Chapter One: The Beginning of the End.

Dino Cavallone had always thought Japan was a rather beautiful country, the green that always seemed to surround him wherever he went sending peaceful vibes throughout his being. He had spent the majority of his life back in his own country of Italy, but business he couldn't ignore had brought him here more and more over time; the blond male was still young, twenty-two years of age and yet, he was one of the strongest assets the Vongola Family had, which was why his help had been requested by said family.

Messy blond hair fell into his eyes as Dino ventured down the quiet street as his golden locks only became more tousled by the light breeze that could only wish to buffet him. He was rather curious about how he could help; from what he had been told briefly, he was to try and tutor a teenager that wouldn't allow themselves to be tamed by anyone.

Dino had thought this was rather curious; if his supposed pupil was supposed to be as difficult as he was being led to believe they would be, wouldn't it make more sense to find someone else to take the blond's place? Dino was strong, but he was also kind, and despite being a Mafia Boss, he wasn't sure if he had it in him to lay down the law and keep a kid in line – he gave chances, and though he had done things that would forever haunt him, he would always try to avoid the path of violence whenever possible.

The Chiavarone boss found his train of thought to be cut short as he arrived at the house he was expected at. Once again, he found himself admiring the way of the Japanese, the two-story home leaving him in awe at just how similar, yet so different, it was to the houses of his own country; though it was a large home surrounded by lush greens, the building itself, with its seemingly-concrete walls, was something not familiar to Italy.

Dino walked up the pavement to the front door so that he could knock politely before he stepped back, waiting for an answer. He had left his men elsewhere, wanting to talk privately with the Vongola members; not knowing what he could possibly be told about the student he was to teach, he thought it would be better for his men to remain behind lest something personal be mentioned; he wouldn't appreciate strangers hearing things about him they didn't have to know, after all.

The wooden door was opened and a head of light reddish-brown hair greeted him, a woman Dino recognised as Bianchi, a fellow help to the Vongola whom resided at this house. He nodded politely before he spoke with a smile on his face.

"I was asked to come here by Reborn," Dino explained. His voice was soft, highlighting his easy-going personality. "Is he about?"

Bianchi nodded. She swallowed part of the dango stick she had in her mouth before she pulled the treat way and used it to gesture to the stairwell behind them. "He's upstairs in Tsuna's room."

"Thank you very much, Bianchi." Dino walked into the house so that he could take the stairs that would lead him to his old teacher. The room he was after was just to his left, so it took only seconds after reaching the top floor for him to knock on the door and enter.

Dino wasn't used to being in this bedroom without its owner present, but aforementioned person was most likely at school, leaving only himself and one other person in it. His companion wore a stereotypical mafia suit complete with the fedora, his spiky hair hidden beneath the material while a green chameleon named Leon perched on the rim. Large eyes observed the blond as lips curled into an amused smile.

"Good afternoon, Reborn." The blond nodded in acknowledgement. He took in the sight before him, the black-clad male sitting comfortably on the bed pressed against the wall opposite him.

"Ciaossu." The blond was greeted with a nod of the head, but no further words were spoken until he sat down by the small table in the middle of the room.

The other male – Reborn, as Dino knew him by – spoke in that matter-of-fact tone he always seemed to use as he stared intently at Dino. "You're here about the bearer of the Cloud Ring."

"That's right. I don't believe I have enough information on what I'm supposed to do with him."

"Train him." The black fedora tilted downwards, shading Reborn's eyes. Leon didn't move, used to the action. "But it won't be easy."

Dino sighed inwardly, used to his old mentor's way of getting his point across; it was pretty much a riddle he had to find the answer to through trial and error. This wasn't what he wanted to know; he wanted to know what his student's personality was, what to expect and how to handle it – not be told things he had already suspected.

As polite as Dino was, he knew he would get no further answers out of Reborn so, changing the topic to another of importance regarding an unrelated matter, he stayed in the bedroom for an hour longer before realising he had to get back to his own family.

Dino stood up and brushed imaginary dirt from the fur-rimmed jacket he was wearing before he looked down as he addressed his old teacher. "I really should be going; I have things to attend to. Thank you for your time. Arrivederci."

Dino left the room without the standard injury – his clumsiness usually got him hurt even when he was simply entering a room – and, halfway down the stairs, was almost unable to believe how lucky he had been to avoid harm. However, his hopes had been too high as he stumbled on the last few steps and he fell to the floor, landing face down.

The blond hadn't so much as lifted an arm to rub at his head in embarrassment before the front door opened and the teenager who lived here stepped through, his mop of brunet hair blown ragged from the strengthening wind.

Sawada Tsunayoshi glanced down as he heard a small groan of pain from the bottom of the stairwell and his eyes widened as he saw his friend crumpled in a heap. Rushing over, the boy put his hands on Dino's shoulders as worried filled him; it was no secret the blond was a klutz – one of these days he was going to kill himself before anyone else got the chance.

"Are you okay, Dino-san?!" Tsuna pulled the older male into a sitting position, hoping the other hadn't knocked his head from the fall; it was something that wouldn't surprise him if it had happened.

Dino couldn't help but laugh as he rubbed his head. His soft smile graced his face as he said, "I'm fine, Tsuna. Thank you for asking."

"Maybe you should just sit for a while." Tsuna took his own advice and sat next to the man.

Dino chuckled, nodding; he couldn't help but admit that his head did hurt just a bit.

Things were quiet between the two for a while; Tsuna was lost in thoughts about his other friends while Dino focused on his mission. The blond couldn't be entirely sure, but he thought the student he was supposed to teach was named Kyouya, or something to that extent.

The Mafia Boss briefly wondered if Tsuna would know anything about the other, if he could help fill in some of the gaps. He knew he wasn't supposed to say anything outright to the boy, but that didn't mean he couldn't ask.

"Hey, Tsuna?" Dino glanced at the smaller male. His blue eyes looked into hazel as he tilted his head slightly before he spoke again, careful not to give away his mission. "I heard about someone who goes to your school. I think his name was Kyouya."

"Kyouya?" Tsuna blinked as he tried to process this name. It was true he had heard of a few Kyouyas who went to Namimori Middle along with him, but without more information he couldn't pinpoint who Dino was referring to. "I know of a few. What's their last name?"

"Not entirely sure." Dino laughed good-naturedly. "Heard he's a real good fighter, though."

As soon as he heard the last sentence, Tsuna knew exactly who his friend was talking about; Hibari Kyouya, the prefect of a group of delinquents who called themselves the Namimori Disciplinary Committee. Tsuna knew, despite the fact that the others involved in the committee looked up to Hibari, said teen didn't seem to want anything to do with them, preferring to be by his lonesome instead. It was a confusing thing, and the brunet couldn't understand how the committee members could follow so loyally while being on the receiving end of their leader's aggression, but he didn't question it; he was in enough trouble with them as it was.

"Yeah..." Tsuna bit his lip as he replied to the man. "I know him... He's, uh... Someone you really wouldn't want to know..."

"Really?" Dino's lips twitched as he tried to hold back a smile; what was he going to face in the future? "Why?"

"He's... really aggressive," Tsuna explained. "He doesn't like people and if you do the slightest thing wrong, he'll beat you with his two tonfa."

The blond laughed. "Sounds charming."

Tsuna shook his head quickly; did his friend not know what he was saying? Hibari was deadly! "D-dino-san, you –"

"Hmm?" Dino tilted his head, listening as the smaller boy continued talking. "What is it?"

"...Hibari-san is... psychotic! He'll fight anyone and he never loses!"

"Think I could take him in a fight?" Though Dino's tone was joking, he was serious about this; though he doubted he wouldn't defeat the teen, if Hibari proved too strong, it would be hazardous for the Vongola Family – if they couldn't control one of their own...

Dino hated to think of the consequences.

"I..." This was something Tsuna really had to think about; though Dino was strong, unless his men were with him to keep him motivated to win the fight, he was as clumsy as an excited puppy in a chinaware store. But still... Dino was... Dino! There was a reason he was the Mafia Boss of the Chiavarone Family, after all! The skill Dino had with his bullwhip – provided he wasn't being a klutz – was better than that of a rodeo performer who had trained for a lifetime. "...I don't know... You're strong – really! – but so is Hibari-san..."

Dino wasn't fazed by the lack of confidence his friend had in him regarding Hibari; he figured it was just something he'd have to work out for himself when the time came to finally approach said boy.

When that day would come, Dino couldn't help but think he may just need to keep his men on hand just to be on the safe side.