Title: Fiamma: The Assassin

Summary: Every assassin have their own rules, yet all follows one golden rule: Never get emotionally involved with your target. Fiamma knows this. Yet, meeting that person, he can't help but break the most important rule of all…

Disclaimer: Katekyo Hitman Reborn! belongs to Akira Amano

Pairing: Eventual!G27

Warnings: AU; Language

Fiamma: The Assassin

Chapter 13

"I~ found~ you~"

(The words that started it all, huh…)

This wasn't supposed to happen.

They were supposed to go for a picnic. It was something they hadn't done in a while and was something everyone looked forward to. It was a celebration of the anniversary of his new-found life. Instead…

…it turned out to be the anniversary of yet another life gone.

(That man came appearing just like an angel.)

Dressed in a white suit and a white overcoat, that man appeared in the midst of their outing. A deceptively angelic smile on his face, mischievous lavender orbs had taken a look at the group before an amused chuckle escaped his lips. And then… the words that sent a chill down everyone's spine. Tension broke out as the adults tightened their guards, while the one child among them subconsciously clung to his protector.

"Do we know you?" Timoteo, the 'leader' of the group had asked.

"Know me? Nope~" The man sang. "But now you do. My name is Byakuran." He smiled pleasantly before his eyes trailed to the trembling child. "And I'm here to take that kid from you."

(That's right… from the moment 'that' happened, I was a tool. An unsharpened tool, but a tool nevertheless…)

"And what makes you think we'll give him up just like that?" Reborn hissed, squeezing the child's shoulder comfortingly.

Byakuran shrugged, "I don't care if you give him up or not. I want that child. If you're not going to give him up…" He smirked as his eyes narrowed dangerously. "Well… I just have to get rid of the obstacles, no?"

It was right there and then did the adults conceded to the revelations they have had the moment the man had appeared.

Byakuran was strong.

Strong enough to possibly take half of them out, at the very least.

And then, right after their silent admission, Timoteo made a decision. "Reborn, take Tsuna and run!"

"What? What about you?" Reborn frowned. He was the strongest of the adults; he was more than confident that he could take Byakuran on. Yet, as the words left his lips, the hitman understood why Timoteo came to that decision.

(Letting Reborn, who is the strongest of them, take me best ensures I won't fall into that person's hands, after all…)

"Go!" Timoteo shouted, already moving to intercept Byakuran, along with the others.

Reborn growled, clearly displeased at having to leave his old friend behind to face Byakuran, yet still desiring to protect the child as much as Timoteo did. Pushing aside his internal protests, the hitman scooped up the wailing child into his arms and turned, grunting as the child recovered enough to struggle against his grip.

"No… Grandpa!"

(This is all my fault.)

Timoteo flashed the child the best reassuring smile he could muster at that time, well aware that Byakuran was not holding back at all as he attacked. "I'll be fine. Don't cry." He spoke gently, before he turned to Reborn. "Go."

(I'm the reason why they're dead.)

"…Don't die on me." Reborn said simply as he turned and ran, the child still screaming and sobbing in his arms.

(…I killed them all.)

"Nooooo—"

"—oooo!"

Tsunayoshi felt a sense of déjà vu as he shot up in bed, cringing at the pain that spread all over his body. Squeezing his eyes shut and clenching his fists tightly, the assassin breathed deeply as he willed the tremors of pain to fade away. The brunet let out a shaky breath a few minutes later, when the pain in his back had subsided long enough for him to sit up and take a proper look at his surroundings. It barely took a second for him to recognize the room he was in.

"...Vongola, huh..." Tsunayoshi murmured softly to himself. "And not just any part of Vongola, but my... no, Renato's old room." The assassin chuckled wryly. "Giotto di Vongola, you really are... an idiot."

A quick glance around the room told him that the Vongola boss hadn't touched the room every since Tsunayoshi disappeared; not that there was much in the room to begin with. The assassin moved in with only his weapons on him, so all that's left in the room was what the room came with in the first place: the bed, closet and bedside drawer. The bedside lamp did little to light the room swallowed by the darkness of the night. Tsunayoshi glanced at the small clock sitting on the bedside desk.

—01:27—

Tsunayoshi stared at the clock, listening to the ticks of the second hand as the thoughts swirled around his head. The brunet shifted carefully, testing out the extent of his injuries. The stab wound in his lower back flared up immediately, while the aches all over his body throbbed. Still, deeming them to be bearable enough to move, Tsunayoshi swallowed a grimace as he slowly slipped out of bed. The assassin stretched carefully before trudging over to the closet to grab a change of clothes. Several pain-filled minutes later had the brunet dressed in a simple black button-up along with black slacks.

Tsunayoshi gave the room he was in one last look before jumping out of the windows.

And the assassin was gone from the Vongola estate in just a few minutes, unaware of the pair of eyes watching him from afar.

In one of the numerous sitting rooms within the Vongola mansion, a few of the former Gesso elite assassins were gathered, along with the Vongola Primo, his Right-Hand man, as well as two of the Arcobalenos. The room was quiet as the assassins thought about the offer they were just given.

It was nearly five days after Byakuran's assassination and Tsunayoshi's brush with Death. Giotto had immediately offered the former Gesso assassins, as well as Reborn, to stay at the Vongola estate as they waited for their leader to wake. Tension was high during those few days, especially between some of the assassins and Vongola Guardians (much to the Don Vongola's dismay). Other than intervening when it looked like an actual physical fight was about to break out, Giotto let them be, knowing that while his Guardians were in the wrong for being overly aggressive to the former assassins, they had a legitimate reason to do so in the first place. Instead, the Vongola Primo spent those five days mentally debating the offer he had in mind.

Which brought them to where they were now.

"Why us?" Gokudera was the first to speak up, breaking the long silence. "Even though we are more or less effectively defected, we are... rather, were, assassins from the Famiglia that tried to take your life—your Guardians' too. This makes absolutely no sense."

Giotto leaned back in his sofa chair, not at all surprised at the question. "Hmm, how should I put this..." He murmured to himself, soft orange orbs sweeping across the room. "Perhaps it's that... I can tell that you are all good people."

"We're assassins. We kill for a living." Gokudera deadpanned, 'what-kind-of-fabulous-idiot-are-you' clearly stated on his face. "In fact, our boss tried to kill you and we tried to kill your Guardians. What part of that sounds remotely good to you?"

"Well, the fact that Re— Tsunayoshi… failed in killing me—twice, in fact—and the fact that all my Guardians are alive helps." Giotto smiled brightly.

Yuni giggled behind a hand and Reborn's lips twitched at the flabbergasted looks on the assassins' faces.

"Yes, he's an idiot." G remarked in answer to the assassins' unspoken question. "And if you asked me, I'd trust you as far as I can throw you. Just because you failed, doesn't mean you won't try again. In fact, that goes for Sleeping Beauty in his room too." The Vongola Storm Guardian spoke. Ignoring his boss' look of disapproval and reproach, G continued, "But if this idiot here," He waved towards Giotto (who almost seemed to be on the verge of pouting). "...decides he can and want to trust you lot, then fine. He's the boss, after all. But that doesn't mean the rest of the Guardians will do the same."

"G..." Giotto frowned.

"That is our opinions as the Vongola Guardians. I'm simply stating it as it is." G replied smoothly. "Sorry for the interruption. Go on."

Giotto sighed, knowing that G was right and that there was no room for debate. The Vongola Boss said nothing to the matter and instead turned back to the assassins, who seemed to be holding a conversation via glances and head motions. Finally, it was Yamamoto who spoke up on behalf of his fellow assassins.

"That's a really generous offer you've given us, Don Vongola." The swordsman started politely. "But... considering that Tsuna is still in a coma..." A dark look crossed his face for a split moment, before the usual easy-going smile returned. "And that some of us aren't here," Yamamoto paused briefly to sigh at Hibari and Mukuro's absence (as usual). "...we'd like some time to consider about all of this. As well as to discuss it when all of us are back together."

"Of course," Giotto nodded with a bright smile. (It was already better than his expectations; he didn't get turned down right off the bat, after all.) "I'm glad you're at least considering it. In the meantime, you're free to continue staying here. I already had Alaude update the security, so you can come and go as you please." Turning to the two Arcobalenos, Giotto added, "That goes for you as will, Reborn, Doña Giglio Nero."

"Thank you, Don Vongola," The Sky Arcobaleno smiled gently, whilst Reborn merely flicked his fedora down in gratitude. "And just Yuni will do."

"Giotto will be fine, and it was no problem." Giotto smiled back.

And, as if the Don Vongola jinxed it, Knuckle came rushing into the room with a panicked Lambo in toll. The room's occupants scarcely had a chance to even question why an assassin and a Vongola Guardian was together when the two blurted out.

"We have big problems—"

"—Tsunayoshi-nii is missing!"

Gokudera jumped out of his seat. "What do you mean, 'he's missing'?! Boss is in a coma! Comatose people don't just up and disappear, much less from a secure compound like this!"

"Knuckle, explain." Giotto ordered.

"It's... it's like what he said." Knuckle replied, running a hand though his already-messy hair. "I was on the way to check on him, and met the little one on the way," He gently squeezed the trembling teen's shoulder in comfort. "When we entered the room, it was empty. There was a set of clothing missing from the closet, an extra set on the bed—still unmade, mind you—and not to mention the opened window. I did a quick check, no signs of his weapons."

"That's because his weapons are with me." Reborn spoke up for the first time. "That aside, Tsuna isn't that sloppy; he wouldn't have left the bed unmade or the window opened, so he must have left in a hurry. His injuries were probably slowing him down too. I know for a fact that the stab wound wouldn't have healed enough for him to move comfortably yet."

Gokudera turned to glance and Yamamoto, Chrome and Lambo. The four assassins nodded to each other before dashing to the door of the sitting room.

Giotto frowned, calling out to the assassins. "Where are you going?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Gokudera retorted. "We're going to look for him."

"How?" G demanded. "That assassin of yours is good. He could be anywhere by now."

Gokudera shook his head, "Boss is injured. The last time anyone saw him is, I assume, roughly ten to twelve hours ago. I can calculate roughly where boss would be by now, and we can search the area." He glanced at his fellow assassins, all of them who were on the phone calling the others. "There are seven of us. I don't believe we can't find him!"

"Hibari will meet us outside," Yamamoto announced, tucking his phone away.

"Mukuro-sama as well." Chrome added.

"Ryohei-nii is going to meet us at the front gate." Lambo continued. "He was just at Tsunayoshi-nii's room too."

"Come on, I'll give you the details on the way. I'm still running the calculations." Gokudera instructed as the assassins left as a group.

The remaining occupants of the room was silent, until Giotto got off the sofa chair he was seated in, mumbling something about 'going for a walk'. Naturally, G followed. Knuckle left soon after, leaving the two Arcobalenos behind.

"...Reborn-ojii-sama?" Yuni called softly. The hitman made a small noise in acknowledgement. "Did you... know about this? Did you know this would happen?" She questioned. "Is that why... you 'confiscated' Tsunayoshi-nii-san's weapons in the first place?"

"...I've known that brat for a long time. I admit, I predicted that he would run the moment he woke up." Reborn answered truthfully. "I didn't think keeping his weapons would deter him much, as you've guessed, but I took it anyway."

"But you didn't... try to stop him?" Yuni asked.

"...No, I didn't." Reborn replied. "Because right now, he needs to be alone to sort out his thoughts."

"Knowing Tsunayoshi-nii-san, he'd probably over-think." Yuni smiled wryly. "Just one more thing... Reborn-ojii-sama." Reborn made another noise of acknowledgement, already knowing what his other ward was going to ask. "Do you know where Tsunayoshi-nii-san went?" Yuni questioned.

"Hmm... I wonder."

"What. The. Fuck. Are. You. Doing. Here."

Superbi Squalo, second-in-command of the elite independent assassination squad, Varia, was in a fairly good mood. He'd just returned from particularly bloodthirsty job (which he completed perfectly, of course) and he was prepared to take the night off to actually relax for once after a good meal made by Lussuria (the swordsman hated to admit it, but if weren't for his motherhen-tendencies, the higher-ups of Varia would not have survived for so long, seeing as most of them can't cook to save their lives, and those who can are too lazy to do so).

Therefore, Squalo was not expecting to see their (well, Xanxus', mostly) greatest rival, Fiamma, of all people, to be sitting at their dining table, looking for the most part like he belonged there.

Tsunayoshi, who had been in the midst of lifting his fork, paused and turned to him. "…Eating?" He replied, blinking innocently. Ignoring the incoherent splutters from Squalo, the assassin continued with his meal, happily savouring the home-cooked food. "Lussuria has yours prepared. You should eat it before it turns cold." Tsunayoshi smirked inwardly at the swordman's flabbergasted look. "This is so good, Lussuria. I haven't your food for some time... such a regret."

"Mah~" Lussuria, who was, for the most part, simply delighted at hearing the string of compliments from the assassin, simply grinned. "You're welcomed to have my meals anytime!"

"What...?! Hell no!" Squalo objected. "There is no way I'm letting Fiamma around here."

"After all that we've been through? You wound me, Squalo." Tsunayoshi replied smoothly, in a faked hurt tone. "Besides, Xanxus here," The assassin continued, waving a hand at the (for the most part) impassive Varia leader. "…doesn't seem to mind me being here."

Squalo wisely decided against pointing out that Xanxus was probably too lazy to care. "That doesn't explain why you're here now."

"I was hungry." Tsunayoshi answered with a shrug. "Not to mention, I need a shower…"

"The last we've heard, you were with Vongola." Squalo retorted bitterly.

To his credit, the assassin didn't even twitch. "I was taken in by them," He corrected calmly. "I did not join them. Therefore, I wasn't 'with Vongola' at all, as you put it. It's not exactly my fault Vongola is too dumb to live."

"You let him live. Twice." Squalo snorted.

"Someone like him deserves it." Tsunayoshi murmured. As a silence fell over them, the assassin took the chance to quickly finish up his meal. "Thank you for the meal. I should be going now."

"That's it?" Squalo demanded.

"Sheesh. Do you want me to stay or go?" Tsunayoshi replied, his voice surprisingly light. Then, in a completely flat tone, he continued, "I killed my employer. I have no jobs at the moment. As far as I know, we have no standing grudge at the moment, seeing as you guys got your payment for your bodyguard job. I said it before, didn't I? I just wanted food and shower."

"…Hmph. Whatever." Squalo took his usual seat at the table and loudly demanded for his food.

The assassin barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he headed for the doors after thanking Lussuria once more. Tsunayoshi paused before the door, hand on a doorknob. He had actually visited the Varia headquarters with a question in mind.

"Fiamma-chan?" Lussuria called questioningly.

"…Vongola… What do you think of him?"

"Idiot trash." "Super cute." "Naive."

Tsunayoshi snorted at the immediate responses. "But perhaps…" He murmured. 'We need more of people like him in this world of ours… And in that aspect… maybe… maybe staying a fool… isn't such a bad thing after all.'

"Nngh…"

In a derelict room that has more than half of the furniture utterly destroyed, Tsunayoshi sat cross-legged with his shirt and jacket tossed off to the side in front of an immensely cracked full length mirror. Despite its state, Tsunayoshi could still make out the state of his injuries as he gingerly removed the bandages wrapped around his torso and, at what little he could see in the reflection of the distorted mirror, the assassin grimaced.

Jumping out of a two-storey window and taking a nine-hour trip (pitstop at Varia headquarters included) to finally reach where he was, hadn't help his still healing injuries at all. While the wound he got from Squalo has fully closed, the wound in his lower back hadn't, and the amount of movements he had made had, in fact, reopened it.

With a pained sigh, Tsunayoshi reached for the mini-med kit (that Lussuria had insisted he take with him) and began to clean the wound. Or, at least, he attempted to. The fact that the wound was on his lower left and that the mirror was cracked was making it fairly difficult for him to properly reach the wound, much less clean it. After a few minutes of struggling, the assassin was just about ready to give up and simply re-bandage the wound, when a calloused hand snagged the cotton Tsunayoshi was trying to clean the wound with.

"Are you trying to open your wound even more, you moron?!"

Tsunayoshi swallowed. "…R… Reborn."

A/N: Guess who finally decided to get off her lazy ass and write? /murdered brutally

I'd really like to have an excuse, but it's basically school+procrasination+distraction from shiny new bunnies. I'm sorry. But here we go! The starting scene wasn't in my original plan, but seeing how much I've teased Tsunayoshi's past, not to mention the cliffhangers (and, of course, the slower-than-tortoise-updates), I decided to pre-release a liiiiiitttle bit of Fiamma's past. Hope you've enjoyed that little bit~

I'm still in school, so I can't guarantee fast updates. But I'll try my best not to take THIS long to update again... (*cringes at the 'Updated' date*)

Thank you all for your patience and for reading this still. Ciao Ciao~