Chapter 6:

In the Namimori's shopping district, Gokudera is fighting a Kokuyo student named, Kakimoto Chikusa and right now they both are staring at each other.

"You said your name is Kakimoto Chikusa." Gokudera asks. "Are you after Juudaime?"

He didn't respond as Gokudera takes it as a yes. "Then I need to stop him, no matter what!"

Gokudera takes out many dynamites. "Two times Bomb!" He throws it all into the air, but Chikusa spins his yo-yo and swings at them, defusing them once more. "Damn!"

The yo-yos spin passes the dynamites and hovers above the sliverrette.

"He got me. I can't dodge them with my speed!" He takes out a small dynamite from his belt. "I didn't want to use this attack if I didn't have to. Even though it's a tiny bomb…" He flings it behind him causing the small bomb to explode behind him and the shockwave sends him flying towards the yo-yo specialist to avoid the needle.

"It hurts!" He keeps the momentum of his speed and swings his fist at him, who dodges it like it was nothing. "Damn, it's not over yet!" The bomber yells as he throws more dynamites. "Two Times Bomb!"

"What a one-trick pony." Chikusa says as he swings his yo-yos, but as he did so, three smaller bombs are near him as he misses, and it explode in his face. He kneels from the pain of the wound the silverrette has given him.

"Hehehe, eat that." Gokudera chuckles. "You were taken by a simple trick. When I threw the regular dynamites as I shouted, 'Two Times Bomb', the tiny bombs that I have already thrown were close enough to appear as regular bombs. Don't underestimate the Vongola."

Chikusa stumbles to get up but he looks up noticing the large amount of dynamites that the bomber has already thrown.

"Die."

The dynamites explode as they land on the student as Tsuna, Kouga and Ruki enter the shopping district heard the explosion.

"That explosion… Could it be?" Tsuna mumbles.

They quickly run towards the silver-haired bomber.

"Gokudera/-kun/-san!" The three of them call out.

"Oh? Juudaime! What are you doing here?!" He asks.

"Well, I…" Tsuna starts.

"We're here to warn you about getting attached by the students from Kokuyo Middle." Kouga explains.

"I never asked you!" Gokudera yells at him.

"It's not my idea, it was Tsuna's."

"Really?! You came all this way here just to tell me?!" Gokudera takes a kneeling position. "I'm overjoyed! I just took him out!"

"Eh?!"

"I killed him, right over there." He looks at the smoked floor. "Eh? H-He's gone!"

"You saved me the trouble." They turn around and see Chikusa standing behind them, badly injured and blood coming out from his wounds.

"HIE!" Tsuna shrieks.

"Ruki, get behind me." Kouga tells her.

"Onii-sama…" Ruki calls.

"This guy's from Kokuyo? He looked kinda dangerous."

Noticing a small movement from his right hand, Kouga turns to the brunette.

"Tsuna, run!"

The beanie student swings his yo-yo. Tsuna braces for the pain as Kouga covers Ruki but it never came. They look up and see Gokudera blocking the needles with his body as blood starts to stain his white shirt.

"G-Gokudera-kun…"

"Juudaime… Please run." Gokudera faints from the intense pain.

"Gokudera-kun! Are you all right?! Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna shakes him. "Gokudera-kun!"

"Gokudera, hold on!" Kouga kneels next to him with Ruki.

"Gokudera-san!" Ruki calls out.

The injured assassin slowly walks towards them as Tsuna shrieks.

"Tsuna, get out of here." Kouga tells the brunette.

"Huh?"

"Get out of her while you still can!" He yells as he draws out a wakizashi from his right sleeve. Chikusa swings his yo-yo and the black-haired teen sword deflects them before it can fire any of its needles. He swings his sword at him, but Chikusa dodges it and he throws the yo-yos that hit Kouga in the stomach. He stumbles back behind Tsuna.

"Onii-sama!" Ruki calls out as she quickly goes to him.

"I'll break you, then take you with me." Chikusa says.

Tsuna shakes in fear as his legs trembles. "I need to run, but my legs…"

"Let's get this over with." Chikusa swings the yo-yo and the needles are about to hit the brunette, but then he is drags down onto the floor.

"We've slide over home plate, safe and sound!" He looks up and sees Yamamoto sitting with him smiling brightly.

"Yamamoto!"

"I was walking by and heard the ruckus." Yamamoto says. "I came, and…" He looks at the fallen Gokudera. "What's happening isn't good." Yamamoto looks at the beanie student with a very angered look.

"Yamamoto usually doesn't get angry…"

"You're in the way." Chikusa says while he swings the yo-yo at him. Yamamoto sees the yo-yo and swings his bat which changes into a katana, cutting the yo-yo in half. Chikusa is shocked of the results and Tsuna freaks out.

"He cut it!" Tsuna shrieks. "Since when did Yamamoto start carrying a bat around?!"

"I see… You're Namimori Middle, 1-A, Roll Sheet number 15: Yamamoto Takeshi."

"What of it?" Yamamoto retorts.

"That's right, Yamamoto has the number 2 spot on the school's Fighting Prowess Ranking."

"Officer, over there!" A passerby informs the policeman.

"What are you guys doing?!"

"You're Ken's target." He says emotionlessly. "Fighting you would be a pain." Chikusa slowly walks away exiting the district.

Tsuna sighs, relieve that they didn't kill them, but he remembers.

"Gokudera-kun! Are you all right?!"

"Hang in there, Gokudera!" Yamamoto shakes him.

"You'll make it worse if you shake him!" Kouga shouts.

They decide to take Gokudera to the school nurse office, but Bianchi doesn't seem happy about it.

"And why is Hayato being hospitalized here?" She questions them with a basket of poisonous fruits.

"Bianchi-chwan~!" Shamal jumps out from the curtains only to get kicked by the Poison Scorpion."

"Stay away!"

"Hey, now. I'm loaning a bed only because Reborn asked." Shamal tells them.

"I'll look after Hayato!" Bianchi says to the perverted doctor. "If you're going to get in the way, get out."

"Bianchi…" Tsuna says.

"Even you did that, his wounds wouldn't heal."

"True." Tsuna agrees.

Yamamoto just laughs. "Yamamoto Takeshi, what's so funny?"

"Eh! I… um… wasn't really…" He stammers.

"Wasn't really what?"

"What? Well nothing…"

"What do you mean 'what'?"

"Gokudera-kun, because of me…" Tsuna thought.

"Tsuna…" Kouga mutters looking at the brunette.

The door slides open. "Ano…" Everyone in the room turns and find Shizuki Yuuri by the door.

"Ah, Shizuki-san. Is something wrong?" Tsuna asks.

"Can I speak with Kouga-kun for a while?" Yuuri asks and Kouga nods. "Arigatou, please meet me at the roof." She runs off as Kouga looks at her retreating figure.

"Well, see you guys later." The black-haired teen tells and walks off. He slowly walks up to the roof with Yuuri stands along the sides looking at the sight. "What is it?" Kouga asks as he walks through the door.

"Please…" The girl turns around. "…don't fight them!"

"What are you talking about?" Kouga asks.

"…I can tell." She replies. "That you going to fight along with Sawada-san…"

"Are you talking about the guys from Kokuyo?" He asks and Yuuri nods. "…I can't. They attacked our friends and started this fight."

"I see…" Yuuri looks down sadden about his answer. Then a hand is placed on her head.

"Don't worry." Kouga tells her. "We're going to come back safe and sound." Yuuri looks up to see a smile on his face. "Okay?"

"Hai."

Kouga moves back and down the stairs. As he walks down the stairs, he notices Tsuna and Reborn talking with a letter in the hitman's hands.

"Is there something wrong, Tsuna?" He asks.

"Ah, Kouga-san!"

"Just in time, Kouga. There is a letter from Kyuudaime addressed to both of you." Reborn tells them as he opens the letter.

"My dear Vongola Juudaime and Sky Knight, I've had heard from Reborn about how much you have grown." Reborn reads aloud. "It seems that the time has come for you to take the next step. I am giving you two an order: capture Rokudo Mukuro and the other two escapees and rescue their captive. I wish both of you luck."

"Sky Knight?" Kouga repeats.

"Wait! What's with that?" Tsuna asks him.

"P.S.," Reborn continues, "If you refuse, you will be treated as a traitor and will be kille-"

"Uwa! This has nothing to do with me!" Tsuna runs off, not wanting to be any part of this.

"Tsuna!" Kouga runs after him. He manages to catch up with him on the road mumbling to himself. "Tsuna! Hold on for a second!"

"Kouga-san… Look, I don't want to do any of this!" Tsuna shouts. "I'm Dame-Tsuna and I can't work for the mafia!"

"Tsuna…"

"No matter how much you run, they keep coming after you." They turn around to see Reborn with his elbows on the ledge.

"Reborn!"

"And on top of that, don't forget what they've done to find you." Reborn adds.

Tsuna pauses and recalls all the people that were caught in the cross fire: Ryohei, Kyoko, Gokudera.

"That's…" Tsuna says. "I think what they are doing is wrong, involving everyone like that! Mukuro make me angry! But… Even Hibari-san hasn't returned. There's no way that Dame-Tsuna could defeat a guy like that. It's reckless."

"But the people around you don't think so." Reborn tells him.

"Eh?" He turns around when he hears footsteps to find Gokudera standing in front of him. "Take me with you, Juudaime!"

"Gokudera-kun!"

"I'll bring their lives to an end."

"How are your wounds?" He asks the bomber.

"Just scratches… eh…" He stumbles.

"They are definitely not scratches." Kouga thought.

"I'll go too, Tsuna." Yamamoto tells the brunette."

"Yamamoto!"

"I heard it from the kid, you're playing mafia with another school, right?"

"You're being duped, Yamamoto." Tsuna sweat-drops.

"I'll go too." Bianchi comes up from behind. "I'm worried about Hayato." Gokudera immediately collapse to the floor.

"She's having a reverse effect!" Tsuna and Kouga thought.

Kouga then looks at Tsuna. "Of course, I'm going too."

"Kouga-san."

"I'm coming too." Tsuna looks behind the Poison Scorpion, there stands Ruki.

"Ruki-chan!"

"If Onii-sama goes, the I will go."

"Omae…" Kouga trails off.

"We've got the people need to charge into enemy territory." Reborn says.

"Eh?"

"I know where their hideout is." He tells them. "Their captive should be there."

"Captive?" Tsuna asks.

"Someone you know very well."

They decide to assemble in front of Tsuna's house next morning. Kouga decides to take his broad sword and a ring that his grandpa from America gave him before going to Japan. He puts on a white jacket over a black long-sleeve shirt with blue jeans. As he walks out of his room to the front door, there Ruki stands there wearing a pale blue t-shirt and dark-blue jeans with her sword strapped onto her waist as her tessen is also strapped onto her right leg.

"Onii-sama." Ruki calls.

Kouga nods and says, "Let's go."

He opens the door and walks out with Ruki following. Soo, they reach the brunette's house but in front of it are Yamamoto, Tsuna, Gokudera, and a very large squirrel. Kouga immediately walks up to them.

"Yo, Tsuna!"

The brunette turns around to face him. "Ah, Kouga-san!"

"Is that Bianchi?" Kouga asks pointing at the person in the squirrel suit.

"Yeah… We need her to wear something on her face to prevent Gokudera-kun from fainting." Tsuna sighs.

"Why not goggles then? She wore them during the snow ball fight and he didn't faint." Kouga suggests.

"Oh! That could work!" Gokudera agrees.

"Arigato, Kouga-san. Demo, your sword is huge as ever." Tsuna dead-panned at the sight of seeing Kouga's sword.

"Yep!"

"Yosh! You're all here." Reborn announces. "Let's go beat Mukuro!"

They all nod and follow the little hitman and end up walking through an empty road.

"It's quiet." Bianchi says.

"A new road replaced this one, so most cars don't come this way." Reborn tells them.

"This is it." Tsuna says as they reach the entrance of what seems to be an abandoned park. "It's really creepy…"

"Yeah…" Kouga agrees as Ruki gets closer to him.

"Is this whole area abandoned?" Gokudera asks.

"This place used to be a compound recreation area called the Kokuyo Center." Reborn tells them. "There are plans for renovating it but after the land slide occurred here, this place has been abandoned ever since.

"Ah! I've come here before!" Tsuna exclaims. "That's it, that's it! This place has a karaoke bar, a movie theater and a small exhibit of flora and fauna."

"So now the dream is over, huh?" Bianchi comments.

"If you've been here before, lead the way, Tsuna." Reborn tells him.

"Eh! I've been here before, but it was a long, long time ago!" Tsuna exclaims.

Gokudera inspects the lock on the gate. "The lock is rusted shut. They're not using this gate as an entrance. What should we do."

"Of course, we break through the front." Bianchi says as she brings out her poison food. "Poison Cooking, Melting Sakura Cake!" She places the food on the lock making it to melt it.

"Hey, Bianchi!"

They all enter the area as Tsuna leads them.

"If I remember correctly," He says as he looks around, "there is an exhibit with flora and fauna around here, but…"

"There's nothing like that here." Bianchi tells him. "Your eyes are as good at knotholes."

"A-Aneki!" Gokudera shocks of his sister's attitude.

"What is this?" Yamamoto kneels on the ground. "Looks like animal footsteps."

"Something's coming." Reborn alerts the rest causing everyone to get ready for an attack.

A figure jumps out from the ground below and strikes at the baseball idiot, wh dodges it barely and falls on the floor. He tries to get up but the ground around him collapses, causing him to fall into a dome-like cave.

Welcome!" The figure cries as he jumps in after him.

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna cries as they run towards the hole. "What was that?!"

"It looked like a person." Gokudera tells them.

"More importantly, Yamamoto has-" Kouga says.

"He fell in." Bianchi adds.

"Tsuna's memory was accurate." Reborn tells them. "The flora and fauna exhibit was buried by the dirt."

"Eh?! So where' on the roof?!" Tsuna cries.

"Are you alive, Yakuu Baka?" Gokudera asks and Yamamoto gets up quite easily.

"He fell so far."

"Hahaha, that was surprising!" He laughs.

"This is no time to be laughing!" The bomber yells.

"Ah! Yamamoto, there is something down there!" Tsuna tells the baseball fanatic. He turns around and spots a moving beast-like figure in the shadows. "What is that?! An animal?!"

"We can't do anything from up here." Reborn tells them.

"How can that be?! Yamamoto is-"

"I welcome you here, Yamamoto Takeshi." The beasts says. "Kaki-pi's still sleeping, and I've been bored without any orders. And then comes along my prey." He steps out into the light, revealing a blonde Kokuyo student with a scar above his nose. He is Joshima Ken. "I'm super happy."

"Huh? That's a person! A human!" Tsuna says.

"A Kokuyo uniform. He's one of them!" Gokudera says.

"You guys up there! Are you his friends?" Ken calls up to them. "Just get ready to die, all right? I'll take care of you guys one at a time."

"This guy seems dangerous too!" The brunette gulps.

"Hahaha!" They turn their attention to the baseball ace. "You're almost like a dog! Are you playing pretend?"

"Yamamoto still thinks it's a game!" Tsuna and Kouga thought.

"That idiot!" Gokudera mutters.

"Are you a ditz?" The blonde questions his sanity. "Well, that's fine too." He runs towards him, passing him as he jumps back into the shadows. Kouga sees him place something in his mouth and his facial featured changes as while as his nails. He jumps onto the roof and leaps to the other end.

"W-What is that?!" Tsuna yells.

"That's not a human skill!" Gokudera adds.

"Itadakimasu!" Yamamoto raises his bat in defense but Ken bites it into half and jumps back into the shadows.

"Ah! Yamamoto's bat has been…!" Tsuna cries.

"I'll tear your neck next, byon."

"Is that person human?!"

*Sighs* "I see." Yamamoto sighs. "So it's okay to beat up your opponents without holding back when playing mafia, huh?" His eye sharpens with determination and calmness. "Those are the rules, right?"

"Yamamoto's not afraid at all, in fact he's-"

"He's a pretty tough guy, despite his looks." Reborn comments. "He's not going to stay nice after having his bat broken."

"Before we fight, can I ask you something?" The baseball fanatic asks. "Did you… change your appearance? When did you change your outfit?"

Ken face-faults at him. "You really are a ditz…"

"I didn't even realize that he had changed." Tsuna thought.

"Maa, all right. I'll tell you." He steps out to the light, revealing him with a more beast-like appearance than before. "You can play all sorts of games with a console if you switch discs, right?" He shows a group of fake teethes between his fingers. "It's the same as that. By switching cartridges," He plucks out of his current teeth, his face turns back to normal and places in another fake set of teeth. "I can activate lots of different animals' abilities." He roars as his hands become more burly and muscular in such that his uniform is stretch out. "Kong Channel."

"That's a primate homonid, a western lowland gorilla." Bianchi explains.

"I don't believe it…" Tsuna cries. "That's impossible."

"Yamamoto-san…" Ruki mutters.

"Oh, sugoi!" Yamamoto awes at his opponent's new form. "Is that a new kind of doping?"

"I told you," Ken grabs the baseball ace by his sides, "that's not it!" and he flings him to the side of the dome, knocking him against the wall.

"Yamamoto!" Tsuna and Kouga call out.

"I can't keep watching this!" Gokudera takes out a couple dynamites.

"You better not." Reborn warns the silverrette. "If the place collapses from the explosion, Yamamoto will be buried too."

"Tch!"

"Then what can we do?" Tsuna asks.

As Yamamoto gets up, he hears his opponent changes his cartridges again.

"C'mon, c'mon, don't take a break. No matter where you run, I'll find you. Now that I'm the Wolf Channel!" Ken dashes back and forth through the darkness to strike the baseball idiot, but Yamamoto keeps dodging him.

"I can't see well in the dark." Yamamoto looks around in the dark.

"But I know where you are by scent!" Ken voice echoes.

"With his sword broken, he's at a great disadvantage." Bianchi says.

"That's not all." Reborn says. "He's being careful with his body, like he's afraid of being hurt."

"Ah!" Tsuna realizes.

"All you do is run. Are you trying to make this a battle of endurance?" Ken asks.

"Iya… That's not really it." Yamamoto replies as he scratches his cheek. "I have something important in my like besides playing mafia."

"That's right. The baseball club is going to have its tournament soon." Tsuna thought as Ruki remembers that Kouga told her.

"Yamamoto-san said he got a place as a regular to what Onii-sama has told me." Ruki thought.

"He's been trying so hard. If he gets hurt…"

Yamamoto steps back into the darkness as Ken continues to attack him.

"This is no good! What do I do?!" Tsuna panics. "Ah! I shouldn't have brought Yamamoto to this place!"

"Tsuna-san…" Ruki calls.

"If you're so worried, then you should go." Reborn tells the two as he kicks them down into the dome.

"Juudaime/Ruki!" Gokudera and Kouga yell as they fall into the buried exhibit below.

"Why did you do that, Reborn-san?!" Gokudera shouts at the hitman.

"He's right! What if Ruki gets hurt?!" Kouga also shouts.

"Be quiet and watch."

"Ite…" Tsuna and Ruki get up from their fall, rubbing their heads.

"Tsuna and Ruki!" Yamamoto is shock of his friends' entrance to his fight.

"Ah? New preys? Ken says. "Those ones look weaker, I should hunt them first!"

Ruki looks terrified from what Ken said.

"Ah!"

"Itadakimasu!" Ken lunges at the two.

"He's coming!" Tsuna cries.

The blonde is about to strike him when a rock hits him at the back of his head. He turns around and sees the baseball nut holding a rock in his hand.

"I'm your opponent, right?" He says cheerfully. "Come on. I'll nail you and end the game."

"Ah…? A challenge?" Ken says smugly. "Sounds like fun. Then I'll show you my full power too." He switches to a different set of teeth and his features changes and he lunges at him in an incredible speed. "Cheetah Channel!"

"He's fast!" Tsuna cries.

Yamamoto throws the rock in his hand, but it misses as the cheetah-hybrid human bites into his left forearm.

"I've got you!" Ken says between his teeth.

"Yamamoto-san!" Ruki cries out.

"I've got you too!" The baseball ace raises his broken katana and hits him as hard as he can with the hilt, knocking the blonde Kokuyo student out. He crouches down to hold his wound as the student lies on the ground with a bruise near his face and unconscious.

"He was prepared to sacrifice an arm from the beginning." Gokudera says.

"Well done." Bianchi compliments him.

"Yamamoto's arm… To protect us…" Tsuna says. "I'm sorry, Yamamoto! Because of us! Even though you have baseball! Even though the tournament's coming up!"

"Hey, hey, knock it off, Tsuna. There's nothing more important than a friend, right?"

"Yamamoto-san…" Ruki says.

"And I can still play baseball with this little scratch." The baseball nut opens and closes his hand with the injured arm.

"But we need to bandage up just in case." Ruki tells him.

"Juudaime!"

"Ruki!"

The three look up to see the other four on the roof.

"We're about to pull you up!" Gokudera shouts.

As Gokudera brings the three up, Kouga senses something and looks up into the distance.