Collision 02
"The mafia?" Takeshi asked again, to which Tsuna nonchalantly answered.
"Yes."
"A-and this was told by a baby hitman?" Shoichi's eyes were wide when he spoke, disbelief coloring his voice.
"Pretty much."
He looked ready to faint as he continued staring at him in disbelief. Tsuna couldn't really blame him. Out of all of them, Shoichi has the least desire for violence. Once upon a time, he would have been just like him, queasy and utterly terrified of anything that would disturb his normal life. He would never have let anyone know of his intellect or how differently he sees things around him.
He wouldn't have changed into this, into how he was today if those people hadn't tried to kill him that very first time and continued time and time again and he had to use everything he had, everything around him that he could use as a temporary weapon or shield, take advantage of the buildings around him and his knowledge of the town he lived in despite his lack of stamina just to live. He had to be cunning, had to be fast, and not hesitant to do anything to survive.
He was just five when it had started.
Then he hadn't cared what anyone else thought other than his mom. Ironically enough, this was when he started gaining friends of his own.
Tsuna noticed how Takeshi looked unusually serious and Kyoya had that frown on his face. Byakuran though, this cryptic childhood friend of his was smiling. He stared at him for several seconds, eyes slowly narrowing when Byakuran's grin widened even more when he noticed him staring.
"You know." It wasn't a question.
"They finally came!" Byakuran burst out almost happily. It looked like the words just exploded out of his mouth far beyond his control, the invisible chains of silence binding him finally withering away.
"What do you mean?" Takeshi asked as he looked at the other grinning teen.
"Well Take-chan, the Vongola has always been in my dreams." Byakuran patiently said while casually popping a marshmallow inside his mouth.
"What dreams?" Shoichi frowned in confusion at that. Tsuna looked at Byakuran, intently listening along with every one of them. His guts, his instincts, the one that he always relies on as accurate told him that his friend wasn't lying to him. That what he had to say is significant.
"Vongola is the most powerful Famiglia in the mafia world," he started while still having that absurdly large smile, completely ignoring Shoichi's question. Tsuna saw that all of them, even the man who questioned himself, wasn't annoyed with that. They only listened attentively. "They also have people around them, allies that are as powerful as them especially in the use of their flames."
He already knows that. The rest though don't. It wasn't as if he managed to tell them anything earlier other than his father is a part of the mafia. That kind of took precedence over everything else.
He had, after all never considered his absent father to be a part of a criminal organization. Who would? At most he just thought of him as his absent father who thinks sending money is enough to fulfill his obligation. Although really, he should have known.
Iemitsu, as much as he did not want to say, is unworthy to be called a father. He had never been a father to him, much less a husband and anchor for his mom. Even their protection wasn't a priority for his so-called father. If it is, no one would have targeted him.
Of course, he couldn't have known fully how his father handled having a mostly civilian family while being in the mafia himself, in a position of power even. He might have really put out protection for them, he might not have. The fact though is that they never felt his presence. They never felt him belonging to the family, as much as that, once upon a time, pained him to admit.
The only thing he knew is that almost every deadly misfortune he had experienced could be pointed out to his father. Oh, and that old man his father dearest called his boss.
He really should have known. Thinking about the two of them always makes his instincts raise in alarm. It's a good thing that he had never really been particularly close to his father or the man would have done everything he could to stop him from having connections to the law enforcement.
"Vongola?"
"What flames?"
"Speak herbivore."
Byakuran just continued to smile as he looked at him. Tsuna wasn't concerned much about what his friends were asking since he knew about them a little. And he could find out about it later anyway and inform them.
"What dreams Byakuran?" This was the one he was curious about. How could his friend dream about the mafia, specifically about Vongola? He managed to know the name of the mafia family and even knew that they were and still are supposedly the most powerful Famiglia in that other part of the world.
What kind of dream is that prophetic?
"I'll tell you about them later Tsu-chan," he answered after a minute of staring at each other with the others only looking at them. Tsuna wanted to press because that particular question made his instinct practically give him an alarm sign, but he didn't. As much as Byakuran likes being a cryptic bastard, he is still his childhood best friend, the one that saved him in those hellish days. He cares about him and trusts him a lot, so he let it be, for the moment anyway. Also, Kyoya's impatience reared its head and he ducked at the tonfa coming his way. He heard it impact the wall behind him.
"Clarify." Tsuna didn't need any one of them to ask specific questions as he already knew what they wanted to know. To give them all he knew, he recounted his conversation with Reborn yesterday afternoon in perfect detail.
There was silence after he finished talking.
"Where is the baby?" Kyoya asked after a few seconds, eyes shrewdly staring at him.
"Asleep."
There was silence again, the air tinged in utter disbelief. Shoichi choked, breaking the silence. Then Kyoya gave him a rare nod, eyeing him approvingly. Byakuran laughed in delight and Yamamoto chuckled.
"Only you Tsuna."
"You poisoned a hitman?!" Shoichi's face looked paler than before as he stared at him, voice going high pitched. "Tsuna-kun, he's going to kill you!" he squeaked in a terrified voice. He at once held his stomach, face twisting in pain. "Ah! My stomach..."
"Well, if I didn't he would have followed me. I have to tell you this in person."
All of them sat on the chairs and sofa around their temporary office - which was actually Kyoya's office as a disciplinary committee president - and gave an understanding nod. Even Sho, who is the most vocal of them about poisoning a hitman, couldn't help but nod despite his apprehension.
"Wait, how did you do it? A hitman supposedly has brilliant instinct. He had to have suspected what you were doing." Takeshi looked at him with sharp-witted eyes. Kyoya's forehead creased and Sho tilted his head slightly in curiosity. Tsuna looked at all of them for a bit before his lips twitched as he patted the watch he had on his wrist. Sho's eyes practically brightened.
"You used my invention!"
"I did."
Takeshi looked at Kyoya with a wicked grin, eyes twinkling playfully. "Guess watching and reading those anime and manga are useful after all."
Kyoya's tonfa is once again thrown at Takeshi's direction. The other just laughed merrily while he dodged.
"Now is the time you create those awesome shoes Shou-chan~" Byakuran singsonged. It was his turn to dodge when Kyoya started swinging his other hand that held his precious tonfa in his direction.
"Destruction of Namimori will not be tolerated," Hibari said. Before he could strike out again though Byakuran asked a question that had all of them focusing once again.
"What flame does he have Tsu-chan?"
It did not take long for him to remember. After all, that yellow pacifier is quite noticeable on the hitman's body.
"Sun." It was yellow, therefore it is Sun. Just like Shoichi's.
Wait... Just like Shoichi's... "He has healing..."
"He's like me, therefore by now he should be waking up," Shoichi said, voice sounding serious. Every one of them stared at him. "The sleeping poison that the dart had is enough to knock me out for four hours."
"Reborn's aura feels strong despite his body. It might mean he has a lot of sun flames."
"Reborn?" Byakuran's eyes opened and even he looked at them seriously. "According to my dreams, he is strong. Not only with his chosen field but also with his flames. He's probably awake now. We've been here for two hours after all."
"He's going to know you poisoned him Tsuna," Takeshi stated just as seriously. Kyoya tightened his grip on his tonfa's.
"Ah! My stomach..." Shoichi held his stomach in pain while looking at Tsuna in concern. He smiled at them.
"No worries. This place is protected by illusion seals. He won't really know what we are doing unless he breaks the seal or steps inside. Besides, he can't really do anything much to me."
"Why?" Shoichi asked, baffled at the confidence he heard in his friend's voice.
"He needs me. They need me."
"Wait, I thought you won't let them pull you into that road?" Takeshi asked, his brows furrowed.
"I need to."
A tonfa was once again thrown in his direction. How exactly does he have almost unlimited Tonga he doesn't know. He just directly put the blame on the other's flame type.
It was easy enough to evade it, but not the poisonous glare Kyoya gave him. Nor the terrified concern in Shoichi's eyes and the wide-eyed stare of Takeshi. He couldn't see through Byakuran's eyes as it was once again closed but he felt like his childhood friend is a little disappointed.
He wondered why. Though he felt like he should know. He didn't manage to think much on it currently though as Kyoya started talking.
"I don't let weak-willed herbivore be the boss of me." His friend said in an icy tone.
Tsuna's eyes widened a little in confusion. He did not understand what's happening.
"What do you mean?"
"Letting those herbivores pull you around..."
"Who said I'm letting them pull me around?" Tsuna asked in bafflement. His instincts did not warn him about this result. It's calm. As if nothing is wrong. "I need to be on that road to know more. After all, no matter how much we tried, we never had any other important information in regards to the inner workings of the mafia. Their omerta is unbelievably effective and they all follow it fervently. Even those supposed second-tier members we captured never told us anything no matter what method we used. They are all terrified of breaking the omerta."
"Uhh..." Shoichi's face revealed a confused look. "Are you talking about infiltration?"
"Of course," he said decisively. "The only way to know more is to enter. The only way to bring them down is from the inside," he stared at all of them in confusion. Tsuna felt like this is the first time he did not understand what his friends are trying to say to him. His current state of confusion actually is a little unsettling to him.
All of his friends are silent and staring at him with conflicting emotions on their faces. It is actually the first time he had seen Kyoya looking like he was bludgeoned in the head unexpectedly and didn't know whether to be annoyed or pleased. Even Byakuran's open eyes revealed astonishment and a marshmallow was still half-eaten in his hand.
"You... do know that the current information we have on the mafia isn't enough to pull them down, right? I mean, you should know. The ones we have are the same as what the other governmental agencies around the world have. Their infiltration success is zero. No one had even stepped foot on the first stage, much less the elites. The third stage members are useless as even they do not know about the rankings and every infiltration that manage to step on the second stage are rooted out within a month."
They all know this. Even their contacts could not penetrate deep. Either they were rooted out or they could not advance. It's like they have a homing device for spies. It's frustrating.
The protection of the underworld is ridiculous. Even the unspoken rule of omerta is followed rigorously to an unholy degree.
Tsuna could admit that the underworld's simple system is almost professionally precise and secrecy is valued. What's in their circle remains in their circle. It's admirable, but not enough to stop him from doing what needs to be done.
Now, opportunity literally landed on his lap, wrapped in gold and delicate ribbons there for him to take. He can't just throw that away.
"Oh." Takeshi broke the silence, his sheepish smile broke the atmosphere inside.
Kyoya became calm and carelessly lied down on his sofa to sleep again, he did not even get angry when Takeshi lightly and carefully raised his head to sit down before letting his head rest on his lap. Shoichi gave a huge and audible sigh of relief before he slid down on the floor while Byakuran laughed loudly and joyously.
"You give me such a happy feeling Tsu-chan!"
Tsuna felt like he missed something. He would probably get it sooner if it wasn't for the fact that someone just lightly stepped inside the room with barely a sound but also violently ripped apart the illusion seal with a vengeance.
"Tsunayoshi Sawada." An ominous voice called out. Tsuna was already familiar with the voice. He turned to where the voice came from and saw a small frame standing on the window frame, face blank yet dangerous waves of aura leaked out of his tiny body.
"Reborn," he calmly answered. He had already felt the other's presence earlier so him being here was expected.
He felt everyone's shock though at the fact that the seal broke and their incredulity looking at that small figure and the name he called out. He wasn't surprised at all.
Even though he had already told them that the hitman he was talking about, Reborn is a baby, no one in their right mind would really seriously think that was the case. Except for Byakuran that is. With or without his dubious dreams, he had always believed in something unbelievable. Knowing the information isn't the same as actually seeing it firsthand. But he did not care about that currently.
His full attention is in front of him.
Reborn might look like a baby, but he had never dismissed the claim of being the World's No. 1 Hitman. His intuition demanded he takes things seriously even from the get-go despite his initial disbelief.
He is dangerous.
But one wrong move, hitman or not, stronger than him or not, he would become his enemy.
TBC.
A/N:
I might as well dump the entire released chapter here huh? But I'm re-reading them and changing some things that I need would help with the flow more so there will be some slight changes...
Anyway, ciao!
Edited: 12/23/2021
