A/N Hello!
Oh boy, did I skim over a bunch of things in this chapter or what... Were not really touching on Arcobaleno related things now and reallyjust neatening things up in preparation for thee Varia arc.
I'm gonna need a lot more text heavy bits in my life (who's ready for a 3k word conversation next chapter). Just kidding (but really...). Probably due for some Arcobaleno talking next chapter.
I haven't really set Tsuna's position yet between Decimo and Arcobaleno (or maybe I have), and I'm getting the feeling that a lot of this fic will be a lot of swaying in the possibilities of what she could become.
So let's all take a journey~
~Chapter 19 – It Was the Small Things
Reborn liked to think he knew himself fairly well, and whilst he wouldn't consider himself the type of person to hold a grudge, he would admit to sometimes being incredibly petty. So when his student found herself spirited away by the notorious Rokudo Mukuro, who was undoubtedly one of the mists that had lingered in her notebook far before his arrival if the degree his page was filled out was anything to go by, he could only muse that she had brought this upon herself. That it would have clearly been avoided if she had answered his questions any of the hundred times he had asked. But as serious as the situation was, held captive by a malicious and murderous illusionist according to the formal report, he felt little concern. Probably from a mixture of Yamamoto's knowledge and reassurance, and the fact his partner Leon, who had definitely accepted Ietsuna as his student, had yet to show any signs of metamorphosis. It was a clear sign that she wasn't in any true danger, that it wasn't yet time for her first true life-or-death battle.
The result of this whole, what he believed to be insignificant mess, was him chaperoning a bunch of brats to save, more like pick-up, Tsuna from a troubled teen that would eventually become her mist guardian. Despite the unknown second mist user, Mukuro's fame was partially attributed to his strength, making him the current number one candidate in the hitman's eyes. Coupled with Yamamoto's testimony and amateur analysis of the tragic teen's feelings, he was likely to be loyal to her anyway, if a bit misaligned due to his hatred of the mafia. So no, Reborn hadn't been worried, at least in respect to the current situation, and was more concerned about getting her in position to be Decimo again.
He watched Yamamoto take out one of Mukuro's henchmen, coming out slightly scratched, and Gokudera the other, with the young hitman weakening only due to a poison from the needles that would have been deadly to most others. Point being, they were fine, allowing him to press ahead with Baka-Yoshi. They had been warned that they were not the only knights to come try their hand at rescuing the princess, so it hadn't been particularly odd to appear in the middle of an intense battle, the demon prefect and damned illusionist each fighting with a fury, with a resolve, that would belittle most others. They found her in that same room, unconscious on a couch at the furthest end with her head cradled, lovingly dare he say, in the lap and arms of an unknown girl. The second mist Reborn realised, the similarities between her and Mukuro mirroring the pages in Tsuna's notebook. Ieyoshi had said something at that point, probably something naïve and chivalrous, with his eyes glued to his twin, but it had little effect on anyone in the room. So he did the only thing he knew and threw himself straight into the fray.
It wasn't a 2-on-1 as expected, and though no one was actually banking on the fact Kyoya Hibari would cooperate in the fight, it was still unanticipated that he would actively lash out at anyone in the vicinity in his battlelust. A step too close, a move done carelessly, and Yoshi found himself on the receiving end of both attacks until the prefect either knocked him away or switched his focused after spotting a rare opening in the illusionist. The ridiculous free-for-all made the battle that much more fierce, neither sides giving in an inch lest their opponents take a mile. Reborn tired of it all too quickly, itching to interfere and end the stalemate, yet he refrains because it means nothing if someone like him were to step in right now. In the end though, his restraint goes to waste as the hatefully familiar sound of vile chains rings out.
"Acquit him," Tsuna demanded, awake and aware, with fire burning just as strong within her heart as the blaze covering her hands, "His actions were harmless and his intent was to… protect me."
"We cannot-"
"That was an order not a request." It wasn't that she was brave, because even she could see how outclassed she was by her opponents, but the fact was she just didn't take kindly to other's trying to take away what was rightfully hers.
"The way I see it," Reborn cut in as his student lowered herself into the beginnings of a fighting stance, "You guys are more likely to cause her harm than the love-struck fool you're trying to drag away." Their leader turned to face him with nothing but annoyance in his eyes.
"You'd leave this 'fool' beside her, regardless of the danger he represents?" The hitman considered his response carefully, especially with the fact he had never met the kid until now, only hearing the rumours that were left behind in the illusionists wake. Perhaps if Mukuro were a bit more infamous, a bit more ruthless, Reborn would have been more averse to this situation. But despite how much he wanted his revenge against the mafia, he hadn't even been willing to use Tsuna and take the easiest and most obvious route. Really, the only crime he was truly guilty of was killing a handful of Estraneo scientist that no one actually missed.
So in the end the hitman nodded, "Sure."
"Have it your way then," The chains that had almost completely engulfed the teen unravelled on command in an unsettling manner, "It's not my place to tell you how to protect your sky Reborn." The Sun Arcobaleno twitched but held his tongue, lest he say something that would stop the damned mafiaso from leaving. The leader chuckled anyway, reading the unsaid words off his sour expression, but obliged, sweeping out of the room through the same dark portal that spewed them out in the first place.
"Tsuna!" Yoshi was the first to react, stepping forward the moment the coast was clear, followed closely behind by Takeshi and Gokudera.
"All of you should go have your wounds tended to," The flames on her hands whittled down to the faintest glow before extinguishing themselves, leaving behind soot coloured gloves that hugged her trembling hands, "Chrome, I'll be taking Mukuro with me for now. If it's not too much trouble could you look after Ken and Chikusa?"
"Hai." The skittish girl scampered off first, more than happy to leave Mukuro in Ietsuna's capable hands.
"He meant well," She tells her remaining audience, though it was really only her brother who was still fighting the idea, "He just wanted to protect me." 'From the mafia' went unspoken but her twin could only read the silence as 'from you'.
Mukuro found residency in her room as he lay unconscious for the remainder of the day, the next day, and the day after, showing no signs of waking from the lingering effects of the black flames. Ieyoshi had protested, adamant on not letting a murderer such as him into their house let alone left under her constant care. She hadn't cared much for it, and he had been forced to drop it after she mentioned their father. Because even if Vongola was portrayed to be the good guys, Iemitsu was mafia and a high-ranking officer than had shot down far more people than a child escapee. It wasn't a topic she had wanted to broach, especially with her twin, and unexpectedly found comfort in none other than Gokudera.
"I'm similar," He had told her one afternoon, when she had left Reborn, who refused to answer any Arcobaleno-related questions, to tend to Mukuro as best a flame-indicated healer could, "Before I came here, I was a hitman for hire."
"I know," Tsuna reached out for his hand, disregarding the subtle way he flinched from her touch, "Just because I dislike it, doesn't mean it will stop. There will be crime and there will be murder, and no amount of justice in the world will stop that." She pressed her lips together, holding his gaze solemnly, "I'm not happy that you've killed others, regardless if they were innocent or not, but all the same it's brought you here." She vaguely remembered the file that Reborn had given her, the one that held more information on Gokudera than she had cared to ask for, no matter how willing he would have been to provide. "I'm glad that someone gave a child, barely older than ten, a hit. That despite the odds and meagre training, that child was able to come back successful. I thankful for every job you took that kept that kid off the streets, fed, and helped build enough of a reputation to be noticed. Because everything you did brought you here to me."
"I would stop if you asked me-"
"I know," She cut in, maybe a bit more forceful than necessary, "I know, but I won't. Not when that fraction of mercy is what leads you to your death." She herself wasn't strong enough yet, to uphold those righteous ideals, let alone protect others that would do so in her stead, for her sake.
"Tsuna-sama…" His words at first seemed stuck in his throat, but in reality, they found themselves tumbling out easily, "The mafia will ruin you." What was Reborn thinking, trying to put her on the throne? Ieyoshi would've been fine, Gokudera realized. Her brother at least would've gone to the ends of the earth to keep her safe.
Ietsuna couldn't even offer a smile in response, couldn't confirm or deny his statement. There was laughter in the house, Lambo and I-pin running around and causing a ruckus that was vastly different from the silence upstairs in her room. It didn't matter that one was a mafia heir, or that the other was a child assassin, because here they could act like kids, and she would go untold lengths to protect a peace like this.
"Tsuna-jiejie!" There was a clatter, a scream, and a whirl of cow-patterned madness. Whether I-pin was asking for her help against the 'broccoli' monster, or warning her of the pink, impending doom, Tsuna never found out.
She was seated across from an unknown man with a faint yellow aura, in a restaurant filled with foreign chatter and soft music. His features were Asian despite the shock of auburn hair that looked natural enough, the green eyes behind his glasses only mildly surprised at her abrupt appearance. "Lambo-kun again?" He asked with a gentle smile, pushing forward a glass of water.
"Ah, yes." Tsuna took a sip, giving the wine glass beside her a curious look. There was a faint imprint of red against the rim, and she didn't know whether she was more surprised at the fact she had been drinking or the brightness of the shade of lipstick she would wear. Ten years seemed and felt awfully far away.
"I assume we haven't meet yet then?" She hadn't recognized him at all, "Shochi Irie- or should it be Irie Shoichi?"
"Are we in Italy right now then Irie-san?" Tsuna asked curiously.
"Shoichi's fine, and we are. Best restaurant in Palermo according to Giannini" The man replied, rubbing the back of his head, "I actually called you out to show off an invention. You might still find it interesting actually." Shoichi reached into a nearby bag, retrieving a slim, black case and passing it on. Tsuna handled it gingerly, and feeling none of her instincts shouting danger at her, flipped open the lid. Of all the things she had thought about when he said invention, eyewear hadn't been on that list. "Spanner helped me with those," He added even though she had no idea about the people he was naming, "Give the glasses a try." The contacts were by overlooked as she picked the simple frames up. Putting them on hadn't changed much, not even dulling the scenery with how clear the glass was. It was only when she looked back to ask him, that she understood their purpose.
"Are you ready to place your order?" The sudden Italian from a waiter surprised her, but as she looked up she was more surprised to see his face. White hair, purple eyes and a scent of lilies that should've belonged to a florist. There was a spark of recognition is his gaze as she met it before he winced his striking eyes closed, bringing a hand to his head in what looked like pain. "You…" Shoichi looked concerned about the situation, more for her than their struggling waiter, but had no need to act when she disappeared a moment later.
"Welcome back, Tsuna-sama." Gokudera had a deeply thoughtful look of his face, "The glasses?"
"Oh, I guess I took them with me." She pulled them off, sighing in relief as Gokudera's red blaze became visible again. It felt like they had been made specifically for her, but why her future self had felt a need to mute her sight, the current Tsuna couldn't understand. "What was I like?" She couldn't help but ask, wondering if there would be problems from up and disappearing, or rather switching, in front of a civilian.
"Similar, calmer and more composed." He described without simply saying 'more grown-up'. She had felt just as kind, if maybe a bit stronger. Unfortunately, regardless of his wishes, she had felt like a mafiaso, with an underlying edge to her gaze that hadn't quite been blunted down as they met gazes. And, heedless of Ietmitsu's wants, apparently unaffected by Reborn's machinations, the ring she had worn was unfamiliar in design. That didn't mean though, that Gokudera had failed to pick up the key symbols and motifs of it. That he couldn't draw his own easy conclusions only to be left wondering how it was she had ended up there.
A/N Thanks for reading.
The worst part of this all is flip-flopping between first name first, and surname first (really i base it on the point of view of the current person).
So Vindice is anticlimactic, and there is more gratuitous use of the Ten-year Bazooka. And now as we start on the Varia (chapter 20 it was!), I'm hyping myself up for the Future arc (it's still gonna happen regardless to canon changes, but how is another question).
There's something to be said when Gokudera (who really is the most gung-ho of them all) has the slowest relationship growth (in my eyes at least). This also excludes Lambo who I don't consider bonded yet (and probably won't until Tsuna accepts him as a guardian).
