be a Sky!" Sawada exclaimed, staring at Reborn still with shock, disbelief, fear and a heavy dose of denial. "You can't be! You've been around me and Nono dozens of times and we would have noticed! Vongola Hyper Intuition is infallible!"
"Now, that's just a bunch of nonsense," Verde broke out of his daze at that and immediately set about correcting that piece of idiocy while Reborn just kept glaring at Xanxus. "As a matter of fact, Reborn has gone unnoticed by dozens of Skies over the years, including Luce of Giglio Nero who is, reportedly, the strongest Sky of our generation. That is due to Reborn's Sun Flames that blind every Flame Active and Aware person to the smaller, weaker secondary Flames that hide underneath and because Reborn is a Sky himself, he is immune to other Skies' intuition, thus masking him completely."
"Release me, old man's pet!" Xanxus demanded, flaring his own Sky Flames against the ice, but while they did flash in his hands, they didn't budge the ice one bit.
"I am not dear Timmy's pet, Xanxus," Reborn said in a very dangerous tone, even more dangerous than before because the mere thought of being called a Sky's anything pissed him off. Still, this was not the angriest he'd been on this fine night. That still went to the moment when he'd seen Kyoya about to take a blast from that fucking machine. "Nor anyone's, for that matter. I am my own and no one else's." Which, technically, wasn't true, given he was a married man with a son, as well as a (secondary) Sky with a full Guardian set who were all bonded with him. But that's just semantics he doesn't want to get into with these people. "Now here is how things will go from here. One, Lal's and my own contract have been officially violated by Vongola and associated organizations. We're free to go." Lal made a point of cocking her shotgun at her former fellow CEDEF agents at this, casually ripping off the little pin that marked her as one of them and throwing it at her feet before stomping on it. "Two, Hibari Kyoya is no one's Cloud Guardian-"
"He's using a Vongola Ring, so I'd claim otherwise," points out Iemitsu boldly and that is when the Arcobaleno actually take in the source of Flames that had summoned Roll out of his Box.
Reborn stares in horror at the Vongola Ring on Kyoya's right hand middle finger. "Why the fuck is Kyoya wearing a piece of the fucking Trinisette!?"
"I didn't even see him put it on!" Viper immediately protested.
"Hey, aren't you on their side?" Gokudera asked, pointing at the Mist and then at the Varia.
"Of course Mammon is, ushishishishi," Belphegor claimed, only to gawk as Viper threw at him the Varia badge they had torn off their cloak as soon as they had faked losing the Mist Battle.
"Traitor!" Levi shouted and Viper just flipped them off before landing down next to Kyoya. A box appeared in their hands, containing the Sky, Lightning and Storm Vongola Rings inside.
"No," Kyoya said flatly while everyone else gawked at the theft. The Varia were too busy staring down at their fingers and the Mist constructs that faded away now that they were no longer needed. "I'm not giving it up."
"Yare yare, don't be so difficult," snapped the Esper. "You can't keep a piece of the Trinisette! You know we need to get it to Bermuda to be sealed away so no one can use its power for their own goals."
"There you go, talking about that Trinisette again!" Complained Iemtisu, but was ignored save for a harsh nudge to the head from Colonello's rifle.
Kyoya was still not giving away the Cloud Ring.
"Kyoya," Reborn said placatingly, like trying to tame a wild tiger. "Please give Viper the Cloud Ring."
"Their name is Mammon," insisted Belphegor and the Mist actually turned to send him their version of a deadpan look. The illusionist was surprisingly successful, given only the lower part of their face was visible.
Hibari scoffed. "You're joking, right? You actually expect me to give up the only ring that can withstand my Flames without breaking? No. With this," the teen lifts his hand and shows off his new accessories, lighting it with purple Flames that would have by now destroyed any other ring ten times over. "I could probably keep Roll out all day long and do who knows what with all the now unlocked potential of a Cloud Box Weapon Animal that is no longer restrained by weak conductors."
"Verde, no," Lal says without even looking at the scientist to know that he wanted to plead with Reborn to maybe let Kyoya keep the Ring for a while. "What happened to keeping Kyoya away from the Trinisette and all that Vongola bull?"
"Yeah, kora. Kyoya, you should just take that Ring off and we'll find a better one for you, kora," Colonello agreed, also trying to get the Cloud to just hand over the Ring because no one wants Kyoya to be involved with what's left over from Kawahira's bullshit. And especially Vongola bullshit.
"Aren't we here because you want to capture a few Cervello to find out more about the Mare Rings and why they gave them to the Gesso?" Kyoya asked, trying to deflect the attention from himself, but Reborn and his Guardians weren't going to let go of this so easily.
"This is far more important," the Sun/Sky insisted, glaring reprovingly at his son. "You shouldn't even be involved in all of this. You're too young-"
"I'm whatever age I want to be."
"No," Reborn said firmly. "That's not going to work here, Kyoya."
"Those herbivores are even younger and far weaker than me and yet they get to play? How is that fair?"
"I don't give a shit about someone else's kid, I want my kid safe and not involved in Vongola nonsense."
"Aren't they your responsibility?" One of the CEDEF agents asked pointedly and Reborn, Kyoya and all of the Arcobaleno snorted.
"I just terminated the contract-based favor because your boss over there made a huge overstep. I like Dame-Tsuna and the others, but if I had to choose between them and my family, I'd push them under the bus without hesitation, so to speak."
"What do you need the Cervello for, though?" Shamal asked in confusion even as he wandered over to do an actual medical checkup on Kyoya and his new little ... friends. Shamal was not involved in Arcobaleno business despite being involved in a lot of the Arcobaleno's business, if you get what I mean. They'd never told the doctor about the Trinisette or Checkerface or what had really gone down with Luce of Giglio Nero and how the Vindice became their allies and Kyoya's honorary uncles.
"What are the Mare Rings?" Tsuna asked, his Hyper Intuition seeming to spike and make the Flame dancing on his forehead flare a little. "Are they like Vongola Rings? Why do you want them? What is this Trinisette you keep talking about?"
"None of your business, herbivore."
"Given I am a candidate for Vongola Decimo, I think it is."
"Given Alaudi is the one who actually had the most to do with the Vongola Rings, it really isn't," Viper countered. "Also, given that the Cervello are the ones most likely behind the deaths of the other three heirs, it really isn't. It's the Skylark's business, it's Vindice's business."
"What!?" All the Varia and CEDEF present shouted, but before anyone could even halfheartedly explain or the Cervello could try and - maybe - defend themselves, a cough reached their ears and they all turned towards the wreckage of Gola Mosca, where the sound was coming from.
"Oh, right. I completely forgot about the old man," Xanxus commented to himself, finally having stilled in the ice and just trying to breathe so he doesn't panic. His words, though, had Tsuna jumping into the mess Reborn had made of the robot and pulling out a familiar old man, Vongola Nono himself, tied up, gagged and looking like he'd been sucked dry of all energy. Verde, even though no one asked, commented it must be because the robot needed an energy source and the old Don was used as a human battery since there is no better energy source than Dying Will Flames. "Can you get me out of this? If you hate the Vongola so much, I could help you take down the current leadership and as the new boss, I'd-"
"Oh, please," Skull cut in, rolling his eyes at the Varia boss. "As if we need assistance to take down a famiglia, even one as big as the Vongola. We just need a good enough reason that we don't make problems for Bermuda-senpai when he doesn't arrest us."
"Dr Shamal, please take a look at Nono-ojiisan," Tsuna called out, Timoteo blinking up at him, eyes hardly focused but clearly recognizing the boy. And staring in surprise at the unobstructed Flames that he himself had sealed years ago. Did Tsuna not remember? Probably. His Flames did, though. Reborn could feel them writhing uncertainly to be so close to the one who had once sealed them away.
"How many times do I have to say this," Shamal said with a heavy sigh, exasperated. "I. Don't. Treat. Guys."
"You're treating the Tonfa-freak!" Gokudera exclaimed incredulously.
Shamal sent him a deadpan look. "I'm not suicidal, besides, what kind of uncle would I be if I didn't treat my own honorary nephew?" Gokudera just gawked. The doctor turned to Reborn, arching an eyebrow. "Should I use some of my mosquitoes to catch you a few Cervello while you deal with this?"
"If you believe you can run, Dr Shamal," a new, deceptively calm and serene voice called out, making the shifty doctor stiffen and the Arcobaleno all wince at the tone being used because that, ladies and gentlemen, was the calm before a raging Storm. "You are gravely mistaken."
"Fon!" Reborn called out as cheerfully as he could, smiling at his Storm and hoping that Fon does not notice the things that are likely to have him at the hitman's neck for allowing it to happen.
"Reborn," the younger man greets back, hands in his sleeves, a smile so politely, calmly serene on his face that the shine radiating from it was blinding to the eyes of those who knew better than to believe it. "Why is the length of Kyoya's left pant leg soaked in his own blood? Why is he fighting in the Vongola Ring Conflict when you know the kind of, hm, connection famiglia Skies prefer? And why is there a piece of the Trinisette on his finger?" Reborn winced at that last one. "I go into radio silence for a few weeks and this is what I return home to?"
"That's Fon?" Dino could be heard in the background, asking to Romario. Or maybe just in general. "The one he's always compared me to? And, wait, is Kyoya really Reborn's son, the one who could do mathematical circles around me when he was ten?" The Cavallone Don went ignored as Reborn tried not to sweat as his husband smiled at him.
"Is that the young Storm from all those years ago?" They all turned at the sound of the old voice to see Timoteo squinting at Fon. "Oh. Hello, lad. You sure have grown into a fine man."
"Reborn, heal the man." The hitman went to protest, but you just don't argue when Fon's smile starts showing teeth. At first glance at their personalities, you'd think Fon and Kyoya could never be related. But then you glimpse at the true heart of the Storm, see just how terrifying its power can be when those he considers to be his eye are threatened/injured/targeted/mocked/hurt/manipulated and you see that they are indeed of the same blood. Fon's just calmer and less obvious about it while Kyoya doesn't bother to restrain the bloodlust that is as much a part of him as his Flames. So, while Reborn grumbled but complied, much to everyone's but his Guardians' and son's shock, Fon turned to the others and demanded, politely, an explanation. "Why is my son fighting in such a dangerous whimsical contest with corrupt judges in the first place?"
"Chichi, I am the only dangerous one in this Conflict," the younger Hibari said with what might be a pout. Reborn kept an eye on his family even as he casually channeled Sun Flames into Timoteo just enough so the old man doesn't die. He ignores the way Nono is staring at him, probably still seeing traces of his Sky flickering in his eyes. Reborn doesn't care. He won't be able to hide his secondary Flames after tonight anymore, anyway.
"Hey!" Viper complained indignantly but went ignored, which is for the best where the Mist is concerned because they'd been the one closest to the whole thing, even more than Reborn, so they could take a lot of blame if this conversation doesn't go too well.
"Wait, I thought he was Reborn's son?" Yamamoto asked, frowning in confusion.
"Actually, Kyoya is my nephew," Fon replied, coming slowly over to where Kyoya was still refusing to hand over the Ring. "My older sister was his mother, but there was an ... incident some months after he was born and so Kyoya was left in my care. He was less than a year old when he first declared me 'chichi' and he'd first called Reborn 'babbo' on his first birthday."
"Reborn then sealed the deal by marrying Fon not long after," Shamal was the one to finish the story as one of the witnesses to the marriage.
"As far as I'm concerned, I have two fathers, at least seven uncles and an aunt. I've never had a mother," Kyoya said with a shrug. He then very pointedly hid his hand with the Cloud Ring behind his back, narrowing his silver-blue eyes at Fon, who was frowning disapprovingly at him. "I'm not giving up the Ring."
"Okay," Fon said placatingly with a serene smile on his face. "Then just tell me who thought it was a good idea for you to participate in these fights and we'll go from there."
"Actually, none of them knew," Kyoya countered. "I got the half-Ring in my shoe locker-" Because no one knows where the demon prefect actually lives, courtesy of Reborn and the others and then Kyoya's own efforts to keep his life private as can be. "-and I personally decided to participate so I could help you lot gather the Rings. It's done now. We have all the Rings. It's a night to celebrate. Besides, babbo actually defended his Flames for the first time, so don't be too hard on him?"
Reborn was actually stunned and greatly touched that his son would take his side and protect him from Fon's ire. He was also impressed with how manipulative his son could be because Fon was now looking at him with this stunned happiness that he could feel from all of his Guardians vaguely through their bonds because this was more than any of them could have ever hoped for regarding Reborn's little issue with his secondary Flames. Trust Kyoya to completely divert his chichi's attention so that he won't get in trouble.
"We cannot allow for you to take the Vongola Rings," one of the Cervello spoke up, bringing everyone's attention to her. "The Vongola Rings belong to the Vongola family. You have no right to them."
"Yeah, right," snorts Skull, crossing his arms and arching an unimpressed eyebrow at the Cervello, which looks really funny with all his piercings and make-up. "The Arcobaleno are the primary protectors of the Trinisette. That much, we are certain. If people get such a position, then why not just give them the whole thing to protect rather than just one part? Besides, we've changed the game."
"Skull is right," Verde agrees, adjusting his glasses. "Your master is either dead or locked away in Vendicare-" Reborn notes that Kyoya very carefully does not look at the scientist at that and frowns. That ... That's something he should probably look into. "And you are likely going to join him, either way, before the night ends. It only depends on whether it is Reborn or Bermuda who gets their hands on you first."
"This is an internal famiglia matter," Timoteo argues and Reborn stops healing the man because he's now tempted to kill him then and there. It's not a novel urge, but he's in a far too opportune position to do it. He's sure Fon will get over it in no time. It's not like Fon had insisted on Timoteo being healed because he liked the man or anything. It's quite possibly the exact opposite. Fon probably just doesn't want any of the Arcobaleno, Kyoya or anyone else in Namimori to be liable for the man's death because that would endanger their family unnecessarily. "The Vindice has no say in these conflicts."
"Right, and Checkerface isn't the administrator of the Trinisette, to this day," Kyoya said with a roll of his eyes and all the Arcobaleno and every single Cervello present stiffened.
The Cervello that had been quiet so far finally spoke up. "We've been meaning to discuss it with you: where did you get that card?"
"What card?" Fon demanded, looking between his fellow Arcobaleno, Shamal and Kyoya, but the kid paid no heed to anyone.
"Kyoya had a card last night that he threw at the Cervello," Shamal answered, seeing as neither Reborn nor Viper, the only other ones who had been present for it, were going to answer. "It looked like a plain playing card to me, with a checkered back surface-"
"Checkered?" Lal repeated, looking over her shoulder to frown at Reborn. "And that didn't trigger a reaction? Are you going soft or senile, Reborn?"
"Never mind that, kora! Where would Kyoya even get the card in the first place if it's really connected to Checkerface, kora?" Colonello asked, but Kyoya and the Cervello continued ignoring him, locked as they were in a staring contest.
Then, Kyoya smirked. "Shouldn't you be more worried about what that card means? Your master is rather unhappy with the way you've gotten involved, taking the Gesso's side, giving them the Mare Rings."
"You know nothing of Checkerface-sama," the first Cervello said with what must have been a frown behind her mask. "He's been out of contact with us for years. Why would a mere child be in contact with him when he has not contacted his loyal soldiers?"
"I guess you're just really bad at Go. Besides, you've been making moves on your own. The Giglio Nero are the protectors of the Mare Rings. You went against his will by handing them over to their rivals, the Gesso."
"I thought the Gesso were allied with Giglio Nero," Viper cut in, frowning at Kyoya with just their mouth.
"They used to be. Things changed. Giglio Nero and Gesso have been having an internal war for years. It was news to me until just recently."
"None of that matters," Timoteo declared, earning himself several glares because his opinion is what really didn't matter. "The Vongola Rings belong to my famiglia. You have no right to take them."
"Actually," Fon commented with a neutral hum. "The Skylarks have as much claim to the Rings as you do. It is the founder of our Clan that has invented the Ring Conflict. And CEDEF. And the concept of half-Rings. And that is not even mentioning the fact that all of this is happening, illegally might I add, on Namimori grounds, the heart of Hibari territory. Kyoya and I have full, unquestionable authority over what happens in this town. We have all rights to stop these battles, announce them mute, arrest all parties involved and confiscate the Rings. However, keep in mind that, should we do this, your life is forfeit to us. In this town, we are beyond and above Vindice laws. The word will spread, everyone will know and no one would be able to do anything about it. Should they try, the Vindice will go after them because this is a civilian town, in a neutral zone, under the jurisdiction of a non-mafia organization. The Disciplinary Committee, who run this town, are civilians. Can even Vongola save itself from that big of a fall from grace?"
"The Hibari have been reduced to two," Iemitsu boldly states and Fon hums again.
"Yes, but one is an Arcobaleno and the other has been raised by them. Do you truly believe you can fight us and win? I've just returned from dismantling half of the Triads, down to the last man and woman who has been even remotely involved in the massacre of my clan. Viper and Lal have been so deeply rooted in Varia and CEDEF respectively that you don't have a single secret left to hide. Colonello and Lal have each held COMSUBIN for nearly a decade and have conditioned many recruits, have trained them to live another day on the battlefield. They have allies. Verde is Verde; people fight for his favor all the time for the sake of his inventions. Skull has had so much influence in Carcassa for over a decade that people are now scrambling to patch things up in his absence. And Reborn is Reborn." The hitman truly did not require more explanation than that. "And Kyoya is no pushover, either. Don't let his age fool you; he's more competent than your entire alliance of famiglias put together. Add in the Vindice and you stand absolutely no chance against us."
"The Skylark information network is as old as the Vongola," Kyoya added, coming to stand shoulder to shoulder with his chichi. "We know all of your tricks. Ultimately, we can expose you to the rest of the world without implicating ourselves or anyone even remotely associated with us, because we are not of the underworld alone. We have connections everywhere."
"So if you'd just hand over the Rings you have," Viper said pleasantly to Tsuna's group. "We'd really appreciate it. Those things need to be locked away so no one can misuse them."
"Tsuna," Iemitsu says almost commandingly, calling for his son's attention and obedience. "You know you absolutely can-"
"Okay," Tsuna, once again out of Hyper Dying Will Mode, easily agreed and with a heavy dose or relief in his voice. Everyone but Reborn blinked, perplexed, by the brunet's sudden change of attitude.
"Juudaime?" Gokudera asked, frowning in confusion, unsure if he'd heard right.
"Sawada, are you extremely serious?" Ryohei asked next. Yamamoto and Chrome just eyed their 'boss', unsure how they felt about just handing over the rings they had risked life and limb to win. "Our fights weren't easy to the extreme!"
"I know, but this is for the best," the young Sky responded, looking imploringly but with much determination at his friends. "The only reason I agreed to this whole thing was because you guys had already been involved and I wanted to protect you. My first reaction when I heard about the Rings was to just send them back. When it turned out that wasn't an option, I resigned myself to fighting and making you guys fight for our lives and safety. I didn't want this. All I want is to smile and have fun with my friends, to die without regrets." Reborn couldn't help but smile proudly at his student. Well, he may not have made a good Tenth Generation boss out of him, but he had certainly made a good person out of Tsuna, one deserving of all that praise the lore of Skies invoked, the loyalty tradition demanded blindly. "Please give the Rings to Mammon-"
"Viper," the Mist corrected.
"To Viper. I only want to keep my friends safe and happy."
"Boss," Chrome said, touched, and finally pulled off her Mist Vongola Ring. She handed it over to Kyoya with a small, shy smile before running over to Tsuna to give him a congratulatory kiss on the cheek for making such a kind, brave and thoughtful decision. Tsuna flushed, predictably, but Chrome's actions set things into motion and Yamamoto took off his Ring as well, laughing as he tossed it to Reborn.
"I always thought the game was fun, but I also didn't like seeing my friends hurt. If we get to keep the fun but eliminate the injury, then I'll gladly give away the Ring!"
"What are you doing!?" Iemitsu squawked, unable to believe his eyes as Ryohei started working his Ring off of his finger to toss to Colonello. "You're supposed to protect those Rings with your lives!"
"No, Guardians are supposed to protect and support their Sky with their lives, kora," Coloenllo corrected, whacking the CEDEF leader over the head with his rifle hard enough to make the man topple to the ground. "The Rings are just a stupid Vongola tradition that you probably don't even understand the full meaning of, kora. It's the bonds that are important, not some stupid bling bling, no matter how powerful it might be, kora."
"No, you've got it wrong, Colonello," Reborn couldn't help but correct, standing up and leaving the still tied up Timoteo to his own devices. "It's the exact opposite. The Sky is the one who should be willing to fight to protect his Elements with his life. Because what is a Sky without its Elements but an empty, useless, ugly vastness with no meaning, worth or warmth?"
"You're saying you'd sacrifice yourself for them?" One of Iemitsu's agents asked a bit skeptically. "They'd just die afterwards, anyway. Harmonized Elements can't live without their Skies." Tsuna and Dino pale at that. Reborn had never gotten the chance to tell Dino the full scale of just why he had such a strong dislike for famiglia Skies. He'd only taught the blond how not to act like them. Tsuna was still too new to everything to fully understand what harmonization even was, what Flames were. This was quite a shocker for him to hear. Reborn hadn't even managed to get to the part of 'I all but hate famiglia Skies because they are so and so'. He'd been too busy imparting the wisdom of cherishing one's friends and fighting and living with your Dying Will to get into something he'd considered to be a topic better left for later, when Tsuna actually knows how to control his Flames some.
"I signed a contract with Vongola, didn't I?" Reborn retorted, coming to stand besides Fon and Kyoya. Colonello gave Iemitsu one more wack over the head before his two Rains started carefully backing up until they, too, were standing with their Sun/Sky as his other Guardians also walked or floated over. "I bound myself by owing Timmy dearest a favor for the favor he had done to me by ratting the Donna of Giglio Nero out to me sixteen years ago. Not to mention that I made a deal with Dino's father before that, too. You don't need to know the full story, because it's none of your business. The point is, if you were to ask me to put a gun to my head to save even a hair on one of my Guardians' heads, I would. Though, truthfully, you'd have to first be good enough to be a threat to them and then strong enough to warrant such a desperate response from me, which maybe not even the Vindice can do."
"Reborn," Tsuna surprised him by boldly calling out, coming to stand in front of his (former?) tutor, determination glinting in his eyes. "Please keep tutoring me? I want to grow strong enough to protect my friends."
Reborn considers him for a moment, honestly surprised beyond words, but then Kyoya rudely nudges him with a tonfa and he glares in annoyance at his son. Kyoya rolls his eyes. "You said the herbivore had potential. You can't leave now that he's actually starting to grow and shed his dull teeth for something sharper."
"We're still keeping the Rings, though," the hitman tells Tsuna, who beams at the subtle acceptance to his request. Iemitsu and Timoteo start protesting and the idiotic CEDEF agents reach for their weapons - except for Basil, who's a smart kid apparently partially raised by Lal, so he knows to just stand to the side unless it directly concerns him when the Arcobaleno are involved, otherwise he'll be blown to smitherines - when, suddenly, a very familiar wormhole opens and out steps Jaeger, Bermuda on his shoulder as always.
"Oh, good. You have both Sawada Iemitsu and Timoteo Vongola here, as well as the Vongola Rings. And even the Cervello! How nice of you to collect all the reasons we might have to come to Japan to one place at the same time," Bermuda says pleasantly as Jaeger uses his chains to whiplash quick arrest both of the above mentioned men. "Now, if you two would be so kind as to not struggle, we'll take you to your cells gently. Please do not try to resist. Jaeger gets a bit excited when people try to challenge him."
"What is the meaning of this, Vindice? For what crime do you take us?" Nono demands, grunting as he is carelessly dragged over the ground. The Varia just watch, not sure what to do. A quick glance at the Cervello finds them already tied up with handcuffs while Kyoya stands to the side, innocently blinking at anyone who arches an eyebrow at him for his new secondary signature weapon. Nono stares at the handcuffs, too. He, at least, knows their deeper significance. It is Vongola's proud (bloody) history made material, after all.
"Flame sealing," Reborn answers, because he'd been the one to discover it. "According to our investigation, you've visited Namimori, Japan approximately eight years ago, give or take a few months, following Bakamitsu as a vacation to meet his son, Sawada Tsunayoshi, who had been five to six years old at the time. Neither you nor Iemitsu returned to this town since then, nor did Tsuna leave Namimori. No other Flame Active Skies have entered Namimori since then. And we do know. The Arcobaleno have been living here for sixteen years. And even if we're not here, Kyoya is and Kyoya's been Flame Active since he was five. He would sense the approach of an Active Sky."
"How does this have anything to do with your accusation?" Levi asked, more perplexed than defiant.
"Sawada Tsunayoshi's Flames were sealed when I met him for the first time. Kyoya and I destroyed the seal since then, but the fact remains that someone had sealed a Sky, a child Sky. That's against Vindice law."
"You have no proof that it was me," Timoteo argued, but Bermuda countered.
"Actually, we do. Verde has created a device that takes samples of the Flames creating the seal, as well as a machine to identify the owner of said Flames. Reborn recognized your signature even before we ran tests and the tests confirmed it. The only reason we haven't arrested you yet was because we'd gotten word of this succession conflict, the deaths of your sons, possibly at the hands of the Cervello, and because we are searching for an escaped prisoner."
"Mukuro-sama escaped prison?" Chrome asked worriedly and Jaeger was quick to reassure her.
"Rokudo Mukuro has been, so far, acting like a perfectly disciplined convict. His sentence will end as agreed upon, perhaps even sooner if he keeps up this behavior." The Kokuyo ganf sigh in relief at this. Jaeger and Bermuda look to Kyoya, who nods approvingly and gratefully at his honorary uncles. "Regardless, it was time we made this arrest."
"Would you like to have some fun with the Cervello, or should we take over right away?" Bermuda asked and Reborn contemplated it before shrugging.
"There's more than one, so I say we split it up. Make a bit of a competition between ourselves. See who's more intimidating," he suggests with a smirk and has a feeling Bermuda is smirking, too, under his bandages. "Now, let's just have Kyoya hand over the Cloud Vongola Ring and you can take them back and seal them away with the Pacifiers."
Except, when they all turn to Kyoya, the teen melts into Mist Flames, the illusion having served its purpose to prevent them from figuring out that Kyoya had made a run for it.
Reborn's both annoyed and proud as Namimori descends into chaos as everyone takes off after the younger Hibari.
This definitely feels like home.