A/N:
@Plew A.E: Hahaha! I love this review!
@CAD270895: I think he'll explain later on.
@Aylako-hime: Hahaha! Here is the Saturday update.
@Tenma Kirin: Here is the update.
@Kunn: Let's see, let's see. Hahaha! Thank you for the review too!
See you next week again. Yie. Hahaha.
Anyway, go on.
Chapter Forty-Four
Tsuna walked behind Oregano, a step away as more and more mafiosi from CEDEF joining them. The woman kept on glancing at him from her shoulder, probably trying to check if he's still following or not. He almost scoffed. She won't be checking anything again later.
With all honesty, everything was too fast for him. One moment, he was enjoying things, then the next thing he knew, he's being cornered. But it wasn't something he was surprised with. With how much his head kept on ringing from day one of the festival, it was obvious. It was just the timing. He should've checked on Dino or something. But given the circumstance back at Namimori, it will take time.
He flexed his hands, focusing at the task at hand. He needs to get away as soon as possible. Although there's a lot of CEDEF surrounding him, it doesn't mean he can't take them on. They're all small fries compared to Varia, Millefiore and Simon. Much more the Vendice. Besides, he did a promise. And he vowed to never break a promise since he got his dying will. Reborn will smack him if he breaks a promise too, especially if it's with Soma.
Tsuna halted when Oregano stopped walking. They're in front of many cars. He glanced around, intuition alerting of how his surrounding is moving. The mafiosi have closed in, caging him. He kept his arms on his side, trying not to alert them of what he plans. Good thing he never parts with his mittens and pills.
"Tsunayoshi." Oregano called as she faced him. "We are here to take you back to Namimori."
"Under his order, I assume." He guessed. His voice felt foreign in his ears since they sound cold and neutral.
"Yes. Iemitsu has specific orders to escort you."
"Guess he was too busy to come himself." He hummed, shifting his weight on one foot. "What if I don't come, what will you do?"
"We might use force." Oregano threatened.
Tsuna let his flames come out, hot and dry, as he stared at the woman. "I'm not bragging, but I know you've heard a lot about me." Their atmosphere tensed up. "From fighting Xanxus to Vendice." He watched as Oregano shifted. "Right now, I'm wearing my contacts. My gloves are debatable since I can fire my X-burner without them. Given the circumstances, I can lit my flames even without my pills. Will you take on the chances of getting vaporized if you insist of taking me?"
"We're just following orders, Tsunayoshi. We cannot come back empty handed." The woman placated.
He sighed as he retracted his flames. "And I cannot come with you even if you want me to. You know our family's situation, Oregano-san. If your boss wants a son named Tsunayoshi Sawada, tell him to keep dreaming because that person already erased him from his family tree."
"You have his blood."
He glared. "The very blood that caused me to be a mafioso when I don't want to."
"Everyone of us don't want to be mafiosi." The woman stated. "You're not the only one being cornered and pressured here, Tsunayoshi. We go empty handed, we die. You're only getting detained in the town for running away again. You're not being jailed nor being executed. Don't be selfish."
He felt like the world smashed on him as the word 'selfish' resounded in his mind. He feels hot and dry. His heart beating so fast with uncontrollable emotions. Hatred, regrets, desperation, anger.
His mind went back to those times he was aggravated by people just because his flames were sealed. Those times he fought so hard. That time he came to the future and discovered that he became a mafia boss, causing every disaster that resulted to deaths. And the memory of eating alone behind the sports clubs building.
He honestly doesn't know how the heck can they say he's selfish when he did a lot of things for the sake of others. For the sake of the world he should've forsaken a long time ago. He saved their asses without asking for anything in return, and here they are. Calling him selfish just because he doesn't want to go back to his own kind of hellhole. Just because he doesn't want to obey Iemitsu. Just because he wanted to be free and take control of his life.
Is he selfish?
Or are they the one being selfish here?
Tsuna's jaw clicked as his flames lashed out. "Selfish."
The whole forest tensed up.
"Me? Selfish?" He breathed before moisting his lips with his tongue, eyes glowing orange with so much emotions. "You think I'm doing this because I'm selfish? Then what did Iemitsu do when he took my twin away from me and Kaasan? When he took years- Goddamn years to visit, only to fucking seal my flames away and cripple me like a sick person? How am I the selfish one if he can't come home to my Kaasan's birthday, their anniversary because he has works? Heck, I bet he doesn't even remember Ieyasu's birthday as much as he does to mine.
"Right. Protection. Protection, my ass. He can't even protect Vongola, how can he protect us? He can't protect Frederico, Massimo nor Enrico. Even Nono that caused Grandpa to become the power source of Xanxus' Gola Mosca. So how can he protect us? His very family? And now you're saying I'm being a brat? I'm being selfish? That I'm rebelling? Well, check the situation again, Oregano-san. Because if we're talking about who's the selfish one here, it's you." He looked around him to see the others. "All of you. Because you do not question your orders. You do not say anything to your boss of what he should do. You think you're doing this to live? So you won't die? Then you might want to get away from here now, before you wished Iemitsu was the one who ended your lives."
"Tsunayoshi-"
He lit his flames manifest on his forehead, the rings under his shirt shone in resonance to his will. "I'm Reborn's student, and will never be Iemitsu Sawada's son at any form. And I maybe merciful to others, but I won't tolerate those who are associated to that bastard. I advice you to get away from me before I obliterate you myself."
He watched as Oregano shakily signalled those people surrounding them to back away and go for their cars. A lot of mafiosi in suits ran past him, getting inside their assigned vehicles to get away. He stared hard at Oregano who went inside her own car.
"Oregano-san." He called, causing the woman to freeze. "Tell Iemitsu that I don't care if he found me. Hell or high water, I'm not going back to become his puppet again."
The woman nodded before she went in the car and drove away. Tsuna let his flames snuff out as he sagged.
"Selfish." He repeated as his eyes dimmed. "I'm the one being selfish."
"Azami?" Gin blurted with his eyes widening, phone still in his hand. "He... became the director?"
Joichiro's eyes looked at his friend in shock as the other stared back. "What does that mean?"
"It means as it is." A new voice answered for him.
The two went on full alert as two teens approached them. One is wearing a casual attire that gives off a punk look, with small loop earrings on both ears, purple hair and a teardrop tattoo on the left cheek. He has purple eyes too. The other is a blond with blue eyes, who's wearing a white shirt under a camouflage uniform with the same camouflage bandana with a pin of number 'one', and wearing combat boots. The most tensing part with the latter was the fact that he's armed with a rifle and some other basic military weapons.
Both looked grave and serious. Something that teens shouldn't be experiencing in their generation. Joichiro doesn't even remember being like that except when he's cooking. The only time he was like that was when Tamako died, only to get pulled back by his son to cooking again.
"You must be the Tootsuki hotel manager, Gin Doujima, kora." The blond acknowledged as they stopped meters from their spot.
"Yes." Gin affirmed, clicking his phone shut. "Who might you be?"
"I'm Skull," The purple head introduced himself before gesturing to the blond. "This is Colonnello. We're ones of the Arcobaleno."
Joichiro's and Gin's eyes widened as the latter blurted out, "The strongest seven."
"Good. You're well verse." Skull nodded in satisfaction. "This won't make it hard then."
"Of course I am." His friend answered, getting serious. "A mafia kid had been in my hotel twice, and had been keeping my staffs safe from his own enemies with the best of his abilities, even though it should be us who has to do it for him. I have to know the insides of Mafia just to be of help. I may be a civilian, but I cannot take it to see a teenager fight for his life for the title that was stripped off from him."
The purple head sighed in fond exasperation. "That's Tsuna for you. Keeping everyone safe even if it means killing himself in the process."
"You know Tsuna?" Joichiro can't help asking.
Blue eyes shifted to the redhead. "Then you're Joichiro Saiba, Tsuna's surrogate parent kora."
"We're here in behalf of him." Skull answered. "His location had been compromised. Iemitsu is looking for ways to take him back, and you're two of the people Reborn deduced that will be used against him."
The redhead felt his heart clench at the news. "How is he? He's not taken, is he?"
"No, kora." Colonnello shook his head. "The head of the group that was assigned to take Tsuna came back to Namimori without him. It made Iemitsu furious, kora."
"That bastard." Saiba can't help cursing. "How can he do this to his own son?"
"Funny thing," Skull chirped with a sarcastic smile. "Tsuna disowned him as his father. You and Soma are officially part of the family."
Joichiro's jaw dropped a little.
"Really?" Gin blurted before confusion clouded his eyes. "But you're Vongola."
"We are not Vongola." The purple head stated firmly. "We are the ex-Arcobaleno, allied to Tsunayoshi Sawada's family. His enemy is our enemy, his family is our family."
"Anyway," Colonnello interrupted. "let's go somewhere else, kora. We came here to take you back to Japan safely, without alerting Iemitsu. Lal is doing her best to distract the maggot at this moment."
"Alright." Gin nodded. "Come on, Joichiro. Your children are waiting for you."
Joichiro stood up and took his groceries. "I'm not worried." He noticed the three staring at him. "Soma is there. I put him there after I trained him to be a chef to save their generation, especially Erina Nakiri, Azami's daughter. But with Tsuna on the loop, he'll be more motivated to do it. To go against Azami's force. So I'm not worried. The sky has his storm with him."
The two Arcobaleno glanced at each other before grinning.
"Reborn will be ecstatic with the two of you, kora." Colonnello said as he went ahead. "Now that he has a reason to kill Iemitsu and is assured that he has a family who understand his student, he'll do it as long as Tsuna said so."
"What reason?" Gin questioned as they followed the two Arcobaleno. "Isn't being a tutor enough?"
"No." Skull negated before smirking. "It's the protectiveness of an element to his sky. Reborn is Tsuna's harmonized sun."
"What?!"
Soma looked down to the food of tray he's holding. Sighing, he put the tray beside the door, slipped the paper he wrote ahead under the door, and walked away. When he got to the lobby, Ibusaki was waiting for him. He shook his head at the silent question, earning a dismayed sigh from the auburn.
When Tsuna got back to the dorm three nights ago, he was like a shell. They couldn't talk to him properly. The brunet only smiled at them with so much emptiness that it hurts, thanking them with a soft broken voice while taking his phone from Soma, and went inside his room with a 'good night' that sounded so wrong and painful to hear. It didn't even settle well with them the fact that Tsuna didn't join them for breakfast, even if Soma called him out the next morning. That he didn't attend his classes, nor joined them for dinner. Fumio even told them that Tsuna never left the dorm nor ate lunch.
Soma could only ruffle his hair in frustration before he went for the stairs to go for his room. He was so busy thinking about what happened when Tsuna went with that smart looking lady last night, that he got surprised when he saw the previous Tootsuki director, Senzaemon Nakiri, inside his room and flexing his muscles.
"Worry not. This is your room." The director assured when he backed away to check the door number. And it is his room. Three-o-three.
Soma reluctantly went in.
"Please excuse my sudden visit." The old man apologized, yukata fixed and arms crossed.
"Sure..." The redhead bowed his head awkwardly. Tsuna's usually the diplomat between them when it comes to big people. "Well, that's fine. But- Eh. Do you have some business with me?"
Senzaemon Nakiri chuckled. "Thinking back, this is the first time we've talked to each other directly and alone."
"Well," He thought back to when he and Tsuna bowed to the old man in the entrance ceremony. "You're right." Then he blinked when he noticed that the director is not sitting on a cushion. He turned to get some. "Ah. Wait a second. I'll get some cushions-"
"I was the one who adviced Joichiro to have you apply in Tootsuki." Soma froze and immediately looked back to Senzaemon Nakiri who was gazing at him with wisdom of an old man. "Let's go outside. I have something I want to tell you."
The next thing he knew, Soma was jogging along with the director. He was tagged along with the usual routine of the director, got asked of what he thinks of Erina Nakiri as a cook and got a full story of what kind of influence does Azami Nakiri on his daughter. And in the end, he was asked to save Erina from Azami.
Soma suddenly felt conflicted. He somehow connected Erina's situation to Tsuna's. They all have ambitious fathers caging them in some situations that will benefit their parents. The differences are the fact that one, Erina has no will power to runaway, while Tsuna did; two, Erina is not being hunted while Tsuna is; Three, Erina is all about cooking while Tsuna is in mafia; and four, Erina can be saved while Tsuna has fifty-fifty chances.
Erina Nakiri can be saved. Soma will do so, because he will never be able to move on when she said his food was too vulgar and almost said it was terrible. If Tsuna didn't come at that time, Erina will really blurt that out. But this time, he wants her to say it with her own accord. He wants her to say it without Tsuna's influence. And he can't do that if Azami Nakiri blocks his way. Just why can't she be honest boggles him.
Tsuna, on the other hand...
"How is Sawada?" The director questioned amidst the sound of pouring rain.
He can't help sighing when he remembered his best friend's state the other night. "Tsuna's not good. Something happened after he went somewhere with this Oregano lady."
"Ah. She's part of the CEDEF." Yellow eyes looked at the old man in question. "She must have come for him the other night, after they found out Sawada's location with Azami. I suspected that Azami is associated with Iemitsu Sawada. He won't be able to do this nicely if it's just the Elite Ten. He needs more backing."
"So you're saying that other than controlling his daughter, they're planning to expel Tsuna so he could go back to Namimori?" He simplified.
Senzaemon Nakiri nodded. "Most likely so. But since Sawada came back to the Polar Star, it means he was able to get away."
"Tsk." Soma can't help tutting. "Why can't they understand that Tsuna doesn't want to go back?"
"It cannot be helped. His freedom is endangering the Vongola Decimo's position. You're aware of his affiliation, yes?" He nodded. The director continued, eyes staring at the clouded sky. "Twins in mafia are said to be a bad omen. The two must fight to death for the sake of the position. But because his brother, Ieyasu, was destined to be the Vongola Decimo since he was taken to Italy, the conflict won't take place. However, at some time, all Vongola's heirs have died."
"Then Tsuna got picked."
"Yes. It was to keep Ieyasu safe from all the attacks since he's in Italy at that time, and it will take time for every payed assassins and hitmen to arrive here in Japan and locate the new heir of Vongola, which was Tsunayoshi Sawada. It was only for a mean time. But then, Xanxus broke from his prison and tried to take over Vongola once more."
"That was the ring conflict." He nodded, touching the ring that was under his shirt.
"Yes. Then a series of event happened that wasn't completely disclosed. The one thing our world know is the fact that Sawada was able to cure the seven powerful babies and defeated the mafia jailers. He was rumoured to be the new coming of his ancestor, Vongola Primo, and was accepted to be the keeper of their heirloom."
"And since he gained fame and the power, Iemitsu feared that Ieyasu won't be able to take on the position." He concluded, being able to ride on with the explanation, since he knew why Tsuna runaway.
"He wants Sawada to be in a place he can closely monitor. Somewhere that he cannot escape and can't find any elements, as his guardians were being taken by his twin. Unfortunately, your friend was taught by the world's greatest hitman and had faced many battles that Iemitsu's wrath won't be able to surpass. Of course, with this journey of his, he was able to find a home in you."
Soma grinned at that.
"The potential I see in you is as great as what I saw in him. He is a remarkable young man."
"I know." He remarked as he remembered those times Tsuna did him favors. "And I won't let them take him away from me."
Soma didn't see how Senzaemon Nakiri smiled when he plunged in the rain, determined to talk to Tsuna when he gets back.
"Tsuna-kun went out." Soma stared at Yoshino's worried face. "I almost didn't recognize him when he went out."
"What time?" He questioned.
"Just when the rain started." Yoshino answered, eyes looking back to the main door then to him. "I d-don't really know. He was wearing his jacket and had his mittens on. I couldn't ask him not to go because he was already at the door when I noticed him."
He took a deep breath before nodding. "It's okay. I'll wait for him. He'll come back."
"He has been really down, Yukihira. I want to cheer him up. But I don't know what to do."
His mind went on gears until he got an idea. "I have an idea."
Soma stationed himself by the lobby, sitting on the last steps of the stairs while waiting for Tsuna. He's not worried that the brunet will runaway because, he knew the latter will tell him if he will. Tsuna went out to fly if he was wearing his mittens. However, he's more worried for the brunet's mental health. Tsuna isn't someone who is always on the dumps. He's more of a negative thinker.
He blew raspberries as he thought of things. Maybe he should talk to Tsuna tomorrow. He should let him be for the night and the next day. Tsuna doesn't need to be pressured. He's already being forced. He should do what his friend does to him. Understand him and give space before going back again. Tsuna will talk to him when the time comes.
But when will that happen?
The ranga perked up when the doorknob twisted and the door moved. Soma stood up with the towel in hand as the brunet shuffled in, wet and slightly shivering. He crossed the distance between them before putting the towel on the other's head. He took the doorknob from those cold fingers and closed the door himself, locking it for security.
"S-Soma." Hoarse voice uttered.
He frowned as he ushered his friend to the baths. "Did you catch a cold?"
"N-No. I-I screamed." Tsuna's answer.
"Do you want me to make some lemon tea?" He suggested, not minding the screaming part. He got a head shake. "Okay. You go bath. I'll wait outside."
"Clothes..."
"Already got you ones. Don't worry, they're complete with your underwear." He joked, earning a small smile.
He let the brunet go inside while he waited by the dressing area. He talked about the new director's speech, Fumio's speculation that Polar Star dorm won't last long with the new Central power, his sudden jogging with the previous director, and Erina Nakiri's stay in the dorm. He didn't mind talking alone because he knew Tsuna is listening. He's always listening.
He was smiling when his friend went out to dress up in new clothes. He kept on chattering, talking about what happened to his day. What made him really happy was the fact that Tsuna keeps on nodding and crooning in the right places, indulging him to talk more. They went for the washers, putting the wet clothes to wash and dry. At the end of the day, they walked for Tsuna's room.
"Well, that's about everything." He finished off, still grinning.
Dimly twinkling tawny eyes gazed at him with a small smile. "Thank you, Soma."
"No worries, Tsuna." He waved off before smiling softly. "I won't bug you right now. I'll leave you alone. I know your situation is not okay. Just remember that I'm here for you like you're always there with me."
The brunet nodded weakly. "I will."
He bid his best friend good night and hoped that Tsuna will sleep that well for the night.
(Tsuna did for a little while.)