I have an extra long one for you guys today! Haha, your reviews motivated me so much I just kept

Word Count: 1,660

Age: Kurama-15

Tsuna-13

"You have nice manners for a thief and a liar," said the dragon."
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

Tsuna was an average middle school student.

He was a bit clumsy and not very smart, but with his brother's help his grades were steady and he didn't get bullied very much. He had a few friends and a huge crush on the middle school idol. He whined and complained at times, but he was hardworking when he set his mind to something and apparently knew how to defend himself, to an extent.

The only real issues Reborn really had to work through with the boy was the side effects of living in his brother's shadow. Before Reborn had met the Sawada brothers he had simply shrugged at the reports from Iemitsu and his family's bodyguards. He had dealt with this type of situation before and he knew ways of getting the younger ones to shine on their own.

He didn't realize how big of a shadow Shuichi Sawada cast.

The boy was on a completely different spectrum.

In fact, after a few days of observing the boys from a distance he was wondering why the hell Shuichi wasn't chosen as the heir.

The boy was blessed with good looks. He was polite to everyone and had a very friendly, likeable personality. He was even a genius when it came to academics. So much so, that High Schools and even Colleges around the country were fighting over him like children. He also seemed to have the biggest, greenest thumb Reborn had ever seen.

There were other things too. Small things, that civilians wouldn't necessarily see.

He walked like an experienced fighter. The way his feet never seemed to touch the ground reminded him strongly of Fon.

His eyes were sharp and unnaturally perceptive. He even had a few close calls during his observations and had to slip into another hiding spot when the red-head seemed to sense that he was being watched.

Everything about the boy screamed Boss material.

Reborn was frustrated at the position this placed him in. Should the elder Sawada realize he was more qualified than the younger and become bitter, he'd have a serious problem on his hands. There were other Families that would love to take him in, after all. Not all of them would be the Vongola's allies, either.

They definitely did not need another Xanxus on their hands.

However, he apparently didn't need to worry about such an outcome.

He watched as those fierce green eyes turned to him. For once the boy seemed to have lost his serene mask. He had watched as the emotions flickered across Shuichi's face when he shot Tsuna and watch him run off in Dying Will Mode. The fear, pain, confusion then anger. He smirked mentally patting himself on the back for messing with the normally calm boy.

Then he did something Reborn hadn't expected out of a fifteen year old boy, even one as gifted as Shuichi.

He relaxed.

All of his tense muscles suddenly went lax and his calm mask slid back into place. It was as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. The only evidence to his still raging emotions was the burning anger still in his eyes.

"Explain."

Reborn couldn't have stopped the smirk if he tried.

"You shouldn't be late to school Mr. Student Council President." Reborn replied. "You wouldn't want to set a bad example for the younger students, would you?"

To his disappointment Shuichi smiled and nodded. "Yes, you're right. Perhaps later then."

Though judging by the way he harshly reprimanded the Mochida boy for trying to bully Tsuna, Reborn's evasion had really irritated him. The walk home was as amusing as that morning's interaction. Despite Shuichi's lecture Mochida still managed to bully Tsuna into a Kendo match. Reborn, of course, made sure that the elder brother was not informed and was therefore absent for the match leading to a rather nasty surprise for the boy when he finally managed to show up to the gym. He glared at Reborn the entire way home, guessing correctly who had kept him from his brother's side. Tsuna, not surprisingly, was happily chatting about finally being able to hold a conversation with Kyoko and even win against Mochida.

Shuichi ruffled the boy's hair affectionately and told him he was proud of him, but that fighting wasn't always the answer.

Reborn snorted. "Neither is letting your brother fight your battles for you."

Shuichi turned his glared back to him. Tsuna, on the other hand, looked thoughtful.

Reborn smirked.

When he sat them down after school and explained his intentions for Tsuna he watched Shuichi's expression, tuning-out Tsuna's outcry.

Shuichi looked over the sheet silently for a long moment before saying anything.

"There are three other candidates. Candidates that are the Ninth Bosses sons and have surely grown up within the Mafia. Why choose Tsuna? And on the same subject why not choose our father?"

Reborn paused a moment, not wanting to get into the subject of their father so soon, but knowing he needed to answer truthfully here. Tsuna was looking at his brother with hope while Shuichi's eyes continued to remain focused on him.

"The brothers were the first choice, but they have all been killed leaving the candidacy up to Tsuna." Reborn paused. "As for you father-"

"What about Shuichi-nii!?"

Both Shuichi and Reborn turned toward Tsuna. He looked confused and frustrated.

"Tsuna-" Shuichi started, but his younger brother cut him off.

"Shuichi-nii is smart and strong. He's so much better than me! Why would you choose me first?!"

Reborn frowned. He couldn't answer that question. He didn't know why himself. Luckily, it seemed as though Shuichi did.

"It is probably due to the fact that I do not have that flame ability that the Mafia seems to value." Shuichi rubbed his brothers back, smiling gently at the boy and completely ignoring Reborn's shocked look. "You remember the things you did today? What was it? Dying Will? I could never do that sort-of thing even if Reborn shot me with those special bullets. I don't have that ability. Out of the two of us only you do."

Tsuna eyed his brother suspiciously. "What do you mean? Isn't it just the bullets that are special?"

Reborn jumped in, having controlled in his shock over Shuichi knowing the Mafia's most prized secret. "No, there are only a select amount of people in this world able to withstand the Dying Will bullets. Those people have the ability to wield Dying Will Flames. You were chosen because you have that capability. While your brother does not."

Reborn shot Shuichi a sharp look that promised an interrogation as soon as the rest of the house was asleep. The annoying boy merely smiled at him.

"That's why I can't be considered as a candidate." Shuichi explained. "Because all of the Bosses of the Vongola have had these Dying Will Flames and they are not a Family known to break tradition."

Tsuna continued to complain the rest of the night. Grumbling about how ridiculous this whole situation was and how he didn't want to be a criminal. Reborn smirked as he thought up a few extra tortu-training methods after a few comments on being taught by a baby criminal.

Shuichi, however, remain silent on the subject. He was obviously not happy, but he seemed to realize there was no way out of this situation.

Reborn cornered him in his room after Tsuna had finally fallen asleep.

"So tell me, how can a fifteen year old civilian possible know about the Mafia's biggest secret?" His voice was neutral, but Reborn was slightly anxious to know the answer. His hand brushed against Leon as memories of Iemitsu freak-out after Shuichi was born drifted through his mind.

Shuichi smiled as he looked out the window. His whole demeanor was relaxed his voice steady, but Reborn caught a bit of amusement in his tone. "My father told us he worked for a construction company and herded penguins at the North Pole."

Reborn scowled as an urge to smack that idiot made his hands twitch. "While that was undoubtedly a stupid move on Iemitsu's part, that doesn't answer my question."

Shuichi continued as if he didn't hear him. "I looked into it, of course. It was too suspicious not too. However, despite the stupid excuse he covered his tracks very well and I hit dead end after dead end. After a while, I just gave up."

His face twisting into a frown. "However, everything changed when an assassin sent after us came a little too close for comfort. The bodyguards my father has stationed around Namimori managed to subdue the man, but not before mother was injured…saving me. Anyway, the man wasn't all that subtle. He wore a suit in broad daylight while waving his gun around and shouting in Italian. I still find it ridiculous that he managed to get past the guards in the first place."

He blew the bangs out of his eyes in agitation. "I had my answer after that and have spent years collecting as much information as I could. I had always assumed that we'd have more trouble with assassins or other rival Mafia Families. I never knew about our lineage. I hadn't considered Tsuna would be slotted as the heir."

Reborn felt a shiver go down his spine as he watched the boy sigh deeply and turn his gaze back towards the moonlight shining through the window. His green eye's glowed in an uncanny way, but that was not what unnerved him.

No.

For a moment he saw himself and the other Arcobaleno reflected in Shuichi's eyes.

He left the room after that and slipped back into Tsuna's.

He had much to mull over, but he also had a job to do and he couldn't tortu-train his student without getting a proper nights rest.

He smirked as he drifted off to sleep.

Shuichi Sawada would be an interesting nut to crack.

Reborn is now wary, but interested in our little Shuichi. BTW I had the worst time typing Shuichi in this chapter. I kept typing Kurama by accident. XD Also, I've added age's to each chapter in order to help you guys a bit with the timeline. I know I jump around a lot, so hopefully that'll help. (Yes, Hiei met Kurama before Reborn. A few years before, in fact)

Thank you guys for the wonderful reviews! I'm so glad you guys liked Hiei. So, here's some Reborn. XD

Shout out to Desaid who made me practice my spanish this summer. XD It was kind-of cool to be able to read some of it though. Honestly, that's what I was tinkering with before I decided against it. Kurama is definitely the type to become the boss to protect Tsuna, but he has no flames...so he's has to try and figure out a way around it. I'm not saying there won't be a fight between brothers...just that it won't be over the title of Boss. ;)

Thanks again for the reviews. They make me so happy! :D