To those who read my other works, they're gonna be in hiatus. It's got a lot of plot holes and inconsistencies and I've lost interest in em.

I'm going to be focussing on this story to its very end for once. One at a time, I guess.

Hope you like the story. Let me know what you think.

Now, onwards

Chapter 1

Belladonna: A peaceful and picturesque rest

An immaculately dressed man sat with a slight slouch in the headquarters of the Vongola, Italy. The man had an aura of strength despite his age but also had a tired look from the recent mayhem brought from his adopted son's actions. The famiglia's stance regarding the succession along with the vehement denial of the candidates from the lad's side created a faction war that pressured the boss from both directions. The Vongola lineage had both their hands drenched in blood but still insisted on the tradition of their blood being linked for generations to come.

On his desk were ghastly photos of his other sons. The only difference between the victims and the murders was blood, bonds linked by the very thing running through his veins.

'It's as if it evoked conflict by its mere presence… The past that we can never escape from. The chains that fester from being a Vongola. Even though, those rings would never accept Xanxus…

Why did it come to this?'

On one hand, it was the main branch, the external advisor, and the supporting famiglias who had mixed roles in the family and were powerful in the overall sense. On the other was the assassination squad with stealth and firepower. On top of that, the boss Nono was placed between a rock and a hard place where he was forced to seal his cherished son who went on a murder spree eliminating candidates left and right to make his stand. Nono lamented.

'Is it truly futile? Are the Vongola bosses destined to dye Vongola in blood? Can the Vongola Primo's vision never come true?'

At this time, the room's door opened wide open to reveal a blond-haired, middle-aged man- the CEDEF, the external advisor's head, The young lion – Sawada Iemitsu. He surprisingly lacked the usual cheer he carried himself with and was instead partially lost in thought. The workaholic somberly spoke,

"Nono. I'm going to take a flight back to Namimori. Something urgent came up." There was no prattle or pleasantries brought up.

The boss tensed up. 'His son does have a tie to the Vongola. It can't be. The Varia shouldn't have gotten intel about my plans on the succession… Their boss was frozen into silence by my interference. It's too early for them to play a move and they wouldn't use Xanxus as bait… '

"Calm down, Iemitsu. Explain the circumstances. I can't help if I don't know the situation."

"…It's Nana. She's been reported as dead. I've had the information investigated but her circumstances are unusual. What's even stranger is that Tsunayoshi was left unharmed and unaware. It's not an impulse crime, but it's too unusual to be an accident." The advisor was so tense that he didn't bring up the usual nicknames he used for his beloved family.

He came forward and placed photos onto the boss's desk. It was beautiful, yet in bad taste and fit perfectly with the other grisly photos of his son's death – although they badly contrasted against the classy look of the room they were occupying. The recent photo addition on the photo album file seemed to be that of a youthful lady who slept peacefully amidst a bed of bell-shaped, magenta flowers. They were belladonnas, the poisonous nightshade.

It surely was made with a malicious taste. The lady who rest in ignorance right to her very death, surrounded by danger – the very threats that Iemitsu protected them from in the shadows. The next photo was that of a funeral, with the son looking on the proceedings with a blank face.

'I do feel sorry for the boy. Tsunayoshi had been doing fairly well until we had to seal his flames. It might have affected him quite a bit, but it was inevitable if he were to remain a civilian. Although, circumstances have changed. Reborn did report to me about the results of the preliminary investigation into his current lifestyle. Seems like the boy's life has been bad luck one after the other. But judging by this calm demeanor, maybe those struggles could have assisted in his development.

If it's Reborn, he could mold the lad into what Vongola needs – if that innocence doesn't get tainted. That hitman has had previous success with the Cavallone famiglia and that was judged as a hopeless case.'

Iemitsu continued, "I've acquired the autopsy report. It seems like she's been exposed to the poison for a long time. Specifically, it's the same poison as those she's been buried with. The traces go for a quarter of a year at a minimum. Yet, there have been no witnesses or statements about any changes of her behavior from the neighbors.

On top of that, Tsunayoshi seemed to have been fed information that I'm deceased leading to the removal of my name from the living family registry. It seems like whoever planned this intricate plan wanted to remove the chance of my involvement, in this case, to make it tight. They even took advantage of the fact that I've been unable to visit them for years on end.

Belladonnas are fairly rare in Namimori. Hibari Kyoya seems to have taken measures against anything that threatens its safety. And yet, it's found commonplace in the rooms that Nana frequently uses. I doubt that my son knows of its effects, but he's been tricked into supplying them."

It was then that the pretty picture took on another tone, one mocking the CEDEF leader's circumstances, taunting the other by placing the murder weapon in plain sight. It was as if the peaceful expression on the woman's face was naught but a terrible lie.

"Iemitsu, you shouldn't go back to Namimori. This plan has been executed with suspiciously perfect timing. You know the circumstances that the family is currently in. To find a reason to excuse you from the scene when you'd normally never do… That and this seems like an invitation for a trap. It might be the work from the rival famiglias."

'It's twisted, but the perpetrators have made a great opportunity for themselves. But this is bad. Are there insiders that are leaking our state. This mess should have been hidden from outsiders. I can't even deploy the Varia to investigate this case and Iemitsu's too emotional to think straight right now. It'd only increase the workload and make the situation worse if we start doubting each other now.'

"But Nono-"

"I'm not saying to let this go. Actually, I've been making plans for the succession issue. If we plan this well, we could kill two birds with one stone.

Iemitsu, I've been thinking of making Tsunayoshi the immediate candidate for the Vongola."

It was like a death sentence for the man, given the circumstances. Iemitsu looked like he had a lot to say, but seemed to understand where Nono was going with this.

"I'm thinking of making Reborn train the lad. It could double as a bodyguard of sorts against the instigator of Nana's death and the Varia – if Reborn takes up the role of the child's tutor. He's been soft on his disciples, so if that was the case, he'd endeavor to prevent Tsunayoshi's death.

On top of that, I'm thinking of directly contracting Gokudera Hayato to double as his guardian and his companion. The boy is brash but has an intense longing to fit in. He's intelligent too, so could look into this case on the side. His personal involvement could shed light and allow us to gain intel. The two could act as foils for each other. Personally, employing him for this could make him prefer our stance rather than any instructions Reborn would give him too. That, and the boy of the same age as Tsunayoshi so he could stick closer to his side."

"But Nono, in that case, I could plant Basil by his side."

Nono had a look of incredulity at that suggestion. Who knows what preconceptions Basil had about Japan given how seriously the boy had gulped down the jokes Iemitsu fed him? He was incredibly naïve, even more so than Gokudera. But the boy was skilled…

"… No. It may catch the eye of the Varia. Instead, I'd like him to tail the Varia. I've got a bad feeling that they might eventually end up in Namimori. In the worst case, I'd like him to assist Tsunayoshi in dealing with it.

I'd like to reduce the amount of personnel moving around your son for now, especially given the stage. Nana's death has brought complications in this situation."

Nono understood why Iemitsu was so somber in this case. It was probably that he had the same thoughts as he did and so the young lion decided to deal with the problem heads on, given the current urgency. The boss stared longingly at his ever-diminishing supply of aspirin as his headaches only grew in number and sighed heavily.

Just what had happened in Namimori?

Who was the culprit?

What was their purpose?

In Namimori, A black-haired youth with an intense look focused on the corpse of the mother of the weakest herbivore who was the easiest target in his middle school. There were no bruises, no fingerprints. The body before his eyes were unblemished and adorned by the fresh flowers that permeated the room. It smelled slightly sweet but brought about a sense of nausea making it baffling how someone would happily live amongst these.

It wasn't like she was unaffected by the nightshades. Her throat was inflamed due to constant vomiting and there were signs of suffocation along with possible light-headedness. Yet the ground floor of the house stunk of belladonnas. It was as if their perfume and potpourri were being manufactured at the site. The flowers invaded across their backyard, proliferating like weeds.

Kusakabe handed out a mask to prevent Hibari from getting adversely affected. The latter moved his eyes towards the top floor where the brunette holed himself into. The kitchen and the living room looked like it was barely occupied and collected dust around the corners. It seems like Sawada Tsunayoshi had taken his meals in his room. But to be so ignorant that he wouldn't have noticed the state of his mother…

When they had been first notified of the death, Hibari remembered the quiet voice that informed them in a matter of fact tone about the other's death. They had sent a squad to retrieve the body and the group thought that they would need cleaners to remove any stains or stench, given that it would have gone into the late stages of rigor mortis. The information was relayed after two days of her supposed death. Kusakabe had been shocked at the absentmindedness of the brunette. Hibari simply thought that it ran in their family given how airheaded Sawada Nana seemed.

The former delinquent had noted how the brunette might have habits of isolating himself due to the daily bullying, but it was distasteful for the prefect who clicked his tongue at how vulnerable the brunette made himself out to be. Even though Hibari took on the role of the protector of Namimori, he wasn't interested in the activities that the weak engaged themselves in to comfort themselves. The crowding that came with some of the bullyings did tic him off, but he could easily take off that.

Kusakabe looked at the prefect and spoke again. "The flowers that covered her body have Sawada's fingerprints but that's the case for all of them in this house. He might not have notified us because of he was either busy covering her body with these flowers, or that he did this in the time between the time he noticed her body and called us and before we arrived at the scene. It could be a way of him grieving for the loss, but it is truly strange.

He even insisted on using those flowers for the funeral processions. Were nightshades Mrs. Nana's favorite flowers? But still, to think that it would be the eventual cause of her death- it seems like a bad joke.

In fact, both his parents have rather odd deaths. Mr. Sawada Iemitsu had sent a postcard saying that he went and became a 'star'… and now, Mrs. Sawada Nana… What do you think, Kyo-san?"

Hibari disregarded the nonsensical hypothesis. He remembered all the details of the citizens under his jurisdiction. The nightshades only took the stage in these households less than half a year ago. His face took a look of utter viciousness at the gall of someone to try this on his domain. The nature of belladonnas weren't things that people generally knew about, but one of the regular contacts of Sawada Tsunayoshi had a look of familiarity when looking at those flowers. It was obvious with how the other instantly turned pale at the sight of it. But surprisingly, there was a look of confusion on it.

His eyes fell on a dusty photo on the living room that faced down, hiding its contents. His hands revealed its contents, one of a picture of the three of them. Sawada Nana must have done this given how untouched it had been. But given her cheerful nature, it was a mystery why she would have had bitter emotions about a family picture. The postcard mentioning the status of the husband had been torn into pieces and covered in traces of the lady's fingerprints. It wasn't thrown away and regularly touched… but it was found in a dusty cupboard below the photograph. She must have felt strongly about that news, given how the neighbors had also mentioned how the couple was all over each other.

She had an incompetent son and was surrounded by the neighborhood gossip. She didn't have regular contact with the rest of her family. It would have been easy to imagine the state of her repressed emotions. But suicide could be ruled out, given the prolonged nature of the death. Could she have been coping with her mental pain by substituting it with a more tangible physical pain? Or could it be that the light-headedness that came with the exposure to belladonnas made her more comfortable with her situation- like she longed to go back to her state of ignorance? That she wouldn't find this form of coping as distasteful as other forms of addiction?

But what was the source of this bad news? Given Sawada Nana's disposition, she wouldn't have been able to get a clue about her actual situation. Hibari Kyoya walked out of the house to pursue a possible lead for that question accompanied by a slightly flustered Kusakabe Tetsuya.

Thus, they found themselves facing Irie Shoichi, a boy around the age of the brunette who was from another school. He was an aspiring musician who put his eggs in the wrong basket, despite his analytical talents. It seemed like the two met during an incident where the redhead was being bullied and they bonded upon their shared misfortune. Hibari thought it was quite a pathetic tale, but it seems that the bond allowed the prefect to gain more insight into the case.

Irie Shoichi looked at the duo like a deer caught in headlights as his body trembled in fear at the notoriety of the black-haired teen who was called as the demon of Namimori. At the pointed look of the demon, Irie immediately knew what this was about.

"I don't know anything about Sawada's mother! I swear!"

"Belladonnas."

"How was I supposed to know that Sawada would keep those flowers along given what happened-" and he shut his mouth immediately for that unfortunate slip.

Kusakabe seeing that Hibari was going to threaten the information out with force as he brought his tonfas out, intervened immediately noticing that the already faint teen would definitely be out of commission if he watched and waited.

"Irie-san, what's your relationship with Sawada-san?"

"Eh? We're friends."

"How did you know about the nightshades? I've heard that you've been more interested in developing your musical skills as opposed to learning about botany?"

Irie frowned at the proficiency of Hibari's information network. Kusakabe and the former delinquents had eyes and ears everywhere but knowing how blatantly his privacy could be violated left cold sweat down his body. The glint of the tonfas brandished by Hibari urged the answers out of the boy.

"T-Tsuna looked for me. He told me about his mom suddenly having headaches and vomiting… so I went over to his place to identify the source and it turned out to be those belladonnas. I looked up information about the flowers in the library and the internet and told him about it. I-It was the only extra item added into their routine after all…

It was just surprising that they still stayed after those. T-Tsuna also didn't tell me about anything bad going on with her from then on…"

Seeing the look of suspicion in Hibari's eyes, he immediately added on.

"I don't think it's what you're thinking about H-Hibari-san. His mom might have loved the flowers enough to keep using them regardless of Tsuna's warnings. She must have underestimated its potency."

"Sawada Tsunayoshi's fingerprints were found on them."

"Eeep! I mean, both of them might have underestimated it. Tsuna's weak against his mom after all. He could have been gathering them to make her happy!"

Sawada Tsunayoshi did not have the ability to pull off an intricate plan orchestrating someone's death like this. What would the motive to kill his own mother be?

"What are you hiding, herbivore?" he inched closer, pressing the weapon close to the redhead's neck. Irie gulped.

"Why are you protecting that weak herbivore?"

His target's eyes were swimming but were it because he was nervous about revealing the secret or just because he was intimidated.

"If you're so convinced of your friend's innocence, come clean." He dared the other.

"T-Tsuna- he even came to me to get equipment and herbicide to cut off the plants. He definitely intended on cutting off supply for those flowers!"

Hibari screwed his eyebrows together. Sawada Tsunayoshi, aka Dame-Tsuna was a child who failed miserably in his physical activities and studies. He was renowned for his clumsiness and a general lack of dexterity.

"When?"

"M-maybe around two months ago?"

From the disciplinary committee, there were logs of Irie and Sawada going to his house around 3 months ago. It could be that the brunette was outsourcing the flowers for a month. Then how did those nightshades cover their backyard?

Kusakabe looked at Irie in incredulity.

"Did you not visit Sawada-san since then? Their house grows a lot of nightshades. They're healthy for supposedly being poisoned. They're not even as durable as actual weeds."

"It seems like you won't spit it out unless your room's ransacked inside and out."

Irie paled even further at the possible shakedown.

"I'm not lying about the equipment. It's missing from my tool shed. You can see it with your own eyes. They work. I've tested for their effectivity!"

Kusakabe didn't miss the gleam in the disciplinary committee head's eyes. He understood immediately what the other was getting at.

"…Were you growing those nightshades for those experiments?"

"Not anymore. I got rid of them once I finished checking. They take up too much space."

This was possibly how Tsunayoshi was able to grow those plants in his backyard. He could have stopped the growth of those plants and maybe that disrupted the 'peace' in Nana's life. And when she missed it, he bolstered her dependence with relapse by growing it on his end.

Kusakabe expected Hibari's mood to dip with the information, but surprisingly, the other seemed to be intrigued at the turn of events the interrogation brought them. Hibari thought over that torn postcard and the hidden photograph. The tactic served as a great distraction for her.

A week later, Kusakabe looked at Hibari who told him to take a recording of the funeral of Nana Sawada. He listened in fascination at Sawada Tsunayoshi's words. The brunette mentioned that he chose those flowers to allow her to rest in peace even in her afterlife.

It was a truly fascinating notion.

Sawada Iemitsu, even before his death was a wayward man and an absentee father/husband. His background is shady and he was one of the sources of misfortune in both of their lives. Even in his 'death', he brought misery to the woman who waited for him. Even if she doesn't recognize it.

Sawada Tsunayoshi tried to make her face reality to come to terms with Iemitsu's death to lighten her burdens. But the truth unveiled was too much for Sawada Nana. Therefore, he decided to help her escape back to her fantasies using deceptively beautiful gifts and decorations. And even until her very death and beyond, he kept at it and erased Iemitsu's presence from the person who pined for his love.

Those Belladonnas were to be her saving grace, granting mercy to her struggles – at least according to Tsunayoshi.

It seems like he was not quite what he seems to be. He's definitely not a herbivore.

Hibari Kyoya, highly amused, sported a shark's grin.