The whole time capsule incident passed like a blur. Tsuna had helped Gokudera find a capsule -not the one from fifteen years ago, but one forty years ago- and helped expose Nezu-sensei as a hypocrite and a fraud. Even Tsuna himself wasn't too sure about what had happened. One minute he was sighing as he watched Gokudera rain dynamites onto the playground and the next a capsule was in his sweaty hands and his hair was slightly charred.
He was much closer to Gokudera after that and had even taken to starting to call him Hayato. The reason he didn't call him that as often as he'd like was because of the crying and overreactions that would follow. Still, it was nice to have a friend, one who helped him with his homework and didn't seem to care about his flaws.
The training with Reborn was still unbearable as ever, but he was starting to partially see the benefits. Even if he didn't become a Mafia Boss it was likely that people would still be after him because of Iemitsu. The training would ensure that he at least knew how to fight against such enemies and survive in any type of environment. It also helped him with his climbing, which he seemed to excel at despite Reborn's shouts of how useless he was. He still didn't like school and tried to skip as much as he could. This only grew when his classmates were forcing him to clean up by himself.
"Since Dame-Tsuna made us lose the game, he should clean up by himself!" Arguing did no good, so the brunet stayed silent and just picked up a broom. Honestly, he thought as he began cleaning, it's called a 'team effort' for a reason. One bad player can't make you lose a game.
"Help has arrived!" Turning around, Tsuna watched as Yamamoto Takashi came up behind him with another broom. Puzzled at the sudden help, the brunet couldn't help but stare at the strange boy. "Two people would make this go faster right?" Yamamoto said, taking the initiative and started sweeping as well. Nodding in agreement, Tsuna started his work as well, still glancing up at Yamamoto in confusion once in a while. It seemed odd that he would take so much effort to help the supposedly Dame boy, considering that he had never really done so before.
"Hey, Tsuna!" Pausing in his work, Tsuna looked up at the strange boy calling to him. "What's with you lately? You seem to have gotten really good at everything!"
Well, that was as subtle as a bull to a red wall. Tsuna debated whether or not to tell him the truth. It can't hurt. "I got a tutor." Yamamoto seemed a bit perplexed as he waited for the shorter boy to continue, "He works me to death, forces me to get better."
Still perplexed, Yamamoto asked something else, "So he makes you work . . .harder?"
Tsuna shrugged. That was one way to put it. "I guess. It's more of the support, you know?" That's not right, Reborn doesn't openly show support, if he shows any at all! Still, a warm feeling that spread from his heart and into his toes. The feeling of unwarranted acceptance. It sure as hell wasn't coming from the thought of Reborn, but it was there. "Why do you ask?" Tsuna tried changing the uncomfortable subject.
Yamamoto didn't seem to notice Tsuna's inner turmoil and only laughed, "Well, you see, I'm kinda in a slump with baseball at the moment." Oh yeah, Tsuna remembered that Yamamoto was the Ace of the baseball team. Another reason why he was so perplexed as to why he came to talk to the most unpopular boy in school. "Not sure what I should do, maybe ask the coach for advice, but he seems to think I don't need it. Maybe I'll just work harder on my own."
The brunet shrugged and went back to sweeping, "Maybe you should talk to a close friend about it." Because he was so engrossed in his task, he didn't notice the other boy's flinch as he mentioned the word 'friend'.
All he heard was the sad whisper of, "Yeah . . .maybe."
"But I've been to school all week!" Yelled a frustrated Tsuna the next morning as he was being forced into his school uniform.
"Yes! Mama is so proud of you Tsu-chan! Now you just having to keep going." Grumbling to himself, Tsuna straightened his collar and grabbed his bookbag. He purposely went as slow as possible, Hibari be damned. He wasn't feeling up to showing up to school at all today, especially after that talk with Yamamoto. He felt uneasy, uncertain and extremely uncomfortable and the feelings only increased as he headed toward the school.
It was lucky for him that Hibari was too busy beating up some other delinquents for smoking on campus to care much for him sneaking onto campus. Just as he was about to head inside a girl's scream caught his attention. Turning around to see a young girl, pointing and looking in horror at the top of the building. Curious, Tsuna tilted his head to see just what had her so spooked.
It looked like a silhouette because of the sun that partially blinded him, but Tsuna could tell it was a person. Someone who was standing outside the fence and looking ready to jump. "What the-?" Tsuna whispered under his breath as his eyes adjusted and he could see the figure more clearly. It was Yamamoto.
Not even thinking, Tsuna ran inside the school and up the stairs. He didn't even pause as Kyoko called out to him in worry or when he pushed over several people. Eventually he came up to the rooftop, watching as Yamamoto's friends, teammates and classmates tried to convince him not to jump over the edge.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" The words were so startling and biting that they forced the crowd to part like the red sea. It took Tsuna a moment to realize that they were looking at him but he ignored them in favor of Yamamoto. "You're killing yourself over a slump in your baseball? At least, that's what I'm assuming, considering your arm can heal."
Yamamoto glanced at his arm before looking back to stare at Tsuna. "What can you understand, Tsuna? The Baseball God threw me away, I have nothing left to live for!"
"What about your father?!" Tsuna didn't really know what made him say that, considering he had only met Yamamoto's father once. "What about your classmates, huh?! They all have to live with the thought of you dying! And of your own free will too! How is that fair to them?!" Panting a bit, Tsuna looked down at his hands, "How is that fair to me? I gave you advice, right? For all I know that could've been the thing that sent you over the edge! You didn't even understand it! It wasn't the hard work! It wasn't! It was the support! Which you have plenty of!"
A humorless chuckle spread throughout the shocked students. "Support? What are you talking about. My old man wants me to study kendo. My coach won't even help me when I ask for it, saying I should be able to do it 'on my own' and my so-called 'teammates' want me to win the game practically by myself!"
The brunet stayed quiet for a long time, muling Yamamoto's words over in his head. He ignored the protests spewing around him in favor of holding the other boy's gaze. His mind was searching for an answer, any answer, that would keep Yamamoto from jumping off that roof. At the same time, he didn't want to lie to the boy. That would just be another insult on top of everything else he had to deal with. After coming to a decision he nodded his head and pierced the broken-armed boy with a determined glare. "I'll support you then."
Shocked, Yamamoto stepped back, wobbling over the edge. In a panic, he reached for the rusty fence, only for it to creek and break away. Tsuna watched the scene in slow motion, the muscles in his legs moving before he could even comprehend what was going on. On foot pressed into the concrete below him, pushing off onto the other. Tsuna was in full speed before his classmates could even blink. Reaching over the edge, he was able to grasp Yamamoto's forearm before gravity could take him.
A resounding pain resonated in Tsuna's arm but he ignored it. His eyes burned as he refused to close them, despite the rising desire to. He couldn't tell if it was from the burning or the situation, but Tsuna's mind froze as the world held itself in slow motion. Suddenly, Yamamoto and his roles were replaced, as Tsuna was the one who was hanging over the edge. But before he could really comprehend it, it was over. When he focused back into the real world, he found that he still held Yamamoto's gaze, as if trying to convey his determination and will.
Still, as Yamamoto weighed a great deal more than Tsuna, the brunet felt his body slipping from the roof. Staff rushed forward in an effort to grab the falling boy but he too fell over the edge as he tried too hard to hold onto the boy he was trying to save.
Freefalling was . . .exhilerating. At least, to Tsuna it was. Which puzzled him because it seemed like something he would be terribly frightened of. Still, it was this lack of fear that let him hold a calm mind. Spread out your body, slow yourself down with air resistance. "Yamamoto! Spread out your body!" Confused, the injured boy did the best he could with his casted arm. As they slowed, Tsuna spotted a trashbin underneath them. Following his instincts, he forced himself and Yamamoto to flip so that they were positioned to land on their feet. "Keep your knees bent!" The brunet yelled as he shut his eyes and hoped that his instincts were right.