This one is more world set up - we'll start getting answers in a chapter or two.

Panic stifles the air as shouts ring out to "Bring that stupid Turf Top to the Tenth's office and do it now!" and "No one, absolutely no one, is to enter the room!" and another, "Where the hell is that Boxing Bastard?! Shit!"

Actually, those are all Gokudera Hayato's, but the boy is enough to carry the emotionally charged atmosphere by himself.

Whispers and gossips fly through the office like wildfire, from things like, "There's been an attack!" to "The Tenth is dead!"

Sawada Tsunayoshi cannot be dead. Not after everything the boy has already done. Will do. Shouichi has invested too much into the boy to let such a thing happen.

Shouichi storms through the hallways, Spanner on his heels, as he makes his way up to the top floor of the tiny office building acting as headquarters for the Japanese branch of the Vongola. Shouichi curses the building's layout as he climbs the stairs, too agitated to wait for an elevator like a normal person. It doesn't help he's coming from the underground lab.

For the first time in a while, Shouichi doesn't have a concrete plan in mind other than "get to Tsunayoshi's office" and "figure out what the hell is going on".

Shouichi hardly makes it to the office door before it bursts open, leaving him stupidly reaching for the door handles that aren't there anymore. A severe looking Reborn stares Shouichi down (how does he do that he's five), and drags him in with a gruff, "Good, you're here. We're going to need your flames too."

Flames? What? "R-Reborn-san? What's going on? Half the office thinks Tsunayoshi-kun's been atta— oh."

Shouichi finds himself staring at a small boy lying on the soft carpet floor of Tsunayoshi's office, bleeding. The hair looks frighteningly familiar, but the boy is… young. Maybe five with how small he is, but Shouichi has never been great with judging children's ages. "Reborn-san, just who—"

"We extremely don't have time to explain," Sasagawa Ryohei says, and Shouichi belatedly realizes that the Vongola Storm, Rain, and Sun Guardians are in the room with them, all looking a little feral and harried. They're all hunched over the boy, Gokudera's and Sasagawa's flames pouring out at full blast even as Yamamoto Takeshi works at something on the child's left shoulder.

It's a bullet, Shouichi recognizes with a jolt, and feels ill.

Shouichi comes to kneel beside Reborn, wincing at the squelching and feeling of wetness seeping through his pants against his knees. He pulls out his best ring and support box and asks, "How is the situation?"

"Not good," Gokudera spits out. "The Te—the kid lost way too much blood. Any more and he'll start going into shock – do you have that bullet out yet or not?!"

Yamamoto doesn't even flinch at his fellow Guardian's tone, eyes intensely concentrated on his work. "Just… a little more… there!" Something metallic pops out of the boy and immediately their flames converge on the exposed area.

The flesh knits together, closing the wound, but even their flames cannot replace the blood the child has lost already.

"We're going to need a doctor—" Shouichi starts.

Reborn cuts him off. "Shamal is on his way. We can't take this kid to the hospital just yet." He grimaces and angles his face in a way that casts his fedora's shadow over it sinisterly. "I'm sure you've realized this by now, Irie. This kid is Tsuna."

Shouichi swallows thickly. He doesn't want to consider the possibility, but it's hard to deny the child's resemblance. "Y-yes," he admits. "But this child is—" five.

"Our best guess is that this is the Tenth's ten-year-younger ("The kid is seven?" Shouichi blurts stupidly.) self." Gokudera shoots Shouichi a dirty look, but he looks slightly less antsy now that the boy isn't freely bleeding out anymore. "The stupid cow's Bazooka went off and Gianinni—" Shouichi leans away, Gokudera's dark aura just a bit frightening. "—touched the damn thing – it wouldn't be odd if it started working in the reverse or something now."

The lights of their flames die out as the wound closes completely, and Sasagawa pulls back, sighing. "We've extremely done what we can, but tiny-Sawada is still extremely pale."

"Hey," Spanner says, and Shouichi jumps, having forgotten the man had come in with him. "If it's the Ten-Year-Bazooka that brought the kid here, shouldn't he have gone back to his time by now?"

Gokudera grimaces. "He's been here for at least fifteen minutes now, and the Tenth – older Tenth – hasn't come back yet either. We're going to need you guys to check over the Bazooka and see what's wrong with it. Considering the state the kid arrived in..."

"Wait, he arrived in this time like this?!" Shouichi stands up, feeling numb, "That means the Tsunayoshi-kun of ten years ago was in some kind of situation?"

"Maa, maa, calm down, Irie," Yamamoto urges. "We don't know what's going on yet ourselves. Let's wait to pass judgment, yeah?"

"Get that bazooka analyzed first," Reborn orders. "And then we'll decide on what to do."

Shouichi shivers. The ex-Arcobaleno's face promises pain and death. Notwithstanding inventor solidarity, Shouichi is uncertain just how long he can keep Gianinni from Reborn's wrath.

Hopefully long enough for them to retrieve Tsunayoshi from whatever mess he'd gotten himself into this time.

The boy is the only one who can stem his tutor's ire, after all.

The Ten Year Paradox

Second Step: The Vanishing Child

"Tsunayoshi-kun!" Byakuran shouts across the hard plastic phone, and Tsuna nearly drops the thing in surprise. "So you are alive! My, how did you get my phone number?"

Tsuna gulps and gropes for an answer. "Uh. You might not believe me, but I'm from… another… universe? I think? I was hoping you would know." Wait. "Alive? Wait! Why wouldn't I be?"

Please don't be some post-apocalyptic future where he died to defend his family or something. He had enough of those for ten lifetimes.

"A parallel universe, Tsunayoshi-kun?" Byakuran hums nonchalantly, as though all of Tsuna's time-travelling problems aren't because of him. "I see. I can check for you, but that might take a while. My powers have been sealed after all," the man singsongs and Tsuna winces. "Either way, you're in Namimori, aren't you, Tsunayoshi-kun? Don't wander far~ I'll come pick you up okay? Ciao!"

The phone clicks.

Tsuna listens to the dial tone incredulously. He barely got to say anything!

…What did Byakuran mean, "So you are alive!" Alive. Like he isn't supposed to be? The phrase sets off so many of Tsuna's internal alarms, he's not sure what to panic over first. Just what is going on with this world's him?

…At the very least he hadn't started out in a coffin. Tsuna isn't sure if his heart can take any more of that kind of thing.

Tsuna has never made it a policy to carry around too much cash with him – that just screams "illegal member of society" which – which is true (he's working on fixing it!) but that doesn't mean he has to live the stereotype. So Tsuna has about 6,000 yen on him at max.

He's torn between spending the cash on food or a night at a hotel when he stops walking, realizing where he is.

Takesushi's blue signs greet him, and Tsuna can't help it.

He goes inside.

"Welcome to Takesushi! Please have a seat wherever you'd like!" Yamamoto greets him, and Tsuna has to blink his surprise away.

"Ah, Yamamoto –" Tsuna says before he can stop himself, and he bites his lip. If he's possibly in a parallel world, what did it make this Yamamoto? An anti-Vongola assassin? Or something?

"That's me! And my dad too." Yamamoto grins at him, and Tsuna wonders how he could have considered Yamamoto dangerous (to him) at all. "Do I know you from somewhere? You look oddly familiar."

Surprised for the second time that minute, Tsuna stares at the other boy, mouth hanging open. "I, uh, uhm." Reborn would shoot him for his stuttering. "I went to your school. Before, I mean."

Very articulate.

"Ah, I see! Elementary or something?" Yamamoto nods. "I think I remember... Er, what's your name again?"

"Tsuna," Tsuna says, mouth dry. "Sawada Tsunayoshi."

Yamamoto hems and haws, head tilting. "Mnn, I don't know! You're definitely familiar though!"

"Hey, Takeshi! What are you doing – oh?" Yamamoto Tsuyoshi appears from the back of the shop and stares meaningfully at the two. "A friend of yours, Takeshi?"

"Elementary mates!" Yamamoto – er, the younger one says, smiling. "I can't seem to remember though! When did you move out, Sawada-san?"

"Sawada-san" sounds so unnatural coming from Yamamoto's mouth that Tsuna automatically replies, "Tsuna." His mouth catches up to him and he hastily adds, "S-since we're elementary classmates, it'd feel weird to be called by my family name like that."

Yamamoto grins. "Tsuna," he repeats, brightening. "You have to drop formalities too, then! My dad and I are both 'Yamamoto' after all! Call me Takeshi."

"O-oh," Tsuna says. "Okay, Ya – er, Takeshi-kun." The word sounds odd on Tsuna's tongue, but it's not. Bad. It makes Tsuna a little less homesick.

Yamamoto smiles and nods, satisfied. "Mn mn! So, Tsuna, wanna have a seat? I can guarantee my old man's sushi is the best in town! Unless you're only here to connect with elementary alumni."

Tsuna can hear the teasing tone and he relaxes just a bit. "Ah, no, I was just so hungry I kind of… wandered in? Sushi would be great."

"Okay!" Yamamoto agrees. "I might get you a discount – as elementary buds of course!" He turns to his dad, who looks back at the two, amused. "Is that alright with you, Pops?"

The senior Yamamoto smiles. "You know what? Tsunayoshi-kun can eat tonight for free. Full discount."

"Yes!" Yamamoto cheers, and Tsuna perks up. Maybe he won't be homeless for the night!

"T-thank you so much, Yamamoto-san!" Tsuna thanks profusely, bowing deeply at the older man.

Yamamoto Tsuyoshi simply smiles at him, leaning in to say, "No, thank you, Tsunayoshi-kun. It's been a while since I've seen Takeshi smile like that." Backing away from the stunned Tsuna, he announces more loudly, "Get the best stock out, Takeshi! We've gotta treat this friend of yours!"

Yamamoto, pleasantly confused at his father and his new (old?) friend's exchange, simply nods exuberantly. "Of course! Have a seat, Tsuna! We'll get whatever you want. It's on the house so don't be shy!"

"Y-yeah!" Tsuna agrees, but as he watches the two Yamamotos walk away, he can't get Yamamoto's father's words out of his mind.

"It's been a while since I've seen Takeshi smile like that."

Tsuna frowns.

"That reminds me," Yamamoto says, wiping down one of the tables. "You never told me when you moved away, Tsuna."

"E-eh?" Tsuna nearly slides across the surface of his own table, catching his balance before he fell over. (He'd ended up talking with the two Yamamotos long until closing – and then immediately insisted that he work for his meal.) "Er, moved… away?"

Yamamoto nods. "Yeah! Since I don't remember seeing you in middle school, and I haven't seen you around in our high school, I was wondering when you moved away! Unless you transferred schools?"

Tsuna freezes. He doesn't actually know the fate of this world's Tsuna. If it is a different world at all.

"Er," he says, racking his brain for an answer. "When I was… seven?" It seems like a good enough reply. He himself had been whisked between times and ten years back he would have been seven. Yeah.

"Hmm," Yamamoto says, thoughtful. "I feel like I should still remember you though – it's not like Namimori is a big town."

"It's fine!" Tsuna insists, worried that maybe the him of this world didn't actually go to Namimori Elementary. Or even lived here at all. "I was – er, am, pretty no-good. It's no surprise if you don't remember me! I'm not very memorable."

Not in the good way, anyways. Admittedly, the "No-Good" label only came in after second grade, but still.

Yamamoto continues thinking. "No-good? No good… ah!" He slams his hands down on the table and Tsuna jumps.

"E-eh? W-what?" he squeaks, startled.

"Useless Tsuna!" Yamamoto blurts out, and then immediately closes his mouth, flushing. "Er, no, sorry! I mean—"

It's not the most attractive of nicknames but Tsuna smiles, having to come to accept it as more of a. Worldly truth of sorts by this point. "It's okay; it's true after all. I'm still kind of. Well." Tsuna coughs. "And that was my nickname. Is my nickname, aha."

Yamamoto giggles (?) a bit. "I think just 'Tsuna' fits you better though," he says loyally, and Tsuna feels his heart swell.

"Thanks," he replies, and he means it.

Yamamoto Tsuyoshi however, frowns, thinking. "Sawada… Sawada..," he repeats, and Tsuna turns to look at the older man. Catching his gaze, Yamamoto Sr. Smiles. "Ah, no, sorry. I was just thinking that your name sounds familiar to me too."

"Er, does it…?" The older Yamamoto recognizing his name might be bad – he doesn't know what this world him is doing – or not doing, as it is – at the moment and Yamamoto Tsuyoshi is old enough to remember Tsuna without memory lapses like his son. Tsuna sweats.

"Yeah," the elder Yamamoto continues thoughtfully, wiping the counter down. "There was some commotion in the community some ten years ago, I think... Your mom, she's Sawada Nana, right? And Iemit... su…." Yamamoto Tsuyoshi frowns, head snapping up to look at Tsuna in a new light.

Tsuna tries not to back away at the motion.

"You're the kid who went missing ten years back," Yamamoto Tsuyoshi breathes, looking astonished. "It was all over the news – people thought there were possible kidnappers in the area."

"M-missing?" His younger self went missing? Ten years ago… would be the time when he was in the past! Did his younger self not reappear after he… left?

His intuition prods his head in a definite "yes" and Tsuna blanches.

The younger Yamamoto makes a curious sound. "I think I remember that! You had to walk me home every day for a month!" he says, and turns to Tsuna as well, brows furrowed. "Tsuna… are you…?"

"Have you talked to your parents recently, Tsunayoshi-kun?" the elder Yamamoto asks him and Tsuna feels any good feelings, along with his mouth, dry up.

Byakuran was surprised that he was alive.

This world's Sawada Tsunayoshi is missing.

And Tsuna took his place.

The rag falling from his nerveless fingers, Tsuna stutters out a, "I-I have to go –" and starts backing away from the concerned Yamamotos.

"Tsunayoshi-kun, calm down. If you don't want us to call your parents, it's fine," Yamamoto the elder tells him, approaching him as if he is a wild animal. "But I need you to stay here, Tsunayoshi-kun."

"Tsuna," Yamamoto the younger says, concerned, and Tsuna can't take it anymore.

He turns and legs it.

Sawada Tsunayoshi disappeared from this world ten years ago.

And Tsuna replaced him.

It sounds like a bad joke. A plot of some sci-fi American movie.

(Tsuna's mind flashes uncomfortably with the image of sunglasses and a trench coat. I'll be back. Except not.)

But that doesn't make sense! If he'd been hit by a Ten-Year-Bazooka, he should have switched places with himself. He'd even travelled back to his time in the proper five-minute time span (though admittedly into a skewed kind of universe).

So then if his younger self hadn't appeared back in the past… what did that mean?

The scenario reminds Tsuna of the time Reborn disappeared the first time they'd travelled to the future and— and maybe Shouichi had been to blame for Reborn not reappearing in five minutes, but Gokudera had turned really pale the first time he'd considered the reasons why someone wouldn't switch with their future self.

Reborn had been dead in that future world.

… What does that mean for Tsuna, then?

Tsuna doesn't want to consider it. He'd worry about this later. Later. When he isn't running away from. From something. Tsuna has the uncomfortable feeling that he's not really running away from the Yamamotos anymore.

Reborn isn't here to keep Tsuna's head on straight.

Tsuna sighs, homesick.

Tsuna makes it maybe three blocks before he's accosted. Though not by either of the Yamamotos or the police.

The sun has set by this time, and really, Tsuna should have known better than to wander around town looking so lost. It doesn't take long until Tsuna bumps into someone large and ugly, and he wrinkles his nose at the smell of sweat. "Oh, um, sorry – ah."

A burly man Tsuna vaguely recognizes as part of the local Momokyokai gang grins down at him. Threateningly. Or something.

"Hey, kid," the man says, and Tsuna grimaces. "That's a nice suit you have there – perhaps you have some other nice things to share with us?"

If that's not the most cliché line Tsuna has heard, he'd eat his ring. His suit is not actually that expensive. It was his day off today – meaning no meetings to go to or look nice for. It's the cheap, comfy one he bought at the department store with Kyoko and the others.

"I don't have much…?" Tsuna squeaks out, still a wimp at heart. No amount of Reborn's training has gotten rid of his easily-bullied kind of aura and Tsuna doubts it will, honestly. "I'm kind of, um, in a hurry, so if you'll excuse me –"

Tsuna takes no chances. Instincts honed from years of bullying (mostly from Reborn), he takes off into a dead sprint.

He makes it maybe a minute before he's roughly grabbed and pulled somewhere by his arm. It's a store, and the traditional style sliding door shuts behind Tsuna like a death rattle. Well, 6000 yen, it was a good ride. Nice knowing you.

"To think I'd find someone like you as I was heading out for my daily walk. The world truly is strange."

Who goes out for a walk at this time of night? Tsuna blinks and examines his attacker. Who isn't one at all. "Kawahira-ojisan?"

Kawahira stares back at Tsuna, looking rather bemused. "Yes, that would be me. And you are?"

Rambunctious yells thunder down the street outside and Tsuna holds his breath, making sure the yakuza have passed on by before answering the man still holding him against the store entrance. "S-Sawada Tsunayoshi," Tsuna answers at length, uncertain what to make of a parallel world Checkerface. Er, this was still that Checkerface, right?

Kawahira stays silent for a long moment, eyes looking like they are x-raying Tsuna. Maybe he is, Tsuna thinks. He doesn't actually know much about the man other than his Arcobaleno gathering gig.

"You have amazingly pure Sky Flames," Kawahira announces, and Tsuna stiffens. The man raises an eyebrow. "And maybe you even know how to use them? Perhaps you're the odd flash of flame I felt today. Or ten years ago."

Kawahira – no, Checkerface – leans in far past Tsuna's comfort range (not that the man hadn't been already), and his eyes. Tsuna can swear they're glowing.

Tsuna swallows nervously. This sounds like a conversation he needs more information for. Reborn for. "I-I, um," Tsuna stutters out, eyes crossing as he attempts to focus on Checkerface's extremely close visage. "I don't –"

Very suddenly, Kawahira steps back out of Tsuna's personal bubble, face smoothing over as if he hadn't been about to eat Tsuna alive or something. He smiles mildly at Tsuna and says, "Sawada Tsunayoshi-kun, hmm? Any relation to Sawada Iemitsu, perhaps?" Kawahira doesn't give Tsuna the opportunity to answer, plowing on through by himself with a, "I'll keep an eye on you."

Tsuna shivers.

"Yes," Kawahira says, the ghost of a checkered-pattern shadows over his face. "You'll do nicely." The shadow passes, and, in a case of severe mood whiplash, Kawahira smiles cheerily at Tsuna. "Please feel free to spend the night, Tsunayoshi-kun. The nights aren't safe with the Yakuza around. Would you like some tea? I just splurged recently on some really nice green tea leaves."

The man twirls around and disappears into the back room of his shop, leaving a hyperventilating Tsuna clutching at the wall.

Tsuna belatedly blubbers out a faint, "I-I'm good. Thank you."

He doesn't want to take the man up on the offer. Either one.

Kawahira takes the decision out of Tsuna's hands, however, coming back with a teapot and two mugs. "It's really good, you know. Here. It'll calm you down."

Tsuna grasps the warm ceramic on instinct. The tea smells good.

Kawahira raises his eyebrows at him. "You're not much like your dad, are you?"

"I'm not," Tsuna replies automatically. Then, "Wait, you know my father?"

This shouldn't be surprising, Tsuna thinks, belatedly. The man knew about a lot of things. Well. Everything. The incident with Zakuro of the Six Funeral Wreaths comes to mind.

Kawahira hums, taking a slow sip of his tea. "So. Sawada Iemitsu is your father, huh." He contemplates this for a long moment, making Tsuna squirm. "Sawada Tsunayoshi… You're the one who disappeared off the face of the planet ten years back." Kawahira angles his face so that the light reflects off his spectacles and Tsuna finds himself trying to read eyebrows. "Hmm."

Eyebrows don't say much. "Um," Tsuna tries. "W-what do you mean by 'disappeared'? What happened to… me?"

Kawahira makes more eyebrows at him. "I don't know," he replies, frowning.

He doesn't offer anything more.

"Oh." Something that even that Checkerface did not know.

Tsuna curls up around his tea. He wants to go home.

An early chapter 'cause I got too excited. Hopefully this will help as a judge of character for where this story is heading.

Also I apologize about Checkerface? God he turned out ten times creepier than I meant him to. Please excuse him.