Undercover – or how you should (not) do it

"If you are intercepted and eavesdropped on, they want to know something from you. Not everyone can make that claim." ~Erhard Blanck

He swung the bat as hard as he could and hit the ball with all his might. The ball flew in a high arc across the field and the heads of the players. The crowd enthusiastically shouted his name. And he ran like the wind around the field.

Breathing heavily, Takeshi came to a halt. Sweat dripped from his forehead. The game was over. His team had won. Of course, he had not invested so much sweat and blood in this game - but mostly sweat and a pair of isolated fractures – to lose now.

In the locker room many clapped him on the shoulder and felicitate him to victory and another fantastic game. His team members invited Takeshi to a small victory celebration, but he refused, saying he would still be training. The others laughed, and thought how typical it would be only to think about the next game for Takeshi.

Takeshi laughed with them, but it was only physically present. His thoughts were already elsewhere. He then quickly grabbed his bag and was out the door before anyone noticed.

Chrome stood with several girls on the playground and chatted about the latest fashion trends. When she sawTakeshi running past them, she smiled a little shyly and waved at him. Takeshi gave her a genuine smile and went on. He heard some of the girls squeal and asking Chrome if she could not make them known to each other.

Takeshi laughed slightly and began to jog behind the gate. But before he passed the school gate, he saw Hibari, who, with his eyes frightened the students who went home, was leaning against the wall. Takeshi also waved at Hibari, but he just stared at him angry and then ignored him. You'd think that after all they had been through together, Hibari could be a little friendlier to them. But, well, so be it. Something would go wrong, when Hibari wasn't just Hibari.

Chrome and Mukuro were now registered in the local school and trying to live a halfway normal life - from daily workouts and the times they were persecuted by Halloween figures with swinging chains, apart . But when Mukuro and Hibari met, a hospital visit was necessary more than once a week. And a team of construction workers.

Both were warmly welcomed by Takeshi's father after Tsuna had saved them, but moved out when the situation had calmed down . The attack and the destruction of Vendicare prison was considered more important, than two escaped convicts recapture.

Takeshi turned into a side street and ran for a while before he stopped at a house. He looked sadly at it. The house looked like, how it really was: abandoned. It could definitely tell many stories. Most would also likely be tragedies. Of the four former residents, there wasn't left even one.

Shortly, after Tsuna disappearance, men in suits turned the whole house upside down in search of a clue. The Vongola Mafiosi. But they disappeared without a clue on Tsuna's current location.

Since Reborn was in a coma and Tsuna saw no point in staying here and waiting, and thus had no use for his home, there was only Lambo left. But since no one knew how they could explain that a little boy was living all by himself, Lambo moved to Gokudera . The area around Gokudera's apartment has since been considerably livelier and louder. On the agenda was also usually a daily complaint of neighbors, and the smell of something burned, followed by a visit from the police.

Takeshi smiled unconsciously . There were so many beautiful memories. Especially after Reborn came home. Tsuna was torn from his gloomy mood, even if he tried not to show it, and was immediately happier. Not everything was bad.

Takeshi remained for some time just standing there and reminisced. Only when the sky turned orange, he turned away from the past and set out on his way home. He had something else that he didn't want to miss under any circumstances. A few minutes later, he saw his house already and got off to a sprint. It took only seconds before he had reached his goal.

When he was at Tsuna's home and thought, something was becoming clear to him.

He is the ace of his baseball team and thought he would always be; that it would be his only passion forever. Then he found something new. Something really worthwhile, which he had previously overlooked out of sheer ambition.

Takeshi opened the door to the dojo of his dad . His father was waiting for him in full uniform. In his hands he held two wooden swords. One he offered to Takeshi .

"There you are at last. Let us begin," his father announced decisively.

Takeshi put his stuff against the wall. Then he nodded at his father. When he took the sword in his hands, his usually joyful and naive eyes became harden. All his senses screamed at him to draw the sword and strike.

"Yes, let us begin."

He would stand up for his friends and stand by their side. For that, he had trained over the last year. For that, they all had trained through last year. And when Tsuna comes back, they would fight with him without any if's and but's .

His gaze didn't let room for any other conclusion.

A knock on the door rudely awakened Tsuna from his sleep.

Tsuna really would have liked to lay back and pretend he was not at home . He didn't get much sleep the last few nights. But he expected a visitor. A visitor he, admittedly, don't want to let in.

As Tsuna stood at the door, he took a deep breath in and out, before he put on his best "Welcome" smile. Then he pushed down the door handle. The face of a pretty pissed-off guy greeted Tsuna.

"Hello, Spanner. How was the flight?," Tsuna asked as he stepped aside to make his guest room. Spanner went past him into the apartment. "Needless, if someone had been more careful."

"Hehe, sorry, but you can certainly forgive me?"

Spanner muttered something indistinct in front of him, most likely a curse and an insult, but otherwise did not address the issue. Instead, he put his bag down on the table and began to look for something.

As a silent Spanner was worse than an angry Spanner - and he had already dealed with both types - Tsuna tried to start a conversation.

"The mission was not very successful. I've been watching the guy for weeks, I even jumped off a skyscraper, but all he could tell me was that there will be somewhere and sometimes a secret meeting of the elite. But not a clue to place and time. Can you believe that?," asked Tsuna and made a wiping gesture.

Spanner nodded absentmindedly and seemed to have finally found what he was looking for. "Eureka! Then this should help you."

He held two photos and a brochure before Tsuna. In the photos two middle-aged men were seen. "These are Marcus Kane and Yamadai Ryo." Tsuna took the pictures from Spanner. "Both higher members of our lovely organizationem ardens gladius." The name of the organization of the flaming sword prevailed due to the member's tattoos. It also said that it was founded around the time of ancient Rome. That would explain the Latin anyway.

"How do you know that, Spanner?"

His accomplice shrugged. Tsuna had not reckoned with one correct answer. "They will be in a kind of VIP Club tonight."

Tsuna looked at the brochure for the High Society Club. Everywhere, people were only seen in fancy clothes, sitting on finely decorated tables, eating and listening to the music while waiters swept through the room to bring the food and drinks quickly to the tables.

"And how exactly am I supposed to get in there? I mean, look at the photos," he asked Spanner. "The clothes cost more than I have. And I don't want to even think about the food."

Spanner grinned at him strangely and somewhat sneaky. Then he took a stack of clothes from his bag and threw them at Tsuna. Tsuna now held a white shirt, a black vest and black pants in his hands. He groaned inwardly.

"Three guesses, Mr. Waiter."

Tsuna looked at his friend evily. He had so not imagined the whole thing to go that way. Spanner pulled something from his bag. A small box. "Look positive, I've got something new for you."

Tsuna opened the box. Inside was a pair of contact lenses. "They have the same functions as your glasses have," Spanner said and coughed deliberately exaggerated. "Sorry, I meant, of course, had."

Tsuna rolled his eyes. Suddenly, Spanner grabbed him by the collar and pulled Tsuna until shortly before his face. Tsuna could feel his breath on his skin. Short, Tsuna wondered whether there were lollies with alcohol. Or Spanner just couldn't get enough form the on-board service. "May God have mercy upon you, should you destroy these also."

Tsuna gulped and smiled nervously. "Understood."

"And I would like the lobster."

Tsuna smiled and nodded his head. "Coming right up." That smile disappeared when Tsuna felt unobserved. He already played the waiter for three hours and had absolutely no desire to make it longer. He knew why he had never taken a side job in this direction. Also, most people here seem to have fallen into a perfume pot. And scented candles made things any better. When he was out of here, Tsuna would take a shower for hours to get the smell out again .

At least Spanner was right . The two men, Marcus and Ryo, sat at a table at one of the pillars. They seemed excited to talk . This is my chance.

Tsuna gave the order to the kitchen and was gone before he could be given another task. He slowly fed to the table of his targets. As it was quite dark in the whole club, Tsuna had to be careful not to trip over his own feet .

He knelt down behind a column, although they were far enough away from the table, but not so far that he could no longer understand them.

"And then he gave her the command of the salvage operation. And I already had everything so perfectly prepared!," Ryo cursed. "This Adriana!"

Tsuna stiffened. He just couldn't let this behind him.

"Well, what do you want, she's been there longer. Speaking of which, the meeting's ..."

"Hands up!," shouted a man who pushed the door open with his foot and then shot with a gun through the ceiling. Two other men followed his example. Panic was there in the millisecond clock. But Tsuna preferred to hit his head against the pillar and cursed his luck. No! Why now?

"There they are!," cried one of the three men and pointed at his targets. He ran towards them with a lifted rifle.

Oh, no. You won't! Tsuna picked up one of the fallen tablets, hiding right behind the pillar and struck when the too loud assassin ran past him. The man was immediately unconscious. They are mine!

Unfortunately, this also attracted the attention of the other two men, who fired onto the column. In a few seconds, he would either be crushed or end up as Swiss cheese. Both are not what he envisioned as a Friday night employment. Now it was best to be fast.

Okay, Tsuna on three. One, two ... three!

Tsuna jumped out of his cover, the tray held protectively in front of his body to fend off the bullets and then threw it like a Frisbee to one of the men. A gun was hit and then fired straight up. It was not long until the man was buried by a part of the ceiling.

The last one was smarter than his colleagues and sought shelter behind the bar. But he only made it even easier for Tsuna. The first thing he had learned here was that the wine rack, what went through half the room and ended up behind the bar, was only very loosely attached. Tsuna landed a powerful blow to the shelf and let fate run its course. The man registered only too late, what Tsuna had before done. Namely, when the shelf was already on top of him.

The holes in the walls and the open door had aired the room. The corrosive smell of the perfume finally disappeared from his nose.

Tsuna rubbed his hands together devious. Too easy.

Tsuna noticed only now, that everyone was staring at him and he realized that his cover was blown into a million pieces. Such a crap! Guess, normal waiters and beat up men with guns do not mix. What was he supposed to do? He himself had screwed up his only chance to get to the meeting.

But instead of shooting at him, he heard applause. Also by civilians. One of his two targets, Marcus, if he remembered correctly, came up to him. The other was gone.

"Wow, kid, that was great. Ever thought about a career change. We are looking for people like you, kid. " Tsuna was annoyed and wanted to tell him that he was not small, just that the light was bad here, but he didn't even let him get a word out.

"You know what, if you're interested, just come there. Then we talk about your future." He gave Tsuna a note and a winning smile and then went after his partner.

Tsuna looked incredulously at the small slip of paper which he held in his hand. And then Tsuna did something completely uncharacteristic for him. He laughed like a villain from these very old black and white movies.

"MUHAHAHAHAHAR!" He held the paper as a trophy high in the air and put a leg on an overturned chair.

He did not care how many people looked at him, and tried to, together with the tables that were still straight, dissociated themselves from him. He did not care that the workers went back to their cover. He did not care that the sound of police sirens nourished.

Tsuna stopped laughing and closed his hand around the note. A grin formed on his lips.

Now he had the place and time - and all without to have to fight with one of his targets, to interrogate, threaten or bribe them. He also would not arouse suspicion because Tsuna was invited voluntarily. Like a wolf in sheep's clothing. Nothing and no one could stop him from his goal now.

Without further attention to the guests and waiters, Tsuna walked through the door to the outside. The night air greeted him with a pleasant coolness. A plane flew over him. He took a deep breath and stood still.

Let the hunt begin.

Preview: A new pacifier is found in the desert, a trip to the hospital is taken and preparations are made.