The Cloud That Bites The Skies
Summary: A scary person with a fearsome reputation finds Tsuna and Co on a normal, sunny day, bringing news of an assassination plot on Don Cavallone. Insanity ensues.
Sunday dawned as a tense affair, Tsuna trying too hard to think of a way to distract Dino-san for the day while he also took note that Reborn looked rather pensive for some reason and didn't even try to steal either Tsuna's or the blond's food at breakfast to teach them some ridiculous lesson or something. Dino-san, of course, noticed, but neither of the hitman's students were masochistic enough to invite such 'lessons' upon themselves if they can help it.
Everyone seemed to notice the tense air in the room, except maybe Lambo, but he was shameless regardless of the situation. Tsuna was just glad that Kumo-san seems to have taken off early that morning as well, though his mother was gushing about how polite and gentlemanly the man was, which meant he had left later than yesterday and had actually indulged the woman in breakfast. The young Vongola wasn't sure if he'd feel comfortable with having breakfast in the same house as the terrifying Kumo-san and he didn't want to think about the man from the future coming down to 'discipline' them all for the noise Lambo and I-Pin were making as the little cow stole or hogged food left and right and the Chinese girl tried to stop him.
Also, Kumo-san had made it very clear that he didn't want Dino-san to know he was involved, so if he accidentally revealed himself to the Cavallone boss, he might take out his anger and frustration on Tsuna and the others like Friday night for disturbing his sleep. And this time, it's quite possible older Lambo won't somehow get involved and save them with more Cloud ring offerings.
"Ah, that was delicious as always. Thank you for the meal, Mama, but I have to get going now." Dino-san's words broke Tsuna out of his musings and he looked up, almost panicking when he saw his self-proclaimed older brother getting up to leave.
"Eh, already? Where might you be going so early in the morning, Dino-kun?" Sawada Nana asked in intrigue, already walking over to pick up the dirty dishes. "It's still only Sunday, you know. I thought everyone had at least Sundays off, but maybe things are different in Italy?"
"Haha, no, you're right, but you see, I have a cute little student of mine to visit before he gets impatient and comes to hunt me down. If I don't go to find him now, he might just bite me to death on principle for not seeing him sooner," Dino-san said while rubbing the back of his neck in the usual Japanese sheepish or nervous manner and Tsuna sympathized with him. Hibari-san was not the type of person to keep waiting. He rather doubted that the prefect would take lightly to being visited only now since Dino-san's been in Namimori for two whole days now and was going to see him only on the third day of his week long visit. "He'll get angry if he learns I'm only visiting him two days after I came to Namimori, since he likes our spars so much and all." Tsuna sweat dropped at the accuracy of his own thoughts and wondered if it was thanks to that which Reborn had called 'Vongola Hyper Intuition'.
Any further conversation was halted when the sound of an incoming rung from someone's cell phone and Tsuna's eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he saw Reborn extend a hand for Leon, who turned into a pretty fancy phone and allowed the infant to read the message. He watched in both fascination and dread as Reborn's mood seemed to lift considerably, an amused smile spreading on his lips, making Tsuna and Dino-san shiver at the thought of the devil training he might have in mind.
"Oh, don't overreact, you no-good wimps," the fedora-wearing baby told them, Leon transforming from a phone to a mallet that Rebornthen used on both of his students, making them crash to the floor and twitch in pain. "I have great news. An old friend of mine that I respect very much has just invited me for drinks in an upscale nightclub on the South end of Namimori and I have a standing, open invitation to bring as many guests as I like. This would be a good opportunity for you to see the places mafioso like to frequent, Tsuna, and Dino, you could use some mafia publicity by showing your face to some of these things from time to time, you know. No excuses," he cut in before either of the young bosses could protest. "We'll be extending the invitation to your guardians, Tsuna, so run off to tell them like your life depends on it."
Tsuna stared wide eyed and tried to scramble away when Leon transformed for the third time, into Reborn's standard gun this time, but he had no hopes of getting away from the Deathperation Bullet and a few seconds later he found himself in his boxers again, yelling "REBORN!" grabbing a stunned Dino-san before bolting out of the house to find his Guardians - sans Hibari-san, because he was neither stupid nor suicidal, thank you. Dino-san is to be kept away from Hibari-san until Kumo-san deals with the assassination squad intent on killing the Cavallone boss and he was sure Kumo-san would actually kill him, whether that might ruin the future or not, if he messes up the Cloud's mission. Besides, even if Kumo-san doesn't kill him, Hibari-san might if he even suggests that the Disciplinary Committee Chairman join them - a crowd - to a nightclub crowded with lots and lots of people.
Also, he was not so sadistic as to unleash Hibari-san, who was bound to get irate, on the poor patrons of the club or the club itself.
That just begged for assassination attempts on his own life, as well as huge bills to pay for the inevitable repairs a Hibari Kyoya visit to the nightclub would doubtlessly require and unlike Dino-san, Tsuna wasn't rich, nor was he sure the money his father sent to them could cover such expenses, at least not without leaving them hungry for a month.
Though he wondered if he should simply send the bill to Hibari-san, but he wasn't masochistic nor was he stupid enough to think anyone would dare actually take the bill to the prefect.
Sometimes, he wished Hibari-san was the Vongola heir, so that the mafia world could be intimidated into leaving Namimori the hell alone and Tsuna could go back to his old life, though he'd rather like to keep the friends he's made if at all possible.
"Tsuna! Slow down! There's a brick wall up front!" Dino-san yelled helplessly from where he was being carried like a sack of potatoes over Tsuna's shoulder, but the brunet only sped up and broke head-first through said brick wall. Later, when the Deathperation Bullet's effects will wear off, he'll be eternally grateful that it hadn't been Nami-chuu's wall fence because, no matter where he might hide or where Hibari-san might be at that moment, the Cloud Guardian would know and hunt him down to bite him to death.
Really, Tsuna didn't remember half of the trip, he only remembered finding Yamamoto trailing behind an irate Gokudera-kun, flinging them both over each shoulder - on top of Dino-san, no less, who complained about how he was going to bring back up the delicious breakfast he's just had - and continuing on his way, dragging Ryohei by the hand when he passed the boxer. He even passed Kyoko-chan and Haru, picking the two girls up into a princess carry while he shifted Ryohei-oniisan's captured hand under his armpit before continuing his race, going straight back home. Somehow, he even managed to get all the way back to his living room before the Bullet's effects wore off and he collapsed, crushed under the combined weight of his friends.
"Way to go, Sawada! That was so EXTREME!"
"Juudaime, are you alright?!"
"Ah, Tsuna-san is so strong! Haru is blushing~!"
"Wow, that was really something, Tsuna-kun."
"Way to go, Tsuna! That was really fun!"
"Urghs, my stomach! Please get off of me, I think I might just barf."
"Guys, you're crushing me!"
"Oi, kora! Get off of me, kora!"
"Way to go, Tsuna. You managed to bring everyone in time, though you could have avoided Colonello," Reborn said as he came to sit in front of the pile of teenagers and one Arcobaleno, sipping on a cup of espresso. The blond baby raged at that while their resident boxer enthusiast helped everyone to their feet. "Now that you're all here, I guess I can officially invite you as my guests for a fun night out at the prestigious mafia club, Midnight Mafioso!"
"No way!" Gokudera-kun immediately exclaimed in excitement and disbelief. "The most famous, most prestigious, most wanted and almost impossible to get into without a four year in advance reservation mafioso club in the world!? As expected of Reborn-san, to have an invitation to such an amazing, expensive place!"
"Actually, I myself was invited by a good friend of mine who's visiting Namimori on a mission." Tsuna saw Gokudera-kun, Yamamoto and Onii-san exchange looks and it occurred to him only then just who Reborn's friend might be. He gulped. Why would Kumo-san invite them to a night club of all places?! Shooting a glance at Dino-san, the brunet wondered if it was a plot to flush out a bigger number of the assassins so that Kumo-san might speed up his progress. Though how he planned to find the assassins in a crowd of other mafioso and hitmen escaped the young Sawada. "We're going tonight. Let's meet up here at eight. Dino can drive us over in his fancy cars and with his bodyguards so we can actually get in. Dress appropriately, everyone, and prepare to have some fun!"
"Wait a second, Reborn! Except Haru, they're all Namimori Middle School's students!" Dino-san protested, wary to keep out of the hitman's immediate range in case of a retaliation for defying the Arcobaleno's words. "And tomorrow's Monday! If they're late or don't show up at all, Kyoya will be displeased and might just hunt us all down to bite us to death!"
"Oh, a nightclub? How exciting!" Nana surprised them all with how happy she sounded. "I haven't been out to a place like that in years! Mind if I tag along, Reborn-kun? It's been really too long. I want to have some fun, too."
"As if I'd ever miss an opportunity to get into Midnight Mafioso," Bianchi said, stepping into the room and causing Gokudera-kun to promptly double over due to his childhood trauma at the sight of her face.
"Have none of you heard what I've just said?" An incredulous Dino-san asked and Tsuna felt sorry for him, because the blond wasn't used to how easily things got out of hand when everyone was together like this.
"Maa, maa, I'm sure it will all turn out alright," Yamamoto reassured with a smile.
The Cavallone boss didn't seem reassured at all, though. "While I was training Kyoya for the Ring Battles, I've seen him literally go way out of his way to hunt down any ditching students, beat them up and drag them to class unless their parents have called the school to notify them that the kids are sick or have some family matters or emergency that can't be put off. Kyoya's not the forgiving or sympathetic kind!"
"Just leave Hibari to me and have some fun tonight, wimpy Dino," Reborn said, Leon once again turning into a mallet and decking the blond over the head enough to turn him into a twitching mess on the floor. He then turned to his fellow Arcobaleno. "Will you be joining us too, Colonello? And how did you even get here?"
"As if I'd ever miss out an opportunity like this, kora! As for your other question, Kyoko had been carrying me when Sawada snatched her and Haru up, kora. I had no choice but to hang on for the ride, kora."
"Sorry about that, Colonello," Tsuna said before turning to Reborn. "But is this really a good idea?" He stole a glance at Dino-san to show what he meant, trusting that Reborn would get the message. "Besides, how can we even get into the club? Aren't clubs for teens over eighteen and higher? I'm pretty sure not even Ryohei-oniisan makes that requirement."
"That's right! I am only EXTREMELY turning sixteen soon!"
"This is the mafia. A baby can get into a mafia nightclub."
'Should he really be discussing this so casually in front of people like Kaa-san, Haru and Kyoko-chan?' Tsuna couldn't help but wonder, though he wasn't at all surprised by Reborn's answer. Mafia don't exactly abide by the law, anyway, so why would they put restrictions when there had to be lots of rich mafia kids who'd want to have fun in nightclubs if they can afford to get in, right? He despaired at the thought that he was being dragged more and more into this criminal, lawless world by his demonic Spartan-tutor from hell. "Are you going to inform our schools that we can't attend tomorrow?"
"Who knows," the baby hitman casually replied and Tsuna wanted to scream. "Besides, it's not like you lot are going to be staying for the whole night or anything. Dino will be carting you off back home at midnight, tops. I, on the other hand, will be staying to enjoy the chaos and carnage that will ensue."
'Eh!? Does that mean Kumo-san will be on the move after midnight or is this just the usual mafia way to end a party?! Why am I involved in all of this!? Why can't I have a normal life!?'
"Because you're to be Vongola X, Tsuna, so work hard to learn more about your new environment." Tsuna started crying crocodile tears and Dino-san, who had already been through the same torture, patted him on the back sympathetically.
Then the brunet blinked, something having occurred to him. "Hold on, what about I-Pin, Lambo and Fuuta? Because there is no way we can take them with us! I-Pin, maybe, because she's a sweet girl and won't cause any trouble, but Lambo's bound to get us all killed! And I rather doubt that other mafia families have given up on getting their hands on Fuuta's rankings, either, so we obviously can't take him!"
"And Fon might actually kill us if we took his student to such a place, so it's best not to take little I-Pin, either, kora," Colonello added, to which Reborn nodded.
"That's true. We obviously need to find them a babysitter, but who?"
"We can do it, boss," volunteered one of Dino-san's men from the kitchen, startling them. "You go have fun with your friends. We can handle the kids for a few hours."
"Thanks, but you better not rope Fuuta into making rankings about the ongoing betting pools you lot have or else I'll tell the guys back home so you're out of the game." The bodyguards all deflated at Dino-san's orders, making everyone look at him in curiosity as to what could have possibly been so interesting - and possibly embarrassing for the Haneuma - to bet on and to have that reaction from the men because they weren't allowed to get any hints. "Eh, it's probably best that you don't know anything about it, because if you blurt it out around Kyoya, we might all get bitten to death."
Well, that was definitely deterrent enough to stop them from prying further. As intriguing as the blush spreading over Dino-san's cheekbones was, an irate Hibari Kyoya was not something any of them wanted to deal with. Especially since they were still mostly recovering from the beating Kumo-san gave them.
"Well, now that babysitters are taken care of, perhaps the lot of you should go shopping today to get the appropriate outfits for the club," Reborn said, making sure to stare into Tsuna's eyes with great intensity and the boy realized Reborn was helping, once again, to keep Dino-san distracted and away from Hibari-san, thus sparing them from Kumo-san's 'disciplining', though he'll probably ask for something outrageous in return, like Tsuna getting a 100% on a math test, which is just impossible, but at this point, Tsuna was willing to take it.
"Reborn, you know I can't! Kyoya-"
"Shut up, Dame-Dino," the 'tutor' cut the blond off, hitting him with the Leon mallet yet again. Tsuna actually wondered if his own 'tutoring' with Reborn was a breeze compared to what Dino-san had had to go through. Reborn seemed far more brutal towards Dino-san, though that might be just these days, since their objective was to keep Dino-san completely uninvolved in this mess with Kumo-san and the assassins from the future. "I already said to leave Hibari to me. Surely he can wait until Monday. It's not like he'd actually let you get away with anything but more fighting, anyway, unlike what you're hoping for."
"Way to encourage me, Reborn," whined Don Cavallone. Tsuna wasn't sure what was going on, but he had a feeling it would be for the best that he didn't try to find out. For both his health and his sanity.
"I'm not trying to. I don't want to. Hibari is the Vongola Guardian of the Cloud Ring and the strongest Guardian, at that. Tsuna's already having trouble Harmonizing with him since Hibari doesn't accept him as strong, so we don't need you complicating matters as another clearly interested and older Sky that he does recognize as strong. Honestly, it's not as if either of you are actually worthy of courting a Cloud like Hibari, since you both require outside aid to fight and he can still land more devastating blows, most of the time, just as he is. It's pathetic and I kind of pity him."
"Just let Haneuma court that tonfa freak, Reborn-san," grumbled Gokudera-kun through his stomach pains, doing his best not to look at Bianchi so he could function semi-normally. "We don't need him."
"Are you forgetting all of you would be dead if not for Hibari?" Reborn asked and Tsuna was under the impression that the Arcobaleno was rather angry for some reason. Colonello, who knew Reborn the best out of the people present, seems to have picked up on it, too. "In the Sky Match, when you were all poisoned, it was Hibari who saved you. Gokudera, then Yamamoto, allowing you two to help Lambo and Chrome. He had an injured leg and he saved himself by his own sheer will power despite the poison being strong enough to keep down grown elephants and then proceeded to fight Belphegor and nearly won if the coward hadn't run, then saved Yamamoto and then even prepared to fight by your side when Xanxus revealed he would have killed you all regardless of the result of the match. Hibari Kyoya is one of the most powerful Clouds I've seen in a very long time and one of the best fighters as well. Tell me again, Gokudera Hayato, how you don't need him."
The Italian teen winced, looking down guiltily. "I apologize, Reborn-san. I spoke out of turn."
Reborn stayed quiet for a while before speaking again. "You may have your differences, but you're all family. You share a strong bond. Just because Hibari doesn't show it as much doesn't mean he's ignorant of it or outright dismissing it. He's fought by your side many times at this point. It's in a Cloud's nature to be aloof and alone. I hold great respect for Hibari, despite his young age, and I hope that he will find a place for himself in this family. And I hope this family will find a way to accept Hibari as something more than a dangerous weapon to point at an opponent. But for that, the boss must work hard and so must his subordinates. Clouds are not easy to court."
Tsuna wasn't exactly sure what Reborn was talking about, but it resonated deeply within him. But it also woke a strong feeling of guilt, too. Reborn was right. They had mostly been treating Hibari-san as a weapon to point against their enemies. First when Nami-chuu's students started disappearing and they all thought they should just leave it to Hibari-san to deal with it all by himself, which lead to the situation with Rokudo Mukuro, then against the Varia when Hibari-san didn't give a damn about mafia and Vongola. They had simply bragged that he was their Ace, that he would ensure their victory and while Tsuna had worried about the prefect, he had never once even thought to check up on him or his progress from Dino-san, at the very least.
"We'll do better in the future, Reborn!" Tsuna said with determination, not caring if he was actually committing himself to becoming the boss of Vongola in the future. Hibari-san, just like his friends, had been dragged into the mafia business and world because of him, so he had to take care of Hibari-san in any capacity that the Disciplinary Committee Chairman would allow.
"We'll EXTREMELY include Hibari in our group!"
"That's right! We won't let that tonfa freak push us away!"
"Haha, this is bound to be fun, avoiding being bitten to death. We could even make a game out of it!"
Tsuna smiled as his friends all agreed with him and got all pumped up. A glance at Reborn showed he wanted to be satisfied but that pensive feeling from this morning had also returned and Tsuna wondered if Kumo-san had said something that caused this reaction in the Arcobaleno.
"Well, I wish you all the best of luck," Dino-san said, looking like he really meant it and was pitying them for their choice, but there was a smile on his face when he looked at Tsuna. "Don't worry. I know Kyoya is your Guardian. I won't try to Harmonize with him. I'm pretty sure Kyoya wouldn't even accept me. Take care of your family, Tsuna, though maybe it's still for the best that you don't invite him for tonight," the blond said with a wince. "I'm not sure even I could pay off that bill."
"Make plans for courting our resident Cloud later," Reborn said commandingly. "For now, we have to get you ready for tonight!"
"Shopping!" The girls all yelled, despite only Bianchi having followed through with the conversation that had taken place just now.
Reborn pointed a gun at Tsuna's head. "Shop like you're dying."
Tsuna didn't even try to dodge the Bullet.