One chapter every six months is acceptable, right? *hair wild, voice cracking* Right?

The wonderful Kuroyana over on Ao3 has drawn fanart! Of my boys! *fangirls* Her art is available on Instagram, so go give her some love:
www. instagram p/CZMNff_pXi9/?utm_medium=copy_link (remove the spaces)

Also, I have drawn something myself! Here are the Midoriya boys and their mom: noxilicious-ish. tumblr post/687261600989708288/midoriya-family-portrait-illustration-connected (remove the spaces)

In response to somebody's comment (and in case anyone else is interested): Tsuna has a mostly similar colouring to his previous self (if a little darker), but some of his facial features are inherited. Someone from his previous life would be able to recognise him as Tsuna, but he looks related to the Midoriyas. Inko's explanation is that he inherited his colouring from a maternal grandparent.

TW for this chapter: torture (not really descript but intelligible).

Without further ado!


"You know your options. Come clean and your family will be taken care of," Gokudera was saying. Tsuna couldn't focus on his words, but he didn't need to. He knew how this went. The man bound to a chair in front of them, Teo, couldn't be allowed to live, regardless of whether he cooperated or not. He had been selling Family secrets.

It shouldn't have surprised Tsuna anymore that someone who had been with them for years, someone who he had trusted and taken under his wing as one of his own, had betrayed them. The motives could be myriad, and sometimes he didn't even blame them their choices. Yet that moment when he found out, that first second of shock, it never ceased to strike true.

"I-I haven't done anything, Signore Tempesta! Please," Teo whimpered. He was scared out of his mind because he had some idea of what was waiting for him, but his clenched jaw told Tsuna that even the underlying threat wasn't enough to loosen his lips.

He was certain that Teo had been threatened into it, but it didn't matter. They had to confirm it and cut up loose ends. The Famiglia couldn't be allowed to suffer.

"Lord Decimo," his bruised eyes turned to pin Tsuna pleadingly. Believe me, they said. Be merciful.

Tsuna forced his face to remain blank. With his eerily glowing eyes and his impassive demeanour, he probably made for an imposing, unappeasable was the point, but he didn't feel like it at all.

'To them, you are a distant, but fair god. Someone far above them, to be feared and adored,' Gokudera had once told him when Tsuna had expressed reservations about his 'Boss' persona. He had been speaking of their subordinates, but the light in his eyes had given Tsuna reason to believe that Gokudera applied at least a part of this to himself too.

Tsuna was no god. Gods weren't supposed to feel weak in the knees.

(He wanted to shake Teo, just grab him by the shoulders and scream at him 'Speak, you dumbass! Save yourself!' until his voice went hoarse and raw.)

He turned away from the bound man. That motion might as well have been a death sentence.

Mukuro took his place. His Mist's characteristic smug visage was more mellowed down than usual. For all that Mukuro claimed to be merely using the Vongola until Tsuna achieved their shared goals, betrayals like this stung him too. He was more idealistic than he liked to portray himself as, Mukuro was. Deep, deep down.

He reached out and placed his hands over Teo's temples.

This method was the most efficient and least messy, but it was worse than physical torture. The invasion of privacy, destroying someone's personality and mind like that, it was more inhumane than any skinning or nail-pulling. Mukuro never complained about it - and he never would, be it out of vanity or sentiment which he'd never admit to - but Tsuna hated that Mukuro had to do it at all.

The screams echoed in the musty room and in Tsuna's thoughts.

It didn't take long (it never did). Mukuro got them the names of the people who had threatened him and who held his wife and infant daughter, the name of the Famiglia they came from, all of the information he'd given them, the places where they'd met and the methods they used.

Mukuro then looked at him out of the corner of his eyes, searchingly. Whatever he found in Tsuna's gaze made him lower his head and step aside deferentially. (And how far - how low - they had gotten, that a proud and aloof man such as Rokudo Mukuro would accept to submit to anyone, much less Tsuna of all people.)

Tsuna stepped forward and steeled his shoulders.

"Juudaime, you don't have to do this," Gokudera urged quietly, only for Tsuna's ears - not that that meant much in a room as cramped and bare as this, or with a drooling, twitching man as 'audience'.

He never liked it when Tsuna had to dirty his hands. If it were up to him, it'd always be one of his Guardians doing it in his stead. The surface reason was that he claimed that Tsuna, as the Boss, was above 'grunt work'. In truth, he knew all too well the effects this part of the underworld had on Tsuna.

Gokudera liked to think of himself as a cold-blooded mobster suited for this kind of work, but Tsuna knew this life weighed on him. A Mafioso born and raised he might be, but he could never conceal that softness in the corner of his eyes when in the warm and safe company of their Famiglia.

Tsuna let the Flames seep into his veins. He straightened his back and pinned his right-hand man with a look. Gokudera yielded without a complaint, silenced by his Boss's hardened glowing gaze.

Tsuna never had to rebuke his subordinates or demand their obedience. He rarely got angry or berated them. Most issues were solved with merely a look. His Guardians and innermost circle within the Famiglia knew him so well that a look of disappointment would inspire shame and meekness, while serious, unyielding steel in his eyes would speak the law to them.

'I will do this,' was what his eyes said in that moment, without reproach or indignation, only resolve. And for Gokudera, it was absolute.

He raised a flaming hand.

There was a precise technique to it, Tsuna thought distantly as the body before him squirmed and screeched inhumanly within its unyielding restraints. Flames could burn even thousands of times hotter than normal fire of the same size, so he had to focus on keeping the temperature to a level low enough that it wouldn't melt the titanium cuffs and chair or turn a squishy, fragile human body into dust. It had to be fast enough to kill without much prolonging of suffering, but still leave a body recognisable as human. The radius of the Flames had to be kept under control as well, to avoid structural or collateral damage.

It usually took him 5.71 minutes on average to complete this task.

This was his duty. It wasn't about Teo. It wasn't personal. It was Family business. It was a warning and a lesson. But the sins of the Family were the sins of the Boss and Tsuna would carry those sins, and when time would come he would pay the price himself.

It wasn't personal, but he would look in the eyes of the ones he would have to trample on for his Famiglia.

It wasn't personal, but he would remember all the faces to put to the numbers in his paperwork.

(He had to. He was the only one who could hold himself accountable.)

He let his Flames die out and the room fell back into near-darkness. It was filled with the cloying smell of burnt flesh, despite the expensive ventilation system working overtime.

(They were long used to it, anyway.)

There was a gaping void swirling in him. It roared and clawed and consumed within its confines, and it stretched, and stretched...

"Shall we package him and send him on to the Caprifoglio?" Mukuro asked neutrally over the white noise in Tsuna's ears.

Tsuna directed his Flames throughout his body, washing away the bile in his throat and covering everything struggling within him with the familiar blanket of unnatural calm. "No. They'll take it as a declaration of war. They've been waiting for that excuse," Tsuna mused. "Dump him on the fringes of their territory. Leave his identification papers on him. They'll get the message."

...

Tsuna's eyes open slowly.

For a second, he lays there, gazing at the ceiling unseeingly. The acrid taste on his tongue recedes gradually, as does the cold ache in his arms and legs.

A shift of his head to the side allows him to confirm Izuku's deeply asleep presence in his own bed. Green curls are spread all over the pillow, sticking up in tufts, while a freckled chubby cheek is the only slip of skin that can be glimpsed above the shapeless mass of comforter.

A corner of his mouth quirks up fondly without his leave. He shifts and sighs quietly. His eyeballs ache in their sockets and there's a persistent drumming in his head.

The room is still dark, but with that brightening grey of approaching dawn. Too early for ordinary people, too late for illegal activities.

He drags himself out of bed and slips out of the room, carefully closing the door behind him.

The living room is empty, thankfully. Sometimes he happens on their mother on nights like this, and he never knows how to act around her about it. Fortunately for both of them, she hasn't made any attempt to breach the subject with him so far.

(And yet, it doesn't feel like Inko is pretending to herself that everything is fine, not like Nana did. No, it feels... He doesn't know. In some ways, it makes him uncomfortable because their nightly silences are comfortable. They shouldn't be, should they?)

He ponders for a moment. Normally, he would hang out here until sleep would start calling him back to bed, but it's too late for that now. In a couple of hours he'll have to start getting ready for school.

A jog it is.

##

There's someone cleaning up Dagobah Beach.

Toshinori passes by said beach sometimes on the days that he can't do hero work and can't bear to sit inside his suffocating - empty, stale, cold - apartment, when he goes out with the pretext of shopping and instead strolls around.

(If this were anyone else, they would probably be concerned about the fact that he needs a reason to justify to himself with to just go on a walk. Toshinori very much prefers not to think about it.)

He'd been thinking about the sad state of the beach for quite some time, but he's never had the time to actually do something about it. Apparently, someone beat him to it, because he's passed by it three times in two weeks and each time, the trash piles seem to be decreasing in number, slowly but surely.

He thinks he'd like to meet the person - people? - responsible one of these days and shake their hand(s).

...

Toshinori catches a glimpse of the culprits one Saturday as he's heading out of the city.

It's two teenage boys, he notes with some surprise. One of them is jogging to and forth, lugging trash off the beach and into the back of the truck, while the other is sitting cross-legged on top of a pile of trash and... shooting the other? Is that an airgun?!

He is mildly alarmed and more than a little curious, but duty calls.

...

Toshinori may just have a problem.

He's been going out more than ever, hoping to see those boys again every time he passes by. He always goes in his true form, unwilling to attract attention as All Might. While the exercise and fresh air are good for his atrophied body, he can't deny that it's a distraction.

By now, he knows that the two come to the beach on most weekends, and sometimes during work days in the evenings. The activities vary: for the most part, they're using trash lugging as muscle-building training, from what he figures, though a few times he saw them sparring as well. The 'training' seems to be for the green-haired one's sake, but the brown-haired boy takes part too on occasion.

Toshinori is aware that what he's doing is more than a little creepy, and if anyone catches on to him he might get arrested and then there'd be a whole circus. Tsukauchi will never let him live it down if that comes to pass.

Still, there's something that keeps bringing him back. Maybe it's the sheer resolve they have to keep coming back, cleaning up a place no one else ever bothered to, one piece of trash at a time. Maybe it's the kookiness of the brown-haired boy who devises all sorts of military camp training methods. Maybe it's their warm camaraderie, their complete trust in one another.

Whatever it is, it inspires Toshinori.

"You've been coming around pretty often."

Toshinori nearly jumps out of his skin. He doesn't quite manage it, but he does manage to break into one of his coughing fits.

"Oh shi-"

Amidst hacking a lung out, he notices that the brown-haired teen is now standing next to him, hovering and looking flustered. His coughs lessen and suddenly, there's a handkerchief extended to him. After a beat, he accepts it and uses it to wipe up the blood.

"Thank you," Toshinori says, then he fumbles because he doesn't know whether to return the bloody handkerchief or not.

"Keep it. I've got spares," the teen says, and he smiles like there's an inside-joke Toshinori's missing. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to startle you so hard. Are you okay? Do you need some water?"

He seems genuinely apologetic. Toshinori shakes his head. "No, that's alright. I should be the one apologising."

"Should I have called the police instead of talking to you first?" the teen asks. He seems amused, so he must not be all that serious, but there's a wary glint in his eyes.

"A-ah," Toshinori reaches up to scratch at his cheek with his finger in embarrassment. "No, it's just... This beach has been in this state for years, and I was curious who would have the initiative to clean it up. And then I saw you using it for training, and I thought it was an ingenious idea."

The teen hums and his cheeks pink. "Yeah, well. I thought it'd be like hitting two birds with one stone. This kind of for-the-good-of-the-community thing fits my brother like a glove."

"What are you training for, if you don't mind me asking? Are you two practising sports?"

The boy shoots him a sizing glance, but he answers. "My brother is going to be a hero."

And there's something about the way he says it. It's not 'wants to be'. He's one hundred percent certain that his brother is going to become a hero.

"Is he going to apply to UA?" Toshinori asks. It'd make sense for a hero-in-training. It's the nearest heroic course school to here, and one of the most prestigious to boot. Toshinori could even argue that it's the premier Hero Academy of Japan, but well, he might be a little biased. It's his own alma mater, after all.

"It's still early, but yeah."

Toshinori has no idea why he's being so nosy towards a complete stranger, or even why the boy is still talking to him and answering his questions. He doesn't seem to be naive, if his too-knowing eyes are any indication of it. For whatever reason, he's decided that Toshinori's questions don't mean any harm.

"...I'm actually being offered a teaching post at UA." Toshinori isn't saying it to boast. Nezu suggested it to him in passing a while ago, when the problem of searching for a successor for One for All became apparent. At first, Toshinori waved him off. He doesn't have the time to teach, he has to keep showing up in public and fulfil his duties. He's the Symbol of Peace. Besides, he's never been a teacher before and he has a feeling he'd be extremely bad at it.

So no, Toshinori is not boasting. In fact, he's very torn about it. He doesn't really want to do it, but he can nearly hear his clock ticking.

"Then maybe you'll meet each other there," the teen says, turning to smile at Toshinori.

And that doesn't sound quite so dreadful.

It almost makes the thought of Nezu's smugness bearable too.

##

Yagi-san starts showing up to their training sessions more frequently and now without lurking suspiciously beforehand. This is, of course, because he now knows exactly when their training sessions take place, courtesy of Izuku inviting him to them.

Honestly, Tsuna thinks despairingly. That boy has literally no self-preservation skills to speak of.

When Izuku finally met Yagi-san properly, instead of being appropriately dubious and unsettled, he was flustered, but as courteous and earnest as ever - at least, until he saw one of Toshinori's episodes of sickliness. Then he started fussing. And scolding Tsuna which, granted, Tsuna had been feeling a little guilty and concerned too, but he still feels it was mostly unwarranted.

From what Tsuna gathers - through both regular observation and his pesky too-knowing Intuition - Yagi-san's condition is most likely chronic, which Yagi-san even confirmed himself in his overwhelmed attempts to calm Izuku down, though Yagi-san seemed not only resigned, but actually seemed to be understating it a bit.

(Tsuna wouldn't even have needed his Intuition to tell him. Yagi-san's symptoms are familiar, and the implications of that are almost too horrifying to think of. If Izuku ever catches on...)

Funnily enough, Yagi-san was initially hesitant to impose on their training sessions, but Izuku would have none of it, especially when Tsuna informed him that the older man is a potential UA teacher. Izuku has decided that Yagi-san's input must be valuable and has been asking him all sorts of questions about training regimes and techniques and being a hero-in-training and consequently a hero.

True enough, Yagi-san's advice has proven to be quite helpful, much to Izuku's delight. Tsuna is somewhat impressed and more than a little grateful. He tried to apply everything he'd ever learned through and from Reborn's chaotic, but viciously effective teaching, but Tsuna is no mentor and there were times where he floundered. There is also the fact that some of Tsuna's training can't be applied to Izuku's case, and there are numerous things that Tsuna thinks are a little too ruthless and villain-like to teach Izuku. Of course, Tsuna prefers keeping Izuku alive over pandering to this society's whims, but he thinks teaching the most efficient torture methods to his innocent little brother might be a little suspicious.

(Tsuna will take care of that himself, if worse comes to worst.)

Yagi-san, though obviously uninitiated in the mysteries of pedagogy, is quite knowledgeable about the joys and pains of being a hero instead, and is aware of exactly the kind of skills such a professional needs.

Overall, Yagi-san seems like a good person, which is why Tsuna doesn't outright internally despair when Izuku opens his naive little mouth and invites Yagi-san to "come have dinner with us, our mom would love to meet you and it'd be the least we could do for all of your help, no, it's fine, I swear! Mom loves having people over! She always makes a lot of food so it's no trouble at all."

Tsuna honestly doesn't know which of the two of them - Yagi-san and himself, that is - has more misgivings about this venture, for once. Well, he'll have to see how this goes.

As they're taking their shoes off in the entrance of their home, Inko steps into their sight and surprise colours her features for half a second before Japanese hospitality takes over. She's an excellent host, her polished manners and domestic skills being perfectly complemented by her kind-hearted nature and genuine pleasure to nurture. This is a big part of the reason why she's been doing a stellar job of raising two boys by herself.

Yagi-san must be unused to this sort of house visits - and maybe even social gatherings in general - because he's visibly flustered, timidly excusing himself for the sudden imposition. He's quite a sight, nearly seven feet tall and all pointy joints, standing and moving awkwardly as if feeling completely like the impertinent metaphorical bull in a china shop.

Inko, for her part, takes one look at him and a certain fearsome glint sparks in her eyes, which Tsuna lets out a small sigh at. He sees much fussing over in Yagi-san's future.

"Yagi-san, I'm very pleased to meet you. Izu-kun has told me much about you. Thank you for lending my boys your time and guidance," she tells him with a smile and a polite bow of gratitude, which Yagi-san rubs his neck sheepishly at.

"They're very conscientious and talented young boys. It's my honour to offer what input I can, honestly."

"Please, come in. I was just about to get started on dinner. You must join us, I insist," Inko says and practically frog-marches him to their living room. Yagi-san's weak protests are heard and politely steam-rolled over.

As Inko starts busying herself behind the counter between the open kitchen and the living room, talking all the while, Izuku is frowning slightly at Yagi-san's oblivious profile, and he turns to give Tsuna a pointed, beseeching look. Tsuna slips to Inko's side with the pretence of helping with dinner preparation. A quick glance reveals to him that, as expected, Inko was planning on serving Izuku's comfort food, katsudon. Inko shoots him a questioning look from where she's preparing their rice cooker, and then watches silently as he puts away part of the meat and instead takes out a number of vegetables. She gleans the intended recipe from the aligned produce and realisation trickles into her eyes, then determination, before she joins him without any prompting.

Tsuna knows that Yagi-san would feel discomfited if they gave him even the slightest impression of being inconvenienced by his presence, so they have to accommodate to his limitations without making any note of it. He's grateful for his mom's tact in this situation.

As he starts setting up the table, Tsuna refocuses on Yagi-san and Izuku's discussion, which he'd been taking note of absently until then. (Unfortunately, outside of exceptional cases, Tsuna's sharp awareness can't really be 'turned off' so he's always at the very least marginally aware of what people are talking about when inside his radius of hearing.)

"-been making less media appearances in recent years, so there's all sorts of conspiracy theories and concerns, but he's just as active as ever against villains."

"Public image is important, of course, but each hero has their own way of maintaining morale in the psychological struggle against villainy," Yagi-san says, seeming to agree with Izuku's point. "What's important is that society is reminded that there are people who will stand stalwart against injustice and evil, and All Might's continued presence does its job, no matter the form. Peace will continue if he has anything to say about it."

Tsuna frowns. "You have to admit that placing the stability of Japan's period of peace on All Might's shoulders is a pretty tall order. Symbol of Peace and Number One Hero he might be, but he's still just one man. Nobody can and should be responsible for so much," he interjects.

Izuku's face does a thing. They've never agreed on the subject of All Might, among many hero-related subjects. They don't fight, per say, because neither of them have the heart to let a difference in philosophies ruin their bond, but Izuku is painfully aware of Tsuna's misgivings, because Tsuna has tried before to coax some healthy scepticism into his little brother, to no avail. Izuku is probably wary of Tsuna stepping on any metaphorical tails, considering Yagi-san works in the hero industry in some capacity himself.

Yagi-san seems somewhat thrown by his statement, but he recovers gracefully. "It's a huge responsibility, yes, but I'm sure All Might took this mission on willingly and fully aware of all the consequences. Any hero would be honoured to bear the burden, because it's what each one signs up for when they graduate and become full-fledged."

"Not all heroes are as altruistic as All Might," Tsuna counters, trying to keep his amusement from twisting his lips into a sardonic smile. He doesn't want Yagi-san to think he's mocking him or his colleagues. "But besides that, what about after All Might retires? Because he has to, one day sooner or later. He's already been active for decades. Whether it's in another ten years or in six months, he will either retire intentionally or worse, knowing the hazards of hero life. His absence could have great chances of throwing society into chaos, as it stands."

"He will be replaced," Yagi-san says carefully.

"No other hero has as much influence as he does, regardless of actual power levels. Anyone thrown into his role would struggle to fill some huge shoes," Tsuna points out.

Yagi-san is shaking his head. "That's precisely why it's important that he's a symbol much more than a man. His example will live on with or without him. I'm certain that the next generation of heroes will rise up to the occasion and carry on the spirit of the work he's doing. The people themselves will move on and adapt when they see their heroes giving their best and succeeding without him. Inspiration is just as important as the role of primary line of defence and deterrent against criminality in the Symbol of Peace's duties, and it's what will help righteousness and goodness prevail in the future."

Gods help us, Tsuna thinks with no small amount of disbelief and long-suffering. He's an idealist.

There are stars in Izuku's eyes as he's nodding fervently in his seat.

Any hopes Tsuna had of gaining an ally in Yagi-san against the dangers of Izuku's strong trust in the system have just been eviscerated. He's starting to worry about the kind of heroic tendencies his and Izuku's interactions might instil in his little brother, beyond those already existent.

Tsuna gives a little shake of his head, and lets a small smile curl his lips. "You seem to have great faith in your colleagues, Yagi-san. They must be admirable people."

His expression must reassure Yagi-san that their discussion was entirely amicable, because the man immediately relaxes and smiles himself. "They are," he intones with fondness. "They inspire me every day and I like to think that I've done the same for them once or twice."

Izuku seems to be close to vibrating out of his skin at the thought of working with Pro Heroes. He eagerly starts quizzing Yagi-san on the various heroes he's met throughout his experience in the industry.

Looking back on it, throughout Yagi-san's speech about 'examples', although the man genuinely seemed to believe what he was saying, Tsuna got the impression that he was omitting something. He knows too little about Yagi-san to be able put his finger on it at this point, though.

Still, despite their opposing views, Tsuna has to admit that Yagi-san has thus far proven more than a little competent, and if Tsuna's suspicions aren't wrong, then he's also sacrificed quite a bit in this profession. Tsuna doesn't have any conclusive proof that Yagi-san used to be a Pro Hero, but the hints are there if you pay even the slightest attention: in the way Yagi-san moves, how his eyes scan his surroundings, the scars and callouses on his hands and other little things.

So far, Yagi-san seems to be well-intentioned, if too trusting and optimistic, and his influence on Izuku might not be the worst thing on Earth. Still, Tsuna will continue keeping an eye on him for now. If Yagi-san had any malicious intentions, he thinks that his Intuition would have warned him long ago, but Izuku is too important for him to afford to be careless. Especially with how attached Izuku seems to be getting to this haggard, kindly man with haunted eyes.

"I must say, you have some unusual beliefs, young Tsunayoshi," Yagi-san remarks, curious and a little amused, but not put-off. "You seem to think very deeply and carefully on these kind of topics; your arguments are very eloquent. It must have sparked some heated debates with your peers, however."

That's a pretty polite way of saying 'you must've gotten shit for it'.

"Tsu-kun has always been very opinionated," Inko offers with a meaningful smile. Next to them, Izuku snorts. "Some children and even one teacher or two have taken offence to his unpopular views before, but he doesn't go out of his way to cause conflict."

"I'm not gonna waste my time trying to convince people that don't even want to admit that there's a possibility they might be wrong," Tsuna says dismissively. "Besides, debating is all well and good, but real change only comes about through action. If there is to be a day where heroes are no longer needed for peace and justice to be maintained in the world, that change has to start with the people themselves. Inspiring through example to one another, as you say."

Yagi-san gazes at him with an unreadable look in his sunken-in eyes for what seems like a long time, but must have actually only been a few seconds, before offering him a small, but heartfelt smile. "Indeed."

As the evening goes on, it becomes apparent to Tsuna that Izuku and Inko are intent on making a place for Yagi-san in their dynamics, even if they are not yet aware of it. To their defence, Yagi-san does give off the vibes of a lonely and neglected ageing hound, and the Midoriyas have a weakness for strays.

Tsuna has been coming to the conclusion that he himself is not opposed to this development. Especially when Inko brings out the food and he sees the overwhelmed, soft gratitude and fondness on Yagi-san's face the moment he notices light dishes of boiled vegetables set out without any probing or fanfare.


A wild Toshinori has appeared!

Ngl, not much is happening in this chapter. Initially, there would've been one more scene, but I decided I'd rather the chapter out faster than agonise over it any longer. Nearly 5k is more than my usual anyway.

See you guys next time! (Hopefully not in another half a year, ahaha... *sobs*)

Love, Noxi