CHAPTER 17: WEB OF LIES

Tsuna couldn't remember the last time he had slept like this. He tossed and turned, the flimsy blanket quivering loudly as it followed his movements. He sat up, frustrated and looked over at the still Mukuro in the corner. Strangely enough, even though Mukuro and he had a small quarrel of who would have the honors in getting the couch, Mukuro reluctantly admitted defeat; but didn't sleep on the bed. Instead, Mukuro had simply set himself onto a small chair and slept there. It looked uncomfortable. Tsuna scowled. He bet that he was just doing this on purpose so he would feel bad.

He swung his legs over the couch to touch the gritty floor, toes curling. It didn't feel right. Sleeping. He tried it earlier but his eyes just wouldn't close. It felt as if he was giving up finding away home, as weird as it sounded. It felt like he should be out and awake, trying to unravel the mystery of his presence in this world, not sleeping.

He looked at the pillow he was using. The blanket. The couch. The clothes. All of it was none of his. All of these things weren't his. And in general, he wasn't Cielo's. What was he doing? He shouldn't be here. Tsuna put his head in his hands. He felt so lost. He didn't know what to do now. Now that he was part of this—Kokuyo Bureau, then now what? How long could he stay? Could he afford to stay? Hibari could be out there now, looking for him. Even his dad, who witnessed him falling into that hole.

He missed home. Kyoko, Haru, and even missed Ryohei, who scared him so much. Tsuna smiled to himself dully, and to think that he would do anything to see things he once disliked he'd be overjoyed to see again. Tsuna laughed quietly at the thought. His dirty clothes sat on the small table, that was once overturned, along with Gamma's borrowed socks, folded nice and neat. The attire he was wearing was Mukuro's old gaudy blue camouflage shirt with a pair of dark green pants (Mukuro had explained to him that they were once part of a school uniform). The pants were too long for him so he rolled it up. It served better than having to hold the pant's legs up as he walked. Taking the white blanket it wrapping it deftly around himself, Tsuna began his trek across the stage-like room. He approached Mukuro, who looked up at his approach.

"You can't sneak up on me." He said simply, looking up through lazy eyes.

Tsuna kneeled down to his eye level, his arms wrapping around himself, "Where you awake this entire time?"

"Yes." Mukuro said lowly, "I heard you from over here." Tsuna looked down to the floor, eyebrows furrowing in thought. If that's true, than Mukuro must have heard his physical frustration he took out on the blankets just minutes before. He wondered what was going through his mind as he did so. What conclusions did Mukuro make?

"Is there something wrong? Can't sleep on the couch?" He snorted smugly, "I told you to sleep on the bed, but would you listen? Stubborn little boy. Now look at us, we're both suffering."

"Mukuro," Tsuna began, voice shaking, "I need to ask a favor of you."

With a grunt, Mukuro sat up in attention, a little more alert, leaning towards Tsuna, "What?" He replied grumpily, but didn't deny Tsuna's plea.

"I…want to find someone." Now here was the hard part. He could choose to look for Hibari, but he didn't know if he was even here. However, one thing he did know was that Gokudera-kun was out there somewhere in Cielo. He knew that Hibari could probably take care of himself however Gokudera-kun he was unsure of. Was that even the same person? Had he mistaken the look-alike for his Gokudera? But if he did find him, it would be a whole lot better than hanging out with a bunch of strangers and be a member of some crazy gang. They could find a way home together.

"Who is it?" Mukuro asked, eyes narrowing, "I thought you were alone here."

"I thought so too but," Tsuna stood up, his legs were beginning to turn numb. He trailed in circles slowly, finally stopping to look over to the lone couch by the window. "For some reason, he's here. And I want to ask him why."

His explanation didn't make any sense, but Mukuro nodded, "So, what you need is to find someone. Is that what you want?"

Tsuna blinked, eyes fixing on Mukuro with determination, "Yes."

Mukuro got off his chair and stood in front of Tsuna. He narrowed his eyes, but they were lit up brightly in absolute decision. "Then so be it. Because you saved me from the Millefiore, I am indebted to you and will do whatever it takes to get you to that person you seek."

They stared at eachother for a moment. Tsuna smiled, looking away, "Thank you." Getting to business, Tsuna's smile dropped, "The person I'm looking for is named Gokudera Hayato. He has this silver hair and green eyes. He kinda sticks out of the crowd—" Tsuna shook his head, no, he would go completely unnoticed here. His fashion was similar to any other person in Cielo. Why hadn't he thought more to this? Gokudera's strange hair and eyes were a big giveaway, "—He has a bad temper."

"I see. That's a very common name. It'll be difficult to find him. But if that's what you want then I'll get started immediately." Mukuro began to turn tail and brush his way out of the room before Tsuna stopped him.

"Not until after you're done sleeping you won't."

Mukuro shrugged, "I don't need to. I was just watching you sleep."

Tsuna took this moment to think about how utterly creepy that was before shaking his head, "Mukuro you can take the couch. Please. I'll take the bed." There was just no other way around it.

Smirking, the tall man chuckled, "Kufufu. Deal."

Tsuna gave him the white blanket, seeing the bed already had one ready. Mukuro took it and without another word, the two took their respective places and laid down. Tsuna contemplated on telling Mukuro good night but thought against it. He had already bugged the man enough already. Finally, at ease that he had at least attempted to make things right, Tsuna fell asleep.

—

The next morning, or, what Tsuna assumed was 'morning' in the ever same gray sky, he had waken up alone. Mukuro left, and judging by the neatly folded cold blanket sitting all by its lonesome on the couch, left a long time ago. Tsuna sighed. He knew this would happen. Partly because Mukuro looked insanely serious as he accepted Tsuna's request and partly because Tsuna felt this sort of I-want-to-please-him vibe going on. He got up, brushing at his borrowed clothes, and slipped on some old brown loafers. They used to been Mukuro's too. They were a tiny bit big on him but he didn't mind the flopping it did against his heel as he walked, you can't get everything, Tsuna thought with a nod.

Opening the door, Tsuna peeked around the hall, completely stunned by the silence in the morning. He stepped out, closing the bedroom door behind him and began to carefully make his way down the stairs. By the time he successfully reached the first floor, he caught the whiff of breakfast. He followed the scent, realizing how extremely hungry he was. The scent was coming from the kitchen and Tsuna blinked to find Chrome sitting down on the counter again, watching the toast burn in the beaten-up toaster. Just as she had yesterday in the meeting, her feet kicked gently at the air. He approached her, "Morning. Chrome, right?"

Chrome blinked, her one eye staring curiously at Tsuna as he stopped at a polite distance, "Yes. Good morning."

"I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi. But you can call me Tsuna."

"Tsunayoshi." She repeated, and just like her male lookalike, she ignored the nickname. "I am Chrome Dokuro."

For a moment, Tsuna stared at her one eye. Why…did she seem so familiar? Something…was telling him something. "Have we met before?" Tsuna asked, waiting to see a spark or recognition in her exposed eye. If they met before…then…maybe she could help.

"I don't believe so." Chrome replied, taking the toast out as they lurched into the air. Tsuna felt disappointment, but didn't let it bug him. She turned away to her own business when he failed to reply, standing up on the counter to gather plates from the cupboard. The boy sat down, staring around the dirty Kokuyo kitchen.

"It is time for breakfast." Chrome said, stepping down as she put plates on the table. The surface in turn, jiggled under the new weight and Chrome held it still, hoping it wouldn't fall over.

Tsuna nodded. After a short awkward span of silence, Tsuna attempted to create conversation, "So where is everyone?"

"Mukuro-sama usually does things by himself. Ken sleeps until the afternoon and Chikusa prefers to read before breakfast." For a moment, Chrome was silent, "The big man, Lanchia—I don't know what he does and…M.M-san does not eat breakfast with us." Tsuna felt a stroke of sympathy at her small discrete quiver. She seemed to be utterly afraid of M.M. Poor girl. Chrome put the sliced toasts on each plate. "There. Please enjoy."

Tsuna stared at the plate in front of him. Just a toast. He looked up at her from his seat, "Um, you usually do breakfast by yourself?"

"Yes." She replied, looking down to her boots to avoid his gaze.

Slowly, as to not make the flaky girl flinch, he approached the cupboard. There was cereal and some yogurt in the ice box. Tsuna turned to the purple-haired girl, who was watching him in distinct fascination. "Chrome, do you have glass cups? I can show you something my mom used to make me in the morning." He grimaced upon saying that. He said 'used to' in past tense. It made him sound like…like it was just a long time ago when it reality it was only about a short twenty-four hours ago.

The girl in question immediately brightened up, looking excited she nodded once and took out two glasses of cups and set them out onto the table, "What else do you need me to do?" She seemed eager, the boy thought with a smile. He shook his head. He shouldn't think of things like that. Especially, when he was talking to someone.

"Please get some spoons. Just two."

Chrome scurried to a drawer, and hurriedly opened it up, getting even more curious each minute.

Taking the cereal, which he could assume was like honey-oat flakes, and the plain white yogurt he took a spoon and scooped out a chunk and let it splat into the cup. Chrome gasped, her one eye staring at Tsuna in admiration. It was strange, despite the fact that he had messed up and some fell onto the table, she looked weirdly impressed. He took the cereal and poured some in, caking the top of the yogurt in cereal. He pushed it towards Chrome, embarrassed that it looked so ugly, but the girl grabbed it from him with gentle hands and took a spoonful into her mouth. With an extremely attractive smile, she turned to Tsuna, "It's good. I never thought yogurt would work so well with cereal."

Tsuna laughed, "Me too, but my mom is a a genius in the kitchen. It's simple though. She taught me to make this if I'm home alone." Mimicking his earlier moves, he did the same with his own cup and sat across from Chrome at the wobbly table. Chrome watched again, not wanting to miss another moment that she might have had earlier. Tsuna laughed to himself at her expression, and she blinked questioningly but thankfully decided not to ask.

The two ate in silence, nibbling on the toast and yogurt-cereal. "I have to leave with Chikusa soon." She said softly, taking another bite.

Tsuna stopped in mid-scoop, "Oh, that's right. The mission thing?"

"Yes."

"Do you usually do these missions alot?"

"Yes."

"It's not going to be dangerous right?" Tsuna asked, leaning into his chair, "Besides, you're coming back soon right?"

"Yes." Chrome said again, reverting back temporarily to the one-word sentences. Noticing, she spoke in full sentence, "We'll be back by at least this afternoon."

Tsuna let himself relax, leaning back into his chair. "That's good. Come back safely then I can teach you something for dinner."

Chrome's giant purple eye widened, and for the first time, Tsuna heard her speak louder—almost into a yell, "Yes! Please do. I'll try my best to come back quickly!"

Tsuna smiled. He pointedly decided that he really liked Chrome. It wasn't often he made friends with girls, especially ones that were his age. She didn't treat him like a loser. In actuality, he never once made friends with girls beside Kyoko and Haru (and she took forever for Tsuna to get used to) and he usually made friends with males, boy or man alike. Then he realized something. He found it very strange, how so many kids back home didn't like him yet so many people here in Cielo do. If not like, then it was interest. Like Gamma, Chrome and Mukuro. And, he shuddered at the thought of the smiley-man, Byakuran. He wasn't so sure about the other Kokuyo members, seeing that he had just recently met them…and also…Gokudera. If he was from here, than that would most definitely prove his theory. Gokudera really…liked him. Almost to the extremities. But to think of it…why? Why did he worship him and constantly obsess over him?

Finally, Tsuna realized that he had completely blocked out Chrome. The girl gave him a silent but curious look, but didn't call him out on it. Tsuna stood up, waving his hands to ward off her anxieties. "Oh! I was spacing out. Sorry."

"It's alright." She said quietly, relieved that the he didn't seem entirely bored with her, "I was telling you that I'm leaving now. Chikusa just popped in to tell us."

Had he? True to her words, Tsuna looked to the door and saw Chikusa there, with both his and Chrome's duffel bags. Tsuna got up, collecting both of their cups. He looked over to Chikusa, "Um, would you like something quick to eat before you go?"

Chikusa only stared back wordlessly.

Tsuna shrugged, guess not. He turned to Chrome, "Come back safely and have a nice trip."

"Yes, as I said earlier, I'll try to make it back as fast as I can."

Tsuna smiled, "Yes, I'll teach you how to make this really nice soup." He wasn't really good at cooking, really. In fact, he didn't cook much at all since his mom was there to help. But it couldn't possibly hurt to teach Chrome the little things he knew-even if they were simple.

Chrome nodded excitedly, and picked up her bag and daintily tucked it under her arms, "Goodbye, Tsunayoshi."

"Bye Chrome." Tsuna turned to Chikusa and waved. He smiled hesitantly, "Bye."

Chikusa only stared before starting out the door with Chrome at his heels. And they were off, just as they were instructed yesterday. He was a bit surprised that Mukuro didn't come to see them off, but guessing by the two's relaxed behavior he guessed that this was a normal thing. Tsuna looked around, confused at what he should do now. He would steadily avoid Ken for now. He didn't want to know what he was like when he just woke up. The same with M.M. and Lanchia, the man looked like trouble. With a guilty conscious he realized that he didn't like anyone but Chrome and Mukuro, who were both absent. He didn't necessarily dislike Chikusa, he was just quiet in general and never once said anything mean at him. But most likely, the one person that had to be the hardest to get along with was a tie between M.M and Lanchia. But he had no right to judge people by their looks, who knows? They could all be nice people. After all, they were with Mukuro, who was nice all around.

Then Tsuna had an idea. He should try cleaning up. He really can't do anything spectacular like those will-dying fire things could but he can always clean up like a normal person. He wasn't a big fan of cleaning, unlike Hibari who constantly nagged him about it, but he decided that this was for the Kokuyo Bureau, so why not? Might as well make himself useful around the…place, he finished silently, not quite ready to call it a house. Tsuna immediately set for the kitchen, determined to make it spotless, or at least find some cleaning utensils in the process. Usually, that's where his mom would keep it.

Spotting a tiny door in the corner, Tsuna opened it, and screamed frightfully as a bug scurried out. He huffed, scowling at the tiny creature as it made its safe escape into a dark corner. Shuddering, Tsuna reached inside the dark cupboard until he felt something long and smooth. He pulled it out, overjoyed to see a broom in his hand. It was dusty, to the point where the broom itself had turned gray, and it very much looked like a witch's broom than anything else. He put it aside, reaching inside the cupboard again. When he couldn't get a bearing of anything else, Tsuna sat back up and narrowed his eyes at the dark space. He wished he had a flashlight. He gave up on the little place until later. Maybe as he brushed the place with the broom he'll find something to help him see in the dark.

Tsuna reached to the broom and brought it close to examine it. It was really dirty, it would only make the floor more dirtier if he used it. Standing up, he gripped the broom in both hands and walked out the Kokuyo front entrance. Taking the broom like a baseball bat, Tsuna tapped the broom lightly against the wall, watching in distinct fascination as the dust puffed out of the broom's straws before it gently was stolen away by the wind. Tsuna coughed, eyes watering and he blinked rapidly. He waved a hand at the floating specks in a desperate attempt to ward away the grimy dust.

He wheezed, sneezing, uh oh. He forgot the most important rule his mom told him. To wear a mask! It had totally crossed his mind! Dropping the broom, Tsuna ran up the stairs, skillfully dodging the memorized-debris and quickly slipped into the room he and Mukuro shared. He made a beeline to the wobbly table in the center, taking up his old blue shirt and wrapped around his neck. He pinned it up with knots to cover both his nose and mouth. There. That should be okay.

He walked down the stairs, this time more slowly, and observed the rooms he passed. It seemed like everyone else was still asleep.

By the time he reached the door, Tsuna was very surprised to see Ken standing outside looking at the broom in confusion. He looked up as Tsuna approached him, "What the hell is this?" The blond boy stopped, and stared at Tsuna staring intently at his makeshift mask.

Tsuna trailed his gaze before answering the silent question, "Oh, I'm cleaning up so I'm using my old shirt as a mask. And I found that broom in the cupboard in the kitchen."

"We had a broom?" Ken shook his head, "Why the hell are you cleaning? We didn't ask you to—" Ken paused in thought, "Did Mukuro-san ask you to do this? Does this include me?"

Tsuna scowled at him, slightly offended, "No, I'm doing this because I want to."

Ken chortled, "The hell? Listen you little shittard, if your just sucking up to Mukuro-san its not going to work. Mukuro-san only need people that are useful. And a little kid like you doesn't belong with the big boys." Ken waved a hand at him, "Now shoo, you're an eyesore."

Tsuna's face burned, whether it was from anger or embarrassment at the words he didn't know. Being called a kid always made him mad. He was thirteen! No one had that right anymore! Tsuna picked up the broom and slammed it against the wall, making Ken and a new cloud of dust jump into the air. "Listen you! I'm not a little kid! I'm tired of you just picking on me for no reason! And Mukuro is nice! The only person he'd drop out of all of us is you and your bad attitude!"

Ken laughed nastily through his nose, shrugging smugly at Tsuna's indignation. "You're a stupid guy. Mukuro isn't exactly what you think."

Tsuna blinked, the broom lowered in his hands and he stared questioningly at Ken's sudden confidence. Seeing him falter, Ken's smile widened even more. "You see, Mukuro isn't nice at all. In fact, he's just the opposite. He'd snap your puny neck if you so happen to go against him even once. So like I said, know your fucking place, because if Mukuro won't kill you soon then I'll do it."

There was silence before Tsuna spoke again. "No, you're wrong."

The blond let his incredulity show before it morphed into annoyance once again, "Hey weren't you even listening to what I said?"

"I've…known someone before." Ken blinked at the oddity of bringing in someone who didn't have any relation to the topic at hand. In fact, he was so confused that he actually let Tsuna continue. "I know someone like Mukuro. He…he was—for a very long time I had always thought that he hated me. But, deep down inside, he was just like me. He thought that I was scared of him. But in actuality, we both just wanted…" Tsuna stopped briefly. "Well, I just…wanted to be his friend…He's…scary-looking but really kind…and I miss him. I believe…that people act like things they're usually not to be taken seriously."

Tsuna gripped the broom tighter to his chest, looking at his too-big shoes. Ken was going to call him an idiot then this whole conversation would start all over again. He just knew it. "And he acts mean sometimes but he lets you guys know that he's human too. I think that you people are special to him, that's why he's nice to you all. You just don't realize it. In reality, you really don't know Mukuro if you can't understand that. "

But instead of further ridiculing Tsuna, Ken only huffed. "Whatever. You got one thing right though."

He looked up, waiting for him to continue.

"We are his special people." Ken growled, turning around to scowl at the building. "Now get that through your thick skull. He's not going to accept you anytime soon."

Ken stomped away, and Tsuna smiled to himself as he continued where he left off, beating the broom against the wall.

—

Shortly he was done cleaning the broom and proceeded to clean the first floor. He moved onto the windows. Some were patched up with some tarp because it was broken, but some were just downright unusable due to the thick grime on the glass. He trailed back to the room again. He went to the bureau Mukuro let him have and opened it. He didn't like using clothing as cleaning rags but in this case he had to, not knowing where everything was. He grabbed at a tan shirt, that was once probably a brown color, and walked out the room. He found a empty spray bottle downstairs on the floor among the array of debris around the Kokuyo Bureau. He filled it up with water and soap to the brim and covered it. Spraying at the windows, Tsuna leisurely used the tan shirt to swipe at the grime and muck. He stepped back, satisfied that he could finally see through the window before moving onto the next one.

He repeated this pattern on all the windows in the first floor until finally the first floor looked actually, accommodating. He tried picking up the trash on the floor but the accumulation was so bad that he had given up about an hour later. He didn't know where to put the trash first of all, and are there garbage trucks in this world? He decided not to ask. He knew if he did, Tsuna would only make a fool out of himself. So he proceeded to at least move the debris somewhere else in the time being. He shoved them into a gargantuan pile in the corner, hoping that one day he'll go back to it. He stared up at cluster, with the broom held in one hand. To think he did this all by himself. Hibari might've laughed if he saw him now.

"May I ask what are you doing?"

Tsuna spun around at the deep voice, half-expecting to see the boogie man standing there with his usual scowl but was surprised to come face to face to a tan chest and Lanchia's overpowering intimidation instead. Tsuna took a giant step back, smiling shakily, "Oh, I'm cleaning."

"As a mission?" Lanchia answered himself, crossing his arms and turned his eyes to the abundance of excess. Tsuna smothered the urge to let out a long-suffering sigh. Why can't he do something one nice thing without being suspected? It's always missions for these people.

"Oh no," Tsuna's gaze vacillated to the floor and back to the pile, "Um, not because I was told to. Just wanted to."

For a moment there was silence. "Keep at it then. Tell me if you need any assistance."

Tsuna looked up, blinking at one of the most terrorizing men he's ever seen. A man that was...actually pretty nice. And friendly. The small boy, in comparison to the tall hulk was much like a small puppy and a huge police hound. He opened squeakily, "I...Lanchia-san, right?"

"Yes." The man confirmed, in that deep tenor.

"My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi. I like to be called Tsuna."

Lanchia only nodded, his sharp eyes not deterring and his stand-up hair jerked as he moved, "Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna resisted the urge to correct him, only settling with a hybrid between a smile and a grimace. It seems like everyone was just so intent on calling him by his full name here in the Kokuyo Bureau.

—

Finally after finishing cleaning the broom along with the first floor and ignoring Ken pig out in the kitchen all the while, he finally decided to wait for Chrome's and Chikusa's return. He sat himself at the stairs, picking at a rock between his feet. Then finally, Ken shot out of his seat and stood erect, trying to look unperturbed, "The girl and Kakipii are here. I can smell them." Tsuna was about to question the bizarreness of smelling someone before it was too late and Ken ran out the kitchen and opened the gritty door.

"Hello, Ken." Tsuna heard Chrome say, and Ken only mumbled in reply. Poor guy. Tsuna thought with a secret smile. He didn't even know what to say. Talk about act first, think later.

He went to the entrance just in time to see them cross the threshold, "Welcome back," Tsuna greeted, mostly to Chrome, but partly to Chikusa too, "That was pretty quick."

"We're back quickly, like I promised." Chrome said, before smiling brightly and tugging at Tsuna's shirt, "Please, teach me about the soup." Tsuna looked away to his feet and simply nodded. Ken watched, teeming with jealousy. Chikusa ignored them all, making a slow beeline to the rickety dining table. Everyone followed after that, Chrome asking questions about the first floor and how in the world he managed to clean it whereas Ken trailed gloomily behind.

To their surprise, when they stepped into the kitchen; Mukuro, Lanchia, and M.M were all already present. Tsuna smiled at Mukuro, who gave him a tight one in return. Mukuro turned his smile to Chrome, "You're back. I take it was successful?"

"Yes, Mukuro-sama. And…we have something to show you." Chrome looked at Chikusa, who nodded slowly, as if giving her permission. The purple haired girl dug into her bag and fished out a plain vanilla-colored folder.

Mukuro grabbed with a quiet thank you and gripped it between his gloved fingers and with a flick, it opened. Everyone in the kitchen was silent as they observed the folder in Mukuro's hands. In an instant, the kitchen felt colder, and homey building felt distant, and Mukuro's face morphed into something of murderous wrath. Everyone shuddered but Lanchia and Chikusa, only staring indifferently at the furious man. Tsuna let out a small exhale of breath, suddenly chilled.

"What?" Mukuro turned slowly to look at Chikusa, his expression not softening in the slightest, "What is this?"

"It is the acrobaleno, Reborn."

Tsuna took one large step away, staring into the air in deep horror. What? Reborn? But—Reborn it couldn't be the same Reborn? Reborn was Bianchi's—Bianchi's husband. He was that man that didn't like Hibari with him. The one that had stopped their dancing in the garden. The same one that had threatened to kill Hibari…The very same one that Gokudera and Bianchi loved to death. The rest of the conversation was pushed into the back of Tsuna's mind as he scurried to gather his thoughts. What was going on? It couldn't be…it couldn't possibly be the same Reborn! But as much as Tsuna kept denying it, it was possible. Gokudera—he had seen Gokudera here in Cielo with his own eyes. It wasn't too far-fetched to have Reborn here too…it wasn't outrageous; in fact, it was so incredibly obvious that Tsuna wanted to smack himself for not realizing earlier. Tsuna shook his head wildly in disbelief.

Mukuro hissed, his fingers tensing so hard, the photograph underneath them bended to their will. "He…he lied."

Chikusa continued, only adding oil to the fire; whether intensifying Mukuro's rage or amplifying Tsuna's hysteria, it succeeded in both with monstrous elegancy. "Chrome and I were going through the emergency route as instructed. We successfully infiltrated inside their base. Chrome had put us under an illusion and none had noticed us. We reached the heart of the base, the quarters where they usually do their mission briefings was where we saw him. He was speaking with a Varia member when we took this photograph," Chikusa said, gesturing to the photo in their boss's hand.

Mukuro turned his eyes to look at it once again, looking at it as if he expected it to catch on fire. Instead of placing it back into the folder, Mukuro shoved it into his pocket, to Tsuna immense disappointment. He was hoping to catch a glimpse. Could it really be? Could it really be the same man Tsuna knew? Then what? What would he do then?

Composing himself, Mukuro smiled tightly at the Kokuyo members. "Let's get started on dinner."

Everyone snapped out of their daze, and for the first time M.M spoke, "…Yeah, let's starting eating." She turned her sharp eyes to Chrome, who shrunk into herself immediately, "Get going! You heard Mukuro-sama!"

"Yes," Chrome's voice cracked, reaching a higher octave, she moved towards the cupboard in a slow daze, "Tsunayoshi…the soup."

Tsuna began to walk towards the greasy stove, turning the heating dial on, barely one with the living as he did so. Gokuera knows Reborn. Reborn knows Hibari. Gokudera might have possibly known Hibari. Mukuro knows Reborn. It wasn't hard to connect the dots. What was this? What is this? His whole life. His thirteen years alive! It was all just…just a web of lies! Tsuna breathed hard as he gathered the ingredients. No one seemed to notice how his world was crumbling, no one noticed how he felt so betrayed. He pushed the idle chatter of the kitchen to the back of his mind, hardly feeling human at the moment.

—

After dinner was over, Tsuna couldn't wait to sleep. He felt so deprived; both body, spirit, and mind. He hurriedly helped Chrome, who herself was still in a dreamy daze, wash the dishes and without a word of goodbye left the kitchen. He contemplated on heading towards the bedroom and simply sleep but he knew he couldn't. He had to see that picture. The one in Mukuro's pocket. There just can't be another way. But as Mukuro said before, he couldn't quite sneak up on him and take it. Tsuna stepped into the bedroom, looking for any place to hide. He would just have to try. He needs to see that photo. Tsuna looked to the curtains, sizing it up. He couldn't quite stand still for that long, plus the curtains hadn't been cleaned and it had so many holes.

He moved towards it anyway, pushing the maroon cloth aside. The window. Taking the latch in his hands, Tsuna tugged with all his might and successfully moved it open just large enough for him to slip through. Just outside the window was a small balcony, perfect for hiding. Even better, there was a desolate bench covered in a white sheet. The brunet took the door and slowly closed it, leaving a small crack open. He pushed the curtains in front of it, taking pride in his brains. It looked perfect, hardly looking out of place at all. Then he heard them. Footsteps. Not one, but two. Tsuna dived under the clothed-bench, unable to believe that he was even trying to attempt this.

The door opened and Mukuro's familiar heavy pitter-patter of boots moved across the room. He could only guess that the other occupant the room was Chikusa.

Then there was a crash of wood meeting an uneven floor. Tsuna jumped, nearly cracking his head at the force he bumped against the old bench, but thankfully made no sound. Reborn is at the Varia base. Right, Chikusa's and Chrome's mission was to visit that Varia place to gather information. Tsuna wasn't thinking, his head spinning in circles. What was going on? Why—why was this happening? Why did it seem like the whole world was out to get him? Was everything he knew was a lie? Was everyone he knew undercover? Mukuro knows who Reborn was. No, he known about him! That was why he had such an betrayed expression in the kitchen when Chrome showed him that the photo. There was something more to their relationship because otherwise Mukuro wouldn't have taken this so personally.

"A picture means a thousand words," Chikusa said bluntly, seemingly not caring if Mukuro were to blast his way through a wall if that meant venting his temper. There was a sound of a photo bending under nimble fingers, "Chrome didn't miss it either. We both saw him with our own eyes."

"That acrobaleno! Damn him to all seven hells! What is he thinking? Why the Varia?"

"Mukuro-sama...please calm yourself." Chikusa said quietly, but loud enough to be heard over the screeching wood.

"I won't." Mukuro hissed, spinning in his heels to glare at Chikusa, "Why was he there? Why of all people was he there with the Varia?"

There was a deep sigh before Chikusa spoke up again, "It appears that the acrobaleno, Reborn, has struck a deal with them. That is why they haven't been around. The deal in question is unknown. We could not gather enough information before they found us. However we did find a lead." There was a sound of another paper touching wood, "This is a business card Chrome happened to pick up while we were there. The Varia has been making business here, at this pub. We should explain this to the others tomorrow."

Mukuro let out an aggravated grunt, "We need to make preparations." He stalked out the room and Chikusa followed him in a more calmer manner. They left, Tsuna breathing heavily into his hands. Slowly he crawled out of his hiding spot, moving towards the small table where the picture, along with the vanilla folder and the business card sat. He picked it up, hands shaking. He was right. It was him. Same facial structure, same hair. There was only one solution to this. He was going to go to that Varia place and have a word with him. No. A word was too short. A thousand words; face to face once again.

Tsuna put the picture down and took the business card up. It was white and it had a silhouette of a horse, in mid-whinnying with its head to the sky. The font with curvy white letters was positioned in the middle, "'Il Cavalla Veloce'." Tsuna said the title aloud, trying to ingrain the name into his mind. Under it was English letters. He wasn't too good at reading it, but the words were simple, things he would know, "'The Rapid Mare'." He wanted desperately to keep it, the name was too long to remember, but thought against it. The first person who would be the first to be suspected of stealing it would be him. He reluctantly put it back down.

Slowly, to make no sound, Tsuna walked towards the door. Chanting the pub's name in his head over and over again. Il Cavalla Veloce. Il Cavalla Veloce. He grabbed the doorknob and tugged, making sure the coast was clear, he stepped out into the hallway and sighed. He wasn't entire interested in this Varia dealings, because all that he was really hooked onto was finding Reborn. If he found him…then everything will be explained to him, surely. Even if he didn't like the man, the curly-sideburned man needed him. For what, he didn't know.

—

The same routine repeated itself later that 'night'. Tsuna slept, reluctantly once again, in the bed this time and Mukuro took his self-proclaimedly rightful place at the couch. He stayed still and motionless in the bed this time, wary of Mukuro. The way he had acted earlier had frightened him. It had been his first time seeing the man so insanely furious. And kept calling him an 'infant' and 'baby' and that word, 'acrobaleno'. They kept saying he was a traitor too. But even if Reborn was nasty in personality, Tsuna would admit that he was a nice person at the wedding. Almost to the cool gentleman extremes. But the boy didn't believe that Reborn is a bad person, and most of all, what could he have done to such an extreme to betray the Kokuyo Bureau of?

He sighed through his nose. It had only been only twenty four hours as a Kokuyo Bureau member and already he was exhausted. One thing he felt fulfilled of was the cleaning of the first floor. And standing up to Ken. And kinda-befriending Chrome. And realizing that Lanchia just looked intimidating but was actually pretty social. The only people he never really spoke to had to be M.M and Chikusa. In fact, he hadn't seen Mukuro today at all until that small meeting. The sleepy brunet turned to look at Mukuro at the thought, who wasn't asleep at all. And this time he didn't bother hiding it. He was pacing, restlessly between the couch and the window. He listened to the tall man's boot's make a rhythm out of the tiled floor.

He hoped, that he would be okay when he woke up again. At this wish, Tsuna closed his eyes and slept.

—

The next morning, they all were in the kitchen. Chrome looked like she was about to faint, not used to seeing so many people in the kitchen in the morning all at once. Mukuro sat down in a lone chair as the Kokuyo members turned to his direction. Scratching his head he looked to his subordinates, "I apologize for my behavior. But surely you understand why I acted like that. The acrobaleno is a traitor. And traitors aren't to be taken lightly."

"Mukuro-sama," M.M interrupted, "Why was the baby there? Is there any reason?"

"Yes," The indigo-haired man cleared his throat, "I was getting to that. Chikusa had told me that they were making a deal—a deal that involves with withdrawal of the Varia members within Cielo for periods of time. But we found a lead." Mukuro reached deep into his sleeve and held the same business card that Tsuna had secretly peeked at between his two fingers, "Il Cavalla Veloce. A bar. Apparently, a Varia member goes there almost every night to meet up with a business partner. But the thing is," Mukuro's voice dropped lowly, "The bar is only open to females and only certain accessible males."

There was a collective silence. M.M spoke up haughtily, "Then that must mean me and that stupid girl are probably going to be sent, huh? So what is this? Seduction? The usual?" Chrome and Ken grimaced. Seduction was her least favorite and Ken's because of the obvious.

"Partly." Mukuro nodded at her, "But try not to get in contact with them too much. It'd be very troublesome if they were to find out who you really are. You'll go in maybe three days. Dress formally; the high heels slinky dresses. Yes, the usual. Meeting dismiss—"

"Wait!"

Everyone, including Mukuro blinked, and turned towards Tsuna. The brunet instantly regretted it but, tried hard not to back down from the stares, "I-I…want to go. Please let me go with them." From the moment he said it, he had no idea what compelled him to do so. Something…told him he should go. Something inside him was telling him that he needed to go. And usually, Tsuna was the kind to follow his instincts. It had taken him to unbelievably good things before, why stop now? Besides, this had to do with Varia, and if Reborn was really close to the dealings as the members said he was, then it was highly possible this would lead him to the man. Any chance was better than none.

There was a collection of reactions from each of the members. Chikusa and Lanchia remained quiet as ever, calculating. Chrome shook her head, wanting to say no it was too dangerous, and M.M and Ken snorted in laughter, the image of the kid in a drag was unbearably funny. Mukuro however, was amazingly unreadable. He stared at Tsuna, and the boy stared back, trying to convey the sincerity through his eyes.

M.M wiped the tears from her eyes, wheezing in laughter, "Holy shit, no! First off, I would've let it slide if he was a girl, but he's—he's—"

"Perfect."

"Yeah, he's—" M.M choked, turning towards Chikusa, who had spoken up, still staring at Tsuna with wise, judgmental eyes. "Are—Kakipii, you can't be serious! He's—a guy!"

"No actually. He's entirely perfect for this. He's the only male in the entire bureau…that can successfully look like a female. Even if he is a grotesque at that." Tsuna scowled at this. He wouldn't look that bad.

The red-hot-pink haired girl's face turned an equal color of shade as her hair, "Absolutely not! Mukuro-sama can come! He's the best illusionist here!"

Ken growled, "Now that I have to object. Don't stoop Mukuro-san to the level of pleasuring old sick men! It's degrading! Let the little guy go instead!"

Finally Lanchia spoke up, "Chikusa is right. Also Ken is too. Even just partly, anyways. Mukuro-sama may be a skilled illusionist but many Varia members can identify apparitions in an instant. The trick to this mission is to go undercover without any means of using dying will to disguise us. In other words, we need to get back to the stone ages and work this out in the old fashioned way." Lanchia turned towards the tall man, who stood staring blankly at the wall, "Well, Mukuro-sama? What do you say? Do you want this kid to go with them?"

Tsuna stood up slowly, catching Mukuro's gaze gently, and slowly he said, "I want to do this."

Putting a hand over his face, Mukuro glared at Tsuna through his fingers, "Then I won't stop you."

This time Chrome spoke up, surprising all in the room. Not that she didn't want Tsuna to come, but she couldn't help but voice her concern, "Mukuro-sama. Tsunayoshi doesn't…what can he do?"

For once, M.M agreed fervently with the purple-haired girl and nodded her head, "That's right! This kid is virtually useless! Does he even have a flame yet? He'll only drag us down. He's sort of useless, really." The brunet looked at his hands again. There was that word again. Useless. It seemed to follow him wherever he went, even into another world.

"That is why you'll protect him. He's vital in this, having more people come is better. Predators won't be too bold." Lanchia said lowly in place of Mukuro.

"But Mukuro-sama," M.M protested, standing up abruptly and knocking her chair over in the process, she jabbed at manicured finger deep into Tsuna's chest, making him wheeze uncomfortably. "This awkward kid doesn't know how to even attract men! This is crazy!"

"Now that's where you're wrong, M.M."

There was a common set of shared, shocked and confused looks as they stared at Mukuro in bewilderment. The tall man got up and walked out of the kitchen throwing a, "Mission dismissed." over his shoulder. There was a span of silence before they all began filing out, one by one. Until the last ones in the kitchen were Chrome, M.M and he.

M.M had never had anything against him at first. Now she had the perfect opportunity. Tsuna gulped as she gripped his front collar and tugged him closer, nearly spitting fire at his face. The nasty girl flicked a finger at him, "Now listen you, we're going to start training you on how to be like a girl even if it kills you, which I hope it does. I absolutely don't care if Mukuro-sama has confidence in you." Turning her heel, M.M marched out.

Chrome turned towards him with one single worried eye, "Tsunayoshi, why do you want to do this?"

"I…just have to, I guess." He replied, shrugging.

Chrome nodded, curious, but saddened by his vague answer.

AN: You all must be dying wondering what the heck is happening in Tsuna's world. What's Iemitsu, Nana, and Yamamoto doing? So to temporarily cure the pain you guys are feeling I've decided that next chapter will be an interlude. An interlude is a short period break in the plot, in which the POV will be Iemitsu-centric. It will take place just shortly before Tsuna was taken into Cielo.

ANIME SPOILERS: I've been marathoning it as of late! I haven't done an Anime Spoiler in awhile. I was really more interested in the manga, but the fillers are surprisingly well, fulfilling. Unlike Naruto or Bleach fillers, KHR really matches it fillers up to its story. I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE CLOUD TRIAL. 8D Also, Demon Spade is such a creeper. I really don't like that double-pineapple-crop look. It's very disturbing with bangs. I hope Mukuro makes some flashy cool appearance and saves Chrome from this guy's pedophilia. He was giving Chrome this really, really weird look. D8 AND LOL I BET YOU SHE'S GOING TO GET WRAPPED UP IN TENTACLES AGAIN.

FANART: Gosh, I'm so flattered! Hibari is so amazingly swoon-inducing in this picture! http :/je-y .deviantart. com/art/KHR-1827-to-Jikage-162218954 Thank you so much, TheSilentDream!