Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn.
I would like to thank you for all the reviews, favorites and alerts. They really encouraged me a lot in the writing process. Although I will not post a new chapter for this story next Friday, I hope you guys will give my new one-shot a chance. It's for Hibari's birthday (May 5th) and I wanted to give him something special… That's all . Have fun and enjoy!
Two Can Play at This Game:
Chapter 3: The Festival Game!
The beautiful morning arrived without a trace of Tsuna's late night brush with Death. At 11 am, the tired boss left his bedroom and proceeded toward the dining area, looking for foods. Before he entered the large room, the amount of noises and excited chatters promised him a happy gathering for this Saturday brunch instead of the thick tension from last night.
Taking his seat, Tsuna sighed in relief and began eating his breakfast while the mansion workers were going around the long table, taking orders, refilling and tending to everyone. At one point near the end of brunch, Haru and Kyoko politely asked them all to attend the summer festival later on this Saturday.
Most of his guardians agreed easily, some more eager than others and Hibari was not present to give his opinion. But, the overall consensus was enthusiasm, even his 'older brother' and Squalo wanted to join them as well. Chrome winked at him; her innocent eye twinkled with happiness.
Thinking that yesterday's fiasco was already in the past, Tsuna went to the villa's rooftop pool in his red shorts, hoping to relax his tense muscles this afternoon.
Lying down on a lounge chair, the sweet boss, for once, truly appreciated this rare window of 'alone time'. Sadly, as fate would have it, he was soon joined by a sleepy-looking Cloud in a white cotton shirt and light khaki pants. Holding his breath, Tsuna followed his guardian's movement and observed surreptitiously as the skylark settled on the lounge chair to his left.
As Tsuna exhaled softly beside the napping guardian, Squalo broke the peaceful silence with his loud entrance and Dino followed him onto the rooftop, both wearing nothing except matching navy swim trunks. The sword emperor took his friend to the opposite side of the pool, facing Tsuna and his now greatly irritated Cloud.
The two Italians sat on the edge of the pool with their legs dipped in the sparkling water of the azure pool. Once settled down, the Shark produced a bottle of sunblock while the Bronco carefully placed his turtle on the chair behind him.
"Kufufufu… How interesting!" Tsuna's Mist guardian made his presence known from behind the young boss' lounge chair, all the while ignoring Hibari's death glares. The illusionist rested his elbows on the back of Tsuna's chair; his head hovering above the brunette's mane. Tsuna was glad that his Cloud chose to refocus on his texting instead of challenging Mukuro into a bloody battle like so many times before.
To distract himself, the nice don switched his attention onto the couple in front of him. Coincidentally, Dino was applying sunscreen on Squalo's back and Tsuna could not pull his gaze away from them. The blonde's fingers meticulously moved across the muscular canvas, spreading the lotion evenly before stopping at the swordsman's shoulders. The enthralled brunette did not even feel a few droplets of liquid seeping through his scalp at the moment.
A moment later, instead of breathing, Tsuna found himself staring once again to his right when a fuming Xanxus approached the last empty lounge chair on his side. The dangerous Varia leader, clad in an unbuttoned shirt and casual black slacks, caught the aloof Cloud's eyes before narrowing his smoldering eyes at the half-naked pair.
Being a well-trained Mafia boss that he was, Tsuna detected a distinct sound of Xanxus' guns vibrating in rapid intervals. As enticed as he was by the performance from the opposite side, Tsuna could not stop worrying about Xanxus' angry ticks.
The next thing he knew, Squalo was spreading lotion on his self-proclaimed older brother's abdominal muscles. Tsuna was not so sure if this simple task was supposed to be so arousing, but he found his eyes hypnotized by the circular hand motions and the ways those long fingers playfully caressing the Bucking Horse's toned stomach. Dino was turning pale from holding his breath for too long, dreading the ominous glaring.
It took Tsuna a few minutes to notice the rise in temperature that he initially assumed was from his inner excitement. Looking to his left, Hibari-san was gripping his armrests in a suffocating chokehold; his white knuckles tightened around the innocent objects as if they were constricting his archenemy's throat.
From both his right and left side, Tsuna could experience the intense heat waves radiating from his allies' once indifferent body. Too concerned with his body being turned to seared ahi tuna, the young boss did not notice the increasing wetness atop his head. As Mukuro leaned out further to enjoy the seductive show before him, more liquid dropped on Tsuna's torso.
While Squalo and Dino engaged in their fascinating acts, Xanxus quickly strode away from his spot, jerking his head curtly at Hibari. Tsuna immediately covered his head in primal survival instincts only to witness his dangerous hitmen walking to the opposite side of the pool.
Once the two positioned themselves behind the busy Shark and Bronco, angry feet shoved the sitting pair face-first into the serene pool. After a lot of cursing from Squalo and splashing from Dino, one blond mop and one silver head popped out of the clear water. On the other side, Tsuna and Mukuro watched the show unfolding with great anticipation.
Making sure of their intended audience's attention, Xanxus closed the distance between his body and the Cloud's. His hands reached out and slowly unclasped Hibari's buttons. Deadly fingers maneuvered gently and expertly through the fabrics, revealing the skylark's chiseled upper body. His dark eyes shone with mischievousness and appreciation as the guardian's sculpted flesh emerged. Twin smirks appeared on their lips. Without breaking eye contact, Hibari's tongue wetted his lower lip casually.
The sword emperor was rooted to his spot, unable to either stop Xanxus or control his rising fury. Mukuro drifted silently onto a better location on the edge, mismatched eyes gleaming with glee. The Mist seemed entirely too happy with the free shows he was watching.
The moment Hibari's removed shirt fell on the rooftop, Dino's sinking head disappeared from the surface, leaving behind only a faint reflection of the blond mop and numerous bubbles in his space. Casting a glance around his 'stage', Hibari spoke for the first time this afternoon.
"Let's take this inside, Monkey King. We wouldn't want to scar the naïve herbivore for life." A mocking chuckle escaped the Cloud's throat.
"Fine!" Xanxus glared at Tsuna before heading in, his eyes unreadable.
"Will you give that turtle some water, Monkey King?" Hibari pointed at Enzio while Tsuna stared in eye-popping disbelief and horror.
Meanwhile, Xanxus, being the 'sensitive' person he was (translation: violent and abusive), picked up Dino's pet and effortlessly tossed the small creature over his shoulders into the peaceful pool.
Tsuna's reaction this time was to close his eyes and curse his fate. Someone up there sure hates me a lot. Even my own happy daydream was turned into the dreadful session of last night torture. I prayed for the building to crack open and swallow me yesterday only to have the wish come true fifteen hours later, courtesy of a Godzilla-size turtle. If I weren't so dead, I would have laughed at this irony. But no,…Kami-sama, please save me!!!
Luckily for Tsuna, he would not have to enter the eternal hall of shame by becoming the first ever homeless Mafia boss of the Vongola. The moment a seething Squalo yanked Dino's head out of the drowning embrace of water, the Cavallone saw Enzio flying toward him and caught the turtle in mid air by a stroke of pure luck.
Cracking one eye open, Tsuna prepared for acute chest pains and a disaster scene that would put any Hollywood production to shame. Instead, he was able to slowly exhale and took stock of the remaining famiglia. On the edge of his pool side, Mukuro was having a blissful look on his face, still high from Hibari and Xanxus' electrifying performance.
Running a nervous hand through his brown mane, Tsuna found it covered in a sticky red liquid. A quick check with his face and torso revealed the same red substance. Looking at his Mist, Tsuna found a rather conspicuous nose-bleed his perverted stalker was sporting. Leading from his lounge chair to the pool edge, a trail of blood drops mapped the way on the white roof.
Deciding that he had had enough excitement in one afternoon, Tsuna drudged his feet to the exit, heading for his own room. His abused brain could only process one little concern. How am I gonna explain the blood covering my body, running down my legs and leaving its marks on the floor to every person I encounter from here to the door of my room?
At 4 pm, Tsuna finished his hour-long shower and changed into casual clothes for the summer festival. Stepping into the main hall, the young boss saw the girls and his guardians assembled in civilian outfits and ready for the famiglia outing. Dino and Squalo were also waiting side-by-side near the front door while Xanxus and Hibari were nowhere to be found.
The long walk from the Vongola Japanese Base to the festival ground was even enjoyable thanks to the bright and windy weather. Kyoko, Haru and Lambo were the first to enter the busy park. Behind them were Chrome and Mukuro, lost in their own conversation. Tsuna and Gokudera strolled casually along while Yamamoto lagged slightly behind to listen to the sword emperor's heroic stories and Dino's factual clarifications.
An hour later, while roaming the booths for more games and junk foods, Tsuna and his best friends found Hibari and Xanxus exploring the festival together. And despite the crowded street, these two managed to form their personal bubble of space. Everyone steered clear of them as if there was an actual force field with a five-foot radius. The free skylark wore a simple blue shirt and pants, accompanied by Xanxus in his normal dress code and a Varia jacket hanging on his shoulders.
Dino and Squalo eventually caught onto their staring and paused to observe the pair as well. Stopping by booths that intrigued the two, Hibari accepted gifts and merchandises from vendors who wanted his good graces although the Cloud and his organization had long ended their amateur extortions in favor of the Mafia business. Tsuna's group was gazing in speechless wonder as Hibari shared his treasures with Xanxus who did not complain about the food, drinks or simple souvenirs.
A couple hours of wandering passed, the girls and Lambo went into a large pastry booth in search for novel creations while Tsuna and his guardians gathered in front of a fruit stand. Across from them, Hibari and Xanxus were waiting to try another vendor's edible products. Thanks to the two's combined aura, the street area in front of the two booths were empty, leaving a clear view for either side to observe.
Squalo surprisingly had the urge to seduce Xanxus or at least remind him of how much the Varia leader was missing without his company. Purchasing a beautiful persimmon, the Shark turned his body, giving the other pair a sideway profile of his performance and his supposed lover, Dino, an up close and personal show.
Somewhere in his fantasy, the sword emperor would sweep back his silver hair, exposing strong neck and biting into this enticing fruit. The plump flesh would press against his lips tenderly while the sweet nectar would flow down and cover the lower half of his face in the most sensual manners. He would then proceed to lick, kiss and suck the red fruit with his tongue and mouth. The result would be an enthralled Dino and one jealous Xanxus rushing over to his side after being totally aroused by his borderline aggressive sexual display…
Encouraged by his overactive imagination and festival-induced optimism, Squalo proceeded to sink his teeth into the big persimmon. With a chunk halfway into his mouth, Squalo realized the unpleasantness of the fruit's tart flesh could only be rivaled by the jaw-clenching sourness of its overflowing juice.
As the acid-like nectar dripped down his chin, Squalo took a quick glance in Xanxus' direction and found his boss staring fixedly at him. Convinced by a sense of unfound confidence, the Varia second in command quickly swallowed the unpalatable piece of fruit, steeling himself for the next move only to find both his targets (translation: Dino and Xanxus) were focusing on the Vongola Cloud instead.
In his haste to vent his fury, Squalo did not notice the rather indigestible seed included in his bite. Turning himself around to face Xanxus, the swordsman suddenly noticed his now wet sandals. Frustrated by the failure of his scheme and the fact that Dino's snow-cone was melting on his exposed feet while the blonde salivated at the pair across the street, the Shark opened his mouth, sucked in air and allowed the persimmon chunk to enter his body cavity.
Before he could utter a single syllable, the seed lodged itself in the middle of his esophagus, preventing its fruity companion from passing and causing the shark some breathing difficulties. Taking advantage of that, some of the acid-like juice in Squalo's mouth flowed down his trachea and disrupted his rather vital air flow. More choking, gagging and wheezing ensued.
SMACK! Fortunately for Squalo, the Vongola Mist appeared beside him and slapped his back with enough force to expel the Shark's lungs. Thankfully, the Varia swordsman coughed up the fruit, seed as well as its offending juices with Mukuro's help.
Unfortunately for Tsuna who chose to approach the coughing Squalo in concern a second too late, the sweet boss was showered with the sword emperor's rejected persimmon parts; mucous and saliva included with no extra charge.
Gingerly wiping his face, the Vongola Decimo caught sight of a smirking Mukuro and the brunette was quite confident that his Mist had not helped Squalo simply out of human decency. It was the second time today Tsuna was covered in someone's uncontrolled bodily fluids courtesy of one elusive illusionist. And I've not even had sex yet; perfect, I could not wait…
During Squalo's coughing episode, the vendor handed Hibari a generous order of hot takoyaki. Handing a bamboo stick to Xanxus, the skylark caught Dino's blatant staring. As planned, the two deadly men began to share the food, hopefully in a 'heart-warming' manner.
Not surprisingly, the Cloud found Xanxus lacking in subtle maneuverings; the reckless gun wielder was unused to delivering gentle gestures the way a certain Cavallone so generously dispensed. With one eye on the choking Shark, the Varia leader almost impaled the aloof guardian through the roof of his mouth with the sharp stick while trying to feed him an octopus ball.
A part of Hibari's heart unexpectedly contracted at memories of an Italian don patiently catering to his whims, attentively offering him foods and affectionate touches. It's the stupid Bucking Horse's fault for helping the Shark! Though unconvinced by his own justification, Hibari refused to acknowledge how much he missed the blonde and how painful this game could be at times.
Instead, he retaliated by barely missing Xanxus' right eyeball in his effort to feed the Varia boss takoyaki with his bamboo stick. Had his skewering attempt succeeded, Squalo's one and only Chief Pissing Ass would have had to join the pirate crew. Neither party was happy with this event, but the stubborn mafiosi were determined to continue this charade until either Squalo or Xanxus yielded and admitted his true intentions.
When Squalo's choking fit was over, Dino returned to earth after spending all his attention on Hibari's activities. Tactfully cleaning his strands of drool, Dino became aware that Tsuna now walked alongside him, carefully avoiding contact with Squalo as well as Mukuro.
In the mean time, Squalo approached the Rain guardian with full intentions of using the Japanese swordsman for his 'game'. Grabbing Yamamoto, the sword emperor led him toward the lagging group, leaving a sulky Gokudera to stand underneath a tree while waiting for the girls to return from their cake feast.
A few feet away from the irritated Storm and tricky Mist, a laughing baseball idiot was enjoying himself with the Shark's recalling of his choking and coughing episode in front of Dino and Tsuna. An accusatory glare was shot at the Cavallone boss.
"It wasn't my fault I got distracted during your performance. Ow!!!" A kick to the blonde's right shin. Nor was it my fault I wished to be in Xanxus' shoes, sharing delightful takoyaki with Kyoya. And, what happened to my snow-cone?!!
"Just keep your head in the game, idiot!" growled a pissed Shark. Tsuna looked on, a couple of light bulbs lit up atop his wet mane.
While they were conversing, the Vongola right-hand man was getting increasingly fed up with his oblivious lover. Even though he was a genius when it came to fighting and planning, the Vongola Storm was not very adept at the arts of seduction. He should have spent more time reading dating tips than chasing after articles about UFOs and Lochness monster.
Failing to see Squalo's unsuccessful attempt, the volatile guardian glanced behind the tree and found the perfect food to entice his baseball idiot back to his side. Never mind that Yamamoto was not cheating on him or finding any special interest in his former tutor, Superbi Squalo.
Holding onto his newly purchased chocolate-covered banana, Gokudera tried to catch Yamamoto's eyes. The moment the Rain looked in his direction, the Storm put the cold banana into his mouth and did his best to imitate the sexual arousal such sucking motions, lips and tongue actions should elicit had this been a pornographic production. Immediately, Takeshi appeared at his side.
"You're eating it wrong, Hayato. Ha ha, are you sure I'm the idiot? Don't swallow the whole thing like that, you might choke on it like Squalo. Don't suck or lick too hard, either. It's not ice cream, you know!" The legendary baseball player instructed tentatively with a huge grin on his face.
Pulling the banana out of Hayato's stunned mouth, the natural-born hitman took his lover's left hand and helped him hold the delicious treat in the correct position.
"Here, take a bite before the chocolate melts off! I can't believe you don't remember how to eat this. We used to sell choco bananas back in middle school, remember?" The grin got wider and his honey eyes were almost closed. Somewhere behind the happy Rain, Squalo and Dino were chortling while Hayato's beloved boss sent him a few sympathetic looks.
If it were not so humiliating, the genius would have slapped his chocolate-smeared palm against his forehead. Meanwhile, Squalo took the chance to drag Yamamoto away while Gokudera fled from his embarrassing disposition. On his way to dispose the banana, Gokudera encountered Hibari with Xanxus following behind. Identical sadistic smirks foretold unpleasant things.
"Herbivore, that was very entertaining. Wouldn't you agree, Monkey King? When you are done with sucking on phallic objects, let me know." Hibari whispered his snide comment with a satisfied sneer while Xanxus was reenacting the Storm's pitiful attempt in obvious mirth.
"Guys, let's go see the fireworks! March to the hill we go! One, two…" Haru announced their destination, interrupting the Storm's homicidal rage.
Following the girls, Lambo, Mukuro, Squalo, Yamamoto and Dino, the two natural-born bullies left the fuming Hayato behind with Tsuna rushing to his side.
For the second time this evening, the brilliant right-hand man wanted to bang his head against a hard object; the big tree over there would do. If it had not been for his kind boss who held him back, the proud Storm would not had found such pathetically sad stress-relieving tactic beneath him to commit. But the bastard was right; the baseball idiot did not understand my desperate display at all. Maybe, it's time for drastic measures…
Keeping a good distance from Tsuna' independent guardian and violent ally, Gokudera formulated his own strategy to recapture his sweet but air-headed lover. Up ahead, Squalo and Yamamoto were talking in low voices and discussing their plan for later on tonight.
Tsuna had a distinct feeling that there would not be just fireworks in the sky tonight. At the rate things were progressing, he could expect an explosion of some sorts, courtesy of his beloved Famiglia (translation: hard-headed and violent-prone). Somewhere in his mind, inner Tsuna blamed his dad for either unintentionally giving him this deranged family or deliberately punishing him for being born a soft-hearted boy.
Mindlessly walking toward the hill with a brooding Gokudera, Tsuna briefly wondered if it was too late to switch places with Xanxus. The Varia did not give Xanxus any trouble. They treated their boss with genuine admiration and Squalo knows how to run the group without his concern. Hmm…I wouldn't mind staying in a locked study, sitting on my butts all day, inhaling my favorite healing substance, losing my worries behind its smoke screen, constantly high…No troublemakers, no pain, no Reborn…
"Tenth! Are you all right? Here, you should clean those strands of drool…" The concerned right-hand man was waving a napkin in front of Tsuna's hazy orbs.
After thanking his best friend, Tsuna sighed heavily, mourning his interrupted fantasy. Now, when is a good time to secretly trade titles with Xanxus?
Finally, they arrived at the top of the memorable hill of their middle school days. Let's the fireworks begin!!!
Hello dear readers! Please leave me your comments/ review for this chapter as well. I'm hoping for ~6 reviews this time. Thank you and see you next time.