Just a part 1! There will be a second, the chapter was too long to not be split, though I think you do not share my opinion xD
I saw many divergent opinions about Nana, after last chapter. There's a very on-point explanation one of you readers has left on the archive about Nana's reaction. I loved it, it highlights the exact reasons hidden in-between the lines that brought her to her decision and Tsuna to his reaction. Go check it out, if you want, by Chinos, and I'll use this to thank them again!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own KHR's characters or plot, only the idea of this story and the actual writing (took me months, ya know!).
Amnesiac Goldfish: Yes, it is. A long-suffered burden is still a burden, even if you get used to shouldering it. In the end, when it lifts off your shoulders, you will feel lighter. Also, Tsuna cared for his mother even though she could hardly still be considered as such. Shutting down is what Tsuna did most of this story, but, now, with Reborn and his family, he's starting to get his emotions through. Ain't easy for him, he never learned to deal with emotions, just how to shut them off. Don't worry :) Thank you!
BoyishBlue: Well, what did you want her to do? :) Nana knows she can't do any better than that. Ienari's mother won't be mentioned anymore, remember this is from Tsuna's POV, so he is mostly in the shadows about the issue. The Guardians are growing up :) Thank you! Here it is!
LiterallyMetaphoric: And what would you have her do? :) This was the best she came up with. Thank you!
CrazyFanYaya: Really?! Thank you!
Lunary: Eheh, remember that we are talking about the underground, showing reactions is basically a show of weakness :3 Tsuna finally has what he deserves :) Thank you!
Thank you, everyone!
DICTIONARY (because I use romanized Japanese vocabulary a lot):
Yakuza: Japanese Syndicate;
Oyabun: bosses of smaller parts of Yakuza;
Gumi: turfs in which Japan is split, each led by an Oyabun;
Kumicho: Boss of Yakuza;
Saiko-komon: senior advisor of the Kumicho;
So-honbucho: headquarters' chief;
Ryuukaze: Dragon, Wind;
Ryuuken: Dragon, Sword;
Ryuunoiki: Breath of Dragon;
Kyodai: big brothers of the Yakuza, higher-placed than the Shatei;
Shatei: little brothers of the Yakuza, basically the new recruits;
Sageo: hanging cord of the sword;
Tsuka: handle of the sword.
Sudarynya: archaic Russian honorific for Madam.
WARNINGS (read if you want some spoilers):
- sexy hitman;
- cape;
- personality;
- show-off;
- respect;
- disrespect.
Words: 4409.
Enjoy!
27 – Inheritance Ceremony – Part 1
"So, thought the cape thing over?"
Tsuna side-eyed his lover, still naked in the middle of their bed, barely covered in crumpled bedsheets, as he buttoned his white shirt's right sleeve.
"Shouldn't you be dressing up? We're almost late."
Reborn rolled his eyes, sitting up on the bed's edge. "We won't be late, and I'm serious. Do you want to wear one?"
"Even if, I have no–" He sighed. "Of course, you thought about this beforehand."
The hitman smirked, standing and reaching in the wardrobe. He took something, a black cape with golden buttons and chains along the few outer pockets. Tsuna pinched the bridge of his nose.
"To highlight my eyes, huh."
The black jacket found its way on his shoulders and the brunet wore it, buttoning it on his stomach. Then, Reborn leaned the cape on his back, tying the pin to keep it in place and hooking the three ornamental chains, progressively longer to dangle on his chest over the tie.
The hitman took two steps backward and scowled. "Now I want to take it off."
Tsuna gave him a kiss and made his way to the mirror. The overall image was exactly what his brothers had talked about: an atmosphere of unreachable power. Well, he was not complaining and it was not like it wasn't true, anyway.
"Fine, and thank you."
"As long as you let me take it off tonight…"
It was Tsuna's turn to roll his eyes. "Wear your suit, I'll go check everyone is ready. Will we get in through a side entrance or be announced through the main one?"
"Dame-Nari wants the main door. We'll be announced as Yakuza and as Vongola's official allies." Reborn sighed and went to the bathroom, finally getting ready.
The brunet checked his reflection once more before going to the door. "Wouldn't it be better for you to stay with Ienari, at the beginning?" He put his hand on the handle and slightly turned to the bathroom's door.
The hitman got out with pants and yellow shirt on, buttoning it. "I thought about that. Would make our standing very clear."
Tsuna arched a brow. "But?"
Reborn took a black jacket from the wardrobe and wore it, graceful movements momentarily distracting Ryuunoiki from the conversation. "But I wanted to enter with you, else the whole thing about showing off won't be as effective."
He frowned. "You sure?" Reborn stood still in place, listening. "What would be more of a show-off: coming in with us or coming to me when we appear?"
Tsuna smirked, enjoying in amusement the surprise of his lover before leaving their bedroom. He was starting to want to undress Reborn himself, which was unsafe at the moment. They couldn't be late. However, he could think up something for the night.
The brunet walked up to his brothers' rooms, knocking at each once. One by one, they opened and everyone filed behind him. Nara, Atsushi and Kagami went up instead of down the stairs. Byakuran quickly reached his side and searched for his hand, that Tsuna granted. Everyone but the child was wearing a suit and he could say that the piece of clothing complimented everyone. He let it go that Viper had conjured a Mist Flames' hood. Skull, instead, had forgone his make-up. Their shirts matched the colour of their Flames. Tsuna had not thought about that, but he guessed he was not attending the Ceremony as a Sky, but as the Kumicho, so it was fine.
Their Flames reached for him as they bickered a bit, tugging at his core, creating a shield all around his body, protecting and possessive. In answer, the brunet enveloped them in Sky Flames, hearing but pretending to not notice the sighs of contentment. Byakura clenched his hand around Tsuna's and Ryuunoiki sent him a thin thread of Flames, feeling the relief.
They stopped at the first floor and went to wait half-an-hour in a living room. They had to let someone arrive before them to get the wanted effect. He sat on a couch and let his Elements wander around, checking his watch. Byakuran took his side, conjuring a bag of marshmallow from somewhere and offering him one. He refused it with a small smile, he didn't like the sugary feeling they left in his mouth.
His eyes fell on Skull, that was accepting the candies with a grin. He hummed, lightly pinching his chin. He preferred the usual, so Tsuna caught Viper's attention from the portable computer he was tapping on and flickered his wrist to the Cloud.
"Think you can do something over there?" The Mist nodded and, in a split second, Skull had his make-up and piercings on. "Thank you."
"I admit he's better this way."
"Wha– Bu–"
"A suit is enough, Skull. I won't kill your personality just for the sake of a good impression on someone I don't care the thoughts of."
"That's more like you, kora!"
"Works the same for you all, Colonnello." Tsuna smiled. "Just as Viper couldn't shake off his hood, you can bring along your bandana, Fon can keep his braid, Verde can take notes, Reborn can be his insufferable self. I'm not chaining you, you're free to be yourselves."
Unsurprisingly, the Storm cleared his throat, catching his attention. "We just… didn't want to ruin your reputation."
Tsuna arched a brow. "Which one? I don't think the rumour about golden-eyed demon can be tarnished, at this point."
Fon shook his head, "not that one. The underground world always depicts the Kumicho as a composed and dreadful man."
"We thought that, being perky as we are, we could have ruined that, kora."
The brunet tilted his head. "It's not by my demeanour that people fear me. They fear me because of what I've done, that's what you have to aim for. Be recognizable as much as you want, the important thing is that you feel part of the family. The rest comes by itself."
He'd lost count on how many times he'd said such words, or things along the line. New brothers always were doubtful about his ways with the family, but he couldn't blame them at all. Most of them had never met kindness or acceptance. His new Elements, the Arcobaleno, seemed the most hurt by what the world had done to them. He knew by experience what it meant to be seen as a powerhouse and not as a human. Tsuna had faced the consequences of being regarded as inhuman even too soon. Living up to such rumours, to have his enemies tremble in his shadow, was not easy.
He shook the thoughts off his mind and eyed them. There were small smiles, which he could count as a small victory. He checked his watch again and noticed time had passed quickly. He stood, checking his suit was fine and not crumpled, and headed to the door.
"I guess it's showtime. Who's keeping contact with Nara?"
They fell in step behind him, but the atmosphere was slightly different from before. He absently fixed his shirt's sleeves and tightened his tie. They seemed less tense, more confident.
"Me, Ryuunoiki," Colonnello answered while checking his phone. "He sent me a message a while ago, they're ready and waiting."
"And I'm watching everything from the side-lines, in case they miss some proof," Viper added.
Tsuna hummed, sending all his Elements a wave of Sky Flames and taking Byakuran's hand. He climbed down the stairs, seeing that only butlers and maids were running around. He saw some new faces and felt a certain trepidation, something the air buzzled with. Did they truly think he would let them do whatever they wanted with his brother? Did they even know they were brothers, to begin with? He wanted to teach them their place.
The brunet caressed Ryuuken's handle, unconsciously checking it was at his side. He swore he could feel the blade reverberate in suppressed bloodlust. It had been a long time since he'd last slashed someone. As of lately, he'd protected more than killed. Byakuran let his hand go, gripped his cape with trembling fingers, took a deep breath and fell at his side, half-hiding behind him.
He reached for the door beneath the inner balcony of the first floor and nodded to the butler with the attending sheets. The man seemed to be one of the oldest and his hostility was barely concealed. Tsuna made sure to quell his Elements' quiet rage with his Flames. It was not time yet to show their protectiveness. His Intuition was telling him they would have had the opportunity time and time again, even during this event.
The wide door opened and they were announced.
"Ryuunoiki-sama, Yakuza's Kumicho, and his brothers."
Tsuna felt the shower of attention through the softly played orchestra, let it slide off his body, grounded himself on Ryuuken's handle and strode forward through the door. His brothers' Flames downed on him, making him light instead of heavy with the stares and whispers. He eyed the room as he made way to the central spot on the other side to greet his host.
On their left, two of the American Big Five, Brenna Neri and Mikayla Gennaro, were drinking wine in two clinking chalices. The women were both tall, with tanned skin and black hair. They nodded at him and he answered back to the courtesy. Éléonore De Guignes was joining them with a plate of snacks. The three were followed by some thugs Tsuna wasn't going to remember the faces of, figures the names.
On their right, Derek Campbell, Ashton Tusco and Franco Reeves were each on their own and each nodded at him. Americans still knew who to respect. Slightly off to the side, talking in hushed tones, were Kaspar Marks and Kit Hamilton. It always astonished him how the representants of each country resembled the power that country had. Strange, also, how Japan was different from that. As if his country was counting on Yakuza's power more than on its political power. But the German and the English Don greeted him with a tilt of their heads, contrary to the French woman. Thugs at their backs, too.
There were more minor families crowding both sides of the room, plus a brunet he was sure he'd seen already somewhere. He reminded the Kumicho of Ienari, skittish and unsure on his feet… Oh, the meeting with Nono, the teen had been there. There were more around him, but seemed more than simple thugs. Elements? Probably. Yes.
Russia, China and Australia were missing.
Tsuna stopped in the middle of the room when his eyes caught sight of a hitman walking up to him. He held back a smirk, he couldn't do that when all eyes were on him. At the same time, he knew Reborn was going to hold back nothing.
With a sigh, he watched his fiancé stop few inches in front of him and take his hand. The hitman brought Tsuna's hand to his lips and left a kiss on his knuckles, all the while with a smug smirk adorning his face. The difference, however, was that what the brunet was truly seeing was the love in the black eyes, the complete surrender and adoration.
That… that made him smile.
He tightened his hold on Reborn's hand before letting it go and offering him his side, wary of Byakuran still hiding behind his frame. The hitman's smirk widened as he fell right in his place after nodding to the other Arcobalenos. He took a moment to enjoy the feeling of contentment from having his full set of Elements with him, then breathed long and walked up to the audience he was most interested in.
Ienari was standing on the far end of the room with all his Guardians at his sides. The Rain grinned at him, the Sun saluted him, the Mist girl nodded shyly at him, the Cloud only looked at him, the Storm bowed at him, the Lightning waved happily at him – and at Byakuran. The Sky smiled brightly, enthusiast more than anxious, a good thing.
Tsuna approached him, shook his hand. "Seems like everything is in check, Ienari. Good job."
"Thank you, nii-sa– Uh, Ryuunoiki." He was wearing a suit with an orange shirt, symbolizing his status as the Sky, and a pin with a clam on his tie, as a Vongola. "Uhm… Were there so many people with you, when you arrived?"
He smiled, "in fact, no. Meet Verde and Viper, two Arcobalenos and my youngest brothers, in terms of bond." The men nodded and greeted Decimo. "Congratulations on your Inheritance, though this will be my first in Italy."
"Oh, well, thank you, first, but… Nono will come around in an hour or so to make it official. I… I'm sorry, it couldn't be avoided."
So, the coup couldn't take place after that. "I'll make sure to ignore his existence." He heard the door open and nodded once. "I'll leave you to your other guests, then."
Tsuna walked to the right, choosing the corner, which was freed immediately from an unknown minor family. He turned to have a good view of the whole room and noticed the one being announced was Zhao. A chalice of wine found its way to his hand and he thanked Fon for the thought. Reborn scoffed, sniffing the beverage from the bottle he'd just poured in the glass.
He followed Dì èr's entrance, tipped his glass to him at the greeting – a bow with a fist on his heart – and overlooked how the first meeting between him and Ienari went. Quite well, to be honest. He couldn't hear their voices and he wasn't good with lip-reading, but their faces were relaxed and friendly.
"Dì èr's congratulating Decimo on his rise to power and wishing him good luck," Verde whispered over his shoulder. "He just said he's relieved Decimo has found his lost brother, too."
"I didn't know you could lip-read," Viper neared them, tossing the Lightning a notebook. "Use that for whatever you lip-read that might be useful."
Verde clicked his tongue but took his pen and wrote down something as he went to the back of the group. "Thank you," Tsuna said, refocusing on the approaching Dì èr while nudging a small bag of marshmallows into Byakuran's hands. "It's very useful."
The scientist ducked his head, retreating and writing with more enthusiasm. In the meantime, Liang Zhao stopped in front of him with another bow, that the brunet reciprocated, if curter.
"Ryuunoiki, it is a pleasure to see you again."
"Likewise, Dì èr. I hope everything is in order in China."
Fon conjured another glass in his free hand and Tsuna offered it to the man, that accepted it. Reborn gracefully passed the bottle to one of the thugs, that filled the chalice.
"Yes, thank you. Our deals have brought the Triads great advantage in the underworld's economy. What about Japan?"
He sipped some wine – it was delicious – to hide his mouth. "There are some urgent matters to attend to, as soon as I'll be back, but nothing too worrying. On a side note, though, I guess I will try to keep you informed about a certain issue with our common neighbour." Zhao's eyes narrowed. "I feel obliged to honour our alliance by being quite clear before anything breaks through to everyone."
"For this, I thank you once again, Ryuunoiki." They clinked their glasses and drank a bit. "We won't turn our backs to Yakuza. No one has yet recognized the Triads as you did."
Tsuna tilted his head at that. "It was mutual, Dì èr."
"And, before I forget, congratulations on finding your lost brother."
"Rumours travel fast," he commented.
"It is no secret that Vongola Nono tried to fix an old mistake by making things worse." Good to know that the world was aware. "For trying to kill Decimo and taking you instead, the Triads were ready for war."
More than an alliance, this was starting to resemble… something else. "I appreciate the thought, Yakuza has a good ally it can count on. I'll make sure to call on it only when it is strictly necessary."
Another clink of glasses, another sip. "How are the pups?"
"Growing up," he replied with a smile. "I entrusted them to my brothers, they'll become beautiful and fearsome creatures."
Someone cleared their throat on Tsuna's left. He blinked, turning to see who had the guts to interrupt a conversation. Éléonore De Guignes smiled at them. She was short, with blond wavy hair that reached her lower back. Her eyes were brown and small, her face was spotless. She seemed more like a model than the Boss of the French Mafia.
"Good morning, Ryuunoiki, Dì èr," she greeted.
Tsuna didn't find any reason why he should answer, seeing she had not even acknowledged his entrance few moments prior. Zhao seemed to share the same opinion. An awkward silence fell, in which the woman faltered and became increasingly anxious. Ryuunoiki noticed how the others throughout the room tried and failed to pretend they were not looking over.
She cleared her throat again, flashing them a brightly fake smile. "How are you?"
Tsuna pursed his lips. He'd met most of the ones in that room during his own Inheritance, he knew some better than others. This woman had never struck him as smart, but she must have had some good to her or she wouldn't still be the Don of French Mafia, right? Because, apart from her looks, she seemed… what was the right word… vapid.
"We were talking," Zhao answered, trying to convey they had not liked the interruption.
"Oh? What about?" She, clueless or completely idiotic, wormed her way almost between them.
Too near for Tsuna's comfort. Too invading for Zhao's patience. Too daring for Reborn's jealousy. The brunet understood he needed to chase her away before someone tried to kill her.
"Manners of torture," he lied smoothly. "I've recently stumbled upon an assassination attempt. The woman that tried to kill me is tight-lipped, so I asked Dì èr for new techniques to interrogate her."
He enjoyed the way De Guignes paled at his every word. Luckily, Zhao caught on his attempt to get her to leave and played to the tune. If she had just been more knowledgeable, she would have caught on the lie. The Triads didn't pride themselves on torture.
"As I was saying, women tend to like their nails and face."
Tsuna turned fully to the other man, interested. "I see. It sounds right, they resist pain better than men."
"Yes, that's why you should aim for what they treasure."
"Which are their looks, I suppose. What if she's not that type?"
Zhao seemed to think that through, but his answer wasn't needed. The woman quickly excused herself and disappeared behind a curtain, probably to the bathroom. Weak stomach for a one that worked in Mafia.
"Is she a child?" Zhao asked, visibly irritated.
"I'd feel compelled to say yes, if I didn't know her father and her birthdate," Tsuna sighed. "Thank you."
"Anything to get rid of such company, you're welcome, Ryuunoiki." Zhao's eyes wandered briefly to Reborn. "Though, I would have liked to see some blood. Good old days, when diplomacy was only a futuristic thing." He nodded once. "I understand there are many wanting to talk with you. We'll see each other again, Ryuunoiki."
Tsuna tilted his head and lifted his glass to him, watching as Dì èr left towards the other side of the room. He took a deep breath, noticing how the three American men perked up and started to walk to him.
"Are you going to scare everyone?"
"If it is necessary."
"I don't think it is."
"That's because you don't care enough to see the signs," Reborn countered. "But I prefer it that way. Leave the nuisances to me."
That didn't calm him down one bit. He schooled his expression as he turned to the approaching men. Ashton Tsuco was rather well-built, with long brown hair tied in a low ponytail and green eyes behind thin glasses. Derek Campbell was taller, slimmer, with wild black hair whitening at his temples and brown eyes framed by wrinkles. Franco Reeves was fat, had short blond hair falling on his face and blue eyes that bespoke of wisdom.
"It is nice to see such promising youth bloom like you are, Ryuunoiki," Campbell said, shaking his hand. "I remember your Inheritance, I'm happy to see I was not mistaken when I told Ryuukaze, bless his soul, that his heir was going to be great."
This man had just earned a soft spot. "Thank you, Mr Campbell. I'm doing my best to protect my grandfather's legacy."
"Oh no, you're not simply protecting it, Ryuunoiki." Tusco took his hand for a shake. "Yakuza grows powerful with each passing moment, thanks to your political and economic moves. I congratulate you."
Tsuna nodded, "thank you. I heard things in America are good, too. What has your President granted you, last?"
It was Reeves' turn to shake his hand, smiling. "With weapons so freely sold, the drugs' market is flourishing. Though, the Cartello is making things tough lately."
"Mexico has never been easy to deal with, from what my grandfather used to tell me."
Tusco shrugged. "We're preparing a big surprise for them. We've got police under our thumb, why not use it?"
"Well said, we'll have the Cartello ready to beg in a few months," Reeves lifted his glass of wine.
"I wish you good luck." Tsuna joined the toast.
Campbell drank his wine all at once, then waved his hand to the brunet and his brothers. "Your ranks have changed, I see."
Ryuunoiki smiled. "No, they have not. These are my brothers, they joined Yakuza quite recently. I guess you are referring to Kagami."
"The lad was promising, I'm curious to see how he has improved."
"Don't forget Atsushi, his new nickname in the underground is Silent Death." Tusco hid a laughter behind his glass.
"Silent, he is," Tsuna admitted. "They will join us in a few moments, some issues that came out at the last minute."
Reeves tilted his head, "something we need to worry about?"
"Not at all."
The three exchanged a glance before excusing themselves and going back to their previous spots. The brunet sipped his wine to hide a small frown. He didn't like when people poked their noses where it didn't belong, even if it was out of pure curiosity and without a double purpose.
He slightly turned to his Elements, eyes warmer. "You told me I should rely on you more, right?"
Fon approached him, refilling his glass thanks to another bottle. "Yes, Ryuunoiki."
"Fine then, I'm in your hands." His free hand slid off Ryuuken's handle, going instead to Byakuran's shoulder to make him get out of his shadow.
There was a moment of tense silence. "This is all the warning you're going to give us every time, Tsuna?"
He fought off a smirk. "You want something easier?" The tension morphed into eagerness. "Plus, this is a warning that won't be repeated in the future."
Before Reborn could say something to that, the door opened again. Tsuna moved his eyes to it, careful to keep his stance still and relaxed.
"Sudarynya Sobolevskaya Snezana Sukhorukov, Boss of Russian Mafia."
A woman in black suit and cape billowing behind her entered, followed by four more female bodyguards. She was tall, even taller thanks to her heels, with straight black hair and clear grey eyes. She was very thin, not as prosperous as De Guignes but seemed a model nonetheless, just like her bodyguards. She strode directly to Ienari, that straightened and changed demeanour immediately at seeing her. Verde leaned to Tsuna's ear as the two Bosses exchanged a twitchy handshake.
"She's giving him her congratulations and asking how Nono is." Tsuna let a scoff escape his lips, Ienari's stance became even colder. "Decimo is telling her Nono will be attending later and she can see herself." That said, she tilted her head and turned around, giving Ienari her back.
Truly disrespectful. Tsuna arched a brow when the bodyguards split up and a brunette with a braid came towards him. He sipped more wine, feeling how the alcohol in his system wasn't resisting Reborn's Sun Flames at all. He wondered if his lover would let him get drunk at least once, but this time he agreed. He had to drink, enduring so much would be good in the others' eyes.
The woman stopped right in front of him. "Ryuunoiki, good morning." No honorifics? And Tsuna went to great lengths in order to satisfy the other bosses by knowing their traditions. "Sudarynya Sobolevskaya wants to greet you and know if you have some time later, this evening, for a private meeting."
The brunet simply ignored her and kept on drinking his wine, which seemed to be endless. He wasn't noticing when Fon poured him more, thing that amused him to an extent. The woman stayed rooted to the spot, slowly turning her stare into a glare. Wrong move. Tsuna felt his eyes warm up and enjoyed fully the resulting paling of the thug.
"Ryuunoiki? What's your ans–"
"Ryuunoiki-sama doesn't talk with mere subordinates," Skull said with a low growl.
Viper cleared his throat. "Tell your Boss that, if she wants an answer, she'll have to come take it herself."
Tsuna's glare intensified. The woman flinched back and, in an angry display, she turned and left, giving him her back. Truly no respect at all. These Russians needed to be taught their place. He eyed how Zhao and his thugs acted the exact same way and that Sobolevskaya seemed even angrier at their non-answers. However, instead of coming herself, she just waved the issues off and demanded wine.
"Can't wait for war," Skull muttered with one hand on his mouth to feign a yawn.
"It sure will be interesting," Verde unhelpfully added.
Reborn shrugged, leaning against the wall nearby. "I want first with her."
"If you leave enough of her to use the country however we like, she's at your mercy." Tsuna lifted his glass to answer to Brenna Neri and Mikayla Gennaro's far away toast. "Taking control of that territory will make us a target and a terrifying powerhouse."
"As if we aren't already, kora."
"He's got a point," Skull chuckled.
Verde sighed.
Let me know what you think! See ya!