Hello everyone, Nain Tarlow here.
Here is a new year, a year of new challenges, new update schedules. Oh who am I kidding. I try my best but I am not making any promises. After another rather lengthy time, I finally have a new chapter for you guys. If we are lucky the next one might be published this very same year.
In most serious notes, thanks to everyone who left a comment or simply showed interest in this little story of mine. It really warms the heart to see people actually interested in my stories.
A bit of action this chapter, a bit more of setting up the mafia side, to give a glimpse of what really goes on behind closed doors. Next chapter we finally start really interacting with DxD canon and in classic Vongola style, it will be everything but simple. Hope you guys look forward to that because I do.
Enjoy this chapter and as always, I appreciate every little word you leave me in exchange.
Chapter 3: Daily Life of a Mafioso
If he had to describe how he felt at the moment, Tsuna would say he felt like an overgrown monkey pushed into a way too tight suit, put on a display, and expected to perform. Not to mention the handler behind him, with a whip ready to motivate him.
His hands twitched as he unconsciously wanted to fidget with his tie. It was far too tight, made worse by the similarly tight suit and the unbelievably tense atmosphere. His mind was whirling at a thousand miles, instantly cataloging the room around him, taking note of blindspots, potential weapons, and any possible escape routes.
For all intents and purposes, he felt like going into battle. And he was, though not one in a traditional sense.
"That's ridiculous." the loud, boisterous voice boomed from next to him, close enough that he was halfway to jumping into his fighting stance, before forcefully relaxing his body.
He did not expect anyone else to appear, not so suddenly at least. That and the owner of the voice tended to simply attack him out of the blue whenever they were in the same room. Or in the same country.
Xanxus, leader of the Independent Assassin Squad, the Varia, cut an imposing image. Instead of his usual leather jacket and various feather accessories, he wore a suit similar to Tsuna, clearly expensive and, knowing the man's temper, probably fireproof. His wild mane of hair, for the first time since he knew him, was combed back and put into a ponytail. It would have highlighted his handsome features if not for his glaring red eyes that promised death and suffering and the mass of scars on his face that seemed ever so slowly spread out further and further.
The young mafioso absentmindedly noted how much he now resembled the ten-year older version of him he encountered in his brief and chaotic trip to the future.
Of course, out of sheer survival instinct, he refrained from noting the similarities out loud. Even on a good day, there was a lingering tension between them, resentment for taking his 'rightful' post from Xanxus, and wariness on his part due to how he and Xanxus got acquainted. It wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility for the hotheaded boss to attack him for daring to agree with him.
He already used the excuse of him breathing too loud after all. So Tsuna decided on the path of least resistance and stayed silent, keeping his expression as neutral as possible.
He suddenly felt a shiver go up his spine, along with the phantom weight of someone harshly staring at him, causing him to instinctively straighten up as if he were on a military parade. He did not have to look back, nor did he want to in pain of harsh remediation lessons, to know that the tiny body of his teacher was watching him like a hawk, ready to spot any kind of mistake on his part. Reborn only tolerated the very best from his pupils and that was just the bare minimum.
The door of the ornate office opened, interrupting the silent suffering of the two. The person who stepped through was an elderly man with a brown suit of similarly extensive make, wielding a simple cane. He wore a kind grandfatherly smile under his white bushy mustache and despite the visible exhaustion of the years on him, he seemed to brighten up as he looked up at them.
While Tsuna was rather confident in saying that the man's happiness was honest, this grandfatherly image was also a mask that híd a much harsher truth.
He was Timoteo Vongola, the ninth head of the Vongola Family and honest-to-god godfather of the mafia world at large. Known as a wise and calculative man, he was both a terrifying enemy and a doting old man who loved Hawaiian shirts way too much. He was responsible for dragging the blood-soaked Vongola back to its roots as a more peaceful vigilante organization. Or at least he made the first steps that started the slow-going avalanche that was still happening. And Tsuna was his successor.
"Good morning Tsuna-kun, Xanxus-kun. Thank you for coming." He greeted them with a grandfatherly smile as he carefully walked to his desk, letting out a weary sigh as he eased himself into his seat.
Time was not something the Don of Vongola managed to escape or threaten into submission. He was well into his eighties, his bones cracking in protest of sudden movements. He was old, in a lifestyle where the average age rarely went above fifty, even in these decidedly more peaceful times. He was already pushed a decade or two above the limit he should have retired in.
While it spoke a lot about a lack of suitable successors, to the point where Tsuna was not supposed to be a candidate, to begin with, it also told just as much about the strength and will of the old man. After all, he learned very quickly that most mafia families were opportunists, ready to charge in at the first smell of blood and weakness. That Vongola still managed to retain its position as the 'strongest Family' was no small feat.
Xanxus simply grunted at his adopted father, crossing his arms defiantly, appearing as the very definition of disrespectful. Yet there was a subtle relaxation of his shoulders and the lightest dip of his head, which one would miss if they so much as blinked.
Rather than following his example, Tsuna opted for a more formal bow that looked slightly stiff. While among the mafia, it was not a traditional way of greeting or giving respect, he did have some leeway considering his Japanese heritage and upbringing.
When in Rome do as the Romans do, the saying went. He was a bit of an exception due to his own position. No one dared to ask him to go against his morals or culture, such was the respect the name Vongola commanded.
"Good morning, Ninth!" He greeted Timoteo with a mostly blank and neutral face, still keeping to a respectful tone.
A boss should always be respectful to his elders and predecessors, a child-like phantom voice reminding him of deeply repressed memories.
The pressure from behind lessened considerably and Tsuna felt a vague sense of approval. He dared not to sigh in relief, knowing it was one of many tests dreamed up by his tutor.
Nono gave an indulgent smirk as the only sign he noticed the slight interaction from the shadows, before goodnaturedly shaking his head. As if by some hidden signal, a small toddler, clad in an expensive suit and a large fedora hat jumped out from one of the corners and landed gracefully on the desk.
"Ciaossu!" He greeted them with a squeaky voice that took nothing away from the aight tremble that ran through Tsuna at his appearance.
He might have looked harmless at first glance, maybe even innocent, but he was anything but. However, if anyone outside the mafia was told that said child was actually an adult, at least in mind, and heralded as the strongest hitman, they would have been laughed out.
Tsuna was decidedly not laughing.
"Glad you could join us, Reborn." Nono greeted his old friend with a genuine smile as if he wasn't aware he was there for a while.
"Of course." He replied in his squeaky voice, smugness practically radiating from him.
The two older men started talking back and forth in a relaxed manner. Tsuna, for his part, was content to be ignored and savored the reprieve but Xanxus was much less tolerant.
It didn't take more than a minute for the boss of the independent assassin squad to lose his admittedly small patience.
"Get on with it. I doubt you called us here to listen to you old farts talking shop." The scared man snapped, leveling his angry gaze mostly at Timoteo.
Even he had the sense not to openly antagonize the sun arcobaleno, it seemed.
"Don't talk to your elders like that." The baby hitman pointed out in a dangerous tone before he was in the air with a leg out ready to kick, sooner than either young man could blink.
Only, it seemed his target was Tsuna, not Xanxus.
If it was a year ago, he wouldn't have seen it coming and would have been sent to the wall in a high-pitched shriek and hurt his nonexistent pride. Half a year ago, he still would have been too slow to react and the result would have been the same but would have expected it anyway.
Now? Tsuna had ample time to widen his stance and square his shoulders, raising his arm just in time to block the kick aimed at his head with his forearm. He was still forced to step back slightly from the blow, letting out a muted grunt as he was almost forced to his knees. His deceptive size masked the true power behind Reborn's body which was simply inhuman.
"Why me?" The young boss muttered with a dry voice. From the sounds of it, he was dead and done with the bullshit that was his life.
Reborn for a single moment looked proud as he jumped back, though it was gone so soon, it might have been a trick of light. It probably was. Many things he was, soft was admittedly not one of them.
Deftly landing on the ground after an impressive set of acrobatics, Reborn wordlessly raised his arm. The small, green lizard that so far peacefully napped on the brim of his hat, jumped into his hand and promptly transformed into a baby-sized, green handgun.
Tsuna didn't even blink as he tilted his head to the side, allowing the warning shot to graze past him and ember itself into the wall behind him. Through all of that, the other occupants of the room watched the interaction as if it were an everyday occurrence.
Sadly, it was.
"I would appreciate it if you wouldn't shoot up all of my rooms," Timoteo spoke up in an airy voice as if he were simply commenting on the weather.
Reborn didn't answer immediately, his face forming into a stern glare as he looked at his unbothered student, which would have thousands of young girls gushing at its cuteness if it didn't come from the Spartan Tutor straight from Hell.
It was a hidden guilty pleasure of Tsuna's, to silently think of various over-the-top or at times mocking titles for his eternal tormentor. It was slightly therapeutic, even if he knew Reborn somehow could hear his thoughts and would punish them without exception.
As predicted, another shot was let out, this time much closer to its mark even as he deftly sidestepped, practically hiding behind an amused Xanxus.
"It is a boss's job to keep his subordinates in check." Reborn explained even as he lowered his hand, the gun turning back to its chameleon form and taking back its previous resting spot."Their behavior reflects on you, so you should bear the punishment for their misbehavior."
Everyone collectively ignored the way Xanxus' face transformed from amused to furious at being called subordinate.
Tsuna gave out a long, drawn-out sigh and resisted the urge to cover his face and scream. With his tired eyes and ramrod-straight posture, he looked and felt nothing like a student who supposedly just started high school.
Honestly, at this point, all he wanted to do was curl up in his room and just ignore the entire world. Starting from crazy hitman babies and trigger-happy mafiosos to magical fire powers. Of course, at this point, he was too deep to have any hope of ever getting free of any of them.
Instead he not so subtly peeked out from behind the older teen while also shooting a thumb towards him Or was he already twenty-something? He was actually not sure how old Xanxus was, what with being put on literal ice for seven years.
Focus, he quickly admonished himself as his tutors' eyes started to shine dangerously.
clearing his throat out of sheer nervousness he was unable to hide, Tsuna offered a half smile that came out closer to a grimace before pointing toward the still-fuming assassin.
"To be fair, Xanxus is not currently trying to kill me, shoot up the place, or simply burn away everything in sight while laughing like a Saturday morning villain." the quip earned another glare his way which was completely ineffective even as his red eyes gleamed with murder. He was used to it, after all."At this point, that's the best anyone can hope for, without the Vongola being at the edge of annihilation, forcing us to actually rely on each other. Even then, he would still find a way to insult me every second."
Xanxus in response only huffed like a petulant child, even going as far as to cross his arms and look away. Yet, he did nothing else besides that, proving Tsuna's point.
For a moment, something eerily close to pride glinted in the hitman's eyes. Yet, instead of acknowledging his student's point, he sent another kick at the teen which was easily blocked.
It was half-hearted at best, after all. More for appearance's sake than anything.
Feeling himself out of the danger zone, Tsuna turned to the patiently amused Don with a respectful tilt of his head.
"Xanxus had a point though. If it was a simple get-together, the formal wear and tone wouldn't be necessary. In that case, I still have a few things to settle before our departure back to Japan, so I would appreciate it if we could move to the actual point of all of this."
That he also didn't want to leave his guardians without supervision for long went without saying. They had the unfortunate tendency to cause problems and headaches for him especially when they were high-strung.
To this day, he doesn't want to know what led to Takeshi of all people flooding a part of the city, Kyoya being hunted by the Korean military, or Ryohei gathering a cult composed of kindergarten children. All, while they were supposedly sitting on their end-of-the-year exams.
The sympathetic look Timoteo sent him at the unspoken thoughts, reminded him that just like Tsuna, he did have a bunch of rowdy guardians to try and damage control. Worse, his were already grown men, who should have known better.
"You are right, Tsuna-kun. As amusing as it is, we are here for a bit of a more important business."
His eyes turning steely and his whole posture straightening, Tsuna was reminded that the Ninth Boss of the Vongola was still a force to be reckoned with. Immediately, he straightened his own posture, and even Xanxus stopped huffing, giving his undivided attention to the man who raised him.
"Over the past years, you have glimpsed into some of the greatest secrets of our family, some, even I was unaware of. Yet, there is still more and while I would have loved to keep that burden away from you for more time, it's unfortunately out of my hands. The whole situation is bigger than even the Vongola, and from the looks of it, time is not on our side." he relayed cryptically as he fingered the top of his cane in what Tsuna recognized as a rare show of nervousness.
Of what the arguably most powerful man in the world had to fear was anybody's guess. Not even during the attack during the inheritance ceremony or the subsequent counterattack did he allow even a hint of anything amiss.
So what made a hardened man like that fidget like a schoolboy about to have his mother come in for a parent-student meeting?
While his face remained impassive, Tsuna's mind was a whirl of activity as he tried to figure out what the old mafioso might have meant. Something bigger than anything he encountered before? But what could actually be greater than a magical flame system that actually kept the planet alive?
Like Tsuna, Xanxus also appeared slightly baffled by this statement. Red eyes widened as a silent snarl formed on his face, his scars subtly stretching across his face as a result of his agitation. After all, he knew very well how little the brute force he preferred worked against things like that.
Nono didn't let them steep in their thoughts for long. Clearing his throat, he regained his young audience's attention and not so subtly pointed to the open space just beside his desk, curiously devoid of any kind of furniture.
"But before all of that serious talk, my mother wanted to meet you first." the old man said, in a tone that might have sounded apologetic but was drowned out by the rather impressive light works that almost blinded all four men.
Tsuna, for his part, squinted, trying to spot what was causing said light but came up with nothing, save that it originated where Timoteo just pointed. Even then, his mind had bigger worries, namely to try and make sense of what Timoteo said.
The history of Vongola was beaten into his head so well, that it didn't need a genius to come to a couple of conclusions. First, the Ninth Boss's mother was Daniella, the previous boss of the family. Second, just from Timoteo's age, she must have been at least a hundred years old, if she was still alive, that is.
Before he could voice any of this, all of them were silenced by the bright light that lit up the room.
Out of pure instinct, Tsuna took a step black, his arms coming up in a standard, if wary stance, though he refrained from going full dying will mode just yet. To his left, the sudden heat told him Xanxus did not have his reservations and was already preparing lethal options. The only one not to visibly react was the old boss, who simply let out an aggravated sigh.
As their visions cleared and no attack was launched, Tsuna slightly eased his own stance and decided to try and find the source of this current surprise. His eyes turned toward the far-off corner of the rather large room, where he assumed the light originated from.
The first things he noticed were the large, glowing lines on the ground, giving out a rather contradicting feeling of chill and comfort. The line first curved into a large circle, with a pentagram inside of it, surrounded by a bunch of unknown symbols.
It was a goddamn magic circle, the sign of anything and everything occult. Tsuna wanted to palm his face, knowing his storm guardian's almost obsessive fascination with signs of the occult and the possible headaches he would cause the moment he learned of its existence.
Sadly, he couldn't dwell on Hayato's absurd hobbies for too long, as the next thing that caught his attention was the figure standing in the middle of said magic circle.
It was an adult woman, wearing a stylish if very expensive red suit, striking a simply ridiculous pose with one hand forming a fist, raised in the air, while the other formed a peace sign and came up next to her face. Yet the most striking feature was her face.
Black hair framed her youthful face, with brown eyes glimmering almost fondly, yet they also felt much older than her age would suggest, it reminded him of the eyes of his mentor. There was also a red flower tattoo on the side of her face, unhidden by her hair, and it was that one that seemed the most familiar to him as a particular memory came to him.
A memory, not his own, but one engraved into the Vongola ring, the 'time' of a previous boss recorded, who he met during his trial, to unlock the true power of the said ring.
She was without a doubt, Daniella, Eighth Boss of the Vongola. The problem was, she didn't seem to have aged at all, since her own trial, which by all conventional logic was an impossibility.
Nary a sound left Tsuna, nor a similarly stiff and confused Xanxus as the seemingly ageless former boss stepped out of the magic circle, the light fading away almost immediately and sending them a large, cheerful smile that caused nothing but dread to form in the pit of his stomach.
He didn't need Vongola's famed intuition to know that, from that point on, his life would never be the same.
-0-
Unbidden, a mirthless chuckle escaped the young man, just as he was reminiscing about the event that practically kickstarted the spiral that was his life nowadays.
"Boss?" Chrome softly spoke up behind him, causing him to calm down and look back at his companions.
Dutifully, his mist guardian stood just behind his left, head demurely bowed but still peeking up at him worriedly. Basil stood opposite to her, his expression and stance much more cautious and alert. The three of them no longer wore their school uniforms, nor did they do anything that might be considered normal, as they strode through a seemingly empty street in the middle of the night.
Wearing a white shirt, and black suit combo with an orange tie, it was the quintessential mafia uniform. While it was a bit of a bother to walk around in a fancy suit like that, these were specially made from dying will flame-resistant material, and instead of being restrictive, it was made with combat in mind.
In short, it was perfect for mafia-related matters, which had been mostly relegated to the night hours anyway, due to the increasing load of school and the disciplinary committee. Basil wore a similar suit, with a light blue tie, while Chrome's was a more feminine version including a skirt and leggings.
"That woman sure loves running me ragged with her stupid errands," he answered simply to the earlier question, his voice carefully blank and bored.
For a moment, no one spoke, as if waiting for some kind of divine retribution. Even Tsuna, who was the one to speak in the first place, looked ready to bolt at the first sign of trouble.
"You mean Lady Daniella?" his sole female guardian asked, after nothing happened for a few seconds. Didn't stop her from clutching her trident protectively against her chest.
Basil similarly fingered his boomerang which was holstered at his side, his eyes scanning their surroundings, though it seemed to be born more out of habit than fear.
"Daniella Vongola, eighth leader of the Vongola family, who led the family during the Second World War, was pivotal in ensuring the Mafia as a whole lent its influence to the allied forces behind the scenes. She later retired at the start of what would be the cold war era, and secluded herself to live her final years in peace." Basil recited as if he was reading from a history book before his brows furrowed."Or at least, that's what we thought happened, until she revealed herself a year ago, her body not aged a day since her days as a Donna."
Tsuna nodded in agreement, though he couldn't help the snort escaping him as he remembered the day all of that was basically poured into his lap, and was not so politely told to deal with it.
"Aside from old man Timoteo, everyone was caught off-guard when the former leader they thought was dead showed up, much younger than her son, or even the pictures that were left of her. Of course, she had to turn into a devil of all things, gain eternal youth and things like that, disappear for a few decades, and suddenly decide that it is a good idea to bring the fucking mafia into the middle of a supernatural cold war. As if trigger-happy mafiosi were anything but a helpful influence. Honestly, the nerve of that woman." he fumed under his breath, the quiet night allowing his voice to be heard easily by his companions.
Turning away from his subordinates, Tsuna tried to stifle his frustrations. Honestly, it might have been almost a year since then, but he still sometimes had trouble bringing his head around the whole thing.
Angels, fallen angels, devils, all living and working behind, or beneath might be more apt, the scenes. A supernatural cold war that every day threatened to break out again. And that was before mentioning all other kinds of religions existing and being around in one form or another.
It was, quite literally, bullshit.
Here he was thinking naive thoughts that nothing would surprise him anymore. Should have known better after already dealing with soul fires, magical babies, and the world's most inefficient magic battery system.
Simply listing all the ridiculous things he had to deal with, made him want to curl up and cry in the safety of his room. Or just to barricade himself and play one of his games until he passed out.
Unfortunately, his life was rarely so easygoing that he was allowed such luxuries.
Not waiting for the others to react to his griping, he started walking again, taking long, purposeful strides. Honestly, anyone who knew Dame-Tsuna from his early middle school days would have been hard-pressed to recognize him as the same man.
It did help that in recent years he had a bit of a growth spurt. Of course, it didn't make him overtake his taller guardians but along with how differently he carried himself, he looked more like an old painting of Primo than anything.
Basil, who unlike him, remained roughly the same height, and now was slightly struggling to keep pace with him without outright running, hurriedly addressed him with his mouth set into a thin frown.
"Is this about the order of extermination regarding the recent arrival of Stray Devils?" he asked, sending his boss a pointed look.
Chrome, who wore a small smile as she matched her boss's steps, let out a curious sound. Unlike Basil, she was not aware of the reason for their sudden incursion.
"Exactly. Normally, it would be the two teenage devils governing this town, who would be set to deal with them. Of course, considering those two also have two of the leaders of the Devils as overprotective siblings, it's a miracle that they let any of these nuisances get this close in the first place."
The three of them left the wide streets of the city center and arrived at a much more looking part of the town, cluttered with various warehouses and seemingly abandoned homes. Their destination was one of those aforementioned warehouses and in short order, the three of them stood in front of one.
The warehouse itself definitely saw better days, with some holes in the roof, its windows broken, and the large gate meant for larger vehicles missing completely. In short, it was dumb.
"Chrome, please put on the mist field to cut off any stragglers trying to escape and others to disturb us," Tsuna ordered in a soft voice as he pulled out a pair of black fingerless gloves and put them on. On the upper side of the left hand was the number 27 sewn onto, while the right hand had a small picture of a fish. A tuna to be exact.
"As you wish, Boss," she replied with a faint blush, as she expertly twirled her trident around.
At the same time, the earring on her ears was surrounded by indigo-colored mist flames. From there, a large amount of dark mist-like substance burst into every direction before disappearing. The only evidence of anything happening was a subtle dark glow of their surroundings.
"Mist field deployed," she stated in an emotionless voice, fiddling with the handle of her weapon.
"Good." Tsuna nodded with a satisfied smile, before turning back toward the warehouse.
He closed his eyes as he took a big breath, a subtle tremble going through his body before without any outward sign, something in him changed. His posture, while confident and a bit menacing before, somehow turned even straighter, as a sort of pressure started to radiate from him.
Opening his eyes, they were revealed to be a fiery orange color and his gaze felt as if literal flames were behind it. His gloves also changed, lighting up for a moment as they seemingly expanded, turning bulkier and sturdier. As the light disappeared, instead of the pair of thin, black gloves was a more armored, bright red pair of gauntlets on his hands.
On each hand, at the back rested a blue crystal, covered by an orange X as well surrounded by the words 'Vongola Famiglia'. In addition to the new state of the gloves, an X-shaped buckle appeared on his belt as well as a leg bangle.
"According to the report, a full group of seven Stray Devils wandered into this area. Normally, it would be the heiresses to deal with them but that devil woman intercepted those orders, and only two of them were reported, so each group is dealing with one as we speak. Unfortunately, that means the rest are ours to deal with." he explained in a bored tone as he walked into the warehouse.
The inside looked in an even worse state than the outside, littered with broken pieces of what might have been furniture and other objects. And a lot of patches of blood haphazardly sprayed on the ground. Some of that looked fresh too.
"Maybe she wanted us to keep our skills sharp." Basil helpfully stated, before pulling out a small case and ingesting a pill from it. A moment later, his eyes gained a light blue hue as a small burst of similarly colored flame appeared on his forehead, taking up a V shape.
"All she did was make more work for me. And to think, I planned to finish the main campaign tonight." Tsuna complained under his breath, flexing his fingers as he took a proper look around.
Basil opened his mouth, most likely to rebuke his hikikomori of a boss but was cut off as several figures stepped out from the shadows.
Two of them, to their right, appeared almost human. Two arms, two legs, one head, and everything correctly proportioned. If it wasn't for the sharp teeth and batlike wings on their back, they might have passed off as homeless but overall normal people. Of course, the sheer bloodlust radiating from them betrayed their true origins anyway.
The three on the left, on the other hand, took forms much more removed from the standard human.
One looked like a weird variation of a centaur, only the horse part was replaced with some kind of large cat with green fur. Its human part looked like a very endowed female and was also completely naked. If he wasn't already in dying will mode, Tsuna might have looked away in sheer embarrassment, especially because it took a very provocative pose, fondling its breasts.
The others weren't anything better but less headache-inducing at the very least. A chimera seemingly made up of extinct reptiles, aka dinosaurs, and a writhing mass of tentacles, sharp teeth, and wagging tongues. A lot more of each that seemed anatomically possible.
Devils were, frankly speaking, bullshit.
Silently, the young boss lamented the bygone days where the most he had to worry about on the creepiness scale were Mukuro's frequent semi-serious attempts at his life or Byakuran dropping in randomly.
Oh, how he missed those relatively peaceful days. At least those made a modicum of sense.
Still, as much as it annoyed him, he had a job to do. He would have time to lament his past after he was done taking out the trash. Because in the end, it was all that these Stray Devils were.
The devil equivalent of trash.
Basil's and Chrome's presence behind him was a much-needed comfort, something to ground him. With his shoulders pulled back and body and mind fully readied for combat, he put on a disinterested expression and walked into the middle of the warehouse in a semi-relaxed manner.
Of course, it did not escape the devils' attention. They were content watching from the shadows, only the caution of a hunted animal stopping their bloodlust from taking them over completely. But with a willing prey stepping right into their territory, all restraint went out the window.
Tsuna didn't even have time to blink, he was surrendered by a group of salivating, half-starving monsters, with tentacles wrapped around his limbs in less than a moment.
"What a sweet smell. I wonder, do you taste the same or you are more bitter?"
"Didn't know they did deliveries out here. Just when I wanted a snack."
"Bad luck for you, human. You are just unlucky to be served on the dinner table."
"What a cutie. I could just gobble you up in one piece."
"Wait for your turn. First come, first served."
All of them were quick to break into chatter, acting completely unconcerned about someone stumbling into the middle of their territory, yet displaying no fear or hesitation. They even ignored Basil and Chrome, who didn't move a muscle, patiently waiting for a command.
Tsuna didn't let out a single sound, even as the limbs around him tightened. His face remained an impassive mask, not even a twitch as he barely looked at his captors.
They let their guards so much it was laughable. And these were supposed to be hardened criminals, in the run from all three of the Biblical faction? He knew preschoolers who acted more intimidating and professional too.
That hold was also atrocious. He might be biased after being trained for years by the greatest hitman of the mafia but part of him expected these stray devils to have some semblance of a standard.
It was bad enough that he could have gotten out of it without relying on his powers if he wanted to. The only thing that stopped him, was that he literally didn't want to. It would have required too much effort, that he simply didn't want to waste on these idiots.
"Annoying," he muttered under his breath with a dissatisfied expression, something that his captors took note of.
"Look at this guy, he is so terrified that he doesn't even realize the situation he is in." the tentacle monster gloated in a childish tone, only to instantly shut up as Tsuna raised his head and glared straight at the eldritch abomination.
"It is annoying, dealing with weaklings like you," he said in a louder tone before letting out a big breath and the world around them froze. Literally.
In less than a moment, the limbs squeezing him were encased in ice and the temperature around them plummeted drastically. The stray, who was little more than teeth and tentacles, could not even cry out in shock or pain before the ice traveled through his body and froze him from head to toe, its caricature of face displaying surprise.
The ice itself was far from normal. It looked transparent with rainbow-colored spots of light seemingly trapped inside, creating an ethereal, yet beautiful feel to it. The other devils instinctively took a few steps back, something telling them that even touching that strange ice was far from recommended.
Tsuna's expression, if possible turned even colder, the ice seemingly not affecting him, aside from his breath becoming visible. Just when it seemed he trapped himself in his own attack, a casual flex of his arms easily shattered both the ice, and the tentacles inside. He went as far as brushing away the small pieces of frozen bits that landed on his suit before pinning the stray devils with his eyes.
"There is no way this guy could be a human." one of the more human-looking devils muttered, slowly backing away.
"Could this guy be one of those sacred gear users?" the devil next to him pondered, similarly gearing up for a retreat.
Tsuna didn't visibly react to them, simply cracking his knuckles as he slowly started walking towards them, his face still apathetic.
"Disturbing the peace of Kuoh, attacking normal residents and crowding around in private property. All of these are forbidden. Most of all, you caused me extra work." he explained, sounding as if he was talking about the weather.
The chimera lookalike opened its mouth, maybe planning to say something in their defense or simply just yell threats but he never got the chance.
A simple flare of orange flame erupted from the young teen's gloves and in the time it took them to blink, he was already by the two humanoid devils' side, who understandably instantly tried to run away. Unfortunately for them, Tsuna seized both by their throats and turned them instantly into icicles, horror spread over their frozen faces.
The other two showed they were not as pathetic as their acting so far indicated and didn't waste time reacting. Namely, the chimera let out a fearsome roar, head lowered and tusk pointed toward Tsuna, while the panther centaur woman grabbed her breasts, seemingly fondling them, and shot a pair of lightning bolts from the nipples.
The mafia boss deadpanned at the latter but his gloves let out another burst of flame, allowing him to shoot up and land on one of the beams on the upper part of the warehouse. He let out a silent sob for the times where enemy attacks used to mean something other than embarrassment, before addressing the last two standing devils.
"This was your last chance to surrender." he declared in a hard tone, allowing the dying will flame to manifest on his forehead and stop holding back.
His opponents tried to definitely glare at him but nothing would hide the shiver running up their backs.
They were so over their heads, that it was almost funny.
-0-
Basil and Chrome remained behind, impassively watching the fight that could be called more accurately as a beatdown.
It was clear that Tsuna alone was overkill against opponents of this caliber but experience told them it was wiser to plan for every scenario. The worst they could do was over-prepare, after all.
The young mist guardian carefully split her focus between maintaining the mist barrier, to keep the normal residents and the local devils unaware and looking out for surprises. If it was her a few years ago, the intense concentration would have taken everything from her just to keep up but now it came as naturally as breathing.
Where she covered before, she was able to stand proud as Tsuna's mist guardian. Her boss's guardian.
He accepted her without reservation ever since she met him. Even when her connection to what was an enemy of theirs was revealed, he regarded her the same as before. Hesitant, unsure but still so painfully open, dangerously accepting. Warm. So warm, kind yet buried under all of that was a steel that was saved for those who wanted to harm those who were his.
A slight blush surfaced on her cheeks at the few errant thoughts that broke out from her careful self-control, her eyes glued to his graceful form. To calm her suddenly racing heart, she forced her eyes somewhere else, ending on the devils trapped in half-formed ice statues littering the ground.
They had a certain beauty to them, like some kind of art piece that you never understood what exactly they meant to represent but nodded along with an impressed 'ah' anyway.
Basil, vigilant as ever, noticed the sudden movement of her head, and his grip on his weapon tightened slightly, likely misunderstanding it.
"What is it?" He asked in a low voice, his eyes never stopped scanning their surroundings.
Chrome's head moved so fast, that one might have heard it crack, a massive blush spreading through her face. Immediately, she started scolding herself, for allowing her focus to such a degree. Thankfully her mist barrier remained strong even with her wavering focus but now she found herself in quite an embarrassing predicament.
Thankfully, she had the perfect way to deflect her lapse in focus already at hand.
"Sorry, I just ...got a bit distracted by looking at Boss's ice. It's quite beautiful." She admitted shyly, barely able to stop fidgeting with her hands. It was a hard habit to break but she was trying, for her boss.
"Is that so?" was the uncertain reply she got from a confused Basil.
With how the battle was winding down, Tsuna at this point was just jumping around, carefully getting a feel for how devils fought generally, and he allowed his own guard to slowly relax. Of course, that meant he was fully focused on Chrome, who wanted to hide behind her illusions.
Oh, how she missed Mukuro-sama, Ken, or Chikusa right now. All of them were experts at turning attention to them whenever it got too much for her. Not like they ever admitted that they did it for her but she was sure that's why they did.
"I didn't know he could use zero point breakthrough on other things than dying will flames." She said, desperately trying to change the subject.
"Well at the end of the day the dying will flame is a form of energy, So it makes sense it would work on the devils' energy as well." He answered, though his tone was anything but confident. It sounded more like he was guessing himself but was afraid to admit it.
The two fell into another bout of uncomfortable silence. Though it might have been more on Chrome's side than anything.
She didn't mean anything by it though. Basil was polite and kind, always helping them or keeping an eye on the boss. She was almost certain they could be considered friends.
In the end, he was simply too new to her and didn't know if he would end up being disgusted by her or anything similar. He wasn't like Mukuro-sama or Boss, whom she knew without a doubt at first glance, or like the other guardians and the girls, with whom she overcame many hardships together and they bonded closely as a result.
It did not mean she didn't want to get closer to Basil. The opposite exactly. She just needed time to adjust.
Her retrospective thoughts were cut off as the two of them heard a disgruntled sigh, accompanied by the lacking sounds of battle, prompting them to hurriedly turn back their attention.
Tsuna was walking towards them at a laid-back pace, dying will mode deactivated and hands in his pockets. He hardly looked winded at all after all that jumping around, his uniform barely looking ruffled and there was no damage on his person. Not a cut, not a bruise, there wasn't even a speck of dirt out of place.
Behind him, all the stray devils were encased in an icy prison from head to toe, unable to even twitch. Their powers were sealed, making them completely harmless. Not like they seemed all that strong to begin with.
"That was quick work." Basil offered with a smile, stepping closer to Tsuna, subtly looking him over in case was hiding any injuries.
Of course, there was nothing, not even a hint of sweat. If they didn't know better, they would have thought Tsuna was on a normal, evening stroll, instead of combating presumably dangerous devil criminals.
Rather than verbally answering, Tsuna gave an annoyed grunt, sending a glare toward his subordinate. If it was anyone else but these two, they would have interpreted it as an unspoken threat and would have run away. But Basil and Chrome were able to read the mask of the discipline committee president better than most.
More than that, Chrome had a distinct feeling that his annoyance was directed more towards himself than Basil who approached him. The glare was more of a gesture because he did not know what to do as if he realized he was missing something.
With the way his shoulders were slightly hunched, and how he didn't meet anyone's gaze directly, it created a surprisingly cute image. She was almost certain that his hands were curled inside fists in his pockets, hence his trying to hide them.
His actions strangely reminded her of Lambo, whenever the young Bovino was denied his fourth serving or there was no one available to play one of his many games. And just as the thought occurred to her, she reached one shocking conclusion.
Was he pouting?
"I am not pouting." Tsuna was quick to defend himself, going as far as pulling out his hands and waving them around nervously.
From that and the suddenly wide-eyed looks the two of them sent to her, she might have said her last thoughts out loud.
As soon as she realized it, Chrome turned into an impressive shade of red, to the point she felt as if steam was coming out of her face. She tried to backpedal, stammering apologies that were cut short when Tsuna raised a hand to gently stop her.
"You are not entirely wrong." he admitted with a grimace."Guess I got so used to sparring with strong opponents almost all the time that I actually felt a little cheated when they turned out to be barely stronger than normal humans."
"I think your definition of 'normal human' and the world at large, does not agree." Basil helpfully supplied, one eye looking at the various damages the stray devils caused while unable to land a hit on Tsuna himself.
"You are proving my point," Tsuna responded with a sour look on his face before shaking himself out of his funk.
Taking one last look at the still struggling devils, he appeared thoughtful for a moment before turning around and walking out.
"Whatever, I'm going home. Chrome let's go, Basil, you are cleaning up," he told in an authoritative tone, the illusionist quick to fall in step beside him.
Not a fact that the last person of their trio appreciated.
'Wait, what am I supposed to do with these guys?"
"Give them to the devils, send them to the Vendice, I don't really care. Figure it out, you are a mafioso." was the reply thrown back at the flabbergasted teen.
Chrome, feeling a bit bad for Basil, could only send a timid wave as an encouragement before hurrying after Tsuna. She quickly fell in line just behind him, unable to hide the small smile appearing on her face, at the thought of the two of them sharing a quiet, midnight stroll.
She might have read too many novels from Haru's collection but a girl needed her hobbies.
She caught Tsuna looking at her from the corner of his eyes, snapping her back into the present. His expression was kind of stuck between the aloof look most people were familiar with and the panicked confusion he wore much more frequently in his younger years.
"Sorry." He murmured, sending her a sheepish smile before just as quickly looking away.
In response, Chrome only smiled at him, trying to reassure him with her silent support.
Some might have been put off by the sharp differences in him. How he switched between how he acted with his friends, his famiglia, and what Yamamoto once jokingly called 'boss-mode'. Some might have wondered which, if any of them, showed his real feelings. Not her though.
The boss was the boss. It was the simple truth of it.
As an illusionist, she was well aware of how much the image mattered when it came to people. That's why Tsuna had different masks for different parts of his life. To protect himself and those he considered his. They did not make his actions any less real.
That's why she never could doubt his intentions. He might show it differently but her boss was still the same man who accepted her, who accepted all of them.
"At least tomorrow is the weekend," she said in the end, diverting the topic rather than calling him out on it.
At once, it seemed as if some great weight had fallen off of his shoulders. A bright smile lightened up Tsuna's expression, his steps turning much lighter, to the point he almost started skipping.
It was honestly adorable.
"It is, isn't it? A day away from the rule-breaking students, rowdy delinquents, and most importantly paperwork! No committee and definitely no mafia can stop me from enjoying my one free day of the week" he beamed, letting out a delighted cheer.
Chrome returned the gesture, if a bit more quietly, infected by Tsuna's sudden good mood. More than that, she finally saw her chance to make a move, as Bianchi would call it.
"If you are not busy, maybe we could, I mean, Kyoko mentioned a new pastry shop opening near us. It's supposed to be very good and I thought ...maybe the two of us…" she cursed her stammer, her voice turning more quiet with every word as her bravery evaporated.
"-Dino mentioned that Last Fantasy 27 is getting a new expansion. It's supposed to be the best one yet, with a breathtaking conclusion of the Warrior of Sky storyline. I'm really excited about that, having been waiting for two years. A whole day, just to immerse myself in it, grind my classes, and just laze around." He murmured happily, before shooting her a curious look."Sorry Chrome, got a bit distracted. You were saying?"
And just like that, her chance was blown away to the winds .
Yet, rather than lamenting her non-existent confidence or the single-mindedness Tsuna displayed whenever one of his games came, she instead smiled serenely at her beloved if somewhat dense boss.
"Nothing really. I just mentioned I might visit a newly opened cake shop this weekend. Do you want me to bring you something?"
Tsuna gave a non-committal answer, and soon his attention was diverted once again, the two of them falling into meaningless small talk, broken by occasional bouts of comfortable silence.
As much as part of her wanted to mind her lost chance, ultimately she remained content. Even these little moments with Tsuna, peaceful and happy, were more than enough for her.
She was also used to being patient to get what she wanted. Most wouldn't imagine her to have a single manipulative bone in her body but people tended to forget who her teacher was.
As long as these relatively peaceful and eventless days continued as they did so far, she would have all the chances she needed.
-0-
Unfortunately, in contrast to the young illusionist thoughts, those peaceful days of theirs might reach their end soon.
Back at the school ground of Kouh, in the old building, a buxom young woman with bright red hair sat in front of a chessboard. She was listening to the findings of one of her servants with a thoughtful frown on her face, holding up a particular student profile, looking at it with interest.
With her deadline coming closer and closer, she was desperate, contemplating decisions she otherwise would have frowned upon heavily. Yet, with a new possible acquisition on the horizon, she must move swiftly. Especially since it seems she was not the only one interested.
On the other side of the city, in a modest household, Hyudou Issei paced restlessly, nervous energy practically pouring out of him.
He double-checked the clothes he picked out for tomorrow, made sure his plan was as airtight as possible and carefully counted the money he had, to ensure he would be able to pay for everything. Even so, he could not suppress the giddiness at just what awaited him tomorrow.
He had a date. With a cute., gorgeous babe of a girl at that. It will start with one date, maybe even a kiss, then more dates and before long he will leave his buddies in the dust, graduating into a man.
The thought of doing all the things he imagined with sweet Yuuma-chan caused a bit of drool to escape his mouth and a perverted giggle bubbled forth.
Even outside the city, further events moved as fate's wheels spun forward. Various groups, some forgotten, some completely unknown, moved and plotted. Some fought, some came to uneasy alliances, and all the while the world of the mafia slowly connected to the similarly elusive world of supernaturals.
Hidden from the world, beneath the impenetrable walls of Vindice, a small baby wrapped in bandages frowned uneasily as his unseen gaze turned somewhere much farther than before turning back the Pacifier Jar, and continued his silent vigil over the new cornerstone of Tri-ni-sette.
Storms might wreak havoc on the outside world but to him, it did not matter. Let that naive Vongola kid handle them. He had his duty and it was all that mattered.
Unfortunately for some, it was never their choice to get involved or not.