Trigger: N/A

Warnings: N/A

Important Stuff: Because people have mentioned in reviews it's hard to keep track of Ienari's Guardians, here's a small cheat sheet.

Small OC Cheat Sheet

Spirits:

Zephyr -The wind spirit that Reborn met in the Spirit World.

Kamikawa - The origami spirit that Reborn exchanged information with.

Engetsu - Silver kitsune that Reborn met in the Spirit World. Knows Ayame.

Ienari's Guardians

Matsushita Hachirou - Ienari's best friend. Captain of the Judo Club.

Akemi Kaori - President of Ienari's fanclub. Black Hair, Purple Eyes.

Kakusu Hideki - Former student council president, son of politician. Red Rimmed Glasses.

Koujin Fuun - Ninja assassin. Dark purple hair, crimson eyes. Kunais as weapons.

Inmen Hisen - Mochida's cousin. Ienari's crush. Hime-cut black hair and ocean blue eyes.

All other OCs either don't play that big of a role (Hibari's parents, for example), are not needed outside of their arc (you can forget everyone from the Yousei Arc), or have not been introduced yet/spoilers. And… to be honest, Ienari's guardians don't play that big of a role, except for the fact that I kinda needed a full set for Ienari ahaha. (Well, no, I guess Fuun had a decent role attacking Tsuna). Take a guess which OC will be which guardian. I confirmed Hachirou this chapter and already told you who most likely be Ienari's Cloud Guardian.

Time Skip

And so, time began to pass. Summer vacation had begun and the weather grew hot and sticky. Kyoya ensured that Ienari was stuck in the hospital for another couple months and Fuun joined his Sky shortly after, similarly injured. Ayame kidnapped Tsuna the day his summer vacation started, forcing him to finish his summer homework well in advance. She took his knowledge, refined it and sharpened it, all while muttering about the stupid school boards and incompetent teachers. The rest of Tsuna's friends went through a similar process, though Kyoya, smugly got out of it by simply acing every academic test she threw at him and had his homework done before she had even arrived at his house.

Training continued as Reborn and Fon began to instruct Ienari on accessing his Flames. While Tsuna had a decent grasp on theories and was by no means a stupid person, ultimately he was quite average in his academics. Ienari on the other hand was a genius; his top grades were not just for show and thus two weeks after the start of summer vacation he was able to light the tiniest flickers of his Flame. They were weak and nowhere near as pure as Tsuna's, much to Reborn's satisfaction.

The renovation of the Sawada House was complete three weeks into summer vacation, gifting them with three new bedrooms and additional bathroom. With the number of guests and new permanent residents though, they still had to be shared, but it was enough. Bianchi strong armed Tsuna into moving into one of the newer rooms; anything to increase the distance between the twins and commandeered Tsuna's old room. Tsuna looked at her, well aware of she was trying to do and didn't put up much of a fight. Ayame, when she wasn't crashing on Tsuna's bed, was actually sharing that room with Bianchi, which made sense given the original guest room that Bianchi had been staying in was originally Ayame's room (though she rarely slept in it).

There were still questions that needed to be asked, mysteries to be solved, but things settled into a peaceful routine.

And the future continued to loom uncertain.

Tsuna-Nii

Tsuna stared at the colorful toys that lined the shelves of Kinga Toys. He had brought Fuuta, Lambo and I-pin here; a treat for all hard work and good behavior they had displayed during the renovation. So one new toy for each of them.

"Tsuna-nii!"

Tsuna felt his heart skip a beat. He looked down to see Lambo holding up a cow stuffed animal, waving excitedly.

"This one Tsuna-nii," Lambo said. "I want this one!"

Tsuna felt his throat constrict. Tsuna-nii. Ienari hadn't called him Tsuna-nii in years. He hadn't even realized how much he had missed being addressed as someone's older brother. The pride reflected in Lambo's eyes made it even more painful.

"Tsuna-nii?" Lambo asked.

Tsuna just pulled him into a tight hug.

Lambo

Lambo wasn't an idiot. Despite his selfish nature, he understood concepts far beyond what people would expect for his age. He knew, at least subconsciously, what his family had been trying to do when they sent him on a very one-sided suicide mission against Reborn. Lambo wasn't expected to return alive; he knew that. So he was determined to prove them wrong.

Japan… wasn't anything what Lambo expected. But in a good way. It was scary being taken by those bad guys that wanted to cut him up, but he found a new mama, an older brother he never had before and a whole big family. It was nice. It was warm here, safe.

It was home.

As Tsuna bent down to hug him in the toy store, Lambo sensed that was something wrong with the way Tsuna clung to him. Lambo hugged his big brother back, determined to give him the comfort Tsuna needed.

His Tsuna-nii was the best person in the world and Lambo was going to his best to protect him.

Right Hand

"Ne, Hayato," Tsuna asked, nervous.

"Yes Tsuna-sama?" Hayato answered, giving Tsuna his full attention. He wondered what was bothering Tsuna.

They were at the mall, grabbing some ice cream on the hot summer day. The baseball idiot was in the bathroom, and the kids were sitting with Nana in another booth. The girls were off shopping, Turf-top got dragged with them and Skylark had patrol. Both Fon and Reborn had passed, heading off to run their own errands.

Tsuna bit his lip. "Why… why haven't you challenged Ienari yet? I mean he's been in the hospital, but you were for a while before he got put in there. I know Reborn originally called you here to join Ienari's family."

Hayato froze. He didn't know that Tsuna was aware of the original reason why he had come. Though considering the circumstances, it wasn't that big of a leap in logic to assume such thing. "I… It's true that was the reason why Reborn called me here, but I decided against it after meeting you."

Tsuna stared at him, eyes wide. "What? But…"

Hayato shook his head. "No. You came after me when Yousei took me. That's… no one has ever done that for me. Aneki might have, most likely actually, but you. You barely knew me, Tsuna-sama and yet you came after me. I always had to rely on myself. No one in the mafia wanted to take me in because I was a bastard child. You came because…," Hayato swallowed, dredging up his feelings. "You came because you think we're friends. So yeah, I came to Japan originally to join Ienari's family, but it feels right to stay with you."

Tsuna got a pinched look on his face. "Hayato. I really have no intention of becoming Decimo. No intention of joining the mafia."

With a small smile, Hayato ducked his head, turning red at what he was about to say. "I know and I don't care. You're my Sky, Tsuna-sama. I'll follow you to the ends of earth."

He took a quick glance at Tsuna and was rewarded with a beaming smile.

"Thanks Hayato," Tsuna said softly.

Hayato ducked his head once more, turning a bright head. "No, thank you Tsuna-sama."

Hibari Koumei

Hibari Koumei was a stern man, aloof and dedicated to his cause. That cause was the capture of criminals as one of the world's greatest agents in Interpol. He had originally retired from this job after meeting his wife, Yun and joined the local police station instead. While he felt caged and restless, he endured for the simple sake of his wife and son.

Then his wife died and the restlessness increased. But the threat of the Triads against his son cause him to worried. If he had wished it, the entire extended family could have descended upon the Triads, but it would have been a long and bloody war with heavy losses. So Koumei bided his time and waited for the perfect opportunity to strike all while defending his son. Kyoya was old enough, strong enough to defend himself against small groups, but Koumei stalked the town, using his connections and his own massive strength to protect his son.

Everything changed when the Omnivore arrived in town, descending on the small town like a dark shadow. His son defined omnivores as carnivores with herbivore tendencies. While it was true that several omnivores were like that, that was not how Koumei defined Omnivores.

No. By Koumei's definition, there was only one omnivore, the girl Ayame. From the Latin roots of Omnes "all", and Vorare "to devour", Ayame was the only person Koumei knew that could, would devour everything in the world. Her reach was terrifying; people quaked in fear at her name, whispered her existence only in the shadows. More than a few people trembled at the knowledge that she had chosen to take a young boy under her wing.

Though, while he was not at her level yet, Koumei had to be impressed with Sawada Tsunayoshi. He had tamed Ayame. The wild beast he had met in the aftermath of Sinapri was nothing compared to the calm, relaxed visage Ayame had become when they had met again nearly six years later. Of course, just because Tsunayoshi had tamed her, did not make her any less dangerous. Instead of a cornered animal, lashing out, she had transformed into a waiting, calculating, lounging one, ready to pounce at a moment's notice.

Which was why he had been expecting a call from his brother-in-law. Kyoya had called to inform him that Fon had come to stay in Namimori for an unspecified time. Despite the fact that he was miles away, Koumei knew what exactly to expect. No doubt Fon had run into the Omnivore and had questions about her. No one left her presence without questions.

Ring.

Flipping open his phone, Koumei answered, "Fon."

"Koumei," Fon replied back; voice crisp and clear.

"What can I do for you?"

"I'm looking for information on a girl named Ayame and her connection to you and the Triads," Fon said.

Ah, blunt and direct. That was probably Koumei's favorite part about his brother-in-law. It was a shame though. Koumei had promised not to share that information with anyone as part of the agreement with the Omnivore. That was a minor trade off all things considered. The Omnivore watched over Namimori and he smoothed the path for her plans involving Vongola.

It would not do for Vongola to discover who she was too early. Well, they could, but since the Omnivore seemed to be complying with Tsunayoshi's request for a peaceful solution, an early discovery would result in Vongola's destruction. The Omnivore wasn't very good at sharing. Sinapri was more than enough proof.

"That is not something I can help you with," Koumei said in a measured voice. He hung up before Fon could ask anything else.

Things were changing in Namimori. It was too bad he would miss all that action.

Flames

Ienari lit his orange Flames once more. They danced on the tips of his fingertips; tiny embers barely illuminating the dark hospital room. He frowned, puzzled at the feeling they seem to produce. They were warm, comforting and very familiar.

Why would they feel familiar? Like an old friend that had gone away and had just returned.

He stared at them, wondering why he felt so much calmer when his Flames were lit.

Braid

Tsuna hummed, brushing I-pin's long black hair. Patiently, I-pin sat, waiting for Tsuna to finish.

"All done," Tsuna said.

I-pin turned around, hugging him. "Thank you, gege."

Tsuna blinked, unfamiliar with the honorific. "You welcome, I-pin."

'Note to self, find out what gege means.'

Letter

Hayato opened the letter his apartment building had sent. It was written thick gray paper with a stylish K logo on top. It read:

Gokudera Hayato

We are happy to announce that we are under new management. As such, the cost of rent has been lowered and new renovations will be implemented to improve the building. Pardon our dust. Enclosed is a check for the difference between the old rent and the new one. Please see attached sheets for additional changes and updates.

Thank you!

Hayato blinked and pulled out the enclosed check. He was surprised at this notice. There wasn't any prior warning that the building was up for sale. Wasn't it normal procedure to inform the tenants in case they need to vacate if the building sold? Flipping through the information, his eyes bugged out a little at the new rent. With this, he could drop one of his jobs!

Today was off to a great start.

Cake Run

Tsuna was on his way home from a cake run. Sweets were a secret weakness and every so often, Tsuna would go out and treat himself and his mother. Today he decided to spend a little more and buy for everyone back home. Cass of course piled on as many free cakes as she could on him. Tsuna just dumped the money into her tip jar when she wasn't looking.

He was halfway home when he ran across a brown haired looking rather depressed and glum. Tsuna tilted his head, observing. Fishing into his bag, he held out a single slice of chocolate cake. Cass had packed over three different types of cakes and additional four single slices ones.

"Here. You look like you could use some cheering up," Tsuna said, offering the cake to the girl.

"Hahi? You're giving this to Haru?" the girl, Haru, asked.

Tsuna nodded. "Yeah. I bought too much anyways."

Bouncing to her feet, Haru exclaimed, "There's no such thing as too much cake!"

Tsuna laughed lightly. "If you say so. I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi. Please call me Tsuna."

"Miura Haru," Haru introduced herself. "Call me Haru!"

Lightning Guardian

Hachirou strolled into his best friend's hospital room and his jaw dropped. There dancing on Ienari's palms was a small tiny ball of orange fire.

"What the hell is that?!" Hachirou shouted.

The flames sputtered and died away as Ienari jumped, startled by Hachirou's appearance.

"What the hell," Hachirou railed. "Since when can you make fire, man?!"

He watched Ienari subtly clenched his right hand into a loose fist; a sign Ienari did when he was nervous.

"It's nothing," Ienari said.

"That was not nothing," Hachirou pressed. "People can't make flames appear! This aint a manga!"

"Leave it," Ienari demanded; temper flaring.

The stubborn bastard! Hachirou's eyes narrowed. "If you won't tell me, teach me then," he demanded.

"No," Ienari said, scowling. "You don't want to get involved Hachirou. Just leave it."

"I'll ask your tutor. I bet he knows," Hachirou threatened. He smugly grinned at Ienari's winced. Of course that strange baby tutor would know. It was pretty clear that Reborn wasn't a normal baby. Ienari had been acting odd for several months now, ever since he got that tutor. (Why Ienari even needed a tutor in the first place, Hachirou never understood. After all Ienari was the best in everything. If anything, Ienari's stupid brother Dame-Tsuna was the one who needed the tutor.)

"Don't you dare," Ienari said, glowering.

"Then tell me," Hachirou demanded. "It looks pretty strong."

Ienari flashed a grin. "It is. It'll only get stronger."

"So, you're gonna tell me?"

Ienari fell quiet. Hachirou didn't push harder, waiting for his best friend to weigh the options.

"It's not pretty. No going back and probably gonna end with us in jail," Ienari said lightly.

"Always did like living on the edge," Hachirou boasted. "Beside the ability to summon fire? That's a good trade off." Just imagine the shit he could do, how powerful he would be if he had that ability.

"Fine," Ienari relented. "Take a seat. I'll teach you."

A month later, Hachirou could summon green flames, sparking and crackling like lightning.

Ienari's Lightning Guardian had been found.

Uxie

Fuuta didn't like the look on Ayame's face. It was a look he had often seen reflected on his parents' face, before the mafia had taken him away, killing his parents, trying to control him and use his powers. That tired, pinched, pained look. "Neesan?" he said softly.

He winced at the thought that she probably didn't like the fact that he had accidentally woke her up from her nap by levitating her. He only wanted to know what the best place to get taoyaki in Namimori. Honest! It was just a quick connection to the Ranking Star. He didn't mean to levitate her. Fuuta hoped she wasn't too angry.

Ayame merely sighed and ran a hand through her bangs. "Looks like I was right. You're one of Uxie's descendents aren't you?"

Uxie? Fuuta had heard of that name before. His mother had mentioned it. Still, he knew better than to talk about his family history, even if Ayame ranked number three on the list of people who would protect Fuuta if he asked. So he stayed silent.

Ayame wasn't put off by his silence. Instead, she softly sighed again before reaching out to ruffle Fuuta's hair. "There's a trick to separating your two abilities you know," she mentioned casually. "A way you can access the infinite knowledge of Uxie without levitating things and vice versa. Being able to manipulate gravity can be helpful in defending yourself."

Fuuta's eyes widened. "Really?" he asked.

Ayame nodded. "You can ask Tsuna if you want. Or I'll teach you. Later though, I'm in desperate need of a nap." She rubbed her eyes; the dark circles under them standing out.

"Sorry," Fuuta apologized.

She merely waved him off. "Don't worry about it. It happens to everyone."

Fuuta bit his lip, wondering. "Neesan?" he asked timidly.

An eyebrow quirked up, asking the silent question.

"Who is Uxie?" Fuuta asked. His parents were gone. There was no one to ask questions about his family history anymore. What little Fuuta knew was it.

Ayame's golden eyes gleamed with mirth. "The bringer of knowledge."

Domestic

Nana smiled as she cooked breakfast for the kids. Her home was full of laughter and smile. It was by no means perfect. Honestly the number of bullet holes Reborn could cause was a stressful thing to fret over. Despite the hitman's rough method, he did keep all the kids in order though.

Still, this was the family she had wished for when she had gotten married. Not a husband who was 'working' overseas and never home and two sons, whom she loved dearly, but couldn't get along.

"You seem extra happy today, Mamma," Reborn remarked, giving her a critical glance over.

"Today's a beautiful day," Nana simply replied.

Reborn looked outside, at the blue sunny skies and nodded in agreement. "Yes, yes it is."

Spar

"Don't hold back, baseball-herbivore," Kyoya commanded.

Takeshi laughed brightly. He held his sword out, pointing it at Kyoya. "Of course senpai," he said. "Please treat me well."

Kyoya smirked, baring his tonfas before leaping.

Takeshi slid back, avoiding the leap and charged forward. Metal clashed together as Kyoya blocked Takeshi's sword with his tonfa, pushing it down to the side. Kyoya aimed a punch straight at Takeshi's stomach. Takeshi left go of his sword with his right hand, to block the punch. The baseball player was knocked back, skidding across the wooden dojo floor.

"Pay attention," Kyoya demanded, frowning at Takeshi's poor performance.

Then he felt it, the tiny slice of pressure that just grazed his cheek. A bloodthirsty grin spread across Kyoya's face as he wiped the blood away. "Much better," Kyoya said.

Frigid smile and icy eyes, Takeshi smiled back. "Thanks, Kyoya-senpai."

Charms

Tsuna frowned. "She's overworked herself again."

Reborn looked at the sleeping Ayame who was crashed out on Tsuna's new bed. She was boxed into the corner, having stolen Tsuna's pillow and slumbering without much care. It didn't seem like she was registering that they were there, something Tsuna had pointed out, was a sign of exactly how exhausted she was.

"She does this often?" Fon asked.

"Don't bother her, Reborn," Tsuna scolded.

The hitman made a soft 'che' sound and let Leon return to his normal form. Tsuna never let him have any fun around Ayame. Reborn supposed it was only because Tsuna was worried about the collateral damage, which, if Reborn was honest, was a pretty big concerned considering his relationship with Ayame was still fairly antagonistic.

"And, yes, Fon-san. She does this often. Sometimes the only way she can sleep is when she crashes out like this," Tsuna explained.

Fon and Reborn shared a look. It had become apparent to them that Ayame was actually a bit of a genius; one that was probably on the same level as Verde. She didn't flaunt it, but the signs were all there: from the detached, faraway look when she observed something, the inability to stop and sleep because her mind was working in overdrive with new ideas and theories, and encyclopedia knowledge. Just the other day, Tsuna had asked her how TVs work, and Ayame broke down the theory of radio waves, electromagnetics and the way the TVs capture those waves and display the images on the screen.

Suddenly it made sense why all the kids relied on her for additional tutoring and academic help. Reborn proudly noticed that after observing Namimori Middle for a week, Fon developed the same tick reaction as Reborn towards Nezu. It was somewhat hilarious (and very sobering) to find out that Ayame had the same response.

Still, to both Reborn and Fon, the idea that she was some sort of scientific genius, clashed horribly with the idea that she was (probably given her identification as a miko) a religious person and usually the two ideologies never seemed to marry well in a person. Even with the supernatural elements of Dying Will Flames, Reborn himself could claim to be an atheist. Then there was the information they had that she was some sort of businesswoman instead of a researcher and Ayame was still an odd picture in both Acrobaleno's minds.

Tsuna threw a blanket over Ayame and ushered Reborn and Fon out of the room. The sun was already high in the clear blue sky. "By the way," Tsuna said, pulling out two charms from his pocket. "Neesan said to give these to you." He handed a red charm to Fon and a yellow one to Reborn.

"What is this?" Reborn asked, accepting the charm. It looked a bit like the charm Tsuna had given Gokudera. Was there a GPS tracker in this one too? Reborn would check later and disable it. Good intentions aside, Reborn did not like being tracked.

"Did Neesan explain the miasma of aggression surrounding Namimori? Tsuna asked.

Reborn nodded. He had also explained it to Fon after that very tense confrontation he had with Ayame.

"Right, so Neesan just cleared the miasma these last few days. She mentioned that you two don't have a grounding method, so she made those charms. The charms will stop the miasma from amplifying your negative emotions," Tsuna explained. "But it's a general protection charm, good for just more than protection against the miasma. That's kinda the reason why Neesan is crashed out on my bed. Clearing the miasma always drains her and she has to do it every so many months."

"Why always your bed?" Fon asked. It was a valid question since normally the spare futon in Bianchi's room was supposed to be Ayame's. And oddly, it wasn't even Tsuna's original bed that Ayame sought out. Tsuna's new room came with a new bed and Bianchi now had Tsuna's old bed. Yet Ayame always sought out the one Tsuna had slept in.

Tsuna shrugged. "She just said she feels better when she sleeps there. Neesan does a lot of things because it makes her feel a certain way. Certain superstitions she'll follow."

"Because she's a miko?" Fon ask. "That was how she was raised?"

Reborn gave Fon points in his head. They needed more information and Tsuna, surprisingly, did not offer that much information on Ayame. Best to grab as much information as they could while Tsuna was willing to speak.

Tsuna looked at Fon, head tilted. "Because she knows the reasons behind those superstitions. The ones she breaks are the ones she knows do not affect you in the long run."

Reborn was silence. While he hadn't mentioned to Fon yet about the Spirit World and Giotto, Reborn at least knew that Tsuna meant Ayame which stories behind certain superstitions were actually true, probably even knew god or spirit was the cause and held enough belief, enough proof to be not to chance it. Given that Reborn didn't know what superstition he broke to earn a trip into the Spirit World, even he was observing the ones he knew with a little more caution.

Amazing how much a tiny little town can change your world view.

Fon looked puzzled, like he didn't understand Tsuna's words. Reborn admitted, he most likely did not. For, like many others apart of the underground world, things like faith and belief did not last long, whether it was one's morals compromising or death due to naivety.

Tsuna just smiled, like he understood Fon's plight. "You'll figure out eventually Fon-san," he said kindly.

Now Reborn liked Fon as a person. Out of all the Acrobaleno, Fon was probably the one Reborn tolerated the most. (Luce, of course was another exception, but as a Sky, that was not uncommon. Plus, she was dead at this point and there was no point in dwelling on that.) All that said, Reborn really, really hoped that Fon messed up somewhere and took an unplanned trip into the Spirit World, just so Reborn can have someone to lament over how fucked up this entire town is. (Tsuna did not count; no one who lived in this town counted.)

Reborn looked look at the yellow charm once more, the a tiny pulse of warm seemed to radiate it off. It won't hurt to carry it. Reborn didn't like the idea of something influencing his emotions.

He liked being in control of his own emotions.

Falcon

Fuuta looked at the exquisite bird that was sitting on the balcony edge. Its back was to Fuuta, a beautiful sea green color of feathers. Fuuta thought maybe it was a falcon, but the color was unusual. His fingers twitched forward with all the childish curiosity that he had.

Before he could reach out, the bird let out a shrill screech, turning its head to glare its black eyes at Fuuta. Fuuta withdrew his hand, giving a shaky smile at it.

The falcon preened itself feathers, turning around to look at Fuuta. Fuuta got the distinct impression that the falcon was watching him.

"Fuuta!" Tsuna called from somewhere inside the house. "We're going to the park if you want to come."

Fuuta turned around, the falcon already fading from his mind, replaced by the knowledge of going to the park with his big brother. "Coming!" He darted back inside.

With another chirp, the falcon remained behind, watching.

Irie Shoichi

"Are you okay Neesan?" Tsuna asked, concerned.

Ayame merely yawned. "Yes. I could do with more sleep, but today's a special day no?" She gave him a fond smile and reached out to ruffle his brown hair.

Tsuna smiled softly at the gesture. Today marked the sixth anniversary of Ayame and Tsuna's meeting. As per their tradition every year, Ayame treated Tsuna out to dinner. It was hard to imagine that it had been so long already. Was it really six years ago that Tsuna had met Ayame in the park? So many things had changed.

Lost in happy memories, Tsuna wasn't paying much attention as they rounded a corner and he ran straight into someone. Papers scattered, flying away in the wind. "I'm so sorry!" Tsuna blurted out, kneeling down to pick up the papers.

"It's okay. I wasn't paying attention," the boy said, kneeling down too.

Ayame was chasing after the papers that the wind had blown down the street. Tsuna paused at the titles of papers, recognizing most of them. 'These papers are…' Tsuna thought to himself, eyes wide.

"You've read all of these papers?" Tsuna asked, unable to keep the disbelief out of his voice.

The redhead boy flinched and nervously clutched his stomach. "Y-yes."

"That's amazing," Tsuna asked, in awe. If this boy, who wasn't that much older than Tsuna understood even a fraction of what was written on these papers (said papers Tsuna knew were actually very, very, hard to find), the redhead had to be a genius of some sort. Maybe this was the person they were looking for!

"Here you go," Ayame said, reappearing with a stack of papers. She handed them back to the redhead boy.

Said boy was now staring at Ayame, gaping. He pointed at her, in shaking. "You're…! You're…!"

Ayame's eyebrow rose. "You recognize who I am?"

The boy swallowed and nodded, apparently not trusting his ability to speak.

"Huh," Ayame said, a little surprised. "Been in Namimori for over six years and this is the first time anyone has recognized me." Her voice turned a little wistful. "I was beginning to enjoy the anonymity."

Tsuna on the other hand just handed the cover sheet of one of the papers to Ayame. He watched as Ayame's eyes grew wide and her head snapped back to the redhead.

"You understood this paper?" she demanded. "Every theory and explanation in this paper?"

The redhead nodded. "Yes!" he squeaked. He nervously pushed his brown glasses up his nose.

"I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi," Tsuna cut in, before Ayame could scare away the poor boy. He knew full well that Ayame could come across as terrifying when she discovered something new that she liked. "But please call me Tsuna. And since you recognize her, there's no need to introduce Neesan to you."

"Irie Shoichi," the redhead introduced himself.

"Irie-kun," Ayame said, voice velvety smooth and frankly, sounded too much like Reborn's voice when he was about to do something that would end in blood, tears and lots of chaos. Her hands clasped around Irie's. "How would you like a job?"

"What?!" Irie shouted.

Tsuna was not going to laugh. That would be rude. But he thanked very god in existence that he was not one of Ayame's or Reborn's frequent targets. In fact, he thanked that both chaos incarnates liked him.

"A job," Ayame repeated. "As my assistant-" She was cut off as Irie fainted on her.

Ayame frowned, distantly upset as she lifted Irie off the ground. She looked at Tsuna, frustrated. "Why do people keep fainting on me?" she demanded to know.

Tsuna couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Sandy Desert

Hayato woke up in a desert. It was unbearably hot, a dry heat that made him feel like he was being cooked alive. The sand crunched under his feet as he stood, trying to get his bearing. Where the fuck was he and how did he get here?

The sandy environment stretched for miles, as far as the eyes could see. Hayato scowled. If this was someone's idea of a prank, it was a poor one. His eyes widened, no wait, what if this was an attempt on Tsuna's life?! Hayato had to get back to his Sky as soon as possible.

He picked a direction and headed off, taking in what little landmarks that he could. Hayato had just passed a cluster of tall rocks when a voice called out, "And now a little Storm wanders in."

Hayato turned around, pulling out dynamites from his pockets. There, sitting on the rocks was a teenage boy with black hair and ice blue eyes. The teen gave Hayato a tiny two finger salute. "I'm Zephyr," he introduced himself.

"And welcome to the Spirit World, Gokudera Hayato."

Woot! Tsuna has met Haru, Shoichi's been introduced, the kids got a few scenes. Ienari has begun his Flame training. Overall, things are progressing nicely. Thank you so much for all the favs, reviews, and follows. You guys are amazing. (｡･ω･｡)ﾉ

General Notes:

Uxie - I'm allowed to have Pokemon references in my story! As some of you might recognize, Uxie is one of the Legendary Lake Guardians. Uxie is the bringer of knowledge, also has the ability 'leviate'.

Miko - a shrine maiden. en#.wikipedia#.#org/wiki/Miko (remove #)

Charms - also known as omamori en#.wikipedia#.#org/wiki/Omamori (remove #)

Guest Reviewer Response

Omg

In case you didn't see it, I added a small OC cheat list at the top of this chapter. owo b Hehe a lot of plots to cover isn't there? 8D

Lacie

I've been trying how to figure out how to answer your question without spoiling anything. (So shh you picked up an important plot point :P) Okay well to start, time and proximity are the two factors when it comes to the miasma. If you're a random person just stopping by for a few days, you won't even notice. (Which is why Fon and I-pin didn't the last time they were in Namimori because they never met Ienari). Reborn started showing signs within days of his arrival because he was near the source (Ienari) constantly. The charms are what protect Tsuna and his friends from the miasma.