Chapter 9: Nightmares
Never had G seen his best friend more panic and frustrated than this. He was even still uncertain of how to think of Giotto's attraction—not to mention, his own and the other's as well—to the mute boy and the situation clearly wasn't helping. In fact, he was feeling an intense urge to protect and he knew the blond had felt it as well though the other was far worst.
"Giotto!" the red-haired thought the whole excitement, adventure and thrills—good and bad—had died out as they were now dead but he stood corrected. It was worse now that they were merely spirits and couldn't do anything to help. "Snap out of it!"
"Snap out of it?!" G grimaced, briefly remembering the times when they were merely teenager and Giotto was always worried about his delinquent facade. The last time, he had seen this side of his boss was when a nearly killed Lampo returned after a failed mission. Needless to say, even Alaude and Daemon stayed out of his way.
"How the hell can I snap out of it?! They're targeting Tsuna!"
"And Kami knows how bad it is!" the Storm Guardian knew already that the whole thing was fucked up. He didn't need more reminders. "But goddammit, Giotto, calm down! Do you honestly think that panicking will help?"
At the very least, the two were out of sight from the three children and no one could hear them. However, this was really one of the rare cases that G was automatically put in charge and he honestly hated it. He considered drinking after all this—never mind that the ghost couldn't really taste wine or touch things.
"I know, G! I...I know but dammit, why now?!" Giotto gritted his teeth, feeling rather powerless. They knew for a fact that the Vongola would send out people to check on the Sawada but they feared it would be too late. It didn't help that G and Giotto—and the others as well—were invisible to anyone, except their unusual descendants.
They couldn't warn people, who could actually help and they couldn't even take on the assassins themselves. They couldn't do anything to help. They had no power and ability to help. Frustrated, they were stuck and felt as if they were the most useless. If it was not them, G would have like to laugh at the irony.
Funny, how the most powerful men turned into impotent spirits.
The blond turned for guidance and stared at his best friend hopefully. He asked almost pleadingly, "Do you have a plan?"
"If wait-for-how-it-will-end is a plan," the red-haired didn't want to disappoint—especially not in this problem—but he was as helpless as his boss. Hell, he might even be more helpless.
"And if we break the rules, will it change?"
G stared at Giotto, who was calming down now and who didn't waver under the narrowed orbs. He tsked in annoyance, "Just be glad I like the kid or else I'll be punishing you by just saying that."
Primo stared in the direction of where the object of the discussion was. "If it's for Tsuna, I don't think I mind any punishment," he stated as a matter-of-fact and placed his hand to his chest. "I don't want to see him dying at a young age."
"He's not going to die, Giotto," said blond smiled darkly.
"You can't be so sure about that, G," a flinch was the only response to that.
Because Kami helped them, they already knew the horrors of being involved with mafia. It didn't help that complicated technologies and deadly machines were created in the era.
"Who are you?" Tsuyoshi frowned in suspicion at the sight of an unknown raven head inside his house. His frown deepened when he felt a familiarity to the man, who graced himself to being a samurai. "What are you doing here? I already locked the shop!"
He didn't receive any answer and it made him tense. The other man looked pale—oddly transparent but he thought it was just a trick of his eyes and the darkness—but he wore a traditional clothing and—his eyes darkened in caution. Were those swords?
Dark-colored yet gentle eyes met his and he could only blink in confusion. The other's presence gave no killing intent or a threat, just a warm and kind feeling. He also somehow resembled—
The father gasped in recognition and Asari Ugetsu smiled finally, "Hello, Tsuyoshi-kun."
"I don't suppose this is just a simple visit," said man muttered after getting his shock, smiling slightly.
It wasn't everyday that he got to meet his ancestor. He had of course heard that his family had once been able to see one of their greatest ancestors in the past or their childhood. He had once seen glimpses when he was young as well so he could believe that Ugetsu's real.
A small frown replaced the lightness of the atmosphere. Despite only seeing the spirit once, he knew a serious problem when he saw one. "What's going on? Why can I see you now after all the years?"
"It's forbidden for spirits like me and my friends to be seen by other people more than once," the kindhearted ghost stated bluntly. "I'm merely breaking rules to save Tsuna from getting killed."
Freezing, the young father squashed the intense implication that if the small Sawada had seen and befriended his ancestor, then his son would as well. It wasn't the time to think of only his son. He didn't need the distraction when Tsunayoshi—his friend's son and his son's friend—was in trouble. The boy was too innocent and young to die yet.
And if in the near future, what he feared most would happen...if by chance, Takeshi would get wrap in the one thing he wanted to avoid, then he would...
"That explains why sometimes he and the other two children seems to be talking to someone not there," he joked or at least, attempted to. His grin was easily identified as forced. "How can I help?"
"The real question is," the ghostly figure stared seriously at the adult. "Are you willing to wield your sword again?"
Closing his eyes, a picture of two figure fighting each other under the heavy rain came into his mind. The two were drenched from head to toes yet they didn't stop. The first figure—a young man with bold hair—was shouting at the other figure, who had black hair.
"Is this really the greatest swordsman, Yamamoto Tsuyoshi of the Asari Clan? Are you really him?! The Tsuyoshi I know wouldn't give a run away from his problems!"
"You don't understand, Iemitsu!"
Fist against swords, black against yellow, leader against subordinate, determination against determination, reasons against reasons, they didn't hold back. They were close, almost like brothers, that's why they cared too much to not interfere with each other.
"What the hell do I not understand?! If you really love her, don't look away, no matter what happens. No matter what you see, no matter what you learn about her, don't look away. Once you got her in your embrace, don't let go. Once you decide you love someone, that's your responsibility, Tsuyoshi!"
"She's a civilian, Iemitsu! I can't endanger her! I'm protecting her by doing this!"
"Is that really what you're doing?! You're just being a coward!"
The picture faded away as his eyes opened with determination. In truth, Tsuyoshi and Iemitsu were inseparable in the past. They were actually subordinate and boss but then, the swordsman fell in love with a civilian. The blond man wouldn't care if that was only the case. Tsuyoshi just did the most stupid thing.
He had tried to hide his feelings and run away after he had realized that his relationship might not be the best kind. He always had to hide the fact that he was in mafia and the guilt consumed him. He tried to break things off and Iemitsu found out.
His ex-boss yelled at him, told him to get back to his woman and fought him. It ended with Tsuyoshi ending alliance and turning neutral. Their friendship fell after that and Tsuyoshi realized how of a fool he was when he saw the person he loved trying to move on with another man. He never did do anything to stop it. He didn't have a right anymore.
He decided to become a freelancer, a swordsman with no alliance to any family. He then started helping anyone he could, trying to find a purpose in life when he came in contact with the police. There, he met the woman, who charmed him and made him fall in love again, and this time, he was not taking any chances.
He courted Amaya and married her. They gave birth to an energetic boy named Takeshi, who was friends with Tsuna, the son of Iemitsu and Nana. He wondered if Kami-sama was playing tricks on them because every time, he saw them together, he remembered the time when he and Iemitsu were just as close.
Getting back to reality, Tsuyoshi answered Ugetsu with intensity and dignity, "Of course. I am from the Asari Clan."
It was hard to watch over the Sawada Family subtly. Tsuyoshi didn't want to alert the assassins—his ancestor confirmed that there were more than three people—that he was expecting them. He needed to act normally to not cause any suspicion. He had luck on his side since no one seemed to recognized him as someone from the Asari Clan.
He would be observed as well if that was the case.
However, he couldn't possibly watch over the small boy when he's in a daycare center. It was too much and he knew that anyone would question it. Amaya was even starting to see how strange he was acting for the past days.
Exactly fifteen days. he had started this observing for fifteen days by now and the assassins had done nothing. He felt it was worse because he couldn't predict when they would attack. Even his ancestor was getting anxious with the waiting.
Calm before the storm was always terrible.
The sound of a picture frame breaking snapped him from his musings and he didn't to call Ugetsu to know that something had happened. His gut feeling was already acting up. He immediately went to the daycare center but it was already too late.
The assassins had attacked the daycare in the wide open, a forward and simple tactic. No one would have known about it. Tsuna was just an average child, who couldn't speak. No one would expect him to be targeted, except Tsuyoshi and he had not been expecting the assassins to attack directly and not resort to silent kidnapping.
At the damage of the building, the Yamamoto could tell that the Sawada child would carry the guilt of being the cause of it and he was worried that the guilt would consume the child. He shook his head at the thoughts. He still needed to check everything and see if someone was injured and if there was a chance that Tsuna wasn't kidnapped.
Thankfully, no one had gotten seriously hurt but the children were heavily traumatized—Takeshi and Kyoya more so.
He felt his mouth go dry at the paleness and horror in his son's face. The two looked as if they had gotten in a fight as well. There was no sight of the mute brunet and it wouldn't take a genius to know that Tsuna had been caught and his friends saw it in their own eyes.
"Takeshi?" he called out softly and was not surprised when the child clung to his comforting arms, tears falling unconsciously. The black-haired boy was shivering and trembling so bad that it pained the father greatly. "Sheesh, it's okay. You're alright."
"T-tou-san! *sniff* T-they t-took T-tsuna! *sniff* S-scary p-people *sniff* t-took h-him!" Takeshi cried out, his voice filled with terror and fear. "They hit him! And there was blood as well! Tsuna was! Couldn't do anything... Useless! They took him!"
"Sheesh," the older man tried calming the child and he could briefly see that Raven had arrived as well, trying to pacify her frustrated and scared son. "It's okay. We'll find Tsuna and get those scary people in jail. Then, you three could play again. Just like before."
He didn't feel like his words had meaning in them. He knew about the assassins yet he couldn't do anything about them. He had thought that they would be silent in their kidnapping and he could take them on by surprise. He didn't think they would be attacking directly and in such an open manner. It was his fault.
"Tsu-kun? Where is he?" Nana's crushed voice echoed to the place, announcing her arrival and Tsuyoshi felt even worse, especially seeing her state. "My son, where is he? Please tell me he's okay! Please!"
Tears were begging to fall from Tsuyoshi's eyes at the sound of the woman. He failed Tsunayoshi. He failed Ugetsu. He failed Takeshi. He failed Iemitsu. He failed Amaya.
"NO! NOT MY TSU-KUN! NOT MY SON! TSU-KUN, WHERE ARE YOU?! ANSWER ME PLEASE!"
Kami, he failed Nana.
When Iemitsu and Nono arrived in Namimori, they already had a feeling that they were too late. The information had already had been leaked for two weeks by now and they only had found out at the fifteenth day. There was also the matter of travelling. Even if they took the private jets, they would still arrive in an hour or so.
They went to the Sawada residence and Iemitsu felt his mouth go dry at the sight of his wife being lifeless under the embrace of two women. He saw Tsuyoshi in the background who gave him a sad face and felt tears already forming. He didn't need to ask.
"Iemitsu," a reassuring hand touched his shoulders and the blond looked up to his solemn boss. "It'll be okay. We'll fine him and take him back."
The gesture made the group be aware of the newcomers and a woman—Amaya—sprouted an angry scowl in her face and glared at Iemitsu. The other woman only frowned but said nothing.
"You," the word was spat with extreme dislike. "What are you doing here?"
Tsuyoshi tried to stop the woman but she was not having that. Innocent children had gotten involved and one child was kidnapped. And the man, who had caused all of it, was here. Too late to do anything now.
"Where were you?!" she could understand that as a Mafioso he could endanger his civilian family but she could not understand why he wasn't there when he was needed the most. "Tell me, mafia scam, where were you when your son was targeted?! When your family needed?!"
Blinded, that was what's going on. She was so angry and frustrated for having done nothing to protect that she wanted to blame someone and lash out. She didn't think the consequence of what she was saying.
"Amaya!" her husband snapped at her and she realized what she had said and covered her lips with her hand, eyes widening. "I...what was I saying?"
The three men shared a grimace while Raven merely enveloped a blank face. Trembling and shaking, the brunette flashed an emotion in her dull brown eyes.
"Mafia...," Nana's voice was loud and clear in the silence of the house. "What do you mean by that?"
Jade: ...oh, OH MY KAMI! I'm so sorry! I totally made things seem so worse, right? (Blame my cold and listening to "Safe and Sound" when writing this) And to not confuse anyone, Giotto and G had known about the assassin and information as soon as they arrived (Vongola still hadn't known at that time) while Iemitsu and Nono had found out after a few days so they're late.
And about Tsuyoshi, I have a feeling that I might have made him seem a little weaker but remember, it's really not an assassin's or kidnapper's style to attack openly so he really can't expect that. He also can't just head on without a plan. He's just one person and who knows if the assassins have mafia family backing them up? He really can't act hastily.
Also, Tsuyoshi and Iemitsu being in the same family...what? I thought it fits... Another thing, I just realized. Even though Tsuna's the main character, other characters have more scene than him. Should I change it?
(Since this is a rather sad chapter, what do you guys think of the new anime this year? Go with happy thoughts now!)